Seerowpedia
Register
Advertisement
For the Rachel from the Amazon Sario Rip, see Rachel
For Mean Rachel, see Mean Rachel
For Nice Rachel, see Nice Rachel
For the Rachel from Back to Before, see Rachel
For the Rachel from the simulated dream, see Rachel

"I'd been protecting her. Them. Jake. Cassie. Tobias. Even Marco and Ax. Helping to protect their innocence. Letting them see themselves as the good guys. It was a symbiotic relationship. Or co-dependent, whatever. They needed me to be the bad guy. And I needed them to be the good guys. See, if they were good guys, and I was on their team, then that automatically made me a good guy, too. Even if I was different. At least that’s what I'd been telling myself."
―Rachel[src]

Rachel was a founding member of the Animorphs and was known for her aggressive, bold and reckless nature. Due to her ruthless demeanor, she was often used by the Animorphs to commit actions such as murder that the other Animorphs could not bring themselves to do. She was the only core Animorph to be permanently killed during the Yeerk war.

Biography

Early Life

Rachel was born in 1984[4] to Naomi and Dan.[8] When Rachel was two, she became a big sister when her parents had a second daughter named Jordan. Unlike her sisters, who inherited their mother's brown hair and eyes, Rachel inherited her father's blond hair and blue eyes.[9] Rachel lived in Southern California,[3] with a mother who was an attorney and a father who was a television reporter specializing in investigative journalism. She very close to her father and the pair often spent time together on outings.[8] While her father was Jewish, her mother was not, and Rachel did not identify as being Jewish herself.[10] When Naomi was pregnant with her third child, Rachel overheard a conversation between her parents on what the biological sex of their new child would be. When Naomi mentioned that Dan always wanted a boy, Dan replied that while he had initially wanted a son, thinking that only a male child would be one he could bond with and go out on excursions with, only to realize that Rachel was just as good if not better than a boy. While Naomi notified Dan that he shouldn't ever repeat that in front of Rachel, she was happy to hear her father's remark.[8]

Rachel also had two paternal cousins[11] named Tom and Jake, the sons of her father's brother, Steve. However, despite knowing Jake all of her life[12] as well as them being the same age and attending the same school, Rachel and Jake were not close as their families did not interact much.[8] Rachel was also aware and had minimal interaction with another paternal cousin named Saddler, who lived in another town and who Rachel did not know very well. Rachel's contact with her paternal family became more limited when her parents got divorced.[13] Rachel studied gymnastics in her childhood and continued to spend time with her father, who would spend weekends and other visitations bonding with her.[8]

Pre-Animorph Life

"Rachel is every cover girl from every Mademoiselle or Seventeen you've ever seen. Tall, thin, blond hair and flawless complexion, and approximately four hundred shiny white teeth. To make matters worse, she can't just be written off as another fashion bimbo. [...] That's the power she has: to be everyone's vision of physical and intellectual perfection and not to care. [...] I wonder how she can have every boy in school throwing himself in her path, and be indifferent. Not that she's humble. No. You wouldn't call her humble. She knows she's special. But she's impatient with the whole idea of being popular or whatever. I get the feeling with Rachel that she's waiting. Impatient. Looking for something more. Moving through life in search of a very different destiny. Her sports are gymnastics and shopping."
Cassie[src]

Rachel had two best friends named Melissa Chapman and Cassie, although Cassie and Melissa were not friends with each other. Rachel also became enamored with shopping and received credits cards from her parents to make her own clothing purchases. Rachel then developed a reputation of being quite fashionable and put together. Rachel was also very much into gymnastics, which she attended classes with alongside Melissa, and had aspirations of becoming a gymnast when she was older.[9] In 1996,[14] Rachel attended Melissa's twelfth birthday party, where she witnessed Melissa's father, Hedrick Chapman, present her with an unfixed tomcat named Fluffer McKitty.[9]

As they attended junior high, also known as middle school, where Hedrick Chapman served as vice/assistant principal, Rachel found her friendship with Melissa waning. Rachel then spent more time with Cassie as a result.[9] By the time she was thirteen, Rachel's physical appearance was likened to cover girls from magazines and was often the target of many school boys' attraction. She also grew to be quite tall, thus restricting her ambitions of becoming a gymnast. In addition to gymnastics, Rachel was very much into shopping and relished pairing outfits while prowling through the mall hunting for sales.[12]

Around this time, Rachel realized that Cassie had developed a crush on Jake and would often tease her about it, while also assuaging Cassie's fears that Jake may not reciprocate due to her race.[12] Rachel began conversing with Jake more often as a result. Rachel found herself physically attracted to Jake as well, but did not act upon it since they were cousins.[15] Rachel was also attracted to a new boy at school named Tobias, who was often the target of bullies. However, Rachel and Tobias never spoke to one another.

