A Guide to Resident Evil Denominations

By GieGie

Note: This is an observation made of the whole of the Resident Evil fandom made from my own point of view and is not to be taken offensively. If you DO take it in such a way, then it would be best that you simply not read it. Any flames started by this story or something I've said in it, rather than civil discussions, shall be promptly ignored. And yes, I DO reserve the right to define what I mean by civil when determining if an argument is such or not.

Preface: This is more or less simply an attempt into understanding the psychology of the RE Fandom over all, and after interactions with several of them, I've come to several conclusions. Most of the Fandom seems to be split into 'denominations' and those denominations seem to be split into 'sects' for shipping characters as a pair.

So I have decided to try and describe each denomination here in this guide, starting in no particular order with Leon S. Kennedy and going from there. Once again, this is not an attempt to flame anyone, but is simply an observation by myself overall of the Fandom.

Chapter One - Leonism; The Leonian Disciples

Leonism - [lee-on-iz-uhm

-noun

One of the largest denominations of the Resident Evil Fandom. Members of this sect adhere to the ideologies of Leon S. Kennedy, and the aspects surrounding his actions and events in the games, alignments, and involvements with other characters.

Leonian - [lee-oh-nee-ahn

-noun

A fan of Leon S. Kennedy from the games Resident Evil 2, Gaiden, and 4, Leon is a character that started out as a rookie cop and winded up a government agent, though the transformation between the two professions is still left to be questioned.

After the release of Resident Evil 4, the numbers in this cult group grew in leaps and bounds, and most members adhered more to the principles of the RE4 ideology presented by the new idol of Leon rather than the classic, which eventually broke the denomination into two sects, those who stayed true to the original version of their God and those who adhered more to his newer form.

While the split wasn't disastrous for the religion as a whole, complications have arisen from it, especially from newer members who insist to others that the form to be worshiped completely is only the RE4 ideology and that the RE2 ideology is to be ignored completely.

Still, members of this massive denomination are usually fairly kind to one another, and whenever an argument ensues between them, things may flare up, but seemingly calm themselves down rather quickly due to most Leonians having a more friendly nature than not.

Outside Relationships: Leonians make good friends with most outside denominations, and very rarely have trouble accepting their beliefs unless completely ungrounded.

Sects of Leonism

Cleonism - [klee-on-iz-uhm

-noun

A sect of Leonism that believes in the ultimate romantic pairing of Leon and the character Claire Redfield as the OTP of the series. Members of this sect are not only predominantly RE2 veterans, but also mostly female. This is the only sect under Leonism to have become large enough to make a name for itself which is almost universally known.

Cleonist - [klee-oh-niyzt

-noun

Member of the Cleonism sect in which LeonxClaire is followed as the true match of Leonism when it comes to romantic endeavors. The arguments based around this reasoning usually stems from the possibility of the two as a pair, as well as their lasting relationship throughout the series. While Leon never appeared in the game Code Veronica: X, Claire Redfield mentions that she knows him, and proves that she has since been in touch with him since their initial meeting in RE2.

Most Cleonians rationalize their beliefs through careful observation of the events in the series, rather than taking to heart 'what you see is what you get'. The influence of the female counterpart deity in their sect has led them to be able to do this successfully with down to Earth thinking, much like the character Claire Redfield.

Still, however, as is true of Claire Redfield and her sometimes impulsive behavior, members can also snap fiercely at those who threaten their beliefs, and do so with fervor. One of the most hated points of view a person could take is bringing up the fact that Claire was never mentioned in RE4, and therefore has no relationship or attachment with Leon outside of perhaps platonic, and they refuse to admit that this holds any weight at all.

Leonian Views of CleonismLeonians, depending on the varied beliefs of it's massive numbers, give a varied reaction to Cleonists as a whole. However this is to be expected as the whole of the Leonian denomination is highly diversified.

Lada - [lay-duh

-noun

Sect of Leonism that views Leon and the Character of Ada Wong as the OTP pairing. Members are predominantly RE2 veterans, but numbers consist of male and female, though it's arguable that, because of the female counterpart deity, most members are male.

Ladakite - [lay-duh-kahyt

-noun

Member of the Lada sect of Leonism. Members hold their views of Leon being romantically involved with Ada Wong in high regard, and as the influence of the female counterpart, look down on those they deem unworthy of themselves, especially of Cleonists.

Due to the large number of Ladakites stemming from the RE2 ideology, and the events that take place in primarily the Leon B scenario of that game, Ladakites have developed a strong sense of unshakeable faith in their pairing seemingly, but due to the premise of events taking place in the RE4 ideology, many of them have been faced with a question as to if their beliefs are true or not.

However, having known that their female counterpart deity was mysterious and questionable in motivations from the beginning, they may have prepared themselves for this possibility arising from the beginning.

As the female counterpart influences, their methods of arguing their terms of belief stubbornly refuses to allow them to either admit to any point that may be correct of their own, maintaining their superiority over the debater, or causes them to say what they will to make them seem valid as they themselves know not the mystery of their Goddess. Seemingly as hard as it is to second guess such a mysterious deity however, Ladakites stop at nothing to apparently try to get their point across, no matter what the means.

Leonian Views of Lada: Lada seems to be a bit more established than Cleonism due to the fact that the two deities have shared a more complex relationship, and due to this fact, Lada seems to be the default for most of Leonism when it comes to shipping views of couples in the denomination. However, Cleonism, though it has been slightly overlooked, holds just as much favor, and therefore the reaction to the two sects is the same.

Ashleon -ash-lee-on

-noun

Sect of Leonism in which members believe in the pairing of Leon with Ashley Graham as the OTP match of Leonism. Members are mostly newcomers to the games which have just joined the Fandom with RE4, and are predominantly females of young ages.

Ashleonites - [ash-lee-on-iyte

-noun

Members of Ashleon that believe in the pairing of Leon and Ashley Graham as the OTP of the denomination. Members are usually very sweet tempered as would be evidenced by the influence of their Goddess deity, and are mostly comprised of young female fans of the series who joined the Fandom because of the RE4 ideology, knowing little of the past history of the games in several cases.

Because of the influence of the Goddess counterpart, members rarely ever argue their points further with other sects of the denomination, and as such, not many have stood out. But most members suffer the arguments of Leon's duty versus his personal life, the age difference between the two deities, and also, the God's denial of the Goddess's proposition presented by the RE4 ideology.

The smallest sect of Leonism, Ashleon seems a bit scattered because of the huge arguments against it, not to mention because of the overall dislike of the Goddess by the Fandom as a whole.

Leonian Views of Ashleon: Being that the Leonian denomination is split into two different orders essentially by the very Goddess this sect hails from, the Leonian views of Ashleon, not to mention that of Cleonism and Lada, is not very high where Leonism is concerned. Usually, only the ones who hold the RE4 ideology highest in Leonism look upon Ashleons with any favor, and they have to be non-Ladakites first.