Artemis Fowl (series)

Artemis Fowl

The first edition cover of the first book.
Artemis Fowl The Arctic Incident The Eternity Code The Opal Deception The Lost Colony The Time Paradox The Atlantis Complex
Author	Eoin Colfer
Language	English
Genre	Fantasy
Publisher	Viking Press
Published	2001—Present
Media type	Print (hardback and paperback)

Artemis Fowl is a series of novels written by Eoin Colfer, starring a teenage criminal mastermind named Artemis Fowl II. Artemis Fowl, the main character, is a ruthless and extremely intelligent young (human) criminal whose main goal is the acquisition of money through a variety of often illegal schemes. There are many settings in the series, including Siberia, Chicago, Taiwan, Morocco, France and various places in Ireland. One main setting that has been in all the books is the Lower Elements.

The author has described the series as "Die Hard with fairies".^[1] There are seven novels in the series so far;^[2] the first was published in 2001^[2] and the seventh on 20 July 2010.^[2] A film based on the series is also in development, although most details are unclear.^[3] The series has sold over 18 million copies as of June 2008. In a live webcast 'Eoin Colfer Virtually Live' to promote the release of the seventh book on 20 July 2010, Eoin Colfer stated that he currently plans for the eighth, as of yet untitled, book to be the last in the series.

Main characters

Protagonists

• Artemis Fowl II^[4] is an Irish child prodigy and a ruthless master criminal who takes charge of rebuilding his family fortune following the disappearance of his father, Artemis Fowl I. In Artemis Fowl, the first book in the series, he kidnaps Captain Holly Short, a member of the reconnaissance unit of the fairy police force, the Lower Elements Police (LEP), LEPrecon. His objective is to obtain the gold which the fairy government has set aside to ransom captured officers. In spite of their less-than-friendly attitudes towards each other in the first book, Holly needs Artemis' help to save her world in the second book. They later save their worlds from impending doom on several occasions, and little by little, Artemis' moral character and emotional disposition improve. Although Artemis is never fully described in the books, we know that he is pale and cold, but charismatic. He is also known to have blue eyes, (The Eternity Code and The Arctic Incident) but later switched one of his eyes with Holly Short, and black hair (The Lost Colony) and it can be inferred that his hair is a little long, as when in The Opal Deception his hair gets wet, he has to push it back from his eyes. On more than one occasion, his smile has been said to be horrible, like a vampire's (Artemis Fowl and The Arctic Incident). He also has a minor dust mite allergy (Artemis Fowl). Despite his intelligence, he is shown to be quite lonely on occasions. However, he seems to display romantic inclinations towards Minerva in Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony, going as far as risking his life for her. He also shows romantic inclinations towards Captain Holly Short, and vice versa, later in the series, but they blame the feelings on the time travel they have undergone. His family's motto is "Aurum Est Potestas", meaning "Gold is Power" in Latin.

• Domovoi Butler is Artemis' butler and bodyguard. He is most often referred to as "Butler"; his first name (Domovoi) is not revealed until the third book "The Eternity Code", when he thinks he is going to die (after being shot). He tells Artemis his first name, normally forbidden by his bodyguard training, because keeping it secret doesn't matter any more. The Butler family has served the Fowl family for generations, with a Butler being assigned to each new Fowl at birth. He has comprehensive knowledge of weapons and extensive training in martial arts, enough so as to become the only human ever to fight a troll and win (with help from Holly Short's magic and an antique suit of armour). The second book, The Arctic Incident, asserts that there are only two men on the planet better educated in various martial arts than Butler. In the third book, The Eternity Code, Butler is accidentally turned 15 years older by the healing process used to save him from perishing of the aforementioned bullet. The healing process also reproduces some Kevlar fibres that were entangled in the wound, making it harder for him to breathe. Butler is more than what he seems (for example, in the Artemis Fowl Handbook it is revealed in an "interview" with Butler he stated that he enjoys romance novels.) (But he also informs the interviewer, "...if you tell anyone, I will hunt you down.") and follows Artemis around the world on his adventures. He is also one of Artemis' few good friends.

