Sometimes I think Rosy tries to soften or erase asshole pre-redemption Jake whenever we get precanon content of him. (Or maybe is too scared to?) It just feels weird seeing Hailey say she doesn’t hate Jake (in the elliot spin off), or having The princess and the songbook be from Hailey’s pov but still cutting to a scene of Jake feeling guilty. Hailey didn’t see that so why should we?
I honestly think it would’ve worked better without that one frame of him feeling bad we’ve already got scenes in s1 showing how Jake need of validation, fear of bullying etc etc.
It makes me worried about how Drew’s redemption (if he even gets one) would be handled. Will Rosy have the club minimise their feelings about Drew just to make redemption easier? Will he get some tragic sad-boy backstory that ends up justifying his actions instead of simply explaining why he behaves the way he does?
Because that already kind of happens with Jake more with the fandom than the series itself, but still a bit in the series too, especially in Episode 7 during the conversation between Hailey and Jake. Jake being bullied in the past sometimes gets treated as an excuse for his shitty behaviour rather than an explanation for it.
And then I start thinking, why would Drew even want to redeem himself? For Jake? I think it’s kind of a flaw if the only reason Drew ends up being cordial with the club is just because he wants Jake back as a friend. Will he still be controlling? does he even care that he’s been shitty to people since middle school, we don’t even see an ounce of remorse due to his apathy toward others that he cannot understand. And that’s assuming he’d even want Jake back in the first place.
Even if he did reconcile with Jake, I find it really hard to believe Hailey and Zander would ever forgive him, especially after he grabbed Hailey’s arm and constantly blamed her for things she didn’t even do. And then that gets me thinking about how much hate Hailey would probably get from the fandom if she doesn’t forgive Drew.
don’t get me started on henriam, I’d like to think that they have very different thoughts on the situation and don’t blindly follow drew the whole season. GUYS WAKE UP PLS PLS PLS.
So, in conclusion, I’m terrified for Season 2, I guess.
my og post was just gonna be about Jake but something possessed me 😮💨
Rosypenguins tries and fails to leave a comment and decides to reblog the whole post to expand on her thoughts PART THREE BABY!! (This is mostly going to be about the points made regarding Drew I am so sorry I have a one-track mind.)
As a hardcore Drew fans who has made several posts regarding a potential Drew redemption, I agree with literally everything here. Because as much as I do hope Drew is redeemed in S2, I really don’t want his actions to be excused or justified. Nor do I want him to be victimized in any sort of way. I don’t want a ‘reason’ for him to bully the club that attempts to justify several years of abuse. Drew is simply a bad person. And that’s what makes his character interesting to me. He’s selfish, mean, and arrogant. But he’s not evil, either. He’s 16. His current characterization isn’t beyond redemption, and I’d even argue that him being such an asshole now would make a redemption all the more rewarding.
But if he’s suddenly given a victim narrative that tries to justify all the hurt he’s caused others, then that’s just… Jake. But again. That’s not even Drew anymore. That’s fandom Drew. That’s the UWU soft-boy amalgamation the fandom created. And I’m scared of him.
I don’t want Rosyclozy to try and soften Drew or make him more sympathetic. If anything, I want him to get worse. So much worse. You were right; at the moment Drew has no reason to get better, so he’s not going to get better immediately. That’s normal. His redemption doesn’t have to be immediate, in fact I’d prefer if it wasn’t, because for Drew to be redeemed, he’d have to realize that what he’s done is wrong, and WHY it was wrong. And then he’d need the motivation to change. Which honestly, I can only see happening once he reaches absolute rock bottom and no sooner. Because Drew’s a stubborn little shit who needs to be right about everything.
And I don’t want Drew to be forgiven by the club. He can be forgiven by Jake, and by his friends, but not the club. NEVER the club. Because the club has no reason to, nor owes him anything. And that’s OKAY. Forgiveness isn’t what determines redemption. It’s the character. It’s the change they make to themselves to better themselves and others. Drew doesn’t need to be soften or watered-down to receive redemption. Anyone who understands and appreciates Drew’s character will like him regardless.
TLDR: While I believe a Drew redemption is entirely possible, I too worry about his character being softened or watered-down for the sake of it, nor do I want his redemption to come from forgiveness. While I’m hopeful Rosyclozy will write his redemption in a way that feels natural and in-line with his character, if she somehow drops the ball I’ll go back to my 200 pages worth of Drew fanfiction and rewrite his redemption myself lol.
