This is the place for discussion and voting on various aspects of werewolf life, social ideas, physical appearance, etc. Also a place to vote on how a werewolf should look.
Silverclaw wrote:Things I dont like.....
-Obvious things like-Mindless killers, no fur/greasy patches of hair, and no tails.
-Can only shift on the full moon. How boring...
-Body Builder muscles. I like them to look more...normal. It all depends on what they are like in human form.
-Super abilities like, crazy strong and fast. Jumping to insane heights, healing super fast like X-Men's Wolverine, and regrowing entire limbs like its nothing.
-Only thing that can really hurt or kill them is silver.
-Amnesia of being in ww form.
-Becoming a werewolf=being a sex maniac.
-Shifting that last less than a minute. Changing ones entire body should take a bit more time than that.
Yep, that about sums up my views on the subject, I probably have a few more I could add, but I'm having truoble thinking of any now.
My biggest gripe is when people refer to werewolves, or even werebeasts in general, as "were's."
Um, don't these clueless clods realize that the "were" in "werewolf" comes from Old English meaning "person"?
Really, everytime I see a reference to a "were," it feels like sharp fingernails are drawn down my spine.
Now that that's been taken care of, another concept I don't like is the "Classic Wolfman" look.
I'm sorry, but, I prefer my werewolves to look wolf-like, and not like a sufferer of hypertrichosis.
To me, at least, the use of the "Classic Wolfman" makes me think that the special FX department is not very sofisticated, or they happen to have a shoestring budget.
I am aware of those movies where they want to emphasis the person, and not the beast, ala "Wolf," or "Werewolf of London," but, those are the only two movies that have done this that I know of.
While I don't mind the idea of a person turning into a slavering, flesh-craving beast, I don't like it when a person casually throws the entirety of his or her scruples out the window, once they find out that they can turn into a monster. I think the idea that one can allow one's self to become a casual mass-murderer so calmly is grossly contrieved.
I mean, I think that the idea of a person turning into a nigh-mindless beast meshes well with the theme in many werewolf stories of the loss of one's self. Having said this, I find the idea of becoming an arrogant, uber-Goth murderer who thinks that all humans are just sheep waiting to be personally slaughtered to be unappealing. All of those stories that feature such a werewolf tend to place great emphasis on the supposed fact that they are actually somehow superior to humans, nevermind that the werewolf is probably illiterate, and couldn't compose art if his miserable, flea-bitten life depended on it.
Now we move on to another complaint...
Where, we, the audience is told that werewolves, vampires, or, whatever other secret cabal of gobbledeboos, run the entire world from the shadows, or even worse, that, all of the world's ills flow from the hands, paws or claws of this hidden organization. I've seen this done so many times, sometimes with werewolves, more often with vampires or cultists, and I've found all of the examples to be poorly done, and left me with the desire to gather up these shadow-rulers, tar and feather them before setting them ablaze with the writers as punishment for having done such a crappy job of ruling the world.
Speaking of vampires, I find the theme of "Vampires versus Werewolves" to be so boring, so as to be violently nauseating.
All it is is "Grrr, we hate vampires! Grrr, we hate werewolves!"
And the only two twists one can use with this, and that have been done with this, too, are the "forbidden love between a werewolf and a vampire," and the "werewolf-vampire hybrid." Both are often found together, much in the manner of how Deltavirus occurs as a coinfection with the Hepatitus B Virus.
Focusing back on werewolves, it's my belief that an important theme of werewolves is the "loss of one's self," and "man-into-beast."
Having said this, it makes me violently ill when a bunch of losers get together and make a werewolf movie and neglect to show the aforementioned werewolf changing to and or from his or her human form. Things get oh so much worse when they say, "oh, well, [showing the werewolf change] wasn't necessary to the plot."
That's like the pizza delivery man coming up to your door, handing you a bag of matzo and an empty bottle of ketchup, and telling you, "Here's your meat-lover's pizza, where's my 20 bucks and tip?"
You might as well make a vampire movie where all of the vampires have no fangs and prance around in the park at noon.
And one last thing...
I don't like it when the werewolf is wearing clothing after he or she has transformed...
It just looks so cheap and tacky.
"I was all of history's great acting robots: Acting Unit 0.8, Thespo-mat, David Duchovny!"
-Calculon
Apokryltaros wrote:My biggest gripe is when people refer to werewolves, or even werebeasts in general, as "were's."
