Marceline (Adventure Time)
بواسطة ari webb-bryantMarceline Abadeer (full title: Marceline the Vampire Queen) is one of the main characters in Adventure Time and the main protagonist of the miniseries Stakes.
Marceline is a fun-loving, punk-rocking 1,000-year-old vampire and half-demon. She is the last of the vampires and the heir to the Nightosphere, marked by a grim past and closely entwined with the history of Ooo. She is also an avid musician and songwriter who plays an electric bass guitar, which she crafted from her family's heirloom battle-ax, and roams the continent, seeking thrills and performing the many angst-laced songs she pens. She boasts various vampiric and demonic powers although, unlike a traditional vampire, Marceline does not need to drink blood to survive and instead consumes the color red. Later in the series, she enters a romantic relationship with Princess Bubblegum.
Creation and Design
Marceline in the series pitch document by Pendleton Ward.
Marceline in the series pitch document by Pendleton Ward.
Voiced by Olivia Olson, Marceline is a major character in Adventure Time. Although she did not appear in the series pilot, the groundwork for her design and character was present in the series pitch book, penned by series creator Pendleton Ward. Ward purposely set out to make Marceline's character complex, as he explained that "with the female characters it's easy to either write them as clichés or write them as the extreme opposite of those clichés ... I just try to make them have faults and strengths just like Finn and Jake have." Initially, in the series bible, Marceline is described as being "friendly rivals" with Bubblegum. Marceline's name is based on the name of a childhood friend of Ward's, Marie, whose middle name is Marceline. Ward described Marie as someone who likes the horror movie Psycho and wears dark clothing.
The design for Marceline was created by Ward, with small changes and additions added by Phil Rynda, former lead character and prop designer for Adventure Time. Visually, Marceline has long, black hair. She rarely walks on the ground, generally preferring to float when she travels, moves, and sleeps. Marceline, unlike many of the other characters, wears varying outfits in most of her appearances. Ward said her clothing changes from episode to episode because "girls own more than one outfit". Olivia Olson, the voice actress who plays Marceline, was impressed by her character's fashion design stating, "she has really cool style ... I love what they come up with [in] every episode." Olson explained that when she goes in to record the voices for each episode, she is "totally surprised" by the costuming for Marceline. While she says her lines, she is able to view the animatics for the episode and sometimes has to stop to admire the unique designs. Marceline's physical size and shape slightly changes depending on who is drawing her. Rynda later called this "one of the coolest parts" about the character's animation due to the fact that "every artist leaves a little bit of their own taste and sensibilities in what they draw."
Olivia Olson voices Marceline.
Olivia Olson voices Marceline.
Marceline is voiced by Olivia Olson. When production on Adventure Time began, Ward contacted his friend Martin Olson, who was a writer on the animated Disney series Phineas and Ferb, and asked if he knew who played the character Vanessa Doofenshmirtz on Phineas and Ferb, as he wanted "her as a voice" on his show; reportedly, Ward was unaware that the actress was actually Martin Olson's daughter. During the casting audition, Olivia Olson first read for Princess Bubblegum, but was later asked to read for the role of Marceline. Upon seeing character designs, Olson was "definitely impressed by the character". Because Ward knew that he wanted Olivia on his show, Martin Olson later joked that her audition was simply a "sham" to please network executives. In order to get into character, Olson often dresses in a manner similar to Marceline when she records her lines; she explained, "I always find ... that on the days that I go in to record Marceline, I'll dress like her, in a weird way ... I'll throw on some rock n' roll boots, maybe some red lipstick, and just go in there." In flashback sequences, younger Marceline is voiced by Ava Acres. In the fifth season episodes "Finn the Human" / "Jake the Dog", an older, alternate universe version of the character is voiced by Cloris Leachman. Martin Olson also provides the voice for Marceline's demonic father Hunson Abadeer. Olivia Olson later noted that the opportunity to voice act with her father was "pretty cool".
Olson also is the character's singing voice. Composers Casey James Basichis and Tim Kiefer produce the bass music that the character performs in the series. The songs themselves were written by storyboard artists, or other people affiliated with production, and the demos for many of these songs were later uploaded onto the internet by those affiliated with the show.
In March 2021, it was revealed that Sugar was encouraged by the show's creative team to put her "own life experiences into the character of Marceline."
History
For storyline analysis of Marceline's history and origin, see Marceline/Analysis of Marceline's origin.
Beginnings
Marceline and her mother.
Marceline and her mother.
Roughly a thousand years prior to the events of the series, Marceline was born to a demon lord named Hunson Abadeer and an American human woman named Elise.[4] Abadeer is the evil ruler of the Nightosphere, a Hell-like demon dimension, and subsists on the souls of sentient beings.[5] Abadeer was absent for much of Marceline's childhood.[6] One of Marceline's earliest depicted childhood memories is of her living in a trailer with Elise, who sang her a song to comfort her about her nightmares.[4]
In the Wreckage of the World
"I don't like to flaunt my suffering cred but..
"I don't like to flaunt my suffering cred but..."
