The Beldam

Articles About The Beldam
Versions	Coraline Movie - Coraline Graphic Novel - Coraline Novel

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“	Black is traditional... But if you prefer pink, or vermilion or chartreuse... though you might make me jealous.	„
	~ The Beldam to Coraline

“	You may come out when you've learned to be a loving daughter.	„
	~ Transformed Beldam to Coraline

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Darling, why would you run away from me? Gosh, I have no idea where your old parents are. Perhaps they've grown bored of you and run away to France. Now, don't be difficult, Coraline.

„

Background

The Beldam (also known as the Other Mother, in reference to her other motherly disguise) is the main antagonist in the 2002 book, Coraline, as well as the 2009 movie of the same name. She is a demonic, shape-shifting entity who lures children into another dimension with the goal of taking their soul. Her original appearance eerily resembles Mel Jones, but her true, sinister form is later revealed to be that of an arachnid form.

This dropdown contains the synopsis of The Beldam’s story. Read at your own risk as you may be spoiled otherwise!

The Beldam is first seen impersonating Mel Jones, going by the alias "The Other Mother," as a ploy to make it seem like Coraline is living in a more lively and vibrant dimension. While The Beldam finishes supper, she instructs Coraline to fetch the other father, but not before dismissing Coraline's initial concern regarding her button eyes. Shortly thereafter, the three of them enjoy a full-course meal, topped with a gravy boat and chandelier smoothie dispenser. The Beldam herself does not eat and ensures it goes unnoticed. Following supper, The Beldam and the Other Father state they have been waiting for Coraline. The Beldam suggests playing hide-and-seek in the rain. This sparks concern in Coraline as Coraline's real mother despises rain and has no history of playing games with her daughter. Coraline becomes frightened by The Beldam's eerie behavior, and requests to go to bed. To prevent scaring Coraline off any further, The Beldam agrees to Coraline's wishes and shows Coraline her updated and colorful room. The Beldam rubs mud on Coraline's hand to heal the poison oak she contracted earlier that day, then her and the Other Father tuck her into bed and wish her a good night. Coraline wakes up in the real world the following morning. Coraline returns to the Other World to see The Beldam and the Other Father again on her second visit. The Beldam sends Coraline off to fetch the Other Father, who is working in the garden. They later have a dinner-breakfast meal, who The Beldam avoids eating again, until the Other Wybie arrives. He has been silenced by The Beldam. She then sends the children off to see the Other Bobinsky’s mouse circus upstairs. After the performance, Coraline returns to the bedroom, where The Beldam kisses her good night. Coraline wakes up in the real world again. When Coraline returns for a third visit, The Beldam was absent, but left food and new clothes for Coraline, and invites her to visit the Other Spink and Forcible downstairs. The Beldam returns once Coraline returns from the performance. She offers Coraline to stay in the Other World forever, on the condition that she must sew buttons into her eyes. Horrified, Coraline quickly wants to go the bed, leaving The Beldam concerned. She offers to tuck Coraline in, but she rejects. The Beldam implies Coraline “will see things their way”. She reappears again in the living room, which it’s furnitures have all turned into bugs. Coraline demands The Beldam to let her go back home, but she doesn’t cooperate. She demands Coraline to apologize for three seconds. The Beldam begins transforming into her second form, a monstrous witch, in anger. She then throws Coraline into a small room behind a mirror, allowing her to only come out when she learns to be “a loving daughter”. With the help of the Other Wybie, whose lips have been tied into a smile by The Beldam, Coraline manages to escape the Other World before she arrives. Coraline returns to the Other World once again after learning that The Beldam had kidnapped her real parents. The Beldam impersonates Mel Jones again before reverting into her true form. She then makes Coraline a meal, while she offers a game. Coraline bets that if she can find the eyes of the Ghost Children and her parents, then The Beldam will set them all free. If not, Coraline will stay and allow her to sew buttons over her eyes. She also demands a clue to find the eyes and her parents. The Beldams states that the ghost eyes are hidden in plain sight in each of the three wonders of the Other World. She refuses to give a clue about Coraline’s parents before disappearing. The Beldam is seen sitting in the living room again, now in her true humanoid-arachnid form, when Coraline returns with all the ghost eyes found. She manages to find Coraline’s atter stone and tosses it into the nearby fireplace. Coraline is warned by the Sweet Ghost Girl that even if she wins, the Beldam will never let her go. Using her wits, Coraline tricks The Beldam into unlocking the door for her, while she finds her real parents trapped in a snow globe. The Beldam gloats, before Coraline throws the Cat at her face. He manages to rip off The Beldam’s button eyes, blinding her. Angered, she turns the entire room into a spider web, but Coraline manages to escape, with the help of the Ghost Children closing the door for her, and severing The Beldam’s hand. Coraline returns to the real world and quickly locks the door in time. The Beldam’s severed hand manages to sneak into the real world and drags Coraline back. The real Wybie arrives and the pair were able to destroy the hand. They throw its remains and the key down the old well, ensuring that the Beldam will never find it again.

