User blog comment:Duncan 99 New/Character Appreciation - Week 49: Topher/@comment-25285054-20171209052441

Eh..I do want to like him, since he has potential and I chuckled at some of his lines. Total drama has done narcisstics before but it's usually about obsessing over thier physical appearence, rather than just generally egotisim about their skills and aspirations. He's just as self centered and amoral as Chris, but he has absolutely none of the fame or talent, making him a pathetic human being who will never be half of what he thinks he is. I wouldn't mind seeing him again since he's a pretty good template for a better character..I think he'd work quite well as a sort of half-capable joke antagonist, similar to Justin.

So..if I think he has such a good premise for a character why do I find myself unable to say I like him? Why do I often forget he was even ever a part of the Total Drama cast? Well, I've thought over it  and I think the problem is that the series really didn't care about him anymore than I did. People defend him by insisting having no interaction with the rest of the season is just a Pahkitew problem but it's especially bad with him. During times where teammates would converse he'd usually have no reaction, and screentime for him outside of scenarios directly related to his plotline were very rare. It was difficult to invest in what little time he DID have since we KNEW he was going to lose to Chris in the end

I think overall, he just feels like he doesn't belong in this season. He's pretty quirky in his own right, sure, but he's so overshadowed by even the bad TDPI characters just because he's dull in a season full of color. It's probably more an issue with TDPI itself than him, honestly, but it still makes it a lot harder for him to leave a mark on me.

I think overall, Topher was certainly a good idea but it was a good idea the writers opted to do absolutely nothing with. Maybe he'd flow with the show better if he tried to use winning the season as his way to fame, hurting others in his ruthless quest but falling on his face just as often.