Marceline and her mother both survived the Great Mushroom War, a mysterious and destructive war that ravaged the Earth one thousand years prior to events of the series. Elise is shown to be suffering from an illness, implied to be radiation sickness from the nuclear fallout of the conflict, but she attempted to keep it hidden from Marceline as not to worry her. She had her draw a map of the land to get to a secret "club house" where there was supposedly a party happening. However, as Elise's health slowly worsened further, she told Marceline to go to the hide-out on her own, where she was left alone, believing her mother had abandoned her due to her demonic powers.[6] Marceline found the hideout, which was in fact a bomb shelter, with the door open and its former inhabitants dead.
Simon meets and consoles Marceline
Simon meets and consoles Marceline
Some time later, Simon Petrikov, a man cursed by a magic crown, found a crying Marceline in the ruins of a city. After searching a ruined toy shop, Simon gave her a stuffed animal named Hambo to cheer her up.[7] The two developed a close bond, travelling the ruins of the old world together, with Simon acting as Marceline's guardian and often singing her songs to comfort her. Against Marceline's warnings, Simon would use the magic crown to fend off threats, causing his mental state to deteriorate over time. He began losing control when wearing the crown and once, after mistakenly attacking a deer while scavenging, he was rescued from its affects by a 7 year-old Marceline. Marceline however became ill from her exposure to the cold temperatures produced by the crown and the pair ventured into a ruined city in search of chicken soup. In the ruins, they were terrorised by a swarm of monstrous Oozers, forcing Simon to again use the crown to protect them. A mysterious pink substance later deposited a can of chicken soup, which Simon fed Marceline. Marceline told Simon she loved him and he replied "I love you too... Gunter."[8]
Simon embraces Marcy a final time.
Simon embraces Marcy a final time.
Simon wrote a note to her on a photo he took of her which read "Marceline, is it just you and me in the wreckage of the world? That must be so confusing for a little girl and I know you're going to need me here with you but I'm losing myself, and I'm afraid you're gonna lose me to." He ended the note begging her to forgive him for whatever he does when he no longer remembers her.[7][8][4] Some years later, Simon's condition had severely deteriorated and, afraid the crown would cause him to harm Marceline, he began preparations to leave her. She told him she could help him regain his sanity and he replied that maybe one day she will. He consoled her but after accidentally cutting her, by freezing her tears, he hastily fled on a sled as she cried for him to not leave. After leaving Marceline, Simon summons her father to watch over her in his absence.[9]
What the Hell
Marceline is placed in her father's care.
Marceline is placed in her father's care.
All alone, Marceline had made herself a makeshift house in the snow when, to her horror, her demon father arrived, breaking down a door with the family ax, trashing her place and leaving to suck up the souls of Ooo.[10] Marceline would spend a notable portion of her teenage years with her father and in the Nightosphere, where she was in a gang with the ghosts Wendy, Booboo and Georgy.[11] Marceline's father hoped that she would one day take over from him as lord of the Nightosphere and the pressure he placed on her to fulfil this ambition strained their relationship further. Although Marceline attempted to tolerate her father’s evil and selfish antics, she eventually severed all ties with him after she found him eating fries that she bought for herself in a road side gas station while they were traveling.[12][13]
She who Fights with Monsters...
The Fool.
The Fool.
In her later teenage years, Marceline wandered the Land of Ooo, where vampires preyed on the last remaining humans and had taken over much of the land. Now completely alone, she initially fell into despair. One day, Marceline was enviously watching human family embrace when she noticed a vampire stalking them. She slayed the vampire, saving the family but scaring them off. Nonetheless, Marceline had discovered her calling: protecting humanity from vampires.[14] During her travels, she adopted a dog named Schwabl, a white poodle, and turned her family's heirloom ax into an Ax-Bass. After staking an immature, vagrant vampire called the Fool, Marceline realized that she had inherited from her demon father the ability to suck the souls of her victims and acquire their abilities. Marceline gained the power of flight from the Fool.[4]
The Empress.
The Empress.
Marceline later admitted that hunting vampires and protecting the last humans were the only things that brought her happiness during her late teenage years, as they made her feel as if she was protecting Simon, whom she could not save from the magic crown.[14] Marceline came to befriend a tribe of human survivors led by Two Bread Tom, who wore animal hats to elude vampires. The humans were initially scared of Marceline and kept their distance. One night, Two Bread Tom performed According to Our New Arrival one night, insisting that "art must survive", and the tribe heard Marceline give her own rendition from behind a bush. Impressed by her musical talents and realising her good nature, the humans welcomed Marceline into the group and she became their guardian.[4] Marceline would also rescue Simon from the Empress, a controlling, power-hungry vampire who had turned Simon into her thrall. After staking the Empress and sucking her soul, Marceline gained the power of invisibility.[14]
The Hierophant.
The Hierophant.
Some time later, Marceline began growing overzealous in her crusade, having nearly wiped out all of the vampires on Ooo, including an enigmatic vampire called the Moon whose self-healing powers she had gained. Meanwhile, Two Bread Tom's tribe had begun repairing a wrecked cargo ship to depart from Ooo entirely. Although Marceline had driven vampires to near-extinction, atmospheric readings had suggested some massive, unprecedented change would soon befall the continent and Tom believed it best that the humans leave in search of habitable land. When the ship's restoration grew near, Marceline implored Tom to stay but he instead offered Marceline a place on the voyage as she was "one of [them]". Before she could answer, the tribe was attacked by vampires. Marceline staked all the vampires on the ground as the humans retreated to the ship but an old, traditionalist vampire called the Hierophant had snuck onboard, having shape-shifted into Schwabl. As Marceline defended the humans from the shape-shifter, he shared his wisdom: that she was "blind to the price [she] must pay for such powers". Yet Marceline ignored him, and used her new powers to slay him in style and acquired his shapeshifting ability.[4]
The Moon.
