Mabel ISN'T Terrible, Actually (Gravity Falls)

Gravity Falls has experienced a massive resurgence this Summer, so I thought there'd be no better time than now to finally make a video defending Mabel Pines. A lot of claims and critiques have been levied against Mabel for years now, and the vast majority of them are shockingly incorrect.

Chapters:

0:00 - Intro
4:21 - Mabel is Terrible?
8:14 - Mabel ISN'T Terrible
30:58 - Lost Legends and The Book of Bill
32:59 - Conclusion

Thank you to @StreamlineWorkshop for voicing Mabel in the opening comic dub!

Tracks in order of appearance (Repeats not counted):

Persona 3 Reload OST - Color Your Night (Instrumental)
Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space OST - Maimtron 9000’s Pancake Breakfast
A Hat in Time OST - File Select
Gravity Falls OST - Let’s Rewind
Super Mario Odyssey OST - Bubblaine
Sonic Unleashed OST - Apotos (Day)
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe OST - Mute City
Sonic Mania OST - Comfort Zone (Main Menu)
Hi-Fi Rush OST - The Rush
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth OST - Knavish
Persona 5 Strikers OST - Sophia’s Shop
Lost Judgment OST - Blue Stompin’
Persona 5 Royal OST - So Happy World
Persona 4 OST - A New World Fool
Picross 3D Round 2 OST - Challenge
Super Mario Galaxy OST - Star Festival
Undertale OST - Dating Start
Persona 3 Portable OST - Time (Instrumental)
Undertale OST - Home
Losing Streak - Chew Well (Outro Song)

Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.

#rant #entertainment #gravityfalls

[postcents]

the fact the 12 year old girl who is flawed just like the rest of the cast got more heat than the grown man who kickstarted the shows conflict because of a situationship with a triangle will never not astound me

[handhelder]

Mable isn’t a bad person, she is flawed in a realistic way and that isn't a bad thing

[cookieblobber]

Something I find rly ironic about that scene with Ford suggesting an internship to Dipper and basically dissing Mabel, is that when he brings up an example of Dipper's editing of his journal that impressed him, he just so happens to show the one where he edited the gnomes' unknown weakness to be leaf blowers. But if you recall, he didn't figure that out without the help of Mabel by putting trust in whatever plan she had in mind.

Ford was implying that Mabel was holding Dipper back when he had proof right there on how much Mabel helps him out in learning more about the town's supernatural side

[maplepainttube]

The time travelers pig episode argument always bugged me, people used to actually act like Mable was in the wrong for not wanting to give up waddles to help dipper with his time travel scheme. Like irl if my brother gave away my new puppy to impress a girl, and refused to give it back, he would be dead to me.

[spoontyphoon]

At 18:57, do people also not consider that if she refuses to give him the book, and Bill drops her, she could get seriously hurt, or worse, DIE? And let's not forget her fear of heights either. Like, she's really brave for going against him, and really lucky it worked out- because good lord that was dangerous.

[LilyTheSmol]

Also Book of Bill reveals that the plan Bill came up with to get the rift from Mabel was formed because HE LOOKED INTO HER HEAD AND SAW HER INSECURITIES.

[themaskedfacade]

I always took issue with some of the points made in the original "Mabel is Terrible" video where it felt like they were just looking for an excuse to criticize Mabel. Like at one point they blame Mabel for how Gideon tried to kill Dipper in The Hand that Rocks the Mabel. Now, while it was irresponsible for her to have someone break up for her (which first of all she realized in that very episode and second of all it was Dipper's idea to begin with, she didn't force it on him), how exactly Gideon being a possessive psychopath is supposed to be Mabel's fault to begin with is beyond me.

And then there's the whole thing with Mabel choosing not to press the button to shut down the portal, which the video framed as being a bad thing as it implied she trusted Stan more than her own brother. Again, this feels like a stretch made to make Mabel look bad. I feel it's less that she trusts Stan more than Dipper, and more she doesn't want someone she loves to be evil. They also used this as reason to blame her for the rift existing in the first place, which is just really ridiculous to accuse her of. She's so disconnected from that thing existing that it makes more sense to blame Ford for making the portal or Stan trying to reuse the portal for the rift being created.

[STAYINGUPFOREVER]

People always forget that Dipper's desire to stay as Ford's apprentice was also escapism.

l've found that people who characterize Mabel as malicious have a tendency to erase the most interesting parts of Dipper's character to push this narrative.

To make it short, Alex has stated multiple times that Dipper wants to grow up too fast. He's a kid that doesn't want to be a kid. Ford was granting him an opportunity to speedrun the drudgery of childhood AND he was playing into Dipper's "lone genius" complex. (As only one example, Mabeland!Wendy plays into this complex by telling Dipper he’s smarter than everyone else and using that as a segue way to try to convince him to stay.) Dipper outright says in the finale that the fact that he was going to stay cooped up in a basement for the rest of his teenage years was ridiculous. Both twins were escaping from their reality. I mean for fuck's sake, the show ends with Mabel going "it's time to grow up" and Dipper elbowing her and going "but not too fast!" Dipper taking that apprenticeship would've been a *bad thing* that would've isolated him from the world the same way it isolated Ford.

