The problem with Legacies was never the writing

Fans can all agree that there were some real problems with these Vampire Diaries Spinoff Legacies – but the biggest problem was his main character, Hope Mikaelson. The Vampire Diarieswhich premiered in 2009 and ran for eight seasons, Was beloved for its characters and relationships that formed over the years. It was successful enough that it spawned a spinoff based on the antagonistic original vampire family, The originalsIn 2013, which ran for five seasons before coming to a memorable close.

The originals Also spawned its own spinoff, the second spinoff in the TVD Universe, with 2018s Legacies. Legacies Followed the exploits of supernatural tribride Hope Mikaelson, the daughter of the late Mikaelson family patriarch Klaus, and her exploits at the Salvatore Boarding School for the Young & Gifted. from the beginning, Legacies Has a wildly different tone and feel The Vampire Diaries And The originalsAnd it struggled to gain the same traction for so many reasons. While the uneven plotting was to blame, the biggest problem was Hope itself: once the show tied itself to the character, it stuck and there’s a big reason that Legacies Season 5 never happened.

Hope was not a very likable character in Legacies

Her “trauma”-based personality is a problem with a lot of YA female protagonists

Being quite friendly, Hope Mikaelson was a frustrating character. Too often the frustrating aspects of her personality crystallized into something that was quite unlikely, and unfortunately, they eventually became her entire personality. The writers were so concerned with giving her mistakes and closing her down that it had the opposite effect; Her prickly, defensive, know-it-all attitude eventually dominated Hope’s character and defined who she was. It made it hard to root for her, which isn’t great when the entire series of Legacies was built around her character. If Hope didn’t evolve, the show didn’t either – and Hope didn’t evolve.

The problem with Hope Mikaelson is a problem that has infiltrated female YA protagonists in recent years, whether in books or on TV shows. For whatever reason, when writers create a flawed male lead, even one who might be a bit of a jerk, he’s still charming enough to make up for it. But with female protagonists, especially in YA content, Strong is too often confused with just being an unmitigated brat – b•chi, even. The writers will try to explain it and excuse it, unjustifiably because of “trauma”, but the result is still the same: the character is just hard to like, and this was unfortunately the case with Hope in Legacies.

Legacy Season 4 tried to fix it but it was too late

The good ship Legacy is already steering into the iceberg in Season 4

In early seasons of LegaciesHope insisted on going it alone, handling everything herself and facing all the dangers solo without letting anyone help her. Even when the results were disastrous, she insisted that she could handle it all herself. in a certain moment, It crossed the line of nobility and want to protect her loved ones to just be stubborn insistence on being the martyr. When Hope’s attitude began to read as if she thought her friends were spoiled and couldn’t handle themselves, other characters began to vent their frustration with her, especially her boyfriend, Landon.

finally, Her refusal to grow slowed down the show’s momentum and character developmentAnd it became a point of criticism from fans who were frustrated by her repeating the same patterns. It also absorbed development for Legacies‘ supporting characters who are consistently sidelined for Hope’s fixation on her relationship with Landon. It’s been hard to buy into the supporting character storylines when it’s been the Hope Mikaelson show for so long, both on screen and in her own mind, and Legacies And Hope suffered serious stagnation because of it. by Legacies Season 4, the writers seemed to understand this and began to bring hope around, but by then, it was too little, too late and the uneven fourth season was also the last.

It’s a shame, too, because Hope could have been a great role model for younger viewers, someone who was tough and protective, but didn’t let her loss define her. Despite the significance of her name Hope, it was a quality she rarely exhibited, which is sad. Her story would have been much more powerful If she was a character who made room in her heart for new lovers Despite having lost others in the past, rather than completely shutting down and pushing everyone away. It was an unfortunate arc for a character with such potential and Legacies Fans, and Hope’s character, deserved better.

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