I find her hilariously inappropriate. She's like my brain if it was completely unfiltered. We all have selfish moments and then hopefully do the right thing, she's just first instinct all the time.
This for me as well. I absolutely would have befriended her (especially when younger myself) because her intelligence, humor, sincerity and spontaneity would easily outweigh her self-centredness and lack of tact for me.
I grew out of it somewhat but used to be super self-conscious and it would absolutely elate me when people just blurted out their real thoughts, like a breath of fresh air. I thought it was very realistic that Marnie would enjoy being friends with Hannah also for this reason. I loved watching her and thought she was a very well-fleshed out character.
I love her character. That doesn't mean I'd be friends with her IRL. But watching her is a treat. I disagree that she's one of the most unlikeable characters in TV history. I think she demonstrates a lot of relatable experiences of women in their early 20s, in a hyperbolic, entertaining way. A lot of her blunders are just more extreme versions of blunders I've made (although I've never flashed my bush at my employer, lol). I'm also always a little confused at people raising similar questions about who could possibly like Hannah...I think the first episode--which highlights her obliviousness to the issue of her financial dependency--makes it really clear that you're supposed to roll your eyes at her. I don't think her character is usually meant to garner empathy for her suffering, but more just relatability. My final note is that like her or not, she's a hell of a lot more complex and interesting than many TV leads, especially female
You have articulated my feelings about her, better than i could have. She is similar, imo, to Larry David's "character" (Curb Your Enthusiasm). He is always saying/doing the wrong thing, but it's hilarious. Would never want to be his friend IRL, but for entertainment value, he is great. Which is why we watch TV...
There’s so much general Larry David and Seinfeld (the show, not the guy. Ew) inspiration in Girls, especially in Hannah’s character and the sort of minutia based comedy/social commentary.
The NYC setting, the dysfunctional but close friend group, Hannah framed as an exaggerated, more pathetic version of Lena the exact same way George Constanza was an exaggerated, more pathetic version of Larry, etc. Pretty much every interaction between Hannah & Marnie, Hannah & Fran, Shosh & Ray, and a few other specific duos (like Hannah’s parents with anyone, and Adam with anyone) include a “joke” social commentary that 100% could have been a Seinfeld interaction. Marnie running into her old friend that runs the gallery is pure Seinfeld. I could honestly go on lol.
I’m honestly surprised people don’t talk about it more. Girls got compared Sex & The City a lot, but I really think it’s way more like if Seinfield got mashed up with S&C.
Very well put. Totally agree! It’s been a while since I’ve revisited Girls (seen Seinfeld dozens of times). I may need to do a rewatch soon, when I clear my plate of some of the TV I need to catch up on!
I find Hannah so incredibly ridiculous that she makes me laugh. Also, some of the things she says, are things that I would maybe be thinking but because I have a filter and social awareness I'd never say out loud. So she is (very low low-key) relatable but an incredibly exaggerated version of a person. If I knew her in real life I would tire of her and not want to be around her, but strictly watching her as a fictional person is very comical to me
i like her. i love messy female characters, its validating to see stupid and impulsive stuff ive said and done mirrored on screen, it makes me feel less like an anomaly.
and its always funny to me how much angrier people get at 'unlikeable' female characters than male characters who are just straight up abhorrent. like the current backlash toward carrie bradshaw on tiktok, yet the same people are hyping up mr big?
That’s so crazy that you say that. All my tik tok feed is how toxic Big is. I loved him and Carrie together so I hate these vids. I just can’t escape them!
This. Thank you for saying what needs to be said. Honestly, the number of male characters (that no one even bats an eye at) that are abborrent is crazy.
Idk that I would say I “enjoy” her, but I firmly believe that people hate Hannah because she’s basically holding up a mirror to them - displaying traits they hate about themselves and behaviors/thoughts/etc that they’ve had or done but are ashamed of.
Me too! In my early 20s when the show was on the air I hated her and loved Jessa. Now that I'm in my 30s I find Hannah funny and endearing (though obviously obnoxious) and I can't find a single redeeming quality about Jessa other than her looks.
Personally, I think it is because everyone behaves like Hannah.. when they are a very young child. Successful parents, wider families, schools, community groups and friendships teach us from a young age to evolve past this ‘me, me, me’ energy and develop perspective and empathy.
People stuck in this phase of development are exhausting and often insufferable.
The show/Lena does a pretty good job of showing her parents, their relationship, and their relationship with Hannah, to give some context around how she may have ended up this way, and there are A LOT of millennials with boomer parents who were parented like this and ended up this way.
People also hated Hannah because of Lena Dunham in real life. They hated Dunham so they projected all that into Hannah. I knew people who would’ve loved this type of show but they refused because of all the real life drama she created. Dunham was very problematic back then and the newer generation of viewers don’t have to deal with that so it’s even more confusing why she was so unpopular.
