167 réponses à ce sujet

[Dabrikishaw]

I think Cullen could have worked better as antagonist.

He would have been a better Samson than Samson honestly.

[nightscrawl]

He would have been a better Samson than Samson honestly.

I agree with this. To me there simply wasn't enough to really "get" Samson. I mean, I understand what his arguments were against the Chantry and all that, but it just seemed a bit lacking. And the additional addiction angle just muddied the waters.

I actually felt more of a connection to Maliphant through the codex entries than I did Samson, even though I played DA2 and interacted with him in that game.

I think if it had been a post-DAO Cullen that it would have been pretty interesting. Then again, that Cullen was rather anti-mage, and it doesn't seem like he would go in for becoming the myrmidon of a Tevinter magister darkspawn god-wannabe.

[Ashagar]

Hmm the ultimate radical faction of templars huh led by mage hunter general Cullen huh. Devoted to dealing with the mage threat not caring if  opposed by the chantry the inquisition, Corypheus or any other faction.

[The Baconer]

I actually felt more of a connection to Maliphant through the codex entries than I did Samson, even though I played DA2 and interacted with him in that game.

 

Word.

[BansheeOwnage]

I think Cullen could have worked better as antagonist.

Wow, it took me way too long to realize that large piece of red lyrium was his arm.

 

 

I certainly don't remember anything he said being framed as evil because the game gave us rather complicated image of both mages and templars and tried really hard to explain how it's all a vicious circle, how it's all a rather complex issue.

 

 

 

Kinda don't appreciate Mrs Chee's attitude in some of those, but meh, no point in dwelling on it now.

Yeah, I thought her responses were ...odd... as well    I was even considering tweeting her something about Cullen, but I don't think I will anymore.

[Lady Artifice]

Word.

 

It could have been interesting if in a world state where Hawke helped massacre the circle, Cullen never left the Templars and he ends up in Samson's place, with Samson as his subordinate. 

[Lady Artifice]

Indeed Cullen's attraction to the Warden is far from innocent and could have lead to harassment should the game have let that theme take its course. Jailors and guards in general are abusive toward the people they watch. This could eventually be the case with the mage origin should she reject Cullen's advances.

 

He runs away. Physically, literally runs away if she propositions him. This version of Cullen that would ever actually make advances towards her doesn't exist outside of headcanon. 

[Ashagar]

Prehorrific magical/demonic torture Cullen had a rather extreme case of shyness towards the origins player character female mage and was generally sympathetic towards mages as are a number of other templars that are encountered across the course of the games though more rarely in the second game which seemed lit it almost went out of its way to demonize both mages and templars.

[BansheeOwnage]

He runs away. Physically, literally runs away if she propositions him. This version of Cullen that would ever actually make advances towards her doesn't exist outside of headcanon. 

And he's even more unlikely to do anything after the events in the Circle Tower.

[Vanilka]

 

 

Spoiler

 

Yeah, I thought her responses were ...odd... as well    I was even considering tweeting her something about Cullen, but I don't think I will anymore.

 

Gosh darn damnit.   Pun not intended. Now I wish it was, though.

 

Yeah, it came across a little condescending, among other things, so I can't blame you. And, well, she only seems to be responsible for DAO Cullen anyway if the wiki is correct.

 

I find it a little funny she's so surprised, too, since she presents you with a scenario where a dude has a crush on your character but whether she likes him or not the relationship is not meant to be because that's the rules. Could be your typical taboo love story. So she plants the idea in people's heads in the first place. I think the fact some people would jump at the opportunity, especially in a game focused on RP, is to be expected.

[Vanilka]

He runs away. Physically, literally runs away if she propositions him. This version of Cullen that would ever actually make advances towards her doesn't exist outside of headcanon. 

 

Yup. If you suggest you "get to know each other better", his reaction is...

 

 

 

 

Behold the scary templar.

[BansheeOwnage]

Gosh darn damnit.   Pun not intended. Now I wish it was, though.

 

Yeah, it came across a little condescending, among other things, so I can't blame you. And, well, she only seems to be responsible for DAO Cullen anyway if the wiki is correct.

 

I find it a little funny she's so surprised, too, since she presents you with a scenario where a dude has a crush on your character but whether she likes him or not the relationship is not meant to be because that's the rules. Could be your typical taboo love story. So she plants the idea in people's heads in the first place. I think the fact some people would jump at the opportunity, especially in a game focused on RP, is to be expected.

Is that true, that she didn't write him in Inquisition? That would be weird.

 

Yup. If you suggest you "get to know each other better", his reaction is...

