On the forums, there's been a really bothering trend when it comes to the characters' actions. Whether they were in character, out of character, or whatever, one of the more common excuses for explaining their actions is "they're flawed." Sometimes, this logic is used fallaciously.

To an extent, it's understandable why it's used. A key reason we became so attached to these characters is how relatable they are. We can connect to these characters because they have challenges, goals to attain, and missions to accomplish. All of us have challenges to overcome, and we as bronies want to see them overcome these challenges. This means making mistakes, sometimes really big ones, in order for them to learn, develop, and mature. Almost all of the characters are very likeable.

But when it gets very problematic is when "they're flawed" is used as the be-all-and-end-all defense for every single mistake they commit, even if these mistakes would cost them their friendship when going by societal morale, either theirs or ours. Even though these characters live in a fantasy world, they're always a response to our culture, either embracing it or critiquing it. Their actions can have a lasting impact on their audience, whether it's one person or thousands of kids.

The characters in Friendship Is Magic are great if they're flawed, but it's much more than that. Even when the characters make a mistake, it's also very important to keep them in character and likeable while they're making these mistakes, even when they're at their worst.

And this is what makes the "they're flawed" excuse so broken. Quite often, the excuse either explains their actions or accepts them willy-nilly. But what makes their actions excusable? What's the proper justification for these actions? Is there actual subtext that makes sense? Does the writer criticize their actions in the story, and is the criticism merited? When they make these huge mistakes, do they stay in character and likeable while they're making them?

There's a very huge difference between explaining their actions and justifying their actions. Explaining the actions is just that, explaining. You can explain why they're acting terrible, but that doesn't make what they're doing okay, period. If they make such a big mistake or are behaving very poorly, then the writer needs to critique their actions and make them suffer the consequences. Plus, make sure they stay in character and make these mistakes believable.

Some cases of explaining the actions without solidly justifying them:

1. Look Before You Sleep: Applejack's and Rarity's constant arguing is nothing but stupid bantering that only children will say. AJ and Rarity are adults who help run and own important businesses. It makes absolutely no sense for either of them to stop cleaning up and argue like two-year-olds. It destroys their credibility as reliable executives. Their approach to mutual maturity was completely contrived.
   
2. Bridle Gossip: The ReMane Five all become out of character and unlikeable once they see Zecora. The characterizations are shallow at best and stereotypical at worst. (Rarity, you were such a racist bitch here.) The writer punished the M6, but they never genuinely learned their lesson, having to be explained the moral because they were too dumb to figure it out. The explanation for their racist actions is how Zecora looked very scary to them. One problem: this excuses racism as "whites are racist to blacks because they look scary." This false conclusion marginalizes the evils of racism.
   
3. The Show Stoppers: The very common explanation of the CMCs being so oblivious to their natural talent is how it's so first nature that they don't notice it. How? "Because they're kids." There's a very big difference between being very oblivious and very stupid. Their innate talents are exposed within the first five minutes, and they're so unaware of it, they don't see it even after the episode ends. TSS constantly shoves this fact into the audience's face, making their journey to find their cutie marks pointless, destructive, and shark-jumping before it even started.
   
4. Mare Do Well: The infamous Sugarcube Corner scene. As Dash sulks, the ReMane Five brag about MDW right in front of her and laugh at her. Then they proceed to tell Dash that she shouldn't brag about her talents. The common explanation was to show Dash how bad it was to gloat so much. That still doesn't justify not only how out of character, but also how they treated the peril in Ponyville and lives at risk as a game to teach Dash a lesson. The setting is inappropriate at best and vile at worst.
   
5. Putting Your Hoof Down: An episode that can destroy a character's reputation thanks to terrible handling of a character, and this is no exception. Fluttershy had no objectively good reason to buck manure on top of two background characters (it would've been better if she flew around and berated them), assault a tourist, and especially insult two of her closest friends' reasons for living as meaningless. Even worse, this episode puts all the blame on Iron Will. Even though IW's advice sucked, Fluttershy acted on her own volition. The minotaur had nothing to do with it.
   
6. Ponyville Confidential: The episode that killed Ponyville's reputation. When Ponyville first read the gossip, they were interested and wanted more. Only when they got gossiped did they cruelly punish the CMCs. The treatment the CMCs got is easily some of the harshest in the entire show. Now, what the Crusaders did were bad? Definitely. Gossip hurts. But it doesn't entitle them to scapegoat three kids for all of the blame when they helped perpetuate the gossip to begin with.
   
