Once again while I am not an SG or hopeful the homework just reached out to me this week.
It should be pretty obvious that my favorite fictional character is Isabella "Ivy" Valentine from the Soul Caliber franchise.
The reasons for this are multitude not the least of which is that she has the coolest weapon of anyone in any fighting game I've ever played. It gives her crazy reach, has awesome intimidation factor and is very versatile. While her default outfits have bordered on the ridiculous her alternate outfits have been both much more realistic and very beautiful and are usually what I play her in. Last but definitely not least is her backstory. Above all else this is why I love Ivy so much.
Ivy's past is dark and checkered and she is very difficult to classify as either good or bad. In fact arguments could be made either way but the plain fact of the matter is her story is well written and engaging. In fact I'm almost ashamed of myself for writing fan fiction about Batman and yet not Ivy. Then again I'm not sure I could do Ivy justice even if I did try. Be that as it may her obsession with the Soul Edge has led her to not only know more about the cursed blade than probably anyone else in the game (save for Algor or Edgemaster of course) but has also served as her demise. Like so many other characters Ivy's downfall comes at the hands of her inability to see past her desire for revenge and it literally leads to her death. BUT salvation comes even for this demon beauty at the hands of the sword she created, Valentine which sacrifices its own living soul so that she may live.
Given a new lease on life Ivy now walks the path of redemption hoping to atone for her own sins as well as that of her father who also lost his life, fortune and soiled the family name with his own obsessed search for the cursed blade Soul Edge.
In game Ivy is a character like no other. First of all she is hard as hell to use but once you master her fighting style no other character can bring you the level of satisfaction she can. Her awesome reach makes it possible to beat almost any character in game without them ever getting close enough to touch her. However, should they manage to slip inside her circle of death Ivy's sword can deliver lethal attacks at close range and she's an excellent grappler. Like her story Ivy is a dichotomy of attack styles and ranges. She is good and at long range with style and finesse and good at short range with sheer brute strength.
Love her or hate her you can't deny that Ivy is truly a unique character. No other character I've come across can combine such awesome playability with such engaging back story. Hopefully someone will take up the reins and put this savage beauty's story on print or the big screen.
