Why do some people consider Alistair from Dragon Age Origins to be whiny or "emo"? (spoilers)

[lucky_sharm]

From my point of view, someone who whines is someone who's complaints aren't justified. Alistair doesn't really fit that bill, though. He mourns over Duncan because he was a father to him and the only one who cared about what he wanted. He doesn't want to be lead because he's afraid of letting people down. He deflects personal questions with humor to hide his insecurity. He doesn't want to be seen as a potential ruler because people either resent him for threatening Cailan's rule or coddle him by keeping him out of battle like Duncan did.

He's actually a male character that features a wider range of emotions unlike quite a few video game characters. He isn't a jerky, anti-social, brooding Mary Sue that is hostile towards everything around him(for example, Marcus Fenix, Jack Slate, Kratos, the Prince of Persia from Warrior Within etc etc). For me, he never came across as particularly irritating or whiny at all. I'm wondering why other people see him that way?

 

[Aris Khandr]

"Alistair: Wynne?
Wynne: Yes, Alistair?
Alistair: My shirt has a hole in it.
Wynne: I see. And?
Alistair: Can you mend it? When we get back to camp?
Wynne: Can't you mend your own clothes? Why do I have to do it?
Alistair: Sometimes I pick up too much fabric and it ends up all puckered and the entire garment hangs wrong afterward. And you're... you know, grandmotherly. Grandmothers do that sort of thing, don't they? Darning socks and whatnot. You don't want me to have to fight darkspawn in a shirt with a hole, do you? It might get bigger. I might catch cold.
Wynne: Oh, all right. I'll mend your shirt the next time we set up camp.
Alistair: Ooh! And while you're at it, the elbows kind of need patching too...
Wynne: Careful, young man, or puckered garments may be the least of your problems. "

No, he's not a whiny prat at all...

I never could tolerate Alistair. He's an idiot, and whiny as well.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Swooping is bad...


Alastair was never whiny.

Not Carth Onasi whiny, anyway.

 

[DustyDrB]

I don't know. He's more funny than whiny. He's only whiny at the beginning...after a traumatic life event. I guess people who call him whiny are the kind that think the only emotion men can show is anger.

 

[Mikejames]

He's probably one of my favorite Bioware characters to date. Had some genuinely funny lines throughout, and turned out to be deeper than just another comic relief foil.

But no character's liked by everybody.

 

[burningdragoon]

His 'wahh I don't wanna be king' and 'wahh you won't kill Logain' rants were kind of whiny, but otherwise no he wasn't really.

 

[lucky_sharm]

"Alistair: Wynne?
Wynne: Yes, Alistair?
Alistair: My shirt has a hole in it.
Wynne: I see. And?
Alistair: Can you mend it? When we get back to camp?
Wynne: Can't you mend your own clothes? Why do I have to do it?
Alistair: Sometimes I pick up too much fabric and it ends up all puckered and the entire garment hangs wrong afterward. And you're... you know, grandmotherly. Grandmothers do that sort of thing, don't they? Darning socks and whatnot. You don't want me to have to fight darkspawn in a shirt with a hole, do you? It might get bigger. I might catch cold.
Wynne: Oh, all right. I'll mend your shirt the next time we set up camp.
Alistair: Ooh! And while you're at it, the elbows kind of need patching too...
Wynne: Careful, young man, or puckered garments may be the least of your problems. "

No, he's not a whiny prat at all...

I never could tolerate Alistair. He's an idiot, and whiny as well.

Um...not the most damning evidence for Alistair's whiny-ness. The whole conversation was played for comedy. He was teasing Wynne. He does that intentionally in a lot of their banter.

 

[Fr]anc[is]

Of all the male standard Bioware starting human companions, Alistair was the least terrible. As a player, I had no problems with him, but I can see how some people wouldn't like his snarky passive humor. As a character, he whined and moaned every time I committed genocide or punched an orphan, so he got swapped with Shale asap.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

Swooping is bad...


Alastair was never whiny.

Not Carth Onasi whiny, anyway.

haha love that part XD

also, the part very close to it:

alistair: I'd be careful. First it's, "I like you!", then ZAP! -Frog time.