Becoming an Animorph

Night at the Mall

"Don't look. It's Jake."
"I can't look at my cousin?"
"You can look, just don't
look, that's all I'm saying."
Cassie and Rachel[src]

One Friday in 1997,[16] when she was thirteen,[2] Rachel went to the mall after school with Cassie as she went shopping. Rachel discussed the sale prices and pairing of sweaters and jeans from different stores and gave Cassie a look of incredulity and confusion when Cassie did not understand what she was saying. Cassie then informed Rachel that Jake was at the mall and not to look, to which Rachel wondered why she couldn't be looking at her cousin. Rachel then went on to talk about how Jake had big, strong arms and lips that Cassie wanted to have wrapped around her body and pressed against her, and asked Cassie if she was worried that by looking at Jake she would convey this to Jake.

Rachel and Cassie then headed to the exit where Jake and Tobias were, along with Jake's best friend Marco,[12] a boy whom Rachel did not know too well.[8] Greeting them, Jake asked the girls if they were intending to use the abandoned construction site across the mall as a shortcut home, warning them that it was dangerous for them since they were girls. Offended, Rachel mocked Jake and asked if he was a "big, strong man" who would protect them. As she began berating him for thinking girls were helpless, Cassie interrupted her, stating that she was afraid and would appreciate the boys walking home with them. The five thirteen year olds then left the mall and headed towards the construction site.[17]

Gaining Morphing Powers

Animorphs 1999 Calendar Crop

Rachel meeting Elfangor

"She put her arm around Cassie's shoulder and held her close. Then she reached for Tobias and took his hand. I guess you never really know someone till you see them scared. And even scared to death, with tears running down her face, Rachel had strength to spare."
Jake[src]

As they were walking silently through the abandoned construction site, Rachel heard Cassie exclaim that there was a flying saucer in the sky. Looking up at the night sky, Rachel remarked that the spaceship was headed their way before noting that it was coming to a stop near them. When the ship landed in front of them, Rachel suggested that they should try and communicate with whomever was on board. As Tobias stepped forwards and announced that they would not hurt them, Rachel and the others heard a voice in their head reply that he knew they would not. Rachel witnessed as a blue alien exited from the ship, who greeted them all before collapsing. Dying of his injuries, the alien informed the teenagers that there were other aliens on Earth who had come to destroy humans.

Rachel sees red lights

Rachel notices the red lights

The alien transmitted an image of a green-gray slug into their minds and explained that these were the Yeerks, a parasitic species that take over bodies to use as hosts, after which they become known as Controllers. The alien, revealing himself to be a member of a species called an Andalite, added that it would take a year if not more for the Andalite forces to come to Earth, and urged the teenagers to warn humanity of the Yeerk threat. The Andalite suddenly exclaimed that they should retrieve a blue box from his ship. As Jake retrieved the box, the Andalite informed them that he could use the box to grant them the ability to morph — by touching an animal and concentrating, they could acquire that creature's DNA and transform their bodies into that of the animal's. As the teenagers decided whether they should accept the power, Rachel remarked that they had to deal with the situation before she looked up into the sky. Noticing pinpoints of red light, she asked what it was, to which the Andalite replied that those were the Yeerks.

The Andalite urged them to decide quickly, and Rachel agreed to accept the morphing power. With Cassie, Tobias and Jake also in agreement, the five of them pressed their hands against the box, and Rachel felt a tingle run through her as she received the morphing ability. The Andalite warned them that they should not stay in morph for more than two hours or else they would be trapped before yelling at them to hide since Visser Three was coming. Rachel told the Andalite that she would stay with him and help, although he instead responded that she should run and save herself and save Earth.

Hiding behind a low wall, Rachel witnessed as the Blade ship and Bug fighters landed. As tall, bladed creatures emerged from the Blade ship, the dying Andalite used his thought-speak to mentally communicate with them, informing them that these were Hork-Bajir-Controllers and that the giant centipede-like creatures that were also emerging were known as Taxxons. The five kids then tried to remain silent as one of the Hork-Bajir-Controllers positioned himself near their hiding spot. They then noticed an Andalite emerging from the Blade ship, which the dying Andalite explained was Visser Three — the only Andalite-Controller to exist.

