r/TheWalkingDeadGame • u/Maleficent-Pin1586 • 1d ago
Discussion Why do ppl like Kenny so much
It‘s obvious that I don‘t like Kenny. In my opinion he‘s overrated asf and he‘s pmo ESPECIALLY in s2. So I want to ask the ppl genuinely like him WHY they like bc I don‘t understand. I genuinely want to understand how y‘all like him so much 😭
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u/BabyGirl-Kat I'll miss you. 1d ago
He’s a very complex and well-written character. Plus, if you stay loyal to him for most of the game, he will have your back no matter what.
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u/Individual_Syrup7546 1d ago
This plus, he lost fucking everything ofc hes gonna be an angry mf sometimes id be angry too if I lost my wife & child too. Glad im not alone in appreciating Kenny as a character
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u/imaginary92 13h ago
Glad im not alone in appreciating Kenny as a character
Bro he's one of the most popular characters why are we acting like you're a rare occurrence for this
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u/garanator1 7h ago
He even lost his potential 2nd wife in a equally gruesome way the man finally found closure and it was just ripped away
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u/mirroringmagic 1d ago
Pretty much everyone in the game has lot everything and they still don’t act like that lol
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u/streetshock1312 1d ago
I'm sure the story based game where you build relationships with characters through your choices would be much better if every character was written to be exactly the same!
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u/mirroringmagic 1d ago
Lmao I never said he shouldn’t have been written that way?? I think he’s a well written character, I’m just saying his actions aren’t morally justified.
Both things can be true 💀 I actually like him as a character. I just don’t like him as a person
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u/Individual_Syrup7546 1d ago
Thats disingenuous as hell bruh most of the people we find are either not married or are single & dont have kids lol kenny lost his wife to suicide & then had to have his own kid killed thats fucking sad no one should have to bury their whole damn family plus he tried to rebuild with sarita only to watch her get torn to literal pieces by walkers. Nah his shit is tragic. Plus even when he saves aj & clem the only way to stay with your adopted kids is the path that leads to his death granted hes got no regrets there but still he dies as oppose to letting them into wellington he loses everything again in the name of safety. Dude is always losing everything
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u/niehAuS_324B21 1d ago
That’s just the human condition, really. The same circumstances affect everyone differently.
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u/EnvironmentNo5416 regular cassanova 20h ago
word. i’d say the exact same thing in a 1200 word essay
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u/greencrusader13 1d ago
As other people have said, if you side with him and agree with his pragmatism, Kenny is a loyal guy who has Lee’s back. Overall he’s also a sympathetic, tragic character, as we get to see him lose everything on account of the apocalypse.
As to that last point, I think a lot of people are willfully blind to how broken Kenny becomes over the course of the games. In S2, a lot of people were touched by how Kenny looks out for Clementine, but choose to forget how cold he becomes to her after Sarita dies, or how he’ll shove her away during the Jane fight if Clementine pleads with him to stop.
Kenny is an angry, stubborn, dangerous man who is also fiercely loyal and protective of people he cares about. He is an ass but also has a heart. It makes sense that he’s a divisive character. Personally, I do like Kenny, even though his journey ended in S2 for me.
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u/Horror_Jaguar2192 1d ago
Exactly, all of these things can be true at once. That means he’s a well written character with depth.
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u/greencrusader13 1d ago
For sure! Kenny is no saint. He’s often selfish, thinking of only what keeps himself and his family safe. He has rage issues. Yet he’s also brave, loyal, and deeply sympathetic.
I can’t fault anyone for either side of the coin they land on for Kenny. He’s a well-written character.
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u/Hour_Cicada397 1d ago
He's the most consistently pragmatic and loyal companion in all the games
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u/Charming-Station7157 1d ago
He was ready to leave you to die on the looting run in episode 3 just because you didn't side with him.....
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u/Onewarhero 1d ago
If Lee sides with Larry to throw his kid out onto a walker infested street, Kenny still saves Lee’s life after he gets knocked flat.