OT: I think he is one of the more down to earth people in the game, I mean obviously he KNEW how long and draining that adventure was going to be, who wouldn't be like "ah..shit. I gotta do that don't I?...*sigh*" which is basically part of his sarcastic humor

"Alistair: Wynne?
Wynne: Yes, Alistair?
Alistair: My shirt has a hole in it.
Wynne: I see. And?
Alistair: Can you mend it? When we get back to camp?
Wynne: Can't you mend your own clothes? Why do I have to do it?
Alistair: Sometimes I pick up too much fabric and it ends up all puckered and the entire garment hangs wrong afterward. And you're... you know, grandmotherly. Grandmothers do that sort of thing, don't they? Darning socks and whatnot. You don't want me to have to fight darkspawn in a shirt with a hole, do you? It might get bigger. I might catch cold.
Wynne: Oh, all right. I'll mend your shirt the next time we set up camp.
Alistair: Ooh! And while you're at it, the elbows kind of need patching too...
Wynne: Careful, young man, or puckered garments may be the least of your problems. "

No, he's not a whiny prat at all...

I never could tolerate Alistair. He's an idiot, and whiny as well.

you do realize that is part of his sarcasm? and not him ACTUALLY whining legitimately?

I feel some people don't understand how sarcastic he is...(not to say he doesn't whine AT ALL, because he does, but nowhere near as much as most characters in existence that would be called whiny.)

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Swooping is bad...


Alastair was never whiny.

Not Carth Onasi whiny, anyway.

haha love that part XD

also, the part very close to it:

alistair: I'd be careful. First it's, "I like you!", then ZAP! -Frog time.

OT: I think he is one of the more down to earth people in the game, I mean obviously he KNEW how long and draining that adventure was going to be, who wouldn't be like "ah..shit. I gotta do that don't I?...*sigh*" which is basically part of his sarcastic humor

"Alistair: Wynne?
Wynne: Yes, Alistair?
Alistair: My shirt has a hole in it.
Wynne: I see. And?
Alistair: Can you mend it? When we get back to camp?
Wynne: Can't you mend your own clothes? Why do I have to do it?
Alistair: Sometimes I pick up too much fabric and it ends up all puckered and the entire garment hangs wrong afterward. And you're... you know, grandmotherly. Grandmothers do that sort of thing, don't they? Darning socks and whatnot. You don't want me to have to fight darkspawn in a shirt with a hole, do you? It might get bigger. I might catch cold.
Wynne: Oh, all right. I'll mend your shirt the next time we set up camp.
Alistair: Ooh! And while you're at it, the elbows kind of need patching too...
Wynne: Careful, young man, or puckered garments may be the least of your problems. "

No, he's not a whiny prat at all...

I never could tolerate Alistair. He's an idiot, and whiny as well.

you do realize that is part of his sarcasm? and not him ACTUALLY whining legitimately?

I feel some people don't understand how sarcastic he is...(not to say he doesn't whine AT ALL, because he does, but nowhere near as much as most characters in existence that would be called whiny.)

I don't think a lot of foreigners quite get British sarcasm, because that's pretty much all Alastair does, is British sarcasm

 

[lucky_sharm]

His 'wahh I don't wanna be king' and 'wahh you won't kill Logain' rants were kind of whiny, but otherwise no he wasn't really.

His "wahh I don't wanna be king" rants are because it means being responsible for other people's lives, and in this case an entire nation of lives. He feels that he isn't up to taking the throne and should be left for someone more capable like Anora (although he will feel more inclined to become a king if hardened).

And as for Loghain...it's kind of a tricky issue. It's not so much that he found Loghain to be irredeemable, but the fact that Riordan was going to make him a Grey Warden, which Alistair considered to be the highest honor rather than a punishment. There's also the whole incident with Ostagar and how Loghain abandoned Alistair's fellow Grey Wardens along with Duncan, turning his world upside down.

"He abandoned our brothers and then blamed us for the deed! He hunted us like animals and tortured you [Riordan]! How can we simply forget that? Make him a Grey Warden and you cheapen us all. I will not stand by him as a brother, I will not."

 

[Soviet Heavy]

I dunno, I really enjoyed him in Origins. Unfortunately, his cameos in Dragon Age 2 were disappointing apart from the drunken Alistair. The Grey Warden and King Alistair cameos were just fanservice done badly.

