User blog:AustinDR/Character Retrospect: Lori

So I made a list in which I compiled who I considered to be the best of the Loud sisters with Lori roughly scoring at number 9. Now, that is not to say that I hate Lori, or like her the least, there are a few aspects about her character that I felt needed to be addressed. Now, if you are a fan of Lori Loud, don't take offense as to what I am about to say regarding her, as it is just my silly opinion.

Lori Loud is the eldest of the Loud kids, at around 17 years of age. As to be expected, Lori tends to have dominion over her younger siblings, which makes her come off as a dictator quite often. To describe Lori, she has two main loves in her life: her cellphone, and her boyfriend Bobby Santiago. She also is shown getting overly enraged several times, usually for the most trivial of reasons. For instance, in "Get the Message," she threatens to turn her brother Lincoln into a human pretzel just because he accidentally walked into her room. To me, this was her worst moment as she comes off as being quick to anger and wrathful. Apparently, she even gets annoyed if Lincoln so happens to leave a message on her phone. What if Lincoln was in some sort of danger, and in desperation he tries to message her for help? Would she delete the message thus condemning her own brother to an untimely demise? That's not even getting into her behavior in other episodes.

Another possible candidate for Lori's worst episode is "Save the Date." While I consider the episode decent, what sets the plot into motion is Lori forcing Lincoln on a double date with Ronnie Anne, and why you may ask? It's because Bobby dumped her when he discovered that Lincoln had made his little sister upset. Besides being a total wreck, she angrily lashes out at Lincoln, and throws several objects in his direction. First, this makes her come off as a brat, but that's not the worst implication. Now as I have said, she forces Lincoln to go on a double date without his consent all because she was dumped. This left a bad taste in my mouth as it entails that she cares more about her love life over her own brother. Because of her selfishness - as well as additional problems - this made me like the episode less.

And then there's "Trash House." The conflict of that episode is Lori gets into a quarrel with Leni over a dress. As to keep myself from going ape, I'll leave it at that. Her role in this episode was worse than "Get the Message." In that episode, at the very least, Lori buys replacement goggles for the ones that she stepped on, but in "Trash House?" There is nothing redeeming in that episode. She treats Lincoln terribly when he was only wanting her to stop fighting, the whole thing started because she wanted Leni to take her dress back to the mall, etc. The ending especially left a bad taste in my mouth when she coldly tells Lincoln that she and the girls resolved their problems the moment he left. I literally wanted to throw my television out the window because of how badly they treated Lincoln in this episode. Sure, Lincoln gets the short end of the stick several times, but this episode made me believe to an extent that the sisters would be happier if Lincoln wasn't there. I know that's not what the episode was trying to convey: they were attempting to teach that there are some problems that Lincoln cannot fix, but it's the way that they executed it made it seem that they viewed Lincoln as the black sheep of the family. If I would've been Lincoln, I would've told them "Oh, so you can solve your own problems without me, eh? Well, from this moment onward, I will never help any of you again." And then I would mind my own business, reading comic books in my underwear as I quietly watch them fall apart as they try to solve their own problems without assistance.

But let's get back to the main idea as to why I placed Lori so low on my list. Basically I dislike her, because there isn't really anything interesting about her. When the nine other sisters have interesting personalities and quirks, what does Lori have? Well.....she has her cellphone, and.....uh.......yeah. She just comes off as the least interesting as she basically acts like how you'd expect a teenage girl to act. Most teenage girls spend hours on their cellphones or are absolutely boy crazy. I guess the reason as to why I dislike Lori is because she is more or less an accurate representation of an adolescent girl. When all of her other sisters have interesting personalities or talents, Lori just seems underdeveloped.

As I've said, her moments of anger also played a role in my decision. She can be so unlikable whenever she's especially mad, that she's insufferable really. There are some moments in which it is necessary like "Not Guts, No Glori," but there's simply too many times where it is unwarranted. However, I personally believe that it plays into what I had previously said about her not having anything remotely unique to her. She takes pride with being the eldest, most likely because that's really the only thing going for her. Take "Driving Miss Hazy" for instance. Since she is the only one who is a certified driver, she takes advantage of it by getting her younger siblings to tend to her chores. When Leni was being trained on how to drive, Lori - threatened by this turn of events - sabotages her sister by giving her all of the wrong information. The thought that she could get Leni potentially killed or injured doesn't even cross her mind; she only realizes the error of her ways when Linc has to spell it out for her. But that's where the reason behind it lies. Lori admits that she sabotaged her own sister, because she was worried that if any of her sisters learned how to drive, no one would need her for anything again. This goes back to the idea that she really has nothing special going for her. As such, she compensates for this by taking pride in being the oldest of the Loud siblings, because she knew that in most cases, they would need her to help them, thereby giving some meaning to her life.

Despite her tantrums and generally uninteresting personality, there are a few instances where she can be kind or generous. For example, in the "Waiting Game," she gives Lincoln free pizza and tokens out of gratitude for him helping her to get that job. Sure, Lincoln does take advantage of this later on, but it shows that she was truly delighted by his help. She was also thankful for Lincoln taking her place as she goes to attend that dance. This is really one of the few times where I felt that they truly enjoyed being in each other's presence. Or take "Heavy Meddle." While she does go too far when she realized that Lincoln was being bullied, it's made clear that she - along with her sisters - deeply cares for her brother despite all of the loudness. Of course, there are several other instances when Lori shows off her kinder side, but I'll leave it at that.

So, basically while Lori isn't my favorite of the Loud sisters, she is certainly nowhere close to being the worst character in the show. Sure, she may have her moments in which she is unfair, but that is often put aside to show that she is good at heart.