1 of 1- Tuxie400
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BL Writers inspired by League of Legends?
League of Legends is a multiplayer online video game. When Katarina Rostova first took shape as a character in Cape May, I wondered if she was based on a champion character in this video game. I know little about video games, but an Internet search on the name Katarina pulled up images of this video game character, a shapely assassin with long, flaming red hair. It made me wonder if one of the writers wasn't playing this video game in his down time.
Today I decided to go back and research League of Legends, and I found quite a few connections to Blacklist. But then all roads I research seem to lead to The Blacklist. The LoL Katarina is one of more than a hundred characters that players (called Summoners) may choose for their game. Katarina is called The Sinister Blade because her weapon is a dagger. (That reminded me of the Blacklist Katarina's kill in her kitchen in Requiem). Each character in the video game has a biography. Katarina's says she is driven by an intense killer instinct and uses her talents as an assassin for the glory of Noxus (fictional country) and the continued elevation of her family. While her fervor drives her to even great feats, it can sometimes lead her astray. She has a scar that helps her remember she must never let passion interfere with duty.
There are some other names and acronyms in the game that we've seen in The Blacklist. For example, among other female characters that can be chosen for play are Elise and LeBlanc. Like Katarina, Elise the Spider Queen and LeBlanc the Deceiver were from the territory of Noxus.
Different types of games can be played in League of Legends. The Howling Abyss type is used for ARAM (All Random All Mid Matches) with two teams of five champions. The BL task force has five members. You could consider Red a "summoner." The game is played for dominion of the world, and the territories sort of remind me of Red's map of doom. In North America and Europe, Riot Games organizes the League Championship Series (LCS), located in Los Angeles and Berlin respectively, which consists of 10 professional teams in each continent.
I don't think League of Legends gives us any insight into Red's endgame. I just think it's an influence.
Last edited by Tuxie400 (12/06/2017 12:43 pm)
- Honey West
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Re: BL Writers inspired by League of Legends?
You always find some very cool stuff, Tuxie400! Thank you for sharing. 
“I am exactly who I am. And I can assure you, I’m a far more interesting Raymond Reddington than Raymond Reddington ever was."
- lara1
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Re: BL Writers inspired by League of Legends?
Tuxie400 - thanks for sharing. and interesting that its yet another connection to a game.
- lara1
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Re: BL Writers inspired by League of Legends?
So, this has got me thinking again about games. Games mentioned in TBL which I remember:
Card games generally
Solitaire
Go fish
The card game that Red mentions to Isabella Stone (can't remember the name)
Chess
checkers
Scrabble
Crosswords
Take 12 (with katerina's things in Dom's barn -a US version of a UK game)
Highlights magazine puzzles
any others I missed? probably!
- Brittany
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Re: BL Writers inspired by League of Legends?
That's really interesting! Thanks for sharing.
- Tatiana
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Re: BL Writers inspired by League of Legends?
Honey West wrote:
You always find some very cool stuff, Tuxie400! Thank you for sharing.
Yes!!!
"I could tell you how to win a marathon, but you're assuming it's a 26.2 mile race. It's not. It's a 6.2 mile race that begins at mile 20." Raymond Reddington
- Tuxie400
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Re: BL Writers inspired by League of Legends?
lara1 - Almost every episode this season has Red playing games or asking to play a game. In Grayson Blaise, Red asks Cooper if he wants him to play ColorKu. In the Endling, Dembe and Red are playing Bananagrams - that's the one with the Scrabble tiles. In The Travel Agency, Red tells Cooper they can play Celebrity.
Honey West, Tatiana and Brittany - I'm glad you liked the info on the League of Legends connections.
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Thread Starter- Tuxie400
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Re: BL Writers inspired by League of Legends?
One more thing about League of Legends. The champion characters, like Katarina, never truly die in a match. They can be killed, but they reanimate after a certain amount of time has elapsed. That just reminded me of all the fake deaths in BL.
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Thread Starter- lara1
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Re: BL Writers inspired by League of Legends?
I’m always interested in what you post Tuxie400. Although - I would not want the big reveal to be that it’s a video game that Red ( or some unseen summoner) is managing. Lol! Don’t think so though! I do like the similarities that you point out!