7. Bats!: Even though Twilight mastered the magic of friendship, she still made a really stupid decision in affecting the Vampire Fruit Bats's livelihoods. Not only was she the one responsible for creating the magic that affected their lives to begin with, she shifted the blame when it all went awry. She was forcibly changing the ecosystem with magic; in turn, she accentuated the conflict. Nice going.
   
8. Filli Vanilli: *ugh* Anyone remember Pinkie admonishing Dash for wanting to prank Fluttershy? Apparently, that lesson went missing because Pinkie crazily ranted at Fluttershy, and the same can be said for anyone who tries to defend Pinkie here. In the first rant, she kept going and going even though Fluttershy's fears and anguish was becoming way too obvious. Rather than stopping, she mocked Big Mac while he was in distress and then drove Fluttershy into tears twice more. Once is a mistake. Upsetting 'Shy three times is evil! Pinkie may be oblivious, but there's no provocation, and she's not an idiot!
   
9. Trade Ya!: Rainbow Dash decided to trade Fluttershy for the one-of-a-kind DD book without giving as much as a single thought of the consequences. Rainbow has grown so much over the last four seasons, but this episode really flanderized her by exaggerating her sense of self-importance and indulgence. Rather than calling out the DD collector for even thinking of trading FS in, Dash went along with it without even considering the ramifications until it was too late. If this was the actual, in-character Dash we grew to know and love, she would NEVER agree to thrust a flanderized Fluttershy into indentured servitude. Her actions are well below Dash from Season 1 or even Rainbow Rocks.
   

For a few examples of justifying the actions:

1. Fall Weather Friends: Neither Applejack nor Rainbow Dash behaved very well. In fact, they were at their worst from an in-character point of view. Throughout the episode, you can tell that Amy Keating Rogers wasn't glorifying their immaturity. Their attitude was affecting not just their friendship, but the mood of the competition, too. And it all started by Dash using her wings to beat AJ. But when it got really terrible, AJ and Dash traded punches as they crossed the finish line, looking banged up while Twilight crossed the finish line ahead of them. The fight was meant to be educational and a critique of how you should never let competition get in the way of your friendship. To put it shortly, this is LBYS done right: They were childish, but were believable, in character, and had more natural dialogue.
   
2. Sonic Rainboom: Two things.
    
   a. Flutter's line that sparked Dash's insecurity:
    

   
   Fluttershy: But, Rainbow Dash. Just because you've failed the sonic rainboom a hundred thousand times in practice doesn't mean you won't be able to do it in front of an entire stadium, full of impatient, super-critical sportsfan ponies.

   Too many people here compared what she said here to what Pinkie said in Filli Vanilli. For all the guys who did or currently are, you're comparing apples and oranges.
    
   In S4, Fluttershy's constant shyness and fear have been established; Pinkie ranted and drove her to tears in front of her face, and she did it three times. Not only that, she didn't show an ounce of regret over what she said. Pinkie's obliviousness was amplified for idiotic comedy, and it made her out of character.
    
   In Sonic Rainboom, this is the first time Dash's insecurities were established. Fluttershy wasn't even saying anything mean-spirited. It was an accidental trigger, and she said it only once. When did Rainbow Dash freak out? Right at the end of the speech. And how did FS react? Out of worry. Hell, she even tried to encourage Dash after they met those three bullies once more. These subtleties make a huge difference. This is why FS's actions are excusable and why Pinkie's weren't.
    
   (I will explain more about the differences between FS's line to Dash in SR and PP to FS in FV at a later date.)
    
   b. Plus, Rarity was shown to be at her worst. Initially, she stayed true to her element by suggesting to be the experiment for Twilight's magical butterfly wings. Remember, she was the one who suggested heading over to Cloudesdale in the first place. But if there's one more thing about her, it's the want for attention. Her vanity is exposed and has a direct impact to both Dash's insecurities and her own already big ego.
    
   Simultaneously, Rarity's vanity is reinforced by continuity. Think about it; her inner conflict's always running. Her lust for the spotlight isn't plucked out of thin air. As a creative, she strives for attention because that's how she gets noticed. Twilight's responsible for her wings, but Cloudesdale doesn't know that. They were appreciating her, and this is quite foreign to her. Remember her source of aesthetics: herself. Her own visual beauty and high standards for herself makes her want to have attention and achieve goals she could possibly not attain.
    
   Lastly, this is where she deserves some slack here and not in Sweet & Elite. In S&E, each time Rarity lied, she got the best possible outcome. True, you can give some justification for her actions: This was her chance to actually be a part of society she desperately wanted. But where it falls apart comes once the M6 shows up. She lies to them and uses the moral Twilight learned from PoO as an out. When she was confronted for the first time, she chose her friends and got the best possible outcome. Her lies and secrets remain confidential, and she got rewarded rather than punished for her actions.
    
