#btrtv

When I'd made that post a while back asking for input regarding the changes the characters underwent, I'd gotten these two about James:

@cant-get-enough-btr-forever mentioned "James shifting from ambitious/loyal to borderline obnoxious" and @gleeksfreaksandwannabes said "In the pilot, James was strong willed and passionate, and maybe his dream of going from small town Minnesota straight to Hollywood fame was kind of a high bar but he always had this grounded quality to him that seemed to disappear as the show went on - I’d even go so far as Big Time Cribs when he first dressed up as Bandana Man, but it was definitely there through season 4, he became a fully fledged cartoon character"

This pretty much matched the thoughts I had. Let's jump in.

BIG TIME AUDITION

Like with Kendall, our first glimpse of James Diamond is pretty telling as to who this guy is as a character.

Just standing there, meticulously combing his hair, completely oblivious to the conversation his friends are having. Designated Pretty Boy of the group. When he does finally speak, it's to share about his recurring pop star dream. So not only a pretty boy, but also has dreams of stardom.

And I must admit that upon starting my rewatch of the series back in 2023 (how has it been THAT long??) one of my initial thoughts was, "How on Earth did this guy get talked into playing hockey?" Not that guys who are into self-care, fashion, and music can't also be into sports; it's just that James in particular didn't strike me as someone who had ever willingly played a sport in his life, let alone one that's known for being as intense as hockey is. At first glance, James seemed much more suited for musical theater—like he could be the Nickelodeon version of Ryan Evans from High School Musical.

But anyway, James is a dynamic guy, and he's not afraid to jump headfirst into some good ol' trouble and help his buds attack the girls' field hockey team via sprinklers. And when the guys are inevitably chased by an angry mob, James's friends know protecting his pretty face is top priority.

As the guys later sit around Kendall's house, nursing their various injuries, we learn just how serious James's plan for future fame is. He's got it all mapped out: famous wife, multiple houses, selling out arenas. Big plans for a boy from Minnesota, but James is clearly driven.

We know how it goes from there. James gets nervous during the audition Gustavo is running, gets his dreams crushed, and then has to later see the offer of fame he's been yearning for his whole life go to one of his best friends. But his reaction is interesting! Because you'd think (even expect) James to be bitterly jealous, but he isn't. Any jealousy is overshadowed by his frustration that Kendall doesn't want anything to do with Gustavo. He wants Kendall to go for it and take this amazing opportunity. There's a selflessness to James that really shines and makes him feel very grounded in these moments and in the episode as a whole. Even when they get to L.A. and start their boy band boot camp, James approaches it, mostly, with the seriousness it deserves. ("He is serious, but not great")

BIG TIME CRIB

I'd argue that James starts to diverge from his Audition self even faster than Kendall did, and we can see that happening a little in just the third episode.

Now, this is still very much in the realm of what I would expect from the James we met in Audition. Totally the type of guy who will latch onto some new trend or fashion statement and run with it. But there's a bit of a heightened wackiness here for sure. Not alarmingly wacky, of course, but—

Oh. Maybe a tad alarmingly wacky.

BIG TIME MANSION, PARTY, & JOBS

These episodes show more of a cartoony version of James, but I don't feel that it's a terribly egregious departure from Audition James. We're still leaning very heavily into the pretty boy thing (that won't change) but he definitely isn't as grounded as he seems in Audition. I can see Audition James throwing a fit over a bad hair day, but I can't quite see him being dumb enough to call the FBI over it.

I CAN see Audition James being extra during a party, so his Hollywood Super Party Kings of Hollywood persona doesn't feel too crazy, but it certainly is an exaggerated version of him.

Oh, hey. Remember when James had that alter ego mirror personality?

Ok, so I actually loved this, but it is very, very, deeply silly. In many ways, Audition James was also silly, but he was at least fully attached to reality. This James is not. This is somebody who needs help—a sentiment Logan will share in a season 2 episode!

