Opal Koboi
Encyclopedia
Opal Koboi is a fictional character
from the Artemis Fowl series
- a set of seven fantasy novels written by Irish
author Eoin Colfer
. After the character's May 2002 introduction in the second book
in the series as a supporting antagonist
, Colfer again used Koboi as the main antagonist in the fourth and sixth book of the series, giving her the status of arch-enemy to the main protagonist, Artemis Fowl II
. Colfer has confirmed that Koboi will return in the eighth book.
. Koboi was written in this second book of the series as an evil genius
responsible for the highest level of planning and execution of a war by goblins purchasing weapons from rogue human gun traders against the Lower Elements Police Reconnaissance (LEPrecon) police squad. She employs Lieutenant Briar Cudgeon, a disgraced-in-the-first-book LEPrecon officer, as a partner in her attempt to stage a coup deep in the bowels of the Earth. However, at the climax of the book, Artemis reveals that Cudgeon plans to betray Koboi. Koboi flies into a rage and attacks Cudgeon. In the ensuing struggle, Cudgeon is killed and Koboi is incapacitated. She then falls into a self-induced coma
as part of a plan to escape imprisonment.
With statements such as "before her second birthday she had dismantled her first hard drive," the Opal Koboi character comes off as precocious, but not in a positive way. Described as an "insane, power-mad pixie" and an outrageous character that is confident of her own intelligence in a way that annoys other people, this beauteous "pixie with the golden touch" contributes to the Colfer idea that fairies are basically as bad as us -and fight even dirtier. The name Koboi sounds both as "cowboy" and "kobold
", a temperamental sprite
of German folklore
who becomes outraged when not fed properly, and who sometimes is referred to as a spirit of caves and mines. In this way, the name Koboi suits the gold-digger Opal Koboi. It is also known that Koboi bankrupted her father's business after he tried to dissaude her from studying engineering (as he expected his daughter to follow the normal path in life for female pixies: namely, getting married to a suitable husband) and that she has a long, bitter rivalry with Foaly
since their days at university, and that one of Opal's main goals is to prove she is intellectually superior to the centaur. The only reason to this hatred between the two magical creatures is because Foaly
won their University's science fair with his iris-cam, which Opal found stupid and thought that her Koboi wings were far more superior. She then accuses the centaur of winning only because he was a male.
, which was published in April 2005 as the fourth book of the fictional series. In this installment, Colfer describes Opal Koboi's coma situation from the perspective of Doctor Jerbal Argon, a fictional fairy gnome psychiatrist
taking care of his incarcerated, "celebrity" patient:
, Colfer has Koboi in a coma-like state of meditation known as a cleansing coma to elude punishment for her own criminal activities. Koboi awakens herself from the faked coma, leaves a clone of herself under guard in a coma and disguises herself as a human child, and breaks out of prison to take revenge and dominate the world both of fairies and humans. Koboi's plan is to bring the Fairy People in contact with humans, "who until now have been completely ignorant of their existence below the surface of the earth, but by their nature manage to ruin everything they touch." Koboi, who plans to install herself as supreme world ruler, is opposed by both Captain Holly Short
, a talkative elf in the LEP, and Artemis Fowl
, a 14-year-old criminal mastermind from a super-criminal family dynasty and the main character of the series. Colfer makes their opposition to Opal Koboi more difficult by erasing Fowl's memory of the wicked Opal Koboi and the other fairy people through a Foaly mindwipe and by having Koboi frame Captain Holly Short's for a murder that in fact was committed by Koboi. Even though Opal has laid out death traps for Artemis and Holly in a troll-infested amusement park, Holly eventually is able to restore Artemis' memory and the two of them stop Opal. At the end of Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception, Colfer has the reader assuming that Koboi is safely locked up in an LEP prison.
She also appears in Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox, as the main antagonist again. Artemis and Holly tangle with a past version of Koboi. She had realized that absorbing parts of different (usually rare) animals, she can modify her magic. By now she can levitate, shoot lightning and has a more advanced mesmer. She plans to use the Silky Sifaka Lemur to channel her magic into Time Travel which she will use to become leader. At the climax of the book, she has been revealed to have travelled to the current time, and was defeated but unapprehended. The consequences of her leaving the past has yet to be resolved.
Colfer used the fourth novel to describe Opal Koboi's hysterical megalomania
in significant detail. Coming across as embittered, slightly loony, deranged and dangerous, ultra-evil, and world domination-obsessed, Colfer has the criminal mastermind Koboi go "mind-to-mind" against a similarly intelligent and criminal mastermind Fowl. Strangely, in The Time Paradox, she seemed insane on a level which was not evident in The Arctic Incident (which is strange since if The Time Paradox explores events before The Arctic Incident, she should still be just as crazy, although it may be that whatever events result in her returning to the past will stabilise her mental condition), even deciding to think about choosing to shoot down the moon after using the term in a thought.
