One thing about Rainbow High that drives me crazy is that River Kendall is supposed to be the teal colored character, my favorite color, but he doesn't actually wear teal.
So, to make myself a little less mad about it, I made an edit where he's actually wearing teal. I left his letterman jacket as is.
And, just for fun, River in teal with his hair the same color as his eyebrows.
Obviously, I know they're not perfect, but I still think they're pretty good.
Yeah, the show fumbled this, big time.
It's like the exact opposite of all my Ron Stoppable posts.
In those, I point out how Ron is shown to be extremely competent and important to the success of the team, but even the narrative refuses to recognize it.
In Miraculous, Chat Noir is important, narratively, but is rarely, if ever, given a role that can't be fulfilled by anyone else.
Anyone else can distract the villain. Arguably, other miraculouses would be better for the job. Like pig, rooster, mouse, or monkey.
Anyone else can throw themselves in front of a villain to protect ladybug. Arguably, the turtle and ox miraculouses would be better for that.
And let's not forget that Adrien is shown to goof off as Chat Noir a lot. Desperada happened because he decided to tell Ladybug his identity instead of focusing on fighting the villain.
I can understand that Chat Noir is freedom for Adrien, but it's also a responsibility that he's not taking seriously.
Luckily, there's a Miraculous Cure, that Chat Noir isn't needed for, to fix things, including bringing Chat Noir back from the dead at least once.
On the one hand, it does seem unfair to expect teenagers to behave perfectly in every situation.
On the other hand, Marinette/Ladybug is shouldering most of the responsibility herself because Chat Noir/Adrien refuses to take the job seriously.
And it's extremely unfair to her.
And that's not even getting into how the romance was handled.
Ladybug: Chat Noir is most important member of The Miraculous Team.
Chat Noir's "important role":
"Distraction Grot: Once per battle, in your opponent’s Shooting phase, before making a saving throw for a model in this unit, it can deploy the distraction grot. If it does, until the end of the phase, models in this unit have a 5+ invulnerable save.Designer’s Note: Place a Distraction Grot token next to the unit, removing it when this unit uses this ability."
Does Ladybug ever say that Chat Noir was the most important member of the team? I honestly don't remember that. Either way, I fully agree that the show failed to make him feel like a pivotal member of the team. That's extra true after the season five final. It's really hard to get excited about Chat Noir when he didn't even try to get to his Lady's side in the final fight. Super weird choice for both a romantic lead and one of your main heroes. What is his arc even supposed to be if he's never going to have a meaningful confrontation with his father? And what's the point of his place as Ladybugs main partner if he's allowed to sit out the show's most important fight? He really is just one of the team now.
I have a post somewhere that I don't feel like digging up, but my stance is that - at the very least - they should have let Adrien fight his way to Paris where he could hand off the ring to Luka since Luka knows both identities, but heaven forbid that plot point lead to anything interesting or that Adrien be allowed to do anything more than motivational speeches. I think season five was the first season to not have the famous "you and me against the world" line, which is really funny when you remember that Ladybug was literally up against the world.
It has come to my attention that a lot of people are probably under the impression that I hate Kim since I criticize her behavior a lot.
This is not true.
I do believe that Kim is selfish and very flawed.
And I'm frustrated that her flaws are often overlooked or ignored or, in the rare instances where her harmful actions are actually acknowledged, downplayed, easily forgiven, and not changed.
But this is not because I hate Kim.
This is because I love Kim, or at least I used to, and wish she had gotten better character development.
Kim is the main character. Heck, Kim is the titular character. Kim is the focus of the show.
But Ron is the relatable character. Ron is the one who gets the most development. Ron got so much development that, in the fourth season, they actually had him take a back seat on some missions to a literal baby because they made Ron too good to keep being Kim's sidekick.
(Not sure if that was their thought process or intention, but it happened.)
Overall, Kim remains a static character. What little character development she gets does not compare to Ron. At all.
Now, obviously I love Ron, too.
