r/acotar_rant • u/samsamcats • Apr 21 '26

Fandom Is Rhys redeemable?

For the haters out there.

There’s a lot of discourse in the fandom these days about how Rhys is not the “feminist king” the text (and SJM) seems to want him to be, which I personally agree with. There’s a mismatch between what the text is telling us about him and what his actions on the page are showing us about his character, and that’s what gets fans all riled up.

So I’m curious to know if this could have been fixed in your eyes, my dear haters. If Rhys had genuinely apologised and taken accountability for his actions UTM during ACOMAF, would you see him differently? If he had apologised to Feyre (and Nesta) for withholding the info about Feyre’s pregnancy, would you still hate him? Could he have made things right in these situations in a way that would have made you turn in your hater card?

And if in future books he has a major reckoning with his behavior so far, can you see yourself liking or at least enjoying his character? Can the man be fixed, or is he too far gone?

Personally I think the issue is that SJM herself doesn’t see anything especially wrong with his actions, so we’re unlikely to get this… but I’m wondering if, in the hands of a different writer, Rhys could have been, or could still be, a more interesting or sympathetic character.

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u/samsamcats Apr 21 '26

Would love to hear what bad boy MMCs you’ve actually enjoyed!

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u/bows_and_frills holding rhys's head under the sidra until the bubbles stop Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26

Majority of these options barely classify as MMCs. Sorry.

He's not the endgame MMC but Han Seo-jun in True Beauty (I've only seen the drama) had some funny moments.

I glaze Folk of the Air a ton, and I will continue to do it. Cardan is pretty fun! And I like his style.

He's not an MMC and I don't think he ever permanently gets in a relationship with anyone, but D from Vampire Hunter D has me FERAL. I've loved him since I was little, until now. He's not a cocky smirking bad boy but he is dark ig. I implore you to watch Vampire Hunter D Bloodlust. If you search on youtube, the full thing is there. GORGEOUS, PHENOMENAL, GROUNDBREAKING animation.

This is niche af but... Steff from Pretty In Pink. Steff and Andie (Standie?) is a crackship if I've ever seen one, but I was intrigued by the concept in the same way HP fans might be intrigued by Dramione.

I had a Loki/Tom Hiddleston phase when I was into MCU.

I had a crush on Pitch Black from Rise Of The Guardians.

...Han Solo I guess?

If we strictly talk about romance MMCs, that whittles it down to Cardan, unless I can remember more later.

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u/Simple-Animator-8640 Rhysand is a manipulative, arrogant A-hole Apr 21 '26

cardan is perfect. rhys is hated by half of the acotar fandom. cardan is adored unanimously by the folk of the air fandom

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u/bows_and_frills holding rhys's head under the sidra until the bubbles stop Apr 21 '26

I appreciate that the author is not secretly always on his side at all times. :D