Rachel watched as Visser Three greeted the Andalite as Prince Elfangor before morphing into a monstrous creature with multiple ringed teeth. With tears streaming down her face, Rachel comforted Cassie by putting an arm around her shoulder as she also held Tobias' hand. However, when the Visser lifted Elfangor, Jake picked up a pipe to rush into action, prompting Rachel to cover his mouth as Tobias and Marco restrained him. They then watched as Visser Three dropped Elfangor in his mouth and were forced to hear Elfangor's mental screams as he was being ripped apart.

Marco then threw up, prompting the nearby Hork-Bajir-Controller to look in their direction. The five teenagers then bolted as the Yeerks began chasing them. Rachel and Jake both noted that Marco and Cassie were struggling to flee as they were short while Tobias was out of shape, so the two athletic cousins served as a distraction to ensure the other three escaped. Rachel then noticed as Jake tripped behind her, but he yelled at her to leave him. Heeding his words, Rachel continued to run and successfully managed to escape from the construction site. When she returned home, she spoke to Jake on the phone and apologized profusely for having left him behind.[17]

Investigating the Yeerks

"He's not the only one who's got people to worry about. I have a family. We all do."
"Not me. It's true. No one gives a rat's rear about me."
"I do. [...] There's no one else who can do anything to stop the Yeerks. I'm scared to death, just thinking about it. But I'm there."
―Rachel and Tobias[src]

The next morning, a Saturday, Rachel was contacted by Jake once more, who informed her that he and Tobias had morphed and that he wished for them to all meet at Cassie's farm. Rachel then went to the farm, where she witnessed Cassie constantly practicing her morphing by becoming a horse, noting that Cassie was improving her ability every time. Rachel was shortly joined by Tobias and Marco, and they read a newspaper which stated that residents near the abandoned construction site had called the police about seeing spaceships and explosions. However, the police claimed they had investigated the matter and concluded there were no spaceships; additionally, the police stated that the explosions were just teenagers using fireworks, whom they were now looking for. They then realized that the police and media contained Controllers, and when Jake arrived, they shared the newspaper and their realization with him.

As they sat in silence, Marco told them that they should just forget what they've learned and move on with their lives. Rachel and Tobias both looked at Jake expecting him to argue with Marco. When Jake began to do so, Marco interrupted and yelled that they could all get killed if they get involved, adding that if something happened to him, his father would stop deciding to continue living. Rachel then noticed Cassie galloping towards them and demorphing. However, as she began to turn back into her human form, a police cruiser suddenly pulled into the farm. Rachel then joined the others in shielding Cassie from view as she finished demorphing.

I vote with Tobias

When the police officer stepped out, Rachel tried to sound more responsible as she asked him why he was here, and the officer responded that he was looking for information on kids who were at the abandoned construction site the night before. When they responded that they did not know anything, the police officer told Jake that he should join The Sharing before driving off. Rachel then warned the others that they needed to be careful and inform someone important whom they could trust to handle the Yeerks since they were just kids. Tobias then responded that they couldn't trust anyone since they could be Controllers and that he believed they should fight, prompting Marco to retort that Tobias couldn't even fight off the bullies at school. Rachel then shot a dirty look at Marco for this remark and stated that now aligned with Tobias' decision to fight the Yeerks.

Delicate boy modesty

The argument came to an end when Cassie and Jake decided that they should take some time to think before deciding, and the teens went their separate ways. Later that day, Rachel was invited by Jake to join him and the others as they attended a bonfire that The Sharing were hosting at the beach. After observing the behavior of the members there, Jake decided to spy on the full members in his golden retriever morph while ordering Tobias, who was flying above in his new red-tailed hawk morph, to land and demorph. Since Jake and Tobias would be nude as they still hadn't learned how to morph clothing, Rachel offered to turn around to avoid "offending their delicate boy modesty." When Jake returned, he informed the group that his brother Tom and their assistant principal Chapman were both Controllers, and that they were still looking to kill the kids from the construction site. When Marco stated that they should just forget everything and resume their usual life, Jake refused and declared that he wished to fight in order to free Tom, with Rachel, Tobias and Cassie agreeing to join him. The group then went their separate ways as they all went back home.