In book 7, Artemis suspects Opal of the attack on Atlantis until he discovers that the enemy is Turnball Root, disgraced brother of the late Commander Julius Root. There is also reference to her present, human self being relocated during an attack on a prison- although she is contained in a metal box to prevent her escaping-, as well as reference to the rumour that her past self is active in the present and may be trying to free her.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the Artemis Fowl series
Artemis Fowl (series)
Artemis Fowl is a series of fantasy novels written by Irish author Eoin Colfer and all the books are best sellers, starring the teenage criminal mastermind Artemis Fowl II. The author summed up the series as: "Die Hard with fairies." There are seven novels in the series; the first was published in...
- a set of seven fantasy novels written by Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
author Eoin Colfer
Eoin Colfer
Eoin Colfer is an Irish author. He is most famous as the author of the Artemis Fowl series, but he has also written other successful books. His novels have been compared to the works of J. K. Rowling...
. After the character's May 2002 introduction in the second book
Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident
Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident is the second book in the Artemis Fowl series written by Irish author Eoin Colfer. It follows the story of Opal Koboi's rising alongside the rescue of the abducted Artemis Fowl I, Artemis Fowl II's father...
in the series as a supporting antagonist
Antagonist
An antagonist is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend...
, Colfer again used Koboi as the main antagonist in the fourth and sixth book of the series, giving her the status of arch-enemy to the main protagonist, Artemis Fowl II
Artemis Fowl II
Artemis Fowl II is the antihero and main character of the fictional series Artemis Fowl by the Irish author Eoin Colfer.- Origins :Colfer has said that he based Artemis on his younger brother Donal, who as a child was "a mischievous mastermind who could get out of any trouble he got into"...
. Colfer has confirmed that Koboi will return in the eighth book.
Introduction
Colfer is first brought the Opal Koboi character into the Artemis Fowl series through the May 2002 publication of Artemis Fowl: The Arctic IncidentArtemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident
Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident is the second book in the Artemis Fowl series written by Irish author Eoin Colfer. It follows the story of Opal Koboi's rising alongside the rescue of the abducted Artemis Fowl I, Artemis Fowl II's father...
. Koboi was written in this second book of the series as an evil genius
Villain
A villain is an "evil" character in a story, whether a historical narrative or, especially, a work of fiction. The villain usually is the antagonist, the character who tends to have a negative effect on other characters...
responsible for the highest level of planning and execution of a war by goblins purchasing weapons from rogue human gun traders against the Lower Elements Police Reconnaissance (LEPrecon) police squad. She employs Lieutenant Briar Cudgeon, a disgraced-in-the-first-book LEPrecon officer, as a partner in her attempt to stage a coup deep in the bowels of the Earth. However, at the climax of the book, Artemis reveals that Cudgeon plans to betray Koboi. Koboi flies into a rage and attacks Cudgeon. In the ensuing struggle, Cudgeon is killed and Koboi is incapacitated. She then falls into a self-induced coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
as part of a plan to escape imprisonment.
With statements such as "before her second birthday she had dismantled her first hard drive," the Opal Koboi character comes off as precocious, but not in a positive way. Described as an "insane, power-mad pixie" and an outrageous character that is confident of her own intelligence in a way that annoys other people, this beauteous "pixie with the golden touch" contributes to the Colfer idea that fairies are basically as bad as us -and fight even dirtier. The name Koboi sounds both as "cowboy" and "kobold
Kobold
The kobold is a sprite stemming from Germanic mythology and surviving into modern times in German folklore. Although usually invisible, a kobold can materialise in the form of an animal, fire, a human being, and a candle. The most common depictions of kobolds show them as humanlike figures the size...
", a temperamental sprite
Sprite (creature)
The term sprite is a broad term referring to a number of preternatural legendary creatures. The term is generally used in reference to elf-like creatures, including fairies, and similar beings , but can also signify various spiritual beings, including ghosts. In Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl books,...
of German folklore
German folklore
German folklore shares many characteristics with Scandinavian folklore and English folklore due to their origins in a common Germanic mythology. It reflects a similar mix of influences: a pre-Christian pantheon and other beings equivalent to those of Norse mythology; magical characters associated...
who becomes outraged when not fed properly, and who sometimes is referred to as a spirit of caves and mines. In this way, the name Koboi suits the gold-digger Opal Koboi. It is also known that Koboi bankrupted her father's business after he tried to dissaude her from studying engineering (as he expected his daughter to follow the normal path in life for female pixies: namely, getting married to a suitable husband) and that she has a long, bitter rivalry with Foaly
Foaly
Foaly is a fictional character in the Artemis Fowl series written by Eoin Colfer. He is the technical consultant to the Lower Elements Police...
since their days at university, and that one of Opal's main goals is to prove she is intellectually superior to the centaur. The only reason to this hatred between the two magical creatures is because Foaly
Foaly
Foaly is a fictional character in the Artemis Fowl series written by Eoin Colfer. He is the technical consultant to the Lower Elements Police...
won their University's science fair with his iris-cam, which Opal found stupid and thought that her Koboi wings were far more superior. She then accuses the centaur of winning only because he was a male.
