#but i wish the people who didnt like teruhashi had anything other than misogynistic reasons

[skippersthecat]

I hate misogyny so here is every reason why Teruhashi is a wonderful and complex character.

It's not stuck up of Teruhashi to call herself a goddess because it's true. That's literally how everyone has treated her for her entire life. She's not an idiot. Teruhashi knows how beautiful she is. Expecting her not to acknowledge her own beauty is exactly what her fans do because they don't see her as a real person with thoughts.

Being raised this way has also seriously warped her self perception. She doesn't even see how creepy it is to have stalkers everywhere, many of whom are grown ass men. Teruhashi has been raised with the highest expectations and must enact her perfect girl persona to keep everyone around her happy because she is as much of a people pleaser as Saiki is. Her entire self-worth comes down to whether or not people find her beautiful because the only thing people see her as is a pretty girl. That is why it destroys her when Saiki doesn't like her. If he doesn't like her then her place as perfect pretty girl is threatened, which means her entire livelihood is at stake.

At first she wanted Saiki to like her because she wanted to maintain her livelihood and self-worth, but then she did grow to actually love him. Saiki is the first guy to not treat her like an object even after all her attempts. Teruhashi is always under attack from the male gaze and isn't even safe in her own home because of Makoto. Of course she would fall for the only guy who treats her like a human.

Teruhashi has accepted that in order to be liked she must make others feel good about themselves, even if it is at her own expense (like when she goes to the disgusting ramen shop or faints from exhaustion trying to memorize facts about people). It is manipulative and selfish of her to feign interest in others to maintain her persona, but what other choice does she have? Teruhashi's mind has been so warped that she doesn't believe anyone could possibly like her for her true self. That's what makes her so complex and interestingly flawed. Expecting a female character to be perfect and only exist to serve the interests of the male characters is exactly what the Kokomins and misogynists in general think.

Teruhashi also does genuinely love her friends once she realizes they like her for who she is. She rejects Saiko because he made fun of her friends, realizing that he is exactly who she used to be and that she doesn't want to he like that anymore. She cares about Mera and Yumehara even if they are seen as weird and unpopular. She sacrifices her image over and over in order to hang out with Saiki and his friends that are considered the class losers. She does genuinely want to make people happy and will do so at her own expense.