On Monday, Rachel met with the others at the mall food court after school, where Rachel learned that Yeerks need to feed every three days by absorbing Kandrona rays at a Yeerk pool. After Jake informed them that janitor's closet at their school held the secret entrance to the pool and that human screams could be heard, Rachel declared that they should do something about it. When Marco stated that they should forget about it, Rachel was upset that Marco could turn a blind eye to it despite Marco's family troubles, claiming that they all had families. Tobias then retorted that he had no family and that no one worried about him, to which Rachel immediately responded that she did care about him. Jake notified them that he was heading to the Yeerk pool later that night to rescue Tom; Rachel agreed to go with him, declaring that while she was afraid, there was no one else who could fight the Yeerks. With the others agreeing to join Jake on his mission, Rachel stated that they needed more powerful morphs and that they should go to The Gardens, an amusement park-zoo in their city, in order to acquire more DNA. As they prepared to leave, Marco dubbed the five of them, now an official team, as the Animorphs,[17] a portmanteau for "animal morphers."[8]

First Mission

"Tobias swooped down and perched on Rachel's shoulder. It surprised me a little. Why would Tobias perch on Rachel's shoulder? And she didn't seem at all annoyed. She rubbed her head against him a little."
Jake[src]

Upon arriving at The Gardens, the five of them began pooling their cash to pay for admission. Tobias remarked that he did not think he should come inside with them since he did not want to morph anything other than the red-tailed hawk, to which Rachel informed him that she thought that would be a mistake since their only method of fighting the Yeerks was to morph and thus they should acquire as many animals as they could. Entering the park, Cassie led them into the employees' hallway, which contained the doors leading to all of the other enclosures. She guided them to the enclosure belonging to Big Jim, a Silverback gorilla, and Rachel goaded Marco into acquiring the gorilla. An employee who recognized Cassie then saw them, prompting them to return back to the hallway. At a crossroads, Rachel decided to head towards the dolphin tank, although Cassie remarked that they would have no need for dolphin morphs. Marco, however, began walking down the path leading to the more dangerous animals, citing their need for firepower.

As a security guard spotted them, Rachel fled, with Tobias and Cassie following her, while Jake followed Marco; since the security guard chose to pursue the two boys instead, the trio were able to escape without worry. Returning back to the public space, the three stuck together and headed towards the African elephants, with Rachel deciding to acquire one of them. Both Cassie and Tobias elected not to acquire any additional morphs and thus the three returned to the main entrance, where Jake and Marco soon met up with them. The five of them then left The Gardens and took the bus back to their respective homes, planning to meet up at the school later after dinner.

A few hours later, Rachel biked to the school, where she waited alongside Marco and Tobias, the latter already having morphed into a hawk and was flying above. Jake arrived shortly after and was infuriated that Tobias had already began his morphing clock, since they were unsure how long the mission would take. Tobias then landed on Rachel's shoulder and she chose to nuzzle him, much to Jake's surprise. Jake then informed them that Cassie had gone missing but that they were going to continue their mission regardless. Entering the school through an unlocked window that Marco knew of, the four Animorphs discovered that one of the Controllers entering the Yeerk pool through the janitor's closet was the policeman from earlier that day, and that he was dragging Cassie with him. Rachel then began swearing before suggesting that they simply walk in after the Controllers, since they would naturally assume any human entering was one of them. The four then made their way to the closet and walked through the entrance to the pool.

As they began descending the many stairs, they were stunned to discover that the passageway in the janitor's closet was not the sole entrance and that were multiple access points, as the Yeerk pool was revealed to be a gigantic subterranean cavern that was situated under half of their city. The group watched in horror as the Controllers re-entered the pool on one pier, with their screaming hosts thrown into cages, after which they would be brought to the reinfestation pier. Jake noticed a group of Controllers laughing as they watched television, which Tobias explained were voluntary Controllers. Rachel disparaged the humans who had willingly allowed themselves to be infested, to which Tobias responded that certain humans turned to The Sharing and accepted the Yeerks in their heads as they believed becoming something different would be the solution to their personal troubles. When Marco retorted that some other humans turned to hawks in order to do the same, this offended Tobias and prompted him to fly away from them. Rachel then berated Marco, telling him not to be a jerk to Tobias and that they needed everyone. Tobias then flew back and informed them that Cassie was on the infestation pier and that they had mere minutes to save her.

Rachel morphs for the first time

Rachel morphs for the first time

Rachel, Jake and Marco walked away from the stairs and ducked behind a shed; there, Marco pulled Jake to the side, although they were spotted by a human-Controller, who found them to be suspicious and ordered his accompanying Hork-Bajir-Controller and Taxxon-Controller to take them. Rachel, who hadn't been noticed, stealthily manuevered herself behind the three Controllers and morphed for the first time by turning into an African elephant. Rejoicing that she had successfully morphed, she popped the Taxxon and flung the human-Controller away. Joined by Jake and Marco, who had morphed into a Siberian tiger and a Silverback gorilla respectively, the trio ran towards the cages, defeating the Controllers who attempt to impede them with ease. Rachel fended off additional Controllers as Marco and Jake liberated the prisoners from the cages. Rachel then noticed that Cassie was about to be infested and screamed at Jake to save her, although Tobias was able to get to the Hork-Bajir-Controller holding Cassie first, allowing her to escape and morph into a horse.

