Characters I Don't Like [CC]

Links to books I talked about in this video
(These are affiliate links. If you buy through these links, I get a small percentage of the sale):
0:00-Intro
0:56-Throne of Glass: amzn.to/3pgVPAl
2:36-When Dimple Met Rishi: amzn.to/3ce2WG1
4:32-The Upside of Unrequited: amzn.to/3sYRiVk
6:26-Doki Doki Literature Club
8:14-Trigger Happy Havoc Danganronpa
9:01-The Wheel of Time: amzn.to/2MpqrRM
11:11-I've Got Your Number: amzn.to/2KTTcFK
12:48-Jane Eyre: amzn.to/3pm2tW3
16:11-Deathnote: amzn.to/3a8Uxku
17:26-The Infernal Devices: amzn.to/3iPcqsq
20:32-Outro
WHERE TO FIND ME:
► My Patreon: www.patreon.com/merphynapier
► Reading Spreadsheet: docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1xO-1ZHm9am_X5lf4n-2_qmIFn19bq2G1546A7AWMa1c/edit?usp=sharing
► Instagram: merphynapier
► E-mail: [e-mail]

[@annarose7525]

Merph: Oh my gosh I'm being too mean Me: No. Cast them into the fire! Destroy them! ISILDUUUURR

[@the_corvid97]

I can hear this comment.

[@MartiasMuses]

I am going to use that line for everything now... 😂😂

[@elrilmoonweaver4723]

Is it bad that as soon as I read the words "cast them" Hugo Weaving's voice just instantly replaced my own inner voice :P Oh I've seen the Lord of the Rings too many times.

[@saadamansayyed]

OMG I'm so delighted. Rage Merphy = best Merphy.

[@aashanair6734]

Hated how everyone in the Throne of Glass book was speaking highly of Celaena as the "greatest assassin" or "a champion" BUT THEY NEVER SHOW HER DOING ANYTHING. Raged everytime someone compliments her. She was extremely annoying to keep reading and wasn't interesting.

[@Naahi95]

Worst female protagonist ever

[@ZielonaPastela]

And that just hardens my resolve NOT to read Sarah J. Mass 😂

[@pretendtheresaname9213]

Is it at least fun for bad book reading?

[@misguided_ghost]

_literally_ i liked a lot of the other characters but the main characters of that series really weren’t good

[@Naahi95]

@@pretendtheresaname9213 I was very annoyed the whole book because apart from the horrible protagonist, the writing style is too similar to fanfiction and the plot is not even well executed. So it's a no from me 😂

[@violetadaguiar9776]

I caaaaaaan't with the "bad boy" trope. It's unattractive to me in real life and in fiction. They are just rude and if they were ugly no one would put up with it. Give me a male love interest that is reliable, respectful and helps old lady's cross the street!

[@alenciaga21]

The Selection, especially the last two, The chemist (it's actually a toxic relationship kinda but he is very sweet xD), Love Simon..., Emma, Northanger Abbey (basically Jane Austen except for maybe Pride and Prejudice). Ok this is really hard xD especially since those first books probably aren't some that Merphy would enjoy but I am hopelessy romantic, I always need romance so yeah.

[@violetadaguiar9776]

@@alenciaga21 I love me some Mr Knightley!

[@alenciaga21]

@@violetadaguiar9776 He is the best!!! I might actually like him more than Darcy because he is just so kind!

[@jchinckley]

The problem is that authors need to have conflict in their stories or no one read their books... but they really don't understand the depths they need to go to to find the basis of their character's internal conflict. If they can't find that basis, they can't write the character realistically and/or have their conflicts make real sense. If you're interested in learning how to do so take a look at the writing of Jeff Lyons, particularly the short book he has on Amazon, "The Moral Premise: How to Build a Bulletproof Narrative Engine for Any Story" That book taught me something I hadn't learned in 30 years of reading books about writing... the difference between a story and a situation. Both of which are found among the world's best books.

[@MartiasMuses]

... something like Aragorn in the LOTR movies... that's the man. "You bow to no one." 😭

[@maelleth1]

Throne of Glass, expectation: badass assassin competition Reality: they identify poisons or something...

[@heather9130]

And then she gets poisoned by it anyway later!!! WHAT?! I justified it to myself as "well she's a flawed character who believes her own story." But I need to see some growth, man.

[@sukanyaparashar9474]

To be fair it's an important skill for assassins

[@Odiferusthedog]

The whole plot develops and evolves after Crown of Midnight and Heir of Fire is absolutely amazing because of the way the characters grow as a person

[@maelleth1]

tessa freberg You don’t say? :DD Queen of Shadows is my favourite so far

[@ryankraft722]

@@heather9130 Did you continue the series? I think later it gets better

[@simonhirst3021]

I saw a knife in the thumbnail. I'm scared Daniel's starting a trend.

[@luuuuux_]

lol

[@apocalypsereading7117]

there's a character called Yuri? that's weird, when i played it was just Monika

[@Stressed_Geologist]

Underrated comment

[@iamhavinganexistentialcris3917]

I-

[@Enderlinkpawnu]

Just Monika

[@sircheese288]

Just Monika

[@treesspeaklatin8950]

Just monika

[@lcartnine8268]

I think villains are still valid to rant about, regardless if they're supposed to be unlikable. the difference between a well-written villain and a poor-written villain is night and day.

