We were running commercials for the Smurfs 2 DVD at my workplace, and I started thinking about what appealed to people about the smurfs, from a storytelling perspective. I had an epiphany, and decided that, in my opinion, the key plot point is Gargamel's unholy obsession with a near-idealic people. The following came out the dark recesses of my brain over an hour LNG period.
Smurfs (Baikanon)
- The most important aspect is that Gargamel is obsessed with the smurfs.
- Gargamel sells his soul to a wicked being who wants smurfs in return for a magic cure to the kingdoms problems.
- Azrael -- the cat -- could be the being, in that form to supervise his work?
- Maybe Gargamel is this spirit's name, and it's mistakenly attributed to him (such as if he attacked the smurfs, saying it's in the name of Gargamel, and they assume that's his name, etc). Or, Gargamel could be a name he is given to exemplify his fallen state.
- Gargamel would be a noble xharactee at first blush. A benevolent magician under employ of the King is what I'm thinking.
- Smurfs are stars that fell to earth. Thus, they posses mystic properties.
- The key idea here is that Gargamel is obsessed with smurfs. This obsession would stem from this deal with the devil, or maybe because they're ingredients in a potion he needed to save the kingdom.
- Smurfs are intentionally archetypal characters, because stars represent human traits?
- Overall, Gargamel should be a tragic figure. He was a good person, dedicated to the kingdom, but then fell awry when the kingdom was in trouble and he couldn't save it under his own power.
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