fuckyeahcharmcaster

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

Derrick J. Wyatt has passed away.

My personal view of the man was not exactly a good one - to be frank, he was kind of an asshole, and as a character designer he had no business having so big of a say in the writing process for Omniverse; it was a factor that dragged the series down IMO. However, as he was both a fantastic artist (his design for OV!Charmcaster is perfection given her very specific in-universe and out-of-universe circumstances) and a human being who died well before his time at just 49 years of age, I deeply mourn for him and for all of his loved ones. 

Rest in peace, Mr. Wyatt.

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

So on this blog I’ve talked a lot about the differences between each incarnation of Charmcaster (”OG!Charmcaster”, “Hope”, “Crackcaster” and “Heather”), but now I want to take a look at the common threads that run between them that build upon each other.

OG!Charmcaster was established as a victim of her uncle’s abuse who responded to it in an unhealthy way: developing a massive ego as a cover for her insecurities, seeking to be the most powerful magic-user ever to make up for her past powerlessness, and doing anything she wants regardless of morality by her own choice after having been basically a servant ordered to do villainous things beforehand. She was a fascinating character, and her rivalry with Gwen was great because all of these traits lined up with her perfectly (Gwen also uses her ego to cover for insecurities and is an ambitious hard worker who wants to become a powerful magic-user, but Gwen has a strong moral center due to having a functioning family.) 

Hope started off pretty similar to OG!Charmcaster - the ego, the seeking of power, the amorality...it was all there. However, all of these qualities ended up being completely recontexualized: Hex’s abuse of her went from the root cause to barely even being a factor, in fact she’s back working and even living with him as though nothing happened. Instead, her new backstory is primarily what shaped them, with becoming the most powerful magic-user now fixed to the specific goal of liberating Ledgerdomain and/or resurrecting her father. Sure, Hope’s flaws wouldn’t have been nearly so bad without Hex’s crappy step-parenting, but they would have been there regardless. Gwen’s change in character (both in terms of personality and species) also changed the nature of the rivalry: now it’s rooted in jealousy on Hope’s part rather than mutual competing ambitions - Gwen doesn’t have to work toward being the most powerful magic-user because, as a human/Anodite hybrid, she already naturally is, which Hope rightfully finds to be unfair. There’s also jealousy over Gwen having a stable family and a romantic relationship (although given how both of these things are actually written by the end of UA, I can’t help but feel like Hope is being unreasonable in her jealousy here.)

Crackcaster has the unfortunate case of being another example of OV mixing and matching the past incarnations without any thought or logic applied. Literally everything about her ego, power seeking, amoral actions and rivalry with Gwen are framed in the same way it was with OG!Charmcaster...and yet with all of Hope’s context behind them. In order to justify such a wide gap between the simplistic way her flaws are presented and the complex reasons behind them, the writers used power addiction-fueled mental illness as an excuse, just as they had with Kevin in UA. This excuse is also used to justify her behaving in such a...well, crack way. And Hex’s abuse of his niece is almost totally swept under the rug now in order to justify why he’s on the side of good now and Crackcaster isn’t. To be fair, this isn’t entirely on the writers; this show went through a lot of meddling from network executives and producers.

Heather, being a chance to start fresh, is a case of mixing and matching done well. She’s established as basically having the same core character traits and reasons behind them as OG!Charmcaster, but with her abuser being Michael Morningstar her boyfriend rather than Hex her uncle (Hex is in fact still her uncle here, but he’s just a distant eccentric uncle who isn’t abusive in the slightest). And like Hope, her rivalry with Gwen stems from jealousy instead of competing for the same goal with the same skill set (Gwen doesn’t have magic here). However, a huge addition is made in that Heather starts out as just a regular nerdy Earth girl. Not only does this add a new layer to her in her supervillain identity, it also makes her jealousy of Gwen much more interesting than Hope’s was because this jealousy is existential: if Gwen can be so strong - stronger than her - without having magic, adopting an edgy new name, and going full goth in her hair, make-up and clothing, then “Charmcaster’s” whole reason for being is invalidated. She needs to get rid of Gwen, or else she’ll need to face up to that truth and she desperately doesn’t want to. It’s great stuff, and only let down by both Heather’s general lack of appearances in the show and this version of Gwen’s more passive (borderline pacifistic) engagement in the rivalry. But hey, there’s always the future!

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

“Yes, Uncle.”

Same energy, is all I’m saying.

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

It was most likely this kind of situation:

You know what I find hilarious? Charmcaster cononically ends up with Hobble. This guy

It's really cute to think about. He's so shy and nervous and she'd kill you without a second thought.

I'd be super interested in seeing how they ended up together honestly. It's fascinating.