[@hellm.7130]

like I would really hate a villan but them be happy about it bc I hate him and was supposed to hate him and it is for the right reasons. LIke a well written one

[@royalfun1031]

@@hellm.7130 I love villains generally and not every villain has to be unlikeable to be well written

[@hellm.7130]

@@royalfun1031 yeah I was just talking about a kind I really like and I personaly think it's the hardest (and favourite) to write but that could be just me. Sorry I did use language poorly lol it wasn't my intention to make u think that I meant it exclusively

[@sarahfenton226]

i quit throne of glass super early, but a little thing that really annoyed me was how many exclamation marks Celaena used in her thoughts? like she was supposed to be this stone-cold assassin but EVERYTHING surprised her

[@laurenbaker7805]

yeah I felt the same way. I think Maas' writing style early on incorporated a lot of exclamation points - it was a pretty juvenile writing style to be honest. You do see her grow as a writer as the series goes along though and thankfully the annoying parts of her writing disappear a bit. i don't know if that came back in the other books she wrote after Throne of Glass. I can't bring myself to read Court of Thorns and Roses with everything I've heard people say about it lol

[@joyc.e.7511]

I dropped the first book because of her, lol. She's so irritating. She looked so cool on the cover too...

[@joyc.e.7511]

@@laurenbaker7805 Do you watch readwithcindy? Her videos on that series are hilarious.

[@laurenbaker7805]

@@joyc.e.7511 omg yes cindy is the best

[@laurenbaker7805]

@@joyc.e.7511 ikr!?

[@zkruic1883]

I felt that Celena rant on a spiritual level. All of my friends recommend those books and I don't understand why. Celena is such a blow hard, all talk no show, and good lord it was tedious.

[@Liesmith424]

I checked out the first book because it was extremely highly rated, and I guess that it might be a younger crowd that loves it? I don't feel like I can judge very much about it since I only read a few chapters, but Merphy's complaints seem like much more specific renditions of the problems I was starting to see with the character, so I couldn't have been totally off base.

[@lelushdsilva9200]

But the thing is... yes she is super annoying but the story is amazing. At least I felt like it

[@hayleyomega6119]

@@lelushdsilva9200 I thought the story was interesting too, but I just couldn't fully get into it with such an unlikable narrator.

[@Liesmith424]

​@@lelushdsilva9200 Maybe I'll give it a try with that in mind. Going into it blind, I didn't feel like I had anything to latch onto.

[@ceciliaatie4249]

right! she and all the other characters are so annoying and the ones that are somewhat likable are later destroyed by the author

[@jamesduggan7200]

Ah Merphy, Merphy, Merphy: it's not good for you to hold back and repress, so next time tell us how you really feel.

[@JustinPageSlayer]

I think the thing that made me forgive Will was that after he realised the curse was fake, he actually became a decent person. Sure, he was still sassy, but he treated the people around him like Charlotte and Henry with a lot more love and respect. What I'm getting at is that unlike so many other bad boys, he never WAS that person. He had to pretend to be that horrible person, but it's never who he was or wanted to be.

[@dylanmoon780]

A lot of people struggle to understand Rochester's and the romance's function in Jane Eyre. I don't believe we're supposed to like him. For not only was the social dynamic of romance different back then, as you said, but so were the ways in which and the reasons why book were written. Jane Eyre isn't a book like today where you have individual characters with their own plot threads and motivations where you can imagine it as a real story with real people and whatnot. The entirety of the book is contrived so that the titular character, Jane Eyre, can be explored. Jane becoming a governess and then falling in love with the dark and brooding guy with a secret isn't the story-Jane herself is the story. That's why we get chapters and chapters of her years at her aunt's and in the school (which people always seem to forget about). The book is not a romance, but a character study. And so, Rochester can't be judged as an individual character when he only exists in the story to tell us more about Jane. The whole book, every event and character, coalesces into Jane Eyre. You wouldn't love Jane as much if Rochester were a better person because part of her journey is learning to give up what she feels she (probably rightly) is deserved. She boldly declares, "I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being with an independent will, which I now exert to leave you," yet look at the irony in something she said to Rochester just before: "[You are] wed to one inferior to you--to one with whom you have no sympathy--whom I do not believe you truly love; for I have seen and heard you sneer at her. I would scorn such a union: therefore I am better than you." She knows she is better than Rochester, yet in the end she humbles herself to him-subjecting herself to be his helper and "cane" for the rest of her life. THAT'S Jane's character completed! She describes herself as plain when compared to the beautiful Ms. Ingram, yet in the end it doesn't matter because Rochester is blinded and wouldn't know the difference anyways. Jane's character is the point of the entire book. We have a modern expectation that a romance must be a fair and/or positive romance in the story, otherwise the story is brought down because of it. But that's just our modern Western influences deciding for us what's good and what's bad. Whether the romance of Jane and Rochester is a "happy ending" is not the point. The point is that it completes the exploration of Jane's character, as we understand her and as she understands herself.

[@16SF]

Many people dislike Misa. You are definitely not alone here. LOL Ironically, what you commented about Will Herondale is exactly why I never liked Tessa's character. At least he was given a legitimate reason for his attitude but nothing justifies her being so superficial. I'm sure that wasn't the author's intent, but she really didn't execute the relationship well.

[@hayleyomega6119]

I LOVE YA novels, but I've noticed there is a huge issue with superficial attraction in YA romances. I never saw an issue with Will and Tessa's romance when I was 14, but now that I'm older... I see it.

[@elrilmoonweaver4723]

Tessa was just bland! I mean she didn't bounce well off of any character even the damn love interest(s) because she's just maleable like putty - which given the nature of her powers kinna makes sense from an overall perspective - but come on, woman (the author i men), gimme something to root for.

[@ShoeLessJoseph]

I’ve read so many books where the characters in the “romantic” relationship are either both terrible to each other or one is terrible to the other, and I don’t get it. Do authors just think abuse and unnecessary drama are romantic??

