Mei (Galactik Football)
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| Galactik Football character | |
| Mei | |
|---|---|
| Home Planet: | Akillian |
| Team: | Snow Kids |
| Position: | Defender |
| Number: | 7 |
| Flux: | Breath |
| Family: | mother and father |
| First appearance: | "A New Hope" |
Mei is one of the main protagonists in the animated series, Galactik Football. Although she wishes to play the offensive position of a Striker, she plays as the Snow Kid's Defender, next to her team mate Thran.
Contents |
[edit] Season 1
Mei first appears in Episode 2 of the first series, "A New Hope". Her main motivation is to be a successful and celebrated footballer and to please her domineering mother. She also the focus of the love triangle that makes up the main romantic relationship in the series.
Little information is known about Mei's past. She was born on Akillian in the months following the Great Explosion and close to the explosion's epicenter, leading to her contamination by the Metaflux. Like all the contaminated children she was struck down in her youth by an unexplainable self-resolving fever. She was raised by her parents, both of whom appear frequently in the series. She was not known to the other characters prior to the start of the series.
She first appears at Aarch's football try-outs and immediately acts as an incentive for Micro-Ice to remain and compete with the other characters. She is accompanied by her mother, a rather forceful and over-competitive woman who is a major force in Mei's life. After a successful tryout at which she outperforms strikers Sinedd and D'Jok she is placed on the team along with the other protagonists.
In episode 4 she is assigned the position of defender, but encouraged by her mother's wishes and their shared belief that only players who score goals receive any media attention, she lobbies Aarch to be allowed to play striker. On Aarch's continued refusal to allow her to do so, she is encouraged by her mother to use her beauty against strikers D'Jok and Micro-Ice. She flirts with D'Jok during and between the Snow-Kids-Pirates matches, causing Micro-Ice to feel jealous and betrayed, as he had previously confesses to D'Jok to being in love with Mei. Ultimately the rift between the two becomes so great that Micro-Ice abandons the team altogether.
It is at this point that Mei for the first time attempts to express to D'Jok that her feelings for him have become legitimate. However D'Jok loses interest in her when realises she has been manipulating the situation for her own ends. Aarch reluctantly permits her to play Striker during the Akillian-Shadows home match, however she finds herself unable to perform to her usual level and is happy to return to playing defense when Micro-Ice returns to the team.
In the second half of the series Mei's major conflict come from trying to balance professionalism with fame as her increasingly overbearing mother signs her up to be spokesperson for several brands. She stars in a shampoo commercial but finds the shooting of it interferes with her training and leads to overwork. Eventually, prior to the Galactik Football final she decides to prioritize her career and refuses to do any more such work, declaring herself a footballer not a supermodel.
Like all 7 of the Snow Kids Mei suffers from illness inflicted by the presence of the Metaflux in her body, resulting in exhaustion, high fever and collapse. Her collapse is attributed to simple exhaustion and helps to rekindle her relationship with D'Jok, as well cementing her friendship with Micro-Ice. Like all of the Snow Kids Mei chooses to have the Metaflux extracted rather than risk it continuing to endanger her life.
In the final episodes of the series Mei reveals herself to be still in love with D'Jok and it is her support and affection which prevent him from betraying his team. D'Jok shows he reciprocates her feelings in the last episode.
Mei scores 2 goals in the course of the series. The first is the 6th goal scored against the Technoid in the GF Semi-Final in episode 21. The second is the winning "Golden Goal" of the Final against the Shadows in Episode 26.
[edit] Season 2
In season 2 Mei returns along with the rest of her team to defend their title as Galactik Football Champions. She has returned to shooting commercials and acting as a spokesperson but has managed to develop a more professional and balanced attitude to her situation.
She and D'Jok are dating, though their relationship struggles after D'Jok replaces Rocket as captain. Sometime in the gap between series she has agreed to watch D'Jok for, his father, Sonny and report back to Corso, Sonny's second in command, on how he is doing.
She is portrayed as more responsible and capable, comforting Tia after Rocket disappears and helping D'Jok as he struggles with his new responsibilities. She seems to have more insight into what Aarch is thinking then the other players do.
