Honestly the way people talk about Mary in this fandom will never not aggravate me. Like she’s not even my favorite character, but I think a lot of people view her flatly as some “evil white woman” and decided not to engage any further.
And yes, she is selfish and naive at times, but like you said, all these characters make decisions that aren’t the smartest. And I thought it was pretty clear why she makes the decisions she does. She and Stack are both pretty reckless imo, and I think they’re well-matched in that respect.
Idk I just feel like people’s takes lack a lot of nuance and, quite frankly, empathy.
You're so right, though. It reminds me heavily of that thing that's like "the most evil man on earth will never be hated as much as a mildly annoying woman."
Obviously Mary has her flaws, but the way fandom often treats her is staggering. As complex as Remmick is, he is explicitly and objectively the villain. Yet people act he is far better than Mary.
I'm not surprised at all. Hot men are often treated far differently from women characters and given a lot more grace. And it's especially bad when it comes to stories as complex as Sinners.
And it sucks because Mary is genuinely such an interesting, complex character. And all of that is stripped away to leave her as just "white woman trying to force her way into black spaces."
I love every character so much, but I have no issues with someone not liking Mary. What I do find discouraging is when I see people completely misunderstanding her story and what it represents.
And so many of the reasons she's hated also apply to Stack, but there's a huge difference in how they're viewed by those same people. And like you said, Remmick started it all. There is no reason to vilify Mary more than Remmick.
Even worse when I see the takes about her that are just borderline sexist and racism.
Unfortunately, the drawback of being in a fandom where the source material has so much nuance is that you see a lot of people sorely lacking it.