Howdy, people who may or may not be figaments of my crazy imagination! You all know the drill, so let's dive in!
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Season 1- Saga of a Sneaky Slimeball[]
In the very beginning, Jerome gave off the vibe of a flat character. We saw him manipulating, pranking and thriving off the chaos his schemes could create. Hell, his first scene was him scamming a person! He was not a poor character, but he was one dimensional, or at least seemed that way, and he was used for nothing except comic relief and to stir random drama when needed. There just wasn't anything for him to do for a while, I guess. The issue I see is not poor writing for the character, but a lack of plot at this time. So while he did get to have the freedom of bouncing between subplot to subplot, creating drama but not getting himself involved directly, and Eugene probably had fun simply getting to play around with the character, there was no true plot for him and nothing for him to do but scheme, trick and tease.
The first time we got to see a hint of Jerome being a better person on the inside is when Alfie got hospitalized, and Clarke took a page from Patricia's book, becoming agitated, desperate, and interrogate-y. (Bonus points for trying to interrogate Patricia of all Sibuna members...Mm, a little intentional Patrome, maybe? Or Jerome just being angry enough to interrogate the first Sibuna he could get in private? YOU DECIDE!) Despite anyways tricking and teasing Alfie, Jerome legitimately proved to care about him. Maybe he did start playing it cooler and going back to his usual attitude, but you could tell he was still genuinely afraid for his best friend's saftey. This was a short lived subplot, but an important one...
Fast Forward, and we see a much bigger insight to the hidden heart of Jerome Clarke. Namely, by developing a close relationship to Mara and revealing his secret depths in the process. Who didn't feel a little touched when he opened up to her and expressed a sincere desire to change himself? But I need to make something clear. This was not development. Jerome as a person did not change. We were simply seeing what was under the surface, and seeing his personality become more fleshed out and rounded. This is just fine, because nobody ever said development is required for a good character, what matters is being rounded and realistic. And Jerome- he now was! He wasn't perfect as a person in the slightest...which I liked better! Despite saying he wanted to be a good person, and opening up to Mara (a bit out of nowhere, I might add- why Mara, when not somebody he had already shown to be close to- Patricia, maybe? I guess because Mara would be nice and understanding enough to listen, but he really told her everything rather fast...after one or two conversations with her! Does nobody else see the problem here?) he wasn't exactly good at being good. Oh, sure, he said he wanted to try, but he obviously was too stuck in his old habits to really do anything about this! His heart was in the right direction, but his mind was still thinking in terms of schemes and pranks. And I love this- it's realistic! Someone can't be a better person overnight, it's a hard process to change old ways, and Jerome proved this. (So shut it, "Redeemed" Joy! YOU DIDN'T EARN THAT SHIT!)
What proves this better than the fact that, once he started feeling alone and betrayed by both Mara and Alfie, Jerome started retreating into a more cynical and selfish mindset. He joined team Amber to get revenge on Mara and Mick, and he joined Rufus to basically tell Sibuna, "See? I can and will get involved and you can't stop me!" This showed two sides of Jerome at once- the Jerome that was willing to do whatever it takes to get himself ahead of others, and the Jerome that really just wanted attention and respect from somewhere. It also shows how just saying you want to change is not enough- it takes work, and Jerome seemed to have given up before he was really giving himself the chance. He went full on Anti-Villain, using his brains for evillllllll. Except...he didn't KNOW Rufus was evil! Sure, he probably knew they weren't a nice guy, but not dangerously psychotic! He didn't want to get Sibuna in danger, he just wanted to be included somehow. So bad choice? Yes. But sympathetic intentions? Also yes.
The best indicator of Jerome's true Season One personality is how he acted in the final few episodes of the season- when he realized Rufus was actually evil and he ended up in Sibuna for a temporary period- for protection (the claimed reason) and for the ability to no longer be alone (the implied reason). Despite still having animosity with Sibuna, Jerome was loyal and eventually gained loyalty in return. This shows his personality clearly: A person who might not make the best choices and might have a gift for bad deeds, but really is a good guy at heart, and just needs to use his natural talents for good and not evil.
Season One Jerome may have seemed a bit inconsistant at first glance, but after a closer look, his flip-flopping between good and bad makes sense. And he made up for a lack of development by being genuinely complex, deep and well written. Which continues in...
Season 2- A boy and his gem[]
Like with most of the characters, season 2 kicked off where we left off with Jerome, keeping his personality intact...with one difference. He now has a sister! And around her, he's...different. Just enough to show a brand new side of him- one that's nervous and annoyed, yet...protective and brotherly. He acts like he really hates her, but deep down, we know he has a soft spot for her, because we know Jerome. But overall, he's the same guy, sneaky and smart and just a bit selfish. This is shown most clearly in his dealings with Mara. He still cares for her despite her loving Mick and being oblivious as hell to his feelings. He deals with this by helping to get rid of Mick ASAP and manipulating things to his advantage. At this time, he's still in his old habits of doing what's easy, fun and/or selfish rather than what's good. But that would soon change, when...
His father comes into the picture. This is when we really see Jerome changing for the first time. Before this, he was still being himself, just angrier and maybe even more willing to do stupid things for the sake of keeping himself safe (Hiring Roper, anyone? Oh hey imagine if Mara called the dude for him and she ended up getting Rufus and he had to act like-sorry, tangent). But once we actually get around to meeting Jerome's father, something changes. Jerome becomes vulnerable, nervous, and angry, yet for some reason decided to stick around. Personally, I think his rage was more just because of his fear at finally facing his father again and his emotions from years of abandonment coming out...but I think his choice to stay was acknoweledgement that just like he is trying to be a nicer person, his father is trying to be a better father, and leaving will deny both of them that chance, coupled with the fact that deep down he really did care and love his father, it was just hidden behind anger and worry. At this point, once he gets in contact with John, his life takes a whole new path...and it continues onward.
