Genius Loci: Difference between revisions

[[File:Egoimage.jpg|link=Marvel Universe|frame|Ego, the Living Planet]]

 

 

 

Usually, the Genius Loci has [[Shapeshifting|some control over its own form]], and uses that control to communicate with the other characters. [[Mobile Maze|Alternately, it can]] [[Closed Circle|trap them]] in [[Alien Geometries]] and torment them with [[Living Memory|Living Memories]] for [[The Lost Woods|shoots]] and giggles. It can be a [[Hive Mind]] formed from the various organic life-forms that inhabit a place, a nonphysical being [[Demonic Possession|possessing the area itself]], a mythological spirit of a locale, or a computer system laced through the brick and stone. It can be helpful, neutral, or antagonistic.

 

 

Contrast with the non-tangible but often similar [[Sentient Cosmic Force]]. Compare [[Sapient Ship]], [[That's No Moon]], [[Anthropomorphic Personification]], [[The Lost Woods]], [[Fisher King]], [[Fisher Kingdom]], and [[Smart House]]. May overlap with [[Environmental Symbolism]] or [[Eldritch Location]].

* ''[[Eureka Seven]]'' gives us {{spoiler|the Scub Coral planet itself, a kind of [[Starfish Alien]] that communicates via [[Instrumentality]], but seeks another way through the Coralian title character.}}

* Nagi from ''[[Kannagi]]'' describes herself as one of these, since she spawned from a carving Jin made from the sacred tree that used to be outside his shrine.

* The Shikima realm, at least in the newest ''[[La Blue Girl]]'' series, is very much this trope (it's described as "self-regulating"), and the parts of it are actually described corresponding to a body. The appendix is apparently a prison, the brain may just control the entire universe, and it has an anus. I will say it again, of course: it's a world * with an anus.* On the other hand, this self-regulating world that maybe controls the universe has also decided that it likes the local clan of demons with [[Naughty Tentacles]], so.

* In ''[[Angel Sanctuary]]'', after Lucifer rebelled against God {{spoiler|because ''God said so''}} and retreated to Shioul, he and his follower fallen angels found out that it was a barren wasteland, so Lucifer had to merge with the plane itself in order to support any possible life, thus making Hell a Genius Loci. {{spoiler|Except for the fact that Luci's soul was sealed into Alexiel's sword somewhere between that and Alexiel's own rebellion, so Hell isn't much sentient anymore.}}

* The nation-tans of ''[[Axis Powers Hetalia]]'' might qualify.

* Laputa from ''[[Laputa: Castle in the Sky|Castle in The Sky]]''. The castle itself {{spoiler|responds to Laputian royalty who own the crystal and the garden / tree's roots keep the kids safe while Muska dies. Subtle example, but several character comment on it.}}

 

== Comic Books ==

** The DCU also had a ''sentient galaxy'' in some story that I can't seem to recall exactly. But it aligned a bunch of stars to give [[Superman]] a huge powerup. Also there were some smaller living (but not sentient) galaxies, artificially made by some uberpowerful race as bioweapons. Supes, again, kept one as a pet.

* From the [[Marvel Universe]], the first foe the ''[[X-Men (Comic Book)|X-Men]]'' fought in the [[The Bronze Age of Comic Books|Bronze Age]] [[Revival]] was Krakoa, the Living Island, whose indigious life had been [[Hive Mind|mutated into a single organism]] by a [[I Love Nuclear Power|nuclear test]]. Marvel also had the aptly-named Ego the Living Planet, who tangled with such persons as [[The Mighty Thor]] and [[Galactus]]. Another living planet known as Kathulos once appeared in a [[Doctor Strange]] story. [[Earthshattering Kaboom|He blew it up.]]

** [[Deadpool]] once destroyed a Genius Loci called Id, the Selfish Moon, which used to be a moon of Ego the Living Planet.

** Cloud, one-time member of [[The Defenders]], was a sentient nebula, an immense cloud of gas, with the ability to assume human form.

** In the ''Realm of Kings'' crossover, a fault in space opened the way to an alternate reality. In said reality it was revealed that {{spoiler|not only is the other universe sentient, it's an [[Eldritch Abomination]] that wants to consume ours.}}

* The ''[[2000 AD|Two Thousand AD]]'' series ''Ace Trucking Co.'' included a story about fast-breeding 'Bampots' attempting to colonise a living planet called Gordon.