The Moon.
Marceline then sensed the presence of the unyielding Vampire King, the "worst of them all" and the only vampire she had not slain. She insisted that the humans depart now, for their survival.[4] Marceline and the Vampire King engaged in a gruelling battle in the light of the moon and, evenly matched, the Vampire King called for a truce, in order to spare them both, but Marceline turned it down. Dead set on saving his species, the Vampire King pinned Marceline to the deck and, while allowing her to stake him, bit her neck, turning her into the very monster she fought. Marceline was henceforth the Vampire Queen of Ooo.[15] Nonetheless, thanks to Marceline's efforts, Two Bread Tom's tribe were able to sail to sea and found island settlements that allowed humanity to reconsolidate.[16]
Roaming the Land
At some point, Marceline met Princess Bubblegum, the sovereign of the Candy Kingdom. Marceline gifted her a Rock T-shirt during a music performance and they became romantically involved.[6] The two would often avoid official royal meetings and explore the Candy Kingdom's elaborate rock candy mining complex, although as time went by and the mounting stress of running the Candy Kingdom became more and more demanding, Bubblegum started pushing Marceline away.[17] This reached its climax when Marceline accompanied Bubblegum to the Glass Kingdom who had asked for her help defeating a dragon attacking their kingdom. However, Marceline didn't take the whole thing seriously and bugged Bubblegum for attention causing her to lash out, insult her and tell her to go home. Hurt, Marceline sang an angry song to her about how she didn't care about her or her "stupid candy kingdom". Marceline's song managed to defeat the dragon but this signified the end of her and Bubblegum's relationship.[6] The animosity between them would last for many years.[17][18][19]
Later, she began a romantic relationship with a magician named Ash. How they met is still unknown. The two would move into the Tree House, but their relationship would come to an end after Ash sold Hambo, her most prized possession, to Maja the Sky Witch.[12][20]
Adventure Time
Marceline scares Finn and Jake.
Marceline scares Finn and Jake.
At 1,000 years old, Marceline had become a roguish trickster with a twisted sense of humour and a penchant for practical jokes. She had also spent a lot of time wandering Ooo seeking thrills. Returning to her tree house, she found it occupied by "goody-two-shoes heroes" Finn and Jake, who would regularly become victims of her pranks and eventually developed a close bond with her. She scared them with her vampiric powers, showed them the "M" tag that gave her claim to the tree house and evicted them. The duo resettled in a dark cave and threw a house-warming party, which Marceline crashed to show them a similar tag giving her claim over the cave. She evicted the duo again and when Finn told her that his true home was Jake, she took Jake and seemingly drained him of life in the ensuing skirmish. Livid, Finn managed to land a strike on her and, impressed, she gave him a kiss on the cheek, telling him she hadn't had this much fun in years and revealing that Jake was alive. She scared the pair off and built a house in her cave.[21][22]
Following this, Marceline tricks Finn into becoming her accomplice. However, Finn soon discovers that Marceline is not evil, but rather fond of mischief and pranks. Soon thereafter, the two develop a friendship.[23][24]
When Marceline invites Finn over to help her record a song about how her father ate her fries, Finn decides to summon Abadeer to Ooo in hopes of them reconciling. While Abadeer ravages the land, Finn discovers that there is animosity between Marceline and her father. Finn manages to distract Abadeer by playing a recording of Marceline's "Fry Song", which leads to a brief moment of reconciliation between the two before Finn sends him back to the Nightosphere.[5]
Marceline's ex-boyfriend, Ash, attempts to rekindle his former relationship with Marceline via trickery. Disguised as Marceline's "spirit animal", he tricks Finn and Jake into believing that Marceline has fallen asleep due to a sleep spell that has been self-inflicted. Following Ash's advice, the two enter into Marceline's mind to retrieve the "memory core" in an attempt to wake her up. Along the way, they encounter various memories of her as a child in the aftermath of the Mushroom War. However, the duo soon learn that it was an elaborate trick by Ash; Finn and Jake actually removed Marceline's memory of their break-up. In the end, Finn is able to convince Marceline, and she promptly attacks her chauvinistic ex-boyfriend.[20][12]
Marceline's dad eventually returns and gives her an amulet that causes her to become the demonic and evil overlord of the Nightosphere. After an ordeal, Finn saves Marceline from the amulet. Marceline admits that all she wants is for her father to understand her and who she is as a person.[25][26]
Later, Simon Petrikov, who has fully turned into the Ice King and does not remember their shared past, comes to Marceline's house, apparently being a recurring issue as she has had to move constantly because of him following her, as she does not want to see him in his current state. Ice King wants to play music with her, and while she initially wants him to leave, she allows him to stay and play music together. After Ice King begins acting crazy, she sings that she wants to help him, but she doesn't know how, and that she is actually glad to see him. The two share a hug, but Ice King misinterprets it and attempts to kiss her, shocking her. After this, she calls him his real name, asking if he really doesn't remember her. Ice King begins throwing pages in his possession that he believes are lyrics he wrote but are in fact notes from his past scribbled with manic writing. Marceline picks one up, being a pre-war newspaper with Simon before he found the crown. She picks up a photo of her that he took, finding the note he had written to her long ago. Ice King, still believing they are lyrics, begins playing music and asking her to sing. She begins singing the note, and finds another note to her, which Ice King begins to sing. Marceline tearfully sings with him, as Finn and Jake watch in confusion.
