We go through that whole movie watching the poor kid suffering trying to save Fantasia, then they had the other kid take over for the rest of the movie and be the hero. Kind of a let down. Nice twist. But it's kind of a shame Atreyu didn't get a better ending.
Like Killian Jones, I believe in good form. But like Capt Hook, I also believe in having fun.
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Bastian was Atreyu.
shareNot really. We followed Bastion as well, and as the Empress says, he was going through the same journey. We had two protagonists.
Let's be bad guys.
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Totally. I always thought Atreyu got gyped. I had a crush on the Princess and thought it was unfair that Atreyu didn't get at least a peck on the cheek from her.
~~~"Who do you think you're dealing with? Guess again."~~~
" But it's kind of a shame Atreyu didn't get a better ending."
Having his beloved horse back to life and being able to live the happiest life possible as if nothing bad ever happened is somehow not GOOD ENOUGH for him and you?? WHAT?
It's almost as if you want him to have an EGOTISTICAL ending instead of a HAPPY one, so at least call it by its real name.
What does Atreyu care if he doesn't get accolade or prestige, rewards or medal or .. (groan, how stupid) a 'peck on the cheek' (what would THAT do compared to bringing Artax back to life?)..
..when:
a) He DID save Fantasia, completed his quest, can now live stress-free the most happy and natural life he could possibly imagine
b) He got Artax back to life, as if nothing bad ever happened
c) He got the whole WORLD rebooted, so now it's as happy as ever, if not happier
What do you really want for him? A fanfare, medal, ceremony and applause? A 'peck on the cheek' (seriously, what's wrong with people?)??
He did what he set out to do, he completed the quest, he got Artax back, he's happy - what the heck do you want? You are talking as if HE was important, but it was never him, it was the QUEST that was important, and he completed it.
Give him credit for being selfless and pure, truly a humble soul, that's a PROPER hero's ending, not to demand, lust, crave or revel in superficial accoladest and gilded treasures, but to just do what you need to do, make things right and then remove yourself from the equation to go live your own happy life somewhere. He even waved to Bastian and the Luck Dragon after that.
To me, that's the BEST ending for him - instad of egomaniacal gold-lust in his eyes, screaming in front of a cheering crowd of mongo1oids, he just does his duty like a Zen-monk and withdraws back to his happy life when things are back to normal. No need for superficial glitter, he knows what's important.
What could be more admirable, respectable and heroic than what he does in the end? That's a true hero anyone can LOOK UP to, and I'd take THAT kind of role model over some 'look at me and give me a trophy'-glitterbimbo any day.
The BEST ending possible - showing his true nobility and humility, showing how to be a respectable character that anyone can look up to.
Would you really trade THAT for a lousy gilded medal?