The Animorphs attempted to escape with the prisoners they had freed only for Visser Three to arrive and prevent them. Believing them to be Andalites in morph, the Visser morphed into a giant fire-breathing monster with eight heads. Shooting fireballs out of his many heads, one of them struck Rachel, causing her to scream both verbally and in thought-speak. She attemped to escape by rushing straight for the stairs but found her elephant body unable to ascend them. She then started to demorph as per Jake's orders and began running up the stairs as a half-elephant, half-human hybrid[17] while asking the others where Tobias was.[18] The four Animorphs, minus Tobias, then successfully escaped from the Yeerk Pool and returned to their school hallway, although they were unable to rescue Tom as he, along with every other host they had freed minus one woman, had been burned, killed or recaptured.[17] Shortly after, Rachel was informed that Tobias, who was left behind in the Yeerk Pool, managed to escape on his own, although he had passed the two-hour limit and was now trapped as a red-tailed hawk.[9]

Melissa Chapman Investigation

Escaping Sexual Predator

To be added

Infiltrating Chapman Residence

To be added

Return to the Construction Site

To be added

Early Missions

To be added

Rescuing Ax

To be added

Meeting Visser One

To be added

Detaining Jake

To be added

Meeting the Ellimist

Return to the Yeerk Pool

13 year old Rachel

Rachel in 1997 (aged 13)

"I lived in two completely different worlds. One world was filled by my family, school, gymnastics classes, shopping, listening to music, watching TV... normal stuff. But then I had this whole other life. A life where I wasn't just Jordan and Sara's big sister, and my mom's first child, and a teacher's pet, and a gymnastics student who was weak on the balance beam. In my other life I was... a warrior. I risked my life. I fought in deadly nightmare battles against terrible odds. I became so much more than just a kid."
―Rachel[src]

To be added

Visit to Alternate Future

To be added

Battle at the EGS Tower

To be added

Temporary Amnesia

To be added

Trouble with Ax

To be added

Quest for the Pemalite Crystal

Meeting the Chee

To be added

Matcom Infiltration

To be added

Morphing Allergy

Crocodile Incident

To be added

Destroying her House

To be added

Jeremy Jason McCole Investigation

To be added

Crocodile Birth

To be added

Free Hork-Bajir

To be added

Zone 91 Infiltration

To be added

Royan Island Mission

To be added

Preventing a Suicide

To be added

Battle for Leera

To be added

In the Time of Dinosaurs

To be added

David Debacle

To be added

Weapon of War

When Jake thought that David, the newest Animorph, had gone rogue and apparently killed Tobias, Jake orders Ax to get Rachel. Rachel then becomes angry at Jake for thinking of her as the person who would be willing to kill another Animorph while also becoming troubled that from all of her battles with the Yeerks, she has changed so much from the person she was prior to meeting Elfangor to the present, where she craves combat and high-adrenaline situations.

Divisive Personality

To be added

Further battles

To be added

Leading the Animorphs

During an occasion where Jake was absent on a family trip, the Animorphs were temporarily left without any leadership. When forced to go on a mission involving an Inspector for Visser One, Rachel was chosen as the interim leader. Her plan was to raid multiple known-Controller-operated or-owned businesses in an effort to discredit Visser One. However, Rachel’s actions cause an innocent old man to die of a heart attack and cause Cassie, in polar bear morph, to become captured by the Yeerks. Although Cassie is saved, Rachel realizes that she doesn’t have any leadership skills, despite her warrior abilities.

David's Return

Crayak and the Drode, who developed a fascination with Rachel during the events of The Exposed and wished to have her kill Jake for them, rescue David from his marooned island and give Rachel reoccurring dreams where she simultaneously respects and hates Jake for being the leader of the Animorphs and ordering him around, and has a nightmare of maiming him to establish dominance. Rachel is pit against David and later Visser One, with Crayak granting Rachel power in exchange for Jake's life. When Rachel refuses, realizing that the world would see her as a monster, Crayak and the Drode make their leave, discarding their interest in Rachel. David then begs Rachel to end his life, citing it to be more humane than leaving him marooned once again. Rachel notices a mirror shard and breaks down in tears, before making her decision. Although the decision is not shown, it is implied that she murdered David.