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

“You know,” Ken smiled as he cupped her face. Her hat shifting a bit as he leaned closer. “Green’s a good color on you.”

Little headcannon of mine that Charmcaster would change the dye color to match Ken a bit next time she had to redo her hair. 

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

Had the urge to draw charmcaster. Really happy with the pose and design

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

Charmcaster from ben 10

Artist🎨:Nenahs.art on Instagram

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

WIP sketch of my alt Charmcaster/Hope trix user

I decided to change parts of the design a bit and add a few more details

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

Charmcaster: uncle, I’m hella gay.

Hex, who had already known: shit, sorry, I forgot to act surprised Do it again.

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

charmcaster in my dimension 14 au :)

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

Hope, also known as Charmcaster, has had a difficult life. When her parents were killed after displaying their magic she was taken in by her uncle Hex.They lived in fear of being persecuted because of their powers and grew to hate the rest of humanity. While in hiding, they searched for a way to enter LedgerDomain, the source of all magic, a place spoken of in legends. They hoped to escape to LedgerDomain where they could live free and without worry.

 The search for an entry made them commit several crimes which were usually stopped by either Lucky Girl or Alien Boy. Eventually Lucky Girl managed to convince Hope to give humanity another chance to accept her and to leave her life of crime behind, teaming up to fight villains together and eventually entering a romantic relationship.

Hex finds Hope’s newfound trust in humanity foolish and is still searching for LedgerDomain, frequently having to fight both Lucky Girl and now his niece.

Well, Charmcaster was chosen as the lucky (or unlucky) character to be drawn and written about. Who will be next? Who knows…

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

By “Classic”, you mean OS + UAF + OV, right?  If so, I agree - my favorite incarnation of Charmcaster is the OS’, but the Reboot version is written with more clarity, in a way that makes it hard for any other writers to pull the kind of backstory / motivation retcon that Charmcaster got hit with in UAF. I also appreciate that there are elements of all incarnations blended in to her design and personality, even if the OS version is the primary basis.

Characters who are better in the Reboot than in Classic

Ben Tennyson

Gwen Tennyson

Max Tennyson

Kevin Levin

Vilgax

Zombozo

The Circus Trio

Hex

Charmcaster

Billy Billions

Michael Morningstar

Dr. Animo

Azmuth

Basically all characters that were in Classic are better in the Reboot because they had more consistent writing (although Tetrax could’ve used some work)

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

KenCaster headcannons?

I love you anon.

I'll color this later.

LONG

How it Started

Charmcaster initially went under a disguise "Charlotte" to charm Ken in order to get back at Gwen

What she was not expecting was for Ken to be able to see completely through her illusion charm.

Ken doesn't exactly have a "true" spark but he does have some abilities- especially after the stress of the DNAlien incident.

One of which was to see past illusions- especially magical ones. (i'll get to the other in a minute)

Ken was definitively intrigued by the goth-witchy vibe she gave off.

He asked her out after the third time he and his band preformed for the coffee shop they'd met at.

Rambles

He calls her Charlie (a nickname she's grown quite fond of) or sometimes Cheshire when he's being playing.

She was shocked by how much of a sweetheart he was, given how the rest of his family is (excluding Sandra and Carl obvs.)

When he found out she lost her purse (to Gwen but she didn't mention that) he spent a few days looking for another bag like it until he found something like this

Charlie, for her part was shocked and more than a little touched. She had mentioned the bag thing offhandedly and here he'd spent the better part of a week trying to find her something to replace it.

None of the guys she'd dated before hand had ever put this much thought into doing anything for her.

For his part, Ken can't believe he got so lucky. Supportive, a good listener, quirky, attentive; normally he was about as lucky as Ben when it came to his love life- as his previous girlfriends and boyfriends would be happy to tell you- but he feels he's hit the jack pot.

The boy's smitten.

To this day he's not sure how she first figured out it was his birthday, but it was sweet when she brought a cupcake after class. It made him feel a bit better that Gwen hadn't called.

Charlie also helped him pic out the colors for his dragon tattoo.

Ken is totally grunge but his mother is Natalie Tennyson so he has to clean up and hide the tats when he heads home for the holidays. Her son, have long hair and wearing anything but a fitted shirt? No ma'am.

It also helps that Charlie thinks he's cute with longer hair.

Another thing that surprised Charlie was Ken's shyness with physical intimacy.

She backed off when he asked, she was just startled. Again, all the previous guys she's dated hadn't really had a problem with this so she wasn't really expecting him to NOT be interested.

Ken's a take-it-slow guy and was a little overwhelmed.

He was pretty quick to take up her offer on cuddling with a movie instead.

