Before I say anything else. I'm not trying to be rude in this article; this is another one of those things where I keep saying over and over again that I don't think Bloom is the strongest and I don't want to leave such 评论 without backing up my reasoning. Likewise I don't want to have to keep repeating myself every time someone asks. That said; if this isn't the kind of 文章 你 like 阅读 then please don't read it. Critiques and disagreement is cool with me--just don't be rude about it.
Some of these are taken from other comments--for the sake of saving myself some time.
First and foremost, I've always seen her powers as a crutch. When Bloom 迷失 her Dragon 火, 消防 she was pretty much 迷失 to say the least. It took her from episode 18 to episode 22 to actually come up with a plan of her own. Even still she was still complaining. I watched the 4kids dub. In Epidosde 19 of 说 dub she explains (to Faragonda) what happened on Earth and that's it. She doesn't make any suggestions to Faragonda. No plans, just listening and crying. Granted she had a good reason to do so. She did lose her powers and she did hear some huge news from probably the last people she wanted to hear it from. And believe it 或者 not, that is something I can sympathize with. However I stop being able to relate/sympathize when she just starts complaining. No matter why she was sad about losing her powers she shouldn’t just sulk around. Personally I’d be pissed and ready to kickass, I wouldn’t just mope about it. This is part of what I meant when I 说 she doesn’t have the mental strength. She didn’t seem to have any motivation to fight back until the others convinced her that there was still a chance. Again, yes it was a lot to take in (I’ll give her that) but she wasn’t the only person at stake. Yeah she deserved some time to cope everyone does but at that time there simply wasn’t any. That's a very realistic situation; sometimes life doesn't give 你 time to cope. I never 说 she couldn’t be sad, it’s natural. I’m just saying she shouldn’t have let the sadness cripple her. But maybe I think that way because I don’t like to let sadness stop me from doing things
Anyways, back to assessing the episodes. "They're going to use it to summon some sort of magical army 或者 something." Is what Bloom states in episode 19. Fraragonda then says "the army of decay?" And Bloom says something like "yeah that's it." Faragonda 回复 "then we are in grave danger" and the scene cuts. And the first scene after that with Bloom starts with her saying word for word "ugg, I wish I never discovered 由 或者 come to Alfea." Basically a lot of self-blame. The scene ended with "I just wish I knew what to do." Perhaps it wasn't sulking (as I initially thought prior to my re-watch) but it was definitely complaining and there were no plans from Bloom. Then the army of decay arrives, the others say they have this one covered. Now I don't expect Bloom to charge at the army of decay unarmed but the boys fight with no magic all the time; I would imagine she could pick up some kind of weapon and fight since the 作者 made her so ridiculously natural at most everything else. If not, at least she could say that she tired. And that was episode 19. As far as plan making was concerned, my memory served me right at that point in the show; in the 4kids dub (the one I watched thoroughly) it was Faragonda who suggested that they go to Sparks not Bloom. "You hold the key Bloom" and then Bloom says something along the lines of "I do?" Faragonda then says that "they can take the flame but 你 can still burn Bloom. 你 are the only one who can use its powers to the fullest." Flora states "but the witches took it." And then Fragonda explains that the flame is there on Sparks. Bloom did not make any plans. While she didn't cry the whole time she was still complaining a bit and didn't come up with any solutions. I was simply wrong about who came up with the plan--thinking it was Stella. And she only agreed to go after the others gave some encouragement but I guess that's natural considering the circumstances.
Episode 21 was basically them still fighting in Sparks. At least she was doing something in this episode, I'll give her that. But I feel like most of the hard work was done 由 the other Winx and the boys. The boys who also have no powers and can still fight well. Leeway granted in that they have 更多 experience. Okay, episode 22 is when she finally made the plan to go to 云, 云计算 Tower. I think the two instances merged together in my mind. But it still (in my opinion) took longer then it should have. It took her 4 episodes to get it together where the other characters based on personality would have already done so 3 episodes back.