Marceline enlists the help of Princess Bubblegum, and the two are able to track down Maja the Sky Witch. It is revealed that Ash sold Hambo to Maja. Only when Bubblegum trades her beloved rock shirt—which was given to her by Marceline—is Hambo able to be reunited with Marceline.[19]
After being contacted by Simon Petrikov, who resurfaced after he lost his powers, Marceline sacrifices Hambo so that he can open a portal into time so that Simon can reconcile with his estranged fiancée Betty.[27] Although the two are reunited after Betty jumps into the portal, due to the rush of events, Marceline and Simon are unable to fully catch up before Simon reverts back to the Ice King. With that being said, the two manage to more fully reunite, and as such, manage to affirm how much they care for one another.[28]
In "Varmints", while chasing "varmints" that were messing with her bio-engineered pumpkins, Princess Bubblegum and Marceline come across the old Candy Kingdom crystal mines, where they finally reconcile.
Having grown tired of being a vampire and wanting to "Grow up", Marceline asked Bubblegum to extract her vampiric essence, in an attempt to make her mortal once again. Unfortunately, this leads to the reemergence of five of Marceline's most powerful vampiric foes: The Fool, The Empress, The Hierophant, The Moon, and the Vampire King himself. The reappearance of these vampires forces Marceline, Bubblegum, Finn, Jake, and Peppermint Butler to stake them one-by-one. After finally defeating The Vampire King, his essence is removed, however, Peppermint Butler accidentally spills it, causing an explosion that releases his essence. Marceline wanted to give up during this time, but Ice King sat down with her, and essentially called her a coward. This managed to motivate her to try, and she defeated The Vampire King with the aid of Princess Bubblegum, Finn, and Jake, but was bit once again in the process. While she was turned into a vampire again, she had come to terms with who she was, and was happy to be immortal, as she could hang out with Princess Bubblegum forever.
"Marshmaline"
"Marshmaline"
Marceline is temporarily transformed by elemental magic into "Marshmaline the Campfire Queen", a sentient marshmallow creature. In her candy form, Marceline is gregarious and playful, but a bit naive about the nature of the new world around her; for instance, when an enraged Flame Princess attacks her, Marceline mistakes the assault for "wrasslin". Marceline is inevitably returned to her usual self.[29] Marceline later details her recollection of these events via highly allegorical language to BMO.[30]
Marceline's father returns to Ooo and attends one of her concerts, cheering her on way too loud in the crowd, though this was well-intentioned. While he initially embarrasses his daughter and eventually causes a ghost fight to break out, by the end of the episode, Marceline is touched that her father was willing to support her.[31]
Marceline fights for Princess Bubblegum during the "Great Gum War", and when the chaos deity GOLB is accidentally brought into Ooo, she refuses to abandon her friend. After one of GOLB's monstrosities very nearly kills the princess, Marceline rushes to her side, and after a tender moment, the two affirm that they still care for one another, and share a kiss. Following his escape from Golb, Marceline comforts Simon in the wake of his loss of Betty. During the episode's epilogue, Marceline and Bubblegum are shown sitting together on a couch under a blanket while watching Finger Puppets, and they both touch heads.[32][33]
A few years later, Princess Bubblegum has moved in with Marceline at her house when they are called back to the Glass Kingdom after the dragon reappears, and Marceline comes face to face with her past. When her old song is unable to stop the dragon, she attempts to get inspiration for an even sadder and angrier song by revisiting the old hide-out her mother sent her to as a kid but instead finds an old message her mother left for her and gains a sense of acceptance. When they are trapped in a cave, facing possible death, she instead sings a love song affirming her love to Bonnibel which also successfully gets through to the dragon who releases his true self, no longer a danger to the kingdom.[6]
Characteristics
Marceline is a half-human/half-demon, turned into a half-vampire/half-demon after killing the previous vampire king many years prior to the start of the show, which made her the eponymous Vampire Queen.[4][15] Although she is 1,000 years old, she takes on the physical appearance of a teenager.[34][35]
Unlike traditional Western vampires, Marceline subsists not off blood, but rather the color red (including "low-grade" shades such as pink).[21][36] Since she is only sated by the color itself, blood is appealing simply due to its hue (although Ward noted on his Formspring that she "drinks blood sometimes").[21][37] When Marceline is deprived of red, she enters into a "feral" state, and will instinctively try to kill others and drink their blood.[36] Like traditional Western vampires, she is vulnerable to sunlight and is capable of turning into a bat of varying size.[23][38]
Personality
Marceline's teddy bear Hambo.
Marceline's teddy bear Hambo.
“
I'm not mean. I'm a thousand years old, and I just lost track of my moral code.
”
—Marceline describing her personality in the "House Hunting Song" from "Evicted!"