Now, I know that the entire show as a whole is noticeably detached from reality (the universe they live in clearly has its own rules), but James in particular has a touch of...delusion, shall we say, that follows him during the series. I'll focus more on how this displays itself in other episodes, but this is our first big James Mentally Lives On Another Planet moment.

BIG TIME FEVER

This one is a little unfair to include because the whole point of the episode is that each of the boys (aside from Kendall) goes cuckoo bananas due to Hollywood Fever, but I think that the root of James's "fever" is important character-wise!

As the therapist Gustavo gets for James says, "James's need to cover himself with tanning spray is an attempt to counter his feelings of estrangement brought on by his new and intense Hollywood environment."

And not only is this spot on, but I think it's a critical underlying layer to who James Diamond is, and something the show really dropped the ball on in terms of exploring it further. I fully believe that James, even in his grounded, ambitious, Audition form, is terribly insecure and self-critical. He has a desperation to be important, to be liked, to be seen as "good enough." We see the way his face drops when Gustavo interrupts his audition, and we see his excitement when he thinks Gustavo has come back to give him another chance, and we see the disappointment/confusion when Mr. X tells him he isn't great.

James needs to be somebody. And so when he gets that chance to finally be somebody, it's no surprise that the pressure gets to be too much, and he spirals and ends up orange. There was a missed opportunity to take this part of James and run with it. Little moments that hinted at the insecurities he tries so hard to cover up. And it's not even like they would have needed to lean into drama or angst to do it; it could have been woven into the show in smaller ways.

BIG TIME GIRLFRIENDS

Someone help him.

BIG TIME GURU

Ok, so. The whole Logan-stealing-James's-swagger storyline. I'm honestly unsure as to if Logan was actually, legitimately draining the swag from James (because that could 100% happen in their bonkers universe) or if we're supposed to assume this was all psychosomatic because James is just Like That. Personally, I headcanon that James worked himself into such a frenzy over Logan dressing and acting cool that he caused himself to have physical symptoms. Because that's very in line with the "detatched from reality" James we've seen a decent amount of so far. Also, he just loves being dramatic.

I mean, if Logan can put on some cooler clothes and take on a cooler persona, James can absolutely convince himself that he's dying from Lack of Swag. The mind is a powerful thing, and James Diamond's mind sure is a special one.

These are two different people

Audition James was focused and driven, and had at least a handful of brain cells bouncin' around in his noggin. Like Audition Kendall, there was a sort of intensity to him, but it was a stable intensity. By Guru, we have a James who's always dialed up to 15, is intense in a chaotic, manic sort of way, and has one single brain cell that Carlos has possession of half the time.

But yeah, he's actually ridiculous, and I legitimately think a case can be made for him being prone to delusions.

BIG TIME MOMS

This one is obviously included due to the interesting glimpse into James's home life it offers. We meet James's terrifying mother, who arrives in L.A. to take James back home so she can train him as the heir to her mega-successful cosmetics company. We learn that everyone is scared of her, people don't dare ever say "no" to her, and that she and James's father had a very bitter divorce that resulted in neither of them speaking to the other since then (and also because James's dad married a much younger woman).

It's actually funny the way we get so much James Lore dumped in this single episode after knowing basically nothing about his background until now. But wow, it's a doozy. And we see the impact Brooke has on James. He goes catatonic twice, is left unable to even explain to Kelly and Gustavo what the problem is, and is horrified at the idea of defying her. She's controlling, powerful, and cold, opting to rip James away from his dream and his friends simply because she can't manage to be honest and express how much she misses him.

If Big Time Rush wasn't a real-life cartoon of a show aimed at a younger audience, this would all be incredible pieces of information that could have been used to further shape and explain why James is the way he is. Like. James had a legitimately unstable childhood and a mother that wants to control every aspect of his life.

Maybe it's not surprising that he talks to mirrors, actually.

BIG TIME CONTEST

So, not only does James become dumb and increasingly unhinged, he also becomes INSUFFERABLE. We start seeing moments of Sleazy James, who sets his sights on something and will walk all over others and disregard their feelings to get it.