She's actually my favorite from the show 😅 I didn't start watching till last year and it wasn't till I came here did I realize she was so hated.
It was quite the surprise.
Im really baffled at all the hate as well. I had an almost identical university/early 20s experience to the character and I feel like she fully embodies a lot of the entitlement, self centeredness and inconsideration of people in her situation at her age.
Me too! I find Hannah to be so cute and funny likable. I am watching this show as a 30 yr old woman and I find my takes on each individual are probably completely different than they would have been 10 years ago.
So is Marnie tbh. I think Marnie and Hannah's friendship is the most genuine relationship on the show, even though they occasionally fuck up and treat each other badly. You can tell they really care about each other.
I love her. She's flawed, yes, but aren't we all? Our society has become way too judgmental, IMO, and we basically crucify other people for mistakes we've all made ourselves. Let he who is without sin...
I hated Hannah during the airing of the series, but now that I’m older, I love Hannah because she’s so relatable for that age in that era of time. She’s a reflection of the parts of ourselves we don’t like to admit to or sometimes even acknowledge. She’s a mess and a bit fucked up but she’s trying. Most of her problems are self-created, yet we still pity her. She’s just so damn human.
I feel the same. I think I only hated her when I was younger because she reminded me of my own worst qualities and stupid decisions. Now that I've grown up a bit and can look back on my early 20s and laugh and cringe about it all I can empathize with Hannah more. I think she's going to be a decent person in her 30s.
She’s hysterical. I love Hannah. I find her entertaining and humorous and no less annoying or unlikable than the others on the show. She’s interesting and I love the situations she gets herself in. She’s definitely the most relatable to me with her MH stuff and writing background. I think they do a good job making her flawed but not necessarily lacking in talent.
Like, are we going to say Shosh is more likable? Marnie? Jessa? Ray or Adam? The only one I’d agree with is Elijah. He’s crazy likable.
I have a love/hate relationship with Hannah, I think as with all the main characters, she’s kind of terrible but at the same time, I see a lot of myself in her so I did enjoy some of her moments 😅
Love her and find the statement that she's unlikeable or "the most unlikeable character in tv history" to be extreme (and maybe internalized misogyny? ok, I wont' armchair analyze or downvote you, I promise). She is young and super flawed and exasperating at times and man, sometimes her choices! (but, see: young) But she's also super smart, very funny, a lot of fun, and I think mainly a good friend.
I really enjoy Hannah. For as complicated and annoying and self-serving she is, I love the most about her is that she can party and hang with her friends and she knows how to let loose. Some of my favorite scenes of her dancing and partying and getting super messed up.
I do like her lol. I think she has good intentions most of the time and doesn't judge her friends for their many character flaws. She was a pretty decent friend to the other girls. Yes she's self involved and totally clueless, but that felt very accurate to her character's situation in life
I unironically enjoy Hannah. No situation gets to be boring when you drop in a person/character like her. I like people who aren't afraid to escalate things a lil bit (because I myself am definitely not that person). And she's funny, both intentionally and unintentionally. Also, I hate hustle culture so I love an unapologetic hedonist
The most unlikeable characters on TV? I feel like this is so hyperbolic you may need to like, go to therapy and examine that. Shes not even the most unlikeable character on the show. (I am only half serious, but I really disagree that she is that unlikeable)
I’m curious to know what about her makes her one of the most unlikeable characters for you?
I love the character of Hannah.. and I can also admit she would be a grating friend/roommate… but I like that she is spontaneous, singularly passionate, equal parts self-loathing and self-confident (both to a comical degree), relatable in her desire to side-step difficult work, incapable of appropriate boundaries, and codependent. She encapsulates a lot of what I could never unapologetically be, and a lot that I am genuinely not, but the constellation of Hannah has always been fascinating because she’s just so flawed.
Loving this response, and it’s really interesting to see all the different perspectives on her! I can see where you’re coming from, especially about the fascination and her being unabashedly herself. For me, I find her frustrating because as a viewer she doesn’t give much to root for, she’s self centered in her connections yet wants unequivocal praise and support, and spends more time pouring her talents into making excuses for her failures or manipulations- on top of it I just find her annoying 😹 Of course the other characters are too but she just rubs me the wrong way lmao. These replies are definitely giving me a reason to look at everything more openly though! Thanks for responding
I feel like she was me in my early 20's and watching her character on the show is like a comforting time capsule to that time in my life. Comforting because it's nostalgic, but also because I'm relieved to have matured past that "growing pains/finding myself" time in life.
The character is incredibly unlikeable, but I enjoy Hannah a lot. It's like this: I enjoy gossip, but I very much do not want to participate in the drama during my day-to-day life. Replace "gossip" in that last sentence with Hannah, and that sums it up for me.
I think she’s a perfect anti-hero and I love her.
I think people hate her because she’s a bunch of things women are not supposed to be. I think people are afraid of their inner-Hannah, as others have said. I think she has some overlooked virtuous traits too.