   In Sonic Rainboom, Larson actively criticizes Rarity's lust, and the compliments she received were superficial. She was going in over her head, and she ignored warnings of not being too close to the sun. When she ignored the warning, serious consequences smacked her across the muzzle. Once her life was saved, she felt very guilty and apologized to Dash. SR never gave Rarity the best possible outcome, and that's a really good thing.
   
3. Lesson Zero: As Twilight went completely nuts over not being able to deliver her friendship report on time, the others don't take it seriously and laugh it off. And they have a reason to: They thought she was getting herself worked up over nothing. Unfortunately, Twilight's craziness only worsens, and the problem worsens. By extension, they perpetuated Twilight's lunacy; the narrative indicates this; and they regret not listening to her sooner. But it was executed in a manner that didn't degrade the RM5's characterizations.
   
4. Toils: Easily one of the best examples. Sweetie Belle's decision to damage Rarity's headdress was actually really malicious. In a fit of rage, Sweetie decided to attack Rarity at the core of her work by manipulating with an important assignment, particularly one who is loyal to Rarity.
    
   However, the episode doesn't give her a very shallow reason to rig her headdress. You had the play that she definitely worked hard on, Rarity's dresses (and not the script) that were praised, and then Sweetie feeling overshadowed. Rarity is generous with very high standards, but is also vain and egotistical; when a character works beyond the call of duty in another's main project, then Sweetie is given ample reason to believe her older sister's upstaging her. She's wrong for doing what she did, but you can understand her actions. However, Luna doesn't let her get away with them. She, along with SB conscience, actively punish the filly for her actions, forcing Sweetie to head over and try to fix the damage she caused.
   
5. Testing Testing: In the beginning of Act 2, Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle got frustrated with each other. Rainbow blamed her for not helping her better, while Twilight blamed Dash for being lazy. The argument worsened when they started insulting each other. Twilight insulted her by saying she's intelligent enough to qualify as a WB. Dash insulted her for being an inexperienced flier. All done right in front of Fluttershy. And Fluttershy stopped the fight and called them out for it! Immediately, they felt guilty and apologized to each other. This is a situation of PYHD done correctly; they insulted each other, and they were definitely wrong for doing it. However, they stayed in a certain bar where they toed the "likeability/in-character" line, but never crossed it. You can see where both came from, and FS kept them accountable.
   
6. The Cutie Map: Two things.
    
   a. Fluttershyh's naivety upon arriving at the unnamed village. Pinkie Pie was one of the most vocal critics of how every villager behaved: She knew smiles, and they looked very forced. However, FS was immediately supportive of them. Although everyone else was focused on the approach, Fluttershy concentrated on the outcome. She looked for happiness and got it. Moreover, she hates conflict. Unless she has no choice, she won't get involved whatsoever. Not to mention it subtly references her crippling phobia that resulted in her being "shy" in the first place.
    
   b. Pinkie Pie's aggression is Filli Vanilli done right. She was one of the first to be completely against the town and kept a not-so-subtle glare on them. As Fluttershy bobbed to the creepy tune, Pinkie glared at her, making her cry. What makes this work is how Pinkie is very aware that something isn't right and doesn't want anyone she cares for to fall for Starlight Glimmer's tricks.
    
   What happened in the vault is the same approach. When she spilled the details about how they knew about the vault (some ponies missing their cutie marks, Twilight glared at her and told her to stop. Pinkie saw it, squeaked, "Oops!", and she hunkered down. Upon this happening, Starlight was able to strip them of their cutie marks and replace them with the =. It's very in character of Pinkie, but what makes it work is the fact that it's her flaw that resulted in the consequences, but without breaking the suspension of disbelief, characterization, or intelligence.
   

The show does a good job explaining their actions, but does a mixed job at justifying those actions and keeping them accountable. The justification is part of what makes the characters relatable, likeable, and in character. By providing good justification for their actions, then you can understand them. Their actions don't feel forced. Simultaneously, when the characters do something wrong, they must be held accountable; if they don't or are rewarded, then you're just going to make bronies dislike or hate that character.

Don't blame the bronies or fandom for disliking the character. That's scapegoating the fandom, and scapegoating them means you have absolutely no genuine interest in any part of the product. Blame the writers for doing a poor job at keeping them consistently likeable.

In other words, if they act at their worst, by all means. But make sure you don't cross the line.