Having spent centuries traversing the Land of Ooo, Marceline has evolved into a "fearless daredevil",[39] and her fondness for mischief has turned her into something of a trickster. Consequently, in her first role, she functions as the antagonist of the story, forcing Finn and Jake from their home. However, she eventually becomes their close friend once Finn recognizes that she is is "a radical dame who likes to play games".[23]
It is implied that some of her more malevolent traits are solely based on her vampire instincts. In "Red Starved", Marceline slowly becomes vicious and sinister after having been deprived of food, trying to tempt Jake so that she could eat him. In "Vamps About", Marceline was fine with Peppermint Butler creating weapons meant to kill her as a contingency, stating that she could have snapped and killed everyone at any given time.
Marceline is very independent, and in early episodes would often act without concern for Finn or his friends. However, she can be very emotional and sentimental. For example, in "What Was Missing", she was more aggressive towards Princess Bubblegum than she usually is. She was emotionally attached to her teddy bear Hambo, which was given to her by Simon Petrikov; after Ash sold it to Maja, she was furious and broke up with him. Later, Princess Bubblegum got Hambo back in the episode "Sky Witch", but Marceline was willing to give up Hambo in order to help Simon reconnect with his fiancée, Betty Grof.. It is easier for Marceline to express her feelings through music, as seen in the "Fry Song" and "I'm Just Your Problem", but has trouble expressing them otherwise. She keeps a diary that she uses for inspiration for songs as seen in "Marceline's Closet". When Marceline sang the words to "Remember You", from the letter that Simon Petrikov wrote for her, she began to cry.
Near the end of "The Dark Cloud", Marceline's personality changed slightly. She had learned how to be more mature which is proved by her accepting her immortality, by stating that she will be able to hang out with Princess Bubblegum forever. She also learned how to be more empathetic to others too. However, it is still unknown if she got over her emptiness in the end. In "Obsidian", which takes place several years after the series finale, Marceline has grown to be a much more emotionally mature person, while still retaining her playfulness.
Physical appearance
Marceline is a tall and slim half-vampire/half-demon hybrid with light blue-gray skin, sharp crooked fangs, and very long, ankle-length midnight black hair. She also sports two marks on her neck, which are the marks of the bite that turned her into a vampire. Her red tongue is sometimes bifurcated, like a snake's, but other times looks like a normal human's. This may stem from her shapeshifting powers, allowing her to change its appearance as she pleases.
In the episode "Go With Me", her hair is shaved into a long waist-length undercut, which reveals that she has pointy ears. Marceline is very slim and sometimes appears to be slimmer than Princess Bubblegum; however, her shape can vary slightly depending on who is drawing her.[40][41] She is usually floating in the air but when she stands next to the other main characters she is taller than them; however in "I Remember You", she was just at Ice King's size (or slightly shorter), when she was young, she had a short-sleeve dark red shirt with a dark blue overall dress with white tube socks and red Mary Jane shoes. In most of her transformations, she is shown to have green eyes.
Marceline's general appearance, particularly her blue-gray skin, sharp fangs, and pointy ears, is an apparent result of her demonic heritage, and she shares all of these characteristics with her father. From Marceline's maternal side, the episode "Everything Stays" revealed that she possesses genes from a dark-skinned race which she inherited from her mother, although evidently, the phenotype associated with the that genes are recessive.
Her main outfit features a gray tank top, dark blue skinny jeans, and calf-length dark red boots.
Marceline wears different outfits in most of her episode appearances. For example, in "Henchman", she wears a dark violet strapless minidress with a dull pink waistband, long over-the-knee lilac-purple stockings with dark purple stripes and dull pink low-heel flats. For more information, see Marceline/Outfits.
Powers and Abilities
From her demonic father, Marceline inherited the power to absorb people's souls and minor control over fire as shown in "Evicted!"'s first look at the Fire Kingdom and her use on candles.[42] It was also implied by her Farmworld counterpart that her half-demon nature extended her natural lifespan, as Farmworld Marceline was able to survive for at least 1000 years, albeit old and withered.
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After absorbing the essence of several powerful vampires, Marceline gained several supernatural powers. From The Fool she gained the power to fly; from The Empress the ability to turn invisible; from The Hierophant she gained the power to shape-shift (e.g. taking the form of a bat, a wolf, a reptilian creature, a large tentacled monster and she can even copy the form of other creatures if she has time to study them)[43]; and from The Moon, the ability to rapidly heal.
Marceline is immortal, youthful, and unaging as a vampire and as long as she's not contacted by any form of typical weakness that can kill vampires, she could live both forever and eternity.
Tumblr oewj8mapm61v52re1o1 500
She lit up all the candles in Finn and Jake's house with a wave of her fingers.[21]
She can move things using her mind.[21][26] She probably obtained this power from Vampire King, but this hasn't been confirmed.
Raising the dead.
Raising the dead.
Marceline can raise the undead to serve her.[23]
She can fire red energy beams from her arms that are able to restrain people.[23]
As a result of absorbing the Vampire King's dark cloud half, she can now communicate with a miniature mental projection of him. During the turmoil of the Gum War, Marceline was able to release the vampiric essence she absorbed from the Vampire King, transforming into a similar black, cloud-like form. In this state she was powerful enough to defeat one of the creatures created by GOLB.
