WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Monster Hunter: Legends of the Guilds, now streaming on Netflix.
Monster Hunter: Legends of the Guilds is a straightforward story meant to provide context into Aiden's past and how he became the revered Hunter in Capcom's video game world. Familiar faces in Julius and Nadia appear, helping a young Aiden protect Timben from a vicious Elder Dragon, but sadly, the hour-long prequel wastes its best characters.
Aiden and Julius initially stumble across Mae when they fight a Nerscylla in the forest. She's a fairy-hybrid, and quite efficient in the field with her staff, but she's also an academic at heart. After they defeat the beast, she joins the quest to kill Lunastra, the dragon, as it would be great for her journal and provide the Guild with more evidence they need academics in the field, not just soldiers.
When the team fights Lunastra in the final act, their Dragonator breaks, and even after firing an arrow at the beast, it marches on. Mae tries to buy time for Aiden to drown the village and the creature, but sadly, she gets eaten. It's heartbreaking because her journal's what formed the basis of the plan and she's been collecting data for years. And to make matters worse, she just wanted to help the realm and wasn't doing this for the thrill of the kill or an ego boost. Mae's scholarly career path also angered her parents, who felt like she was wasting her life. And the fact she acknowledges them before her demise is tragic, as it can be seen as her putting the past behind her, despite how she felt.
The second character wasted in Monster Hunter: Legends of the Guilds is the warrior Ravi. He's hiding out in Timben as a smith, but it's quickly revealed he was also a Hunter. But Ravi didn't kill to balance nature -- he got corrupted and hunted for sport, which angered the Guild. He was excommunicated because pleasure kills are forbidden, but Julius offers him a second chance. And while he's reluctant at first, he soon enlists, hoping to save his new home and atone for his sins.
Sadly, his redemption song ends in death as well because, when the Dragonator fails, he uses his weapons and armor to stand face to face with Lunastra. The battle concludes with the beast burning him to ash and killing off his potential. And what makes this even harder to swallow is that given that he's one of the few people of color in the film and franchise on the whole, and he and Julius had a good rivalry going with their differing philosophies, Ravi's a character that had a lot more story in him.
Ravi would've drawn the ire of others who considered him a traitor but still provided opportunity for Julius and Aiden and reminded everyone heroes don't have to be spotless, while Mae could've inspired those who felt they didn't have it in them to fight on the frontlines. However, with their tragic deaths, Monster Hunter thought it better to put their stories to rest.
To see how Mae and Ravi are wasted, Monster Hunter: Legends of the Guilds is streaming now on Netflix.
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