I'm the only one who hates Michael?

[The Dedito Gae]

Michael is an awful character, a detestable whining piece of sh*t that radiates bore-rays, lulling me with their soporific power, turning my brain to mush as he trudges through his dreadful existence.

 

You are not alone.

 

I had high hopes for Michael, as he was clearly going to be the Neil McCauley (Heat) of the piece - the experienced career heist man, the legendary criminal. But he was a fat boring old duffer with a dysfunctional-by-numbers family. The ex-stripper, pro-shopper, tart with a heart wife who's f*cking her tennis instructor (among others), the fat, lazy, stoner-gamer son, the wannabe-star daughter and the non-specific latin American maid. Everything about Michael is a tedious cliche.

 

And he just gets worse and worse as the story goes on. He becomes more difficult to sympathise with as he's falling back into the life because he's bored, but complains about being back in the life. This is mainly driven by the presence of Trevor, but he brought that on himself by being a ridiculous show off.

 

When Michael meets Solomon, a new set of switch animations is opened up, centered around the studios. We see him humiliating and degrading a security guard, reminding the security guard that he's the boss. He's not, though, is he? He doesn't work at the studio. He just helped Solomon out and got his name on the movie, but Michael seems to think this elevates him to some kind of actual movie-maker. But he's just a jumped up little prick, waving his metaphorical cock around, acting like everyone should be singing his name in praise. Even when everything falls down around him and he repents, he's still the same arsehole, wallowing in self pity and generally being a dick.

 

No, you are not the only one that hates Michael. He's incredibly unsympathetic and even as an anti-hero, someone you can't root for. Throw Trevor into the mix and...

 

Well, I pretty much only have time for Franklin.

I remember me mocking you because you prefered Franklin over Michael and Trevor for being boring, but i understand now, even though i like Trevor, i'll admit he's not for everyone and the hate is completly justified, Michael is just terrible, i wouldn't kill him in ending A, but i dread every part i have to play as him, doesn't help that besides that Molly-cop chase-Jet turbine every other mission with him is a borefest.

Michael's awesome. Sue me.

Go do yoga.

@ Midnight Hitman

 

Off topic, I just saw your profile image about Mortal Kombat fatality move so funny ha ha ha ha ha !!!! Loooool !!!

Glad to be of assistance.

[fac316]

Tbh if the game was just him, I think the game would've been a whole lot better. I hope VI doesn't use the multiple protagonists gimmick, unless it's like IV+EFLC

[Gnocchi Flip Flops]

this thread is filled with proto hipsters.

Nah. Just people who aren't shallow tools and can form their own opinions and think for themselves.

[The Dedito Gae]

Tbh if the game was just him, I think the game would've been a whole lot better. I hope VI doesn't use the multiple protagonists gimmick, unless it's like IV+EFLC

I wouldn't mind going back to one character, as long as they dont create such a boring and hateful character as Michael.

[Fuzzknuckles]

 

No, you are not the only one that hates Michael. He's incredibly unsympathetic and even as an anti-hero, someone you can't root for. Throw Trevor into the mix and...

I remember me mocking you because you prefered Franklin over Michael and Trevor for being boring, but i understand now, even though i like Trevor, i'll admit he's not for everyone and the hate is completly justified, Michael is just terrible, i wouldn't kill him in ending A, but i dread every part i have to play as him, doesn't help that besides that Molly-cop chase-Jet turbine every other mission with him is a borefest.

 

Glad to be of assistance.

 

These days I pretty much only switch to Michael or Trevor if I want to throw someone off of Mt Chiliad. That said, the Director Mode has really opened things up as I can throw Steve or Devin off Mt Chiliad, so the game just got a welcome shot in the arm for me. But mainly Michael if I'm looking to make someone feel some pain. Trevor I just don't even bother with, unless there's something specific to him that needs to be done.

[Xing of Virtue]

Why don't you just kill off one of them if you hate them so much? Lol

Edited September 20, 2015 by Xing of Virtue

[Journey_95]

Its because he was pretty well written (compared to other GTA protags except Niko of course). He had depth, an interesting backstory and since he was basically the main protagonist of V he got the most screentime and focus.

 

So what if he whines? At least he has personality. He has flaws and thats what makes him relatable (at least for me)
He is better than Tommy who offered nothing except being a badass all time.

Good for his time but not today anymore.

 

Without him GTA V would have been MUCH worse. Trevor is fun for a while but after a time just gets on your nerves and Franklin is just sh*t.