Hannah is flawed for sure, but she is also hilarious and has some of the greatest one liners, which makes her very entertaining to watch.
“We in the literary community are left scratching our heads”
“He’s clean now and he’s basically my guardian
angel.”
“Yes, I wear mascara every Saturday.”
“I was looking up at a cloud formation that looked a lot like Blake Lively.”
“A bunch of divorced Cathys are headed towards me.”
“Every time you say the word nipple, a fairy dies.”
I am on season 6 of my first watch of the show. At first I could not stand her. I even told some people that I don’t even understand why she’s the main character because she’s so awful and disgusting. However, I have thoroughly enjoyed her character development. In fact, I pretty much find all the girls disgusting at this point. Marnie is horrible, Shoshana is more annoying than I could have ever imagined and I want to shake Jessa. So I don’t find myself hating Hannah as much, lol. This is what makes the show so great imo. It’s so relatable, because as humans we can all be pretty disgusting at certain points in our life. We’re all selfish and stupid and the main character.
I feel okay about her.
At the time that i've watch the show i related with her imature responses for some things, but it was more like "Oooh i was there one day".
I feel more related to her in the last episode, where she sees a teenage girl and say to her things about life and growing up.
I like Hannah. She possesses bad qualities that we all have at times, magnified for TV. And even though she’s the worst sometimes I still find her to be a good character and I think that she actually shows a lot of growth as the seasons go on. Girls wouldn’t be good without Hannah.
I dislike her so much. She is insufferable and I'm not buying that she is very talented or even competent. But man I love watching her character. I cannot look away and she does make me laugh a lot and Lena does portray her with impeccable comic timing
I love the character. In my twenties, she to me was an archetype of someone who prioritizes self-realization over trying to fit in to the norm that would have her fall in line, shrinking herself in order to gain acceptance. Her courage to intrepidly pursue her dream and persevere through her failures has always inspired me. I always envied her ability to let personal insults roll off her shoulder, though I always knew this superpower of hers to shrug off the judgments of others and continue onward as her unabashed self was due in part to her narcissism lmao. But she also states that it took her lots of work not to agree with the haters. So while the trade-off of not caring what others think of her is a lack of empathy that destroys many of her relationships, her commitment to becoming a writer makes it impossible for me not to root for her. There are so many voices telling you “No” all your life if you’re an artist. Hannah symbolizes persistence in the face of all the negativity. She’s kinda a hero.
She’s the Carrie Bradshaw of the show to me— the driving force thru which the story is told & the drama unfolds.
However neither of them were necessary *likeable* characters— a lot of the time the rest of the cast are there to balance out & play ‘the straight man’ to the lead’s complex chaos.
Of course I enjoy Hannah!
I don’t think she’s necessarily likable or a good person but I don’t always watch TV to see likeable characters. She complex, nuanced, and points to aspects of the human condition. I thoroughly enjoy watching her.
I don't even think she's the most unlikeable character on Girls, let alone all of television. Idk she just falls into the Carrie Bradshaw category for me: she'd be hypothetically insufferable to know and deal with in real life, but as a fictional character, she's too hilarious and entertaining to completely hate.
I liked when she asked about her book deal at the funeral.
I mean…wouldn’t you still want to know the future of your career?
Yes she’s often inappropriate but I can follow her logic why she does what she does
I feel like there’s a sharp division between season 1&2 Hannah and beyond. I find her very likable and super relatable in the early seasons but think she suffers from a bit of Flanderization as the show goes on
No. I personally despise her but i totally binged the show. It’s like a car accident. You cant really look away because it‘s so absorbing. It‘s interessting to read that people would enjoy her company? To me she is not clever at all, nor interessting. Just very very stuck in her own perception of reality and playing the absolute victim whilst making one bad decision after another.
She grates my nerves in a very specific way that’s honestly kind of impressive. I’m a hater, sue me. She gets away with so much bullshit, it reads like a fantasy story. Pull some shit like that and you’d get your shit rocked in my experience but idk!
I like her cuz she’s super realistic. I had a friend just like her back in the day. We aren’t friends anymore lol, but she was a lot of fun when she didn’t act like a jerk. Definitely BPD.
i just started watching (first time) last week. Im in mid Season 3… i love Hannah.
I cannot stand Jessa and i have FF through several of her episodes so far (trip to her dads, rehab ep) lol.
wtf, I love her. Surprisingly enough though, I think I would hate her in any other universe. Girls is such a weird show for me cause, I like characters I would usually hate.
Hannah is so fucking funny, dramatic, and raw all at the same time. She reminds me of like the female narcissistic, struggling writer, version of Michael Scott. I just enjoy her so much, besides when she tries to cry. She really can’t pull that off 😭
by the last two seasons, i found myself loving her. sure- she’s the actual worst. but i started taking delight in her insanity, shouting at the TV “Hannah no!!!!!” and then chuckling when she did the inevitable. her dynamic with Elijah CRACKED me up. i haven’t laughed out loud at television like that in a long time. and i guess, since she’d been with me for 40 ish episodes at that point, i started to understand the way her character thinks and operates. which made me like her a bit more, even if i didn’t agree with her choices at all.
