Ahadi

[[File:The Bravest Prince.png|right|thumb|The Bravest Prince by julis-rocks]]
[[File:Stay out of my way by ssneakyfoxx.jpg|right|thumb|Stay out of MY way by ssneakyfoxx]]
Ahadi is a semi-canonical character in the larger universe of The Lion King whose first and only appearance is in The Lion King: Six New Adventures. He is a former King or Prince Consort (depending on the fanon), of the Pridelands, as well as being Uru's mate and the father of Mufasa and Scar. Though not an official character, existing only in a tie-in book series that was jossed a few years later by Simba's Pride, the fandom consistently accepts him as Mufasa and Scar's father.
He frequently shows up in fanworks, although Ahadi's characterization and appearance in the fandom varies widely due to contradictions between the text and the illustration in his one appearance. Headcanons surrounding him are often angsty, usually involving his relationships with his sons, mate, or parents.
==Canon==
Though he only physically appears in a single semi-canonical source, Ahadi is very briefly referenced in the original film when Mufasa tells Simba about 'something his father once told [him]', informing the audience Ahadi was the one to tell his son about the Great Kings of the Past. In Six New Adventures, Ahadi is shown to have differing relationships with his sons. His relationship with Scar is seemingly strained, with Scar eventually accusing him of preferring Mufasa.
===Appearance===
Regarding his appearance, there is a well known contradiction between the textual description of Ahadi and the illustration. The former describes him as having a black mane and green eyes, similar to his son Scar, and the latter portrays him with a red/brown mane and reddish-brown eye colour to more closely resemble his son Mufasa. The colours of the illustration aren't entirely accurate to the film, as Mufasa's mane looks brown rather than the red of the film, meaning Ahadi's is also likely intended to be red despite also appearing brown.
==Fandom==
Because of the disparity between the text and the illustrations, Ahadi's appearance can differs quite drastically in fanworks, most obviously in fanart. Depending on which version of his appearance fans use for him, it will usually also impact their headcanons for the appearance of his mate Uru, in large part because Mufasa and Scar look so different from one another.
The most common interpretation is black mane/green eyes/yellow fur, a design that's highly influenced by DJCoulz's design from around 2009. The design gives Ahadi an overall body and facial structure reminiscent of Scar with yellow fur and large size matching Mufasa. His artwork also gives Ahadi the thinner and curved downward outlander nose versus the flat and rounded pridelander nose. Though DJCoulz's first Ahadi design appears to have been uploaded in 2006, the more refined look from roughly 2009 is the one that gained popularity. A comparison between the two designs can be seen here. Thanks to the popularity of this design, DJCoulz's artwork of Ahadi is occasionally confused for official art.Tweet from @tytheanimator. Posted 17 Jun 2019. Accessed 14 Feb 2023.
Even in personality, Ahadi can differ substantially from fanwork to fanwork. In some, Ahadi is a kind ruler and in others he's a tyrant. Sometimes Ahadi is maliciously abusive toward Scar and sometimes he's merely negligent (usually in contrast to his treatment of Mufasa) or even supportive. Fandom is also undecided on whether Ahadi or his mate Uru is the the offspring of Mohatu,I-support-ahadi-as-mohatu's-son. Posted 8 May 2014. Accessed 14 Feb 2023.Reign of Mohatu's daughter. Posted 5 Dec 2014. Accessed 14 Feb 2023. with no obvious skew towards either side. If a fan doesn't headcanon Ahadi as Mohatu's son, he will often be headcanoned as the son of the Selfish Lion, due to the unnamed lion's strong resemblance to Scar, and often a rogue who comes across the Pridelands.
===Relationships===
*Ahadi/Uru
*Ahadi/Original Female Character
*Ahadi & Mufasa
*Ahadi & Scar
===Common Tropes and Themes===
*Angst - Given the loose nature of the canon surrounding him, works about Ahadi often center around angst between him and his sons or give him an angsty backstory.
*Neglect or Abuse of Scar - In fandom, Ahadi's relationship with Scar is sometimes portrayed as being neglectful or even abusive. 
==Fanworks==
===Fanfiction===
*The Legacy of Ahadi, the first story in the Chronicles of the Pride Lands series. The story's original name was itself Chronicles of the Pride Lands, until this became the name for the series.
===Fanart===
*Ahadi Design (Jul 2009) by DJCoulzAnimalsOnly - DJCoulz's very well known version of Ahadi, and an example of one of the more common interpretations of his appearance, with yellow fur, a very dark brown mane (appearing almost black at first glance), an outlander nose and green eyes.
*Ahadi Cub (Sep 2013) by Red-Cayenne
*Ahadi Collage (Aug 2014) by dyb
*Ahadi (Dec 2014) by belka-1100
*King Ahadi (Apr 2015) by Maleficentra
*Ahadi (Jan 2017) by Solri-Elara
*AHADI (Sept 2018) by sasamaru
*Ahadi (Mar 2021) by australet789
*Ahadi (Sept 2021) by SumaliArt
*Ahadi (Jun 2022) by hmm-yes-art
====Gallery====
File:Ahadi by ale tie.jpg|Ahadi by Ale-Tie. This interpretation has an outlander nose, green eyes, and black mane, though his fur colour is a lighter and duller shade than other common interpretations.
File:Reference ahadi by elwolfakalutik.png|Reference Ahadi (Sept 2021) by elwolfakalutik. This interpretation of Cub!Ahadi has a light golden fur colour, as well as a dark brown tailtuft and elbow fur, though his eyes are bluish-green, and he has a pridelander nose.
File:Ahadi new new by elanordraws.jpg|Ahadi New New by elanordraws. This interpretation has a more unique design, most obviously in that he has dark fur as opposed to light, as well as a bi-colour mane. However, he also has an outlander nose, and green eyes. A cub version can be found here.
File:Zinlai aka ahadi by seryva.png|Zinlai aka Ahadi by seryva. This interpretation has 'Ahadi' as a nicknameYou dare... Posted 28 Nov 2015. Accessed 14 Feb 2023., with his real name being Zinlai. He has dark fur and a dark brown mane, as well as an outlander nose.
File:Come on dad by cartoonmoviesfan.jpg|Come on Dad! (February 2021) by cartoonmoviesfan, featuring Ahadi with his sons. His bi-coloured mane is influenced by unused concept art of Scar.
==Resources & External Links==
*Ahadi - The Lion King Wiki
*Ahadi (The Lion King) - Ao3 tag
*Ahadi filter - Fanfiction.net
==References==
Category:The Lion King Characters