• Captain Holly Short, the first female LEPrecon (Lower Elements Police Reconnaissance) captain so far, is more skilled, has more chutzpah, and is far more daring than most of her fellow officers ^[5]. Her talents are often under-appreciated because of her gender. Holly looks up to Julius Root, her LEP commander and something of a father figure, who has high expectations of her. Holly, who has an unwavering moral code, typically operates on intuition, rather than on protocol; a trait that often leads her into trouble. Artemis abducts her in the first book, and her tenacity and creative intellect help her to escape not only her cell, but Fowl Manor as well. Throughout the series Holly and Artemis understand each other on a very personal level, and consequently recognize each other as friends. In the sixth book, The Time Paradox, there are also romantic qualities related to her and Artemis, because when they go back in time, she is transformed into a fairy adolescent and kisses him. However, when Artemis falsely balmes her for causing an epidemis of the fairy disease Spelltropy, she is deeply hurt and vows that his "elf-kissing days are over." Since then, the two have repaired their friendship but no longer have romantic feelings for each other, and Holly is dating Trouble Kelp.

• Juliet Butler is Butler's younger sister, and until The Eternity Code is a bodyguard in training. The following quote from this book describes Juliet's deviation from the normal teenage girl's standard quite well: "For her eighteenth birthday she asked for, and received, a ribbed Judo crash vest, two weighted throwing knives and a World Wrestling Grudge Match video. At the age of eighteen, she could hit a moving target with any weapon you could care to name and she could throw most people a lot further than she trusted them."^[6] Juliet is introduced in the first book. She plays an important role in The Eternity Code, taking Butler's place of bodyguard and skilled fighter while Butler is recovering from a near fatal injury. She hasn't been in the Opal Deception, the Lost Colony or the Time Paradox. However, she was mentioned briefly in the Opal Deception and the Lost Colony. Juliet also appears again in The Atlantis Complex when her brother is sent to Mexico by Artemis under the false impression that she is in danger (this is due to Artemis's mistaken notion that Butler always has something to do with it when his schemes go wrong). While there, Juliet is mesmerized by Turnball Root which causes all of her wiped memories from The Eternity Code to come back. Juliet plays a significant part in The Atlantis Complex.

• Commander Julius Root of LEPrecon has the personality of an old soldier. He smokes noxious fungus cigars, and his short temper earns him the nickname "Beetroot", as he is often purple in the face with rage. Julius follows protocols more closely than Holly, or indeed any other LEPrecon officer, but driven by his concern for his subordinates and the fairy People he serves, he bends rules where necessary. He is murdered by Opal Koboi in The Opal Deception. Holly Short is held responsible for his death until the end of the book where Artemis, with the help of the People, clears her name. Holly deeply respects Julius, and up until his death he is a mentor as well as a father figure for her. He gets very angry with most people who call him by his first name - in the first book, we are told that there are perhaps five or six fairies who are allowed to call him Julius; but one of them, Briar Cudgeon, is discredited by the end of the book, presumably meaning there are now only four. Jayjay the lemur is later named for a resemblance to the deceased commander; J.J. stands for "Julius Junior" (Time Paradox).

• Foaly, a centaur, is the LEP's technological genius. He is paranoid about almost anything, choosing to wear tin-foil hats to protect his brain from mind-probing rays from aliens. He is also quite vain about his work and appearance. His inventions keep Holly one step ahead of the game. He has a tendency to make sarcastic remarks and they cause him trouble on more than one occasion. However, he cannot be fired, lest human technology be allowed to catch up with the fairy brand (plus if any one tries to start up his computers, "a hidden virus will bring it crashing down around their pointy ears." - The Opal Deception) He marries Caballine, a journalist, during Artemis and Holly's absence in The Lost Colony, though this detail is not mentioned until The Time Paradox. He and Mulch Diggums are friends, though whenever they meet they usually communicate largely through insults.