The drunken one I felt was nice though, since he showed up through the whole game as a drunk instead of just one scene. It built up to Teagan coming to take him home.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

Swooping is bad...


Alastair was never whiny.

Not Carth Onasi whiny, anyway.

haha love that part XD

also, the part very close to it:

alistair: I'd be careful. First it's, "I like you!", then ZAP! -Frog time.

OT: I think he is one of the more down to earth people in the game, I mean obviously he KNEW how long and draining that adventure was going to be, who wouldn't be like "ah..shit. I gotta do that don't I?...*sigh*" which is basically part of his sarcastic humor

"Alistair: Wynne?
Wynne: Yes, Alistair?
Alistair: My shirt has a hole in it.
Wynne: I see. And?
Alistair: Can you mend it? When we get back to camp?
Wynne: Can't you mend your own clothes? Why do I have to do it?
Alistair: Sometimes I pick up too much fabric and it ends up all puckered and the entire garment hangs wrong afterward. And you're... you know, grandmotherly. Grandmothers do that sort of thing, don't they? Darning socks and whatnot. You don't want me to have to fight darkspawn in a shirt with a hole, do you? It might get bigger. I might catch cold.
Wynne: Oh, all right. I'll mend your shirt the next time we set up camp.
Alistair: Ooh! And while you're at it, the elbows kind of need patching too...
Wynne: Careful, young man, or puckered garments may be the least of your problems. "

No, he's not a whiny prat at all...

I never could tolerate Alistair. He's an idiot, and whiny as well.

you do realize that is part of his sarcasm? and not him ACTUALLY whining legitimately?

I feel some people don't understand how sarcastic he is...(not to say he doesn't whine AT ALL, because he does, but nowhere near as much as most characters in existence that would be called whiny.)

I don't think a lot of foreigners quite get British sarcasm, because that's pretty much all Alastair does, is British sarcasm

.....
>.>
<.<

'Mericun here...(i know you said alot of foreigners, not pointing that out at all, just felt appropriate )

Mehh..I like humor I guess ^_^

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Swooping is bad...


Alastair was never whiny.

Not Carth Onasi whiny, anyway.

haha love that part XD

also, the part very close to it:

alistair: I'd be careful. First it's, "I like you!", then ZAP! -Frog time.

OT: I think he is one of the more down to earth people in the game, I mean obviously he KNEW how long and draining that adventure was going to be, who wouldn't be like "ah..shit. I gotta do that don't I?...*sigh*" which is basically part of his sarcastic humor

"Alistair: Wynne?
Wynne: Yes, Alistair?
Alistair: My shirt has a hole in it.
Wynne: I see. And?
Alistair: Can you mend it? When we get back to camp?
Wynne: Can't you mend your own clothes? Why do I have to do it?
Alistair: Sometimes I pick up too much fabric and it ends up all puckered and the entire garment hangs wrong afterward. And you're... you know, grandmotherly. Grandmothers do that sort of thing, don't they? Darning socks and whatnot. You don't want me to have to fight darkspawn in a shirt with a hole, do you? It might get bigger. I might catch cold.
Wynne: Oh, all right. I'll mend your shirt the next time we set up camp.
Alistair: Ooh! And while you're at it, the elbows kind of need patching too...
Wynne: Careful, young man, or puckered garments may be the least of your problems. "

No, he's not a whiny prat at all...

I never could tolerate Alistair. He's an idiot, and whiny as well.

you do realize that is part of his sarcasm? and not him ACTUALLY whining legitimately?

I feel some people don't understand how sarcastic he is...(not to say he doesn't whine AT ALL, because he does, but nowhere near as much as most characters in existence that would be called whiny.)

I don't think a lot of foreigners quite get British sarcasm, because that's pretty much all Alastair does, is British sarcasm

.....
>.>
<.<

'Mericun here...(i know you said alot of foreigners, not pointing that out at all, just felt appropriate )

Mehh..I like humor I guess ^_^

I know.

That's why I said a lot and not all

It's just hilarious when people don't recognise it

 

[burningdragoon]

His 'wahh I don't wanna be king' and 'wahh you won't kill Logain' rants were kind of whiny, but otherwise no he wasn't really.