[@lindsaymorrison7519]

I think it's because so many people love enemies to lovers, but a lot of authors don't know how to stop writing the enemies part... So it's just toxic.

[@ShoeLessJoseph]

@@lindsaymorrison7519 I would definitely agree with that. And I also realize books need conflict, so I’m okay with characters acting poorly and making mistakes if it leads to genuine character growth or change. But so many characters start off toxic, stay toxic, and we as the reader and other characters in the story are just expected to just accept that behavior. It’s troubling.

[@GibbyCat]

Couples that fight and argue all the time can be fun. I personally love Niles and CC from The Nanny, but they're on equal ground with each other (financial status aside) and they actually like the snark. Their fights are fun and entertaining, the ones in most romances are not.

[@ShoeLessJoseph]

@@GibbyCat I do very much agree!! Great banter is incredibly fun and funny and makes the characters feel real and like they actually know each other.

[@dhruvbharija172]

Exactly

[@Daphne1780]

bland and uninteresting carachters stereotypical carachters carachters with a toxic mindset that is romanticised basically Bella from Twilight i always liked Alice way more

[@Liesmith424]

"She's like a bull, she sees a red flag and just runs right at it."

[@phix27]

This is a small point but it’s spelled “characters”

[@Daphne1780]

I don't know...i've always spelt it like that and no one has corrected me before, but English is not my native language so i could have made a spelling mistake

[@phix27]

@@Daphne1780 sometimes people feel awkward to correct others, but i'm a native speaker so you can trust my spelling :) english is a hard language to learn, keep going!

[@sukanyaparashar9474]

Basically Hardin from After urgh

[@kristinapetrovic1741]

When I saw Doki Doki Literature Club in the timestamps I was like... whoa. Btw I agree about Natsuki being totally amazing. I don't like Yuri that much either, but I do enjoy her.

[@arushi8098]

I guess why I hate Caelena/Aelin is not just because she is so annoying but because she is not a consistent character. I mean I have read more annoying characters but I was still ok with them because they were at least consistent in being annoying (does that make any sense?). Whereas Aelin is whosoever SJM wants her to be which annoys me a lot(damn the no. of times I have used the word annoy but there's no other way of putting it). She's cunning, she's strong, she's brave, all the guys want her and all the girls want to be her, she's a badass, even her flaws feel like goddamn praise. She's beauty, she's grace and I wanna punch her in the face. It seems like SJM couldn't decide what kind of character Aelin would be and so she said, ya know what let's make her everything. I know I should not make assumptions but I sometimes get the feel that SJM is trying to fulfill her own fantasies about all the different types of people she could be through Aelin. And I know you didn't read ahead of book 3 but all that happens is that they are thrown into some situation with no way out but guess what? Aelin is there to save the day! And it always works, whatever Aelin plans never fails. In hindustani, we call it "Yeh kamini aurat anataryaami hai. Poochh lo isse sab. Boards main physics ka paper easy aayga kya? Meri IIT main rank top500 main aaygi kya? Main bandi/banda pata loongi? Aur shaadi kya?" I wish Elide was the main character. Or Manon. Even the Abraxos the wyvern would have been better. Thank you for reading this. Typing it felt real good.

[@hayyyy1527]

Haha loved the Hindi part. You are so right tho, I just found Aelin so so annoying. Like the part where she makes Chaol pick up her shoes because the FLOOR IS COLD? She’s meant to be this brave and cunning assassin but all she was was an annoying girl. But somehow, SOMEHOW, even at the age of sixteen EVERYTHING about her manages to be perfect.

[@arushi8098]

@@hayyyy1527 And in the whole series she's given one flaw: recklessness and even that is shown as a good thing. How is it that her actions never once had any major repercussions?

[@theinquisitorisamage1653]

"She's beauty, she's grace, and I wanna punch her in the face." Do you know how painful it is to have hot tea shoot out of your nose? 😆 Just, damn, thank you for the laugh I needed it today.

[@drinkbooks]

I loved the Throne of Glass series but boy was the chocolate thing spot on... I was like... WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? Your reaction to that in the video was so hilarious I went back and watched it like twice because that's exactly what happened in my head!

[@eleanorhowlett7296]

I really like Throne of Glass but the fact Celaena didn’t act like an assassin when she was supposed to be the best in the land (and had just spent a year in a SLAVE CAMP) was frustrating. I wanted to see cool assassin shit. But no.

[@theseekerscave5600]

OH MY GOD MERPHY IS PLAYING DANGANRONPA!!! Please do a review when you finish the game!🥺

[@nemesis8508]

I feel like she won't like the overall story since it is so insane, but maybe she will because the game makes it fairly clear it is insane

[@theseekerscave5600]

@@nemesis8508 I had the same thought at first, but who knows? 🤞I'm filled with HOPE

[@Caerulean]

oml Game story reviews from Merphy when?? 👀

[@javonf]

You're not supposed to like Villains? Says who? I love Villains. This is Villain slander.

[@imaginativeinks4143]

"Dan-darn-dagn gun-gan -ronpa?" Omh I love this.

[@natcommon]

Yeah I don’t get why anyone would like Rochester and root for Jane and him to get together. Never understood that. I’d be like, see ya too.

[@ramudon2428]

The notion that people root for anyone or anything to happen in a story they're being told makes me think I'm absorbing my stories in a weird way.

[@AndYouWillBeWithMe]

Merphy talking about doki doki... Never though this day would come but please do continue

[@echorose2028]

Another reason to hate Mr Rochester in Jane Eyre: He disguised himself as a Romani woman come to tell fortunes to try and manipulate all the women in the house to bare their true thoughts and feelings about him....

[@te-ter]

THIS

[@underdrow5572]

From what I'm hearing about Mr. Rochester, he sounds like he'd make for an awesome villain.

