User blog:Berryleaf/Zoey: A Bad Character or Just Poorly Written??

Hey everyone, it's Berry again, and today I'm going to talk about what I think is one of the most underrated characters in Total Drama. You all hate her, it's Zoey.   But I'm one of the small number that actually likes this sweet red-haired indie chick. I mostly agree with people that say she was poorly written, but in my opinion that doesn't mean she's a bad character. And there's plenty of things the writers did right with her, but there's also a ton more that I would change. So, sit back, relax, grab a cup of a̶r̶s̶e̶n̶i̶c̶ lemonade, and enjoy the blog.



Unlike the general consensus of the community, I think Zoey had a ton of potential to be a great character. Her audition proved this, she's a very sweet and individualistic person with her own interests, and that's cool. Just like the average Total Drama fan (myself included) she finds it hard to fit in with any crowd and doesn't have any friends. It's just 30 seconds long, but we already have a good platform for a potentially groundbreaking character. Soon, we have Revenge of The Island, Zoey's first season. And as I mentioned earlier, I honestly don't think she was that bad in this one. Now  while she wasn't exactly what her audition showed her to be, she wasn't terrible out of character or dumb. I really loved her transformation into Commando Zoey, and I think some of her other fans would agree with me there (maybe even a few who generally dislike her). But wait, Berry, if Zoey is so great in every way, then what's the biggest problem with her character?

Well, voice in my head, the answer to that question is...

...MIKE.

I hate Mike. He sucks. Who doesn't? Sure I enjoyed some of his "personalities" as a comedic relief, but the character himself is bland and life-sapping as possible. No wonder Zoey's so bland, she has to deal with this offensive stereotype hitting on her. Now, let's change that for a second. If you can think about a Revenge of The Island where Mike was a fodder, and say, replaced his ranking with Brick or Dawn, and maybe because of this he didn't hit on Zoey. Here's where Zoey's potential comes in. Similarly to me, she's a sweet introverted individual, and maybe this season she's trying to make friends, but also trying to win for her own reasons (maybe more supplies for her indie theater ideas). Instead of doing a 180 in terms of personality, she could be the shy girl who just wants to finally have some friends, and she could potentially find that in the aforementioned Brick and Dawn (two of my other favorites from this generation). Hell, maybe she could have a relationship with Brick, or if it wasn't for homophobic parents, Dawn. And yeah, let's keep Commando Zoey. Maybe everyone else besides these two find her weird, just like the people at her school. A very talented writer by the username of CoGreen20 reused this concept, and did it right. So if he could do it, why couldn't the writers? 13 episode seasons are risky for rushed development as it is, but it's quite possible Zoey could've been a more fleshed out character if separated for Mike throughout the season, and potentially win.

But this didn't happen. Mike brought her down. If you ever wonder why I hate Mike so much, here's the reason: '''I firmly believe he is the reason Zoey is so hated, and didn't get to live up to her full potential. '''Nevermind the reset button, Mal (ew), or anything else about his character that everyone else has already talked about a thousand times over. After ruining her in ROTI, the writers apparently decided to make Zoey even worse by making her literally nothing else than Mike's boyfriend. And frankly, I find this damsel in distress concept to be insulting and otherwise sexist. But that's what I mean. Go ahead, take another look at the blog's title. What does it say? She's poorly written. But she didn't have to be a bad character, as I've explained in theory she could've been one of the greatest in the show's history. Maybe it's because of my own bias that I love her, but I still think she's a good character.

However, this is a blog after all, so I'm asking for your thoughts. Does Zoey have good potential? Could she have been much better without Mike? Do you agree with me on my ideas to fix her or do you have your own? Please, comment your opinion on this indie chick below, and until next time, this is Berry signing out. o/