Season 6 is another place where I think her using a power as a crutch is evident. When the other Winx all 迷失 their powers none of them even cried 或者 sulked, Layla (being her wonderful and strong self) stepped up to the plate right away and volunteered to train them to fight without powers. Layla is definitely the strongest of the lot physically. Granted, yes, none of them can hold up to a powerful villain without magical powers, but in my opinion (because I don’t recall any of them aside from Bloom having to do so) based on personalities I think they (with the exception of maybe Flora) would hold up better than Bloom. Tecna took on the Omega dimension, she's rational and logical. Layla is (as established) strong and determined. Stella might get a little lazy but is otherwise confident. Musa shares Layla's determination and seems to be very strong emotional--she went through some shit as a kid and still holds up strong as ever. Bloom and Flora just don't have that same determination nor confidence especially without their magic.
That point aside, there were just so many times when her 老友记 had to save her from danger she couldn't save herself from--even with the mighty dragon fire. I like to bring up how she would have totally died in episode two if Stella hadn't showed up. Of course this was a time when Bloom really wasn't experienced. My point in bringing up the first fight is simply that if her 老友记 hadn’t showed up she’d have been out of the count before she had a chance; no 更多 no less. But that isn’t the last time she’d been 《冰雪奇缘》 由 Icy. I’m pretty sure she was encased in ice like that again in that episode where Mirta becomes a pumpkin. Even if it didn’t happen that way she was losing really bad until her 老友记 showed up. Like she (and Mirta) were getting tossed around 由 the three of them. And at this point she was pretty well accustomed to her powers and she had Mirta to help so the numbers weren’t unbalanced--not nearly as unbalanced as three against the Trix become in later seasons. With that in mind, even with her powers she still had work to do (to put it lightly).
After that I firmly believe Bloom only wins because she’s one of the author’s favorites. She isn't the strongest Winx, she just has luck on her side all the time. As explained in various other places and 文章 I wrote the odds are super unfair and always stack in the favor of Bloom and co. And every time she’s about to lose some miracle solution shows up. Like the water stars. Even with Enchantix she would not have beaten Valtor without them. In season 1; she somehow gets the dragon 火, 消防 back? I probably just have to re-watch that, it may 或者 may not make 更多 sense. In season 2 bought Darkar who had her mind in his control, if not for Sky she’d have been stuck that way. And in season 2 she knew darn well how to use her powers. If she was as powerful as people like to make her out to be, then she could have taken Darkar, I would imagine. Pretty much all of her wins in the big battles (when she has experience) is not because of her own power but because of some crazy power boost 或者 because of someone else entering the arena. Whereas the other Winx have gotten themselves out of sticky situations 由 themselves (for instance Tecna held out for a long while on her own in the Omega dimension. Flora, when everyone else was bound/tied up, saved her sister and earned her Enchantix and then saved everyone else).
Which leads me to my 下一个 point; I’m also saying Bloom’s weak (if not, simply weaker than the others) because she’s naïve. She has been proven numerous times to be easy to trick and manipulate. Darkar sends in a fake Avalon and she couldn’t tell the difference? Like she didn't even think the way he was 表演 was strange and slightly suspicious? I thought it was so obvious (perhaps that’s because of the dub I watched?) and because of that Darkar had complete control over her.
In season 1 she breaks into 云, 云计算 Tower, sees a book with her name on it, and doesn’t 问题 it even though the others tell her it could be a trap. Musa says something silly like “are 你 sure, this place is wack?” Tecna specifically asks if Bloom wants her to run some scans/do some calculation on the book. And she’s just “no, I feel it calling out to me.” Isn’t that a reason NOT to just open it? I mean she's in a place full of evil and dark magic and she doesn't even stop to consider that it might be a trap? I understand that she desperately wanted to learn of her past but I don't understand why she thought the 答案 lay in a school for witches. I don't understand why she didn't just stop for a 秒 to think it through. Most of all I don't know why she didn't want Tecna to do some scans.