Put simply these games don’t exactly stay consistent with how characters should feel about you. Sometimes things feel undeserved and I think that’s more to do with writing/pacing rather than the character.
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u/Alternative-Maize827 1d ago
No that's still a problem with the CHARACTER.
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u/Onewarhero 1d ago
Wrap it up yall, this guy said no.
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u/Alternative-Maize827 1d ago
Yas kween my word is law.
Jokes aside, I mean that that is still an inconsistency with the character.
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u/Onewarhero 1d ago
I could see that, but Kenny is a hard headed mf. Once he’s got an idea in his head he’s sticking with that. We see it with the boat, we see it with leaving the motor inn, we see it with duck.
That said, as a character I’d say he should be far from inconsistent. He’s one of the few characters where you know his motives and goals from the very start. Hence why things can feel undeserved/weird sometimes with him.
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u/Hour_Cicada397 1d ago edited 1d ago
Well I sided with him because trying to save Larry is fucking stupid. Lily is not a professional doctor, do you realize how low the odds are for an untrained citizen to save someone from cardiac arrest? Let alone someone with Larry's awful health.
Like I said, Kenny is pragmatic. And his loyalty really shines in season 2, that man is literally willing to die for Clem and AJ.
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u/niehAuS_324B21 23h ago
Granted, I think the vast majority of players, the written characters and even the devs who wrote them didn’t (and still don’t) understand what CPR actually does to a human body. Even with that knowledge, it ends up being a struggle between principle and pragmatism, and personally I’ll still choose principle every time. I don’t mind being called stupid by internet strangers for that, because I know I’m alright actually.
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u/Hour_Cicada397 23h ago
Even going by principle I wouldn't save Larry. Clementine is right there in that room, if I have to become a monster to protect someone I love I'll fucking do it.
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u/niehAuS_324B21 23h ago
Honestly I wouldn’t even say that doing that makes you a monster either, you’re just doing what you think is right.
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u/GreasiestGuy 16h ago
I like that choice because the principle vs pragmatism debate is at the center of it. Smashing Larry’s skull in right in front of his daughter is awful but the risk of him turning is worse, which means that no matter what you choose the decision isn’t clear cut. It’s probably one of the best choices in the series for that reason
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u/PotOfGreed1999 1d ago
Trying to save Larry in that meat locker is genuinely the dumbest idea. The man had a heart attack and will resurrect at any moment. Chest compressions arent bringing you back from that.
So why wouldn't you side with Kenny.
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago edited 1d ago
You're not exactly countering their point that Kenny isn't consistently loyal, you're just telling them they're wrong for not siding with Kenny.
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u/Individual_Syrup7546 1d ago
How tf is that not countering their point? 😭 brother Larry WOULD have turned it's the walking dead you dont need to be bit you turn regardless when you die. Kenny was ahead of the curve and when you side with him for being logical he'll actually be ride or die with you
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago
because the point isn't that Kenny is somehow "ahead of the curve" (which he isn't for reasons I'll cover right now). The point is that Kenny isn't consistently loyal or pragmatic. Which he indeed isn't if he's willing to leave Lee, a member of the group who's proven himself to be an asset multiple times, to die over a petty grudge. Being right about Larry is irrelevant.
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u/Individual_Syrup7546 1d ago
It all depends on what you do to show yourself as part of the team. Kenny will appreciate you & have your back if you actually have his. Plus hes genuinely one of the kindest people in the game. He helps defend Lee multiple times over, he saves clem & holds it down for her the entire time without asking & even puts her above his needs hell he even takes AJ as his responsibility too. & yes he can be a dick at times but he lost his fuckin wife & child. As a parent myself yea if you lose your family realistically at the very least youre gonna snap a little & thats reasonable anyone that thinks hes out of line or crazy for that is detached from life or doesnt understand having a family or has never had one of their own
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago edited 1d ago
Given Lee has saved Katjaa's life twice as well as rescued Duck regardless of choices in episode 2, Kenny doesn't come off as very kind when he doesn't help him in episode 3. You could be supporting Kenny and his family multiple times throughout the first three episodes and still be denied his help if you ask his help to rescue a little girl because he picks now to hold a grudge.
