Despite thoroughly enjoying Skyfall, we thought the screen writers might have done a little better with their "bad-guy name" than Raoul Silva/Tiaga Gonzales.
Which has inspired us to come up with a few of our own Bond bad-guy names at our blog -
www.theoryofnames.com
Drop by and tell us what you think (or comments below, welcome).
Better Bond bad-guy names
Started by
DavidNB
, Nov 05 2012 11:15 PM
1 reply to this topic
#2
Pussfeller
-
- Veterans
-
- 4089 posts
Commander
- Location:Washington, D.C.
Posted 06 November 2012 - 02:45 AM
I'm afraid the parody is easier than the real thing. A lot of your suggestions remind me of the names that newcomers to fiction-writing come up with. It's tempting to yoke together a bunch of wicked cool syllables, but the result is rarely compelling. Usually it smacks of fan-fiction or a D&D character. "Sevastian Feldberg" is two squirts of syrup and no pancake. "Feldberg" could work, but not with a sparkly vampire name like "Sevastian". You need to go with something more muscular and brash...
"Vlad Gutenmakher" is a pizza bagel of a name. I can't even imagine it in a Bond video game. And I don't even know where to begin with "Phrixus Cy Argyros". It sounds like something a grizzled prospector would cry out during rough sex. But "Akil Jabara" is quite good. It evokes power, bombast, and strangeness without being obviously made-up. A character could exist with that name. He could be played by Amitabh Bachchan or someone like that.
Some of your other names are made up of usable parts, but both parts together are overkill. Either half of "Boryenka Zukov" could work if paired with something more reputable and ordinary. "Battacharjee" is kinetic and vivid, conjuring up the image of a charging rhinoceros or a rickety stagecoach, but it doesn't go with "Aatish". Better to pair it with something drab and stolid, like "Sam" or "George".
Thanks for a great topic, DavidNB (now there's a creative moniker). Names are a fascinating and under-analyzed part of fiction. And the blog looks interesting. I've bookmarked it.
"This isn't merry old England, James. You don't waltz into Dallas and arrest Vaughn Feldberg. He makes the arrests in this town."
"Then he'll just have to arrest himself. We'll feed him his own tail."
"And what if our friend Feldberg is a picky eater?"
"It's like you taught me, Felix. With enough barbecue sauce you can make a Texan eat anything."
"Vlad Gutenmakher" is a pizza bagel of a name. I can't even imagine it in a Bond video game. And I don't even know where to begin with "Phrixus Cy Argyros". It sounds like something a grizzled prospector would cry out during rough sex. But "Akil Jabara" is quite good. It evokes power, bombast, and strangeness without being obviously made-up. A character could exist with that name. He could be played by Amitabh Bachchan or someone like that.
"Akil Jabara. That's a name I've heard before."
"I should jolly well imagine you have, 007. He only invented the modern tiffin delivery system. Our sources say he's turned his hand to smuggling, but he only recruits untouchables."
"Well, sir, if I'm to join the caste, I'll need to arrange an audition. Akil Jabara's kind of audition."
Some of your other names are made up of usable parts, but both parts together are overkill. Either half of "Boryenka Zukov" could work if paired with something more reputable and ordinary. "Battacharjee" is kinetic and vivid, conjuring up the image of a charging rhinoceros or a rickety stagecoach, but it doesn't go with "Aatish". Better to pair it with something drab and stolid, like "Sam" or "George".
"007, what do you know about George Battacharjee?"
"Only that he's the richest man in Kettering. Born in Calcutta, father a poet, mother a babysitter. Made his fortune in swimming pools, so I suppose he can keep his head above water."
"It's our job to see that he doesn't."
Thanks for a great topic, DavidNB (now there's a creative moniker). Names are a fascinating and under-analyzed part of fiction. And the blog looks interesting. I've bookmarked it.