This is discussion archived from a time before the current discussion method was installed.
Fast Eddie: Joke, right? Placeholder, while drafting, right? Right? <tap/>
Is this thing on?
Viewer: The wooden scaffolding holding this trope together has been reinforced a bit, I hope. Now, it's up to the fans.
Kilyle: Actually, the original here was my attempt to get two friends interested in TV Tropes. One of them is very well read, even moreso than I am, and he wrote it while I typed it. And I tried to include something about the Cardinal and the plot with Madame Winter (or whatever her name was), but we couldn't agree on it (they don't think the Cardinal was a villain??).
I showed him several other pages from the Literature index. He thought the summaries were too long.
I gave up for the night.
Guillaume HJ: Actually, your friend is quite close to the money as far as Richelieu goes. He's the antagonist, but he is most certainly NOT near the Evil Chancelor archetype - the novel goes to enormous length to depict him as devotedly loyal to King and Country, and the sort to go to sleep at 1 and get up at 4 to ensure all the job gets done. It's the Queen he has something against, and given that she's the sister of one of France's chief enemies, and sleeping with the prime minister of another...one can see why he would want to limit her power, no?
It's just D'Artagnan would do anything for love, and anything involves defending the honor of his lady friend's mistress. Hence why Richelieu is the antagonist. Even as far as antagonist goes, it may be worth noting that Richelieu actively rewards D'Artagnan twice over the course of the Three Musketeers (having him promoted first to full Musketeer then to Musketeer lieutenant).
Lavode: Was Milady really any more evil than the other bad guys? She did seduce that unfortunate monk and then dump him, but Athos hanged her and d'Artagnan tricked her into sleeping with him. It's pretty natural that she wanted revenge (and, as d'Artagnan later says to Mordaunt, it's not as if she could have challenged them to a duel).
Felis Sapiens: I'd say she was, yeah :) Let's see, she: - seduced a monk and (allegedly) organized a theft of church money; later dumped him for Athos; - in England she (again, allegedly) poisoned her husband Lord Winter; - after the fiasco with diamond studs organized a kidnapping of Madame Bonacieux in retaliation; - later poisoned said Madame Bonacieux - just to get back at d'Artagnan. Also, after d'Artagnan played nasty Bed Trick on her and accidentally learned her secret, she twice tried to kill him - but that, while maybe Disproportionate Retribution, is at least somewhat justified. In addition, the corruption of Felton, while maybe the only way to escape for her, seemed raher horrible Mind Rape to me.