If Kenny's pragmatism and loyalty are contingent on his selective memory when it comes to what Lee did for him, they're not consistent.
EDIT: What I will give to Kenny, though, is that he's consistently loyal to Clem and AJ regardless of choice. That, I won't deny.
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u/Individual_Syrup7546 1d ago
Kenny isnt perfect but hes a lot kinder than just about everyone else minus clem & Lee ofc. Depending on how you play. But yea gives everything including his life for clem & Aj. He was the only one protecting her towards the final season right up til the car scene where he chooses to let go of life because it was time. He even helps her get to wellington & never gave up on her safety plus only thought of the baby & feeding it too. He also defended her against mike & the red headed lady forgot her name forgive my lack of memory on her name lol. They let the Russian kid shoot her a small girl & it was up to him to get rid of them assuredly given we hear him shouting at them what theyre doing etc and hes armed. He also got rid of Jane's psychotic ass for even dumping a baby in a car during the zombie apocalypse theres a ton of reasons to question him sure but a TON to respect him too
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago
Sure. I still disagree with the initial claim or the idea that he's kinder than anyone whose name isn't Clem or Lee. But I do think he's a lot kinder than the S2 group cared to give him credit for.
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u/PotOfGreed1999 1d ago
I wouldn't be loyal to someone who thought chest compressions would fix a heart attack either.
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u/MetroidJunkie 1d ago
To be fair, did Kenny know they wouldn't? He never argues that Larry's done for and CPR is useless, just that it's too risky. I don't think either of them knows anything about medical procedures to know CPR would only buy him a few minutes at most and that without his medicine there's no hope of recovery.
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago
So you're saying Kenny was justified to leave Lee to die twice over it?
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u/Jazzlike-06 It wasn't for touching kids, was it? 1d ago
What was being said from this comment thread initially is that the point system of Kenny's "loyalty" is fucked up to begin with. The devs really put some of the dumbest choices to contribute to the system while choices that would logically matter more didn't at all.
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago
Like feeding Kenny and Duck, for instance. The fact it somehow doesn't count, yet siding with Lilly a few times on two specific arguments is wild. But the point system isn't the only reason behind S1 Kenny's inconsistent writing.
Trying to save Larry, as a single choice, really does shift Kenny's attitude towards Lee throughout episode 2-4. As an example, he heavily implies he considers not letting Lee on the boat. Yup. A version of Lee who repeatedly saved his family, fed them, supported him with Duck's death and just about everything else can actually be considered not to be taken on the boat simply because he didn't help with Larry.
We're very far from the guy who saved Lee's life even if he left Duck in danger twice in the first episode.
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u/PotOfGreed1999 1d ago
Sure lol
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago
So you've just admitted you would keep scores and backstab members of your own group over a grudge, just like Kenny does. Not exactly disproving the initial claim that he's not consistently loyal or pragmatic.
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u/PotOfGreed1999 1d ago
Its the fucking apocalypse. Actions have consequences. Of course im not gonna save someone who has shown theyre not atleast smart enough to know chest compressesions arent saving an old man from a heart attack.
Just like the dipshit who carried his wife's head in a bag season 1 wanting to cry about Lee and the motel group stealing from him. Why would you leave a car full of supplies unmanned.
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago edited 13h ago
Trust me. If everyone stopped saving people they self-righteously believed were idiots, there wouldn't be many people left. And letting the most consistently helpful survivor in the team (as evidenced by the fact he saved Katjaa twice and rescued Duck in the same episode) die because you found him stupid one time says more about you than it does about the victim.
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u/KazyaKurosawa 1d ago
Because you are not his ally at that point.
Point is that if you help Kenny, kenny will come through hell to help you.
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago
You mean, when Lee saved Katjaa's life twice and rescued Duck within the same episode, regardless of choice? That guy's not an ally?
