So many Isekai, Time Travel and Reincarnation stories tend to have these troupes that really just have these awful situations or protagonists being abused or hated or wronged. Which isn't necessarily bad for the story. But more often than it should be, you'll see these troupes being thrown in just for the sake of the plot and advancing the protagonist story. If you're really into the story you may not notice, or if the rest of the plot is good enough you'll just roll an eye. And if you're really unlucky you've read Ingrid, the White Deer.
I'm getting to my point now. Beastmen tend to show up a lot in Fantasy stories, often as the inferior race and used as slaves for nobles. Then the protagonist shows up and sees them as equals because their different and yada yada 'insert generic plot'
It's a pretty common troupe. But thinking over it, I feel its more just used to make humans and nobles look evil and the protagonist shine and get another addition to their harem. Humans aren't saints, yes and they are likely to look down on outsiders or people different from them which is bad but let's be real its not uncommon with the rest of the animal kingdom.
I just don't see how it's possible for humans in every fantasy universe to have dominant control to enslave Beastmen with such ease. When:
1. Beastmen are proven to have higher capabilities in strength, magic and physical senses.
2. Since they are half human are capable of learning, critical thinking, inventing and adapting to their environment and innovating to create complex structures and societies.
3. Sometimes have demographics where the beastmen population is capable of forming a country or two.
Vampires and werewolves are terrying creatures that humans could never hope to stand against but a beastman/demi-human need to be protected ???????
If you say, that maybe its because their peaceful. I'll call bullshit on that. I hate that self-deprecating thing humans in stories, where everyone is peaceful and have a prefect utopia and humans are evil or lost their way. We aren't perfect again but any civilization has room for corruption and greed, so I call it as generic or utopia worldbuilding.
Advanced weapons? That actually depends. Back during ya know, slavery in the Caribbean, some runaway slaves managed to escape to the mountains and form villages. They are The Maroons. Of course, slavemasters and the government wouldn't be happy with this so they sent soldiers after them. I don't think anyone in today's world would believe that you could beat a bunch of trained soldiers with guns so bad with handmade slingshots, spears and bow and arrow that they would be the ones begging for a Peace Treaty. But knowing and utilizing ones environment has been proven to create a significant advantage apparently.
So, why are beastmen always with some disadvantage and sob story of being enslaved?
I mean if humans and beastmen were at war or even working together at times like elves, it would be sensible. But it just baffles me that beastmen/demi-humans have never been written in stories as equal footing. Different cultures. Different Magic. What if Beastmen also discriminated against humans? What if beastmen/demihumans were the higher-class since they had enhanced abilities? So much potential, that I'll probably never read.
I'm just tired of these generic stories. I love isekai and fantasy and reincarnation but my god would it kill some of these writers to try a little worldbuilding and not use the same recycled themes. But that's asking for too much even from Disney. So for now,
"Why are you being nice to me even thought I'm Demi-Human?" "Why does that matter?" "Oh, he so different from the other humans."
So many Isekai, Time Travel and Reincarnation stories tend to have these troupes that really just have these awful situations or protagonists being abused or hated or wronged. Which isn't necessarily bad for the story. But more often than it should be, you'll see these troupes being thrown in just for the sake of the plot and advancing the protagonist story. If you're really into the story you may not notice, or if the rest of the plot is good enough you'll just roll an eye. And if you're really unlucky you've read Ingrid, the White Deer.
I'm getting to my point now. Beastmen tend to show up a lot in Fantasy stories, often as the inferior race and used as slaves for nobles. Then the protagonist shows up and sees them as equals because their different and yada yada 'insert generic plot'
It's a pretty common troupe. But thinking over it, I feel its more just used to make humans and nobles look evil and the protagonist shine and get another addition to their harem. Humans aren't saints, yes and they are likely to look down on outsiders or people different from them which is bad but let's be real its not uncommon with the rest of the animal kingdom.
I just don't see how it's possible for humans in every fantasy universe to have dominant control to enslave Beastmen with such ease. When:
1. Beastmen are proven to have higher capabilities in strength, magic and physical senses.
2. Since they are half human are capable of learning, critical thinking, inventing and adapting to their environment and innovating to create complex structures and societies.
3. Sometimes have demographics where the beastmen population is capable of forming a country or two.
Vampires and werewolves are terrying creatures that humans could never hope to stand against but a beastman/demi-human need to be protected ???????
If you say, that maybe its because their peaceful. I'll call bullshit on that. I hate that self-deprecating thing humans in stories, where everyone is peaceful and have a prefect utopia and humans are evil or lost their way. We aren't perfect again but any civilization has room for corruption and greed, so I call it as generic or utopia worldbuilding.
Advanced weapons? That actually depends. Back during ya know, slavery in the Caribbean, some runaway slaves managed to escape to the mountains and form villages. They are The Maroons. Of course, slavemasters and the government wouldn't be happy with this so they sent soldiers after them. I don't think anyone in today's world would believe that you could beat a bunch of trained soldiers with guns so bad with handmade slingshots, spears and bow and arrow that they would be the ones begging for a Peace Treaty. But knowing and utilizing ones environment has been proven to create a significant advantage apparently.
So, why are beastmen always with some disadvantage and sob story of being enslaved?
I mean if humans and beastmen were at war or even working together at times like elves, it would be sensible. But it just baffles me that beastmen/demi-humans have never been written in stories as equal footing. Different cultures. Different Magic. What if Beastmen also discriminated against humans? What if beastmen/demihumans were the higher-class since they had enhanced abilities? So much potential, that I'll probably never read.
I'm just tired of these generic stories. I love isekai and fantasy and reincarnation but my god would it kill some of these writers to try a little worldbuilding and not use the same recycled themes. But that's asking for too much even from Disney. So for now,
"Why are you being nice to me even thought I'm Demi-Human?"
"Why does that matter?"
"Oh, he so different from the other humans."
Cat/Wolf/Fox-Girl added to Harem.
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