[edit] Personality
Mei lives life glamorously and is envied by many, especially Tia, her room-mate and new best friend.
When Mei makes her fast appearance in the series, she is portrayed as a spoilt, beautiful, flirtatious and ambitious character. Due to her mother’s coaxing, Mei starts to believe that her place is as Striker, and works to gain this position by playing Micro-Ice's emotions for her against him.
Feeling guilt-tripped when becoming Striker after Micro-Ice leaves the team, she soon learns during a match against the Shadows that playing offence is harder than what she had previously been used to in defence. Upon Micro-Ice's return, Mei is only to glad to go back to being the Snow Kid’s tough Defender.
Despite her negative perspective during the first few episodes of Galactik Football, Mei is a trusting and supportive friend. In the middle of the series, Mei's mother manages to set up Mei with dozens of commercial deals and contracts soon after the Snow Kids' victory against the Shadows, enabling them to compete in the Galactik Football Cup tournament.
Nearing the end of the series, exhaustion from both training and the commercials gets to Mei, stressing her out during the most crucial point of the tournament. Despite what Mei is going through herself, she still takes time out for Tia, offering advice and reassurance to her.
[edit] Family and Friends
Both Mei's parents make frequent appearances in the series. Mei's mother in particular is an important figure. She is portrayed as a pressurizing and overly-competitive character who is determined to see her daughter a star. Mei occasionally finds her mother's intensity wearing but is obedient and seems to have a hard time saying no to her. Her father is a quieter figure, henpecked by his domineering wife but seems ready to defend his daughter should the need arise.
Mei's relationship with D'Jok and Micro-Ice is one of the major plot threads of the series. Micro-Ice developed a juvenile and crush on her on first seeing her.
As a part of her plan, she spends more time with D'Jok making Micro-Ice jealous of his best friend. When D'Jok gives Mei his bracelet, something of high value to himself, she proudly presents it to Micro-Ice who immediately leaves to confront D'Jok about the matter. Stubbornly, Micro-Ice leaves the team although upon his return Mei's relationship with him becomes closer and the two are able to be trusting friends.
Up until then, Mei and Micro-Ice's relationship consisted of him flirting with her resulting in him being insulted or ignored. Despite the way he was treated, he still pursued her out of self-confidence. Now as close friends, Micro-Ice is the one who sticks by Mei and helps her stand up to her mother. In turn, Mei helped him charm Zoeleene, a girl that now played the role of Micro-Ice's second crush seen in the series.
However, Mei's friendship with Micro-Ice isn’t the only significant event in the series. Tia and Mei's usually hostile relationship begins to slowly sort itself out over time as the series progresses. At first Mei's only views of Tia was from a room-mate's point of view, and when she was confronted by Rocket in one episode, she answered Are you joking? Tia's the most secretive person I've ever met!... Next to you of course. As Tia opens up more, Mei's friendship with her begins to grow and during the last few episodes of Galactik Football, the two begin to rely upon each other more than ever for support and reassurance, although it is mostly Mei who offers the advice to Tia.
Mei's relationship with D'Jok is more gradual than Tia and Rocket's. At first, Mei's feelings for him are powered only by her desire to be a Striker, but slowly she begins to become genuinely attracted to him. Before and during the final GF Cup match against the Shadows, Mei begins to confront D'Jok more than often with Micro-Ice's encouragement although he is concerned more for his father's safety. Even though she knows nothing of how D'Jok was blackmailed into making the Snow Kid's lose the GF Cup Final, she stands up for him when the other players turn on him, believing he is betraying them, like Sinedd had previously. Before, D'Jok's feelings for Mei had remained somewhat hidden, although in the final episode when the Snow Kids are victorious, he thanks Mei for her support and kisses her. In season 2 the two seem to be dating.
Mei seems the only one from the Snow Kids who never said anything bad about Sinedd and she was often seen, when Sinedd was a Snow Kid, being near him. This has provoked rumours that Sinedd may have had secret feelings or perhaps fell in love with Mei. Many FanFiction writers have used a love triangle storyline involving Mei, Sinedd, and D'jok (Mei's boyfriend).
