BEWARE: SPOILERS AHEAD
Let me preface this article by saying that none of these characters are my favorite characters in the show. Not even my favorite female character. The reason I defend them and declare them unfairly hated is because I believe the reasons they are often hated are unfair. If you want to hate them because they are annoying, that is totally a fair reason. Most of them annoy me too. The following characters are not listed in any particular order.
1. Serena Vanderwoodsen (gossip girl)
Serena Vanderwoodsen. The “it girl” of the Upper East Side. The three most common reasons people hate Serena is that she hooked up with her best friend’s boyfriend, she is irritating and she is a bad friend to Blair. Hooking up with her best friend’s boyfriend is bad, I’ll admit. I won’t claim that she is perfect or that I even really like her character. She is annoying, makes bad decisions when it comes to guys and leaves every conversation dramatically by saying “I have to go.” Throughout the show, Serena tries really hard to be a better friend to Blair to make up for her mistake. In return, Blair often treats her terribly. Don’t get me wrong. Blair is my favorite character, but she is often very self-centered and flawed. Despite this, Serena tries to not overshadow her and be a good friend. In one episode, Serena encourages Blair to model for her mother’s new fashion line because she knows Blair wants to impress her mom and bond. Blair’s mother ends up wanting Serena to model instead and manipulates her into deceiving Blair. Serena does make mistakes, but her intentions are good and she genuinely cares about all of her friends and their happiness.
2. TORI VEGA (VICTORIOUS)
Tori Vega is the protagonist of the Nickelodeon hit series, Victorious. For those who don’t know, the show is about a girl named Tori, played by Victoria Justice, who enrolls at a school for the arts. She plays alongside many talented actors and singers such as Ariana Grande and Elizabeth Gillies who play her friends Cat and Jade. Many fans have noted that Tori is annoying and a terrible friend. Because of this, she is often a heavily hated character. I argue that while Tori could be hated because she is annoying, the other reason isn’t valid. I believe she has shown time and time again that she is a good friend. In one episode she donates three pints of her blood to her friend Robbie when he was in the hospital. In another episode she refuses to kiss her friend Beck because he had recently broken up with her friend Jade and she didn’t want to hurt her despite their tumultuous frenemy relationship. She is a deeply dedicated and caring friend and while she’s not perfect, she certainly doesn’t deserve the level of hate she gets.
3. PEYTON SAWYER (ONE TREE HILL)
I have seen very passionate hatred of Peyton Sawyer on TikTok since I watched One Tree Hill. I think there are many reasons for this. Some are valid and others are not as much. One reason that many fans hate her is because she hooks up with her best friend Brooke’s boyfriend. This is a totally fair reason to hate her. Cheating is not excusable especially if your best friend is the victim. Another reason is that she is very emo and dramatic for no reason. I agree that the show overdoes it a lot but, to be fair, it’s a show from the early 2000s and Peyton’s character goes through a lot of traumatic incidents in her childhood that sort of justify a little depressing and dramatic expression in my opinion. Peyton and Brooke go through a lot over the course of the show. I think the main reason people hate Peyton is because they love Brooke and since they are often pitted against one another, this results in the hatred of Peyton. Personally, I prefer Brooke over Peyton, but I can still acknowledge that a lot of the hate she receives isn’t fully justified.
4. ELENA GILBERT (THE VAMPIRE DIARIES)
Ah. Elena Gilbert. A famously hated protagonist of the show The Vampire Diaries. I think she may be the most unfairly hated on the list. The main reason for people’s hate of Elena is because she is seen as annoying, cries a lot and is always the source of drama and death. Like I mentioned before, all of these characters are annoying in some way. And yes, she does cry a lot. Almost her entire family has died at some point or another. I think that is a fair reason to cry a lot. As for her being the center of drama and violence, she is the main character of a supernatural show. People may die and put their lives on the line for her, but she does not take that for granted. She offers to die in exchange for her friends remaining safe many times throughout the show. She makes it very clear that she doesn’t want anyone to be hurt because of her and does all she can to avoid that. She is a very selfless person whose only crime was falling in love with two men who happened to be vampires.
I feel that often we judge many female main characters because we prefer their counterparts on the shows instead. Serena vs. Blair, Tori vs. Jade or Kat, Peyton vs. Brooke, Elena vs. Bonnie or Caroline. It is okay to not like the main character or to like a different character better, but I think it’s helpful to think about why you don’t like them and if the reason is justified.