So like, their relationship doesn't seem to healthy, but I feel like he also wasn't in a good place to start with. Usually absolutely loosing yourself when your partner dies is a bad sign in a relationship cus of the degree of attachment. That doesn't mean becoming depressed or grieving or feeling like you lost a part of yourself are bad or abnormal. It's just to the degree which he acted. As well as the lack of communication. Also being literally obsessed with your partner is NOT a good thing.
Bro, people keep saying that there are people fighting his ass but like I have only seen people shitting on him here.
What I will say is that I like the ambiguousness (I am probably using this word wrong but it's what came to mind so oh well) of his character. Like, I'm not saying I like him as a person. He felt like it was entirely his fault for the loss of his sister and he didn't seem to have anyone to help him through his grief even though he was a kid and to top it all of his dad comes home with some random stranger they have never met and without discussing anything says she's their new sibling. I can only imagine how flabbergasted and taken aback the brothers were (not that their responses where ok), it probably did feel like their father was trying to replace their sister.
Derrick never saw Penelope has his sister. His guilt regarding Yvonne and his anger towards his father's response to their loss caused him to lash out. But also made him never seen Penelope as his sister really. She was some random stranger in his house trying to take the place of someone else he dearly cared for. From personal experience this can make an individual feel fake and make it hard to get along with them, it's frustrating to watch them take over a lost loved one instead of finding a new place for themselves in the family, though I know that can be hard and that Penelope was not trying to replace someone though maybe hope to fill an empty slot. This is probably why Derrick has complicated feelings towards her. She was never his family though he acknowledged her as such due to obligation and didn't think much of it so when she got older and he knew her more she was a woman, not his sister, that he was seeing.
I feel like if it weren't for fake Yvonne Derrick would have treated Penelope better than before but only slightly and at most it would take a long time before he started to really think about things. I am curious to know what would have happened otherwise and if there would have been some other major event or something small that has a major impact that makes him realize things.
Regardless I think Derrick was neglected in terms of his trauma by his father and probably everyone else and ended up growing up shaping himself around his childhood guilt. None of this makes the things he has done ok, I would just like to make clear.
At first I thought she was going to stab the sister and kill her as some sort of sacrifice but the last panel or two had me thinking otherwise. Like, it feels like she stabbed herself instead, at least to me. I think she is either trying to harm herself and make up a story that will put the main characters in a tough position and try and use that to control the duke or kill herself. Like, if she kills herself, because of the way she has the spell working, she will go back again and is trying to restart. Again. But I don't think she will actually restart, at most if she goes back it won't be very far
There is quite a few things that it doesn't make sense that this world has no version or alternative of. Like the simplified math not existing cus f*ckers afraid to touch or change legendary work kinda makes sense and can work (like few and very far in-between people thought there must be a shorter way but like thought that was a crazy thought of theirs or didn't get far and where stopped or maybe said "this hard so it's not meant to be" cus who gonna argue a dragon). But like, the blender and water proof paper. You're telling me that no one thought "hey magic makes things convenient" and tried to blend or juice fruit easier? Magic makes things convenient and science understandably becomes less developed in a world with a lot of magic or at least common access to it but that doesn't mean inventions stop being created or thought of. They are just simply different and would evolve differently over time as people discover new things in such a world. Inventions come from laziness and a desire for convenience (and improvement) not just science or technology alone. That being said, I also don't give much of a f*ck cus this is a very interesting concept and it's fun watching her rock everyone's sh*t with our everyday normal concepts. I've liked watching her incorporate all of it from the beginning so I'm perfectly willing to overlook such things.
The first thing I'd like to say about her is that whether or not she willingly gave up Celphi she isn't really his mother. She wasn't involved in his life whatsoever while he was growing up. She didn't raise him or show him the love of a mother though she may have wanted too. Not just me but numerous members of my family were adopted after being given up by willing and not willing bio parents.
Another thing is that yes, she's a complex character, but that isn't why some people are upset with her (some are cus they can't handle dark complex female characters). While I understand her reaction that doesn't make it justified. She is actively wishing equal harm (death and ceasing of existence) on both people who did and did not harm her. She says cruel things that attack other people's trauma and play on their weak points. She has a negative outlook on things and shares it without being willing to hear from others or what they have to say. On the other hand she loved her husband and did everything expected of her and yet still was treated like breeding cattle that could be replaced and had to fear dying throughout her pregnancy. That can definitely affect your relationship with your child and I believe have a negative effect on the child (one of my aunts was depressed during her pregnancy and it lead to minor complications and less minor effects on her child). She then lost the only person that made being apart of that family bearable. I can only imagine by this point they had already consumed her life (as compared/differing to live) and world.
Her response to her experience makes sense, is reasonable, and very realistic but that doesn't make it ok or just. I like her from a writing perspective but as a character/person am on the fence. Suffering isn't a reason to be hurtful or cruel to others. Though I do understand freaking out when people essentially hunted her down and stayed in her home doing go knows what while she wad away and who were from a family she hates. And that she had to muster up courage to go see them to warn another woman before she was too hurt only to be shown what she believed was ignorance and naivety (and genuine rudeness plus ignorance).
Everyone seems to think lately that either this will end in polygamy or purple hair and black hair will get back together. To me it still seems it is going the same route as before; both will want the mc (with the black haired one mostly likely "winning"). I mean, purple hair literally just said black hair was just a really close friend and that their relationship was irreparable.
No one gonna talk about how he put the mc through something very unpleasant just because he thought someone else touched the mc even though they aren't in any sort of labeled relationship or even a binding one? And not only that but went "haha, oopsie. My bad bestie". Like, apparently he doesn't like sharing his entertainment with other people