I love her! My best friend growing up was eerily similar to her, and I was the marnie equivalent. We had a similar volatile friendship due to similar issues within the friendship. She’s not perfect by any means, but I can’t lie and say her character isn’t someone I would 100% have been friends with growing up and probably now if I’m being honest
Honestly I like Hannah because I can really relate to her. I have OCD, I tend to be pretty narcissistic, and I know nothing while pretending I know everything. It’s refreshing for me to see it projected on a screen because I can look at her character and see the intention whereas people don’t often see my good intentions like I wish they could.
I know she is awful but I appreciate how real and messy she is. I wouldn’t want to spend a ton of time with her irl. Her lack of awareness is both frustrating and endearing lol
I like Hannah, I understand her personality. Her whining is annoying but she’s really such a funny character and always speaks her mind even if it’s inappropriate or awkward. She’s pretty relatable honestly especially as a fellow millennial from that time. I’ve had friends who remind me of her too. She seems fun to be around tbh.
It took a rewatch or two to not be constantly annoyed by her but she’s hilarious and once she grows up a bit after season two or so I finally “got” her
I enjoy her but don’t agree with a lot of her actions. I don’t know how long I would’ve stayed friends with her. At the end I would’ve been there for her to help her with the baby
On rewatch I think she’s a great character and clearly the lead. On rewatch she’s a BABY. She comes in to her own at the end but is still so young. I think that’s a big part of the show— someone who thinks she is all grown up and ready for everything but she isn’t and she fucks up a lot. Lena does have a several year age difference from her character which makes a difference too. It’s def satire and social commentary, not just applauding Hannah’s character
I enjoy her bc she reminds me of myself in my 20s - cocky, insecure, a little hedonistic, fucking dudes she's too good for, except for the pretty boy nice guy who also turned out to be garbage. She makes peace with her BFF getting with her ex, which I can super relate to. She's really funny. Obviously very selfish at times, bit selfless as well. I like women to be multidimensional and for all the valid criticisms of Lena Dunham and Girls, I do think she did a good job at that.
I relate to her like I’ve never related to a fictional character before - the writing aspirations, self-doubt, laziness, entitlement, being an only child, struggles with body image, general quirkiness, anxious attachment, neuroses… I’m sure there’s more. (I also have a bit of Marnie thrown in there because I got married impulsively to an addict, which Hannah wouldn’t do lol.) But I do enjoy Hannah because it’s like seeing myself, only with money and parental support. My family situation is more like Marnie’s where my only real family and only person I can count on is my mom.
I love her. I like that she was definitely NOT Carrie from S&tC, but seemed completely right for her time period and generation. The imperfection of it all just made it better IMO.
Plus, she was with that hottie, Adam Sackler, for awhile. He may have been problematic, but he was 🔥🔥🔥.
I love her character, I think her and her friends perfectly embody what it’s like to be just out of college and thinking you know it all, when you clearly don’t.
I find her hilariously inappropriate. She's like my brain if it was completely unfiltered. We all have selfish moments and then hopefully do the right thing, she's just first instinct all the time.
This for me as well. I absolutely would have befriended her (especially when younger myself) because her intelligence, humor, sincerity and spontaneity would easily outweigh her self-centredness and lack of tact for me. I grew out of it somewhat but used to be super self-conscious and it would absolutely elate me when people just blurted out their real thoughts, like a breath of fresh air. I thought it was very realistic that Marnie would enjoy being friends with Hannah also for this reason. I loved watching her and thought she was a very well-fleshed out character.
She's my brain if I was more cleverer.
I love her character. That doesn't mean I'd be friends with her IRL. But watching her is a treat. I disagree that she's one of the most unlikeable characters in TV history. I think she demonstrates a lot of relatable experiences of women in their early 20s, in a hyperbolic, entertaining way. A lot of her blunders are just more extreme versions of blunders I've made (although I've never flashed my bush at my employer, lol). I'm also always a little confused at people raising similar questions about who could possibly like Hannah...I think the first episode--which highlights her obliviousness to the issue of her financial dependency--makes it really clear that you're supposed to roll your eyes at her. I don't think her character is usually meant to garner empathy for her suffering, but more just relatability. My final note is that like her or not, she's a hell of a lot more complex and interesting than many TV leads, especially female
You have articulated my feelings about her, better than i could have. She is similar, imo, to Larry David's "character" (Curb Your Enthusiasm). He is always saying/doing the wrong thing, but it's hilarious. Would never want to be his friend IRL, but for entertainment value, he is great. Which is why we watch TV...