Subsequent appearances
Colfer brought back the Opal Koboi character in Artemis Fowl: The Opal DeceptionArtemis Fowl: The Opal Deception
Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception is a teen fantasy novel published in 2005, the 4th book in the Artemis Fowl series by the Irish author Eoin Colfer...
, which was published in April 2005 as the fourth book of the fictional series. In this installment, Colfer describes Opal Koboi's coma situation from the perspective of Doctor Jerbal Argon, a fictional fairy gnome psychiatrist
Psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
taking care of his incarcerated, "celebrity" patient:
"If only every fairy in the facility was as docile as Opal Koboi. All she needed was a few intravenous tubes and a monitor, which had been more than paid for by her first six months' medical fees. Doctor Argon fervently hoped that little Opal never woke up. Because once she did, the LEP would haul her off to court. And when she had been convicted of treason her assets would be frozen, including the Clinic's fund. No, the longer Opal's nap lasted, the better for everyone, especially her. Because of their thin skulls and large brain volume, Pixies were susceptible to various maladies such as catatonia, amnesia and narcolepsy."Rather than being in an actual coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
, Colfer has Koboi in a coma-like state of meditation known as a cleansing coma to elude punishment for her own criminal activities. Koboi awakens herself from the faked coma, leaves a clone of herself under guard in a coma and disguises herself as a human child, and breaks out of prison to take revenge and dominate the world both of fairies and humans. Koboi's plan is to bring the Fairy People in contact with humans, "who until now have been completely ignorant of their existence below the surface of the earth, but by their nature manage to ruin everything they touch." Koboi, who plans to install herself as supreme world ruler, is opposed by both Captain Holly Short
Holly Short
Holly Short is a fictional character and a LEPrecon Captain in the Artemis Fowl book series by Eoin Colfer.-Character outline:Holly Short is a talkative and sarcastic elf with an auburn crew cut and hazel eyes, as well as the pointy ears and nut-brown skin typical of her species...
, a talkative elf in the LEP, and Artemis Fowl
Artemis Fowl II
Artemis Fowl II is the antihero and main character of the fictional series Artemis Fowl by the Irish author Eoin Colfer.- Origins :Colfer has said that he based Artemis on his younger brother Donal, who as a child was "a mischievous mastermind who could get out of any trouble he got into"...
, a 14-year-old criminal mastermind from a super-criminal family dynasty and the main character of the series. Colfer makes their opposition to Opal Koboi more difficult by erasing Fowl's memory of the wicked Opal Koboi and the other fairy people through a Foaly mindwipe and by having Koboi frame Captain Holly Short's for a murder that in fact was committed by Koboi. Even though Opal has laid out death traps for Artemis and Holly in a troll-infested amusement park, Holly eventually is able to restore Artemis' memory and the two of them stop Opal. At the end of Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception, Colfer has the reader assuming that Koboi is safely locked up in an LEP prison.
She also appears in Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox, as the main antagonist again. Artemis and Holly tangle with a past version of Koboi. She had realized that absorbing parts of different (usually rare) animals, she can modify her magic. By now she can levitate, shoot lightning and has a more advanced mesmer. She plans to use the Silky Sifaka Lemur to channel her magic into Time Travel which she will use to become leader. At the climax of the book, she has been revealed to have travelled to the current time, and was defeated but unapprehended. The consequences of her leaving the past has yet to be resolved.
Colfer used the fourth novel to describe Opal Koboi's hysterical megalomania
Megalomania
Megalomania is a psycho-pathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of power, relevance, or omnipotence. 'Megalomania is characterized by an inflated sense of self-esteem and overestimation by persons of their powers and beliefs'...
in significant detail. Coming across as embittered, slightly loony, deranged and dangerous, ultra-evil, and world domination-obsessed, Colfer has the criminal mastermind Koboi go "mind-to-mind" against a similarly intelligent and criminal mastermind Fowl. Strangely, in The Time Paradox, she seemed insane on a level which was not evident in The Arctic Incident (which is strange since if The Time Paradox explores events before The Arctic Incident, she should still be just as crazy, although it may be that whatever events result in her returning to the past will stabilise her mental condition), even deciding to think about choosing to shoot down the moon after using the term in a thought.
In book 7, Artemis suspects Opal of the attack on Atlantis until he discovers that the enemy is Turnball Root, disgraced brother of the late Commander Julius Root. There is also reference to her present, human self being relocated during an attack on a prison- although she is contained in a metal box to prevent her escaping-, as well as reference to the rumour that her past self is active in the present and may be trying to free her.