According to Ward, she is ambidextrous, which explains her ability to play bass with both hands.[44]
Marceline is a very talented musician and songwriter, and is proficient at singing and playing her basses.
The Nightosphere Amulet: When worn the wearer gains the ability to shoot green lasers which either vaporize or transform whatever they hit. They can also create or transform into a large cloud of blood mist.
Marceline is capable of consuming the color red from an object she bites, while the object itself remains physically unharmed.
Weaknesses
Typical vampiric weaknesses. It is worth noting that while vulnerable to sunlight, as is common in vampire lore, she does not dissolve right away. The nuance to this in the Adventure Time world is that vampires are vulnerable specifically to direct sunlight. Marceline is capable of unrestricted movement on a bright sunny day provided that she shields herself sufficiently, which she usually accomplishes with a combination of a parasol and a large sunhat, sometimes with the addition of full-length gloves to cover her arms. According to Marceline, moving around on a bright day still hurts mildly, comparable to scraping her knee, but she can bear it.
Like typical vampires, Marceline cannot see her own reflection in a mirror.
Marceline has revealed that she cannot digest syrup.[45]
Whenever she doesn't consume enough red-colored objects, Marceline goes into "feral mode", a state in which she becomes ravenous out of hunger. This rabid state subsides once Marceline consumes a sufficient amount of red.
Relationships
Main article: Marceline's relationships
Marceline meets Finn and Jake.
Marceline meets Finn and Jake.
Marceline has a close relationship with Finn and Jake. Marceline and Finn have many things in common with one another; in the episodes "Evicted" and "Henchman", it is stated that the reason Marceline befriended Finn is that he enjoys being himself. Although she has kissed Finn platonically on the cheek twice, Ward has noted that there is no romantic subtext between the two. On the other hand, Marceline and Jake share a more complex relationship. In her initial appearances, she derived pleasure from scaring Jake, who was terrified "of her vampire bite". In turn, Jake felt that she was evil and had managed to take over Finn's mind. Due to this, Jake attempted to kill her several times, to no avail. However, after the events of "Henchman", Jake seems to have forgotten his fear of her; in "Memory of a Memory", he even refers to her as a "friend" in one of her memories.
Bonnibel and Marceline confirm their relationship with a kiss.
Bonnibel and Marceline confirm their relationship with a kiss.
At the start of the series, Marceline shares a tense relationship with Princess Bubblegum. However, as the show has gone on, their relationship has been fleshed out and changed. Marceline was the first person to address Bubblegum by her first name—Bonnibel—which occurred in the episode "Go With Me". Their connections are explored further in the season three episode "What Was Missing". In the episode, Marceline's song "I'm Just Your Problem" and the dialogue between her and Bubblegum implied that they may have had some sort of relationship in the past, although the exact details surrounding the nature of the relationship were not explained. This later caused an internet controversy over Marceline's sexual orientation. However, after the events of "What Was Missing", Marceline and Bubblegum's relationship seems to have gotten better, as the two spend quality time together in "Sky Witch", "Varmints", Stakes, and "Broke His Crown" and are seen having a strong bond. In the series finale, "Come Along with Me", Marceline and Bubblegum express their romantic feelings for one another and kiss, and the episode's epilogue shows the two seemingly as a happy couple. In the episode "Obsidian" of the spin-off series Distant Lands, set some years later (Finn is shown as an adult man in the episode), Marceline and Bubblegum are depicted as living together in Marceline's cave and are in an explicitly romantic relationship with each other. The episode also confirms that they had previously been in a relationship and a break-up is shown through flashbacks.
Marcy and her father
Marcy and her father
Marceline and her father, Hunson Abadeer, have trouble accepting one another. Initially, Marceline believes her father does not care for her and expresses her feelings through the before-mentioned "Fry Song". Although they admit to loving each other, Abadeer constantly pressures Marceline to follow in the family business and take over ruling the Nightosphere, a prospective job Marceline does not want.
Marceline's mother, Elise, died centuries before the series and is depicted only in flashbacks. In "Everything Stays", Elise and a young Marceline are shown living together in a trailer in the desert. In "Obsidian" it is revealed that Elise tried to take Marceline to a fallout bunker but succumbed to illness on the way, leaving Marceline alone. Marceline believed that her mother had abandoned her until she finds a recording from Elise apologizing.
Marcy & Simon
Marcy & Simon
Marceline and the Ice King also have a complicated relationship. In the episode "I Remember You", it is revealed that the Ice King—then the human man named Simon Petrikov—discovered her crying in the ruins of a city destroyed by the Mushroom Wars. It was Simon who gave little Marceline Hambo and attempted to watch over her. This kind gesture made the Ice King a long-time close friend and father figure to Marceline. However, as the crown's power increased, Simon began to forget more and more about his relationship with Marceline until he had all but forgotten their friendship. Former storyboard artist and showrunner for the series Adam Muto explained that Marceline and the Ice King's history was not part of the series' initial plan but something that "evolved from [the show's] original course and it will likely continue to evolve in the future." The Distant Lands spin-off shows that Simon eventually regains himself and maintains a close relationship with Marceline.
Quotes
See Marceline/Quotes
Gender-Swapped
Marceline's gender-swapped counterpart, "Marshall Lee", is voiced by actor and musician Donald Glover (Adventure Time and Fionna & Cake season 1) and by actor and singer Kris Kollins (Fionna & Cake season 2).