• Mulch Diggums is a kleptomaniac dwarf with explosive flatulence. He is called upon by Commander Julius Root to break into the Fowl Manor in the first book, having already lost his magical abilities due to entering human's dwellings without permission. Like all male dwarves, Mulch is adapted for tunneling, and his unhingeable jaw and accelerated digestion have proved vital on many of his criminal ventures. An amoral thief who loves luxury and cares little for the law or the environment the People hold dear, he nevertheless develops sentiments towards Julius, Holly, and Artemis, eventually risking his life on their behalf. At first he is a criminal, but later in the series his name is cleared when Artemis hacks into the LEP arrest records and nullifies several search warrants. Although he often complains about being dragged unwillingly into most of the books adventures, it is implied several times that he actually does want to help. Mulch has also been viewed as a anti environmentalist due to his methane gas, or major powerful farts that can send him and people around him flying. Mulch appears in The Atlantis Complex to rescue Butler and Juliet from a mind wipe orchestrated by Turnball Root. He is disguised as one of the dwarves executing the job but instead warns the two and they steal a ship used to rescue Artemis, Holly, and Foaly in the Atlantic.

• Minerva Paradizo debuts in The Lost Colony. She is a twelve year old genius, like Artemis, who captures the imp N^o1 and tries to present him as her project for the Nobel Prize in Stockholm. She is 2 years younger than Artemis and believes she can outsmart him when he tries to save the magical world from discovery. Near the end of the book, she realizes that there was much more to the fairy world then she had discovered, and changes her mind. According to Butler at the end of The Lost Colony, she has developed a feeling of awe towards Artemis. However, she does not appear in The Time Paradox and is also not in the Atlantis Complex( The seventh installment of the series).

• N^o1 is a very powerful imp warlock who serves as Qwan's apprentice in The Lost Colony (book five). He helps to save Hybras, the lost colony of the title. Before that, however, N^o1 gets involved with Artemis Fowl and is kidnapped by Minerva Paradizo. In The Time Paradox (book six), he transports Holly and Artemis through time so they can save Artemis' dying mother from a life-threatening disease called Spelltropy. He is incredibly powerful but still in training, meaning that while he often has the raw power for the job, he doesn't have the expertise.

• Qwan was the most powerful of the original seven fully-fledged warlocks who lifted Hybras out of time. The only warlock who survived in his petrified form, he brought Hybras back from Limbo with help from Artemis, Holly, N^o1, and Qweffor (his apprentice who was believed to be deceased, but was actually trapped in N'zall, also known as Leon Abbot).

Antagonists

There is no obvious villain for the first book, as it is Artemis Fowl vs. the LEP; Fowl could himself be considered the villain or anti-hero, an unusual stance for a children's book. A minor villain is Briar Cudgeon, who attempts to kill Artemis, Butler, and possibly Holly with a troll.

• Opal Koboi is a narcissistic pixie genius and the main antagonist of the second, fourth, and sixth book starting with The Arctic Incident. She masterminded the Goblin uprising with the help of Briar Cudgeon in The Arctic Incident but was defeated by Artemis, Holly and the LEP. She returned in The Opal Deception, the collapse of her previous plan and her year long coma having reduced her to a paranoid madwoman bent on revenge. She also planned to mobilize humans and fairies in a cross-species war and conquer the world. In this book, she also murders Julius Root (see Protagonists above). Opal made her vast fortune by forming "Koboi Laboratories" after bankrupting her father's company and merging it with her own. Opal is a rival of Foaly, with whom she held a bitter grudge over her loss of an invention contest when they were both in the fairy equivalent of college. At the end of The Opal Deception she is robbed of her powers and arrested. Her younger self returns in the sixth book, when, in an extremely confusing time paradox, she uses a time tunnel created by the protagonists to travel forward in time and cause the need for the time tunnel in the first place. Her ultimate goal in this case is the brain fluid of Jayjay, a silky sifaka lemur, which can both heal Spelltropy (a deadly, magic-based disease), and increase magical power. She is smart in some ways, but dumb or even demented in other ways.

