*gently takes your hands* When I am saying that Colin doesn't get a narrative, I am talking about in the grand scheme of the fandom, of which I am a part of. I think Colin DOES get a narrative in the show! Absolutely! I loved him standing up to Jack and I loved him having conversations with Will and I loved his quips and his small moments! That isn't what this post is about, but I'm glad you brought it up!
I do, however, disagree with a lot of what you wrote about the goings on in the fandom, and while I'm glad you haven't had a negative experience in it. . .I absolutely have and to act as though these are not things that happen, that I have SEEN happen, is pretty insulting tbh
+Fics
It is absolutely NOT a common fandom ideology that Colin be mad at Penelope. Near every fic I have read, and mind you, I have been in this fandom for well over a year, has been a defense of Penelope's actions with little or no apology. Even here, you do so. 'she did what she did to protect Colin and her family' 'he doesn't take her seriously' 'she can't explain the pregnancy situation to him'. These are excuses, not accountability, and that is the trope of which I speak of.
+Penance
The majority of posts about it are ABSOLUTELY wanting him to suffer. If you want, I can include screenshots? I feel like I shouldn't have to, tho. There have been COUNTLESS posts about how Colin should be 'screaming crying throwing up on his knees' for her forgiveness. Social status is one thing, yes, but Penelope also has power and privilege in their society as LW that never gets discussed. (also, i see that 'because she is entitled to her feelings too?' comment. the only feelings that are ever acknowledged are hers. point to me the posts in which people discuss how hurtful it is to be ghosted by your friend and how Colin would be justifiably upset about it)
+Depth
'i am fairly certain he will keep that hobby up in the show as well' Full speculation, but I definitely hope so! Everything you listed is also incredibly surface level. The narrative doesn't give us scenes of him grappling with anything that is happening to him. In particular with what happened regarding Pen and Marina. At the end of the day, that was Pen's story arc, not his. We get. . .what? 1 reaction about it from him?
+Confiding
Colin confiding in Pen is. . .the thing friends are supposed to do? Her confiding in HIM is the thing friends are supposed to do? I don't get what you're trying to say here. One conversation about purpose does not a narrative make
+Penelope as the Villain
oh BOY is there a lot to unpack here. Penelope IS the villain in Colin's narrative. Or, I should say, Lady Whistledown is. Look, I get it, you're looking at it from Penelope's perspective (which is EXACTLY WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!!!) but take it from Colin's.
You are young and infatuated. There's someone here, someone new, who draws your attention in a way no one else has before. She's smart and funny and beautiful and she likes your jokes. You bring her flowers and she loves them every single time. You can't stop smiling when the two of you dance. People say you're too young and dismiss you but you don't care, you like her and that's enough. Hell, you like her enough to marry her!
BOOM: TMZ comes out of the blue with an article about private information aired public. It's news that you would have taken in stride if she just trusted you enough to talk to you, but you also get why she didn't. This stranger, though, this anonymous publisher, puts an axe into everything. Hurts your ex-fiance, hurts YOU. Publishes mean things about your favorite sister Daphne, awful things about Eloise, cruel comments about your new sister-in-law.
And then, THEN, you find out: she's your friend. Meant to be, at least. She's the person who has always come over with your little sister, smiles at you, listens. She had ample opportunity to tell you. She lied to your face. She listened to you lamenting how you could have done more for Marina and all but says for you to move on. All whilst being the person who doomed her in the first place.
She IS the villain to him. That's the complexity the show has spun: the person who has hurt him, arguably, the most, is also the person he falls in love with. It's dark and it's a disaster and it's beautiful in its' own way, but he is NEVER. GIVEN. THE. GRACE!!! never. look at your comment.
THIS is denying him his narrative. This is 'Pen did this because-' 'Pen is a victim because-' People can have difficult circumstances and still do TERRIBLE things to others. People can grapple with their bad decisions and feel bad about them and still make a bad decision. Penelope made a bad decision. She doomed her family. She doomed herself. She hurt the person she was trying to help. She hurt her friends, her mother, her reputation. She fucked up. For a crush. A crush she then ignores. A crush she then ghosts out of her life because friendship isn't enough. A crush she has to come to see the complexity in.
There's no parsing that. She did a bad thing and no matter how many excuses she gives for it 'I DID IT FOR YOOOOUUUUUU!' that doesn't change it
Colin IS someone who is level headed and understanding. I DON'T think he'll see her as a villain or irredeemable, and it's something I LOVE about him! He's compassionate and kind and he WILL hear her out, but I hope he also calls her out.
Sidenote, I really have come to HATE the narrative of Colin being miserable with Marina and that being justification for Penelope to ruin her life and to fuck Colin over. Do I think they suit perfectly and they would have had a lovely marriage with fireworks and sparkles? No. But I think they'd have been fine? Like she is with Phillip? You think Penelope sitting on the secret of being the Queen's #1 Most Wanted WOULDN'T have been a big problem in the world of Bridgerton?
I KNOW the whole point is that they're flawed characters coming together, but this is a classic case of what I mean. being a Colin fan SUCKS in this fandom. Wanting to see him have complex feelings for Penelope (who is always treated like a soft sweet lil bab uwu) is INFURIATING when he is denied that, time and time and time again.
The problem is not that Colin is a side character in the seasons, the problem is that Colin has become a side character in his OWN SHIP. You took a post that was about Colin being denied agency and emotional depth and dimension and turned it into a Defend Penelope at all Costs post. Like everyone does. Like everyone HAS done for ages in this fandom, even back when I first wrote If I'm Butter a year ago, and it's only gotten worse. Don't sit there and gaslight me like I haven't gotten hate comments from Pen stans so bad I had to turn off anonymous comments on my fics. Don't sit there and act like I'm not a part of this fandom, like I don't ship them, like I'm not aware of how one sided Polin actually is in this canoe.
I also hope Season 3 gives them the redemption (which Penelope very clearly must strive for) and storylines (that Colin has been denied access to) they deserve.
Because Polin fans most certainly aren't