Charlie tends to steal his leather jacket a lot, though she usually returns it after a couple of days after loading it with protection spells.

Ken luckily didn't inherit any of his mother or his grandfathers cooking skills- instead learning from Sandra with Ben.

He's actually pretty close with his Aunt and Uncle; he actually gets more updates on the family chaos from Sandra.

It's not like he dislikes his parents- he loves his dad and mom. He just doesn't feel like he can be himself around Natalie. Certain expectations must be met, which the real Ken doesn't quite meet.

Ken was shocked to find out Charlie's name wasn't actually Charlotte. He spent the next couple of days trying to guess it.

"Skye?"

"Nope."

"Grace?"

"Nu-uh."

"Amythest?"

"Not even close."

"Ummm... Gretchen?"

"Get real!"

It was around this time Charmcaster had pretty much forgotten about her revenge scheme on Gwen.

Her powers did get a natural boost from Ken, but she thought it was just her getting a better head space. (Though that did help IMMENSELY)

His other "passive spark" ability is giving a small boost to peoples mana. It's part of why he's able to cheer people up so well.

The two (especially Charmcaster) are big on cuddling. Snuggling up to each other as they walk down the street, holding hands. Practically sharing a seat at the theatres. Etc.

She's actually interested in his engineering work- even if she doesn't understand a lot of it. Her favorite part is how his eyes light up when he's talking about his passion projects.

Let me tell you bringing her home was an EVENT!

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

So we know how no one tells Ken anything, right?

When Ken’s out grocery shopping with Charmcaster, he meets Albedo when the former-galvan (still stuck as a 10 year old) is dealing with some Karen.

Albedo runs into Ken -whose trying to convince Charmcaster (unsuccessfully) that Lucky Charms are actually lucky- while trying to avoid the obnoxious woman. 

The Karen -seeing how much the Ken and Albedo look alike and how Charmcaster and Albedo both have white hair with pink/red eyes- immediately starts tearing into them on how ill-behaved their son is and that she couldn’t believe how people parented these days. 

While Ken is trying to register what the f*** this woman is talking about- Kid? kids? he didn’t have any kids- he was barely 20 for crying out loud- Charmcaster absolutely ROLLS with it. 

CharmCaster: How dare you talk to our son like that! *scoops up a startled Albedo and puts him in the cart* *huffing* C’mon,-um- Sven let’s get out of here and away from the rats. 

Albedo is more than a little thrown off. But every actor must learn a little improv so he plays along.

Now, Ken is tired; he just finished up extremely stressful midterms and is honestly more than a little sleep deprived. So, he’s found it thus far easier just to follow along. 

It wasn’t until the three got out of the store that Ken realized that they were technically Kidnapping a child. Even if “Sven” was a family member- and let’s face it, he’s got the Tennyson looks- he can’t just randomly take a child. 

After some brief questions, with Albedo avoiding most of them excluding his name, he basically figured out that Albedo was on his own. 

Charmcaster (who has deduced that this was the evil-Ben-clone guy she’d heard about) suggests that maybe Ken should keep an eye on him. After all, it’s not like the kid could take care of himself for ever. 

Hence, the start of Albedo crashing at Ken’s place for a couple of months. 

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

Charmcaster and Mike!💚

I present to you the chaotic magical duo! They were pretty fun to draw with their colours and different body shapes, and these two I've been really wanting to talk about since I've made a lot of rewrite changes for them. Before I get into that, I recommend you read my Dagon Arc Rewrite, to get a better idea of where I've taken these characters, as I involved them quite a bit in that story line. Albedo will be the next redesign eventually, and I'm glad people are liking what I'm doing with these characters so far.

-Mike Morningstar-

Soooo, Mike. He's always been an interesting concept to me, because there are two ways you could make his character go. One way is to just go full out with the creep and power hungry factor, making him a villain through and through, which can provide a very eerie character, which is the route canon mostly too. The other way, which I've taken, is you could make him a very complicated character, tragic even, with the idea of "If someone was born with dark magic, how would the world treat them", and since canon (Both the original series and reboot timeline) as taken the more evil villain approached, I'm taking a much different approach because I think his story can add a lot of interesting dynamics. In terms of his design, I went for the "rich winter" outfit aesthetic, since this lad does know his fashion and tastes.

Mike is an Apotrodite from his mother's side, the dark magic equivalent of Anodites. This means Mike primarily uses dark magic, but unlike other people, his Apotrodite sides means he is in full control of himself, and can't be tainted by dark magic. But that doesn't mean everything goes well...

His parents are Lilith Morningstar and Samael Morningstar, both Plumbers who work in the magical department of things, and since Lilith can use dark magic without it corrupting her, the two get a hefty amount of money working in a field only they can really handle. So they're a very rich family, owning two mansions on earth, and some holiday homes.

