Hi if you're comfortable with this can you please talk about Ben's flaws. Sometimes I feel really bad for not liking him that much because he's, you know, dead.
I don't think you should feel bad. As long as you're respectful and such, it's cool to not vibe with a character. Even a dead character.
Also, Klaus is an asshole who fucks up a lot and is not like A Victim. This is a post about Ben's Flaws and because Ben can only interact with Klaus, it's gonna center on ways Ben did Klaus dirty. I'm not delusional. I know it goes both ways.
I think Ben is really, really self centered. This isn't shocking, he died as a teen. Teens are self centered and he admits he hasn't had time to change. I know a lot of people are gonna argue that he's fought to preserve Klaus but I guess I'd say a) has he? b) even if he has, is that not self-centered given his tether to Klaus? And like it's okay! He's allowed to focus on himself! He lived a tragedy and he died too young! But it extends beyond that. In season one, Ben tells a Klaus who has been tortured for almost 2 days, who is experiencing ptsd flashbacks, who is in withdrawal, who is kidnapped, that he does not know real torture because he's not dead and watching his brother waste his life. Like Jesus christ dude, is this the time? The answer is no, and that's good! It's a flaw! It's a good flaw! Ben thinks that nobody is allowed to suffer except him, or at the very least not Klaus. This continues. He thinks that because Klaus has wasted his life, Klaus should live FOR him. He's willing to take this life with or without permission, and he's willing to coerce permission and keep acting without it. This is not ooc. Not at all. I literally called it a month before s2 came out. He feels Klaus is "pissing" his life away, so he's gonna do it better. This is a well constructed, brilliant, tragic flaw that I admire greatly.
Ben is also extremely, extremely judgemental. If you want an example of how to deal with an addict, look at Allison, look at Diego. They are both kind, and concerned, and they treat Klaus like a human. Ben is angry at Klaus. You don't punch addicts out of relapse. You don't tell someone leaving heroin behind that they should go into places full of heroin to look for their invincible brother. I get why he does. I get that it has been 13-17 grueling years. It's still a flaw.
Again, I am sympathetic to Ben. I think he's well written, I think his dynamic with Klaus is interesting, I am glad he's in the show.