The gem soon comes into play, and as soon as accepting the quest to find it, the audience gets to realize, hey, Jerome is actually changing. Mara realized this too, and her pride was probably felt by many of us when watching at home for the first time. Finally, he chose to do something for someone other than himself, and his noble cause is what really sets him off towards becoming a truly good person! True, he was still relying on sneaking and scheming, but he was using those powers for something that actually mattered.
As time goes on, we see him starting to mature and turn nicer. He still had his selfish streak, don't get me wrong, but he was learning to help others as well. Part of me is tempted to claim it was Mara who helped him grow, but that would be wrong. It's not Mara- it's his family who are responsible for his development in a big sense. Mara was there to support his growth, give him another person to be good for, and to make him feel more capable of being good, but his father and Poppy are the people who are influancing him the most, and it's even more centered on John- for being like the symbol of Jerome's development, as Jerome starts out untrusting, unhappy and uninterested, slowly starts to give in to meeting him, and grows to genuinely want to make his father happy at any cost. This mirrors how he was, in the beginning, the same old Jerome from the last one, he started changing his ways after a few episodes but was still selfish and sneaky, and then eventually became a guy with a truly golden heart hidden behind a dark-ish interior.
But wait, there's more! When the gem goes missing, and he starts his Patricia-ish search, he takes on his determined and dangerous personality from the end of the first season- with a twist, as this time, he's genuinely after a noble cause. He's lying, stealing and manipulating, but it's all for the gem (and after a time, Trudy). Instead of helping Rufus out of greed and lonlieness, he's doing it because he has no other option if he wants to do what's right. If that's not a clear representation of his development, then what is? I just wish that after this he had joined Sibuna. Maybe he gets cursed for making Sibuna get sidetracked, or maybe he gets tired of the secrets and demands to be treated like a member of the team. Or maybe he shows his new and genuine good side to them and they decide he's trustworthy after all...
Okay, there's only one more thing to cover- the end of the Mickra/Jara love triangle. I've already said multiple times how he had been more focused on himself and HIS feelings rather than Mara's. But by the end of the season, Jerome had turned around completely and was now allowing Mara to be happy with Mick despite having many reasons to disagree with her choices. It clearly hurt him, but he did it because ruining Mickra again would hurt her. Say what you want about Jara now, but that was a clear gesture of love and respect for Mara...
In general, Season 2 Jerome took the awesome character of Season 1 Jerome...and developed him into someone who could use his powers of sneaking around, manipulating and even blackmailing for heroic purposes. It shows that a person could still be a good guy even with their flaws, and that it's possible to make someone already awesome even more awesome! But personally, I feel like he was more complex in the first season, with his anti-villain traits. I love season 2 Jerome a whole lot, but IDK, I feel like season 2 may have just simplified him a little bit to being a "standard" Jerk With A Heart Of Gold (I type it like that because of TvTropes deal with it), losing some of the more complex (mental) struggles he had in season 1. But that's just me, and like I said, I genuinely love him in this season...
Season 3- The most loyal boyfriend to ever cheat[]
Too bad this season had to come along and ruin my fun...
I can be short in this one because Season 3 took a rather complex character and turned him into a misunderstood puppy who needs love. /:
Basically he started out just fine, perfect actually, until he started cheating. Now I know it was accidental and he didn't want to hurt anyone (being a nice guy now and all that) but come ON! He was extremely loyal to Mara, if nothing else! That's just bullshit to make him cheat, PURE AND SIMPLE.
For a while he was portrayed as...a sympathetic jerkass who was in the wrong, which he honestly WAS.
But as soon as Operation Jerome kicked off, he was suddenly thrust into the misunderstood nice guy category again.
And then he didn't change and nothing happened and I'm pissed at season 3 because basically they made him re-learn the same lesson in "goodness" all over again JUST FOR ROMANCE DRAMA..
XCSHVC Y7IFVU NO
NO
NO
NO
NO
NO
NO
NO
NO
NO.
I don't like this at all. I can understand what they were trying to go for with Joy. Hell, I can even understand Mara! But JEROME? REALLY? WAS THAT THE ONLY WAY TO...FFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKKK YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUU WRITERS
So um yeah Jerome was ruined as a character, IDC how sweet he acted during the plot, the point is that plot should NEVER come before a character! And they totally let it come miles ahead of Jerome's character.
of your nasty little comment!
You tell them, perfectly awesome version of Jerome from the past, YOU TELL THEM!
Consensus / What I'd Have Done[]
My consensus is that Jerome is and will always be a complex and interesting character, no matter what Season 3 did to him. He was the good guy who acted like a bad guy, and he was glorious. The writing for him was not consistant, but I think that he was a wonderful character- just a victim of poor writing in the third season.
I'd have kept season 1 the same. Season 2, exact same, except I'd have had him truly join Sibuna. SEASON 3? NO CHEATING, JUST A SIMPLE BREAK UP WITH HIM AND MARA, HE MOVES ON, JOINS SIBUNA, ACTUALLY DOES SHIT AS A DESCENDANT AND CONTINUES BEING THE CHARACTER WE ALL LOVED.
Thanks for reading, guys!
Check out my first chapter of Escapees, and my most recent Episode Analysis Video! (I am serious about the latter. If people don't start watching these videos, I might just stop making them all together...)
Who do I do next week? YOU decide!