* The ultimate goal of Krona in ''Trinity'' was to learn from the worldsoul, the sentient soul of the planet Earth itself.

* The ''[[Futurama]]'' and [[The Simpsons (animation)|''The Simpsons'']] crossover comic book has Nerdanus XII, guardian of the Geek-E galaxy. He looks like a giant nerd, whit mountainous acne and an asteroid belt for glasses.

 

== Fan Works ==

 

== Film ==

* Like the ''[[Iron Man (film)|Iron Man]]'' example above, the underground base from ''[[Resident Evil (film)|Resident Evil]]'' qualify, since it's completely run by a highly intelligent AI named The Red Queen.

* The Hotel from ''[[The Shining]]'' which slowly drives Jack mad and torments Danny. Well it's at least one of the theories.

 

== Literature ==

** The Dark Tower is the ultimate example.

** The eponymous villain of ''[[IT]]'' is often equated with Derry, the town It inhabits.

* The eponymous planet from [[Stanislaw Lem]]'s ''[[Solaris]]''.

* In the [[Faction Paradox]] books, there's mention of the City of the Saved, a huge galaxy-sized colony in which every human being ever to exist lives again. And yes. [[Captain Obvious|It's sentient.]] Not so bad, and even quite nice... until you find its {{spoiler|"son" infested parts of its structure, transforming really nice places into industrial nightmares with specialized factories for the processing of human beings. }}

** Another Anne McCaffrey series, the ''[[Petaybee]]'' series, features the titular sentient planet that communicates via echoes and lightshows in caves, and changing the climate/topography of the land when it's so inclined to benefit its inhabitants or drive off bad guys.

* In [[Terry Pratchett]]'s ''[[The Dark Side of the Sun]]'', the First Sirian Bank is a sentient planet (naturally occurring) who happens to be the godfather of one of the main characters. There's also a sentient ocean and a living sun. They're looking for an intelligent gas cloud to round out the elements. Maybe they could get that one from ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]''?

** Unseen University itself, which has a personality likened to that of [[Big Friendly Dog|a large, overenthusiastic shaggy dog]]. If it could get away with it, it'd roll over on its roof to have its foundations scratched.

* In a more serious tone than Mount Sorrow above, the [[Star Wars Expanded Universe]] has the rogue planet [[New Jedi Order|Zonama Sekot]]. Zonama refers to the world itself, while Sekot refers to its [[Hive Mind|self-aware, Force-sensitive biosphere]]. It grows living matter around mechanical components to produce intelligent [[Living Ship]]s, and has also built enormous hyperdrive engines into its crust, transforming itself into a world-sized [[Living Ship]] and earning the "Rogue Planet" appellation.

** The Galaxy of Fear series also includes [[Punny Name|D'vouran]] a planet {{spoiler|which is in fact a [[I'm a Humanitarian|carnivorous]] bioweapon.}}

* In [[Gene Stratton Porter]]'s ''[[Freckles]]'', Freckles half-seriously describes Angel as this.

{{quote|''"There's nothing you could be but the Swamp Angel." ''}}

 

* ''[[Eureka]]'': Carter's smart house, S.A.R.A.H., is ''so'' smart it has opinions. And a Twitter account!

* The warehouse in ''[[Warehouse 13]]'' is sentient. To what degree is uncertain, but it is alive.

* Destiny from ''[[Stargate Universe]]'', [[Mind Screw|maybe.]]

* ''[[Power Rangers Turbo]]'' had one episode where the local forest had a genius loci in the form of a child.

 

== Music ==

* "Man-House lives inside himself with thoughtful human brains" in [[They Might Be Giants (band)|Bee Of The Bird Of The Moth.]]

 

 

* Many Native American religions/cultures are based on Animism, the belief that every object has a spirit.

* Ditto for the Japanese Shinto. The spirits of the mountains are especially significant.

* Many tools and artifacts. Ships and weapons famously. Also computers.

* Nations are often given allegorical representations and personalities.

 

== [[Radio Drama]] / Audio Drama ==

* The [[Big Finish]] ''[[Doctor Who]]'' audio play ''The Chimes of Midnight''. "{{spoiler|Edward Grove is alive.}}"

 

== Tabletop Games ==

** The Machine God of the Adeptus Mechanicus' [[Single Biome Planet|Forge World]] of Mars is one of these. There is considerably in-universe speculation that it may, in fact, be the [[Cosmic Horror|C'Tan]] known as The Void Dragon.