*Edit*
I’m trying to reply to the replies but YouTube keeps blocking all of them from being seen for some reason. Anywho to elaborate, yeah I think the show could’ve done better highlighting this because a lot of the show’s context lies in either commentary or books and idk if I think that’s great. That’s probably what made it easy for people to overlook the fact that Dipper had his own issues to work through, which culminated into the finale. I don’t blame anyone for thinking the apprenticeship was a great idea, but it’s escapism because Dipper was trying to escape his reality as a 12 year old boy. The entire series is him trying to be older than he is, which is in itself an immature quest for maturity. Ford was projecting on him though, and he saw a lone genius being held back by family. If Ford and McGucket could barely handle exploring Gravity Falls, why would a 12 year old be any better at it?

It's escapism because that's exactly it; it's not a good fate for a child. Dipper doesn't want to be a kid, he wants to grow up unhealthily fast and just get it all over with.
He has a similar complex to Ford's. Ford's fatal flaws, what caused all this, were his self isolation, pride, and lack of trust.
Those were the same values he was instilling in Dipper. The same Dipper who would share everything with Mabel, withheld information about the rift, allowing Bill to manipulate the Pines family the same way he always does. Reminder that in the very first episode, the journal warned Dipper not to trust anyone but he still immediately trusted Mabel with the information. Family and trust is a big theme in gravity falls. TBOB literally ends with Ford telling the reader that everything is easier when you trust your family to help you.

[starforce]

Remember when Dipper almost got everyone killed in Summerween? Remember when he almost got Robbie killed by Rumble? Remember when he raised the dead? Remember when he kept the rift secret from Mable?Mable haters don't.

[burgerlord]

One of Mabel's first lines were "Yay, grass!"

This was a subtle reference to the fact that people who actively hate Mabel do not touch grass

[ACStation]

"[Mabel] knows in her core that Dipper's quest for maturity is, in itself, immature. So whenever he takes himself too seriously, it is her duty... to keep him in that kid space where he should be." - Alex Hirsch

Just figured I put this out there

[lackingcreativevalue]

Stanley: (uses the portal to save Ford, thus creating a rift that could give Bill a permanent way into the dimension)
Stanford: (hides the rift and doesn't explain it to anyone except Dipper)
Dipper: (carries the rift around in a backpack even after it was fixed instead of handing it over to Ford)
Mabel: (gives the rift up to Bill-endin after she was manipulated in an already emotionally volatile state)
*Those* Fans: THIS IS ALL MABEL'S FAULT!!!

[eb-the-gamer]

Im surprised more people dont dislike Ford more for the reasons they dislike Mabel, he embodies the selfishness they critisize her for a lot more despite being an adult.

[bullahboi]

14:19 actually in the directors commentary Alex Hirsch clarified that there never was a timer on the laptop and bill made dipper imagine it

[bryandraws]

I remember in the CC West video he unironically uses the joke of Mabel screaming “Death” in the episode where they face Blendan in Globnar as a point against her.

[Phobie_]

for YEARS I’ve never known people hate Mabel. I thought the entire Gravity Falls cast was universally beloved because they’re all such good characters.

[twideslauriers]

I dont really see why people think Mabel is selfish in the time traveller’s pig. She is absolutely willing to help Dipper with his plan which is doomed to fail regardless because Wendy will simply never date a 12 year old boy as a 15 year old girl, and only objects when Waddles is won by Pacifica, someone who she knows will likely abuse the poor thing at this stage in her development. She is the reasonable one in this episode, not Dipper. Yeah Robbie sucks but at this point in the show he hasn’t shown any abusive tendencies, Dipper just doesn’t like him because he actually has a shot with Wendy. And Wendy doesn’t get severely hurt. And Mabel even gets Waddles to help dunk on Robbie in the end!

She is selfish and naive sometimes, yeah. So is Dipper. They’re 12 and also normal humans who aren’t perfect all the time.

[DarkSidedOtter]

“We want a female character that is complex and imperfect! 😩”
*Mabel exists*
“She is the worst character that has ever graced our screens.”

[StoryTeller]

Honestly, I think people looked at Mabel being the pure embodiment of childish chaos and complete, unfiltered, unashamed emotional honesty as something incredibly cringe. I mean, I would too because in all honesty, I remember being just like Mabel and I was heavily punished or criticized for it throughout my entire life, particularly in school. People hate Mabel not because she's a bad person, but because despite everything that happens around her, she is still determined to be true to herself and follow her own moral compass despite everyone and everything around her telling her square in the face that she shouldn't.
"She should slow down and start to doubt her actions, " "She doesn't and cannot understand what is going on, " "She is messing with things beyond mortal comprehension" "WhY wOuLd AnYoNe HeLp ThEiR dUmB bRoThEr OvEr TaKiNg WhAt ThEy WaNt?"
Fundamentally, Mabel might be one of the more emotionally mature characters while Dipper is the more mentally mature character throughout the entire series, not on any individual action that either have taken but from the sheer fact that after they're being the immature kids they are, they realize what the mature thing to do is. Something Bill Cipher not only misses the entire point of but actively despises.

[gumbolthreemillion]

being a middle school girl at the time gravity falls was airing and seeing myself in mabel, it always felt so awful seeing people (often adult men) hating on her so vehemently. back then i wasn't able to express exactly how i felt they were wrong and ended up doubting myself for many years. now that im an adult who has rewatched the show multiple times i realize that a lot of people just don't have any kind of media literacy and simplified the truly interesting and multi-faceted characters that gravity falls has to offer. not only that but i do believe some misogyny was at play. i'm glad newer fans seem to be less prone to that type of thing and can see the bigger picture.