The Beldam

"You may come out when you learn to be a loving daughter!" ~ Other Mother

The Other Mother is the main villian from the novel Coraline (and its film adaptation). She lives in the Other World, where she waits for children to come find her. She pretends to be just a button-eyed version of the child's mom. Button eye is not an expression. She sends out dolls to watch the children and get to know them and their neighbors. Then she makes ragdoll like copies of them called the "Others". It's all a trap, so she can sew buttons over your eyes and eat your life. One girl, Coraline, escapes and saves her three prievous victims and her parents. Coraline also has a cat rip off her eyes and destroys her hand. It's unknown if this horrible creature is still alive.

At first, Other Mother appeared as a sweet and well-mannered mother who adored Coraline and had a seemingly loving relationship with the "Other Father"- living in what could be described as an only slightly twisted version of Utopia.

Yet, as Coraline grew more rebellious, the "Other Mother" began to change, becoming more vindictive and cruel- not just towards Coraline, but her own creations, becoming abusive towards "Other Father" and "Other Wyborne", then towards Coraline herself after she confronts "Other Mother".

Changing into a monstrous and inhumanly tall monster, "Other Mother" quickly transformed the "Other" world into an outright dystopia- yet Coraline managed to convince her to play a "game" (as she was obsessed with games).

The "game" was simple: Coraline would free the children that "Other Mother" had captured. If she won, "Other Mother" would have to let her and everyone else go- if she failed, "Other Mother" would keep her and sew buttons onto her eyes.

The Other Mother agrees and utilizes many evil illusions and henchmen in her goal to stop Coraline, in a tragic scene, an enslaved Other Father apologizes to Coraline as he is forced to confront her: yet he fights against the Other Mother's control (geniunely caring for Coraline) and falls to his apparent death; as he does so, he gives Coraline one of the ghost children's eyes.

Coraline then steals the other two ghost children's eyes- one from the two actresses that lived down the stairs from her, who Other Mother transformed into a hideous monster which Coraline defeated via tricking a gang of demonic "bat-dogs" into attacking them long enough for her to grab the ghost child's eye and flee.

The final ghost child's eye is held by the eccentric cirus ringmaster, who Other Mother transforms into a mass of hideous rats, who swarm Coraline- they almost succeed in escaping with the ghost child's eye but a black cat (who had been acting as Coraline's benefactor) killed one of the rats and thus Coraline recieved the final ghost child's eye.

Afterwards, Coraline returns to Other Mother's lair, where she was awaiting Coraline. She reminds Coraline she still needs to find her parents. Suddnely, one of the ghosts reminds Coraline that even if she wins "Other Mother" will never let her go. Coraline purposly makes a wrong guess to distract the beldum, and as "Other Mother" believes she's won, Coraline tosses the black cat at her, which cuts out her button eyes. Angrily, the beldum turns the room around them into a web and attempts to capture Coraline. Coraline manages to escape through the door and lock "Other Mother" in her world. However, the beldum's severed hand attempts to take the key. It is ultimately smashed and tossed into a well. With that "Other Mother" presumibly starved to death in her world without a child's life to eat.