But Kim also should have gotten character development. And every time the creators had a chance for it, they decided against it.
I would honestly love Kim a lot more if they had given her the same level of character development they gave Ron.
I mean, the fans deserve that, at least.
I don’t intend to comment on every episode, just the ones I haven’t talked about yet or the ones I feel need to be given more in-depth discussion. Let’s begin:
“Tick-Tick-Tick” - First episode, not much to complain about here, but I do have one thing that irks me; the detention gang are never seen or mentioned again, with the exception of maybe Mike, as a guy who looks just like him is seen on the football team in a later episode. He is not addressed by name, however, so I’m not going to assume it’s Mike. The point of the episode was that Kim learns the detention gang are not all that bad, but then they’re never seen or mentioned again. They’re not even in the background. It kind of defeats the purpose of the lesson.
I also feel like this episode would have been a good chance to play into Kim’s “driven to excel” traits and have her hate the idea of detention because she’s afraid of how it will affect her future, and she learns one detention won’t ruin her future. You know, a reason for thinking detention is for losers, instead of just her being a cheerleader.
“Bueno Nacho” - I did mention in a previous post that I hate that Kim forged an application for Ron before ever talking to him about it. Honestly, they could’ve just had Kim entice Ron to take the job by mentioning some kind of benefits i.e. employee discount, one free meal while on shift. There was no reason for Kim to unilaterally make the decision, and she seems majorly controlling for doing so. Your protagonist’s mistakes should come from a lack of knowledge, not a lack of consideration. You can teach people to communicate, you can’t teach them to care.
“Attack of the Killer Bebes” - I wish the creators had delved more into Kim’s feelings. She thinks Ron being a cheerleader would be mortifying, and she hates the idea of him as the mascot. But we never learn why. There’s a line at the beginning that would indicate Kim just wanted something for herself, but the creators don’t expand on that. Instead, we get Kim just insulting Ron for the rest of the episode. It would have been more interesting if it was about Kim struggling to keep something for herself without Ron, and learning that even with Ron as the mascot, cheerleading will still always be her thing. Your protagonist should have deep thoughts and feelings that get explored, not just hinted at.
“The New Ron” - One of my most hated episodes for the way Kim treated Ron, but my rewrite would probably fix it. Ron agrees to a new haircut to appease Kim, and tries to like it but he’s miserable and he stays miserable. Kim learns she can be too pushy sometimes and needs to lay off, and Ron learns his best friend cares more about his feelings than his appearance, so it’s okay to say no to her. Your hero shouldn’t be causing harm to others just because she wants to; that’s not a hero, that’s a villain.
“Number One” - A few options for rewrites; Kim actually tries to prove she’s the better captain instead of just expecting Bonnie to fail on her own, or Bonnie stays captain and we get to explore how Kim handles not being in charge. Your character isn’t skilled and talented if she has everything handed to her instead of working for it.
Also, it would be nice if Will was actually competent, instead of taking credit for the mission. Give Kim an actual rival. Seriously, a highly-trained government agent isn’t on par with an amateur? It’s ridiculous. Your female protagonist isn’t good if you have to dumb down the world to make her shine.
“Sink or Swim” - Minor change; with how big Barkin is, and his military experience, he should’ve made more noise while being abducted. We could’ve had a shadow drag him off while he tells Kim to warn the others. That would’ve played into the horror movie parody quite nicely.
“Crush” - I feel like instead of Kim ignoring a call from Wade that was definitely important because Wade doesn’t make social calls, she should’ve just not gotten a call. I mean, how would Wade even know Ron was trapped in the closet anyways? Ron doesn’t have a Kimmunicator. It wouldn’t change much to be honest, and it also wouldn’t have Kim ignoring an urgent attempt at communication.
