JD Fenix

James Dominic Fenix, better known as JD Fenix or J.D. Fenix, is a fictional character in the Gears of War franchise. Introduced in Gears of War 4 as the son of Marcus Fenix, JD was positioned as one of the central characters of the newer games alongside his friends, Del Walker and Kait Diaz. Prior to the events of Gears of War 4, he originally held the rank of lieutenant in service of the supranational and intergovernmental military collective known as the Coalition of Ordered Governments ("COG"), and later defected to a loosely organized faction of rebel human settlers who live outside of the COG's walled settlements in the world of Sera. By the events of Gears 5, he has rejoined the COG to fight a new threat to humanity. The character is voiced by Australian actor Liam McIntyre. Outside of the video game series, JD has appeared in the novels Gears of War: Ascendance and Gears of War: Bloodlines. The concept of JD as a character originated when series creator Epic Games was still in early development for a direct sequel to Gears of Wars 3. The Coalition, a subsidiary of Xbox Game Studios and the current developers responsible for the Gears of War franchise following the departure of Epic Games from the series, intended for JD Fenix to headline a new generation of main characters introduced in Gears of War 4. Although JD was initially presented as the face of the new generation, the development of Gears 5 and critical reception increasingly positioned Kait as the stronger narrative center of the series. Critical response to JD has been mixed, with commentary focusing on his physical appearance as well as the quality of the writing behind the interactions with his companions and his father. At least one reviewer critiqued...