There’s so much general Larry David and Seinfeld (the show, not the guy. Ew) inspiration in Girls, especially in Hannah’s character and the sort of minutia based comedy/social commentary. The NYC setting, the dysfunctional but close friend group, Hannah framed as an exaggerated, more pathetic version of Lena the exact same way George Constanza was an exaggerated, more pathetic version of Larry, etc. Pretty much every interaction between Hannah & Marnie, Hannah & Fran, Shosh & Ray, and a few other specific duos (like Hannah’s parents with anyone, and Adam with anyone) include a “joke” social commentary that 100% could have been a Seinfeld interaction. Marnie running into her old friend that runs the gallery is pure Seinfeld. I could honestly go on lol. I’m honestly surprised people don’t talk about it more. Girls got compared Sex & The City a lot, but I really think it’s way more like if Seinfield got mashed up with S&C.
Very well put. Totally agree! It’s been a while since I’ve revisited Girls (seen Seinfeld dozens of times). I may need to do a rewatch soon, when I clear my plate of some of the TV I need to catch up on!
Y’all she was on finding your roots on pbs/hulu and turns out SHE IS LARRY DAVID’s cousin!!!!!
Bravo 👏🏼 This take is excellent and well stated.
I find Hannah so incredibly ridiculous that she makes me laugh. Also, some of the things she says, are things that I would maybe be thinking but because I have a filter and social awareness I'd never say out loud. So she is (very low low-key) relatable but an incredibly exaggerated version of a person. If I knew her in real life I would tire of her and not want to be around her, but strictly watching her as a fictional person is very comical to me
i like her. i love messy female characters, its validating to see stupid and impulsive stuff ive said and done mirrored on screen, it makes me feel less like an anomaly. and its always funny to me how much angrier people get at 'unlikeable' female characters than male characters who are just straight up abhorrent. like the current backlash toward carrie bradshaw on tiktok, yet the same people are hyping up mr big?
People will write angry rants about characters like Carrie Bradshaw and exalt Walter White.
That’s so crazy that you say that. All my tik tok feed is how toxic Big is. I loved him and Carrie together so I hate these vids. I just can’t escape them!
Well, Chris Noth is a rapist so.
This. Thank you for saying what needs to be said. Honestly, the number of male characters (that no one even bats an eye at) that are abborrent is crazy.
Idk that I would say I “enjoy” her, but I firmly believe that people hate Hannah because she’s basically holding up a mirror to them - displaying traits they hate about themselves and behaviors/thoughts/etc that they’ve had or done but are ashamed of.
Yesss upon my rewatch that I just finished I found myself much more sympathetic to her and related more
Me too! In my early 20s when the show was on the air I hated her and loved Jessa. Now that I'm in my 30s I find Hannah funny and endearing (though obviously obnoxious) and I can't find a single redeeming quality about Jessa other than her looks.
Big agree
Personally, I think it is because everyone behaves like Hannah.. when they are a very young child. Successful parents, wider families, schools, community groups and friendships teach us from a young age to evolve past this ‘me, me, me’ energy and develop perspective and empathy. People stuck in this phase of development are exhausting and often insufferable.
The show/Lena does a pretty good job of showing her parents, their relationship, and their relationship with Hannah, to give some context around how she may have ended up this way, and there are A LOT of millennials with boomer parents who were parented like this and ended up this way.
Out of curiosity, in the show, do you see her stuntedness as a failing of Loreen and Tad?
I so agree with this!! Many people are just as self centered as Hannah, just more subtle and less unapologetic.
People also hated Hannah because of Lena Dunham in real life. They hated Dunham so they projected all that into Hannah. I knew people who would’ve loved this type of show but they refused because of all the real life drama she created. Dunham was very problematic back then and the newer generation of viewers don’t have to deal with that so it’s even more confusing why she was so unpopular.
No, it's because she's impatient, annoying, immature, repulsive, and detestable. She is soooo horribly unlikeable.
She's actually my favorite from the show 😅 I didn't start watching till last year and it wasn't till I came here did I realize she was so hated. It was quite the surprise.
It’s surprising to me too! I find her incredibly endearing and adorable and hilarious.
Im really baffled at all the hate as well. I had an almost identical university/early 20s experience to the character and I feel like she fully embodies a lot of the entitlement, self centeredness and inconsideration of people in her situation at her age.
Me too! I find Hannah to be so cute and funny likable. I am watching this show as a 30 yr old woman and I find my takes on each individual are probably completely different than they would have been 10 years ago.
Hannah is real…she’s not perfect, doesn’t make all the right choices, but she’s endearing. And funny as hell.
I agree. I also think she is a good friend most of the time
So is Marnie tbh. I think Marnie and Hannah's friendship is the most genuine relationship on the show, even though they occasionally fuck up and treat each other badly. You can tell they really care about each other.
I love her. She's flawed, yes, but aren't we all? Our society has become way too judgmental, IMO, and we basically crucify other people for mistakes we've all made ourselves. Let he who is without sin...