Um, don't these clueless clods realize that the "were" in "werewolf" comes from Old English meaning "person"?
Really, everytime I see a reference to a "were," it feels like sharp fingernails are drawn down my spine.
I would like to add that to one of my Peeves as well.
...while simultaniously, I can understand why people do it. I mean...when you are trying to group all Werewolf-Like shapeshifters into a common category, for the purposes of simplifying a conversation, what DO you call them? (I suppose one could add on a little to the word to put it into proper context, such as "Were-Creatures"...)
What bothers me more is when people use it as an alternative for "Therian".
I'm sorry...but if you happen to be a Therian, that does not make you a "Werewolf", or a "WereMouse" ..."WereDragon"...etc, etc...
(I will not comment on the points I disagree with, because that is not the purpose of this thread. You have every right to disagree with me on those points.)
Please Forgive the Occasional Outburst of my Inner Sage ... for he is Oblivious to Sarcasm, and not Easily Silenced.
Apokryltaros wrote:My biggest gripe is when people refer to werewolves, or even werebeasts in general, as "were's."
Um, don't these clueless clods realize that the "were" in "werewolf" comes from Old English meaning "person"?
Really, everytime I see a reference to a "were," it feels like sharp fingernails are drawn down my spine.
I would like to add that to one of my Peeves as well.
...while simultaniously, I can understand why people do it. I mean...when you are trying to group all Werewolf-Like shapeshifters into a common category, for the purposes of simplifying a conversation, what DO you call them? (I suppose one could add on a little to the word to put it into proper context, such as "Were-Creatures"...)
What bothers me more is when people use it as an alternative for "Therian".
I'm sorry...but if you happen to be a Therian, that does not make you a "Werewolf", or a "WereMouse" ..."WereDragon"...etc, etc...
I say we (re)name all werebeasts as "Bob."
Like, "Bob I" for werewolves, "Bob XVI" for weretigers, "Bob MXXVIII" for wererats, etc.
"I was all of history's great acting robots: Acting Unit 0.8, Thespo-mat, David Duchovny!"
-Calculon
Apokryltaros wrote:
I say we (re)name all werebeasts as "Bob."
Like, "Bob I" for werewolves, "Bob XVI" for weretigers, "Bob MXXVIII" for wererats, etc.
Vuldari wrote:
What bothers me more is when people use it as an alternative for "Therian".
I'm sorry...but if you happen to be a Therian, that does not make you a "Werewolf", or a "WereMouse" ..."WereDragon"...etc, etc...
You and I hardly ever agree, but on this particular point, I agree with you wholeheartedly. When therians call themselves werewolves or weres I just want to strangle them, and then carry them off to a real werewolf, and show them what a werewolf really is. Honestly, if real werewolves did exist, they would probably be offended that a bunch of mere humans were calling themselves werewolves (either that, or highly amused).
Vuldari wrote:
What bothers me more is when people use it as an alternative for "Therian".
I'm sorry...but if you happen to be a Therian, that does not make you a "Werewolf", or a "WereMouse" ..."WereDragon"...etc, etc...
You and I hardly ever agree, but on this particular point, I agree with you wholeheartedly. When therians call themselves werewolves or weres I just want to strangle them, and then carry them off to a real werewolf, and show them what a werewolf really is. Honestly, if real werewolves did exist, they would probably be offended that a bunch of mere humans were calling themselves werewolves (either that, or highly amused).
That is the reason why I'm so confused about therians.
Excelsia wrote:You and I hardly ever agree, but on this particular point, I agree with you wholeheartedly. When therians call themselves werewolves or weres I just want to strangle them, and then carry them off to a real werewolf, and show them what a werewolf really is. Honestly, if real werewolves did exist, they would probably be offended that a bunch of mere humans were calling themselves werewolves (either that, or highly amused).
Personally that always seemed a bit disingenous to me. A werewolf is a creature that is a mixing of both human and wolf. On the other side of the coin, there are people that got angry because they though the therian community was saying they're too good for the word 'were'.
(But hey, if you can prove somehow have a wolf spirit inhabiting your body, and that it is somehow different than the ones that inhabit regular people, then I suppose 'werewolf' would work.)
I don't suffer from lycanthropy, I enjoy every minute of it!