Later on she lets the witches trick her into thinking she was a witch. She knows in her 心 she’s not a bad person so why would she believe that? And because she was all distraught about being a witch she was left venerable. Her naïveness makes her weaker.
She doesn’t have the mental strength that the others seem to have. And back in season 1 she didn't even have the confidence. Brute and magical strength isn’t the only kind of strength.
All of this 说 it's been bought to my attention that this would be an apparent contradiction to my belief that Bloom is a Mary Sue. Fair enough, I can see why people would see it that way. However (and I do belive that I've 说 before on a number of occasions) that I actually didn't mind season 1 Bloom. I've also 说 that season 1 Bloom was NOT a Sue, however she became one as the series wore on. The insecurities mentioned above, the naiveness that all went away after season 2 and that's when I started calling her a Sue. Season 1 Bloom = flawed and well-written. I still didn't particularly care for her though. Season 2 Bloom = getting close to what I call a Sue. Season 3+ Bloom = a Sue 由 my terms. Season 1 Bloom is very different from season 3 onwards Bloom; the 作者 developed her in a way that actually took away from her character and that sucks. I feel like I'd have probably liked her if he didn't do that. Maybe that's another reason why I just can't like her; there's just so much potential that went to waste. That's exactly why I hate season 5+ Icy. As for the usage of Mary Sue; I can only go off of my own take on the definition. I've found a website that lists a bunch of types of Mary Sues. I think Bloom falls under a bunch of those types. But that's straying from the point I want to make. I think the reason people can't decide is because for one, there are a few types of Mary Sues and for seconds, like everything else everyone seems to have a different standard as to what makes a character a Sue. I've seen people call Harry Potter a Gary Stu and I don't know why. But there's a good lot of people who say so. As for myself personally I'm not calling Bloom a Mary Sue just because I hate her; I (and quite a few others) think I have some valid reasons for thinking so.
But this is getting off topic. My point is that Bloom relies very heavily on her powers in a way that the others don't and I think this helps hinder her from growing in different ways. Between that and her being easy to manipulate I just don't think she's as strong as everyone says she is.
That's really all I have for now. Again feel free to respectfully agree 或者 disagree. I hope I was able to type this in a way that wasn't rude 或者 hateful.
Some of these are taken from other comments--for the sake of saving myself some time.
First and foremost, I've always seen her powers as a crutch. When Bloom 迷失 her Dragon 火, 消防 she was pretty much 迷失 to say the least. It took her from episode 18 to episode 22 to actually come up with a plan of her own. Even still she was still complaining. I watched the 4kids dub. In Epidosde 19 of 说 dub she explains (to Faragonda) what happened on Earth and that's it. She doesn't make any suggestions to Faragonda. No plans, just listening and crying. Granted she had a good reason to do so. She did lose her powers and she did hear some huge news from probably the last people she wanted to hear it from. And believe it 或者 not, that is something I can sympathize with. However I stop being able to relate/sympathize when she just starts complaining. No matter why she was sad about losing her powers she shouldn’t just sulk around. Personally I’d be pissed and ready to kickass, I wouldn’t just mope about it. This is part of what I meant when I 说 she doesn’t have the mental strength. She didn’t seem to have any motivation to fight back until the others convinced her that there was still a chance. Again, yes it was a lot to take in (I’ll give her that) but she wasn’t the only person at stake. Yeah she deserved some time to cope everyone does but at that time there simply wasn’t any. That's a very realistic situation; sometimes life doesn't give 你 time to cope. I never 说 she couldn’t be sad, it’s natural. I’m just saying she shouldn’t have let the sadness cripple her. But maybe I think that way because I don’t like to let sadness stop me from doing things