“October 31st” - Kim should take more precautions with the bracelet. Maybe it gets stuck to her wrist because the tweebs grab it and it gets stuck to her wrist in the ensuing fight. There’s also the issue of lying, but we could just have her nervous about spending time with Josh and having that be enough to set off the armor. That way, it’s basically the same plot, but without Kim being thoughtless, reckless, and deliberately misleading everyone she cares about.
“The Twin Factor” - Honestly, I would take out the whole “gag” about Kim using mind control on her brothers. The whole point of the episode is that mind control is wrong and bad, but the point gets muted when our hero is doing it to children. I’m not sure what gag I would replace it with, but nothing that jokes about mind control. I like that Kim’s parents were upset, but they should’ve been more upset. Outraged, even. And Kim should’ve faced actual consequences.
“Job Unfair” - I’m not sure this episode had a lesson. If it was meant to be “all jobs are important” then the lesson is pointless by having the “janitor” revealed to actually be a Canadian spy. Instead, we could have Kim decide to focus on her work-study anyways, and learn how to disable the weather machine by sheer coincidence, because the janitor is an actual janitor and not secretly a spy. As for Ron’s mentor, it could be revealed that the spy had been trying to get to Kim, but she was already taken by the janitor so he went to Ron instead.
“Grudge Match” - This episode had a scene where Ron mentions people might think he and Kim were on a date. Instead of using this as a moment to hint at Kim and Ron ending up together, Kim mocks and insults Ron for that statement. We could have Kim and Ron nervously discussing whether people think of them as a couple, before Kim (or Wade) brings them back to focus, but Kim mocking and insulting Ron for insinuating people might think they date is not a good way to hint at the endgame ship.
Also, I feel like instead of Kim “fudging” by telling Ron he might stand a chance with Zita, we should have her actually believe it could happen. This is a guy she supposedly develops romantic feelings for later, but instead of hinting at that, she apparently thinks he’s so much of a loser that even a girl none of them know anything about could do better.
“The Ron Factor” - I understand they had to change the ending of the episode because it was too sexist, but this episode chronologically takes place after “A Sitch in Time”, where we learn Ron is essential to Kim’s success (though no one remembers that timeline so I’ll cut them some slack there) and Ron defeated the villain this time. Not Kim, Ron. If they didn’t want it to seem like Ron was the secret to Kim’s success, they shouldn’t have made that a plot point of the movie, nor should they have Ron defeating the villain. Kim did almost nothing in this episode aside from telling Ron he was getting a big head (which he was) and complaining about GJ thinking Ron was the secret to her success (again, he was).
“Adventures in Rufus-Sitting” - I’ve talked about this episode before, so my rewrite is simple; have Kim take actual precautions with the microchip. We could still have Rufus accidentally eat it; maybe while looking for a snack he finds it and eats it. But Kim took no precautions with the top-secret microchip she was meant to guard, and that is seriously disappointing. If your female protagonist won’t take basic precautions with things she’s supposed to guard, she’s not a good guardian.
“Exchange” - When Kim decides she likes Hirotaka, she has Wade track his movements to arrange an “accidental” run-in with him to ask him out. She’s known him for less than a week and is already stalking him. It’s creepy and obsessive and this needs to not happen. Honestly, that whole scene could go like this; Kim returns from a mission, notices Hirotaka, panics, plays cool, decides to ask him out, continues as canon. If your female character is stalking her crush, it’s not funny, it’s creepy.
Interesting to note: Hirotaka looks a lot like Will Du’s original concept Ken Du.
“Queen Bebe” - Honestly, I do have complaints about this episode, and I’ve mentioned it in a previous post, but I’m not actually sure how I’d go about rewriting it. Kim’s inability to fulfill her obligations (that she volunteered for) is not only disappointing but also letting down her school. I can kind of understand her refusal to ask for help, especially from Bonnie, but at the very least, clubs and committees should be hesitant to let her join in the future because of this.
“Hidden Talent” - Not cool of Ron to sign Kim up for the talent show without talking to her about it first, but it definitely wasn’t cool of Kim to threaten Ron with physical violence over it. He might not have seemed afraid, but that doesn’t make it okay.
