Games - Elaine Marley

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	Games - Elaine Marley

Elaine Marley is one of the primary characters in the Monkey Island series of adventure games developed by LucasArts. She is the granddaughter of Captain Horatio Torquemada Marley, who searched for the legendary treasure of Big Whoop. Elaine is also the governor of the Tri-Island Area.

Appearances

Background

Elaine, a beautiful young woman, has attracted many suitors during her tenure as governor. One of these suitors was the fearsome pirate captain LeChuck, a vicious, arrogant, foul-smelling man with an evil heart. The "short version" of the Elaine-LeChuck history, as related by a pirate in The Secret of Monkey Island, says that Elaine told him to "drop dead", so he did. The longer version states that in an effort to impress her, LeChuck sought to discover the secret of Monkey Island; just as he reached the island, a supernatural storm sank his ship, leaving no survivors. In both versions, however, death does not stop LeChuck from attempting to win Elaine's hand in marriage (by force if necessary).

The Secret of Monkey Island

The series' protagonist, a hapless teenaged pirate wannabe named Guybrush Threepwood, first meets Elaine Marley while attempting to rob her. In an attempt to prove himself a pirate, Guybrush is striving to complete three trials. One of these trials is to steal "The Idol of Many Hands", a statue displayed in the governor's mansion. Mêlée Island Sheriff Fester Shinetop attempts to arrest Guybrush for the theft, but Elaine intervenes and dismisses the sheriff. During a short conversation, Elaine tells Guybrush that she has heard about him and was immediately intrigued by his name. She says that he doesn't look like a pirate, however; his face is much too "sweet". Awestruck by her beauty, Guybrush is unable to say anything intelligible during this "conversation".

Elaine reappears soon after Guybrush narrowly escapes death at Sheriff Shinetop's hands again. She confesses to being deeply attracted to Guybrush, and they bestow a bizarre series of terms of endearment on each other ("Plunder bunny!"). They can't be seen together in public, though; she has told many pirates that she promised her father she'd never fall in love with a pirate. Elaine promises that as soon as Guybrush finishes his three trials, she will be waiting for him in her mansion.

Naturally, she is kidnapped by LeChuck and his ghostly crew as soon as Guybrush completes the trials. The well-intentioned Threepwood attempts to rescue her, seemingly interrupting the wedding ceremony just in time. In actuality, he ruins Elaine's plan to spray LeChuck with an anti-ghost potion, although she does consider the rescue attempt "sweet".

Guybrush manages to defeat LeChuck on his own, and the game closes with the happy couple snuggling and watching the "fireworks" as the evil pirate's ghost form explodes.

Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge

Although Elaine's role is much smaller in the second game, the majority of the story is related to her by Guybrush. As the game opens, Guybrush is dangling from a rope in a huge pit. Elaine appears and offers to help, but only if he can explain how he got there. (Approximately 90% of the game is actually Guybrush relating to Elaine what has supposedly already happened. The narrative can only be "interrupted" at one point if the player's actions cause Guybrush to die. Elaine, patiently listening to the story, smoothly points out that Guybrush couldn't have died if he's still talking to her, and the player is given another chance to escape the deadly situation.)

In the "flashback", Elaine is furious at Guybrush for mercifully vague reasons. She has relocated the governor's mansion to Booty Island, where she owns a lazy, dim-witted dog she calls Guybrush. When the human Guybrush appears, she initially presumes that he has come to apologize to her; in fact, he's looking for a portion of a treasure map belonging to her grandfather, Horatio Torquemada Marley. This infuriates her further, and she refuses to speak to him afterwards.

When Guybrush finally brings Elaine up to the current moment, his rope breaks and he falls into the pit. Elaine has only one brief appearance afterwards; during the ending credits, she wonders aloud (with little apparent concern) if Guybrush has fallen under an evil spell (which he has).

The Curse of Monkey Island

By the beginning of the next game, Elaine seems to have largely reconciled with her would-be suitor. After she saves his life (again), Guybrush proposes to Elaine using a cursed diamond ring he found in LeChuck's ship. The ring immediately transforms her into a statue of solid gold. She remains in this state, frozen in mid-swing with a sneer of anger on her face, for the majority of the game. When he finally manages to undo the curse, she eventually forgives him and they marry in the game's ending cutscene.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Elaine Marley ]

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