I remember seeing a post that said āChat has to earn the right to hand out the miraculousā but I never really understood what that meant? Like how would he āearnā it?
First off, weāre approaching this from the wrong angle. I recall making a post about the issue of Adrien not getting to be the one to hand out Miraculous, but Iām pretty sure I said at the time that handing out the magic-granting world-altering jewelry wasnāt a ārightā, it was aĀ responsibility. No one has a ārightā to the Miraculous whether itās using them or choosing others to use them. Thatās the sort of entitlement that got us Chloe and her downward spiral. Saying itās a ārightā is saying itās based on what you perceive a person to deserve rather than what they are actually capable of handling. Itās a trap of thinking that someone ādeservesā something so they are āowedā that something, regardless of the reality of the situation. At the time, people were saying that Adrien ādeservedā to be the one to hand out the magical jewelryāeither alongside Marinette or from the general stance I saw from the people making that statement at the time, preferably in place of her.
The sad little meow meow may deserve happiness, but thereās nothing saying that happiness has to or even should come in the form of control over ancient magical jewelry and the gods within that can cause other people harm if the person involved is being irresponsible (like say using his partnerās Lucky Charm for a joke during a crisis when she was already on a time limit in Refleckdoll) or otherwise having a bad day and just not feeling like it (Catwalker).
As such, itās not about Adrien needing to āearn the rightā to hand out Miraculous to people of his choosing, itās about him needing to show that he is responsible enough to make good choices regardless of his personal feelings and more importantly take accountability for his bad choices.
That is where we have the problem.
In Copycat, Adrien caused an akuma by lying to a guy about dating Ladybug. While he did try to solve the situation himself, he took no accountability in the process and his attempts to catch his double really came off more as his way of hiding what he did rather than trying to fix it. Especially since the episode ended with Ladybug taking the blame and apologizing to the victim for something that wasnāt her fault. At no point did Adrien admit what actually happened, and the truth never came out.
In Oblivio, he cost his, Marinetteās, AND the kwamisā memories because he was messing around and flirting in the middle of the fight. We literally see in the clip that he is lounging behind Ladybug while she is desperately trying to deflect the blasts by herself to protect them both.
In Papa Garou, he is again flirting with Ladybug and distracting her in the middle of a fight when she is a little busy trying to stop the akuma from crushing a building. A building and specifically the bedroom of a friend of his whom he supposedly cares about and that he has no way of knowing isnāt in there being crushed to death by the akuma he was ignoring.
In Glaciator, he got mad at Ladybug for not showing up to a date she herself told him she likely would not make, and took such offense that he refused to work with her in the middle of an active crisis. Second verse same as the first in Frozer as he again put his personal feelings first and refused to work with her in a crisis because she wouldnāt give him the answer he wanted. Both times, she had to be the one to apologize to him for upsetting him, and he took no personal accountability for letting his own feelings dictate his actions in the middle of dangerous situations.
He followed Volpina without hesitation even over his partner and disregarded her suspicions but attacked Alya as Scarabella without trying to listen.
In Syren, he threatened to quit at a time that Paris was flooded and people were drowning because he wasnāt being told a secret that Ladybug was not allowed to share. In Catwalker, he DID quit because Ladybug was relying on people who werenāt him at a time he was consistently letting his personal feelings prevent him from coming out to help.
He has repeatedly let his own personal feelings get in the way of helping during active crises. Crises that are the only reason he was given the magical jewelry in the first place. That tells me that heās lacking responsibility and that the passing out of the magical jewelry is a desire for making him seem more important rather than a necessity for keeping the city he is supposed to protect safe.
I recall an analogy was made before that compared him to a lifeguard who refuses to go out in the water and help someone whoās drowning because heās upset. And it is an apt comparison. It doesnāt matter that the lifeguard āneedsā this job or ādeservesā the benefit of the role; if the lifeguard is letting something personal interfere in his duty to the point heās refusing to save a person in trouble whom it is his responsibility to help, then he shouldnāt be a lifeguard.
So youāre asking me how I think he would be able to earn the responsibility to hand out the Miraculous? Itās that heĀ be responsible.Ā
Not blame or lecture Ladybug/Marinette. Not refuse to help because heās mad. Not change his identity to get another chance at dating Ladybug. Not sacrificing his life or free will for the upteenth time and leaving his partner to fix everything on her own yet again.
At this point, heās a good support and fighter, but heās not someone I could trust to pick a good person to use a Miraculous responsibly and return it afterwards. Or take action if that person wonāt.
Because thatās the thing! Adrien wonāt just be responsible for himself here. He will also have to take responsibility for whomever he chooses AND whichever Miraculous he hands out AND whatever results from the situation.
He, as someone who is friends with a bully like Chloe and tries to support a liar like Lila, has a bad judge of character and that person runs off with a Miraculous? Thatās going to be on him.
He chooses an ability for someone who canāt use it properly? Thatās going to be on him.
The person he picks gets injured or dies? Thatās going to be on him.Ā
The mix of person and Miraculous with the situation that he cannot control for results in a bigger mess? Thatās going to be on him.
And no, we canāt say that it would just work out and that none of that would be an issue for Adrien. We already have the proof that he couldnāt handle it.
Itās already Canon that Adrien fell apart and got himself taken outĀ immediatelyĀ after he lost Ladybug in Party Crasher. He refused to listen to Fu or get helpāwhich would have been a perfect time for him to display this responsibility and show he could gather and lead other heroes.Ā He didnāt.Ā Instead, he attacked an enemy he knew had a one-hit takeout ability head on in close combat in immediate range of that ability, got himself caught, and Fu had to step in and choose other heroes to help. You could say itās because of his love for Ladybug blinding him or that he was enraged, both of which are problematic enough in and of themselves. But you could also say that he canāt handle the responsibility of dealing with the crisis himself.
Adrien is the āniceā guy. Heās the āfunnyā guy. Heās the guy who will support bullies like Chloe and help make her feel better after she tries to crash a train and takes over the city. I guess heās good at making people feel good about bad things they did or bad situations theyāre in. So he is a hero who can fight bad guys and make people feel better. Heās a feel-good hero and thatās why people love him.
But responsible he is not.
