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| “ | I'm a...survivor, Black Lung! A survivor! That's all there is; living and dying. | „ |
| ~ Micah Bell to Arthur Morgan when confronted with his treachery. |
| “ | Listen, what will be will be. Ain't nothin' a feller can do about it, ain't no one changin' nothin'. I got all kinds of crazy on me, ain't nothin' I can do about that. Ain't my fault. Ain't no one's fault. Just live your goddamn life and when it's time, go out shootin'! Ain't no pity. Ain't no guilt. Ain't none of that. Don't mean nothin'. Ain't nothin'! The sooner you fools accept that, better you'll be. As men. It's kill or be killed. And right now... plenty of folk want our kind dead. So we kill. And them of us that's too week or too unlucky... they'll be killed. Accept it. Way of the world. | „ |
| ~ Micah in a campfire story, explaining his philosophy on life. |
| “ | You shot me? You shot me... pretty good... | „ |
| ~ Micah's last words before he is shot and killed. |
Micah Bell III is one of the two main antagonists (alongside Andrew Milton) of the 2018 western action-adventure video game Red Dead Redemption 2.
He was a spree killer, child murderer, and suspected rapist who was affiliated with the Van der Linde gang, being a hitman who operated for them alongside robberies. Micah was a perverted and snide man who took pleasure in causing harm to others, stemming from his father's actions of essentially doing the same thing to others. Eventually, it is discovered Micah's affiliation with the gang is a ruse, and he is in fact working with Andrew Milton and the Pinkerton Detective Agency in order to wipe out the gang and secure a free life for himself. Due to his actions, he becomes one of the arch-enemies of Arthur Morgan and John Marston.
He was portrayed by Peter Blomquist in motion capture, who also played Harlan J. Fontaine in L.A. Noire.
Biography[]
In 1899, Micah had only been a member of the Van der Linde gang for no more than 5 months before a robbery in Blackwater goes horribly wrong, forcing the gang to hide out in Colter in the Western Grizzlies, although not soon after traveling into the state of New Hanover, Micah was caught by the law for murder and taken to jail in Strawberry.
He is broken out days later by Arthur Morgan before they go on a shooting spree in the town before heading back to Dutch. As a peace offering to him, Micah (with Arthur) rob a stagecoach.
After a botched robbery in Saint Denis, Micah, along with Dutch, Arthur, Bill Williamson and Javier Escuella are washed ashore on the island of Guarma before eventually making their way back to the United States.
Sometime after returning from Guarma, he began secretly working as a mole for Andrew Milton and the Pinkerton Detective Agency, which (coupled with Dutch's own instability) causes the Van der Linde gang to fall apart. Arthur learns of his treachery from Milton, who is killed shortly after by Abigail.
After Arthur and John Marston confront him at the camp, a standoff ensues, resulting in Micah shooting Susan Grimshaw dead after she openly took Arthur's side. However, before the situation between them could escalate any further, Agent Ross and the Pinkertons discover the gang's location, forcing them all to flee.
Arthur and John head to a nearby mountain before parting ways, leaving Arthur to fight off agents until Micah soon reappears to kill him. A brawl then commences between the pair which ultimately ends with Arthur's death.
Eight years later, former Van der Linde gang member Sadie Adler discovers Micah has formed his own gang and they were hiding out on Mount Hagen. Wishing to avenge Arthur, John and Charles Smith travel with her to hunt him down.
However, after finding Micah, he manages to take Sadie hostage and reveals he has partnered up with Dutch who emerges from the nearby dwelling. John makes one last attempt to reach out to Dutch during a brief standoff, which results in Dutch shooting Micah. Micah stumbles backwards, frantically grabbing his bleeding chest.
In a last ditch attempt, Micah raises both his revolvers to gun them all down, but John is faster and strikes first, causing him to tumble backwards and only just managing to stand. Micah attempts to walk away, most likely to muscle memory, before collapsing dead in the cold snow, in revenge for betraying the old gang and ultimately causing Arthur's death.
Unfortunately, Milton's subordinates Edgar Ross and Archer Fordham later find Micah's corpse and track John down, thus leading to the events of Red Dead Redemption. Ross coerces John into tracking down and eliminating Bill, Javier and Dutch before betraying and killing him, avenging Milton and Micah's deaths. Ross was himself killed afterwards by John's son, Jack, in revenge for his parent's deaths.