Marshall Lee
The gender-swapped version of Marceline—named Marshall Lee—appeared in the third-season episode "Fionna and Cake". This version of the character only had a small cameo and no lines. It was later revealed that another Fionna and Cake episode was in the works for season five, and that the plot would largely revolve around Marshall Lee. The episode—titled "Bad Little Boy"—aired on February 18, 2013. In the episode, the princesses that are captured by the Ice King are tired of his poorly written Fionna and Cake fan fiction stories, so Marceline stops by the Ice Kingdom to show him how to do it properly; she tells a tale involving her gender-swapped character, Marshall Lee. The character was voiced by comedian and musician Donald Glover. Additionally, Marshall Lee makes a cameo appearance in the third Fionna and Cake episode entitled "The Prince Who Wanted Everything", and has a speaking role in the fourth entitled "Five Short Tables".
A six issue spin-off comic miniseries titled Marceline and the Scream Queens, written by Meredith Gran of Octopus Pie, debuted in July 2012. The series featured Marceline and Princess Bubblegum forming a band and touring around Ooo. The series are published by Boom! Studios under its kid-oriented imprint KaBoom, which also publishes the rest of the Adventure Time series. Other contributors to the series include Faith Erin Hicks, and Liz Prince. KaBoom has also published Seeing Red by Kate Leth, and Marceline Gone Adrift by Gran.
Marceline is also featured in the iOS game Adventure Time: Rock Bandits. In the context of the game, the Ice King kidnaps Marceline's fans at a concert so that they will be his fans instead. Finn and Jake must then free the captured citizens. Marceline appears as a playable character in the toys-to-life video game Lego Dimensions, distributed via a "fun pack" containing a Marceline Lego minifigure and a constructable "Lunatic Amp" accessory.
Episode appearances
Major appearances
"Evicted!" (debut)
"Henchman"
"It Came from the Nightosphere"
"Go With Me"
"Heat Signature"
"Memory of a Memory"
"What Was Missing"
"Marceline's Closet"
"Return to the Nightosphere"
"Daddy's Little Monster"
"I Remember You"
"Finn the Human" (Farmworld Marceline)
"Five More Short Graybles" (grayble)
"Bad Little Boy"
"Simon & Marcy"
"Sky Witch"
"Red Starved"
"Betty"
"Princess Day"
"Sow, Do You like Them Apples"
"Varmints"
"Marceline The Vampire Queen"
"Everything Stays"
"Vamps About"
"The Empress Eyes"
"May I Come In?"
"Take Her Back"
"Checkmate"
"The Dark Cloud"
"Broke His Crown"
"The Music Hole"
"Skyhooks" (as Marshmaline)
"Hero Heart" (as Marshmaline)
"Ketchup"
"Seventeen"
"Marcy & Hunson"
"Come Along With Me"
"Obsidian"
Minor appearances
"The Duke" (cameo)
"Power Animal" (cameo)
"Video Makers"
"Holly Jolly Secrets Part II" (cameo)
"Jake the Dog" (Farmworld Marceline)
"All the Little People" (as a toy)
"Time Sandwich"
"Ocarina" (cameo)
"Jake The Brick" (cameo)
"Astral Plane"
"Dark Purple"
"Hoots" (cameo)
"Be Sweet"
"The Comet" (comet projection)
"President Porpoise is Missing!" (cameo)
"Crossover" (Farmworld Marceline)
"Wheels" (cameo)
"The Invitation"
"The Light Cloud" (cameo/flashback)
"Bespoken For" (cameo/flashback)
"Skyhooks II"
"Whispers" (flashback; non-speaking)
"Son of Rap Bear" (cameo)
"Bonnibel Bubblegum"
"Diamonds and Lemons"
"Simon Petrikov"
"The Star" (flashbacks; non-speaking)
"The Hare and the Sprout"
"The Crocodile Who Bit A Log" (non-speaking cameo)
"The Lion of Embers"
"The Cat Who Tipped the Box"
"The Bird in the Clock"
"The Insect That Sang"
"The Worm and his Orchard" (no lines)
"The Bear and the Rose"
Mentioned
Still (original storyboard)
"Joshua and Margaret Investigations"
"Temple of Mars"
Pictured
"The Thin Yellow Line"
Marceline's songs
"House Hunting Song"
"Fisherman Song"
"Fry Song"
"I'm Just Your Problem"
"My Best Friends in the World"
"Journal Song"
"Not Just Your Little Girl"
"Nuts"
"Remember You"
"Boss Marceline Who's In Charge Here"
"Breakfast Song"
"Yeah, Girl, It Stinks"
"Super Porp Jingle"
"Everything Stays"
"According to Our New Arrival"
"Remembering Memories"
"Time, Sweet Time"
"It's Spring Again"
"Was it Reality"
"Rather Be Anything" (as Leaf Marceline)
"Happy Ending Song"
"Francis Forever"
"Let Me Call You Sweetheart" (as Marshmaline)
"Bonbon Ballad" (as Marshmaline)
"Rock Star Girl's Song" (as Rock Star Girl)
"Fix My Friend" (as Rock Star Girl)
"Slow Dance With You"
"Time Adventure"
"Woke Up"
"Brush Song"
"Red Light"
"Monster"
Reception
Britt Hayes of Screen Crunch said, "it takes a special kind of attitude" to cosplay as Marceline due to her complex character
Britt Hayes of Screen Crunch said, "it takes a special kind of attitude" to cosplay as Marceline due to her complex character
Marceline has attracted positive critical attention. Oliver Sava of The A.V. Club praised her as one "of this show's most tragic characters." He later wrote that her addition "was a major turning point for the series, introducing a hip, adventure-loving female to the cast who can hold her own against Finn and Jake and also has a strong connection to Ooo's past." Furthermore, he noted that "she's been at the center of some of the show's most emotional episodes," and "beyond her dramatic value, Marceline tends to just make every episode better" because "her writers clearly enjoy writing scenes for her." Susana Polo of The Mary Sue referred to the character as "one of the radder characters" in the series. Cam Shea of IGN named Marceline's introduction in "Evicted!" as the fourth best moment in the series' first season. He wrote that "sure, in this episode, she evicts Finn and Jake from their home ... but hey, this is the first time we meet her, and she's awesome."