*** As of ''Mechanicum'' {{spoiler|it's official that the Dragon is locked in a special prison on Mars.}}

** And the first real enemy in the quick start scenario is {{spoiler|a spirit of laziness and apathy that possesses an abandoned baseball stadium. And is actually capable of causing a [[Total Party Kill]].}}

** Also, in the original ''Mage'', there was a Merit-Flaw combination (Manifest Avatar/Phylactery) that could turn your soul into one of these. Meaning that you had to be standing in that place (and somehow make it obvious that it was important) to be able to cast, but it would act as a Genius Loci on its own. Since [[Our Souls Are Different|the soul has a semi-distinct personality from the mind]], this might get... interesting.

** Fossergrims and Oreads are to waterfalls and mountains (respectively) what Dryads are to trees. Dryads can't really be called an example of this trope, unless you consider a tree a place.

** The monster called a Spirit of the Land is the spirit of a particular geographical area, such a valley, desert or river. They can transform in an elemental form to defend the terrain feature they're associated with.

** As of the 3rd Edition Dragonomicon, Dragons (usually good-aligned ones) can opt to become a genius loci as an alternative to death from old age, lichdom or any of the other ways a dragon can live past its already substantial years. The dragon's spirit enters the chosen terrain (which often takes on a draconic feature like a hill shaped like a resting dragon). These spots are popular places for dragons to lay eggs and raise young because of the protective influences of the area's spirit. Dragons can even commune with the location to seek advice from the dragon that inhabits it.

** Sometimes, entire planes of existence are alive. The demiplane known as Neth is an entire world of living tissue. It's curious and sends out Children of Neth to learn about the multiverse. The Chaotic Evil Abyss, home to Demons, is thought to be sentient to some degree. Each layer has a dim awareness which bonds with the Demon Lords that rule those layers.

** In the ''[[Ravenloft]]'' setting, a Phantasmagoria is a particularly powerful sinkhole of evil that has spontaneously become self-aware.

** Atropos, the undead afterbirth of a long forgotten god, takes the form of a sentient, [[Omnicidal Maniac]] [[That's No Moon|planetoid]].

** Nimicri is a floating trade city in the Chamada layer of Gehenna where all the citizens and the place itself secretly form a single organism with ambiguous intentions.

** And in 4th edition, the Warlock spell "Vestige of Land's Soul"' allows the Warlock to wake up the spirit of the land around them and order it to kill one of their enemies.

** The land of Rashemen in Forgotten Realms is implied to be a living being.

** Shamans can also summon a ''Hearth Spirit'', literally the Genius Loci of wherever they happen to be: in a nightclub you might get a spiritual bouncer or barman (depending on the kind of nightclub you are in), for instance.

** ''Shadowrun'' also has a phenomenon called "background count," in which the mana of a place can be warped by events that take place there. This doesn't exactly make the area alive, but it has an impact on anyone who visits.

** In the same game, the Tzimisce can use their [[Body Horror|Vicissitude]] Domain to mold their ghouls together into living, breathing rooms for their homes.

*** This concept appears in the computer game adaptation, [[Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines]], when the player character enters the lair of a Tzimisce, complete with walls that {{spoiler|bleed when struck}}. It is easily the most atmospherically disturbing mission in the game.

 

== Toys ==

 

== Video Games ==

** Also, if it will negativity impact Planet, be careful with your actions, since otherwise you will likely get Planet to spawn the Mind Word army from hell on you. Basically, building map improvements that create a ton of resources or mass use of Planet Busters will do it.

* In the ''[[Neverwinter Nights 2]]'' [[Expansion Pack]] ''Mask of the Betrayer'', one of the bosses is a Genius Loci who even uses the name.

* ''[[Silent Hill]]'''s eponymous town, though debatable as it may simply be haunted.

** This may require some elaboration: The whole town of Silent Hill is alive with a mystical force that takes your nightmares and fears and brings them to life, whether in monster form or in the form of a location (like a building or something). If Silent Hill wants you, you will end up in the town, either by being called to it or having an unfortunate accident in or near the town and ending up stuck in that Hell-hole. Later in the series, the power of the town grows to consume its neighbor, Shepherd's Glen.