Endgame

To be added

Death

"We were so close. We were right there, right at the finish line, I'd already survived so many times when I shouldn't have. It seemed unfair. To come this far, get this close... Jake gave me the job because he knew that only I could do it. [...] I'm the one you send when you need someone to be crazy, to do the hard thing. I don't know whether I'm proud of that or not. I was Jake's insurance policy. He thought maybe he wouldn't have to use me. He hoped, anyway. But down deep he knew, and I knew, and we both hid the truth from the others because Cassie couldn't let Jake make that decision, and Tobias couldn't let me, and those two, by loving us, would have screwed everything up. It was a war, after all. A war we had to win."
―Rachel[src]

During the final battle against the Yeerks, Jake orders Rachel to secretly follow Tom’s Yeerk and kill him when he gives the order. Following him on board the Blade Ship, Rachel attacks the Yeerks in control of the ship and kills Tom, before dying at the hands of a Controller in polar bear morph shortly after; the Ellimist briefly stops time to memorialize her death, tells his own story to her, and she dies.

Legacy

Funeral

"The next day an Andalite scout ship reported finding a human body floating in space. Young, female. The Blade ship had jettisoned her body before going into Zero space. The Andalites brought her to California. [...] Two days later, Rachel's body was cremated. It was inconceivable that she'd ever want to be buried in the ground. She ended up as a few handfuls of ashes in a pretty china urn. [...] The President of the United States was there. He gave a speech, too. I guess Rachel would have liked it, in her own way. She would have laughed. She would have thought it was all way over the top, but at the same time, she would have liked the attention. Would have, but she was a few ounces of ash in a jar resting inside an open wooden box."
Cassie[src]

After the Yeerk war is officially over, an Andalite scout ship finds Rachel’s body. The Blade Ship had jettisoned her body before going into Zero space. Her body was brought back to California with Rachel’s mom and Jake identifying her. Two days later, Rachel’s body was cremated and her memorial service was attended by dozens of free Hork-Bajir, Andalite Warriors, the Animorphs, and many others. Tobias then arrives and flies away with Rachel’s ashes.

The Rachel

Three years later, Jake, Marco, Tobias, Sergeant Santorelli, Jeanne Gerard, and Menderash-Postill-Fastill board a former Yeerk cruiser and go on a mission to save Ax from an unknown group of pirates aboard the Blade Ship. Menderash, following an Andalite tradition, believes it bad luck to board the ship before it is named; after Tobias notes that it is "beautiful and dangerous and exciting," the group gives it the only fitting name, The Rachel.

Personality

"This is why we fight. And to be honest, I like a good fight. The adrenaline spike of battle. The rush. The challenge. And now that I've admitted that, I'll admit something else: Lately, it's been scaring me that I like it. That I look forward to it so much. [...] I can't help myself. It's like I'm addicted or something. Addicted to danger. Addicted to defeating the Yeerk invaders."
―Rachel[src]

Rachel was the most violent member of the Animorphs. She is Jake's cousin on her father's side, and was in love with Tobias. Before the war, she trained in gymnastics. Marco's nickname for her was Xena, Warrior Princess.

Rachel was the character that changed the most during the war. Before the war, she was characterized by her involvement in gymnastics, her friendship with Melissa Chapman (daughter of Principal Chapman, one of the Animorphs' enemies), and her incurable mall-crawling and shopping addiction. An attractive girl, she was also smart, confident and bold. She was also known to have a temper. After the groups' meeting with Elfangor, her relationship with Melissa faded, and her obsession with the war took the place of her older shopping hobby. Out of all the Animorphs, Rachel was the only one that seemed to enjoy the war, always eager to jump into a crazy mission. Her catchphrase was "Let's do it!" Soon her daring and love of action grew to a dark, almost sadistic love of fighting and aggression.

Rachel's love of violence was noticed, and "exploited" by Jake and the Animorphs, and later, even Crayak. Though her will to battle and sacrifice herself was a powerful asset to the team, it disturbed all of the groups' members, including Rachel herself. In The Separation, Rachel is accidentally split into two different beings, possessing different qualities of Rachel; most easily described as "Mean Rachel" and "Nice Rachel." Her violent side was far stronger than her kinder side, a fact that haunted Rachel throughout the series.

Relationships with the other Animorphs

"Cassie thinks I'm fearless. Marco thinks I'm reckless. Tobias... well, Tobias loves me. I guess they all do, in different ways. Jake, too."
―Rachel[src]

Jake

"Jake is our leader. I respect him. I don't always agree with his decisions, but he's in charge and I'm not. And that's the way I want it."
―Rachel[src]

Jake and Rachel, as cousins, are arguably two of the most similar Animorphs. They share not only physical resemblance, both being tall, well-built, and possessing natural leadership and strength, but they share many of the same values. Both are very brave, though Rachel's bravery borders more upon rashness, and very self-sacrificing, always considering what is best for the group and for Earth itself. They share a value of strength and honor, and both have a strong sense of morality and right and wrong, though Rachel sometimes pushes the border with her habit of violence, something that haunts both her and Jake, on occasion. Jake, being the leader he is, must do what's best for the group, and sometimes he's forced to use this dark side of Rachel to their advantage, and Rachel understands this. They share mutual respect for one another, and, though they sometimes have wild fights and disagreements, like Rachel rebelling under his leadership or Jake unable to deal with Rachel's senseless risk-taking, they are something of a dynamic duo, both in battle and out of it, and never quite lose the kinship between them, even in the hardest of times.

