Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Top Ten Tuesday: 5 Characters Everyone Loves But I Just Don't Get/Top 5 Characters I LOVE But Others Seem to Dislike



For this Top Ten Tuesday, we had the option of doing the Top 10 Characters Everyone Loves But I Just Don't Get OR the Top 10 Characters I Love But Others Seem to Dislike. Seeing as I couldn't come up with ten characters for each category, I decided to do five of each.

WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS!

Top 5 Characters Everyone Loves But I Just Don't Get

5) Dimitri Belikov from Vampire Academy
Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy, #1)

I've warmed to Dimitri over the course of the series, especially in books 5 and 6 but I still wouldn't say he is the most compelling love interest. I always felt like he and Rose lacked chemistry but I'm still happy they ended up together.

4) Tris Prior from Divergent
Image result for tris divergent

Full disclosure: I never finished reading the Divergent series. I never even made it through the first book. I think one of the main reasons for that was because I just couldn't connect with Tris. I found her to be totally unlikable - and not in an interesting way, in an irritating way.

3) Gale Hawthorne from The Hunger Games
Image result for gale hunger games

Yes, I'm aware that Gale (and Liam Hemsworth) is tall, handsome, and all around swoon-worthy. But I am baffled by Gale/Katniss shippers. Gale is brooding, vengeful, and has a tendency towards ruthlessness. Is that really a guy you want the heroine to end up with?

2) Edward Cullen from Twilight
Image result for twilight edward

Ever since high school, I could never understand other people's admiration of the abusive, possessive, and controlling Edward Cullen. And speaking of abusive boyfriends...

1) Christian Grey from Fifty Shades of Gray
Image result for christian grey jamie dornan

Even I am not immune to Jamie Dornan's hotness in the film version. But still. He kidnaps Ana and removes her clothes when she is unconscious, manipulates her into performing sexual acts that she is uncomfortable with, stalks her, refuses to respect her personal space or her choices and is generally a complete asshole. He makes Edward Cullen look like a sensible choice. (I'm aware that I'm definitely not the only one with a problem with Mr. Grey but enough people love him that I had to put him on this list.)

And now...

Top 5 Characters I LOVE But Others Seem to Dislike

5) Peeta Mellark from The Hunger Games
 Image result for peeta mellark

I've heard a lot of criticism about Peeta that doesn't make sense. He's whiny. He's weak. He's manipulative. But I'm pretty sure Peeta saved Katniss on multiple occasions, was consistently there for her when she wasn't there for him (except maybe in the third book when he was brainwashed) and tried to promote a peaceful agenda through words and nonviolence. I wish I could meet a guy like Peeta in real life.

4) Prince Kai from the Lunar Chronicles
Image result for prince kai lunar chronicles

Poor Prince Kai gets a lot of flack. He actually seems to get the same kind of criticism as Peeta. That he sat back and let Cinder do all the work and was generally useless. But I love Kai. I love that he is conflicted about his feelings for Cinder and isn't some macho hero who is all action and no brains. Kai is incredibly smart and uses his wits on several occasions to get through tough spots and even save lives. What can I say? I love a Beta male.

3) Amy Dunne from Gone Girl
Image result for amy dunne gone girl

Amy Dunne is a murderous, manipulative psychopath who traps her husband into staying in a nightmare of a marriage. Some people call her Evil Incarnate. To me she's one of the most powerful, interesting literary villains to come along in a long time. All hail Queen Bitch.

2) Kylo Ren from Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Image result for kylo ren

'He's emo. He's weak. He's a drama queen.' 
To me, Kylo Ren is one of the most interesting villains I've ever seen. I love that he's emotional and has hissy fits. I've seen enough stoic psychopathic male villains to last me for a lifetime. And, excuse me, he's weak? I don't know if I watched the same movie as everybody else but I'm pretty sure he got hit in the chest with Chewbacca's lethal bowcaster (a weapon capable of sending Stormtroopers flying) and walked it off and went on to have a lightsaber duel with TWO people!

1) Severus Snape from Harry Potter
Image result for severus snape

I used to be incredibly naive and thought that Snape was a universally beloved character in the Harry Potter series. That was until I started stumbling across a lot of Snape-hate online. People say he was a heartless bully, that his love for Lily was obsessive and weird, that it was ridiculous that Harry named his son after him. I'm not entirely sure that these people understand that the Harry Potter series was just as much about Snape's redemption as it was about Harry defeating Voldemort. Severus Snape is one of the most dynamic, compelling characters in all of literature and he will 'always' be one of my favourite characters.

Top Ten Tuesday is an original book meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.

5 comments:

  1. Hah! I guess we'll have to agree to disagree about Hunger Games heroes. In my TTT, I have Peeta as a character I didn't like and felt that Katniss should've chosen Gale.

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  2. I had Tris and Gale both on my list this week too. I also agree on Peeta, I loved him and would love to find a guy like him in real life, so I don't get what all the hate was about.

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  3. Thank you! Gale is too much me!
    Great TOP 10!
    My TTT.

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  4. I feel like I'm always making arguments for why both Snape and Kylo were great characters. I just want to give you a hug for agreeing with me on BOTH! <3 My TTT

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    1. YES! I'm so glad to know I'm not the only one who loves Snape and Kylo! They're both incredibly complex and nuanced characters and that makes them awesome! :)

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