Artwork by Savu0211
Riku is an original character who appeared in the fan-made Lion King comic, The Relatives of the King by Savu0211. He is Sarafina's big brother and Sina's oldest son. He is one of the lions responsible for what Taka has become in the first place (along with Freya, Sina, Sarafina, and Mufasa). He is the one who gave Taka his scar in this version.
He is the secondary antagonist in Part 1 and a supporting character in Part 0. He also appears as a minor character in the short stories.
Appearance[]
Riku has a pale yellow pelt, brown mane, and bright blue pupils. As a cub, he has no visible mane. But when he becomes an adolescent, he is growing a brown mane but never fully grown due to his death.
Bio[]
Riku is the oldest son of Sina and Safiri. After his father left the Pridelands, Riku begins to take care of his mother. Sina then promised that her son and daughter will have a good future to be top in rank. Riku also has a crush on Sarabi, Reba's daughter. Sina told Riku about the newborn second son of Uru and Ahadi, Taka. He also mentioned that he will care for himself and will marry Sarabi and no one else comes what may and will fight for it.
In Part 1, he teases Taka for being weak after he was pounced by his brother and because of him being inferior to his brother. However, his hatred for Taka grows even more, when he founds out that Sarabi, who he has a crush on, likes Taka more than him. Outraged, heartbroken, and resentful; Riku attacks Taka the next morning. After tricking him into thinking they could be friends, Riku scratches Taka's eye and teases him when he growls at him. When he was about to kill Taka, the hyenas, whom Taka reconciles with, came to save him. The frightened Riku tried to plead Taka to call them off but he refuses, reminding him of being too weak and helpless to help him. The only lion who mourns his death was his mother Sina, who blames Taka for Riku's death.
Riku has made a huge impact on Scar's life and is one of the many reasons why Scar became evil. In Savu0211's short stories, Riku appeared as a good spirit in cub form and a dark spirit as an adolescent.
Trivia[]
- His name was not to be confused to the character in the Kingdom Hearts series that has the same name.
- According to Savu0211, had Riku survived and makes it to his adulthood, he would've been not too pleased with the relationship between Mufasa and Sarabi and could try and kill Mufasa if he had to in a similar fashion as Scar from Disney's The Lion King.
- Alongside Valido and Baridi, Riku is considered one of the most hated characters in the comics, due to his treatment of Taka and almost killing him.
- Riku's appearance and his personality are almost similar to Joffrey Baratheon, one of the antagonists in the HBO series; Game Of Thrones.
- Despite being a bully who went insane, he is not completely evil. He started off as a kind-hearted and playful cub who grew into an adolescent. He has a crush on Sarabi and will do anything to get her and grew envious of Taka and constantly bullies him. But when Sarabi tells him that she loves Taka more than Riku, that is when Riku loses it and begins to attack Taka, thus becoming a villain before his well-deserved death.]]