* According to the flying future-dolphins, the ocean becomes this in the good future of Earth in ''[[Ecco the Dolphin]]: Tides of Time.''

* The [http://gillen.cream.org/thecradle.pdf Shalebridge Cradle] in ''[[Thief]] Deadly Shadows'' housed an asylum and an orphanage. {{spoiler|At the same time.}} Fueled by the sheer amount of brutal, institutional cruelty inflicted by the staff before a fire killed most of its inhabitants, It remembers things, likes to keep the things it remembers so it can play with them, and soon after you enter it...it remembers ''you''.

* In ''The 11th Hour'', the sequel to ''[[The 7th Guest]]'', the mansion has apparently become the physical incarnation of Stauf himself, eg. one scene in the backstory involves two girls being ''raped by the house'', and one of them producing an [[Enfant Terrible]] as a result.

* ''[[Portal (series)|Portal]]'' is the [[Spiritual Successor]] to a game called ''Narbacular Drop'', which is set inside a sentient dungeon named Wally.

* One of ''[[Demigod]]'''s Heroes is a walking castle.

* In ''[[Metroid Prime]] 3'', Phazon is implied at numerous points to be a sentient lifeform; in the first two games, it was assumed to be just a material. Phaaze, the planet that is the source of all the Phazon, is not only living, it spreads Phazon to other planets by ''giving birth''. (Some [[Epileptic Trees]] differ, but the point is that Phazon is living and Phaaze is made of Phazon, ergo Phaaze is living.)

* Gaia in ''[[Tsukihime]]''. All the other planets are essentially alive as well, though nothing happens there. In [[Fate/stay night]] this is expanded on to include Akasha, which exists alongside Gaia in some form or another. People have tied their existences to such things and made themselves nearly indestructible.

* ''[[Halo 3: ODST]]'' features an interesting variation with New Mombasa, a city run by an artificial intelligence called the Superintendent, or "Virgil." Its influence is limited during the game itself, during which it sends you a map of the city through a videophone, unlocks supply caches marked with its "face," and sends audio files that tell the story of a girl trying to rescue her father, who works with the Superintendent; in the audio files, the Superintendent's full ability, ranging from controlling garbage trucks to stoplights, is shown.

* In ''[[Metro 2033 (video game)|Metro 2033]]'', Artyom (the [[Player Character]]) and his then-companion Bourbon are forced to detour into a small room, at which point the mutants pursuing them stop following. It turns out the room is full of the corpses of other explorers, and as Bourbon attempts to pry open a grille door, he starts hallucinating that something is singing to him. As his hallucination gets worse and worse, you start seeing the room as a tall and narrow passageway, with one end increasingly shrouded in an ominous red and black atmosphere. Fortunately, you and your companion manage to escape before sharing the same fate as many of the others in that room.

* In [[Fallout 3]], which takes place in the ruins of Washington D.C 200 years after a nuclear war, the landscape is very desolate and befitting of the title of '''Capital Wasteland.''' The one exception is in a forest area called Oasis which earns its name with healthy plants and trees all over the place and pristine lake water. The source of this forest comes from an old character from Fallout 1 and 2 named Harold who last time we saw him had a mutant tree growing out of his head, apparently ''Bob'' as Harold named it mutated to the point that it enveloped Harold's entire body. Harold is now [[Body Horror|a living tree]] [[And I Must Scream|who has been rooted to the ground for 30 years]] and in the intervening period ''Bob'' (Harold treats the tree that has consumed his body as his friend and as a sentient being, either that or he treats the tree as a friend so he doesn't go insane from boredom) has been producing spores that have planted seeds all over the area which has sprouted the forest you now see. Even more amazing is that Harold claims that his mind is linked up to the entire forest, if he tries real hard he swears that his eyes can see through every leaf of every tree. The player has the option to apply medicine that could accelerate Harold's growth and in time his forest could envelop the entire United States making the entire continent a part of his living body.

 

== Web Comics ==

* In ''[[Kevin and Kell]]'', a minor recurring character is a sentient tree. Fenton turns the tree (who assumes a maternal relationship to him) into a house, and Harelink later uses some spare space to set up their modem pool.

* ''[[Gene Catlow]]'' has ethereal entities tied to many locations. The most familiar is the Friendship Island Entity, who opposes a group of others known collectively as The Host.