Personality[]
| “ | Oh, be quiet, cow poke. Be quiet. You live in the clouds. | „ |
| ~ Micah to Arthur during the final stand off. |
| “ | I believe there's winners and losers... and nothing else besides. | „ |
| ~ Micah's worldview. |
Wild, ruthless, and unpredictable, Micah is undoubtedly the most unprincipled and chaotic member of the Van der Linde gang, even by the gang's standards, crossing many lines that the others normally wouldn't. Micah is a narcissistic, mocking, hurtful, callous, and sadistic outlaw who has absolutely no qualms in killing others with a barbaric glee. This is shown when he caused a shootout in the town called Strawberry and killed a former acquaintance and his wife only to reclaim his prized revolvers, and doing this all after Arthur saved him from being hanged. Even towards his fellow gang members, Micah is very insulting and tends to bully and antagonize most of them, as he punched Bill Williamson across the face after being offended by a mere joke. The only exception to this is Dutch van der Linde, who Micah shows a devoted loyalty to, and Dutch respects him in return. Micah also tries to gain Arthur's approval, although Arthur doesn't trust him for good reason.
Micah is also extremely derisive and racist, treating Lenny, Charles and Javier with open contempt solely because they are not white. He bullies Reverend Swanson for his alcohol and morphine addiction, as well as the pastor's lack of contribution towards the camp and religious views. Aside from bullying and harassing Reverend Swanson, Micah also harassed other members of the gang who don't contribute to helping the camp, like Uncle. In fact in one campfire interaction, he suggested to his fellow gang members that they should get rid of Uncle due to his lack of contributions, although he played it off as a joke. It is also believed that he killed Cain, Jack Marston's dog, and was shown kicking the dog beforehand. Micah also creepily flirts with the girls at camp and is implied to have sexually harassed Sadie Adler when they first met. He refers to this behavior as "the merry dance of the sexes", although Arthur rightfully proclaims him as a creep.
He is also horrible when dealing with kids as he has no qualms about violently teasing Jack Marston and even scaring the boy and lashing out at him after he gets annoyed by Jack's cries for Cain, supporting the belief he killed Cain. Moreover, he also tried to kill a young girl from a family years after causing the gang's disbandment which Cleet tried to stop, inadvertently causing their fallout.
After returning from Guarma, Micah secretly begins to work as a mole for the Pinkertons, as revealed by Agent Milton. Micah soon begins to manipulate Dutch into thinking that there's a traitor and takes full advantage of his leader's sanity slippage. He also starts to undermine Arthur and ridicules his tuberculosis by calling him "Black Lung". After his betrayal is discovered by Arthur, Micah maintains Dutch's belief in him and succeeds in turning what's left of the gang against Arthur and John. Micah later reveals that all that matters to him is surviving and that he is loyal to nobody. Although at the same time, he expresses his anger at Arthur knowing of his treachery and sadistically fights the outlaw who is approaching death from his terminal illness.
Despite being irredeemably evil and malicious, one hidden encounter in the camp where he threatened Leopold Strauss suggests that Micah strongly despises loansharking as much as Arthur, calling it unseemly and not a man's game. At the same time, however, this scene also foreshadows Micah's treacherous nature and how willingly he would betray someone who sees him as an ally.
Aside from Micah's disliking for anyone who looks different, loan sharks, and lazy people who don't contribute to the camp, Micah calls every single member of the gang weaklings. He strongly admits and shows that he doesn't like people that he sees as weaklings. Even though Micah respects Dutch he believes that Dutch is too soft which is something Micah can't stand. He has shown many times he hates anything and everything weak and soft (which is ironic, since Micah himself was never as strong as Arthur or John, as he was able to defeat Arthur only because he was weakened and on the brink of death from his tuberculosis).
Micah Bell has also insulted some members of the gang for their seemingly low intelligence, like Bill Williamson and others. All of this shows that Micah hates laziness, weakness, softness and people who aren't very smart. Aside from insulting Bill's intelligence, Micah also harasses Bill about leaving the army and calls him a coward because of his dishonorable discharge. On a few occasions Micah calls Bill a liar, saying that he thinks all of Bill's stories of his time in the army are lies just to make himself feel better. Aside from calling Bill a fool, Micah admits that he thinks everyone in the gang are fools. He has admitted to Bill several times that he doesn't think very highly of soldiers or people who serve in the army, despite hating on Bill for leaving the army, showing he has hypocritical views as well.
Because of his antagonistic behavior, most of the gang either dislike Micah or seem to think very little of him, only working with him out of pragmatism or because they have to. As mentioned prior, Micah often insults the other gang members for kicks, barring Arthur (before his tuberculosis diagnosis) and Dutch, and laughs when he manages to provoke them in some way or another. He is only seen provoking Charles once, and doesn't directly bother him again when he stands up to him and throws him to the ground for a racist remark.