Ugh. He's such a rotten friend to Carlos in this. And so horrible to those sweet girls who won the contest. Audition James was self-centered, but you don't get the sense he's manipulative about it. I don't know. Maybe he is; we don't spend all that much time with him.

It's just that early-series James felt more like a team player. Especially Audition James. Contest James is so superficial and annoying that he's flat-out unlikable in the episode. This is a version of James I look at and go, "Yeah, this is Brooke Diamond's son".

BIG TIME SUPERHEROES

I debated including this one because I don't personally consider it canon, (simply because I don't like it, and it's too ridiculous) but let's say all this nonsense played out exactly how the episode shows. Let's think back to James Diamond from BTAudition. Are you thinking about him?

Here's BTSuperheroes James

Full-fledged cartoon character himbo.

Don't get me wrong; he's delightful. I LOVE James Diamond. He is hysterical. He's just...not a real person anymore. He's like that crazy, free-spirited, in-their-own-world friend who makes you laugh but who you also genuinely worry about because something is not right. Logan says it best.

New headcanon that the main plot of this episode DID happen (Hawk stealing their songs) but that none of the superhero shenanigans happened, and nobody was in costumes, and it was all in James's head.

BIG TIME SECRET

Only briefly highlighting this episode because I actually really do like the way James is portrayed in it. He's very much the cartoonified end-of-season 2 version of himself, but I appreciate that the episode leans into that loyalty we originally saw in him in Audition by having him work so hard to try to make things up to Carlos regarding the Heather Fox thing. And the scene of them when James throws out to note from Heather is very sweet.

I would have liked to have seen more of this type of James.

IN CONCLUSION

James absolutely underwent a dramatic shift from his Audition self pretty early on, which makes sense given what the show was becoming, but I do wish they hadn't veered so hard into the cartoonishness of it all. Audition was such a perfectly done, grounded approach to the show; it would have been so interesting if that tone had been followed and given room to see what else James could have been. Like Kendall, I love James in both forms, but you really do have to kind of put a mental wall up and divide them into separate characters.

But like I mentioned in Kendall's post, I'm going to go ahead and apply it for James and say that I feel like what James Diamond becomes is more fitting to James Maslow's personality anyway. He's always been very exaggerated and heightened in his personality/mannerisms, always doing The Most, and is pretty on par with his character in terms of sass. So, I think it didn't take much to make James Diamond who he was. When it comes down to it, it works, and we end up with a character who is as frustrating at times as he is endearing.

Theory One: Being a very bad boy had very significant consequences

This is one I've mentioned at least twice before. The existence of Kendall Knight in his BTAudition form can be roughly traced back to Big Time Bad Boy. This is because having the Bad Boy Off with WayneWayne was just too much for his system to handle.

Kendall's bad boy traits needed to come out organically. His back-talk, sass, and defiance were all things that had to happen on his terms, through the natural course of his days. Blatantly not caring about anything Gustavo said and constantly thinking up schemes took effort, and Kendall needed to pace himself.

Being forced to the level of bad behavior that was required in order to save his place in the band meant Kendall had to channel that badness and unleash it on command. Smashing some records and body-checking a guy into a wall is one thing, but he had to COMPLETELY destroy Gustavo's office with a sledgehammer. He had to go to the bathroom in a drawer. These are all very unnatural things to do, and they threw Kendall's entire brain out of whack. The whole ordeal took a big chunk out of his edge, and he never quite recovered. When all was said and done, we were left with an altered version of Kendall.

Theory Two: Love turned Kendall's brain to mush

Let's disregard theory one, shall we? Let's say that the Bad Boy Extravaganza didn't have any negative impact on Kendall at all. He still started to change personality-wise after this episode. Hmm...what episode immediately followed Big Time Bad Boy? Why, it was Big Time Love Song! With this episode came the introduction of Jo, Kendall's main love interest through the series.