Anyways, back to assessing the episodes. "They're going to use it to summon some sort of magical army 或者 something." Is what Bloom states in episode 19. Fraragonda then says "the army of decay?" And Bloom says something like "yeah that's it." Faragonda 回复 "then we are in grave danger" and the scene cuts. And the first scene after that with Bloom starts with her saying word for word "ugg, I wish I never discovered 由 或者 come to Alfea." Basically a lot of self-blame. The scene ended with "I just wish I knew what to do." Perhaps it wasn't sulking (as I initially thought prior to my re-watch) but it was definitely complaining and there were no plans from Bloom. Then the army of decay arrives, the others say they have this one covered. Now I don't expect Bloom to charge at the army of decay unarmed but the boys fight with no magic all the time; I would imagine she could pick up some kind of weapon and fight since the 作者 made her so ridiculously natural at most everything else. If not, at least she could say that she tired. And that was episode 19. As far as plan making was concerned, my memory served me right at that point in the show; in the 4kids dub (the one I watched thoroughly) it was Faragonda who suggested that they go to Sparks not Bloom. "You hold the key Bloom" and then Bloom says something along the lines of "I do?" Faragonda then says that "they can take the flame but 你 can still burn Bloom. 你 are the only one who can use its powers to the fullest." Flora states "but the witches took it." And then Fragonda explains that the flame is there on Sparks. Bloom did not make any plans. While she didn't cry the whole time she was still complaining a bit and didn't come up with any solutions. I was simply wrong about who came up with the plan--thinking it was Stella. And she only agreed to go after the others gave some encouragement but I guess that's natural considering the circumstances.
Episode 21 was basically them still fighting in Sparks. At least she was doing something in this episode, I'll give her that. But I feel like most of the hard work was done 由 the other Winx and the boys. The boys who also have no powers and can still fight well. Leeway granted in that they have 更多 experience. Okay, episode 22 is when she finally made the plan to go to 云, 云计算 Tower. I think the two instances merged together in my mind. But it still (in my opinion) took longer then it should have. It took her 4 episodes to get it together where the other characters based on personality would have already done so 3 episodes back.
Season 6 is another place where I think her using a power as a crutch is evident. When the other Winx all 迷失 their powers none of them even cried 或者 sulked, Layla (being her wonderful and strong self) stepped up to the plate right away and volunteered to train them to fight without powers. Layla is definitely the strongest of the lot physically. Granted, yes, none of them can hold up to a powerful villain without magical powers, but in my opinion (because I don’t recall any of them aside from Bloom having to do so) based on personalities I think they (with the exception of maybe Flora) would hold up better than Bloom. Tecna took on the Omega dimension, she's rational and logical. Layla is (as established) strong and determined. Stella might get a little lazy but is otherwise confident. Musa shares Layla's determination and seems to be very strong emotional--she went through some shit as a kid and still holds up strong as ever. Bloom and Flora just don't have that same determination nor confidence especially without their magic.
That point aside, there were just so many times when her 老友记 had to save her from danger she couldn't save herself from--even with the mighty dragon fire. I like to bring up how she would have totally died in episode two if Stella hadn't showed up. Of course this was a time when Bloom really wasn't experienced. My point in bringing up the first fight is simply that if her 老友记 hadn’t showed up she’d have been out of the count before she had a chance; no 更多 no less. But that isn’t the last time she’d been 《冰雪奇缘》 由 Icy. I’m pretty sure she was encased in ice like that again in that episode where Mirta becomes a pumpkin. Even if it didn’t happen that way she was losing really bad until her 老友记 showed up. Like she (and Mirta) were getting tossed around 由 the three of them. And at this point she was pretty well accustomed to her powers and she had Mirta to help so the numbers weren’t unbalanced--not nearly as unbalanced as three against the Trix become in later seasons. With that in mind, even with her powers she still had work to do (to put it lightly).