 

 

 

 

Behold the scary templar.

Ha, now I need someone to use that ME3 Cullen mod to have Cullenshep say "I should go."

[Lady Artifice]

Yup. If you suggest you "get to know each other better", his reaction is...

 

 

 

 

Behold the scary templar.

 

I cannot thank you enough for posting this. 

 

My favorite is still the less scandalous version though.

 

Me:

 

-click- 

 

Cullen: You can, uh, come and talk to me anytime. 

 

Me:

 

-click-

 

-click-

 

...

 

-click-

[Vanilka]

Is that true, that she didn't write him in Inquisition? That would be weird.
 
Ha, now I need someone to use that ME3 Cullen mod to have Cullenshep say "I should go."

 
Indeed. The writers seem to exchange characters. That's not the first time I've heard of such a thing. The Mass Effect crew also switched writers a lot.
 
The wiki says: 
 

"Cullen was written by Sheryl Chee in Origins, Jennifer Hepler in Dragon Age: II, and Brianne Battye in Dragon Age: Inquisition."

 
Let's say that with her vision for him, I'm really glad he escaped Mrs Chee after Origins. I can't say I share her love for angst.

 

I cannot thank you enough for posting this. 
 
My favorite is still the less scandalous version though.
 
Me:
 
-click- 
 
Cullen: You can, uh, come and talk to me anytime. 
 
Me:
 
-click-
 
-click-
 
...
 
-click-

Yes! I prefer the less risqué version, as well.

 
"I shouldn't distract you from your duties."
 

 

 
Yeah. He's not cute. In the slightest. I guess I'm just super weird. 

[jpbreon]

As others have said, Cullen had a much, much, MUCH greater fanbase than he had interaction within the game. If you doubt this, just go look at Origins fanfics. Unless you played a female mage, you literally only interacted with him prior to the final confrontation with Uldred and his blood mage cronies - where he serves mostly as a plot point to convince you to kill all the mages.

Never underestimate the power of a 'wounded puppy' psychology. Sexually repressed, tortured, all alone. This is catnip to a large amount of people who find this sexually exciting.

 

It may seem I dislike Cullen. I do not. I don't share the above fixation, but I think it's good for the overall series to add a male character to the game that is written more for women rather than a man written for a man or writing the woman for the man, if you'll pardon that weird construction. Cullen maintains his naivete throughout the series (Inquisition strip, anyone?) while struggling with what he's seen and what's he done.

It's only fair. Fans get their Cullen because I got my Cassandra. 

[BansheeOwnage]

 
Indeed. The writers seem to exchange characters. That's not the first time I've heard of such a thing. The Mass Effect crew also switched writers a lot.
 
The wiki says: 
 

 
Let's say that with her vision for him, I'm really glad he escaped Mrs Chee after Origins. I can't say I share her love for angst.

 

Yes! I prefer the less risqué version, as well.

 
"I shouldn't distract you from your duties."
 

 

 
Yeah. He's not cute. In the slightest. I guess I'm just super weird. 

Hmm, interesting. I agree completely, I probably wouldn't have liked his romance if she did end up doing it. So I'm glad that happened. Or, didn't happen. You know.

 

As others have said, Cullen had a much, much, MUCH greater fanbase than he had interaction within the game. If you doubt this, just go look at Origins fanfics. Unless you played a female mage, you literally only interacted with him prior to the final confrontation with Uldred and his blood mage cronies - where he serves mostly as a plot point to convince you to kill all the mages.

Never underestimate the power of a 'wounded puppy' psychology. Sexually repressed, tortured, all alone. This is catnip to a large amount of people who find this sexually exciting.

Not everything's about sex I'm not sexually attracted to Cullen whatsoever, but I love his romance because of the rest of it.

 

Edit: By "rest of it", I meant the rest of the romance, not the rest of the things you listed, just to be clear.

[Lady Artifice]

^ Well, I was never enamored of mage hating "wounded puppy" Cullen. I was horrified in that moment when he insisted I destroy every mage in the tower, and disgusted by his DA2 attitude. Any enduring affection I harbored for the character was due to his early gentleness and idealism in contrast with the typical Templar attitude. 

 

I don't even think he's that good looking. 

[Ashagar]

Well to be fair I can't imagine too many people who would have a good or even remotely nice view of mages after what he went though, I suspect many would likely harbor views even worse than his post horrific trauma views. Still one of the nice things about Cullen Its one of the nice things about his character is how his views change and evolve over the course of the years.

