Emolgun's Unpopular Opinions #1: I do not care for Noelle from Deltarune

(DISCLAIMER: I HAVEN'T PLAYED THE NEW CHAPTERS YET.)

In my opinion, Noelle is by far the weakest character in Deltarune for me, and she's just kind of a flat character with not much going for her that leaves a huge impact on me. 

The only things she really has is her crush on Susie and the snowgrave route, and when people talk about her online, that's all that ever really comes up, aside from maybe sometimes her ailing father. I can see why people like her, but to me? Noelle is just a pretty boring character that I don't get anything out of, unlike characters who have more to say, like Ralsei, Susie, Lancer, Queen, and EVEN BERDLY. 

Most of Noelle's potential and shades of complexity are merely suggested rather than explored. Most of the time she really just feels like "the quiet girl with a crush". Her crush on Susie feels a lot like window dressing, and while I don't think it's forced per se, the way the story goes about it leaves a lot to be desired. 

Noelle is kind of like Alphys, but with a lot less going on. Because with Alphys in Undertale, outside of her feelings for Undyne which are already more compelling than what Noelle has with Susie, she's a much more layered character who is actually given things to do, and is given a much better background. Even her feelings for Undyne are thematically relevant to her character arc. Noelle does have shades of complexity, but in the grand scheme of it all, she's honestly very dull and uninspired, and at times feels like a watered down Alphys. 

As I've said before, I haven't played the new chapters yet, but I do hope that they explore Noelle's character in a more interesting way, rather than defining her by character traits rather than her actual character. But in terms of Chapter 1 and 2, she's passive in a world of active characters.