Lupin wrote:
(But hey, if you can prove somehow have a wolf spirit inhabiting your body, and that it is somehow different than the ones that inhabit regular people, then I suppose 'werewolf' would work.)
Lupin wrote:
(But hey, if you can prove somehow have a wolf spirit inhabiting your body, and that it is somehow different than the ones that inhabit regular people, then I suppose 'werewolf' would work.)
True. But, as you seem to have implied, they can't prove it. I could wake up tomorrow and decide that I was inhabited by the spirit of a turtle, and not be any less credible than any other therian.
Frankly, I think being a therian is a choice that someone makes. I don't think anyone is born being more animal than the rest of humanity. I think it is merely a matter of choosing to be more connected with a primal side of oneself that all humans possess in some way or form, and associating it with an animal. After all, why are there more therians of cool animals than sucky animals? There is an absurd number of therian wolves, tigers, lions, dragons, foxes, etc., but never a therian aardvark or armadillo or sloth. It makes no sense that more therians would be of awesome animals. Logically, it would make sense that they would be balanced, according to the animal population. (Though, I suppose one could make the argument that there are more therians of endangered animals, i.e. the cool ones, than there are of less cool animals because there are no longer enough bodies of those animals for the spirits to inhabit, and some must bleed over into humanity. But, that still doesn't resolve the lack of therian pandas, dodos, manatees, or condors.)
Ah well. I'm not a therian, but I am a diehard werewolf fan, so I guess maybe that's why it bothers me so. Maybe if a wolf spirit awakens in me one day, I will think differently. Though, I doubt it.
Lupin wrote:
(But hey, if you can prove somehow have a wolf spirit inhabiting your body, and that it is somehow different than the ones that inhabit regular people, then I suppose 'werewolf' would work.)
Ack!!! More confusion!!
The only confusing part would be how to prove it. (Through proving it would provide a lot of answers to other things.) A person with a wolf's soul would at least meet my minimum definition of 'werewolf'. Kind of like how while RFC 761 definies the minimum requirements for a TCP packet, but nobody actually uses that implementation.
I don't suffer from lycanthropy, I enjoy every minute of it!
Lupin wrote:
The only confusing part would be how to prove it. (Through proving it would provide a lot of answers to other things.) A person with a wolf's soul would at least meet my minimum definition of 'werewolf'. Kind of like how while RFC 761 definies the minimum requirements for a TCP packet, but nobody actually uses that implementation.
In my view, having another soul besides your own is being "possessed."
Just because a wolf soul is in a human doesn't mean he/she is a 'werewolf.' Why is that extra soul there? Whats its purpose?
What if another human soul is in you? What are you called then?
Also, when you look up 'werewolf' you get this....
: a person transformed into a wolf or capable of assuming a wolf's form
Where does it say having a soul of the wolf?
Now can you see why I'm so confused?
When I see the word 'werewolf', this is what pops into my mind. *points to avatar*
Figarou wrote:
In my view, having another soul besides your own is being "possessed."
It would be their own.
Just because a wolf soul is in a human doesn't mean he/she is a 'werewolf.' Why is that extra soul there? Whats its purpose?
It's not two souls (one human/one not-human) in one body. It's one (non-human) soul in one body
What if another human soul is in you? What are you called then?
Somebody else.
Also, when you look up 'werewolf' you get this....
: a person transformed into a wolf or capable of assuming a wolf's form
Where does it say having a soul of the wolf?
That's the dictionary's definition, not mine. And like I said having a wolf's soul meets my minimum defintion. Normally when I say 'werewolf' I normally mean something that turns into a big, hairy beast every so often. Comparing the minimum and regular definitons are like comparing the flavor of tofu and steak.[/i]
I don't suffer from lycanthropy, I enjoy every minute of it!
Lupin wrote:
(But hey, if you can prove somehow have a wolf spirit inhabiting your body, and that it is somehow different than the ones that inhabit regular people, then I suppose 'werewolf' would work.)
True. But, as you seem to have implied, they can't prove it. I could wake up tomorrow and decide that I was inhabited by the spirit of a turtle, and not be any less credible than any other therian.
It's not so much that I think they can't prove it, it's more I don't know how they could prove it. I work with computers, where things are 'tangible': the packet either is there, or it isn't. Mankind has been trying to prove the existance of a soul since time began.
I don't suffer from lycanthropy, I enjoy every minute of it!