Honestly, it would be very in character for Kim to sign herself up because of anger and pride, so there was no need for Ron to do it.
“Return to Wannaweep” - Kim sabotages Bonnie, her own teammate, just because she wants a plastic stick painted gold. A stick she admits to only wanting so Bonnie can’t have it. Sure, Kim’s competitive. But this kind of competitiveness, sabotaging her own teammate to make herself stand out more, would get her kicked off the squad. Obviously, if they want Kim and Bonnie sabotaging each other, they should have Bonnie start it. Your heroine doesn’t get to be called a role model when she’s starting conflicts for her own personal interests.
Also, despite Gil having tried something evil before, Kim refuses to take any of Ron’s concerns about him seriously because she’s too preoccupied with her rivalry with Bonnie. A heroine ignoring potential danger because she doesn’t care is not a good heroine.
“Blush” - I can understand Kim wanting to go on a date with Josh, but he would’ve understood Kim needing to stay home for her own safety. She was at risk of literally disappearing.
“Oh Boyz” - Sure, everyone stopped liking the Oh Boyz, but the timing implies Kim stopped liking them specifically because Ron started liking them. I just feel like there’s too much of that in this show; Ron’s interests being “uncool” or “embarrassing”.
“Rewriting History” - This episode introduced interesting new layers to the characters and their relationships, except it didn’t because it was all a dream. I hate that. Honestly, I feel like the episode should have just ended with Kim saving Drakken and Shego and clearing her great-aunt’s name. No “it was all a dream” shenanigans.
“Showdown at the Crooked D” - Kim tricked Ron into going. He told her he wanted to laze about for the summer, she invited him to a place called The Lazy C, and then deliberately didn’t tell him until after they arrived and he had no way to back out that it was a working ranch. A lie by omission is still a lie. Your female hero shouldn’t be doing this to her friends.
"Emotion Sickness” - Another episode that could’ve hinted at Kim and Ron getting together, but instead Ron seemed uncomfortable with the whole idea. Nervous. Terrified. It didn’t seem like he wanted to be in a relationship with her. Having one character be uncomfortable with the idea of dating another is not a good way to hint at a ship.
"Bonding” - Mostly I hate that both Bonnie and Barkin were given character development, and then it’s gone for the rest of the series.
“Bad Boy” - Another episode to hint at a ship, and it didn’t do a good job. Having both characters be uncomfortable with the idea of dating each other doesn’t imply a ship either.
“Team Impossible” - As I mentioned, most of my frustration with this episode comes from the reason they gave for wanting Kim out of the business; profit. There are so many valid reasons, and Team Impossible could’ve been mentors. If you need to make the professionals incompetent for your character to stand out, your character isn’t good enough.
“And the Mole Rat Will Be CGI” - Honestly, my big issue here is that Kim, once again, is ignoring Ron’s feelings on something that will affect him.
“So The Drama” - I made a whole post about this, so I’ll be brief. Getting Kim and Ron together by introducing a “perfect” guy for Kim and then removing him as an option completely is lazy writing. I understand it was supposed to be the end of the series, but while we see a lot of Ron pining over Kim, we don’t see any of Kim possibly having feelings for Ron. The implication is that, if Eric were still an option, Kim and Ron wouldn’t be together. That’s not true love, that’s Ron being Kim’s rebound guy.
“The Big Job” - Kim complains about Ron using coupons to fund their dates, to high end expensive restaurants, but she never offers to pay. She is asking for more from Ron than he is able to give. And she, once again, has things literally handed to her. In this case, Monique literally gives her a job just so she could inspire Ron to get one.
“Fashion Victim” - I find it hard to believe Kim didn’t know she was risking Monique’s and Wade’s futures by trying to get them help her break the NDA Monique signed. She has worked on top-secret projects before; she’s definitely signed a few of those. Your heroine shouldn’t be risking others for her own gain.