• Briar Cudgeon was a power hungry officer in the LEP driven by ambition and planning to ascend the Council. He was a centuries old friend of Julius Root but by the end of the original Artemis Fowl incident however he was found to be corrupt. After Foaly exposed him, Cudgeon attacked the centaur in a rage. Root "accidentally" incapacitated Cudgeon with a tranquilizer dart. The chemicals in the dart reacted badly with illegal brain enhancers Cudgeon had been taking, leaving him physically deformed, partially robbed of his magical power and somewhat insane. He was also demoted to the rank of private. In Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident, consumed with rage and bitterness, he plans to get back at the LEP by allying himself with Opal Koboi in her plan to take over the Lower Elements. He co-headed the B'wa Kell rebellion but had plans of eliminating Opal rather than retaining her as his "empress", knowing that she would not be satisfied to share power. At the end of the rebellion, he was killed when he fell into a plasma conduit and was incinerated.

• Jon Spiro is the villain of Book III. A shady and powerful businessman from Chicago, he formed and headed the company Fission Chips which was backed by the Mob. Instead of paying Artemis off to withhold the C Cube (an extremely powerful micro-computer that Artemis made using parts from the helmets he stole in the first book) from the immediate market, he robbed Artemis of the C-Cube at their meeting. He also ordered Arno Blunt to kill Artemis, but he failed, critically injuring Butler in the process. Spiro captured Artemis when he could not crack its encryption, but ended up playing into Artemis and LEPrecon's plans to recover the C Cube. He is arrested at the end, and seems to have gone insane when he finds out he has been tricked. At the end of the book, Spiro says that it isn't over, and that he will find him and never give up.

• Goblins are a species of fairies who have lizard-like bodies and can conjure fire. Also they have fire proof skin and their favourite form of hurting other species is snorting the fire up their noses and releasing it forcefully. In spite of their incredible lack of intelligence, they have a highly competitive gang, the B'wa Kell. They become a threat in The Arctic Incident, with the aid of Opal and Cudgeon, who supplied the plan and weapons of the revolution along with weapons that would keep working when all neutrino weapons (such as the LEP's) were sabotaged. They are incredibly unintelligent and rely mainly on instinct and brute strength, but they are also very dangerous (sometimes through sheer stupidity).

• Leon Abbot is the villain of Book V. He is the self-proclaimed savior of the demons, who venerate him for bringing a romance novel and an old crossbow from the human world. He is believed to be the only demon to leave Limbo and survive, though both N°1 and Qwan also survived the trip. He was the one who threw off the original time spell and his stunt caused him to absorb the warlock apprentice Qweffor, therefore granting him limited magic powers, including the mesmer, an ability similar to hypnosis. At the end of the Lost Colony, his consciousness is implanted in the brain of a guinea pig. His real name is N'zall which means "Little Horn".
  • In the book Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony, demons are arguably antagonists, but characters like N°1 and Qwan are ambivalent due to the aid they render to Artemis and all inhabitants of the Earth, magical or not and for the fact they are Warlocks. Bloodlust causes an imp to warp into a demon. Warlocks however do not warp, because they are inherently pacifists, and because when a demon warps they lose any magic that they might have had.

• Billy Kong is the alias of Jonah Lee, a villain in Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony. He is a former bodyguard of Minerva Paradizo and betrays her when she chooses to postpone her research on demons. When Jonah was a child, his older brother Eric claimed to be a demon slayer to cover his illicit activities. When Eric was killed by a gang, Jonah thought that demons were responsible. Though his belief in demons waned over the years, it was revitalized when Minerva showed Billy that demons truly existed. This made him dangerously fanatical in his pursuit of demons and all fairies, which he believes are also demons.

• Ark Sool replaces Julius Root as the new Commander of the LEP. Foaly holds him in high contempt, and his distrust for Holly drove her to quit the LEP. He was fired as LEP Commander during the time when Holly and Artemis were at Hybras (the demon island, lifted out of time by the demon warlocks) in Book 5 due to the fact that he wanted to let the entire demon clan die off. He distrusts the LEP. In book seven (The Atlantis Complex), he aids Turnball Root's attempt to escape Atlantis, but is crushed by the deep space probe.