After that I firmly believe Bloom only wins because she’s one of the author’s favorites. She isn't the strongest Winx, she just has luck on her side all the time. As explained in various other places and 文章 I wrote the odds are super unfair and always stack in the favor of Bloom and co. And every time she’s about to lose some miracle solution shows up. Like the water stars. Even with Enchantix she would not have beaten Valtor without them. In season 1; she somehow gets the dragon 火, 消防 back? I probably just have to re-watch that, it may 或者 may not make 更多 sense. In season 2 bought Darkar who had her mind in his control, if not for Sky she’d have been stuck that way. And in season 2 she knew darn well how to use her powers. If she was as powerful as people like to make her out to be, then she could have taken Darkar, I would imagine. Pretty much all of her wins in the big battles (when she has experience) is not because of her own power but because of some crazy power boost 或者 because of someone else entering the arena. Whereas the other Winx have gotten themselves out of sticky situations 由 themselves (for instance Tecna held out for a long while on her own in the Omega dimension. Flora, when everyone else was bound/tied up, saved her sister and earned her Enchantix and then saved everyone else).
Which leads me to my 下一个 point; I’m also saying Bloom’s weak (if not, simply weaker than the others) because she’s naïve. She has been proven numerous times to be easy to trick and manipulate. Darkar sends in a fake Avalon and she couldn’t tell the difference? Like she didn't even think the way he was 表演 was strange and slightly suspicious? I thought it was so obvious (perhaps that’s because of the dub I watched?) and because of that Darkar had complete control over her.
In season 1 she breaks into 云, 云计算 Tower, sees a book with her name on it, and doesn’t 问题 it even though the others tell her it could be a trap. Musa says something silly like “are 你 sure, this place is wack?” Tecna specifically asks if Bloom wants her to run some scans/do some calculation on the book. And she’s just “no, I feel it calling out to me.” Isn’t that a reason NOT to just open it? I mean she's in a place full of evil and dark magic and she doesn't even stop to consider that it might be a trap? I understand that she desperately wanted to learn of her past but I don't understand why she thought the 答案 lay in a school for witches. I don't understand why she didn't just stop for a 秒 to think it through. Most of all I don't know why she didn't want Tecna to do some scans.
Later on she lets the witches trick her into thinking she was a witch. She knows in her 心 she’s not a bad person so why would she believe that? And because she was all distraught about being a witch she was left venerable. Her naïveness makes her weaker.
She doesn’t have the mental strength that the others seem to have. And back in season 1 she didn't even have the confidence. Brute and magical strength isn’t the only kind of strength.
All of this 说 it's been bought to my attention that this would be an apparent contradiction to my belief that Bloom is a Mary Sue. Fair enough, I can see why people would see it that way. However (and I do belive that I've 说 before on a number of occasions) that I actually didn't mind season 1 Bloom. I've also 说 that season 1 Bloom was NOT a Sue, however she became one as the series wore on. The insecurities mentioned above, the naiveness that all went away after season 2 and that's when I started calling her a Sue. Season 1 Bloom = flawed and well-written. I still didn't particularly care for her though. Season 2 Bloom = getting close to what I call a Sue. Season 3+ Bloom = a Sue 由 my terms. Season 1 Bloom is very different from season 3 onwards Bloom; the 作者 developed her in a way that actually took away from her character and that sucks. I feel like I'd have probably liked her if he didn't do that. Maybe that's another reason why I just can't like her; there's just so much potential that went to waste. That's exactly why I hate season 5+ Icy. As for the usage of Mary Sue; I can only go off of my own take on the definition. I've found a website that lists a bunch of types of Mary Sues. I think Bloom falls under a bunch of those types. But that's straying from the point I want to make. I think the reason people can't decide is because for one, there are a few types of Mary Sues and for seconds, like everything else everyone seems to have a different standard as to what makes a character a Sue. I've seen people call Harry Potter a Gary Stu and I don't know why. But there's a good lot of people who say so. As for myself personally I'm not calling Bloom a Mary Sue just because I hate her; I (and quite a few others) think I have some valid reasons for thinking so.
But this is getting off topic. My point is that Bloom relies very heavily on her powers in a way that the others don't and I think this helps hinder her from growing in different ways. Between that and her being easy to manipulate I just don't think she's as strong as everyone says she is.
That's really all I have for now. Again feel free to respectfully agree 或者 disagree. I hope I was able to type this in a way that wasn't rude 或者 hateful.
The Young Dark Bloom