Codex Statistics

Tier: 10-B

Name: The Beldam, "Other Mother"

Origin: Coraline

Sex: Female

Age: Unknown (Existed since Wybie's Grandmother was young and predates even that)

Classification: Beldam, Other Mother

Dimensionality: 3-D

Attack Potency: Human level (The Beldam appears to be a tall lady that could easily overpower Coraline)

Durability: Human level, her connection to her world makes her hard to kill (As direct damage to her impacts the "Other World", it can warp it to a point where the user has a harder time fighting her)

Striking Strength: Human Class

Lifting Strength: Unknown

Travel Speed: Average Human

Attack Speed: Average Human

Reaction Speed: Average Human

Stamina: Unknown

Range: Standard Melee. At least Insterstellar, likely Far Higher, Interdimensional with Battlefield Removal (Sends Coraline back from Other World to the Real World)

Intelligence: Unknown (The Beldam has been alive for hundreds of years, knows everything about children she captured though she can be tricked due to her love of games and shows a childish demeanor in these)

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Powers and Techniques

Superhuman Physical Characteristics, Social Influencing (Convinced the ghost kids that she would love them forever convincing them to sow the buttons onto their eyes), Creation (Creator of the "Other World", which contains hundreds of stars in the sky. The Cat states that she only created what would impress Coraline, which means she could create more of the world if she wanted to. Any damage to the Beldam impacts the "Other World" showing she sustains it), Life Manipulation (Created the inhabitants of the other world, and can manipulate them), Reality Warping (Can warp her own creation as she sees fit), Immortality (Type 1; Has lived for years, pre-dating even Wybie's grandmother as a child), Metaphysics Manipulation (Soul Manipulation; Trapped the souls of the ghost children. However, needs to sow buttons on the persons eyes before she can do that), Precognition (Created a Coraline doll hundreds of years before Coraline even existed), Clairvoyance (Was able to spy on the ghost kids through the eyes of her dolls), Biological Manipulation (Can fully animate and de-animate plants), Memory Manipulation (Upon Coraline permanently locking the door, her parents came home with no memory of the incident, when prior they wrote "help us" when they were trapped in the mirror), Sealing (Trapped Coraline's parents in the Other World), Teleportation (She can disappear out of plain sight, and re-appear, likely has a strong connection to her creation as her injuries caused her creation to slowly crumble), Shapeshifting (Hid in her other mother disguise), Battlefield Removal (Every time Coraline went to sleep she woke up back in the real world, implying that the Beldam can remove Coraline from her creation if she pleases, this is further supported by the fact that when Coraline attempted to go back to the real world after running from the Beldam through sleeping she could not return), possible Nothingness Manipulation (Has a part of her world that's nothing)

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Equipment

Dolls, Button Eyes, People she creates in the Other World

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Other

Weaknesses: She will not refuse a game. Can remove her button eyes and temporarily blind her. The more her world weakens, the weaker she becomes.

Note: While the world of the Beldam is shown to be small through the statement of the Cat it is very easy to accept that the Beldam could make far more then what she's already made, along with this the starry sky and moon both seem to legitimately exist.

Note 2: There are some arguments that the Beldam is a glass cannon as Coraline could kick her greatly harming her face. However, this was at the very end of the movie where Beldam was immensely weakened after Coraline stole each part of ghost eyes causing her world to slowly fall apart, along with this Coraline kicked Beldam after the Cat removed her eyes causing her world to fully fall apart.

Battle Records

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