• Arno Blunt is Jon Spiro's bodyguard from Book III . Blunt attempted to shoot Artemis, instead shooting Butler, almost killing him. Artemis called upon Holly to save Butler, then Butler (with Foaly's and Holly's help) tricks Blunt into giving a confession. He wears a cut off t-shirt and silver pirate earrings, and towards the middle of the book, ostentatious pairs of false teeth.

• Damon Kronski is the leader of the radical group, "the Extinctionists" in book six. Artemis Fowl had sold him the silky sifika lemur, and he killed it as the "opening trial" at the Extinctionist banquet 8 years prior to the main time line. Artemis and Holly go back in time to rescue the lemur, but Holly is captured and sold to Kronski, who tries to prosecute her. Opal Koboi was later discovered to have been mesmerising him in order to get her hands on rare animals (certain rare animals have bodily fluids that increase magical powers). Aswell, in The Opal Deception Artemis and Butler go to the Kronski Hotel shortly after stealing "The Fairy Thief". But any connection to them is never explained.

• Turnball Root is Julius Root's 100-year-older brother who went from LEP captain straight to jail after Julius had stopped him in the last second from flooding a section of Haven in an attempt to kill a competitor in illegal mining, which could have cost half of the city their lives. Later, he seeks revenge during an LEP initiation that happens to be exclusively Holly Short's, who due to her rank is not allowed to interfere, but has no intention whatsoever to let him get away and saves the commander along with captain Kelp in an act of insubordination.^[7] In the Atlantis Complex, he is the main antagonist.

Minor characters

Humans

• Angeline Fowl is the mother of Artemis Fowl the Second. She was driven to insanity after her husband, Artemis Fowl the First, went missing. LEPrecon Captain Holly Short restored Angeline's sanity as part of a deal with Artemis in Book I in return for half of the ransom gold Artemis received for Holly's kidnapping. In book VI, she contracted a magical illness that was supposedly eradicated some time prior, driving Artemis to go back in time and creating the time paradox of the story.

• Artemis Fowl I is the father of the main protagonist, Artemis Fowl the Second. He is mentioned in the first two stories as being somewhat cold and ruthless. However, after being rescued from the Russian Mafia in book two, he turns his life away from crime and is trying to convince his son to do so as well.

• Beckett Fowl is one of Artemis' two-year-old (as of Book VI) twin brothers. He was first mentioned, though not by name (only referred to as one of "the twins") at the end of Book V. Beckett is the more down to earth and fun loving one of Artemis's baby brothers. He also is known to have very strange tastes, such as espresso sachets and treacle, "often in the same cup if he can manage it". It was stated that, once, Beckett had downed several spoonfuls of the aforementioned concoction, after which "the toddler hadn't slept for 28 hours".

• Myles Fowl is Artemis's little brother and also Beckett's twin brother. He was first mentioned, though not by name, at the end of Book V. Myles is shown to be the more intelligent twin, having built a step ladder out of encyclopedias and potty trained himself at fourteen months. Myles is also known to call people (mainly his younger brother Beckett) "simple-toons", a mispronunciation of simpleton. He also has a favorite monkey plush called Professor Primate and he likes to do 'Speriments'.

• Giovanni Zito is a dedicated and billionaire environmentalist. He is chosen by Opal Koboi as her adopted parent in book IV as part of her scheme to reveal the Lower Elements to the humans, and is mentioned very briefly in the 5th book, now a friend of Artemis.

• Pex & Chips are two of Spiro's henchmen. Their nicknames result from Pex's large pectorals, and Chips's liking of potato chips. Both lack intelligence, but are extremely strong. They are arrested along with Spiro and Blunt at the end of Book III

• Aloysius "Loafers" McGuire is a hit-man sent by Spiro to capture Artemis Fowl in Book III. He is later relocated by the fairies (after having his memory modified) to a Kenyan tribe to prevent further trouble.

Fairies

In the Artemis Fowl series, "fairy" is a generic term for all of the magical races.

• Trouble Kelp is first introduced as a LEP captain, and promoted to major somewhere between the third and fourth books. In The Time Paradox, it is revealed he is now a commander. At his manhood ceremony he officially changed his first name to Trouble. In the Atlantis Complex, it is revealed that he went on a date with Holly Short. His little brother and Holly both call him "Trubs", but he seems to mind Holly doing it a lot less than he minds Grub doing it.