Mike was an...accident, not something planned, but his parents wanted to see what it was like, not realizing how raising a child takes a lot of work, especially one that was born half Apotrodite. You see, since Mike was only half, his dark magic didn't come naturally to him for a while, needing to adjust and train himself. There were worries Mike would end up hurting someone, which both Lilith and Samael were nervous about, since Apotrodites didn't have a good reputation anywhere for their use of dark magic. They feared that if Lilith or Mike made a mistake, they'll both be shipped back to their homeworld, which none of them wanted...

Sadly, a mistake did happen one day. Mike didn't mean too, it just happened suddenly, but he ended up hurting two other kids in Plumber Kindergarden, giving one magical burns, and nearly draining the life out of another. He felt horrible over what happened, and couldn't stop sobbing for the rest of the day as everyone debated what to do, and had a long discussion with Mike's parents. Lilith and Samael ended up pulling Mike out from school to homeschool him from now on...and didn't trust Mike to leave the house on his own ever, the fears getting the better of them. So...you could say Mike's childhood was rather lonely and depressing. Eventually as he grew older, he got into lots of arguments with his parents, until finally snapping and running away sometime after his encounter with Ben and his friends. If everyone was going to treat him like a monster, then he might as well be what they say he was and do it being free...

Mike does have an Apotrodite form, much like how Gwen has an Anodite form, but he hardly ever turns into it, even if it would save him energy and make his human form 'rot' less. He doesn't like being reminded of what he is, the reason behind all his problems...

He loves cats, and has always wanted one since he learnt about them.

Mike did end up helping Charmcaster when she was losing herself in omniverse, during the final fight with her. He was one of the few who managed to snap her out of her insanity, and later when she was recovering, she tracked him down with the help of Ben, and managed to convince him to come to Ledgerdomain with her, wanting to repay him for his help. Along with knowing that Mike was really just lonely and tired with the world...something she could relate too...

His hasn't been in contact with his parents since running away from home, and they haven't made an effort to reach out to him, not sure how to approach their son after what he became...

Mike and Hex have a very...awkward dynamic, since neither know how to talk to the other, especially regarding Charmcaster.

Loves scarfs, he just likes the way they look and feel.

-Hope Charmcaster-

Miss Charmcaster, a character who keeps spinning on that plot merry go round. She was defiantly someone who went insane due to how often the writing changed her up, which is a shame since she is a very interesting character, so that's what I'm here for. For her redesign, I've always loved the idea of her being short, plump and very curvy, and entirely confident with her body and looks. She knows she's hot, and owns it. I kept her outfit similar to her original and omniverse style, but played around with the look of it.

Her mother died at childbirth, so her father had to raise her own his own, with the help of Uncle Hex from time to time. Eventually after what happened in Ledgerdomain with Addwaitya, Hex has been looking after her since she was 8, but it wasn't easy, especially when he started tapping into dark magic to find ways to fight Addwaitya, and eventually going power hungry. Charmcaster knows Hex was trying his best, but there are things she can't forgive him for, even if they're getting better during her recovery.

She has black markings on her hands due to her use of the Alpha Rune and dark magic. The Alpha Rune also left a mark on her chest right above her heart. She is subconscious about these things, and tends to hide them from everyone and herself.

Ben 100% had a crush on her as a kid, and she knows it.

Charmcaster has a sweet tooth, and loves desserts. Her favorite is cake, strawberry cake to be precise.

She's still trying to be the Queen of Ledgerdomain, which isn't easy with what's left of it, but she's slowly getting them and creating a new age for the Kingdom, having opened it out to any magic user in the galaxy that needs a place to go.

Gwen and Charmcaster have been building up a nice friendship finally now that Charmcaster is getting help. It's been sweet, with Gwen doing normal teen and girl stuff that Charmcaster hasn't been able to do in years. The little things always remind her that she is human after all.

She is still on the hunt for Addwaitya with the help of Gwen, Hex, Mike and the Plumbers, after the turtle managed to run away during the fight against her.

Later on Mike and Charmcaster do meet other Apotrodites, and visit their homeworld, and does feel bad for their situation. They pair end up letting a good chunk of them move to Ledgerdomain, where it will be safe for them from the outside galaxy, and their contribution of dark magic knowledge really helps Ledgerdomain in the long run.

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

Charmcaster

[fuckyeahcharmcaster]

Gwen: I hope Charmcaster doesn’t bother us anymore.  Ben: Yeah, I hope so too.  Charmcaster: *Bursting through the door*  Charmcaster: GUESS WHOS DATING YOUR BROTHER!!  Gwen + Ben: SON OF A BI-