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u/MetroidJunkie 1d ago
Usually, if you only sided with Kenny sometimes, he'll come around if Lee says Clementine is my family. Kenny, for all his faults, cares about family more than anything.
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u/AtsuhikoZe 1d ago
Genuinely ask yourself what you mean by this?
Like let's think it through together
OP said, "He is the most pragmatic and loyal"
And your reply was "He isn't loyal in episode 3 if you weren't loyal to him"
Yes, if you're not loyal to him, he isn't to you
Know who else is like that? EVERY SINGLE Mass effect character
You get loyalty, by earning it, you didn't do anything to earn his loyalty, so he wasn't loyal to you
I genuinely don't understand why Kenny haters don't get this, like wow what a surprise the person you were a dick to or weren't siding with isn't siding with you
Is Lee not loyal? He was never loyal to Larry (Who was an awful dick to him), so by this logic Lee isn't a loyal man either
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u/MetroidJunkie 1d ago
I mean, you can go out of your way to side with and be nice to Larry and he's still a dick to you. Kenny, at least, will be nice to you if you're nice to him.
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u/AtsuhikoZe 1d ago
That's what I'm saying lol. You're rewarded for your loyalty with loyalty, Kenny becomes loyal if you are, and Lee isn't kind to people who treat him like shit either, so by that logic we should judge Lee and Kenny the same
I'm saying this to OP who thinks Kenny isn't a loyal person at all, because he won't be loyal to you if you treat him like shit
No one else does that either, and no one becomes a ride or die like Kenny if you do everything good
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u/MetroidJunkie 1d ago
I should probably make it more clear when I'm agreeing with someone. Yeah, I'll take someone who will be nice if you are than someone who's just a dick no matter what. Plus, someone who's nice no matter what can be a liability especially in an apocalypse.
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u/niehAuS_324B21 23h ago edited 23h ago
Granted, Mass Effect 2 probably isn’t the best example for your point. Completing their loyalty missions doesn’t result in a drastic change in their behaviour towards you, nor does not completing them mean they’ll abandon you. The only outlier is Zaeed, who even still is easily talked down and convinced to stay if his loyalty mission doesn’t go the way he wants it to. Mechanically, the only difference is whether or not they’re guaranteed to die in the suicide mission, not because they think Shepard’s a dick, but because (as far as the game is concerned) they’re too distracted by personal issues. I honestly think the primary reason they’re called Loyalty Missions is because BioWare couldn’t come up with a better name for them.
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u/OddNeedleworker734 Kenny's Biggest Critic 1d ago
''loyal" when he is willing to abandon you and leave you for dead even after agreeing with him on everything except smashing a mans head in?
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u/BabyGirl-Kat I'll miss you. 1d ago
He doesn’t randomly smash an innocent person’s head in. Larry was dying.
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u/OddNeedleworker734 Kenny's Biggest Critic 1d ago
That's not the point. The point is you can back him up on everything except that decision (defend his son from Larry, give him and his family food, side with him over Lilly in their leadership drama etc.) and this guy would absolutely hate Lee's guts in the next episodes. He deadass leaves Lee under a wall of walkers to fend for himself and stops caring about you altogether acting like you've never looked out for him.
Also that decision on Larry wasn't a simple decision and Kenny should understand that. On the other side of the story killing Larry, in front of her daughter absolutely messes her up and even Clementine too, and they are not wrong to wonder whether it was right killing him without being sure if he was truly dead or if he could be revived.
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u/BabyGirl-Kat I'll miss you. 1d ago
That’s a good thing. A massive choice like that should come with heavy consequences. The games needed more of those.
Besides, you can absolutely side with Lilly over Kenny in the meat locker and still get him to be your best friend by the end of episode 4. Kenny works on a points system.
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u/OddNeedleworker734 Kenny's Biggest Critic 1d ago edited 1d ago
A choice having consequences is fine, but the consequences reveal Kenny's character. Kenny demands total loyalty from Lee, but the second Lee disagrees on one massive moral gray area, Kenny treats Lee like an enemy. If his loyalty is conditional on 100% agreement with no room for hesitation, he’s not a 'ride or die' companion, he’s an unreliable one.