[@MissCaraMint]

@@underdrow5572 It's interesting you say that. There is this book called Wide Sargasso Sea that does exactly that. It's about his mad wife in the attic. Wanna know why she went mad?

[@underdrow5572]

@@MissCaraMint Why?

[@MissCaraMint]

@@underdrow5572 Read and find out 😉 Edit: It's worth it!

[@sophieallwright5896]

Misa Amane in death note is just a big of a simp for Light which is a way for him to get things done more a tool for the writers to us for light to do things he can’t so her character was just shallow she could have been so much more. Her and L though had a funny dynamic

[@hannanorstedt8753]

Stopped reading Throne of Glass maybe 25% in because the main character annoyed me so much! Love the rage hahaha

[@ramighost]

Danganronpa in the thumbnail?! No way!

[@nemesis8508]

You like Danganronpa? I couldn't tell, especially not from your thumbnail

[@Rosabella.Thorne7]

​@@nemesis8508 No way! I can't even tell that you have parents based on your PFP. But, maybe that's that because you haven't told me. Who knows?

[@jacklemm1518]

Personally I didn’t like the Infernal Devices. Sure there were some great aspects to the trilogy but I did not care for the characters. I don’t think the love triangle is as great as everyone said it is because you know she’s gonna end up with Will and not Jem. But then it’s like “oh she doesn’t have to choose she gets BOTH”! That was such a cop out and it made me angry because then what’s the point of the love triangle anyway? The only character I liked was Jem and the fandom treated him like crap when the series was being released just because he wasn’t a “hot brooding bad boy” like Will was. For me I would like to have a guy who’s caring and kind. I would definitely not want a narcissist who treated me like crap when we first met. No matter how hot he may be.

[@ZielonaPastela]

I agree! I've never felt comfortable in the world Cassandra Clare created in her books. I've read the original Mortal Instruments and was both pissed and weirded out by the stupid conflicts and shitty resolutions. I only listened to the Infernal Devices because of booktube and came to the conclusion that this is just not for me. I liked Jem, Magnus, Charlotte and Henry, didn't particularly dislike Will but Tessa was the real disappointment of a character. I failed to understand why those guys were THAT much into her. And the resolution to that love triangle? Complete bullsh*t. Someone just wanted to have the best of both worlds, like the consequences were just a joke.

[@samkathryn4825]

Good . . . I can feel your anger. Strike these characters down with all your hatred and your journey towards the dark side will be complete!

[@lostfaerie9570]

That awkward moment when your favourite booktuber roasts your favourite character 😅

[@samkathryn4825]

Finally, Calaena Sardothian gets owned!!!!

[@MartiasMuses]

She had it comin´

[@silverwolf28]

readingwithavengeance did a chapter snark on it if you want to see it torn apart btw

[@Lalaland666-k3x]

@@MartiasMusesshe only had herself to blame

[@meganb.higgins973]

I'm so with you when it comes to Jane Eyre! I even asked my boyfriend if he has any hidden wives in the attic or elsewhere when we first got together lol He doesn't just an FYI.

[@JeantheSecond]

I should have asked my ex-boyfriend that.

[@meganb.higgins973]

@@JeantheSecond Now that sounds like an interesting story

[@JeantheSecond]

@@meganb.higgins973 He lived two separate lives in two separate towns. A fiancé in one town; a wife in the other. To be fair, the wife wasn’t hidden in an attic, just in another town. He had separate groups of friends, too. When I found out, I dumped him and never looked back.

[@meganb.higgins973]

@@JeantheSecond A secret wife anywhere is a bad sign lol. Glad you got out of that situation!

[@dontdoitsayan2921]

I think you meant Dimple when you were talking about When Dimple Met Rishi. Rishi is the guy and Dimple is the girl. 😅😅

[@sukanyaparashar9474]

If it's any help, I hate Dimple

[@ShalomDove]

Dimple is very... trying, at times. I much preferred Rishi.

[@mitchsimoes1305]

hey Merphy, just wanted to thank you for sharing your passion of reading with us. you’ve inspired me to become an avid reader this past year and even to start my own channel! just wanted to say thanks 😁

[@mascotwithadinosaur9353]

"And then I read the Infernal Devices... AND THEN I DIED!" Welp, RIP Meprhy ;-;

[@MagillanicaLouM]

Merphy roasting the bad boy trope in the most pg way: oh my gosh, I'm being too mean Idk what it is about this moment, but that was just... Precious

[@gerritdeman6410]

It's been a while since I've played Doki Doki Literature Club but I actually remember really liking Yuri (even though her obsession with knives was a little scary). She was easy to relate with for me because I'm also a quiet, shy and somewhat awkward person myself.

[@UnmaskingElysium]

Okay, I've literally never met anyone who's been anywhere near as annoyed about this one as I am: Legend of Korra's Toph. I love her in A:TLA, but in LoK she doesn't seem to have experienced any growth, despite being like eighty and having two daughters. Plus, they had her completely abandon one of her core principles (face things head-on) so they could do what they wanted with Lin and Su-Yin's backstory. I mean, seriously? At like eighty she's barely changed at all (except maybe to be a little meaner), but at like 30 or whatever she's just gonna ship one of her daughters away so she doesn't have to deal with looking bad?

[@laurenbaker7805]

That annoyed me too! There were lots of things LoK did well and so many things it really really didn't do well on.