Kendall goes goofy around Jo from the start. He gets hearts in his eyes and wants only to win her affections. It takes a few episodes to do it, but it eventually happens. And while they're very cute together, it could be said that meeting Jo and falling in love was the catalyst that started his noticeable personality change. Whenever Jo was around, Kendall pretty much swung between Very Silly Guy and Guy Drowning in Paranoia.

Could it be then that being in a relationship killed Audition Kendall? Is love the antidote for being a bad boy? Perhaps!!

Theory Three: Schemers don't wear cardigans

Kendall wears a lot of plaid throughout the series. You know what else he wears with increasing frequency as we move through season 1 and onto season 2? Cardigans.

I can't see Audition Kendall wearing one. In fact, I don't even think it's possible for a person to jump up onto a table in a fit of rage while wearing a cardigan.

People who wear cardigans are gentle. I picture Mr. Rogers when I think about cardigans. Or a nerd sitting by a fireplace with a good book. Or Logan, who happens to ALSO have cardigans as a clothing staple.

I don't believe this is a coincidence. Stay with me here: remember in Big Time Guru when Logan started dressing cooler, and it not only majorly upped his swag levels but also nearly killed James in the process? Well, James was clearly experiencing some psychosomatic symptoms because he loves being dramatic, but I DO think the way one dresses can impact personality and confidence levels (maybe to a heightened degree in the crazy BTR universe).

So, here's what happened. Somewhere early in season 1, Kendall was gifted a cardigan, maybe by Logan himself. He discovered he liked cardigans, except integrating them into his wardrobe had the added side effect of altering his personality. That troubled, argumentative side of him got toned down, like when Lilo put that lei on Stitch to stop him from destroying her room.

Theory Four: Kendall didn't escape Hollywood Fever after all

I feel like I may have briefly mentioned this in a past post, but I couldn't find it. You know how Kendall supposedly escaped Hollywood Fever because he didn't lose touch with his roots? Well, what if that wasn't actually the case? What if Kendall did develop the fever, but a mild enough case that nobody noticed? What if his connection to hockey kept it from turning into the full-blown cases his friends had, but wasn't enough to stave it off entirely?

I propose this: A mere handful of episodes into the series, Kendall developed a chronic case of Hollywood Fever that would not only last through the series, but intensify. It is the reason for his increasingly neurotic behavior, his exaggerated reactions to things, and at the core of his transformation.

Theory Five (the only semi-serious one): Audition Kendall was a persona molded from necessity

Let's look at Kendall Knight's pre-L.A. life. Namely, let's look at his family situation and factor in the most widely-accepted headcanon regarding it (one Challen Cates essentially verified): Kendall's father cheated on Jennifer and then walked out on the family either shortly before or after Katie was born. He then had zero contact with them and essentially vanished from their lives.

For someone like Kendall, who I believe had those leader/protector qualities in him from the start, this fracturing of his family forced him into roles before he was really ready. He had to become the Man of the House and protector of his mom and little sister. He felt he needed to be the one trying to hold things together, even though the biggest concern he should have had at such a young age was learning to tie his shoes.

It's not far fetched to say that this stress and pressure pushed Kendall into a pattern of being the protector and fixer for everything in his life. Guy taking care of his family, guy taking care of his friends. Guy controlling every situation in an effort to keep things from falling apart. With this added pressure came angst, leading to the version of Kendall we see in Audition through the first few episodes of the series: fiery, impulsive, manipulative, and defiant. His personality was a protective shell—formed out of necessity in a world that felt unstable and untrustworthy.

It remained in place as he got situated in L.A., but as things settled, the sense of security that came with the lifestyle and finding success in the music industry allowed him to finally drop his guard. The "anger management issues" side of him melted away, BUT it also meant the floodgates opened and released all the pent-up anxiety that was underneath the anger the whole time.

This, friends, is why Kendall starts out as a guy who jumps onto a table and rage-sings, talks back at everything said to him, and lives for trouble, and ends up as a flailing, anxious, ridiculously silly guy. He's finally in a situation where he can truly let loose and be himself but is also wading through years of suppressing that more anxious/overwhelmed side of himself.