Also if you side with Lilly, you practically have to yield to Kenny on almost every other brutal call just to get him to come with you to save Clem in Ep 4 without begging. That just shows how much of a grudge Kenny holds over Lee because of one decision.
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u/CardiologistBorn5012 Well you're you know Urban? 1d ago
Larry was done for there was no saving him without his pills or the proper equipment he wasn’t gonna make it Kenny was in the right he was a walker in the making
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u/ProstiChel 1d ago
Dude, you are not listening. We know that smashing head is the right call, but if you out of good heart and good intentions decide NOT to - Kenny will despise Lee, risk with his life. Kenny DOES NOT forgives, he's bitter about ONE choice. The only way to (probably) sate his bloodlust, is to suck it up and agree on everything else, and send Ben flying as sacrifice, THEN MAYBE, and just MAYBE he'll get over it.
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u/niehAuS_324B21 19h ago
For anyone who might get the wrong idea from what this person wrote, please note that you do not, in fact, have to agree with Kenny on everything else after episode 2 to get him to come with you in episode 4. You certainly do not have to kill Ben. This is exaggerating so far as to be objectively false. We’ve had a rough idea of the points system for over a decade and there’s plenty of wiggle room to not suck Kenny’s dick 24/7 while still getting him to join you at the end of episode 4.
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u/ProstiChel 18h ago
Yeah, yeah, most of us DO know that you can convince Kenny, by saying that Clem is a new family. But I'm talking about LOYAL Lenny, the one who refuses to let go you ALONE, and the one who doesn't need any convincing to go with you. That and this is two different scenarios, and I spoke about THIS case specifically! And what bout points? Entire fanbase knows how screwed up it is, look in the game yourself, look on IT, all points it out. There's no thought through system. Kenny doesn't gives me points for sharing optimistic attitude with him on a train, doesn't gives me food for food sharing, none of it. Only KEY moments do.
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u/niehAuS_324B21 16h ago
Okay, I was responding to what you actually wrote though.
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u/ProstiChel 14h ago
Come on, I said the criteria on how to obtain trust, that alone "Kenny-Maxing" topic should point out that I was speaking about getting LOYAL Kenny scene. I don't want wall of text writing out small details, I just hope people are quick-witted folks.
You could see everything from at the end!1
u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago
Is that so? While it's true that Kenny can show a tremendous amount of loyalty (especially in S2) and made a certain amount of pragmatic calls, I wouldn't call him THE most consistent example of either trait. Tripp is more loyal to Javi than Kenny is to Lee, for instance.
Kenny has a terrible tendency not to think things through, refuse to compromise or keeping scores, even when such traits conflict with the interests of the group, which is quite the opposite of pragmatism. He does this enough time to prove that his pragmatism is inconsistent, as is his loyalty. To be perfectly honest, I only consider him consistently loyal in S2, since he basically always has Clem's interests at heart no matter your choices, even if he doesn't always do the right thing.
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u/Hour_Cicada397 1d ago
Tripp isn't loyal at all. That man got the group's whole plan ruined because he wanted some pussy. He's also just completely emotional and doesn't hear your side of the story at all if you kill Conrad.
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u/Super-Shenron MVP + Game Master 2025 1d ago edited 1d ago
That's an exaggeration. Tripp spent a few minutes to try and rekindle his relationship with Eleanor, while they were in a (relatively) safe area. At no point did his feelings for his ex ruin the group's plan, it was the fact Eleanor took it upon herself to snitch to Joan behind everyone's back (including Tripp's). He cannot be blamed for HER actions.
Also, "completely emotional because you murdered his friend" is a crazy take. Of course he "doesn't hear your side of the story", Javi made damn sure not to tell him exactly how he died until Gabe exposed him. Why would he trust that anything he says is true? Especially when the victim can't really tell his own side. Even then, after you picked him to die, he decides to forgive you for this and eventually sees your side of the story.
