Life is Strange |
"I'm not about tearing people down, Max." — Taylor to Max in "Out of Time"
Taylor Christensen is a student at Blackwell Academy in Life is Strange. She is friends with Victoria Chase and Courtney Wagner and is a member of the Vortex Club. She and Max Caulfield can have some positive moments in the game, despite the fact that she is always waiting for Victoria.
Personality[]
At first glance, Taylor appears to be a rude girl as she bullies those less popular than her; probably to impress Victoria. She is often pushed around by Victoria and always follows her around and therefore called a "slave" on her room plate. She is appreciative of anyone who cares about her and is receptive to positive conversations. Taylor seems to be a little standoffish, but also fun-loving in the right setting.
Despite this, she is still capable of feeling remorse or regret over her actions, as she exchanges emails with Victoria about their guilt after Kate's suicide attempt. Taylor states at the party in Episode 4 that she only wanted to make friends but when she saw Kate on the roof, she realised she went too far with all the bullying, showing Taylor has morals.
Episode One - "Chrysalis"[]
In Max's photography class with Mr. Jefferson, Taylor is sitting at a table with Victoria. She throws a crumpled paper note at Kate Marsh, which reads,
Dear Kate,
We love your porn video
XOXO Blackwell Academy
As the class ends, Mr. Jefferson tells her he is still waiting for her entry for the "Everyday Heroes" contest. After the class ended, she waited in the hallway for Victoria with Courtney.
After Max hits the fire alarm, Taylor is hanging out with Victoria and Courtney on the steps to the girls dormitory, blocking Max’s entry. While she doesn't move to let Max in, she doesn’t join Courtney in laughing at jokes Victoria is making about Max.
When Max causes Victoria to get paint on her clothes, Taylor tries to help her friend by fetching a towel with Courtney. The two pass Max on their way out of the dormitory.
Episode Two - "Out of Time"[]
As Max heads to the bathroom to take a shower, Taylor can be seen chilling out in Victoria's room while Courtney is handed the brunt of Victoria's essay work to complete. This makes it very clear that Courtney is the least valued member in their friendship group, and that Taylor is better in-tune with Victoria.
While Max is taking her shower, Taylor enters the room with Victoria. She laughs as Victoria belittles Kate, and expresses disbelief when Kate claims it wasn't her in the video. Once Kate runs off, Victoria comments about how Nathan hooked her up with drugs, and that he always has "the good shit", to which Taylor agrees.
When Victoria angrily suggests that Taylor should hang out with Max, Taylor states that Max is a weirdo. She also loves how Victoria is an "evil bee-atch" when she leaves the link to Kate’s video on the mirror.
On her way to leave the campus to meet Chloe Price at the Two Whales Diner, Max sees Taylor alone, sitting next to a tree, and has the chance to talk to her. In the initial conversation, Taylor will be mostly blunt and rude to Max. However, she can tell Max about how her mother is sick.
Max can then rewind and ask Taylor about her mother. Despite being a little skeptical, Taylor tells Max that her mother had back surgery and that Victoria was there for her like Max is for Kate. She also tells Max that she’s “not about tearing people down”. She will then say that she’s glad they talked and that they should even do it again.
Later, before Mr. Jefferson’s photography class, she is taking pictures of Dana Ward with Hayden Jones, not having time to talk to Max because of her “art in progress”.
When the entire school is standing outside the girls dormitory during Kate’s suicide attempt, Taylor is taking pictures with her phone, along with Victoria.
Episode Three - "Chaos Theory"[]
Exploring the dormitory, Max can find Taylor in the shower room alone. She accidentally informs Max that Victoria has gone out after hours, breaking curfew, but won't say where Victoria has gone. She seems shaken up after the incident with Kate earlier that day. She can also mention her "nightly anxiety attack", which may be an exaggeration. She and Victoria also shared some emails, talking about remorseful feelings for Kate's suicide attempt. Taylor mentions how she needs a drink.