“Grande Size Me” - The movie this episode was based off of has been proven to have been faked. This whole episode would need to be rewritten.
TW: This episode contains scenes that would be triggering for people with body image issues, eating disorders, or fears of Kaiju.
I did have more thoughts, but they felt too nitpicky. I tried to stick to the ones I had major problems with, and bolded the advice I would give on how to avoid some of those problems.
What are your thoughts on the Tweebs?
Well, the original pitch bible had them as sociopathic geniuses...
Which is kind of a horrible way to describe ten-year-olds. End of.
Jim and Tim are energetic, hyperactive, rambunctious geniuses with a tendency towards taking apart household appliances to build things.
They don't respect Kim's boundaries and work hard to embarrass her.
James and Ann don't seem to be big on disciplining their kids or regulating their behaviors.
And Kim is constantly commenting on how she wanted a sister, thinks of them as freaks, and doesn't think they're human.
Frankly, I wouldn't blame them for not wanting to be nice to her after dealing with that for a lifetime.
Especially after they went through the trouble of helping her on a mission and she used mind-control chips on them afterwards.
The same ones they had freed her from.
The same ones she said were unethical to just make.
I know that when my older sibling spent my entire life telling me how much she never wanted me, I wasn't exactly inclined to be nice to her either.
(We're doing better now, but it took an acknowledgement and an apology on her part before I was even willing to try. I think it'd be nice if Kim did this, too.)
But even though they had nearly helped embarrass Kim out of existence in "Blush", it's clear that they hadn't known what was going to happen, and thus hadn't intended to cause that much harm to Kim.
So it doesn't seem like Jim and Tim are as "sociopathic" as the creators had originally intended for them to be.
TLDR: They aren't really different from how any other ten-year-old boys would be if they were geniuses, had access to advanced technology, had parents who don't discipline or regulate them, and had an older sister constantly talking about how much she hates them.
So I can't really blame them for how they turned out.
Would you?
I actually don't have a lot of complaints about Project: Rainbow, but I dislike how the Rainbow High vs Rainbow High thing was handled.
More specifically, Avery.
After being told that her accessory designs weren't unique enough, she decided the best thing to do, instead of designing new accessories, is to make a dress to go with the accessories.
And she gets praised for ignoring Maria's advice.
Here's the thing: I wear my favorite accessories with a lot of different outfits.
I'm not interested in accessories that only look good with one specific outfit. Most people aren't.
And Avery shouldn't be praised for ignoring Maria's advice. It was an accessory design challenge, not a dress design challenge.
She should have been gently told that, while her dress was amazing, it was an accessory design challenge, and she didn't meet the challenge requirements.
They still could have Aiden volunteering to be the one who goes back to class, because his reason wouldn't have changed, but now we could give Avery a good learning experience.
She doesn't appear in a lot of fanfiction, but she's usually cold, blunt, and aloof until something happens to make her warm up.
I don't think she's like that.
Her first (chronological) appearance was in "Grudge Match" when she was shown at the Robot Rumble. She seemed to be friends with the other fans - she was shown to sit with some of them, laugh, and gossip, so she has no problems socializing with people who share her interests.
In "Partners" she's shown to not want Kim's help on the project, but lets her help after Kim admits to going over her work and looking up about half the words to understand it.
(She also had no problems autographing a picture for Professor Allenford when he asked.)
So, it appears that she was more impressed that Kim tried than if Kim had understood immediately.
And, since she appreciates people trying, it's probably not an issue of thinking herself above those less intelligent than her, it's an issue of not typically having a partner who even tries to understand what she's doing.
She had no problems with Kim after Kim put in the effort to understand her project.
That probably doesn't happen a lot, which is why she was dismissive at first.
But she is shown to have friends, or at least people she likes spending time with. And she is shown to be kind to people when they actually try. She doesn't require people to have the same natural intelligence as her, just to be willing to put in the effort.
I'm sure everyone, at some point, has understood having to carry a group project on their own. And understood the hatred of group projects that comes with it.