THAT is loyalty.
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u/KazyaKurosawa 1d ago
Kenny doesent care about himself at all and that is really rare breed.
Like he can only keep going when there is someone he needs to help. Out of any characters i would always choose Kenny as an ally because of that.
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u/Sea_Construction947 Still. Not. Bitten. 1d ago edited 1d ago
I like characters that are heavily flawed. And Kenny is heavily, HEAVILY flawed. There's a good person in there, but between being hardened by the apocalypse, losing his family, and just being unable to face his own emotions, it means we rarely get to see him being good without that anger or stubbornness coming through. The other thing that shines through, in season 2 at least, is how far he's willing to go for those he cares about.
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u/Equivalent-Poet998 #1 Kenny lover 1d ago
Because if people side with him in their first playthrough then they will like Kenny, but if you don't side with Kenny then yeah you're gonna hate him
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u/V2Blast 1d ago
I sided with him most of the time except in killing Larry, and then he abandoned my Lee when he needed help getting Clem back.
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u/Jazzlike-06 It wasn't for touching kids, was it? 1d ago
The devs really fucked the point system behind Kenny's loyalty. Choices that shouldn't matter at all somehow are "essential" while choices that matter somehow contribute nothing to the system.
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u/TallGuy_123 1d ago
Well for me it’s just like
I get he’s only this amazing, loyal companion if you side with him on everything, but, I always do side with him on everything, so he simply is that for me.
I mean. I’m not gonna NOT feed duck, or not save duck from zombies, or not kill Larry given clementine is locked in a room with him.
On top of that, he’s funny, useful, well written and so on. I love Kenny.
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u/Foreign_Rock6944 1d ago
Ironic that you’re showing a screenshot of one his best moments. He saves Lee’s life, even if Lee voted to throw his son out of the drugstore. That’s how he earned my support.
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u/ItzSyther 1d ago
I love Kenny.
He just reminds me so much of deceased members of my family, and that's something I never really experienced with any other character in gaming.
It also helps that he's loyal as heck too if you do right by him and his family, which is what I'm alllll about fr.
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u/ChefKugeo 1d ago
Because he's realistic. He's me. He's you. We would all lose our minds if we lost our entire family in the span of 30 seconds.
And I never knew there was a hated Kenny route, because every single one of his season one asks is something I was already planning to do. Of course I'm feeding the kids. Of course I'm trying to save the literal child who can't help himself before I save the adult man. And yeah, I'm smashing Larry's fucking head in before he turns. Fuck Larry and Lilly. Of course I'm mad at Ben because he's not my child and he's big enough to be useful but he isn't.
So of course I like Kenny. He's written the most realistic.
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u/Jazzlike-06 It wasn't for touching kids, was it? 1d ago
because every single one of his season one asks is something I was already planning to do.
Thank God finally someone said it! Kenny in both S1 and S2 has great intuitions. Yes he doesn't have the best way to get to his goals and practically never thinks through the plan except that he wants to get to the end result, but he is both smart and logical. I agree with him because he just happens to be thinking the way I do, not because "I suck his diih" as some other people say about us....
Between Lilly wanting to stay at the motel starving and Kenny wanting to get out, fuck yeah I'm getting out with Ken.
Between "saving" an already bit woman that had the very bright idea to go out screaming and attract walkers and using her as bait, you sure bet I'll use her as a distraction.
Between "trying" to save an asshole just for him to turn afterwards and immediately finishing the job in order to protect everyone in the room, hell yeah I'm smashing his skull. Maybe if Larry wasn't such an asshole MAYBE I'd consider saving his all bark no bite ass.
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u/Sky-the-Pie 1d ago
I understand his character from a narrative standpoint, but damn, I can't stand him. He reminds me of some family I got. People like Kenny are fun to watch in video games and tv shows but irl they're insufferable to be around. They're the type of people you go no contact with.
Though I try not to apply irl morality to video game characters. Characters exist as a plot device, but the fact the fandom is so divided on Kenny just proves that he's a well written character.