[@amelmahouche740]

hmmm... I never really considered this. You do have quite a strong point here, with the "not-facing-things-head-on". I guess I'll have to rewatch Korra and see

[@riverreads905]

Love a rant. This was fire. Especially the Jane Eyre. Read that last year and the characters are rough haha

[@chromoglv7103]

Me: goes to the discription and sees death note. Me: it's gonna be misa isn't it. P.S I think the only purpose Misa is in the story is: Spoiler.. For catching the third kira 2) to see how light has changed since he got the note book. Like when he actually doesn't want to manipulate her for the information l wanted after his memory got erased, and how he suddenly becomes soo close to her after he gains memory back.

[@luciddreams7540]

Yeah, this is why I love how Misa's used, though I get why most people don't. It showcases Light's descent. He won't give up half his lifespan for power but he LOVES that she did. Seeing how he treats her without memories really highlights how the death note's corrupted him. He would've taken a "righteous" path if not tempted by power. Also, I know people so desperate to be loved they'll do anything. And I know people who treat loved ones like pawns. It's kind of validating to see all that portrayed.

[@chromoglv7103]

@@luciddreams7540 and also the author told that if light wouldn't have found the death note he would have become the best police officer in business and would have worked with L

[@luciddreams7540]

@@chromoglv7103 Thanks for that tidbit! That's amazing. Yes, Light was on a good path but when he was tested he was found wanting. Feels very LOTR, with power destroying a person's humanity. Death Note was such a great meditation on justice vs morality.

[@lostschedule51]

'Mat, honey, boo' - I lost it. Amazing! 😂 For me it's Egwene. I never really like her.

[@smuckfuzzer]

I was okay with Egwene until the back half of the series and then I couldn’t stand her.

[@whiteraven562]

My least favorite WoT character is definitely Faile. Maybe she gets better in the later books, but in the first ten or so I absolutely despise her. Perrin deserved better.

[@cormachayden1614]

I go back and forth on Egwene, but mostly I dislike her. She gets so stuck on being secretive just because that's what she's supposed to do. Even while watching all that secrecy nearly destroy the world, she just refuses to learn. She's in charge, and secrets and unconditional commands with neither consideration, nor explanation are the way she stays in charge... even though it's stupid.

[@Limpshot_McGee]

@whiteraven562 I didn’t really like Faile at first, especially during the beginning chapters, but I completely turned around on her when (SPOILERS) she comforted Perrin after his whole family died and let him deal with all the emotions he didn’t realize he was suppressing.

[@whiteraven562]

@@Limpshot_McGee That's...nice of her, but comforting your spouse/boyfriend when their family dies is kind of the bare minimum of kindness I'd expect. If I'm remembering the order of events right, that happens in book 4, right? That's the same book she starts hitting him when he won't abide by her petty, childish mind games. So, to me, the fact that she was nice once doesn't begin to make up for the fact that she was verbally and physically abusive.

[@te-ter]

I agree with your opinions on Yuri. Her poems are so "deep" it made me want to Yuri myself sometimes. Although my fav was Sayori, because I'm not fond of tsunderes (and I'd rather not talk about the fact that at the beginning i thought: hey, where is monika, what if I want monika?) Everything you said about Rochester. I was done with him the moment he tried to pull of the "romani woman" act to manipulate her into her confessing her feelings about him. (omg you play danganronpaaaa 👌❤️)

[@namkia205]

I thought the same about Monika at first too, hahahaha! And after I realized she was not there I thought she was just the tutorial character, soon the plot twist "saved" me though.

[@abbys6260]

On Tuon: not defending her, but RJ had plans to write a spinoff series following Mat and Toun in Seanchan. So I've always liked to think that we see her at the beginning of her arch and if he would've lived to write everything he had planned we would see a completed arch.

[@catherinefenquist5022]

I agree with your comments about Will and especially Jem! I don't dislike Will, I just found him kind of boring in TID, especially considering the other option is Jem, who is talented, sweet, supportive, and just all around more interesting. Also, his struggle was more relatable and heartwrenching to me than Will's.

[@nemesis8508]

The fact that you're playing Danganronpa fills me with a sort of joy that I can't quite put into words. I literally clicked this as soon as i saw Danganronpa on the thumbnail.

[@theseekerscave5600]

That sounds like a thing Nagito would say talking about hope 🤣😂

[@nemesis8508]

@@theseekerscave5600 Someone like ME? Being compared to NAGITO?! I don't deserve such kind words. I am just a stepping stone, after all.

[@theseekerscave5600]

@@nemesis8508 🤣🤣🤣

[@graces.7310]

It took me too long to realize that if I wanted to feel okay with any of the characters in the mortal instruments/clockwork series I would have to abandon all rational thought.

[@sai_lakshmanan]

I totally get all your feelings about Will. It was like seeing my thoughts on a mirror, but in an exquisitely mean way that's fun 😂😂

[@S4mmyS4m]

Meggie, the Protagonist from Inkheart, really annoys me. She's such an annoying, selfish kid, but everyone around her just condones it. I ended up hating most of the series, except for the parts she wasn't in. But the whole series is so highly praised, I feel like I'm alone with my opinion. She was ok in the first book, but her character only got worse as the series went on. The girl never learned a lesson and got everything she wanted in the end.

[@felipeiphar1129]

Your expressions for tumbnaills are pure gold

[@fukyomammason]

The reason you hate Yuri and those other two is the reason I have trouble with a lot Japanese writing in general (I know DDLC isn’t Japanese, but it’s pretending to be). It’s very often too reliant on tropes and archetypes. There are exceptions, and there are some that are well written, but that tendency and a strange predilection for telling over showing things that can be just as easily illustrated through context ruin so many good premises for me.

[@edmg7]

Don't feel bad about disliking Hifumi and Toko, most people don't like them. Although *spoilers for the first game*: People tend to like Toko on the whole because she gets fleshed out more in the sequel game Ultra Despair Girls.