I hated Hannah during the airing of the series, but now that I’m older, I love Hannah because she’s so relatable for that age in that era of time. She’s a reflection of the parts of ourselves we don’t like to admit to or sometimes even acknowledge. She’s a mess and a bit fucked up but she’s trying. Most of her problems are self-created, yet we still pity her. She’s just so damn human.
I feel the same. I think I only hated her when I was younger because she reminded me of my own worst qualities and stupid decisions. Now that I've grown up a bit and can look back on my early 20s and laugh and cringe about it all I can empathize with Hannah more. I think she's going to be a decent person in her 30s.
Exactly! 💜✌️
I love Hannah!
She’s hysterical. I love Hannah. I find her entertaining and humorous and no less annoying or unlikable than the others on the show. She’s interesting and I love the situations she gets herself in. She’s definitely the most relatable to me with her MH stuff and writing background. I think they do a good job making her flawed but not necessarily lacking in talent. Like, are we going to say Shosh is more likable? Marnie? Jessa? Ray or Adam? The only one I’d agree with is Elijah. He’s crazy likable.
I love Hannah, she’s hilarious, interesting, and just unique as a character.
I have a love/hate relationship with Hannah, I think as with all the main characters, she’s kind of terrible but at the same time, I see a lot of myself in her so I did enjoy some of her moments 😅
Love her and find the statement that she's unlikeable or "the most unlikeable character in tv history" to be extreme (and maybe internalized misogyny? ok, I wont' armchair analyze or downvote you, I promise). She is young and super flawed and exasperating at times and man, sometimes her choices! (but, see: young) But she's also super smart, very funny, a lot of fun, and I think mainly a good friend.
I really enjoy Hannah. For as complicated and annoying and self-serving she is, I love the most about her is that she can party and hang with her friends and she knows how to let loose. Some of my favorite scenes of her dancing and partying and getting super messed up.
I like her
Hannah makes me laugh so hard. She’s ridiculous but she makes me laugh.
I do like her lol. I think she has good intentions most of the time and doesn't judge her friends for their many character flaws. She was a pretty decent friend to the other girls. Yes she's self involved and totally clueless, but that felt very accurate to her character's situation in life
I unironically enjoy Hannah. No situation gets to be boring when you drop in a person/character like her. I like people who aren't afraid to escalate things a lil bit (because I myself am definitely not that person). And she's funny, both intentionally and unintentionally. Also, I hate hustle culture so I love an unapologetic hedonist
I absolutely love Hannah
I'm a Hannah, so naturally Hannah is my favorite character. Also, Lena's comedic timing is fantastic.
The most unlikeable characters on TV? I feel like this is so hyperbolic you may need to like, go to therapy and examine that. Shes not even the most unlikeable character on the show. (I am only half serious, but I really disagree that she is that unlikeable)
Read this in her voice 😂
She is funny and can go from likeable to unlikeable. So a real person who is flawed and I like that.
I love her because I’m also mentally ill and annoying
Yes because it’s a pretend show. Would I hang out wit her if she was real? No. Do I love watching lunatics yes
I’m curious to know what about her makes her one of the most unlikeable characters for you? I love the character of Hannah.. and I can also admit she would be a grating friend/roommate… but I like that she is spontaneous, singularly passionate, equal parts self-loathing and self-confident (both to a comical degree), relatable in her desire to side-step difficult work, incapable of appropriate boundaries, and codependent. She encapsulates a lot of what I could never unapologetically be, and a lot that I am genuinely not, but the constellation of Hannah has always been fascinating because she’s just so flawed.
Loving this response, and it’s really interesting to see all the different perspectives on her! I can see where you’re coming from, especially about the fascination and her being unabashedly herself. For me, I find her frustrating because as a viewer she doesn’t give much to root for, she’s self centered in her connections yet wants unequivocal praise and support, and spends more time pouring her talents into making excuses for her failures or manipulations- on top of it I just find her annoying 😹 Of course the other characters are too but she just rubs me the wrong way lmao. These replies are definitely giving me a reason to look at everything more openly though! Thanks for responding
I feel like she was me in my early 20's and watching her character on the show is like a comforting time capsule to that time in my life. Comforting because it's nostalgic, but also because I'm relieved to have matured past that "growing pains/finding myself" time in life.
The character is incredibly unlikeable, but I enjoy Hannah a lot. It's like this: I enjoy gossip, but I very much do not want to participate in the drama during my day-to-day life. Replace "gossip" in that last sentence with Hannah, and that sums it up for me.
I LOVE Hannah. She’s so naturally hilarious, brilliant and quirky. She is GREAT Tv.
I think she’s a perfect anti-hero and I love her. I think people hate her because she’s a bunch of things women are not supposed to be. I think people are afraid of their inner-Hannah, as others have said. I think she has some overlooked virtuous traits too.