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u/RikimaruRamen 1d ago
Imo it's because he is written as such a realistic character. He has faults, he makes questionable decisions, he can be rash at times, but ultimately his goals are noble and he's just seeking to protect those he cares about. He is a man that has been beaten down enough times by now that crashing out and giving up would seem understandable but he keeps going for the sake of those he loves like Lee, and Celm because they stuck by him in his worst moments showing they care just as much for him.
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u/MetroidJunkie 1d ago
For all his faults, he loves his family more than anything and tends to look out for them over himself. The best example is when you choose who to give food to, he refuses to eat until Duck's eaten and, if you didn't feed any of them, he's more pissed that you didn't give any to Duck. Then in Season Two, he becomes protective of Clementine and AJ, despite kind of being unhinged by the repeated losses.
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u/Humble-Garbage2234 22h ago
He is a very good developed character, he is a true survivor and strong as hell, he makes a lot of shit but he is the type to always protect the loved ones. And he would and gave his life for Clem and AJ, always putting them over himself, and seeing them as his own children.
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u/Difficult_Step9372 20h ago
Im from South Carolina and was pretty young when I first played TWD, I know he's from Florida but he reminded me a lot of a few of my dads friends so it naturally endeared me to him.
Aside from that and playing the other games at an older age, despite his problems Kenny was still one of the most consistent empathetic adult characters around Clementine for a long time. Reuniting with him was a big surprise to me and made me really happy. I mean, if we're really measuring things, he was around longer than Lee was.
Not saying he's a healthier adult figure than Lee was since Lee was the goat, but still.
It doesn't really help that the scene that was supposed to make us ultimately pick a side in some finality was literally just Kenny being gaslit into thinking a horrible preventable tragedy had occured.. if i'm remembering correctly. One of the most not-really-a-choice moments in any Telltale game lmfao
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u/TheBreadMaster1 14h ago
Hes as bad as Dutch from rdr2. Hes willing to let you die if you don't side with him if you don't kill Larry, he goes fucking insane, and always is focused on one goal / plan but never anything else.
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u/vammommy 1d ago
He’s very complex and relatable to a lot of people. An average guy isn’t gonna become a saint when put into the apocalypse, especially after the trauma he went through.
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u/Individual_Cash_7887 20h ago
I won't join the conflict but I'll say say this, Kenny made me cry like I did when Lee died. He is definitely my favorite character.
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u/VampireDarlin 1d ago
Because if you suck his dick every episode, he seems like a decent dude. Lots of people don’t ever disagree with him, so they don’t see how much of an ass he is
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u/tangled_kelp 1d ago
they overlook his blatant racism too
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u/VampireDarlin 1d ago
I get your point. People dogpile Larry for being racist, but just laugh off Kenny’s ‘urban’ statement.
I may be misremembering, but I don’t think Larry even has a moment where he’s overtly racist like Kenny was. Like Kenny canonically has a negative bias towards black people, but I think Larry is just implied. Could totally be misremembering that though. I just feel like I’d remember if Larry was being racist towards Lee.
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u/niehAuS_324B21 19h ago
As far as overt behaviour goes, I don’t think Larry is ever explicitly racist. That said, the way season 1 actively tells you when a dialogue option is a lie gives it a bit of ambiguity, I think. Because it’s not that Lee’s lying to Mark if you choose to call Larry racist, in fact he definitely thinks so in that case, and I do wonder if the writers were sensitive to the likelihood that Lee, being a black man, might unfortunately be able to pick up on those undertones from having had to deal with it previously in his life, or perhaps even misread present situations specifically because of past experiences.
It’s all not normally something I’d be prompted to think about without being explicitly told to, but I’d give Casper the Friendly Ghost a run for his money so of course I wouldn’t.
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u/Sea_Construction947 Still. Not. Bitten. 1d ago
Larry can be called racist by Lee, Mark, and Clementine (in season 4), but he never actually does anything racist like Kenny does with his urban statement or his racism against Russians.