[@maryfreegirl2029]

I like toko even just from dr1, idk she makes me laugh

[@Kubi_B]

i liked toko from the second chapter so

[@Osaris98]

Toko becomes an amazing character in Ultra Despair Girls, it was such a satisfying glow up

[@Hazyla]

Toko in THH: no Toko is UDG: yes

[@thewritingreference2629]

Misa did exactly what she designed to be, as something to break Light's and L's stalemate. She was basically a device to create an upset when it was needed.

[@mrstrangeworld5977]

agree she served her purpose

[@Lizzie_04]

I read lots of Cassandra Clare back in middle school and in retrospect the Herdondale boys were just annoying and melodramatic.

[@gabarcoded]

honestly the potential of every female character in death note is really just a bit sad theyre all dead, used by, and/or in love with light

[@canada1529]

Well I mean Light and L just happened to be male. And most police officers are also male. The only reason the two major female characters are so dim witted and gullible is because light actively sought after partners that fit that description. He couldn’t have someone who was actually cunning because she would have been able to see through his bullshit. So I’m hesitant to say that death note is sexist. Just that there’s a lack of female characters. My one complaint is Naomi Misora. It’s not even about wanting more diversity in the cast (which would have also been nice), but she honestly had so much potential. I honestly feel that if she had lived longer than like 2 episodes she would have cracked the mystery on herself. Especially if she actually got to team up with L. She had so much potential, and it just irks me that Light managed to catch her off guard during a vulnerable time she wasn’t thinking as clearly. It was also just by complete chance that he ran into her. And at some point is has to stop being a “would a been cool if this happened, but”- because there was so much setup put into her character. Penber was essentially a mini boss leading up to her, she had all the motive to go after Kira, she was just an interesting character, and she was a formidable opponent to light. The exact type of women he WOULDN’T want in his life. And then she just suddenly dies? Just like that? Really? Then what was all this buildup for? I’m a fan of Near, and I really don’t think the second half of the series is anywhere near as bad as many would like to make it out to be. But the transition would have been made so much easier if Naomi had actually joined the task force. Having her work directly with L, then having either her die instead, or having her take over for L would have been much better for the story imo. Also, I guarantee Naomi would have picked up on Light’s taste in women. It’s mighty suspicious that the prime suspect of the Kira case, suspected of manipulating the police force and being a pathological liar, would want such gullible partners. At the very least, it’s predatory and I’m surprised that L didn’t bring that up at any point. Near us dozens of times better than most death note fans give him credit for, but the right choice for the job of being L’s successor would have been Naomi Misora.

[@yuukinoyuki9064]

@@canada1529 Naomi hurts me so bad because she DID crack the case in many ways and she was perfectly placed to raise the stakes in the story. Light messed up a lot in his dealings with Rey Penber and having Naomi there as a constant reminder would've driven Light's paranoia up so much. He would have always been wondering what Rey had told her. Not to mention she would have been perfect in L's corner. A great foil to Misa Misa since her loyalty to L wasn't blind, it came from working the BB cases with him. I hoped, for the longest time, that him killing Naomi would be the mistake the brought Light down. That L would have heard about Naomi killing herself and would look into it as a side project cause that doesn't sound like her, and catch that the last person she interacted with was Light ...then learn that she had information for the team about Kira... ...and later learn that Kira can kill in ways other than a heart attack. I also just think a third party investigator that's not tied to the police would've been really interesting. Alas, 'tis but a dream.

[@JeantheSecond]

@@canada1529 Creators actually get to choose the gender of their characters, you know. They don’t “just happen” to be male. And you can kill someone by writing their name down in a book, but female cops are too unrealistic?

[@Mk-kq1ub]

Halle and Weddy were pretty cool

[@mrstrangeworld5977]

@@canada1529 I disagree it really wasn't built up like that and him taking her out was dope she was never meant to be a key player only to show how evil light is and is able to catch even someone as quick witted as her off guard

[@larzinthelibrary2530]

I haven't read most of these, but I totally agree about Throne of Glass- I couldn't make it past the first book (the scene with the chocolates was enough for me!). I also didn't like Will in The Infernal Devices that much, but I couldn't stand Jace from The Mortal Instruments even more. I also quit that universe after the first 9 books. The only one I will kind of play devil's advocate for is Rochester- I don't think that we, the readers, were necessarily meant to like him. My opinions about him and the book change somewhat each time I reread it (it's been some time now since the last reread, though...) but I think Charlotte Bronte made it clear that his actions were wrong. SPOILER ALERT- I accepted their romance as well, because I think she made sure he was sufficiently punished for his sins.

[@luuuuux_]

God, I hated Jace so much. Why does everyone like him so much?

[@lizzie1024]

Jace and clary both are so annoying. I always skipped their parts.

[@luuuuux_]

@@lizzie1024 I wanted to punch them nearly all the time. Clary was okay in some moments but she was quite insufferable. I always liked Izzy and Alex more than them. Simon and Magnus were also really great. Actually, everyone was better than them. Except maybe the villains. They were pretty cool though.

[@polyhymnia701]

Pretty sure Celaena is just the genderflipped version of Jace. They are both the most annoying character in fiction 😂

[@polyhymnia701]

Also agree with the OP that Rochester is a bit too complex for the "unlikeable" label. I think the reader is *supposed* to be uncomfortable with him and always wonder if Jane made the right decision. And his actions most certainly had terrible consequences.

[@candacediana]

Merphy rant videos are the best!

[@alta3621]

Yuri is one of my favorite characters. I do agree with her portentousness being a little too much but that’s part of her character: she feels so inadequate and doubts herself at everything; she has to compensate by feeling better at everyone else at the one thing she really cares about. (I initially disliked Natsuki because she was unnecessarily rude but I just ended up feeling bad for everyone but Monika in the end.)