* Castle Heterodyne in ''[[Girl Genius]]'' was originally a single, artificially-intelligent Genius Loci; after taking severe damage, it [[Split Personality|fractured into separate minds]] in separate areas that can't communicate with each other. There are three genii locorum that we've seen directly:

** A kitchen built specifically for a cook that went up the pole and started poisoning everything he cooked (but amused the Heterodynes) that may or may not recognize Agatha;

* In ''[[Homestuck]]'', Skaia is pretty much the closest thing to God, due to being a benevolent omniscient force that {{spoiler|perpetuates the creation of new universes and shapes the players of any given session to become heroes}}. It however doesn't seem to be sentient in the traditional sense and isn't anywhere near omnipotent.

* ''[[Vexxarr]]'' has [http://www.vexxarr.com/archive.php?seldate=082806 the mother rock].

 

== Web Original ==

** In asdfmovie5, a couple on a romantic getaway comment that it's "just you, me, and the Moon". The Moon comments that they should kiss.

* The Empty City is a sentient city that is also a [[Mobile Maze]] and a [[Living Labyrinth]] - representing the fear of being lost, if you get trapped inside it, you be will wander its streets until you die - in [[The Fear Mythos]].

* Several [[SCP Foundation|SCPs]] are buildings or particular locations that seem to have some degree of sentience.

 

== Western Animation ==

* [[Megas XLR]]: Coop once fought a gargantuan organic planet that ate radio waves.

* The Foggy Swamp in ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]'', location of [[The World Tree]]. The Avatar themself is the human form of the World Spirit, which explains their connection with all four lands; [[All There in the Manual|this is not actually said in the show, but it is implied]].

* In the ''[[Futurama]]'' episode "Godfellas", Bender encounters what appears to be a sentient ''galaxy'', which initially speaks in binary and may or may not be God.

** Bender himself is a sentient location earlier in the episode when he is colonized by aliens.

* In the ''[[South Park]]'' episode "Something Wall-Mart This Way Comes", the eponymous department store that invades the town is a combination of [[The Heartless]] and Genius Loci.

** The episode "Lice Capades" tells the story of a group of, yes, ''lice'' living on the scalp of one of the boys. The story becomes a parody of natural disaster movies ("The planet is trying to tell us something!") when the kid starts using delousing shampoo.

** In ''[[Transformers Animated]]'', {{spoiler|the Autobots' ship is actually the ancient Autobot warrior Omega Supreme.}}

** Torkulon, the planet where Cyclonus tried to get Galvatron's insanity cured in the original series, was enough of a Genius Loci to ''contract madness'' from Galvatron.

* In the ''[[Green Lantern]]'' animated movie ''[[Green Lantern: Emerald Knights|Green Lantern Emerald Knights]]'', one of the five stories that Hal Jordan tells to his new recruit is the tale of Bofunga the Unrelenting and the day he finally.... er.... '''relented'''. He was on a quest to become the mightiest warrior in the galaxy, and the only being left in the cosmos that he had yet to vanquish was a mysterious being known as "Mogo". This being was allegedly not only exponentially more powerful than Bofunga, but was also a Green Lantern to boot. Bofunga traveled to Mogo's last known coordinates and attempted to challenge him, but even after months of searching his quarry was nowhere to be found. Refusing to give up, Bofunga began setting explosive charges all around the planet in an attempt to force Mogo out of his hiding place and goad him into a duel, {{spoiler|but after detonating all of the charges and doing NO DAMAGE WHATSOEVER, he realized--too late--that "Mogo" was THE PLANET ITSELF... '''[[Oh Crap|and he had just made it VERY angry.]]''' The ensuing "battle" ended with predictable swiftness, as Mogo crushed his antagonist with a well-placed gravity well.}}

** In the original comics, Bofunga fled after spending years searching for Mogo {{spoiler|when he looked at the map he had made while exploring the planet and realized that the foliage on Mogo formed a ''Green Lantern symbol''.}}

 

== Real Life ==

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Otherness Tropes]]

[[Category:Native American Mythology]]

[[Category:Characters As Device]]

[[Category:Settings]]

[[Category:Otherworld Tropes]]

[[Category:This Index Has a Mind of Its Own]]

[[Category:Alien Tropes]]

[[Category:Index of Fictional Creatures]]