Taylor also appears at the end of the episode, sitting in a group with Max and the rest of the alternative timeline Vortex Club. She remarks at how weird Max is acting and asks her if she's cool. She also comments that Courtney doesn't want anybody new in the club.
Episode Four - "Dark Room"[]
Taylor makes an appearance at the End of the World Party held by the Vortex Club. She dances alone in the VIP section, seemingly not interested in conversation with anybody else. Max can talk to her and ask her how her mother is doing, to which she will reply that she is doing better after her surgery, and expresses her gratitude to Max over her watching over Taylor and her mother.
Episode Five - "Polarized"[]
Taylor will appear when Max travels back to the first day, while they are in Jefferson's class. She and Victoria are seen harassing Kate. When Max escapes the Dark Room, it shows that Taylor texted Max asking of Victoria's whereabouts if she believed Max's warning about the Dark Room. Taylor appears once again in Max's nightmare, both in the art class and the diner scenes. Unlike most of the other characters, she doesn't say anything to Max in the diner.
If Max chooses to sacrifice Arcadia Bay, she presumably dies during the storm. If Max chooses to sacrifice Chloe and save Arcadia Bay, she won't be present at Chloe's funeral, although she's alive in this ending.
Alternative Timeline[]
She is apparently good friends with Max who, according to Max's text messages, helped her through the time of her mother's surgery.
Relationships[]
Friends[]
- Victoria Chase - They always hang around together and are sitting together in Jefferson's photography class. She looks up to her, always following her around trying to impress Victoria, and loves how she is an "evil bee-atch" (referring to her acting on Kate). Victoria cares a lot for her, as she was there for her when her mother had back surgery. Taylor describes her as "bossy, but one of the best friends you could have." Taylor seems to be more valued by Victoria than Courtney.
- Courtney Wagner - Taylor is friends with Courtney, although she is more than willing to let Courtney assume most of the responsibilities in helping Victoria.
- Max Caulfield (Determinant) - Taylor is mostly blunt and rude to Max, due to thinking that she is a weirdo, but later she may be thankful for Max's interest and comforting words regarding her mother who is in the hospital. If Max doesn't blame Taylor for Kate's suicide attempt and comforts her, she will come to the conclusion that Max is really cool despite her weirdness, and that Victoria was wrong about her. Taylor will also confide in Max about her fears and trust her regarding Victoria's night curfew break. She is also really impressed by Max's braveness to go up to the roof to save Kate.
Enemies[]
- Kate Marsh - Taylor is seen bullying Kate or celebrating Victoria's bullying of her at various points during the game. As an example of this, in her very first appearance, near the start of the game, she throws a ball of paper at Kate, mocking her about her video. When Kate attempts to jump from the dormitory building, Taylor can be seen pointing her phone camera onto her suicide (attempt) alongside Victoria. ++++++++6
- Max Caulfield (Determinant) - Taylor will be rude towards Max due to Victoria's influence, often joining in with Victoria's spiteful remarks and bullying.
Family[]
- Mother - Taylor cares a lot about her mother and has been there for her during her back surgery and hospitalization.
Associated Deaths[]
- Kate Marsh (Caused, Determinant) - Taylor is partly responsible for Kate's suicide attempt and determinant death, as she supported the spreading of Victoria's video which shows Kate kissing strangers at a Vortex Club Party and directly bullied Kate about her "porn video".
Trivia[]
- Taylor's room in the girls' dormitory is room 224. It is suggested in Max's nightmare that the room was previously where Rachel Amber lived in before her disappearance.
- It is shown in the next game Life is Strange: Before the Storm that Taylor was a Blackwell student before Rachel's disappearance, so it is unknown how Taylor got Rachel's room (if it was the latter's).
- Her room slate initially says "TAYLOR IS A SLAVE".
- On Tuesday, her room slate says "GET A LIFE AND MOVE ON BITCH".
- It's implied that Taylor suffers from anxiety, as she says she had "nightly anxiety attacks" in episode three.
Gallery[]
Notes[]
- ↑ In Before the Storm, Helen Christensen is presumably her mother.