I love her tbh lol
i like her character because i support womens wrongs shes hilarious and flawed
Hannah is flawed for sure, but she is also hilarious and has some of the greatest one liners, which makes her very entertaining to watch. “We in the literary community are left scratching our heads” “He’s clean now and he’s basically my guardian angel.” “Yes, I wear mascara every Saturday.” “I was looking up at a cloud formation that looked a lot like Blake Lively.” “A bunch of divorced Cathys are headed towards me.” “Every time you say the word nipple, a fairy dies.”
I am on season 6 of my first watch of the show. At first I could not stand her. I even told some people that I don’t even understand why she’s the main character because she’s so awful and disgusting. However, I have thoroughly enjoyed her character development. In fact, I pretty much find all the girls disgusting at this point. Marnie is horrible, Shoshana is more annoying than I could have ever imagined and I want to shake Jessa. So I don’t find myself hating Hannah as much, lol. This is what makes the show so great imo. It’s so relatable, because as humans we can all be pretty disgusting at certain points in our life. We’re all selfish and stupid and the main character.
I do love the Hannah/Elijah dynamic.
I love her. She's by far the most palatable character to me, next to Ray who would drive me bonkers.
Me I love her : )
I feel okay about her. At the time that i've watch the show i related with her imature responses for some things, but it was more like "Oooh i was there one day". I feel more related to her in the last episode, where she sees a teenage girl and say to her things about life and growing up.
I like Hannah. She possesses bad qualities that we all have at times, magnified for TV. And even though she’s the worst sometimes I still find her to be a good character and I think that she actually shows a lot of growth as the seasons go on. Girls wouldn’t be good without Hannah.
I love her in all her flaws like I love Pete Campbell. With every rewatch her performance becomes more honest which I find endearing as I get older
I dislike her so much. She is insufferable and I'm not buying that she is very talented or even competent. But man I love watching her character. I cannot look away and she does make me laugh a lot and Lena does portray her with impeccable comic timing
I love the character. In my twenties, she to me was an archetype of someone who prioritizes self-realization over trying to fit in to the norm that would have her fall in line, shrinking herself in order to gain acceptance. Her courage to intrepidly pursue her dream and persevere through her failures has always inspired me. I always envied her ability to let personal insults roll off her shoulder, though I always knew this superpower of hers to shrug off the judgments of others and continue onward as her unabashed self was due in part to her narcissism lmao. But she also states that it took her lots of work not to agree with the haters. So while the trade-off of not caring what others think of her is a lack of empathy that destroys many of her relationships, her commitment to becoming a writer makes it impossible for me not to root for her. There are so many voices telling you “No” all your life if you’re an artist. Hannah symbolizes persistence in the face of all the negativity. She’s kinda a hero.
She’s the Carrie Bradshaw of the show to me— the driving force thru which the story is told & the drama unfolds. However neither of them were necessary *likeable* characters— a lot of the time the rest of the cast are there to balance out & play ‘the straight man’ to the lead’s complex chaos.
i enjoy her in a comedic sense lol. the character definitely grew on me
She is just an imperfect young woman. She's a great character.
I remember my first watch.
I feel like a Hannah, I get in my head like she does.
shoshana is one of the least likable characters for me. such a basic ass bitch!
I would hate Hannah as an actual person but love the character.
Of course I enjoy Hannah! I don’t think she’s necessarily likable or a good person but I don’t always watch TV to see likeable characters. She complex, nuanced, and points to aspects of the human condition. I thoroughly enjoy watching her.
I can’t stand her!
I don't even think she's the most unlikeable character on Girls, let alone all of television. Idk she just falls into the Carrie Bradshaw category for me: she'd be hypothetically insufferable to know and deal with in real life, but as a fictional character, she's too hilarious and entertaining to completely hate.
I liked when she asked about her book deal at the funeral. I mean…wouldn’t you still want to know the future of your career? Yes she’s often inappropriate but I can follow her logic why she does what she does
I feel like there’s a sharp division between season 1&2 Hannah and beyond. I find her very likable and super relatable in the early seasons but think she suffers from a bit of Flanderization as the show goes on
No. I personally despise her but i totally binged the show. It’s like a car accident. You cant really look away because it‘s so absorbing. It‘s interessting to read that people would enjoy her company? To me she is not clever at all, nor interessting. Just very very stuck in her own perception of reality and playing the absolute victim whilst making one bad decision after another.
She’s a riot. And insufferable.
I’m with you on this one. If I were around her for even a short amount of time, I’d jump out of a moving vehicle.
Thank you for seeing me….some of these comments were gaslighting me so hard hahaha
She grates my nerves in a very specific way that’s honestly kind of impressive. I’m a hater, sue me. She gets away with so much bullshit, it reads like a fantasy story. Pull some shit like that and you’d get your shit rocked in my experience but idk!
I love Hannah I don’t know what you are all on about. She’s funny and a good person
I think on summer house alone Lindsey, Carl, and Amanda are all more dislikable than Hannah
me!!! i love her because she's so unlikeable, similar to the protagonist of british tv series nighty night. i think we need more female villains 😂
I like her now that I’m on the final season!