So, if she's a bit cold and distant at first, I can't really blame her.
Could you?
That is an excellent point that I have a few thoughts about:
Regardless of whether or not they believe the villains love their kids, they certainly believe the villains were raising their kids to be villains, which doesn't sound like a good situation to leave kids in.
Also, there's no reason to think things on The Isle were good.
There's nowhere to grow food or material for clothes. Most of it is shipped in, and in one of the tie-in books, the VKs didn't know what bananas were as they only ever saw the peels.
And that's not even mentioning hygiene, medical needs, and education.
Ultimately, it's not like a reasonable person, especially not a reasonable ruler, would just assume things are good without bothering to check.
I might believe that Ben and the AKs didn't know what things were like on The Isle, but the only reason for the adults to not know is to just not care enough to check.
And since they already knew there were children on The Isle, that seems negligent at best.
The most unbelievable thing about Disney's Descendants is that the princes and princesses, people who are known for being kind and compassionate, would be okay with literal children living on The Isle, despite knowing what things are like on The Isle, just because their parents are villains.
Like, I'll believe they decided to put their dangerous villains there to protect everyone.
(Not villains like LeFou and Smee though, because they're just not worth the trouble.)
But you expect me to believe that no one thought it wouldn't be fair to punish the kids for their parents' crimes? That people who are known for being kind thought this was fair?
Sorry, not buying it.
And it's not that they didn't know, because everyone knew the villains had kids, so they just, somehow, honestly thought this was a good idea.
But I don't believe it.
I understand that it has to be that way for plot reasons. My proposed change would be a very simple one:
They didn't know there were kids on The Isle.
They only found out shortly before Ben was going to be coronated, because Belle and Adam wanted to check on The Isle one more time before it became Ben's responsibility.
Thus, Ben immediately decides to invite some VKs to Auradon for a better life, but Belle and Adam are concerned that the VKs might be a lot like their parents. He agrees to only invite a few at first, but he's confident that they're not evil, just in terrible conditions.
Reblogging from myself to add:
Kim was meant to be a role model for little girls. Real little girls. In the real world.
So, it kind of seems like she should be expected to follow real world standards, when it comes to behavior and morals, at least.
Especially because real people doing those things would get in trouble.
It's not like Kim's never allowed to make mistakes, I'd just prefer it if those mistakes were from a lack of knowledge, not because she didn't care.
But, again, you don't have to follow me if this isn't for you. I just had to get that last thought out there.
I’ll agree that is usually Ron who is a more dynamic character and he is usually the one one who seems to put more effort/is more invested into their relationship, (but this can be easily explained by S4 focusing more on him) but a lot of the things you are complaining about are just a result of judging a cartoon by real world standard and taking it far too seriously.
All of the points you brought up were just scenes that are meant to establish the plot of the episodes or show the changes the characters were going through, like the coupon scene was to establish Kim and Ron needed jobs.
And Kim expressing she wanted something different for their next date isn’t bad, she is communicating her needs and that’s a good trait in any relationship.
I'm aware they're scenes that were brought up to establish plot.
What's your point?
Maybe I am taking a cartoon too seriously, but that's my perogative.
If it bothers you, you don't have to follow me or see my posts. I'm not going to force you, or even hate you if you decide that my blog is not something you'd like to see regularly.
It's not for everybody, and I don't blame people who decide this isn't for them.
Yes, Kim expressing she wanted something different for their next date is good. My biggest complaint, and that's on me for not making it clear, is that when Ron did provide her with something new, she pouted and moped.
At a ceremony Ron's dad was being honored at.
It might not have been the most exciting thing ever, and I could understand the disappointment, but for an almost-adult, pouting and moping is kind of immature behavior.
Her sarcastic comment of "Yep, real exciting" also wasn't necessary.
Ultimately, it's not bad the she wants something new, it's bad that she doesn't offer specific ideas but complains about what Ron arranged anyways.
