Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-9964494-20140507055500/@comment-24163511-20140508073109

Okay, let me demonstrate a quick character analysis and comparison based on 3 major components: Personality traits, skill and flaws:

For a character comparison, take her co-worker, Eileen, who has proven to be smart, resourceful, humble and a tad awkward but not afraid to play along. She also can sew, never fails and can be fairly persuasive. Her flaw? She's too nice/quirky, she couldn't say no to the guys' help in Video 101 and she had a hell of a time trying to get Rigby to do a single chin-up, as a result, she gets ignored. In the series, she's been an asset to the guys, helping out, or just hanging out. Her presence doesn't take up the screen and she doesn't steal focus allowing for dynamism between characters.

Margaret is uh, Nice? Cares a lot about other people, is a Daddy's girl, she can be mean if she wants to be. Her skills are...pouring coffee? Well okay but her flaw is...her lack of skills? Damn it. In the series, she helped Eileen once in Do Me a Solid... Do you see the problem here? She has no skills, she has no flaw and her personality is lackluster. In the series every time she's on screen the focus shifts to her and Mordecai. She's never really helped them with anything.

Is this her fault? Well no, its the role she was forced to fulfill if anything. I've explained before, and I'll do so again, that she was first, and foremost the "love interest" of our main character. And this role is always destined to be short-changed in the personality department, simply because she becomes more of a goal, an end point and not something that can grow or be dynamic. Look at ALL her Major appearances, in EACH one she's just the end game for Mordecai and his endless endeavor in trying to improve their relationship.

When have we EVER had an episode about Margaret...where its about Margaret and NOT Mordecai trying to impress? Mordecai comes in and takes the thunder away and all that's left is a flat, boring young girl with aspirations to get into college who also doesn't like to be lied to (not really a personality trait). She doesn't show a good range of emotion, she doesn't have any notable skills, she has never been shown as someone independently cool, funny, witty, or at all interesting and she has NO FLAW. Mordecai is indecisive, Thomas is gullible, Mitch is obnoxious, Rigby is lazy, Pops is naive, Benson has anger issues, Skips is too proud, etc. But Margaret? She's perfect, and has to be lest she not be everything Mordecai dreams about.

I'm sorry the writers did this to a character who's base personality you feel synched with. "Love interest" has always been a tragic role and the writers simply decided her character was good enough and developed the core group instead.