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Magix Club's Forum _ Creative Writing _ The Mary-Sue/Gary-Stu Form
Posted by: winxclubrox23 Sep 17 2010, 3:10 AM
I came across this, highly entertaining thing. Basically you answer it accordingly, and it gives you points, eventually telling you if your character is a Mary-Sue/Gary-Stu.
http://www.ponylandpress.com/ms-test.html
Posted by: Jahnavi Sep 17 2010, 7:00 AM
...43 points for one of my characters. I didn't even think she was Sue-ish. T_T
But it is indeed highly entertaining. Thanks for sharing, Tea. 8D
Posted by: P-girl Sep 17 2010, 7:13 AM
Heh, Ian Cole's a 6. Mission accomplished.
Posted by: MorriganAensland Sep 17 2010, 9:44 PM
Did a test for Saki Hongo, a character that will be the protagonist of the story I write after Those Who Oppose Infinity.
She got a 3.
^_^ Awesome.
Posted by: winxclubrox23 Sep 18 2010, 1:25 AM
I like did this so many times. It was rather addictive.
The highest I got excluding Carmina 'cause I made her when I was like 12 and I knew she was a major-Sue the highest I got was like 24. xD
Posted by: Anna Maria Sep 19 2010, 4:16 PM
Two of my characters got a 47 and a 16. I personally believe non of them is a Mary-Sue, hehe, but that was still fun. xD
Posted by: P-girl Sep 19 2010, 4:33 PM
Mary-Sueness is very, very subjective. I had a girl who cried it the moment someone got a canon love-interest. I, myself think that's a bit harsh. I think a Mary Sue is a character that is instantly better then everyone else in the story, and who's found earth-strikingly beautiful automatically. Oh, and girls who think it's cute and sassy to act like a total bee-with-an-itch, and doesn't get called out for it.
Posted by: Ranma Sep 20 2010, 5:50 AM
I think that test was a bit...situational. "Is your character royalty or from royalty?"
In my video game that I'm making (one of them anyway), the main protagonist is an emperor... but so is the rest of the cast. So in the context of THAT story he wouldn't be considered a Mary-Sue. Also, "can your character use magic?" ... again, depending on the story...
Posted by: winxclubrox23 Sep 20 2010, 11:10 PM
I agree. Everything has to do with the context of the story. My one character is immortal No! Not a vampire! but immortality is a very common thing for her universe. So there, she wouldn't be a Mary-Sue.
But meh. It's addictive. xD
Posted by: W.I.N.X Sep 21 2010, 2:57 AM
Heh. My character has the same problem as Tea. The poor emo-sissy boy is immortal, and looks younger than he actually is, but so do the rest of the immortals. Otherwise he got 12.
Posted by: winxclubrox23 Sep 21 2010, 4:19 AM
Bahaha, that's not as bad as Aneria. She got like, 21. I doubt all her angst helped much. xD
Posted by: W.I.N.X Sep 21 2010, 12:25 PM
Baha, victory! My dear Jal got 4! Good little man. Of course, I think I could've got less points, because I just HAD to say that Jal was a good singer/piano player. It was only fitting.
Posted by: P-girl Sep 21 2010, 12:38 PM
My six points are for the fact he gets a love-interest and has a scar. (What can I say? I like scars) Also, that's my main beef with this test. Apperantly, according to some questions, your character just has to be horribly uninteresting.
Posted by: winxclubrox23 Sep 22 2010, 2:46 AM
Brock got 12. I'm not even sure how that happened. Either. Ferdinand got 3. xDMy absolute favourite question, in regards to Aneria is, "Does your character angst about being immortal?"
Posted by: P-girl Sep 22 2010, 6:08 AM
*Cough*
Well, that is something I often find VERY annoying in a character.
*Cough*
Posted by: winxclubrox23 Sep 22 2010, 11:00 PM
*cough*Congratulations.*cough*
Posted by: Ranma Sep 23 2010, 2:28 AM
My character is immortal as well, but he doesn't angst over it. However, like I said before, these things aren't uncommon in the world my character lives in.
