6 Reasons Nabu Was a Gary Stu *UPDATE: 10/17/21”

I’ve written a couple posts on my Prattler’s Paradise calling Nabu a Mary Sue/Gary Stu. Naturally, the Winx fandom rejects this criticism the second they hear it. For example, a Winx fan on YouTube who may or may not read this blog — they referenced it in a video at least — countered by saying, “Why can’t we just have good men?”

That’s the fandom’s most common defense. “Nabu wasn’t a Gary Stu; he was just a really good man.” Or: “Nabu was a really good man, so it doesn’t matter if he was a Gary Stu.”

They’re missing the point.

No one is saying being good or doing good things made him a Gary Stu. If that’s all it took, he wouldn’t be alone because he wasn’t the only good man in Winx Club. Just sayin’. ?‍♀️

Terms like “Mary Sue” or “Gary Stu” criticize the writers, not just the characters. After all, Rainbow created Nabu. His admirable traits, his noble deeds, his relationship with Aisha — they designed, wrote, and animated all of it. That’s why you can’t judge a character like you would a real person. They’re also a creation, a product of someone’s imagination, so we have to get inside the writers’ heads to evaluate the character fully.

I’m writing a series (on Prattler’s Paradise) elaborating on why Nabu was a Mary Sue/Gary Stu. The first post is already up. It’s about his flaws — or rather, his lack of them.

People say (as recently as last month on this blog) he wasn’t perfect because he had one or two potential flaws and did a couple negative things (like stalking Aisha). But I came across a YouTube video called “Can Mary Sues [or Gary Stus] Have Flaws?” Spoiler alert: yes, they can. A character doesn’t have to be 100 percent perfect to be too perfect.

If you’re interested — most of you won’t be, but whatever — check out the link below. (More coming soon.)

UPDATE 2: I changed the structure of the bottom section so I could summarize what each post is about.

1. No Meaningful Flaws

LINK: Winx Club: 6 Reasons Nabu Was a Gary Stu — #1: No Meaningful Flaws

• Mary Sues and Gary Stus can have flaws, but they’re never meaningful flaws.
• In Winx Club: Guide to the Magical World, Rainbow claimed Nabu’s flaw was that he “overestimated his power”. That’s an example of an informed flaw.
• There’s no excuse for a character to be perfect because even positive traits become flaws under the wrong conditions.

UPDATE 1: Second post added.

2. Mr. Magical Swiss Army Knife

LINK: Winx Club: 6 Reasons Nabu Was a Gary Stu — #2: Mr. Magical Swiss Army Knife

• Wizards in Winx Club are OP. They don’t have as many restrictions on their magic as fairies and witches do.
• To rein in wizard magic, Rainbow gave most wizards specific styles like magic absorption (Ogron), shapeshifting (Duman), and the famous “Mark of Valtor” (guess who?).
• Nabu, however, didn’t have a style of magic. His spells were random. Whatever Rainbow needed to move the plot forward, he could do it.
• Aside from the situation-specific spells, most of Nabu’s abilities were basic things any magic being can do, including the Winx. So Rainbow used three tricks to make him look special.

UPDATE (08/10/21): Third post added.

3. Getting Away With a Crime

LINK: Winx Club: 6 Reasons Nabu Was a Gary Stu — #3: Getting Away With a Crime

• The Winx fandom says Aisha had to “learn to trust” Nabu, but they gloss over the reason: he stalked her.
• Nabu’s actions in Winx season three meet the legal definitions of stalking in the U.S. and Italy.
• Nabu got away with his behavior not just because the fandom overlooked it, but because the other characters did, too. A Gary Stu can do wrong, but he’ll never face consequences for it.
• Rainbow uses three tricks to make us downplay his stalking.

UPDATE (10/17/21): Fourth post added.

4. A Backstory Full of Baloney

LINK: Winx Club: 6 Reasons Nabu Was a Gary Stu — #4: A Backstory Full of Baloney

• A backstory is what happened to the character in the past, but it’s supposed to explain their present personality traits and behaviors. But all Nabu’s backstory did was explain why he knew kung fu.
• A character’s flaws usually stem from their emotional wound(s), the negative event(s) from their past that shook their worldview. Nabu’s emotional wound was a lonely childhood, combined with his parents making decisions for him (like who to marry). But unlike Aisha, who’s not a Mary Sue, it didn’t have any negative effects on him.
• Though all the Winx’s love interests are shallow, Nabu was the most shallow because 1) he had no flaws, even though his backstory set up plenty for him; and 2) he was essentially a copy of Aisha, unlike the other guys, who are more distinct from their girlfriends.
• Male characters get away with being too perfect more often than female characters, who are held to higher writing standards. (Maybe that’s why there’s no universal term for a male Mary Sue.)