Introduction

Hey everyone, I'm back with another season 4 character analysis and this time it's "Dearest Family". You may be wondering where my analysis for "Qilin" is so the answer is that it got removed for some reason and I have no idea why because I made it just like my other posts so far so until I get the answer and understand what's going on we're going to be moving on with episode 21. If you're new to this series then here I look at our favourite MLB characters in depth in every individual episode of season 4 in order to give an overall picture of the characters' journey throughout the season.

Yeah, so "Dearest Family", good episode. We see for the first time that our perfect little kwami, Tikki is not as perfect as she seems due to her obsession over sweets, Marinette trying to figure out what it all means, and her family members arguing over what's best for her. So this analysis is probably going to have the most characters POVs we've had since "Crocoduel". So let's get started.

Character POVs

1. Tikki

"I was afraid you would thing less of me. Because of my cravings"

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For the very first time, we see Tikki have some weaknesses and some characterization. Ever since the beginning, Tikki has always just been Marinette's guide and bright-side-up to help her through difficult times but never had any character of her own. But here, we see that she has cravings for new and unique sweets that happens every few hundred years and according to Plagg, the last time it happened was when chocolate was invented and she made it rain chocolate for eight weeks.

The reason for Tikki's abnormal food cravings compared to other kwamis is due to her being the kwami of creation which makes a lot of sense. Tikki's sweet cravings seem to be so dangerous that all the other kwamis in the Miracle Box are afraid of her and that says a lot. These cravings went to the extent that she even used her power without having a holder which caused a giant galette bigger than the Earth to be made and affected the Earth's gravity but thankfully it was destroyed by Cat Noir as Astro Cat.

When Tikki saw that her cravings were taking her away from Marinette, she stopped as her worst fear, as she stated to Marinette, being afraid that her cravings would make her think less of her, came to reality which really shows how much she cares about her relationship with Marinette and shows the strength of her bond with her. When Marinette tell her that she can help her overcome her weaknesses, this is what gives her strength to try to overcome her cravings.

2. Marinette/Ladybug

"Of course not! I'll always like you, Tikki. Everyone has weaknesses, you know. Let me help you overcome yours. Just like you helped me overcome mine."

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This episode is seems that the roles of Marinette and Tikki have been reversed. Tikki has always been the one to help Marinette with her problems and share wisdom on what she should do and encourage her to be better. But now Marinette is making it up to Tikki by helping her overcome her weaknesses.

When Marinette first discovered that Tikki's craving, she was in denial that Tikki had some sort of problem as she believes that she knows Tikki best even when the other kwamis warned her about Tikki's cravings. She tried to control the situation by stopping her from eating their family's galette and transforming into Ladybug to prevent her from eating more which backfired as she got the craving as well when she was transformed.

When Marinette saw that Tikki was going as far as using her power without a holder to appease her cravings, she realized her mistake and admitted that Sass was right about Tikki and she didn't know her as well as she thought and when Tikki revealed to her that the reason why she never told her about her cravings was because she believed that she would think less of her, Marinette assured her that they would work to overcome her weaknesses together just like Tikki has always helped Marinette with her weaknesses.

3. Sabine

"The person who knows best what Marinette needs is Marinette herself!"

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Moving onto the family argument on what is best for Marinette, we'll start with Sabine. From her perspective, Marinette is the only person who knows what's best for her and she's old enough to do so and she is the one I most agree with.

We've seen how Marinette is good with planning and is always helping other people and coming up with great ideas, both as a civilian and as Ladybug. It's best to treat her as someone with her own individuality and her own mind and let her to make her own choices. And by the end of the episode too this is what we see them go with: letting Marinette decide what she thinks about getting a motorbike as a gift from her grandmother and decide whether she is old enough for a gift like that.

4. Tom

"I know my little girl better than anyone else and I think that bike is way too dangerous for her"

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Next we have Tom, who believes that Marinette needs some like him to protect her and he believes that the motorbike that Gina got for Marinette is too dangerous for her which makes sense for his character considering the events of "Weredad", where he gets akumatized because he wants to protect her little girl, Marinette from heartbreak.

Tom cares about his daughter a lot and would go to great lengths to protect her, he even stated in "Stoneheart (Origins Part 2)" that he would protect her if Ladybug and Cat Noir failed to do so which at the time seemed like it was just a lighthearted joke but we know from "Weredad" now that it's true. By the end of this episode though, he realizes that he should let Marinette decide if the gift is best for her and their conflict is resolved.

5. Gina

"Happy Birthday, Marinetta!"

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Next we have Gina, who was the one got Marinette the motorbike for her birthday which she didn't realize was just months ago due to her not spending much time with them as she travels the world on her motorbike.

The last time when she arrived to visit Marinette, she believed that Marinette was younger than she actually is due to the same problem that cause her to not realize that Marinette's birthday was months ago in this episode and it was in that episode that she realized that Marinette was no longer a little girl who ate candies and liked doing things like going to the petting zoo and going on the merry-go-round and was now a young woman who liked hanging out with her friends. So it makes sense for her now to get her a big girl gift like a motorbike and believing that Marinette is old enough for something like that. By the end of the episode though, she lets Marinette decide what she thinks and when Marinette decided that she was still to young for the bike, Gina was OK with it.

6. Rolland

"How can anyone have their head so far up in the clouds? A birthday is a birthday and a Galette's Day is a Galette's Day!"

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Lastly, we have Rolland who still seems to be a little old-fashioned from "Simpleman". When Gina brings the motorbike as a gift for Marinette he believes that Marinette is not old enough to have one yet similar to Tom and believes that Marinette still requires discipline to be able to ride the bike.

This makes sense for Rolland's character as it's traditional for someone only to be able to have a motorbike when they are around 21 and before that they can't drive at all. Unlike, Tom he believes that Marinette needs someone to teach her about order and discipline before she can ride a motorbike and not someone to protect her. By the end of the episode, he realizes that he should take Marinette's choice into account and when Marinette decides that she's not old enough for the bike but instead should have a mini-scooter, he is OK with it

Conclusion

Well, that's the end of this analysis. Hope you enjoyed reading. This took a while to do with all the characters but I'm finally done. As always, let me know your thoughts on this analysis and let me know if I missed anything for any of the characters this episode. Until next time!

I know the whole Quantum Masking thing is supposed to keep their identity secret, but let's face it. Minus when a certain sausage haired psycho talks, a lot of the cast is smart enough to figure out who Ladybug and Cat Noir are. I've included my top picks for who probably know, but you got any to add to the list?

Why does Alya know Marinette is lady bug??? Why does her outfit change when she uses lucky charm??? And where the hell did this chongzone or whatever thing come from!? Who is Shadow moth??? Im watching this on Disney and went by the watch order they have and I’m lost utterly lost. AND IF ALYA KNOWS WHY CANT CHAT NOIR KNOW LIKE WHATTT?????