 

Michael basically carries the game alone.

Edited September 20, 2015 by Journey_95

[Vik]

"Is that sarcasm?

Oh, you're f*cking A-right it's sarcasm. You f*ck! A few weeks ago, I was happily retired, sulking by my swimming pool... then my psychotic best friend shows up out of nowhere to torture me over mistakes I made, honest mistakes I made over a decade ago! We, our little posse, are flat f*cking broke, but hey, let's go out and spend two million dollars on a tandem rotor f*cking chopper, so I can go steal nerve gas from f*cking terrorists! Forgive me, you ignorant f*ck, but sarcasm is all I've f*cking got! Sarcasm, and a room full of you c*nts!"

-Michael

I enjoy Michael as a protagonist because he is the only one that has a personality in V,others being cliche.I personally believe w/o the 3 protag system he would have been the main protagonist,it was the first character R* came up with in V's development.Sure others may hate him but I personally enjoyed his development as a character.I mean,the more I replay the storyline....the more I enjoy it.Kinda of like an IV scenario for me,the more you play it,the better it is.

[Journey_95]

 

Even though he is my favorite (i will elaborate on that a bit later) I actually kinda see him being similar to Dmitri, he betrayed his best friend and one of the last things Niko said to him "I guess the survival of the fittest thing really meant a lot to you" kinda solidified him as being similar to Dmitri if the player chooses the Kill Trevor ending.

 

As for why he's my favorite, I don't know. I kinda relate and sympathize with him. I know he's egotistic but he owns up to it when Trevor points it out, he tries to do better. The reason he keeps complaining is because of his horrible childhood and his obsession with movies giving him a delusion that his life is supposed to be like a Vinewood action star. In many ways, I feel sorry for him and feel happy when everything goes well for him and his family (depending on the ending). He keeps complaining about his family but he feels absolutely depressed when they leave him meaning despite all the complaints, he still loves them. And I think he's rather badass for doing a lot of high action crazy sh*t despite his age, he does some pretty over the top and high octane stuff in the game. I think the reason people compare him to Tommy is because he would probably who Tommy would become after the end of Vice City, the reason I like him over Tommy is because he has a (very flawed) personality, unlike Tommy's cookie cutter, boring, badass non-personality. I played Vice City multiple times and I still think Tommy is just boring with barely any personality, only defined by threatening people and building his empire. I know what he does but by the end of the game, I don't know who he is.

Really? That's interesting because to me Michael is the one with the boring cookie cutter personality. He's basically a watered down Midwest Tony Soprano ripoff. All of his scenes at the therapists office are almost note for note the same things Tony Soprano said on his show. Other than that, he's pretty boring. His family is one giant cliche. Oh wow the mother is vapid and likes yoga and cheats on the husband. That's definitely original.

 

Also you obviously weren't paying attention to the cutscenes of Vice City because Tommy does a lot more than just threaten people. Just take the cutscenes where he talks to the old man about how he used to help his father who also ran a print works. Do we even know anything about Michael's past other than he had a "rough upbringing"? No, so right off the bat he's more generic than Tommy. To be honest though, all of the characters of V are bland and watered down compared to Vice City's cast. I'll take Lance Vance and Phil Cassidy over boring Clothes ironing Franklin and one-note 'totul Syko' Trevor Phillips any day.

 

If Michael is a watered down Tony Soprano what is Tommy then? His story is completely copied from Scarface.

Talk about being biased. Saying that he didn't pay attention makes you look silly. Tommy's father ran a print works boo f*cking hoo so what?

We don't know much about Michaels past either but the fact is that he has more character and personality than Tommy ever had.

 

Tommy is still better than Franklin and Luis though. I mean they don't even have excuses for being so bland and boring

Edited September 20, 2015 by Journey_95

[Niobium]

all three protagonists are whiny c*nts, no doubt about that. mikey doesnt get enough hate

[Vice City criminal]

Probably not. I already hate Franklin and Trevor so I like him for a change.
all of them are terrible written in itself but for me at least Michael seem to be the best from the worst protagonists.

[The Dedito Gae]

I enjoy Michael as a protagonist because he is the only one that has a personality in V,others being cliche...

Michael is also a cliche, look at his family and how he interacts with them, that sh*t belongs in a sitcom.

[Queen Elizabeth II]

Why couldn't they make succesful mafia protagonist with beautiful wife that doesn't cheat on him and some nice kind children?

