Top 3 Favorite Villainous Magical Creatures (Julie)

The last several Top 3 posts have been a really fun romp into the world of fantasy consisting of things like wands, modes of transportation, and weapons. We do love fantasy after all. For this Top 3 post, I'm going back to my last one on magical creatures (of the mostly good variety), but switching from mostly good to mostly evil beings! 

What makes fantasy so fascinating is that you can do pretty much whatever you want. One author can make a creature good, while another author can make the same creature evil. And then of course you have magical races who can be good and evil. Think Harry Potter vs Voldemort or Gandolf vs Saruman, etc... 

With that being said, here's my top 3 general magical creatures who I think make excellent villains!

1) Wizards and witches. What makes wizards and witches great mischief-makers is the amount of raw power they posses. They can cause all kinds of dastardly trouble for the heroes by a mere flick of a wand or staff. But I think why I like them the most is the uniqueness and variety that we find in stories and movies. They range from Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty to Voldemort in Harry Potter to Sauron in LOTR. All evil but their powers make each unique. 

2) Dragons. Depending on what story you read of course, but dragons are often portrayed as fearsome creatures full of magic and mischief. And they're really hot... literally. What a breath! Dragons aren't dense and mindless like some evil creatures, like trolls for example.They're smart and cunning and make an admiral adversary for any hero. I do feel, however, that in recent years, the trend has moved toward characterizing dragons more on the friendly side. 

3) Shapeshifters. These shiftless creatures present a wide array of intriguing villainy. One of my favorites are the boggarts from Harry Potter's world. Unlike other shapeshifters, they don't have a defined shape until they come upon a person, and then they are that person's worst nightmare. I'll be honest, whenever I watch the boggart scenes in Harry Potter, my brain wonders what might happen if I encountered one. What is my worst fear? These villains can help the hero face their fears and overcome them! But terrifying nonetheless!

What do you think, readers? Do you agree or do you have another particular favorite villain?

  

Top 3 Favorite Magical Beings (Julie)

I’m one of those people who like having background noise while I’m at home. It varies between music to movies to tv shows. Lately, I’ve gotten into watching I Dream of Jeannie. It’s so much fun watching Jeannie trying to be helpful with her magical powers except something always goes wrong. Poor Major Nelson. Jeannie isn’t the only genie out there, there’s the Genie in Aladdin, and then there John and Phillipa from the Children of the Lamp series (a great series by the way). As cool as their powers are, I’m not sure I’d classify them as my most favorite magical beings, although they’d be in my top ten for sure.  So what would be my top 3 favorite, fairly good, magical beings?

1) I debated with my top choice and wasn’t sure I was even going to include it on the list, but I decided that they truly are my favorites. And the winner is... fairies! The reason I vacillated with these intriguing creatures is because most fairies are known for being small, winged creatures who are vain tricksters. Except maybe the Sleeping Beauty fairies?  Unless you count the ordeal over the dress. But I’m a bit biased on my opinion of fairies because my book series is based on fairies, which are a bit different from the norm. I tend to associate fairies with nature. I didn't inherit my family's green thumb, but I like the beauty of nature and the ability to make things grow and flourish.

2) My next favorite magical beings are witches and wizards. Harry? Hermione? Ron? Gandalf? Need I say more? I think I like the idea of having something tangible, in my hand, to work the magic. Harry and the others have wands that they swish and flick to make magic happen. Gandalf doesn’t have a wand, but he passes by having an awesome staff. The downside of course is without the wand or staff, life gets a bit tougher.  

3) Finally, my third top favorite are elves...of the Middle Earth variety. They exude grace and beauty, yet are strong and fierce too. Bilbo Baggins couldn’t wait to see the elves again in Lord of the Rings. You just can’t help be drawn in by their ethereal presence, unless you are a dwarf.

What about you? What is your favorite magical being? It's okay if it takes you a minute to decide. It's a touch choice!