Despite being cousins, Rachel and Jake were not very close at the start of the series, as their families did not interact much with each other. However, Jake and Rachel both had a close friend in Cassie, and thus were acquainted with one another during and after school. After becoming Animorphs, Rachel admits that Jake is now one of her few loved ones in her life, and has admitted an attraction to him, which she refuses to pursue since they are cousins. Jake worries about Rachel the most out of all Animorphs, often pondering on Rachel's bloodthirsty and degenerative nature, while the darker side of Rachel's mind wonders on what would happen should she ever challenged Jake's leadership - however, this is a thought process she throws out towards the end of the series after she confronts David and the Crayak along with the darker side to her nature. When Rachel accepts her final mission, which they both knew would be very dangerous, Rachel tells Jake not to be overwrought by his decision, knowing full well the burden under which Jake is placed. Jake is distraught by having had to send Rachel off to kill his Yeerk-infested brother and never recovers.

Tobias

"I have strong feelings for Tobias. The kind you can't help. The kind that seem inevitable. Like they were always there, even before you knew the person."
―Rachel[src]

Before the start of the series Rachel and Tobias weren't friends, although they had some prior knowledge of each other. They quickly develop feelings for each other, and eventually begin a relationship and fall in love. Tobias sees the good in her, and worries about her like she's a normal girl, not the fighting machine the others sometimes think of her as. Like Rachel, Tobias is no stranger to violence and doesn't shrink from making hard decisions, although to some degree, seems to be something of an odd pacifist, refusing to take life when it isn't needed, and showing remarkable pity for his prey and even certain enemies.

Cassie

"Cassie is my best friend, although we're nothing alike. Cassie is probably the most capable, in-charge, amazing person I will ever meet."
―Rachel[src]
This section requires expansion

Rachel and Cassie are best friends. However, tension develops between them over the course of the series; Cassie is increasingly wary of Rachel's darkening nature, and Rachel in turn becomes impatient with Cassie's morality.

Marco

"Marco is Jake's best friend. He's smaller than Jake, funnier, darker, more skeptical. But his suspicious nature makes him very good at seeing beneath the surface of things. And as much as he whines and complains about the dangerous situations we get into, he's still there in the worst of the fight, still making dumb jokes."
―Rachel[src]

Rachel and Marco often argue, though their verbal sparring is good-natured. They are similar in terms of ruthlessness, although Marco is inherently much more calculative and strategic; a side which contrasts with her increasingly reckless nature. He is the least affected by her death, given his philosophy towards life. In Back to Before, a book where an alternate-reality is concocted by the Ellimist and the Crayak, she agrees to date him. Marco, while sharing some of Rachel's coldness and ruthlessness, is in some ways her opposite, his characteristic trait being caution and a somewhat selfish sense of automatic self-preservation, whereas Rachel is completely reckless and very self-sacrificing. However Marco is often the only person who truly understands Rachel's mindset during a group decision, and they tend to often be on the same side of an argument when it comes down to it, as much as they bicker among each other.

Ax

"Ax is Andalite. Not human. Technologically brilliant, but emotionally thick as a brick. Or at least that's the assumption we go on. Don't ask me why. Because it's usually Ax, who, in his own strange way, seems to understand what's going on beneath the surface."
―Rachel[src]

Ax is the Animorph that Rachel has the least affiliation with. Ax and Rachel were similar in many ways, both sharing a militant attitude towards war and combat, both valuing strength and other warrior-like qualities. In the beginning, Rachel was initially distrustful of Ax, and was quick to criticize him when he would hide things from the group, show disloyalty towards the Animorphs or disrespect for humans. Outside these situations, she was initially generally indifferent towards his existence within the group, only speaking to him when necessary. Despite this, Ax held respect towards Rachel in their early days, admiring her for being a brave warrior ready to lay her life down fighting the Yeerks; however, over the years, he became apprehensive of Rachel's bloodthirstiness and recklessness, traits he considered to be unfit for a warrior and akin to a mental illness. Despite being Animorphs for three years and fighting numerous battles together, the two rarely, if ever, interacted one-on-one.

