Where would fantasy heroes be without their trusted animal companions? Just like the rest of us with our pets, they’d be lost. So let’s take a look at some of the most memorable, shall we?
(Incidentally, there are plenty of fantasy stories that involve relationships between humans and magical creatures such as unicorns and dragons, but for the purposes of this article, we’re restricting ourselves only to creatures that have a real-life counterpart here on Earth!)
Scabbers (from Harry Potter)
Hapless Ron’s unpredictable pet rat Scabbers is, of course, not a real rat at all, but it’s not until the third book in the series that he’s revealed as the polymorphed Peter Pettigrew, a coward whose treachery led to the death of Harry’s parents. Pettigrew’s animal disguise plays an instrumental role in Prisoner of Azkaban, inspiring Sirius Black’s escape from prison after he recognizes the rat in a photograph, and Scabbers figures prominently into the book’s conclusion as well.
Coolness Factor: 2 (out of 5)
Loyalty: 1 (out of 5)
Importance to the Plot: 4 (out of 5)
Overall Rating:
Two Torches (Out of Five)
Argo (from Xena: Warrior Princess)
Xena is no ordinary warrior — so why should she have an ordinary horse? Sure enough, hers is extraordinarily intelligent, sensing danger, responding to a number of different commands, being able to command other horses, and even once enduring having been turned into a miniature version of herself. Speaking of which, is Argo male or female? While referred to as “boy” in earlier seasons, she is eventually identified as female (and was usually portrayed by a mare). The horse died during Xena and Gabrielle’s Ares-induced 25-year sleep in the ice-cave, but gave birth to a daughter, Argo II, who, remarkably, had all of Argo’s abilities.
Incidentally, did you ever wonder why Gabrielle had no horse? According to the producers speaking at a fan convention, it took three horses to make it look like Xena had one horse. For Gabrielle to have had a horse, that would have meant having six horses on hand — something that was financially impossible.
Coolness factor: 3 (out of 5)
Loyalty Factor: 5 (out of 5)
Importance to the Story: 2 (out of 5)
Overall Rating:
Three Torches (Out of Five)
Hedwig (Harry Potter)
There’s one question that every reader of the Harry Potter series has asked him or herself at least once: why don’t wizards have email? Then again, would you use email if you have something as cool as Hedwig, Harry’s pet snowy owl, to deliver messages to your friends? Hedwig is, of course, a gift from Hagrid, purchased in Diagon Alley in the first book in the series, and was definitely an owl with ‘tude, never willing to put up with Harry’s thoughtlessness. Sadly, Hedwig is killed in Deathly Hallows by none other than a stray curse.
Coolness Factor: 5 (out of 5)
Loyalty Factor: 4 (out of 5)
Importance to the Story: 2 (out of 5)
Overall Rating:
Three and a Half Torches (Out of Five)
The Animals of Aladdin
All the main characters in the animated Disney movie Aladdin share a bond with an animal that reflects his or her underlying personality: Aladdin has his impetuous monkey Abu, Jasmine has her regal tiger Rajah, and Jafar has his mean parrot Iogo. But the animal companions don’t just mimic their owners, they also reflect the underlying theme of the movie, which is more sophisticated than it seems at first glance: when you try to possess and enslave someone else, you ultimately end up enslaving yourself. True freedom, just like true love, only comes from freeing others and giving them the choice to set you free as well.
And for the record, it applies to life, but it also applies to our relationship with our real-world pets!
Coolness Factor: 3 (out of 5)
Loyalty Factor: 5 (out of 5)
Importance to the Story: 4 (out of 5)
Overall Rating:
Four Torches (Out of Five)
Daemons (from His Dark Materials)
In perhaps the most interesting aspect of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials series of books, every human in that alternate-”Earth” is accompanied in life by a “daemon” — that person’s soul made manifest in the form of an animal. In children, the daemon changes forms, finally settling into a single animal upon adulthood — a creature that reflects that person’s underlying personality. Humans share a bond with this personification of their soul that is so intimate that touching another’s daemon is unthinkable. And while separating a human from his or her daemon is possible — and factors closely into the plot of the books — doing so turns both into virtual zombies.
Coolness Factor: 4 (out of 5)
Loyalty Factor: 5 (out of 5)
Importance to the Story: 5 (out of 5)
Overall Rating:
Four Torches (Out of Five)
The Talking Animals (from The Chronicles of Narnia)
With a few exceptions, it’s hard to find better companions than the talking animals of Narnia. Most of these animals rarely stretch beyond their stereotypes — donkeys are stupid, owls are wise, cats can be unreliable, and dogs are loyal. But every now and then, author C.S. Lewis surprises us, as with one of the most memorable of Narnia’s talking animals, Reepicheep: the bravest, most noble creature in all of Narnia (excepting Aslan) is none other than … a mouse. And then there is Aslan. Is there another story that turns an animal into a metaphor for God?
Coolness Factor: 5 (out of 5)
Loyalty Factor: 5 (out of 5)
Importance to the Story: 5 (out of 5)
Overall Rating:
Five Torches (Out of Five)
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Fantastic! Argo, of course, is my favorite.
In a fantasy book, though, I think my favorite is Preciosa, the hawk in the YA story “Hawkmistress” by Marion Zimmer Bradley. Set in her Darkover world, it’s easily read as a standalone coming of age story about a girl with a mysterious gift for communicating with animals.
All great choices.
I would add the Companions from Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar series. They are similar to Xena’s Argo in that they are magical “horses,” but they are so much more. They are actual characters that “speak” and are as important as the human characters.
I’ve whiled-away many a daydream wishing a Companion would come my way and choose me.
So you’re not including Fawkes because phoenixes are fictional. I’ll confess that after Hedwig’s death, I had hoped that somehow Fawkes would re-appear and adopt Harry. Regrettably, Ms. Rowling didn’t let us know in the post-script what Harry did for a familiar. Or Ron for that matter. And did Ginny ever have a critter companion at all? And are they really familiars if they are no different than pets? If no, then that would make Fawkes the only true familiar in the series. Is being an unerring mail carrier really a magical power? What about Harry’s parents’ familiars? And Ron’s parents’? Well, there are books being written about inconsistencies in HP, though I remain smitten with the series.
Kim Novak/Gillian Holroyd and Pyewacket.
Harry Dresden and Mister.
Gandalf & Shadowfax.
Ged and his otak (oops, another mythical creature).
The dragonriders of Pern and their dragons.
Jake Sully, Neytiri, and their dragons (Avatar).
Seems I can’t leave off the make-believe creatures myself.
Oh! Merlin and Archimedes!
A couple of EXCELLENT additions there! Wish I’d thought of them, especially Archimedes and Shadowfax.
Well, not to beat a dead companion, but in her stories Mercedes Lackey also has Hawkbrothers or the Tayledras people that all have raptors, hawks, owls, and other fowl that are constant companions and partners to their human counterparts. These are less magical than Companions in that they were bred for their attributes. Mercedes Lackey was involved for many years with raptor conservation here in the U.S. and brings a lot of that knowledge into her stories.
Better late than never! I was always fond of the various animals used in Tamora Pierce’s Tortall books - especially Faithful/Pounce!