Aside from not liking members of the gang, Micah has mentioned a few times that he doesn't like animals much either which is one of the reasons why he always abused Jack's dog. Aside from Micah confirming his hatred for animals, when Micah talks to John he mentions that he has never been attacked by animals and how they won't come anywhere near him. John says he's not surprised since "animals don't like to eat things that are already rotten". Before Cain goes missing, Bill mentions a few times that Cain can tell something isn't right about Micah and that the dog doesn't like him.
For all his negative behavior, Micah does seem to possess some skills in collaboration and a twisted sense of charm that allows him to rally others when need be. He has worked with Bill before, despite their relationship something of a sour one, and he had been seen getting along with Javier on two occasions, despite his frequent racism and was even seen shaking hands once with him. While he is reckless at times and possesses zero scruples, Micah does have finesse when it comes to dealing with people, both through combat and coercion. This is mainly shown throughout the main story where he repeatedly gaslights Dutch into believing he is his most loyal follower, while simultaneously turning him against his most loyal followers, Arthur and John. His skill is later proven further when he managed to form a very large gang and lead over them through either charisma, fear, manipulation, or a combination of all three factors. At the same time, this can be seen as merely glib that Micah only uses to win people over who can be of use to him, having no true concern for anyone but himself. All of this makes Micah a treacherous and consummate manipulator who will do anything to rig things in his favor. Plus most of the people he wins over, like Bill, Cleet and Joe, are either not very bright or just greedy criminals who'd do anything for money. This marks him as a dangerous and intelligent manipulator who must not be underestimated.
Micah laughing after being mortally wounded by Dutch, despite obviously being in extreme pain, and then giving a nonchalant shrug moments after he's finished off by John could be evidence that Micah is so vindictive, he doesn't care about his own death as long as he knows John will eventually pay for his murder, since Micah knew that John would be investigated after murdering a Pinkerton spy. Micah's prediction would come true after John was executed by Ross' men four years later. Though, Jack would then avenge his father by murdering Ross three years later, making Micah's victory a temporary one.
Quotes[]
| “ | Gentlemen. | „ |
| ~ Micah appearing in front of Arthur and Dutch in 'Outlaws from the West' - also his first line in the whole game. |
| “ | They had somethin' of mine... My guns. I showed him, and I'll show the rest of this town! | „ |
| ~ Micah after killing Norman and Maddy retrieving his revolvers. |
| “ | Listen. I'm sorry but we're family now, Arthur. You and me. Sons of Dutch, makes us brothers. And sometimes... brothers make mistakes. | „ |
| ~ Micah to Arthur after getting out of a shootout in Strawberry. |
| “ | Micah: Dutch said you was a big shadow cast by a tiny tree. Arthur: I don't know what that means. Micah: I thought you was a tough boy... not one of those gentlemen... trying to protect his riding clothes. |
„ |
| ~ Micah threatens Arthur. |
| “ | Micah: Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called... well, however it goes. Arthur: I'm not sure that line of thought serves you and me very well. Micah: Well, that's because, cowpoke, you are a man of profoundly limited intelligence. |
„ |
| ~ Conversation between Micah and Arthur in 'Blessed are the Peacemakers'. |
| “ | Sheriff Gray: This is the Grays' town. Always has been, always will be! Micah: Only Grays I see left around here... is you! |
„ |
| ~ Micah and Arthur confront Sheriff Gray. |
| “ | Oh shit. Look what I've gone and done. | „ |
| ~ Micah after he stabs Arthur in the chest. |
| “ | Micah: Hello, Scarface. Did you miss me? John: Not much. Micah: Been a few years. [Laughs] How's that umm... whore of yours? John: She's good. Didn't reckon I should waste my time killing ya... but I felt different. Micah: So it seems. Well maybe after all this is over... I'll go pay her a call... and the boy. John: Whatever you say. |
„ |
| ~ John Marston Confronts Micah Bell. |
Trivia[]
- Depending on Arthur's honor level and ending, Micah's actions will change, by either killing Arthur or leaving him to die.
- In the "Go with John" decision, if Arthur's honor is high, Micah will simply leave Arthur to die of his TB after failing to persuade Dutch to join him in escaping the chaos. If his honor level is low, Micah will proceed to execute him by shooting him in the head and laughing after a short hostile chat with him.
