The Clichés of Warriors and The Future by Wishfall

Wishfall takes a look at the path Warriors is taking.

“A half-moon glowed on smooth granite boulders, turning them silver. The silence was broken only by the ripple of water from the swift black river and the whisper of trees in the forest beyond…” (Into the Wild, 14)

Did I just trigger some nostalgia, somewhere buried in your mind? We all remember that time, when we opened out first warrior’s book and began to read the first few pages. It may have been such a long time since we first met with those vivid characters, Fireheart, Graystripe, Sandstorm… So much has changed in the Vast Warriors world. Its hard to imagine a Warriors world now when it was only those four clans, no Skyclan, Tribes, or rogue groups.

As the story of Warriors have changed, so have the readers. We all remember the time when we first learned of ‘Forbidden Love’ and saw how tragically it played out with Bluestar, Silverstream and Yellowfang. But now, that topic has become somewhat of a ‘cliché’ in Warrior Cats. Its as if the authors’ key plot device is to put in forbidden romance whenever there’s a lull in chapters. This turns a lot of us readers off; having to constantly wonder which two cats are going to be sharing suggestive looks at gatherings each time we start a new arch. Its an old trope and readers are tired of and, if we don’t get more substance, may aid in Warrior’s eventual fall from relevance.

Likewise, many readers are tired and annoyed with the constant use of ‘throwaway characters’ or ‘throwaway villains’. For instance, take Ashfur, he was honestly a breath of fresh air to most of the Warriors community. Finally! A villain who wasn’t concerned with ruling over the clans; one who actually had personality and genuine motive! And what did the Erins do with him? Well, they killed him off within a couple of chapters. Then they left his death to be debated, as if Warriors had become some kind of detective show. Don’t take me wrong, this was somewhat of a fun way to get fans engaged in discussions, but it just felt… wrong. We were robbed of the ‘what-ifs’ and future consequences. Next, look at a perfect example of a ‘throwaway character’, Snowkit. If you didn’t remember, he was a kit born to Speckletail, an old queen. The kit was born deaf and was projected to not have been able to become a warrior. Now, the Erins could have used him as a perfect showcase to empower deaf and HoH people by letting him become a warrior despite his misgivings. But no, he was killed unnecessarily by a hawk merely a chapter or so later. Of course, this was used as a plot device for Bluestar’s failing mental health, but the prospect of one of her clan cats never being able to become a warrior could have done that just fine. Just to have been proven wrong once he became an apprentice during Firestar’s leadership.

Now that I’ve recapped you on the community’s thoughts, why don’t we think a little about what the Erins could do to spice things up a little? I won’t list all of my future plots and headcannons here, but, we can atleast brainstorm some in the comments, and talk about more in the future