I understand that most of what I complain about is meant to establish the plot of the episode. I just think there were better ways to do that.
The coupon scene: there could have been other ways of establishing Kim and Ron wanting and/or needing jobs.
For example:
They're seniors who want a bit more independence and spending money than their allowances can provide.
Kim's saving up for a car and Ron's saving up for a new scooter.
They're both hoping to put extra money in their college funds.
Kim might want new clothes and Ron might want a new gaming system.
Kim wanted the employee discount at Club Banana and Ron wanted the employee discount at the places he applied to.
Any combination of the above.
There are definitely other scenarios in which they'd want and/or need jobs.
Kim complaining about Ron using coupons for their dates, despite not financially contributing to them herself, didn't have to be one of them.
Yeah, I think the creators don't really understand who's deserving of sympathy.
I mean, Gabriel is so obsessed with his goal that he's willing to put Adrien in danger. That's not a father deserving of sympathy.
He's so controlling that he's going to pick his son's girlfriend for him. He doesn't deserve sympathy for that.
And they forget that Emilie having been missing for only a year means she couldn't have possibly been the saint mom she was supposed to be.
Adrien never had a party before? Gabriel's a dick, sure, but Emilie was also around most of the time, and she wasn't throwing him a party either.
Adrien's never been to public school or had friends? That sucks! Why didn't Emilie let him do that?
The writers tell us Emilie was a saint, but based on what's actually in the show, she was far from it.
I wonder what change would've you make Gabriel if he was an actual effective sympathetic villain the show seem to think instead of the pathetic display of canon. On the other note, what would've you make to actually have Emilie be this saint like character the show keep saying she is
To start, there'd have to be lines that Gabriel just *wouldn't* cross. No akumas that target his son, for starters, no "Chat Blanc" scenario where he finds out Chat's identity and then beats the shit out of him, and no making ridiculous decisions for Adrien like deciding his girlfriend.
Season 5 Gabriel cannot exist, it was actually inSANE of the writer's to put the worst version of him on display...and then play him off as the hero. Like, wut? WHAT?!
I fully admit that in the earlier seasons, I didn't consider Gabriel an abuser. I considered him a dick, but abuser felt too...top shelf of a word to use, though I also contend that his behavior felt like the starting signs. Mostly I just considered him pathetic and like Kids Tv Exaggerated Version of a Strict Parent.
But Season 5??? Uh, yeah, no discussion, this guy is an abusive dickbag and can burn in hell.
Just make it so the reason Hawkmoth fails as often as he does is because sometimes he holds back. Sometimes he gets close to the line and remembers his wife and just can't make himself do something SO heinous that his wife would be disappointed.
As for ACTUALLY selling the Emilie is a Saint Mom, it's super easy. Just have flashbacks. Where she's interacting with her husband and child and sorta not girlfriend? Like, they revealed these video recordings of Emilie in SEASON 5! It took FIVE SEASONS for us to hear Emilie's voice from Emilie herself! (Amelie doesn't count)
And, uh, maybe as a writer think about what you're implying with the things you include in your story. Like, maybe EITHER have Adrien not ever have a birthday party OR have his mom missing for only a year, so it doesn't seem like Emilie *also* didn't care about his birthday. Just, you know. Little things like that that don't accidentally inform us of her character.
The most frustrating thing about Kim is how she's immune to criticism. Her apologies are almost always met with the other person apologizing, even when they shouldn't have to.
"But Kim apologizes and learns her lesson! She grows and matures past those things! It's not fair to hold it against her forever!"
Does she? Let's review:
"Bueno Nacho" - Apologizes for getting mad at Ron for outshining her at the job. Not for forging an application for him or guilting him into taking the job in the first place.
Bonus: This is the first of Kim's apologies, and she consistently apologizes for the most minor transgression of the episode, ignoring all the other ones.
"Attack of the Killer Bebes" - Says she'll support Ron because he's her best friend, but doesn't actually apologize.