Morphs

Book Morphs

"Our one real weapon is the power to morph. We should acquire as many useful morphs as we can."
―Rachel[src]
Morph Book Acquired
African Elephant The Invasion
Bald Eagle The Visitor
Shrew
Tomcat (Fluffer McKitty)
Wolf The Encounter
Trout
Bottlenose Dolphin The Message
Seagull
Black Garden Ant The Predator
Cockroach The Capture
Housefly
Great Horned Owl
Grizzly Bear The Stranger
White Rat (Courtney) The Secret
Termite
Skunk
Brown Bat The Android
Spider Monkey (unusable; acquired by alternate self) The Forgotten
Jaguar (unusable; acquired by alternate self)
Crocodile (unusable; DNA expelled via hereth illint) The Reaction
Hork-Bajir (Jara Hamee) The Change
Racehorse The Unknown
Parrot (yellow-orange) The Escape
Hammerhead Shark
Mole The Underground
Mosquito The Decision
Deinonychus (unusable; Sario Rip morph) In the Time of Dinosaurs
Flea The Threat
Giant Anteater The Suspicion
Baby Ringed Seal The Extreme
Polar Bear (Nanook)
Sperm Whale The Exposed
Giant Squid
Chimpanzee The Experiment
Eel The Sickness
Starfish The Separation
Squirrel The Proposal
Cockatiel
Orca (Swoosh) The Mutation
Cheetah The Weakness
Honeybee The Other
Human (female Air National Guard officer Michele Leary) The Deception
North American Beaver The Resistance
German Shepherd (Champ; acquired but never used) The Diversion
Dragonfly The Answer
Human (U.S. Army Soldier)


Television Show Morphs

Morph Episode Acquired
Cat My Name is Jake, Part 2
Lion The Underground
Fly On the Run
Melissa Chapman's Cat (Fluffer McKitty) Between Friends
Cockroach The Escape
Ferret
Red-tailed Hawk The Forgotten
Mouse Face Off, Part 1
Yeerk Face Off, Part 2
White-headed Capuchin My Name is Erek
Grizzly Bear Changes, Part 1
Gecko Changes, Part 2
Boa constrictor
Skunk Changes, Part 3

Books Narrated By Rachel

Trivia

  • Rachel is allergic to crocodile DNA.
  • In the Animorphs TV series, Rachel's battle morph is a lion, opposed to her grizzly bear morph in the books.
  • From the Anibase:  Katherine Applegate always admitted to borrowing ideas from other sources, and the split Rachel (in The Separation)  idea is no different. Here's what she had to say about the idea, and also about how she was trying to develop Rachel's character: "I'd admit I stole this from the original Star Trek, except, of course, that they stole it from Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It was really fun to write. And I was advancing my view of Rachel as the 'warrior who comes to need war.'"

Gallery

Elfangor eye closeup andalite chron "Someone took a picture of me? Not cool. Do you see what I'm wearing? I'm Spandex-boy. Totally not cool."

The image gallery for Rachel may be viewed here

References

  1. Since not all children receive their father's surname, Rachel's surname is unknown. One should not assume Rachel has the same last name as Jake.
  2. 2.0 2.1 The Answer
  3. 3.0 3.1 The Beginning
  4. 4.0 4.1 The Andalite Chronicles is said to take place in 1976 and states it is 21 years before Elfangor met the Animorphs, meaning the Animorphs met Elfangor in 1997. In #53, Jake states they were 13 when they met Elfangor, placing their year of birth c.1984
  5. Killed by a human-Controller in polar bear morph
  6. https://www.reddit.com/r/Animorphs/comments/oqx7he/cover_models/
  7. https://www.reddit.com/r/Animorphs/comments/ou1lcf/animorphs_rachel_cover_model_ama/
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 The Stranger
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 The Visitor
  10. Elfangor's Secret
  11. The Conspiracy
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 Back to Before
  13. The Solution
  14. In #2, Rachel mentions having attended Melissa's 12th birthday. Melissa and Rachel are the same age, and Rachel was 13 in 1997, placing Melissa's birthday party in 1996.
  15. The Separation
  16. The Andalite Chronicles is said to take place 10 years after the 1966 Yeerk exodus of The Hork-Bajir Chronicles and 21 years before Elfangor met the Animorphs. This places it in 1976, meaning the Animorphs met Elfangor in 1997.
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 The Invasion
  18. The Test
Animorphs
Animorphs Jake | Rachel | Tobias | Cassie | Marco | Ax | David
Auxiliary Animorphs James | Collette | Timmy | Kelly | Craig | Erica | Julio | Liam | Tricia | Jessie | Judy | Ray
Advertisement