>>41803095I loved her.
She was basically the entire story component, meaning that she was the actual MC. Her growth and determination were a joy to watch as it's not usual for pokémon to have such a weak character travelling and pursuing dangerous goals (rather, even having a non-trainer play any role at all).
The whole story was unusual. Instead of having yet again the usual "catch the box legendary to stop the evil organization" for the fifth gen in a row, they opted for a very personal story about neglect, abuse, loss and self-destructing obsession (not too unlike gambling, alcoholism or workaholism), as well as overcoming trauma, caring and forgiveness; which are themes I would have never expected to graze let alone dive into. And all of that goes through Lillie.
Also, thanks to her arc I cared about the box legendary for the first time ever, which is an achievement. It was an annoying little critter, but it was OUR annoying little critter.
Meanwhile, I as the MC am left with the role of being her bodyguard and inspiration, and that's fine. I've already robotically saved the world enough times, I can kick back and be a mentor and confident for once. For such a laidback region, it's just fitting that my responsibility doesn't grow beyond my friends and family.
And that's why I hate USUM. Not because it didn't improve anything that needed it, or because it had missed opportunities everywhere, or because it didn't do good on its promises; but because it utterly destroyed the one thing that was good and unique about SM by shifting the focus into a janky and shoehorned save-the-world plot with Kyurem 2.0
