Follow Up to my Last Post:
So I got a comment on my last post being asked if I still stand by my answer, even though Zoe uses the Bee Miraculous to become Fury and she uses it for her own selfish desires too, and I believe it or not, I would say both yes and no.
Hear me out.
First off, let's look back at the two seasons that focused (or were meant to) on Zoe.
In Season 4, she's introduced as Chloe's younger half-sister. All we know is that she's kind, she's sweet, she has no desire to be mean like her family. Later, we learned that she came from New York to escape bullying. Okay, not a bad background for a newbie, but what exactly happened that caused her to move? Answer: Nothing.
Then, in the next episode, she is given the Bee Miraculous and is meant to be the successor of Queen Bee. It's not a bad choice by default, but what exactly did she do to earn it? Uh, stand up to her bitchy sister? Okay, but why exactly? Uh, to prove that she was better than her?
Yeah, for someone who was meant to be the successor to her very own sister, none of those layers justify her being a holder to begin with. We barely know her background, we don't who and where she came from other than New York, hell, we don't get a full detail on how her relationship with Audrey was compared to Chloe's relationship with her.
Then, in Season 5, we sorta start getting that development with her. We get her becoming the new Cat Holder for a while (which IMO, was a much better choice for her because with her sometimes being devious, it definitely fitted her personality a little more.) and we also see her, inspired by Plagg and her own stepfather, to learn to be herself and not let anyone, especially Chloe, walk all over her and to stand up to herself. Yes, all of that could have been done without either making Chloe look like a total buffoon or just outright metaphorical pissing on her fandom, but it's still something compared to what we got in season four. There was also her crush on Marinette, but that felt sort of irrelevant to the plot, so I'm not gonna go into detail on that.
So, finally, when Season 6 arrived, we finally got the background story we were meant to get back in Season 4.
We finally learn who her tormentor was and why she feels entitled and justified to bring him and other bullies down. We saw that he was able to get away with being a bully because his dad approved of it. Knowing who her sister is, it makes sense why this would trigger her. She can't stand people getting away with cruelty, so in her mind, what better way to punish them than by giving them a taste of their own medicine? Now, is it a smart move on Zoe's part? Absolutely not. Even Marinette herself warned her the consequences of what could happen if she went vigilante. But does it make sense why she would go against Ladybug's code of honor? Oh, absolufuckinglutely. It doesn't excuse what she's doing, but after being tormented by a sister and mother who gave you nothing but crap for being different from them and being blackmailed into keeping quiet by said former tormentor, then I don't blame Zoe for wanting to snap and take back the justice she thinks she deserves.
Now, with Season 6 over, who knows if this plot will come back? Honestly, I wouldn't mind if it does. For all Season 6's Broken Bases, I will give credit where credit is due that it actually began to focus on all the Miraculous Holders rather than just the main duo themselves. We got to see their families, we got to see them develop their own arcs, and we got to learn more about them other than just them being "Oh, they're a classmate of Marinette and Adrien? Give them that Miraculous! Boom! Now they have character! Booooi!" UwU And yes, while Zoe's arc was a bit controversial, her developmenting a friendship (and crush because let's be real, they be lesbos.) with Sabrina and us learning what connection she has with Ray helps us open up the layers that were there since Season 4 to finally blossom.
Would it have been nice to see those in Season 4 and 5? Of course! If you were gonna introduce us to the new Bee Holder, give us reasons why other than "HAHA get it? She's the opposite of Chloe! You must like her mofo!" Would have it helped develop her more as a character? Absolutely. Is it too little, too late, though? Not necessarily, but I could see where people had problems with it.
Overall, I'm open to Zoe being a secret vigilante. I like the idea where she takes down those who deserve it because she feels like it's right in her mind, and she feels like she needs to atone for her sins either with she has with Ray or her being Chloe's sister. But I also like how it conflicts with Ladybug's code of honor. Is she doing it out of her own selfish desires, or does she think her allies aren't doing enough to punish those who did wrong?
That's all for tonight, folks.
Thanks for reading~🐝💛🖤