 

IT seems to me though here is doesn't truely seem to be a single typical Templar attitude but a multitude of views that you encounter from various Templar and from back stories of various characters across the series. There seems to be various templars ranging from heroic protectors of both mages and mundane to paranoid mage hunters that see blood magic everywhere, to templars who rescue and protect child mages from those who would harm them for simply being mages and those who would hunt and face evil even while others dismiss whats going on like Sir Otto or that templar hunting the mage serial killer both of whom sadly die. I have to admit I like that, it makes the order a complex human organization made up of people with different views and ideas.

[Andraste_Reborn]

As someone who has no particular attachment to Cullen and still hasn't got around to romancing him, I don't think there's any reason he shouldn't be in all three games. Between what happened at Kinloch Hold and Kirkwall, he's seen both mages and Templars at their worst. That gives him a perspective on the issue that no other previously introduced character really has, so I can see why they decided to bring him back and give him a more prominent role in Inquisition.

[Bayonet Hipshot]

Because of fanservice and fanbase. Bioware is a business company after all, and a business company that wants to make a profit would be wise to capitalize on rabid fangirls. That's just the reality of the situation.

[Vanilka]

Well to be fair I can't imagine too many people who would have a good or even remotely nice view of mages after what he went though, I suspect many would likely harbor views even worse than his post horrific trauma views. Still one of the nice things about Cullen Its one of the nice things about his character is how his views change and evolve over the course of the years.

 
I agree. I think the important thing is though that we may understand where he's coming from, but we can never accept it as okay. He doesn't get a pass to be a bastard just because he had bad things happen to him, even though we perfectly understand how he got to be that way. What's even more important, as you said, is that he eventually realised that he F'd up and cut it out, started working on it. Much like you, one of the things I really like about him is that he grows so much. I've always enjoyed characters that have development and I think Cullen has plenty.

 

 

IT seems to me though here is doesn't truely seem to be a single typical Templar attitude but a multitude of views that you encounter from various Templar and from back stories of various characters across the series. There seems to be various templars ranging from heroic protectors of both mages and mundane to paranoid mage hunters that see blood magic everywhere, to templars who rescue and protect child mages from those who would harm them for simply being mages and those who would hunt and face evil even while others dismiss whats going on like Sir Otto or that templar hunting the mage serial killer both of whom sadly die. I have to admit I like that, it makes the order a complex human organization made up of people with different views and ideas.

 

People who think it's all templar = evil, mages = good are oversimplifying. Both templars and mages are people that can be either good or bad or something in between. I think we have plenty of examples of templars that genuinely care about protecting people. Ser Otto is definitely a great example. Thrask is another. We also have some insane sadists like Meredith and Alrik. Just like we have Wynne, Dorian and Vivienne on one side, and Anders, Grace and Danarius on the other with mages. I think the games have given us enough material to see that neither group is homogeneous in their beliefs, morals, opinions, etc.

 

I see templars as guardians, some sort of magic police, that are part of a questionable system myself.

[nightscrawl]

^ To me, one of the best templar moments in the entire game series is during a DA2 cinematic when Meredith makes her entrance by draining a Saarebas of power and then killing him. It was really great and I always hold that up as an example of why templars, and their abilities, are needed on some level. It's a shame that their abilities haven't been showcased in this way more often in the games.

 

Yes, there are arguments to be made about templars being the military arm of the Chantry, the lyrium addiction, veritable jailers rather than guardians, and so on, but I am referring only to the practical use of their abilities.

[Catilina]

I had like in DA2 Cullen's reactions: he was always ready to listen my pro-mage Hawke's arguments. If you talk to him at the Gallows, you can try to convince him. He will never agree with, but he does not completely reject what Hawke says. As i see.

[Aren]

Morrigan was brought back because she had important with Flemeth plot ongoing from get go.

 

Leliana was brought back because she is writers pet.

 

Cullen was brought back because of fanservice , despite of bioware denying it as there was no other reason to bring Cullen back.

From the DA2 epilogue Leliana and Cassandra were the two who made most sense to be in DAI.

The Inquisitor on the other hand didn't needed Morrigan because the well of sorrow can be perfectly used by the protagonist without problems and Flemeth didn't wanted to find her if the DR is not done..

[Aren]

I do like him, but objectively speaking I don't understand what motivated this choice.

Leliana, Morrigan and Alistair keep coming back because they were the hero's companions in the game that started everything. But more importantly, they were well established characters.

 

 

I'm one of those who don't like returning characters but Cullen unlike most of them had a very small role in the previous games so is not a problem at all since DAI was the first time he had a proper role to play.

For other like AListiar,Leliana,Morrigan,Varric things are completly different they are the overexposed characters not Cullen..