• Wing Commander Vinyáya is the head of Section Eight, a top secret division of the LEP. A supporter of Julius Root, she offered Holly a job in the secretive Section Eight department in Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony. She was one of the first to believe that Holly did not kill Root in Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception. She was also Holly's flight instructor in the LEP academy. During the B'wa Kell uprising and attack on Police Plaza, she was the only council member not to retreat to the operations department, instead opting to fight on the front lines, as she has very good aim. She was killed by Turnball Root's comandeered space probe in the Atlantis Complex.

• Corporal Grub Kelp is Trouble's younger brother who is a coward and often refers to his "Mommy." Later in the series, he is infamous for issuing complaints about every flaw he happens to discover, whether real or imaginary. He is known to refer to his older brother as " Trubs".

• Chix Verbil is a rather vain sprite in the LEP whose life was saved by Captain Holly Short in Book II. He also lent his starter chip for his shuttle to Mulch Diggums in Book IV, in order to save Holly, somewhat reluctantly.

• Doctor Jerbil Argon is a psychiatrist in Book I and the owner of the medical clinic in which Opal Koboi spent her time in a self-induced coma in Book IV. It is noted in the prologue and epilogue of the first book that he supposedly wrote the first book.

• Doodah Day is an illegal fish marketing pixie. He was later granted amnesty when he helped infiltrate the Paradizo's mansion. He worked as Mulch's PI partner during the time period when Holly and Artemis disappeared in Book V.

• Mervall "Merv" and Descant "Scant" Brill (referred to as the Brill Brothers) are the pixie twins that are accomplices to Opal Koboi in Book IV and Book VI. . Working as janitors of the medical institution at which Koboi was kept, they helped wake her from her self-induced coma, just as she had instructed prior to her "condition". They return in Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox as Opal's henchfairies eight years prior.

Other

• Jayjay is the last silky sifaka lemur. His name is short for Julius Junior because he slightly resembles Commander Julius Root and in memory of Commander Julius Root and is wanted by many for his brain fluid to enhance magical powers.

Books in the series

1. Artemis Fowl (2001)
2. Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident (2002)
3. Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code (2003)
4. Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception (2005)
5. Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony (2006)
6. Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox (2008)
7. Artemis Fowl: The Atlantis Complex (2010)

Electronic Arts has brought the first six books in the series to the Nintendo DS and Nintendo DSi as parts its Flips kids' range and which has been released on December 4, 2009.^[8]

Additional books

• "Artemis Fowl: The Seventh Dwarf" is a story written for World Book Day^[9] and is set between the first and second books.
• The Artemis Fowl Files (2004)
• Artemis Fowl: The Graphic Novel (2007)
• Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident, The Graphic Novel (2009)
• Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code, The Graphic Novel (201x)

Events

After the success of his London West End show, Eoin Colfer held a UK National Live Tour from 10–17 August 2008, entitled Fairies, Fiends and Flatulence.^[10]

Upcoming film

An Artemis Fowl movie has been confirmed by Eoin Colfer.^[11] In an AFC interview, Colfer stated that the screenplay was still being written, but pre-production was at a standstill because of the recently-ended WGA strike.^[12] He stated as a joke that it would be finished "two years after he died." ^[13]

In an August 2008 interview, Colfer stated that "we are finished writing it, now we are just waiting for the green light."

In addition, at the 2008 Hay Festival Colfer stated that a dispute was being settled over whether the film should be a CGI production or shot in live-action, with Colfer apparently favouring the latter.

According to Colfer, the movie will combine the plot of the first two books and there will be a new ending to it, but the rest of it will be true to the books. The Weinstein Company will oversee distribution and Jim Sheridan will direct.

References

External links

• Official website
• Official UK website
• Eoin Colfer's website
• The Artemis Fowl Wiki
• Artemis Fowl Confidential - Fan Site
• Artemis Fowl FanGathering - Fan Site