Skuld
From Oh My Goddess
Contents |
[edit] Child Prodigy
Up until fairly recently, I always found Skuld to be the least interesting of the four main characters. When she was first introduced, she came across as more of a plot point than an actual character. She was, for all intents and purposes, a selfish little brat put in the story for the sole purpose of getting between Keiichi and Belldandy.In her never-ending quest to protect Belldandy, she keeps a close eye on Keiichi to make sure he doesn't "try something." "Trying something," in Skuld's expert opinion, is anything involving Keiichi being under a foot away from Belldandy. This almost obsessive urge to shelter Belldandy, combined with Urd's constant urging for Kei and Bell to get it on, ends up making Keiichi's life pretty difficult on more than one occasion.
As a goddess, the bulk of Skuld's power lies in her incredible intelligence. She is a math whiz, and even more gifted with machines than Keiichi. In fact, she can build a machine for just about anything Urd and Belldandy have a spell for. She also has the rather unique (and largely useless) ability to plaster words on people's faces.
[edit] Development as a Character
Skuld was a decidedly two-dimensional character in the early manga, but this has changed drastically in some of the more recent issues. The main focus of her character development so far has been her growing up, and resulting changes. Although she remains insecure about being the youngest of the Norns, she has grown from an annoying little kid into a girl dealing those awkward first few years of being a teenager.Skuld's first real character development takes place back in "The Trials of Morisato" (volume 4, part 2), in which an Yggdrasil malfunction causes her aging to accelerate rapidly. With Urd's age regressing at approximately the same rate, Skuld suddenly finds herself the eldest of the Three Sisters. With Urd and Belldandy effectively incapacitated, it is up to Skuld and Keiichi to find a solution for the problem. What's truly interesting about this chapter is that it's the first time that Skuld really admits that she doesn't hate Keiichi quite so much as she lets on. In fact, she at one point gets a little closer to Keiichi than either he or Bell are comfortable with. Once the problem is fixed, however, she goes pretty much back to normal.
Skuld's second big change - a permanent one this time - happens in "You're So Bad" (volume 5, part 4). In this issue, she begins to feel the effects of the divine equivalent of raging hormones. Finding herself suddenly feeling a bit taken with Keiichi, she asks him to take her to the mall, supposedly so that she can prove to herself that she still hates his guts. Between Urd meddling so that the trip would go badly, and Belldandy meddling so that it wouldn't, Skuld gradually becomes more and more smitten with Keiichi, until in the final confrontation, it comes to light that her emotions are a result of her coming into her powers, rather than any genuine romantic interest in Keiichi. This is also the point where she first gains the aforementioned ability to write words on people's faces.(this unique skill is shown in many ocations)
Perhaps the most interesting part of Skuld's coming of age is in the two-part series, "Childhood's End" (volume 8, parts 1 and 2), when, immediately after having given up on learning to ride a bike, she meets a boy of her age named Sentaro Kawanishi. Sentaro is into BMX racing, and he shows her that taking spills is just part of the process of learning. With his encouragement, she gives it another try, and is surprised to discover that it's not as hard as she'd previously thought. In the following chapter, she meets up with Sentaro again, only to discover - much to her chagrin - that she is starting to have feelings for him. Soon afterward, she finds that her goddess powers are beginning to manifest, which Belldandy explains are a result of her love for others. This issue is an important turning point for her, not only in terms of power, but also in terms of development; it is the first time she really starts to think of other people.Since then, there has been another important development, which will be described in detail on the Angels page, when I get it done.
Having been introduced later in the manga than the other three characters, Skuld has evolved artistically a bit less than Keiichi, Belldandy, and Urd. Most of her changes are a result of age, and not drawing style.
[edit] Diva ex Machina
Beyond her growing pains, Skuld's most distinctive characteristic is her love of machines. She has built numerous vehicles, mecha, and robots, the most prominent of these being Banpei, a robot she built to defend the temple from demon attacks. Although he hasn't had too many appearances, Banpei is a recurring character, and has been at the center of an issue or two. He even falls in love with Belldandy at one point, although his battery runs out soon afterward, erasing his memory.Among Skuld's other mechanical exploits are a teleportation gun, an evil-looking helmet supposedly meant to help people study for tests, and her numerous Skuld Bombs, all of which have caused problems for poor Keiichi at one point or another.
One other noteworthy aspect of Skuld's interest in machines is her rivalry with Keiichi's sister Megumi. Megumi's mechanical aptitude is close to Skuld's own, and a rivalry develops between the two younger sisters at one point. Skuld ends up challenging Megumi to a mecha battle; and Megumi almost manages to prevail.
One purpose for developing Skuld as a mechanical wizard can be attributed to the fact that she is the Norn of the Future. Machines are widely considered to be "the future", and instead of using potions such as Urd (which are based on proven equations and rarely, if ever, involve innovativeness), she focuses more on being "progressive" in a manner. It's an interesting aspect, anyway.
[edit] Her Common Trait
Skuld shares a common trait with her sisters, which is jealousy. However, while Urd and Belldandy have matured to the degree of suppressing it, Skuld has yet to do so; she still wants what she wants when she wants it (which tends to be right now), which explains why she's rather rash and stubborn, trying to find shortcuts to achieve her goals. The two biggest areas of jealousy on her part is (a) Belldandy's complete and undivided attention and (b) to have her mechanical works to be recognized.She is also jealous of her older sisters for their maturity and experience (which could explain why she fights with Urd a lot; she wants to prove that she's superior). She wishes to be treated like an adult, yet ironically acts nothing like one in her efforts. She has a mother fixation on Belldandy, though, yet Keiichi makes a nice diversion.
In later volumes, it seems that she has matured a bit and starts to accept Keiichi and Belldandy as - kind of - parent figures. It might be, because of her own slow, but steady relationship with Sentaro (unfortunately, we don't really know much about it, as it only shows sporadically since the corresponding story arc). Yet her coming of age isn't nearly finished and plays a major role just after the first appearance of Lind. There again, her jealousy of the other goddesses' angels shows and she begins to understand what conjuring and living with an angel is all about.
[edit] Noble Scarlet
One day Skuld goes to Urd's room to ask her a question, but she stumbled upon an angel's egg... and "mistakenly" swallowed it (yeah, right). Given Skuld's power level, it had a one-in-two chance of going berserk, but thankfully it didn't. However, also due to Skuld's immature powers, Noble Scarlet was incredibly tiny... Eventually, however, Skuld realizes the power of commands, and unfortunately Noble Scarlet doesn't appear again until much later, in the Lind arc.
However, in order to command an angel, it takes more than just wanting to. Skuld was finally able to summon her angel once again, because she needed her with all of her heart. When Noble Scarlet appeared once again, she was regular sized, and Skuld could use her with the best of them. But it's another aspect of her growing maturity, in any case.