Lupin wrote:
It's not so much that I think they can't prove it, it's more I don't know how they could prove it. I work with computers, where things are 'tangible': the packet either is there, or it isn't. Mankind has been trying to prove the existance of a soul since time began.
Not when time began, its when we became smart enough to ask the question.
Figarou wrote:Not when time began, when we became smart enough to ask the question.
Well since time really began when we got smart enough measure time, (this is where the question 'does anyone really know what time it is?' comes from ) And we've probably been asking before that. I'd say 'before time began'.
I don't suffer from lycanthropy, I enjoy every minute of it!
Figarou wrote:Not when time began, when we became smart enough to ask the question.
Well since time really began when we got smart enough measure time, (this is where the question 'does anyone really know what time it is?' comes from ) And we've probably been asking before that. I'd say 'before time began'.
You mean....Before humans measured time.
Time is a usefull tool. We all know that. Without it, we won't know when our favorite show comes on. We also can use 'time' to tell when the next lunar eclipse can happen. The orbit of the moon and earth is precise. We can use it to measure time. To me, thats where time began. When humans was smart enough to look at the sun and moon to measure time.
these forums have as good as info as anywhere else, and maybe they can help ur confusion a little.
Anyway, back to the peeves:
1) Mindless blood thirsty monsters
2)super fast regeneration (slightly faster than human i think is okay, but not whole limbs, just cuts,broken bones,small injuries. Ex.: 4 inch long gash to the bone,12 days instead of 2 1/2 weeks for a human; broken arm, 5 weeks instead of 6 1/2)
3)only way to kill is with silver bullet (documents from the middle ages record werewolf deaths, and they didnt even HAVE guns)
4)unrealistic strength and powers (real wolves can jump up to around 14 feet at the max, 10 feet would be plenty. NO SUPER STRENGTH! wolflike stamina, agility, and endurance are fine)
5)half animal, half human during FULL SHIFT; I dont mind if they can partial shift to here on the way to a full wolf form
Really, I don't care if there are people who think they have an extra can of mushroom soup in their heads, or if they think that they're really cockatoo squids trapped above water: I just want them to stop refering to lycanthropes as "weres."
"I was all of history's great acting robots: Acting Unit 0.8, Thespo-mat, David Duchovny!"
-Calculon
Lupin wrote:As in 'I am assuming there is some basic diffence between a soul that goes into a person and a soul that goes into a wolf.'
I'm sorry to be dragging on this off-topic conversation even further, but I just wanted to comment on this.
Being a Non-Therian myself (though I wondered for a while) I can't really say I know what a Therian really is, but there is one thing I'm convinced they are not. ..."misplaced souls"...
I can't really say I know exactly what a "Soul" is either, but I am convinced that every living, thinking creature has one and that they are all essentially the same. As in...at the point of conception, the soul of a Human and the soul of a Rabbit are no different. The soul holds no pre-conceptions of who or what that individual is going to be. It is like water...over time, it comes to take the shape of it's container. Therefore, a person could not be born with a Non-human soul, as there is no distinction.
However, when you factor in questions of "Reincarnation" and other such concepts, then the whole issue gets alot more complicated.
Overall, I don't think any Therian has a Non-Human soul, but I don't deny their certainty of their feelings. Something is there...something is different...but what that thing is may be impossible to define, and is quite likely different in origin and nature from Therian to Therian.
- I hate scenes with blood pouring from a werewolves mouth. That is just unnessary to me. Seriously...does ANY animal eat like that? ...sucking up a mouthful of blood so it can drool it out while staring menacingly before it digs into it's meal again...
That and mauling someone randomly and leaving. WTF?! ...surely, whether the creature is concious of it's actions or moving on blind instinct, it attacked that person for a reason. If its concious murder, then the Werewolf would likely make at least some effort to hide or dispose of the body, rather than just leave it lying where they were slain. And if it was out of carnivourous instinct...well...I'd think that most of the victims "good parts" would be devoured, and not much would be left of the body.
...just slashing their guts open, taking one bite out of their arm and then running off to kill someone else does not make any sense at all to me.
(Actually...I'm not fond of blood and gore at all...but if someone is going to use it in a film, I think they should at least do it Right)
Please Forgive the Occasional Outburst of my Inner Sage ... for he is Oblivious to Sarcasm, and not Easily Silenced.
