Petra Macneary
Petra Macneary | |
---|---|
Fire Emblem character | |
![]() Petra in Fire Emblem Heroes | |
First appearance | Fire Emblem: Three Houses (2019) |
Designed by | Chinatsu Kurahana |
Voiced by | EN: Faye Mata[1] JA: Shizuka Ishigami[1] |
In-universe information | |
Affiliation | Black Eagles |
Petra Macneary (Japanese: ペトラ マクネアリー, Hepburn: Petora Makunearī) is a character in the 2019 video game Fire Emblem: Three Houses. She is a student of Garreg Mach Academy, and a member of the Black Eagles house under Edelgard von Hresvelg. She is raised as a hostage in the Adrestian Empire after her nation of Brigid failed to rebel against the Empire. She also appears in other Fire Emblem games, including Fire Emblem Heroes and Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes.
Concept and creation
[edit]Petra was created by Chinatsu Kurahana for the video game Fire Emblem: Three Houses.[2] She is voiced in English by Faye Mata and in Japanese by Shizuka Ishigami.[1]
Appearances
[edit]Petra is a character in the video game Fire Emblem: Three Houses, belonging to the Black Eagles house under Edelgard von Hresvelg. She originates from the archipelago of Brigid as its princess. Years prior to the start of the game, an independent Brigid allied with Dagda to fight the empire of Adrestia. After Adrestria won the war, Brigid was reduced to a vassal state, and Petra was sent to be raised in Adrestria as a hostage, with her life as a guarantee of good behavior from her grandfather, the ruler of Brigid. Despite the awkward situation, Brigid learns the language of Fódlan well enough and can make genuine friendships with the other students at Garreg Mach. She also appears in the sequel, Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes.
In both Three Houses and Three Hopes, Petra's goals are generally the same: to gain allies and reclaim autonomy for Brigid, whether by befriending Edelgard (what she will do by default if not recruited) or via Byleth and their students. If she is recruited by Byleth to the player's team, she eventually becomes Queen of Brigid and regains its independence with Byleth's support.
Petra appears in the crossover mobile game Fire Emblem Heroes.
Reception
[edit]Petra has been generally well received. Her status as a hostage is dramatically interesting, with Polygon writer Daniel Friedman noting the tension of the relationship between her and Edelgard due to this.[3] The Mary Sue writer Madeline Carpou commented that they "side-eye[d]" the Black Eagles for forgetting that she was a prisoner of war, feeling that the alienation of foreign cultures in games like Three Houses was too easily remedied. They praised the sequel, Three Hopes, for establishing a relationship between her and Dedue, another foreigner, allowing them to support each other in their progress.[4] Writers Rebecca Katherine Britt and PS Berge identify her as one of the few racially diverse characters in the game, noting that fan content often represented that fact.[5] RPGFan writer Kyle Kortvely considered Petra one of his favorite characters in the game, commenting that he intentionally played in English instead of Japanese because of her broken English in this version.[6]
Comic Book Resources writer Noelle Corbett considered her the best female character in Three Houses and one of the best Three Houses characters overall. She praised various elements of Petra's character, including her kindness, the importance of Brigid in her life, and her ability to overlook the association of certain friends to the people whom she hates. She also appreciated that she was a foreign character in the game's world, which she felt added depth to the game.[7]
Petra's relationship with Dorothea, nicknamed "Doropetra," has been a generally popular one, described by Rebecca Katherine Britt and PS Berge as being a moderately popular one. They noted that its popularity was derived in part from it being the only romantic paired ending that Petra has with a woman, and one of only a handful of romantic relationships between women in the game. They also discussed how fan content of their relationship is made more explicit than the canon moments between them.[5] Gayming Mag writer Aimee Hart discussed the relationship between Petra and Dorothea, finding it an underrated ship. She praised the ship due to Dorothea's goal of finding someone to take care of her when she loses her looks, and how romantic it is for Petra to sweep her off her feet as a princess. She also discussed their shared disdain for imperial nobility, namely Dorothea being abandoned for not having a Crest and Petra's mistreatment as a prisoner of war. She also appreciated that Petra did not shame Dorothea for wanting to find stability, praising the story for depicting Dorothea as Petra's most-loved person in their paired ending.[8][9] The Mary Sue writer Princess Weekes felt surprised that the ship between Petra and Dorothea was not more popular.[10]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Petra". Behind the Voice Actors. Archived from the original on July 28, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Donaldson, Alex (July 5, 2019). ""Without the help of Koei Tecmo it simply wouldn't have been possible" - Fire Emblem: Three Houses developers on their biggest strategy RPG yet". VG247. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Friedman, Daniel (August 9, 2019). "Fire Emblem's best house doesn't like you, and it barely likes itself". Polygon. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Carpou, Madeline (July 7, 2022). "The Best New Supports in 'Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes'". The Mary Sue. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ a b Berge, PS; Britt, Rebecca Katherine (December 2021). "Dance With Me, Claude: Creators, Catalyzers and Canonizers in the Fire Emblem: Three Houses Slash-Ship Fandom". Game Studies. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Lee, Nathan; Kortvely, Katherine; Kortvely, Kyle; McCallum, Leona (October 11, 2019). "Retro Encounter 207 – Fire Emblem: Three Houses Spoilercast". RPGFan. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Corbett, Noelle (August 7, 2020). "Fire Emblem Three Houses' Best Girl Is Petra". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Hart, Aimee (January 24, 2020). "That's Underrated: Petra and Dorothea from Fire Emblem Three Houses". Gayming Mag. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
- ^ Hart, Aimee (November 4, 2019). "Fire Emblem Three Houses non-Byleth relationships feel more significant". Gayming Mag. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
- ^ Weekes, Princess (May 28, 2022). "What Are Most Popular Ships in 'Fire Emblem: Three Houses' According to AO3?". The Mary Sue. Retrieved April 24, 2024.