His "wahh I don't wanna be king" rants are because it means being responsible for other people's lives, and in this case an entire nation of lives. He feels that he isn't up to taking the throne and should be left for someone more capable like Anora (although he will feel more inclined to become a king if hardened).

And as for Loghain...it's kind of a tricky issue. It's not so much that he found Loghain to be irredeemable, but the fact that Riordan was going to make him a Grey Warden, which Alistair considered to be the highest honor rather than a punishment. There's also the whole incident with Ostagar and how Loghain abandoned Alistair's fellow Grey Wardens along with Duncan, turning his world upside down.

"He abandoned our brothers and then blamed us for the deed! He hunted us like animals and tortured you [Riordan]! How can we simply forget that? Make him a Grey Warden and you cheapen us all. I will not stand by him as a brother, I will not."

Oh, the reasons for the rants themselves were totally justified. They just came of a little more whiny to me than I would've like.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

Swooping is bad...


Alastair was never whiny.

Not Carth Onasi whiny, anyway.

haha love that part XD

also, the part very close to it:

alistair: I'd be careful. First it's, "I like you!", then ZAP! -Frog time.

OT: I think he is one of the more down to earth people in the game, I mean obviously he KNEW how long and draining that adventure was going to be, who wouldn't be like "ah..shit. I gotta do that don't I?...*sigh*" which is basically part of his sarcastic humor

"Alistair: Wynne?
Wynne: Yes, Alistair?
Alistair: My shirt has a hole in it.
Wynne: I see. And?
Alistair: Can you mend it? When we get back to camp?
Wynne: Can't you mend your own clothes? Why do I have to do it?
Alistair: Sometimes I pick up too much fabric and it ends up all puckered and the entire garment hangs wrong afterward. And you're... you know, grandmotherly. Grandmothers do that sort of thing, don't they? Darning socks and whatnot. You don't want me to have to fight darkspawn in a shirt with a hole, do you? It might get bigger. I might catch cold.
Wynne: Oh, all right. I'll mend your shirt the next time we set up camp.
Alistair: Ooh! And while you're at it, the elbows kind of need patching too...
Wynne: Careful, young man, or puckered garments may be the least of your problems. "

No, he's not a whiny prat at all...

I never could tolerate Alistair. He's an idiot, and whiny as well.

you do realize that is part of his sarcasm? and not him ACTUALLY whining legitimately?

I feel some people don't understand how sarcastic he is...(not to say he doesn't whine AT ALL, because he does, but nowhere near as much as most characters in existence that would be called whiny.)

I don't think a lot of foreigners quite get British sarcasm, because that's pretty much all Alastair does, is British sarcasm

.....
>.>
<.<

'Mericun here...(i know you said alot of foreigners, not pointing that out at all, just felt appropriate )

Mehh..I like humor I guess ^_^

I know.

That's why I said a lot and not all

It's just hilarious when people don't recognise it

Oh, believe me, IRL when this happens...it's highly facepalm worthy. I generally give them a jackie chan rage face expression when they rage over something that was clearly humor/sarcasm.(as many jokes are spawned from, it happens in America...a lot.)

I swear some people are born without a sense of humor. I like to think of it literally as the 6th sense that many (especially Americans, or United States Citizens for all you PC people) just never acquired..usually because their parents didn't have one either.

 

[370999]

I've always liked him. Yes he moans but I always thought he was moaning to moan, like when you complain to the friends about the weather, very rarely do you actually care but it's fun to do it. So yeah maybe he is a very BritEmpirePals but he's fine.

 

[Saladfork]

I liked him a lot, actually. My only problem with him was when he got completely unreasonable at the landsmmeet, but even so, I think his anger at Logain was certainly understandable.

 

[Vegosiux]

Alistair is...an interesting fella. And whiny? A bit brooding and aloof, maybe, but whiny and emo? No, that's just him being a snarky sarcastic grey warden who's grown used to having to rely on himself and considers someone actually wanting to talk to him about his life as the strangest thing ever. The pragmatist in me did want to clonk him over the head for that fit about Loghain's potential wardenship, but I don't blame Alistair for that one, I blame BioWare for shoehorning in a conflict of interests where it wasn't necessary.

Now Carth, that guy was whiny, yeah.