If they would kill that idiot Amanda, stupid fatso and idiotic daughter I wouldn't even care.

[Official General]

@ Journey_95

 

I don't wanna go off-topic, but Tommy's story was nothing like the Scarface movie, neither is the whole game of VC itself. There are obvious visual references to Scarface in VC in terms of certain game content like the mansion, suits, Miami setting, rags to riches, etc, but that's it. Tommy is an Italian-American mafioso, not a Cuban drug lord like Tony Montana of Scaface, they are nothing like each other, neither are their stories. And if you knew a lot of about VC, you would have known that the biggest influence on the game was Miami Vice, not Scarface - the Housers stated this in interviews many times. You obviously don't, but here I am to take you back to school.

 

People have said this before, and it's clear they have not watched Scaface or played VC properly if they can say this stuff, and you are just another one of many.

 

 

I enjoy Michael as a protagonist because he is the only one that has a personality in V,others being cliche...

Michael is also a cliche, look at his family and how he interacts with them, that sh*t belongs in a sitcom.Definitely Midnight.

 

Don't get me wrong I was interested in Rockstar's new approach with Michael's family guy thing at first, but a part of me inside was thinking this stuff just don't belong in GTA, and it wouldn't work. Looks like I was right all along.

Edited September 20, 2015 by Official General

[Vik]

 

I enjoy Michael as a protagonist because he is the only one that has a personality in V,others being cliche...

Michael is also a cliche, look at his family and how he interacts with them, that sh*t belongs in a sitcom.

 

 

Let me change what I said : He is the least cliche of the protagonists

[Mirrrr]

I can't bare to play with Trevor if I don't have too until he moves in the stripclub. And that is mainly cause even though they aren't related, it feels very bad seeing him and Wades cousin in bed. Yeah Michael bitches a lot but he does also something about it.

 

Hes badass without being a psycho

[greenrock]

Fuzzknuckles..you actually prefer Franklin

 

he is the worst

[mcorleone_9015]

@ Journey_95

 

I don't wanna go off-topic, but Tommy's story was nothing like the Scarface movie, neither is the whole game of VC itself. There are obvious visual references to Scarface in VC in terms of certain game content like the mansion, suits, Miami setting, rags to riches, etc, but that's it. Tommy is an Italian-American mafioso, not a Cuban drug lord like Tony Montana of Scaface, they are nothing like each other, neither are their stories. And if you knew a lot of about VC, you would have known that the biggest influence on the game was Miami Vice, not Scarface - the Housers stated this in interviews many times. You obviously don't, but here I am to take you back to school.

 

People have said this before, and it's clear they have not watched Scaface or played VC properly if they can say this stuff, and you are just another one of many.

 

 

I enjoy Michael as a protagonist because he is the only one that has a personality in V,others being cliche...

Michael is also a cliche, look at his family and how he interacts with them, that sh*t belongs in a sitcom.

Definitely Midnight.

 

Don't get me wrong I was interested in Rockstar's new approach with Michael's family guy thing at first, but a part of me inside was thinking this stuff just don't belong in GTA, and it wouldn't work. Looks like I was right all along.

 

You nailed about the Tommy debate. How people say he is Tony Montana ripoff is something i'll never understand, so is it because their mansions interiors look similar and they both had gunfights in them? They have almost completely different personalities and have very different background (Montana never spent 15 years in prison, never made alliances with a lawyer and a central-american colonel, never was involved in gang wars, he's cuban while Tommy is a italian-american, and so on...).

If it is memorable and is very well done, I'll take a simple and straightforward storyline such as VC over a convulted and badly written one while pretending to be "more complex" such as V.

 

But back on Michael discussion, the thing that ruined his character the most was exactly all this corny-hollywoodian family dynamics bullsh*t, i couldn't stand all of that. I mean, is this a crime themed story anyway? All that drama has no such place in a GTA game, i wouldn't mind if it was a secondary element of the plot, but the game shoved all that down on our throats all the time. It was so focused in the main plot, that it was always a relief feeling when the story switched to Franklin or Trevor individual plots...

Edited September 20, 2015 by mcorleone_9015

[fac316]

Well, I would be in favor of never having F either, just because the cj comparisons and Grove street questions are annoying. Esp since F is the boring one of the three too.