Posted by: MorriganAensland Sep 25 2010, 3:20 PM
Me again, just dropping by.
I've seen a few people here feel that some parts of the test don't seem to take into account the fact that some Mary Sue traits could be commonplace in stories. Immortality's one, and royalty's another.
However, this isn't necessarily a blank check for including plot devices and elements and saying they don't make people Mary Sues because everyone has them. There is such a thing as a "http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ThirtySuePileup" which is exactly what it sounds like: a story that has more than one Sue in it.
Posted by: P-girl Sep 25 2010, 3:37 PM
I think it's got to do with some hurt pride. (And before you start, that wasn't meant to be judgy or insulting. I mean, I got in on it, didn't I?)
Posted by: MorriganAensland Sep 25 2010, 3:39 PM
I'm not saying anyone here has that problem. It's simply a case that you shouldn't excuse more ridiculous and stupid things in stories because everyone has them.
Posted by: winxclubrox23 Sep 25 2010, 11:15 PM
Pffft. Hurt pride. Good one.
None of my characters are Sues. Except Carmina. But of couse, I've known that all along.
Posted by: Ranma Nov 9 2010, 3:19 AM
I don't think having certain traits automatically makes a character a Mary Sue though. According to that logic there can be no fantasy at all. Vampires are out, Immortals, demons, etc... And as for royalty, it's the same thing. Just because my character (the one I used in the test) is an emperor, doesn't mean he's a Gary-Stu. I just wanted to tell the story from an emperor's point of view and made the character accordingly.
That, to me, is like saying, "You're character is a dentist? That's such a Gary-Stu!" or "Your character is a doctor! That's so Gary-Stu!"
For example, I'll use a character I didn't make.
Geralt, from "The Witcher" or "The Hexor," according to this test is a Gary-Stu. He has odd colored eyes, white hair, he's a demon hunter, he uses magic, and he's different from the other "witchers."
But I never once felt that he was Gary-Stuish when I read and watched his stories. (He stars in a video game, a novel, and a tv series)
He belongs to a group of demon hunters called "the witchers." He, like all witchers, was taken from his home at a young age. The elder witchers, to make him a witcher, mutated his body, and because of that process he got the strange eyes and white hair. Now, not all witchers have those eyes and hair, but it isn't strange, according to the story, that he would get those physical traits because of the mutation. The character, personality wise, is really down to earth and he feels really human. According to that list he's a giant Gary-Stu, but to me, and anyone else who knows his story, he is a unique and well made character.
Posted by: P-girl Nov 9 2010, 7:01 AM
I think, when it comes down to it, it's the feel a character gives the people and how likeable they are. Both things can't really be measured and pointed out with just facts.
Posted by: winxclubrox23 Nov 10 2010, 3:33 AM
Honestly though, if you actually think about it, there are in fact real people in this world that would most certainly be classified as Sues/Stus if put through this particular test. Any test, really.
Posted by: Ranma Nov 12 2010, 4:58 AM
Yep, I actually qualify for some of those things. For starters I have a scar...or two...
Posted by: P-girl Nov 12 2010, 6:54 AM
I have highlights.... and for a while, my hair was pink!
Posted by: Ranma Jan 17 2011, 7:25 PM
My parents, the ones who named me, liked the name they gave me. They were just setting me up for Gary Stue-dom!
Posted by: Fortress Guy Jan 17 2011, 9:18 PM
Having had writing experiences, I understand how easy it can be to get caught up in minor characters. Writing often requires discipline, be it in games, TV, movies, articles, short stories or novels. 
Posted by: Ranma Jan 18 2011, 6:37 AM
Haven't seen you in a while fortress guy. I actually have a lot of writing experience myself. Dreamer is actually a way for me to cut loose and take it easy. I was trying a new writing style when I first started it, and now I'm sticking to it as I try to alter that style. Some people like it, and others don't like it so much. Anyway, I'm in the middle of writing a video game script, and I've written two or three game scripts in the past. The one I'm working on is the largest I've done by far. It's also part of the reason why I haven't been on much lately.