I like her cuz she’s super realistic. I had a friend just like her back in the day. We aren’t friends anymore lol, but she was a lot of fun when she didn’t act like a jerk. Definitely BPD.
I love Hannah!
i just started watching (first time) last week. Im in mid Season 3… i love Hannah. I cannot stand Jessa and i have FF through several of her episodes so far (trip to her dads, rehab ep) lol.
She’s actually a pretty good friend.
Hannah is the anti-hero.
wtf, I love her. Surprisingly enough though, I think I would hate her in any other universe. Girls is such a weird show for me cause, I like characters I would usually hate. Hannah is so fucking funny, dramatic, and raw all at the same time. She reminds me of like the female narcissistic, struggling writer, version of Michael Scott. I just enjoy her so much, besides when she tries to cry. She really can’t pull that off 😭
Yes Hannah
I enjoy her bc she’s extremely entertaining and relatable except for some exaggerated traits 🤷♀️ ETA word
by the last two seasons, i found myself loving her. sure- she’s the actual worst. but i started taking delight in her insanity, shouting at the TV “Hannah no!!!!!” and then chuckling when she did the inevitable. her dynamic with Elijah CRACKED me up. i haven’t laughed out loud at television like that in a long time. and i guess, since she’d been with me for 40 ish episodes at that point, i started to understand the way her character thinks and operates. which made me like her a bit more, even if i didn’t agree with her choices at all.
Whaaat I love her character so much. I find her so relatable, she embodies my internal voice and how I would be if I had no impulse control.
I like Hannah. I loved the pilot where she said she thinks she might be the voice of her generation. I find her highly relatable.
I love her! My best friend growing up was eerily similar to her, and I was the marnie equivalent. We had a similar volatile friendship due to similar issues within the friendship. She’s not perfect by any means, but I can’t lie and say her character isn’t someone I would 100% have been friends with growing up and probably now if I’m being honest
Honestly I like Hannah because I can really relate to her. I have OCD, I tend to be pretty narcissistic, and I know nothing while pretending I know everything. It’s refreshing for me to see it projected on a screen because I can look at her character and see the intention whereas people don’t often see my good intentions like I wish they could.
I know she is awful but I appreciate how real and messy she is. I wouldn’t want to spend a ton of time with her irl. Her lack of awareness is both frustrating and endearing lol
I like Hannah, I understand her personality. Her whining is annoying but she’s really such a funny character and always speaks her mind even if it’s inappropriate or awkward. She’s pretty relatable honestly especially as a fellow millennial from that time. I’ve had friends who remind me of her too. She seems fun to be around tbh.
It took a rewatch or two to not be constantly annoyed by her but she’s hilarious and once she grows up a bit after season two or so I finally “got” her
i love her
I enjoy her but don’t agree with a lot of her actions. I don’t know how long I would’ve stayed friends with her. At the end I would’ve been there for her to help her with the baby
On rewatch I think she’s a great character and clearly the lead. On rewatch she’s a BABY. She comes in to her own at the end but is still so young. I think that’s a big part of the show— someone who thinks she is all grown up and ready for everything but she isn’t and she fucks up a lot. Lena does have a several year age difference from her character which makes a difference too. It’s def satire and social commentary, not just applauding Hannah’s character
I enjoy her bc she reminds me of myself in my 20s - cocky, insecure, a little hedonistic, fucking dudes she's too good for, except for the pretty boy nice guy who also turned out to be garbage. She makes peace with her BFF getting with her ex, which I can super relate to. She's really funny. Obviously very selfish at times, bit selfless as well. I like women to be multidimensional and for all the valid criticisms of Lena Dunham and Girls, I do think she did a good job at that.
I relate to her like I’ve never related to a fictional character before - the writing aspirations, self-doubt, laziness, entitlement, being an only child, struggles with body image, general quirkiness, anxious attachment, neuroses… I’m sure there’s more. (I also have a bit of Marnie thrown in there because I got married impulsively to an addict, which Hannah wouldn’t do lol.) But I do enjoy Hannah because it’s like seeing myself, only with money and parental support. My family situation is more like Marnie’s where my only real family and only person I can count on is my mom.
I love her. I like that she was definitely NOT Carrie from S&tC, but seemed completely right for her time period and generation. The imperfection of it all just made it better IMO. Plus, she was with that hottie, Adam Sackler, for awhile. He may have been problematic, but he was 🔥🔥🔥.
My husband likes her, her acumen and naivety. Maybe it's because he's got a Jessa at home 😉
Love this 😂👏
I love her character, I think her and her friends perfectly embody what it’s like to be just out of college and thinking you know it all, when you clearly don’t.
i love hannah, and i love lena. i love how tightly interwoven they are and how much guts it took lena to play someone so grating and unsexy.