[@Dawnleapord]

Would love to see a danganronpa review after you finish the game (or the whole series) - it's a favourite of mine!

[@TheNinjaDwarfBiker]

I was so surprised to see Doki Doki Literature Club in the thumbnail lol

[@alanfriesen9837]

That's not a trope, that's genuinely real toxic relationships.

[@wraith.ferron]

Danganronpa is a great series, and there will be reading obsessed characters that are no where near as bad. There's the 4 games, multiple spinoff manga, light novels, anime, etc. so there are many characters to love and hate.

[@MargarettaMs]

I recently discovered your channel and binged bunch of your videos (I love your passion and also your voice, is that weird to say? :D). Honestly, I applaud you for getting through 3 books of the Throne of Glass series because I couldn't deal even with the first book. I went into it hearing how the MC is so amazing, and strong and whatever and she was so annoying and nothing ever really happened, ugh. Also, I loved you saying "Man, you're an assassin, did you know it?" :D

[@avsambart]

Everyone is with you on the Misa injustice. We've all been saying it for years. We hate how the author treated her. Like you said, she had so much potential!

[@mrstrangeworld5977]

I don't think that's true

[@Bailey_93]

Was waiting for the Will Herondale hate 😂😂

[@itzkirml]

JEM SUPREMACY I HAVE BEEN SAYING THIS FOR YEARSS

[@ceciliaatie4249]

i’m just here for Aelin/Celaena. SHE WAS SO BAD I JUST HATED HER, you should definitely do a video complaining about tog :)

[@livixdesardet]

6:26 I don't read books that much but I'm here for the 5% of a gamer that Merphy is! More video game on this channel!!! Thank you! :D

[@cormachayden1614]

Half of these are so bad, they made Merphy forget how to words.

[@riakm921]

I'll maintain until I die that just as the Wheel forced Rand into his savior predicament for the "greater good", so to was Mat forced into a relationship he never would have wanted, were he unforced. It is repeated constantly that Mat is acting towards Tuon against his preferences, and has to resign himself to making the most of his awful situation! The Wheel ran out of good ideas and drunkenly spun-out Mats predicament into the Pattern, just because it couldn't come up with a more competent method of securing the Seanchan's military help in the Last Battle.

[@colonelsanders177]

You saying “okay! So today...” gives me life for some reason I love it

[@klatchabobby]

Didn't Misa introduce both the solution and a new barrier against it? She was a help and a hinderance. If she weren't who she was, who knows what kind of character we would've got. That's what I like so much about her and Rem, they gave Light new options and the answer to all of his issues while also creating so many problems for him near the end.

[@mrstrangeworld5977]

yh I agree

[@ZielonaPastela]

I just don't get the resolution to the love triangle in The Infernal Devices. Cassandra Clare wanted to have the best of both worlds but for me it ended up being incredibly anticlimactic. The last straw that made me not want to read anything set in the Shadowhunter world ever again. Jem was a gem, tho.

[@kiwicorn9766]

I really wanted misa to be like that but in the ending, she was like: 'ah who cares if my boyfriend dies'

[@SilentTrip]

Spoilers and TW I thought it was implied that committed su##de ? She was standing high up there with her shoes off (which in Japanese culture indicates someone committed su##de by jumping) Her story was heartbreaking

[@SilentTrip]

Finally someone sees how Yuri was so rude and disrespectful to Natsuki, I was shocked at gamers who didn't notice the toxicity from her and just focused on her body ugh. I didn't have any feelings for Toko but I liked her after playing Despair Girls since she develops as a character so much more, and it is quite beautiful

[@musharratrahman2186]

I totally agree with your assessment of Tuon. I really tried to like for Mat's sake but then her meeting with Rand just completely decimated any possibility of that. A person who holds the fate of the world for ransom for imprisoning certain people against their will despite having proof that their reasoning for doing that is wrong is just completely bonkers. I can understand greed for money and power for enslaving other people because that's what happened in reality, but she claims to do it for the greater good and she enjoys breaking their will. Just doesn't work for me.

[@dibti0]

Oh my god I want to hear more about your adventures in Danganronpa. I love those games. :)

[@andrejohan2425]

Some times a Merphy video is just the dose of calming happiness you need on a rough day

[@elizamb5280]

Hey Merphy! Just wanted to say thank you for the recent Peter Pan video - I've been trying to get my little brother into reading for a while, but for some reason I hadn't tried Peter Pan, but yesterday I did and we read it in one sitting❤ He loved it so much we'll be reading it again today😇

[@littlemissstilly]

Your videos in which you are critical are by far my favourite!! Don't get me wrong, I love positivity, but so many of these books are ones that frustrate me and no one seems to talk about the things I take issue with!! So I feel vindicated lol

[@nightbreed9305]

Characters I don't like: Mockingjay: Katniss and Snow: Literal idiots that do idiotic things so the book can have a "smart and political" ending twist. Hey, book, if your smart twist requires your book to have its characters do things they would NEVER do just to get to it, your characters suck and the plot is broken. Snow would've escaped way the hell a long time before the fight got to the capitol and Katniss would not mourn for weeks over the destruction of a town she hated when all her family and friends are alive and well. And she wouldn't just stay on her ass when Peta is in danger. That's not her character, she literally sacrificed herself in a heartbeat for her sister. She would definitely rescue Peta way faster than she does in this book. Awful ending. The Red Pyramid: Sadie: I like Carter. I hate Sadie. Her segments are a drag and she is always complaining when she has had a fantastic life compared to Carter, who seldom gripes. She's annoying and entitled. Divergent: EVERY CHARACTER IS ACTUALLY AWFUL. The Dark Tower Movie: Flagg: This isn't Flagg. It doesn't act like Flagg and is constantly stabbing everything Flagg's character stood for in the back. Worse is that this is apparently a sequel to the books and it most certainly isn't a faithful one. Flagg would never destroy the universe because he has always tried to rule it. Literally let most of the population die in "The Stand" so he could take over and always stabs people in the back so he can rule. None of that is here. Also, he almost never makes jokes or smiles, a staple of the character in King's books.

