User blog:AustinDR/The Problem with the Sisters

OK, I felt that I needed to say something. That joke blog I made earlier regarding that "genius" reviewer actually made me think analytically on the girls as a whole. Now, as I have said several times, I don't hate any of the sisters in general. Well, I prefer some over others, but that's beside the point. My issue comes with their typical portrayal when it comes to an episode's conflict.

More often than not, the girls are projected as designated heroes (or heroines, in that case). According to TV Tropes, a designated hero is what you get when the plot states that the character in question is to be seen as good, even though their actions say otherwise. That is my chief issue with a majority of the episodes. It seems that the narrative leans towards siding with the sisters more than with Lincoln. Even in one of their worst episodes, the plot somehow shifts the blame onto Lincoln. The girls are never made accountable for what they had done, they never apologize, they hardly ever learn anything, etc. That was my principal complaint with "Brawl in the Family." This episode was bad because it presented Lincoln as being in the wrong while the sisters are never called out for treating Lincoln like crap. Like I had said before, mean-spirited humor can work if it fits the punishment (i. e. if the character on the receiving end did something to deserve it). However, Lincoln does absolutely nothing wrong, but he's still painted as the villain for wanting Lori and Leni to stop fighting over something as stupid as a dress. Heck, not once did they even take the initiative to inform Linc about the protocol, and yet Bobby knew about it. I would've appreciated the episode more if Lincoln called his sisters out for being selfish, and fighting over trifles, but no, the episode had to end with Lincoln being an idiot.

In addition, the sisters often drive Lincoln to performing acts, or they take advantage of him in some way. Now before you say "Austin, it's clear that the sisters love Lincoln. It's in the theme song, dangit!" I will say, yes. Like in "Waiting Game," Lori goes out of her way to give Lincoln free drinks and tickets when he helped her to get that job, or "Ties That Bind" in which the girls were willing to march into their parents' room to demand that they not kick out Lincoln. Ouch, the irony. Even though the family is dysfunctional and chaotic, there are a few moments that show that they deeply care for each other. They just have their own special way of expressing it. However, sometimes I just have the sinking feeling that they use Lincoln for their own ends, or see an opportunity to exploit his hospitality. In "Space Invader," Lynn effortlessly turns Lincoln's room into her room all while never showing gratitude for Lincoln allowing her to share his room. In "Save the Date," Lori forces Lincoln to go on a double date under the threat of physical harm, because he unwittingly caused Bobby to break up with her. That's where I'm really starting to question on whether or not she loves her brother. I mean, if Bobby and Lincoln were both dangling from a cliff, who do you think she'd save? Or how about "Cover Girls" wherein they task Linc to cover fo0r them. Now, for Lisa and Luan I'd probably let it slide as they both had legitimate reasons for missing spring cleaning, but the others....not so much. Oh, what about "No Such Luck" when Lynn threatens Lincoln to get him to attend her softball game?

Now for the demeaning stuff. In "Sounds of Silence," an episode I find average, they subject Lincoln to humiliating scenarios such as using him as a footstool. And his crime? He just wanted some peace and quiet. Now, I get that you shouldn't ignore your family, but this came off as being petty, even for them. They go out of their way to make up a story about Lola being an amoral sociopath for the lulz. Of course with NSL, they began to avoid Lincoln like the plague because of his lie, but where everything goes further south is when they state no objection to throwing Lincoln out. Now, I don't hate this episode as much as some do, but I don't like it. I felt that the episode could've been better had Lynn genuinely apologized to Lincoln for the insistence that he was a jinx, but of course as the universe hates Lincoln, he had to be in the squirrel suit. And no, having the family wear squirrel suits doesn't make it better. That's just paying evil unto evil. Of course I also face palmed when I saw that Lisa fell for the charade, and she's supposed to have a PhD, and the parents jumping on the bandwagon was also terrible, but I insist that they were always bad parents, leaning heavily towards negligent, or permissive. Before I continue, I'm almost kind of embarrassed about writing "Shattered Innocence" as there were several fanfics out there that concerned Linc dying, suffering an injury or the like. That doesn't mean I'll quit updating it, but I feel embarrassed that my idea wasn't that new. It's just really hard to formulate ideas for the story. The purpose for "Shattered Innocence" is to make the sisters realize that they had neglected Lincoln, and only once he died do they realize how much he meant to them. Maybe I could get help on that?

Lincoln however doesn't get off the hook entirely. For one, he can be as selfish as his sisters, or more so. "Out on a Limo" has him be an egotistical brat who treated his sisters badly, and was encouraged by Tetherby to disregard them. "4x Loud House" has him actively fight his sisters for the money, "Sweet Spot" has Lincoln quarrel with them over a seat, ultimately destroying Vanzilla in the process, etc. While I understand Lincoln's motivation for lying in NSL, I just thought he put all of what transpired on himself even when it was getting out of proportion. Or there's "Green House" in which he's an utter hypocrite preaching to his sisters to lower their carbon footprints while he tries to play some online game with his friends. No one in that episode was likable.

Overall, I guess what I'm trying to say is that when you have episodes like these, it makes it hard to root for anyone.

undefined