Fourth Crown Princess Taoshira of Kai
Whenever I looked at the various publications of Dragonfly, Taoshira, or ‘Tashi’ was always depicted as a white woman with blonde hair and green eyes which felt at odds with the cultural that was being described. Everything pointed to an Eastern Asian culture with heavy influence on high context forms of communication that focuses more on body language than plain speaking, the descriptor of the Blue Crescent people developing gun powder before the continent did as well as flowing garments, fans and face paint reminiscent of the geisha of Japan. This led me to treat Tashi as an Asian girl with less a than perfect court appearance to represent the fact that she doesn’t feel adequate as a princess but comfortable in the stolen clothes with a sling like when she was a goat herder on Kai.
Outfit References:
I do have a particular weakness for outfit design and luckily for me, the characters of the Dragonfly have an abundance of them!
Prince Ramil ac Burinholt
Ramil ‘Ram’ ac Burinholt is Tashi’s opposite in every way - where she was trained to be a princess who is quiet and stony faced, hidden behind face paint and a fan, Ram has always worn his heart on his sleeve, the definition of brash and a over emotional. He’s got the wandering soul of his mother’s people, the Horse Followers of the Southern Desert, but the dedication and civil mindedness of his father King Lagan. He’s cunning, a little arrogant and has an attitude that is seen in his battle strategy and many one liners scattered throughout the book. He’s also willing to humble himself and admit his mistakes making him the leader his father could be proud of.
Outfit References:
Gordoc Ironfist
According to the book, Gordoc Ironfist can be described as ‘a giant of a man, with a big bushy beard.’ Naturally I turned to a mix of fighting game simulators, the Hulk, as well as members of the worlds strongest man contest like Tom Stoltman of Scotland. Despite his oversized appearance he has a heart of gold, taking care of Tashi despite everyone calling her a witch and when she’s gone, making sure that Ramil doesn’t drive himself into the ground either. He can bend steel bars and uses his fists instead of weapons making him a more fearsome foe than any have witnessed.
Outfit References:
Melletin of Brigard
Where Gordoc is the Brigardian of muscle, Melletin is the Brigardian of brains. The only description of him as an introduction is that he is ‘tall and red headed’ which isn’t much to go on but for some reason my brain came up with a strange combination of Han Solo from Star Wars and Phoebus from The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He’s a man of strategy, bravery and one who is determined to do good for his people even if it means following Ramil as he incites a slave rebellion.
Outfit References:
Professor Tadex Norling
‘My name is Norling, Professor Tadex Norling, formerly of the University of Mollinder, our old capital, now chief medical officer of the new capital of all true Brigardians, fondly known as Fenbog.’
Norling is a tad be eccentric while at the same time being incredibly bright and caring towards those who are under his care and for the oppressed people under the thumb of Spearthrower and Inkar Yellowtooth. He is the brains behind the education of the Resistance - though his teaching plans involve mixing explosive compounds and destroying infrastructure instead of basic mathematics. To me he was a mix of the Mechanic from Avatar: the Last Airbender, Preston Whitmore from Atlantis; the Lost Empire and (a true call back to my childhood) Benjamin Franklin from PBS’s Liberty Kids.
Outfit References:
Yelena of Brigard
A woman who is the complete opposite of Tashi in every way while also being her greatest female ally. She’s a natural born fighter and assassin while also maintaining a playful attitude that pushes Melletin’s nerves and encourages Tashi to be as silly and carefree in a way that she’s never had the opportunity to be. She teaches Tashi how to defend herself from a world that wishes to harm her while also fighting hard to make sure that the Resistance succeeds so that women need never feel oppressed. She ended up being an interesting mix of Zooey Deschanel, UFC fighter Tabatha ‘Baby Shark’ Ricci, and Xena Warrior Princess.