[@izstrella]

Yeah, even as a kid Sadie bothered me. I mean, everyone’s problems are valid and trauma shouldn’t be a comparison game for sure, but there are better ways to deal with your displeasure than constantly complaining! I guess if that’s the character flaw she’s supposed to overcome by the end of the series then it’s fine, but did she? That’s not rhetorical, I honestly can’t remember, haha.

[@nightbreed9305]

@@izstrella Yeah, I flew through Carter's segments, but Sadie's were a drag.

[@izstrella]

@Lovely_Theaceae • Oh if she improved as a person by the end of the series then her self-centredness is a-okay in the first books. I haven’t read the end of the series yet so I don’t know, but every character should have a growth arc and if she does, good for the story.

[@arienrhod1]

Victor Frankenstein is THE WORST: - An indecisive drama queen constantly stuck in his head - Has multiple months-long nervous breakdowns because of plot timeline reasons - Apparently, he's a weather mage - since he can control the weather with his mood (and he's miserable and overdramatic all the time, so there is a lot of descriptions of storms in that book). - Plus, he does the exact same thing as Mr. Rochester in Jane Eyre: "I have this terrible secret that could get us both killed, but I'm only going to tell it to you AFTER you marry me..."

[@gwin7267]

not to be pretentious but that's the point of the book, you're supposed to find victor frankenstein irresponsible, bad at making decisions, impulsive, lacking in judgement, and overall insufferable. his personality is necessary for the novel to convey messages about taking responsibility for your actions, parental abuse, and hubris.

[@arienrhod1]

@@gwin7267 I agree. But spending half the book in his POV doesn't make for a pleasant reading experience. Besides, the question isn't about the characters who don't make sense, it's about the characters you hate

[@branna3606]

I agree 2000% on Rochester, I could never stand him! And I wrote my dissertation on Jane Eyre, one of my all time favorite books! However, I was always so disappointed by the fact that they ended up together.. Jane should have ended up on her own, independent woman that she was.

[@lelushdsilva9200]

Merphy.... hold on a sec.... DID YOU JUST SAY THAT MISA AMANE HAD ANY POTENTIAL OR CAPABILITY TO MANIPULATE LIGHT YAGAMI?!!!!

[@heathercampbell6059]

If somebody wrote a story about that, I'd read it.

[@mrstrangeworld5977]

@@heathercampbell6059 it wouldn't and couldn't happen

[@LiaGoldie]

I never saw Rochester that way, I always saw him more sort of lighthearted teasing/banter with Jane, nothing sinister

[@ramudon2428]

Same. To me it read like he was testing her character and personality (which sounds more adversarial than intended I suppose) for compatability. Which, to me, seems a sign of respect and admiration. If not directly, at least searching for the possibility of ending up there egged on by seeing the potential in the first place. I doubt he even had a need to test for that with most women in his life, knowing they weren't of the same stock really.

[@stephl6371]

Rochester literally ruined Jane Eyre for me. Also completely agree with Celaena and Dimple, they were awful.

[@lupaecainis]

I totally agree with your hate for Tuon and how Mat bears the responsibility for never speaking up. In fact, in the last book he himself captures a slave of his own, that Sharan channeler. She was an enemy and can be turned into a weapon against the Shadow but there is a line after which you're as bad as the Shadow.

[@katiehamilton3915]

Your dislike of Rochester makes my heart happy in a weird way bc it’s literally for ALLLL the right reasons- your perspective on this book has made me realize a few things about it a little differently !!

[@jacobmoeller5345]

There was not a single character on this list from a book I've read, but I still very much enjoyed this video. I just get a kick out of the passion you have about these characters. Thank you again for an enjoyable lunch break!

[@karaokegirl1313]

Your take on Rochester is right and you should say it (and I say that as someone who counts Jane Eyre as one of my favorite books).

[@just-trying-my-best-everyday]

The salt levels in this video are through the roof and I am so here for it.

[@CatH092]

Loved this video agreed with so much! Especially Throne of Glass and the (in my opinion) over-hyped Cassandra Claire series.

[@genevievenewton1532]

I quit after queen of shadows. The whole part with the dragons and the multiple points of view seemed unnecessary and way too confusing for me to wrap my head around. I love chaol because he is the only character with any sort of personality, but everyone hates him.

[@Aashmi247]

Little did Merphy know that "When Dimple Meets Rishi" has a new adaption into a Netflix series played by a famous Indian you tuber.

[@chillyspinner3183]

Oh wow, I’d love for you to talk about Danganronpa when you’re finished!

[@SymphoniaFan101]

Omg you mentioning DDLC and Danganronpa makes me love u even more

[@sapphirebre]

Based on your rant about Rochester, I think you would really enjoying the retelling, My Plain Jane. I had loved Jane Eyre, but this retelling made some of Jane’s and Rochester’s weirder actions make sense while poking fun at them. Plus, there’s a whole fun plot revolving ghosts and a secret society!

[@IndieLou123]

I agree so much with your points on Mr Rochester omg when I see people saying they wish they had "their own Mr Rochester" I am CONCERNED

[@given2dream]

🤣🤣 the “jerkity jerk jerk jerk”🤣🤣 Editing on point Korey!