User blog:AustinDR/Is Lola a Bad Character?

Much like with Lori, I did dislike Lola at first. I mean, who wouldn't? She's bratty, spoiled rotten, self-centered, and downright psychotic. Heck, I used to believe that she was a borderline sociopath whenever she dropped the cutesy act. I mean, who wouldn't think that: she's manipulative, exceptionally clever for her age, and sometimes feels absolutely no remorse for her actions. And like with Lori, I eventually changed my mind on Lola. So, I feel it best to explain why I like Lola.

For starters, while I didn't want to admit it, but, I could see a lot of myself in Lola. Not squarely on her age, I was like her in many ways. I was self-centered, I threw tantrums when things didn't go my way, etc. However, in all honesty, I was probably worse than Lola. I had mentioned this in one of my early blogs, but I was a pretty bad kid. For one, I used to kill small animals. I would take insects and throw them in fire ant mounds and watch the ants rip them a part. Or I would throw bugs into spider webs. I tried to make my own tar pits from motor oil and tossed tons of insects, slugs, and snails in the oil. I once came upon a small frog that was doing me no problem, but I decided to stomp on it, I tossed a frog into the road and it got ran over. I even considered drowning a kitten when I saw that it was sick. I never really understood why I did this: I never took any sadistic delight in killing small animals, and I eventually stopped doing it. I guess at most I saw killing small animals as something to do to avoid boredom. I look back now, and  Ioften wonder if I was budding into a sociopath. That could explain some of the stuff I write....and my sense of humor.

Going back to Lola, though, that was one reason as to why I liked her. I was a terrible child growing up. We all were not the best of children as we grew up. We were all motivated by self-interest and didn't have much concern for other people. That's still a problem that I have: while I am better than I was when I was a kid, I still have trouble expressing empathy as I have never been in any kind of circumstance that person was in. It's not to say that I don't care: I just express my emotions in my own ways. Ultimately, I see that as one reason as to why many dislike Lola; she is the spoiled brat played too well, so much so, that it reminds many of how they were around her age.

Another reason as to why I love Lola is for her psychotic tendencies. To me, what makes Lola scary is how you subvert something that's supposed to be cute, and bend it into something sinister. Lola seems to be your hammy spoiled brat, but on the inside, she is terrifying. Her "scary moments" are some of the best parts in the show, in my honest opinion. They're exaggerated, for one. They're exaggerated to a point that it is black comedy at its finest. Really, for a long time, Lola was one of the scariest characters in the show for me, at least until Luan usurped her. I love how clever and manipulative Lola can be: for instance, "Sounds of Silence," her plan was very well-thought out. She convinces her sisters to play along, and they create stories about how much of a monster Lola could be if they ever crossed her. And then there's "Tattler's Tale:" the way she has her siblings wrapped around her finger was also very humorous to watch. Or how about the fact that she somehow knew that one of her siblings would go into her room, so she set up an elaborate trap for them? Really, despite being 6, I am genuinely impressed by the level of thought Lola puts into these plans.

And lastly...I find her one of the funniest characters on the show. As I have said before, Lola is hammy. She acts like a drama queen several times, simply chewing the scenery whilst doing so. Take "Out of the Picture:" she has that whole "Oh, woe is me" attitude as she explains how her one bad  school picture could "destroy" her career. Really, Lola in my opinion, has some of the best reactions in the show. Another example is from "Patching Things Up." Her eyes widening in horror when Lana explains to her what a latrine was had me bawling, especially when she ends up throwing her cookies due to being disgusted by the thought of touching a worm...and then watching Lana eat one. To be frank, when you compare the twins...I actually like Lola more. Don't get me wrong, Lana is a good character in her own way. I have stressed that I don't hate any of the sisters (well strongly dislike one, but that's beside the point), but I rank them by their personalities and the like. With Lana....I don't know. I actually couldn't really pin point an exact character trait for Lana. Yes, I know that she's a tomboy that loves mud, bugs, etc....but that's it. I don't know if it has to do with how she eats food out of the garbage, is generally more unsanitary than her sisters, her voice....maybe the last one (Lana sounds too much like a boy to me, along with Luna). But just because I like Lola a teeny bit more does not mean that Lana is a bad character.

Oh, and despite the fact that Lola can be a brat, the reason as to why I ultimately don't hate her is because she does have moments where she can be pleasant. "Patching Things Up" was a great bonding moment between her and Lana, and how they actually want each other to succeed. Or there's that one time Lincoln tried to force them and the other girls into being different for the family picture. It's just adorable seeing Lola and Lana play with each other (Lola as the princess, Lana as the mud monster). It seemed more playful than the first time it happened. Or there's "Undie Pressure" in which she buys the pair of underwear for Lincoln even though he lost after realizing that it was wrong to judge him for his habit of reading his comic books in his underwear (even though it's gross). And, really, there's more instances where she is actually a pretty good character. Oh, and it is funny how in "11 Louds a Leapin' '' how she acknowledges that she's not a perfect angel. It's almost as if she's aware of the complaints that she gets on a daily basis.

In soum, these are my reasons for loving Lola. She's funny, scary (in a good way), and she does have moments of being pleasant.