Edited September 20, 2015 by fac316

[Fuzzknuckles]

Why don't you just kill off one of them if you hate them so much? Lol

Because I firmly believe ending C to be canon, and because I felt and still feel that had I removed anything from the end game, it would have suffered in minor ways. Such as losing access to Michael's house, or his vehicle, or his customisation options, or his properties. Same for Trevor. I dislike them both but I'd rather they were still there and accessible for the sake of completion. They're optional, so once I'd bought everything post-game, they became, essentially, dead. Other than for the purposes mentioned earlier.

 

 

Fuzzknuckles..you actually prefer Franklin

 

he is the worst

No. No, you're the worst.

 

I'm not going to explain in detail again, but as I've said, he is the one I find it easiest to tolerate. I don't like any of them, they're all flimsy characters, but I find playing as Franklinginging preferable to playing as Michael or Trevor. It's not like I sit there thinking "oh yeah, playing as the frankling, this is some good time sh*t because I'm playing as the frankling!"

 

It's just that of the three, he's the least of a dick.

[Gnocchi Flip Flops]

Even though I think they all suck, Michael is the only one I play as. Trevor is just the worst possible protagonist I can think of and Franklin is so utterly boring that not even that sexy ass house he has can make up for is run-of-the-mill personality.

[donnits]

f*ckin' A, bubba! Michael was pretty damn corny, and anything involving his family was cringe inducing. I love his character's concept, "middle aged retired bank robber gone informant". It's just booming with potential to be amazing. But in practice, it was just... blah. Franklin, as third wheel as he is to the story, is my favorite of the three. He's calm and collected, he's always calling the other two out on their childish ways, he has high hopes, etc. It's a shame he really loses all steam once Trevor comes to town.

Edited September 20, 2015 by Donut

[Razar]

Seems like I'm actually the only one thinking that all GTA V protagonists were ok.

[VenomsnakeVII]

It's not really a matter of hating him. But to flesh out the emotional background and allow to make decisions like he does in therapy with his family would've been a nice touch. I mean not on the standards of becoming a chore but more of a thing like if jimmy gets on your nerves, or even when Amanda berates you over your actions. just tiny things like that aren't really fixed even towards the end and instead is hashed over with blank communication. But otherwise he's still a descent character, almost like Henry hill in Goodfellas if he elaborated more on the making out with the cash type of ending. but no issues here, maybe the story Dlc will add more narrative.

[Lester-The-Molester]

Seems like I'm actually the only one thinking that all GTA V protagonists were ok.

You're not alone, I also liked all 3 of them and simply wish F had more missions.

[The Dedito Gae]

 

Fuzzknuckles..you actually prefer Franklin

he is the worst

No. No, you're the worst. Completly agree. Edited September 20, 2015 by Midnight Hitman

[Predator]

f*ck michael

Edited October 1, 2015 by Ganton

[FAT CURRY]

I think he's a well written character, and the most fleshed out.

 

But yeah, I ended up hating him too.

 

He's a f*cking snake.

 

I think it's during the last heist (obvious approach) that when escaping from the cops you hear him say "It's ok. If we're caught, we pin the whole thing on Trevor." That was the final straw for me. I remember saying "f*ck this guy!" out loud when I heard that.

 

I've always been under the impression that the writers wanted us to end up hating him. We start out on his side, but then slowly discover what a complete slime bag he really is.

 

After his family is attacked, he tells them not to worry - he is going to deal with the person responsible. But the first thing he does is call Lester to say "Ok, let's rob a bank". There's lots of other obvious examples. Just mentioned this one because I kinda missed that on my first playthrough (somehow).

 

He's a c*nt.

[Cutter De Blanc]

I don't hate any of the characters but I find myself liking Michael (and especially his family) less and less every time I play through the story.

 

The guy is a real piece of sh*t, and his family is downright horrible.

[Gnocchi Flip Flops]

I think it's during the last heist (obvious approach) that when escaping from the cops you hear him say "It's ok. If we're caught, we pin the whole thing on Trevor." That was the final straw for me. I remember saying "f*ck this guy!" out loud when I heard that.

Who the f*ck could blame him? Trevor is a real piece of work and a worthless piece of sh*t. I would've killed him if I felt Option C wasn't canon. He's just awful, his personality- he just f*cks everything up. Why couldn't we have gotten a subtle maniac? Somebody who's sane but a complete maniac when provoked? I don't care what anybody says, that is way more badass than some over-the-top idiot who doesn't bathe and looks like a 10 year old thought him up.