"The New Ron" - Apologizes for saying Ron needs a new haircut. Not for forcing him into one. Not for not caring how much he hated it. Not for stealing his hat. Not for humiliating him. Tries to throw in a lesson at the end that it's what's on the inside that counts, ignoring that fact that she was the one who forced him to change in the first place.
Bonus: Once again, Kim only apologizes for the most minor transgression.
Bonus+: There's a scene where Kim gets mad at Ron for "abandoning" Rufus, but, having watched the episode recently, I can say that's not what happened; Ron, despite not having pockets, still carried Rufus around with him, Rufus wandered off on his own. Ron probably wasn't too worried because Rufus does that frequently. And he does gently chastise Rufus for wandering off anyways. Thus, Kim's anger at Ron was not justified, and likely just because she was looking for an excuse.
"Coach Possible" - Never actually apologizes for driving her brothers' soccer team so hard they cry. Doesn't apologize, but does get fired from a job she didn't want in the first place, and mopes about it.
"October 31st" - Doesn't apologize for the lying or putting other people in danger. Doesn't acknowledge that she was putting other people in danger.
Bonus: How would Monique's family react to finding out one of Monique's party guests destroyed their garage door? Probably not happy, and banning Kim from their property until she can pay off the replacement wouldn't seem unreasonable.
Bonus+: I doubt the people asking Kim to retrieve the Centurion Project would've been happy to find out how it got stuck to her in the first place. I imagine Kim would be getting much fewer retrieval jobs after that.
"The Twin Factor" - Doesn't apologize for using mind control on her brothers. Tries to justify it and, though her parents clearly disapprove, isn't punished for it.
"The Ron Factor" - This would have been a great episode about Kim learning she takes Ron for granted and apologizing, but instead, despite doing practically nothing in this episode, she still has credit handed to her.
Bonus: The Global Justice scientists said the results of their study into "The Ron Factor" were complete and that Ron was a non-factor, but there's a movie about how Ron is vital to Kim's success, so clearly this is false. Perhaps they meant they couldn't replicate it?
"Adventures in Rufus-Sitting" - Lies to Ron about how it went watching Rufus. Doesn't apologize for not taking it seriously. Doesn't apologize for accidentally endangering Rufus. Just lies to him about how it went.
Bonus: My sister has mentioned to me that how someone treats a pet says a lot about how they view the pet's owner. So Kim's treatment of Rufus says a lot about her opinion of Ron.
"Return to Wannaweep" - Doesn't apologize for not taking Ron's concerns seriously or sabotaging Bonnie. Even Dr. Lurkin apologizes for not taking Ron's concerns seriously. And then Ron tries to give a lesson about how if Bonnie and Kim weren't so busy competing with each other, one of them could have won the Spirit Stick, as though Kim and Bonnie are equally to blame for it.
Bonus: Someone who hasn't known Ron as long as Kim has, has enough respect for Ron to apologize to him, when Kim consistently fails to do so.
"Bonding" - Apologizes to Bonnie for an unintentional comment about Bonnie's weight, quicker than she's ever apologized to Ron, and more sincerely as well.
Bonus: Despite not actually intending to insult Bonnie, Kim still has enough respect for her to apologize. More than she usually does for Ron, her "best friend".
"Fashion Victim" - Apologizes to Monique for being jealous, but not the things she did that could have cost Monique her future in the fashion industry.
Bonus: If Monique was hassling Kim to break an NDA and trying to get a tech guy to find a loophole so she could, would we think Monique should be forgiven so easily?
And consistently doesn't apologize to Ron for dismissing his fears, concerns, and feelings.
So, Kim apologizing to Ron is very rare, almost non-existent.
It's been mentioned to me that some relationships don't require explicit apologies or that love means never having to say you're sorry.
I say that's stupid.
If you care about someone, and you hurt them, you should want to apologize and make things right. Even if it seems like you don't need to say it, you should still show you're remorseful in some way.
And Kim doesn't.