io9 writer Charlies Jane Anders wrote that Marceline's—as well as the Ice King's—appearance in "I Remember You" was "one of the most intense things I've seen in ages." She praised Marceline's development from a "pretty one-note villain" to a type of person that "we sort of knew". CartoonNetwork.co.uk named her "Character of the Week" on January 24, 2012. The Guardian called Marceline the best character in Adventure Time in a DVD review of the series, noting in particular that "she's ... responsible for some of the show's best songs." In 2016, WhatCulture ranked her the fourth best character on the show, writing that she is a "bad ass" and "the coolest character in the series", and that—after the anti-vampire backlash in pop culture caused largely by the book and film series Twilight and the television show The Vampire Diaries in the mid-to-late 2000s—"Marceline ... prove[s] that vampires can still be awesome."
Lauren Rearick of Teen Vogue argued that Marceline is important in a discussion of on-screen representation, as she is from "a non-traditional family [whose] emotions ... sometimes mirrored depression". This, Rearick argues, gave the series "the opportunity to explore complex topics under the guise of a children's show."
The production crew of Adventure Time are also pleased with the character. In 2010, near the start of the series, Ward stated that Marceline was his favorite character because he did not "know everything about her character yet", which he found to be "mysterious [and] cool". Rynda claimed that Marceline was probably his favorite character in the series because "she's just really fun to draw." Marceline is also particularly popular with the Adventure Time fan base, and after the release of "Evicted!" her popularity grew enormously. Ward later noted that he felt "good about that. It's nice". Marceline is also popular with cosplayers, or performance artists who wear costumes and fashion accessories to represent characters from the Adventure Time universe. The character's popularity has been recognized by the company that owns Adventure Time. In fact, the official press release for the Adventure Time: Marceline and the Scream Queens companion comic book referred to the character as a "fan-favorite".
Marceline's popularity has transcended into other mediums of popular culture. For instance, American singer Willow Smith dedicated two tracks of her debut album Ardipithecus (2015) to the character, which were eponymously named after her.
Relationship controversy
The episode "What Was Missing" became controversial due to implications that Marceline and Princess Bubblegum had been in a past relationship. The controversy largely began after an accompanying "Mathematical" recap—a studio-endorsed behind the scenes video series implied that there were lesbian relations between Princess Bubblegum and Marceline and that the writing staff actively seeks input from fans. This incident was addressed by the show's producer, Fred Seibert, who said that "in trying to get the show's audience involved we got wrapped up by both fan conjecture and spicy fanart and went a little too far." Soon after, the video recap and the entire channel was pulled off of YouTube, although "What Was Missing" still airs during reruns. Seibert's decision to remove the video also proved controversial; Bitch magazine later wrote an article about how the episode "handled female desire—female queer desire at that—in a subtle but complex way", and that the removal of the recap and the studio's perceived treatment of the controversy was detrimental towards the acceptance of queer romance in children's television. Ward later addressed the issue and gave a more neutral view; he said that, because there were "so many extreme positions taken on it all over the Internet", he did not "really want to comment on it [because] it was a big hullaballoo." Following "What Was Missing", the pairing of Bubblegum and Marceline became popular with many fans of the show, and was labelled "Bubbline".
In August 2014, Olson told a crowd of fans gathered at a Barnes & Noble book signing from The Adventure Time Encyclopedia, that, according to Ward, Marceline and Princess Bubblegum had dated in the past, but that because the series airs in some areas where homosexual relationships are illegal, the relationship is not clearly depicted in the show. In series finale, "Come Along with Me", the two kiss, making their romantic relationship canon. Muto told TVLine that the relationship between Bubblegum and Marceline as well as their kissing was "an ongoing conversation... It certainly wasn't in the show's original pitch. It was a relationship that evolved over time." Storyboard artist Hanna K. Nyström was responsible for adding in the kiss. According to Muto, this scene was not originally in the script; it merely noted that Bubblegum and Marceline "have a moment". When Nyström was working on the sequence, Muto gave her creative control as to how she wanted that "moment" to unfold. Muto noted, "When Hanna boarded that, there was a little note in the margin that said 'Come on!' with a big exclamation point. That was the only note. I can't argue with that."
