I don't know...on the one hand, Kuzco's arrogant narcissism is so comically outrageous that I am generally more amused by it than anything else. Honestly, though, he IS one of the worst role models among main characters...he could be downright villainous if he weren't the ultimately harmless and goofy guy who learns his lessons and redeems himself in our eyes--at least, by the end of the film and repeatedly at certain points in the show. The series obviously uses the original images of the characters to prolong a hilarious, wacky, and entertaining but incongruous plotline involving them. So, the OP makes a fair point. Kuzco is portrayed, most of the time, as being so unbelievably conceited, self-obsessed, greedy, and utterly callous that he literally becomes cruel, and one can easily get disgusted and wish victory on the "villains."
Don't get me wrong, I love the charismatic jerk as a character (and we are basically supposed to simultaneously like and dislike him as we wait for him to change), but come on...it's a little hard to imagine a worse Emperor, realistically. He does rival many villains for self-loving vanity, superiority complex, power lust, and disregard of others' rights in pursuing selfish ends. On the other hand, I've never seen Yzma as evil. On the contrary, I sympathize with her enormously. From the beginning of the first film, I felt bad for her and totally understood her actions. Still, Kuzco's arrogance pretty much serves as an extreme comic device in the series and shouldn't be taken too seriously (nor should the show); in the film, obviously, things are better resolved and we probably end up truly liking Kuzco. That happens quite a bit in the series as well, but again...it's a rather discontinuous follow-up that backtracks. I did enjoy Kronk's New Groove as well, which I think was better thought-out.
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furienna
11 years ago
You never saw Yzma as evil? Okay... Kuzco might be thoughtless, immature and conceited, but unlike Yzma, he's not evil.
Intelligence and purity.
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thereseuphemiaabernathy
11 years ago
Well, I can't deny that she's done things that are bad, mean, nasty, not-nice, naughty, evil, whatever. But the point was, so has he. Before we saw her plot anything devious, underhanded, or treacherous, Kuzco was for years carelessly, callously sacrificing the well-being of everyone in the empire for the sake of his own pleasure and grandiose lifestyle. Not going out and actively injuring or killing them, no, but certainly causing more harm than good. He then fired a long-time faithful employee on a bogus whim...and given how he treated everyone at that point, I think that in that position I'd be feeling kinda murderous even before getting sacked--even though he is bloody cute. >w< Anyway, that's why I'd said I felt sympathy for her. I think one could see pre-Pacha-friendship Kuzco as being evil in a way; in another story that didn't center around him (say, if Pacha were the main character), he could have easily been a villain, rather than the kind of anti-hero, protagonist-who-learn-a-lesson that he is. He had a good deal of typical "villainous ruler" traits. His arrogance was indeed extreme even for a cartoon character, which was necessary for the story...the change in him had to be big, and difficult to achieve.
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furienna
11 years ago
I think Kuzco actually was ignorant of how real people lived their lives. He was born as a prince and was always spoiled. And we also have to take into consideration, that he seems to be an orphan. He had no father or mother, who could guide him through life. He only had Yzma, who didn't give a damn about him. So while Kuzco had some negative character traits, and I don't think anybody could see him as a role model, that was only realistic, when you consider his upbringing. And at least he could learn a lesson and care about other people, which Yzma never could.
Intelligence and purity.
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thereseuphemiaabernathy
11 years ago
I think you were right about all of that; I should have noted that I did feel some sympathy for him. He was certainly out of touch with reality--like many spoiled, sheltered, insulated people who are born into a life of privilege and never need to struggle. He hadn't learned to feel empathy for others. I suppose he does seem to be an orphan...or at least, by that point in his life, his parents/parental figures were so absent that they were never even worthy of showing. (And who knows what kind of people they were, anyway.) So there were likely few people who truly cared for him...I imagine that most automatically bowed down and acted subservient, or sucked up to him due to his power, or tried to take advantage somehow. The way he turned out wasn't, I guess, entirely his own fault, as that kind of life probably didn't do very much to inspire kindness, thoughtfulness, generosity, etc. I wouldn't say that anything excuses his behavior, but he did deserve the chance he got at redemption, learning, and growth. And true, he was able to realize the error of his ways and change himself, whereas Yzma has still not learned her lesson, despite (or perhaps because of?) the kindly infuence of good ol' Kronk...xD
I like you, Um. I like largeness...
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