- In the "Go for the Money" decision, if Arthur's honor level is high, Arthur will be victorious in the knife fight against Micah, permanently damaging his left eye by slashing it with his knife and Micah will simply leave Arthur to die of his TB while he retrieves the bag of money that Arthur attempted to steal. If Arthur's honor level is low, Micah will be victorious against Arthur, stabbing him in the chest and later on stabbing him in the back, ultimately killing Arthur.
- If Arthur went for the money with high honor, when John meets Micah again, Micah will be sporting a large scar across his left closed eye, hence the damage given to him by Arthur.
- The fact that Micah actually spares Arthur if he has high honor suggests that Micah has an honorable side (unlikely as it is). If the player has low honor, Micah remarks "you're no better than me" before killing him.
- Though one could make the argument that Micah only spared him to avoid the incoming lawmen.
- However, since the lawmen knew that Micah was their spy, Micah could simply leave Arthur there as he knew he would die from TB anyway.
- Though one could make the argument that Micah only spared him to avoid the incoming lawmen.
- Micah shares some similarities with Dimitri Rascalov, another main antagonist of a Rockstar Games franchise. However, Micah was debatably slightly eviler than Dimitri.
- Both characters see betraying everyone as 'Survival of the Fittest' and share similar Darwinistic views on life in general.
- Both were thought to be allies to the main character at the start of the game.
- Both are more or less loyal to only one person, with Micah being loyal only to Dutch van der Linde while Dimitri was loyal only to Ray Bulgarin. However, Micah had to betray Dutch in order to manipulate Dutch that his fellow gang members were traitors, while it's implied that Dimitri stayed loyal to Bulgarin only because Bulgarin was more powerful, which would make betraying him stupid and would end with Dimitri dead in no time.
- Both have blond hair and blue eyes.
- Both betray their bosses at some point with Micah betraying Dutch while Dimitri betrayed Mikhail Faustin. However, this was Dimitri's ploy to have Niko kill Mikhail for him before Dimitri ends up betraying Niko Bellic in a twisted fashion. He also betrays Niko again in the mission "If the Price is Right" when Dimitri tells Niko that he has killed the buyers' representatives and that he will keep the heroin all to himself. On the other hand, Micah doesn't convince Arthur to betray and kill Dutch at all, and only Micah himself manipulated Dutch throughout (but with the use of his charisma instead of drugs). And in the final mission "American Venom", Dutch eventually saw through Micah's ploy and had ultimately killed him. Additionally, unlike Mikhail, Dutch remained alive.
- Both killed a hero character only to be killed by the hero's close one in return with Micah killing Arthur Morgan while Dimitri (indirectly) killed Roman Bellic. However, Roman Bellic was not a playable character whereas Niko Bellic is. As for Arthur Morgan, however, he still dies anyway either as a result of tuberculosis, which was considered incurable during the time period, or from being killed at the hands of Micah (assuming that Arthur has low honor).
- What also differentiates between Micah and Dimitri is that Micah isn't afraid of getting in on the action, while Dimitri solely relies on his henchmen to do the dirty work for him and is shown to be cowardly when confronted by Niko, while Micah himself has no such trait and doesn't hesitate to attack the protagonist.
- Both were also Pure Evil and lack any and all mercy to both the protagonists and other characters.
- Also, Dimitri doesn't actively go out of his way to harm the general public, prefering to work in shady business practices involving rackateering and drug-trade, typically only harming civilians connected to his rivals, while Micah will go out of his way to rob, torture and kill an innocent person completely unprovoked and out of the blue, depending on his mood, even massacring an entire town (some unarmed and fleeing) over being arrested and his guns being confiscated.
- Micah Bell is often considered to be the most hated character created by Rockstar and overall one of the most hated characters in video game history due to him betraying the gang, manipulating Dutch, and having such a nasty personality. Even his own voice actor, Peter Blomquist, hated him.
- Including Cleet and Joe, there were 54 members in Micah's gang on Mount Hagen, all of whom were killed off by John, Sadie and Charles.
- Micah is about 175cm (5'9'' feet) tall and weighs 76kg (167 pounds). He presumably weighs less in the Epilogue as he is noticeably skinnier.
- Antagonizing Micah in the camp will not result in losing honor, and none of the gang will chide Arthur for antagonizing him.
- Micah's horse is named Baylock and it's possible that is the only living thing that Micah showed genuine care for, since he'll react with genuine shock and anger if his horse is killed by the player or enemies during missions (though this is likely out of pragmatic reasons).[1]
References[]
External Links[]
- Micah Bell on the Pure Evil Wiki
- Micah Bell on the Red Dead Wiki