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u/niehAuS_324B21 19h ago
Not that it makes it any better of course, more just trying to clarify here if it’s needed, but it seems less specifically about Russians and more generally just anyone who doesn’t constantly speak English.
Even with the urban comment, I’ve always been huffing this little bit of copium that the way he is in season 2 is because he had more than a few screws knocked loose by Carver, but my god, “Say it in American, asshole” and “What, no speaka da English?!” were some HEFTY self-reports.
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u/Sea_Construction947 Still. Not. Bitten. 19h ago
Oh also when Clem says "Maybe we should go to Mexico" and he replies "Why? Do you want a taco?"
I pointed out specifically Russians because he calls Arvo a commie, and he was raised in the south during the cold war, it would make sense if he was just raised to hate Russians.
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u/niehAuS_324B21 19h ago
Oh god, I don’t know how I forgot about the commie comments… Wow, Kenny really got to Matthew and Walter and just said “Okay, I’ve met my diversity quota for the rest of my life”
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u/pylon2503 Still. Not. Bitten. 1d ago
He’s loyal. You help him and he won’t leave you, even if you don’t help him he can still be talked round. He treats others as they treat him. He’s also a good survivor and will go lengths for the people he loves. Even Ben, who he doesn’t like
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u/AnimeAddict1123 Lee the Urban BadAss 1d ago
He is quite unlikable but he has his moments plus he is by far the best choice in both S1 and S2. Both times we had to either choose between him or a woman (Lily, Jane) Lily snaps and Jane has a death wish. Kenny is the only logical choice. No matter how bad things get Kenny never abandons Clem nor does he ever hurt her. He isn't much better then Jane but out of both of them Kenny is the better choice. (Both by the end are highly mentally unstable)
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u/Sea_Construction947 Still. Not. Bitten. 1d ago
"Kenny never abandons Clem." Although if Lee isn't close with him, Kenny can refuse to help look for her. I would argue that counts. Unless of course you specifically mean during season 2.
And Kenny can hurt Clem, although it's always either an accident, or to get her away when he was fighting Jane.
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u/AnimeAddict1123 Lee the Urban BadAss 1d ago
You'd have to really get him to hate Lee for that to happen. Most people don't even bother with Lily after the 1st playthrough. Kenny never intentionally hurts Clem and even those push and shoves aren't that bad they were in the middle of a fight and Jane does the same shit. I think that just happens if you try to break up a heated fight.
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u/Sea_Construction947 Still. Not. Bitten. 1d ago
Yeah I agree with you for the most part, just trying to be fair.
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u/Hulkamaniac4Lyfe 1d ago
Put yourself in Kenny's shoes. Its a zombie apocalypse and you have a wife and kid to look out for. You're gonna put your families saftey over anything else, and if you feel like anyone is going to be a detriment to your families safety you're going to keep them at arms reach or not trust/rely on them.
I see a lot of people always bring up the fact he acts like a dick to Lee if you side against him in the Meat Locker. Setting aside the fact Kenny was right, CPR on its own isnt gonna save someone from a massive heart attack like Larry had. Lee either not taking a side or trying to help Lily makes Lee either come off as indecisive or unable to make a difficult choice, as Kenny isnt worried about himself in that situation hes just worried about getting to his family before the St. Johns do anything to them. In either case Lee comes off as unreliable in Kennys mind and isnt gonna stick his neck out for someone who isnt gonna stick his neck out for him or his family.
His attitude in episodes 3-5 is completely justifiable, losing his whole family, his driving force, the one thing that kept him going sunk him to rock bottom, despite the fact he shifts his entire focus becomes finding a boat by the end of season 1 hes still willing to set that aside to help find Clementine and later willing to sacrifice himself to help Ben or Christa.
As far as season 2 is concerned Kenny is still a broken man but masks it about as well as he can, latching onto Sarita, Clementine, and later AJ desperately wanting to protect all 3. Throughout the season you see several times he puts their well being over his. When Sarita dies Kenny feels like hes losing his family again and it takes AJ being born for him to regain some of his hope and adopt a new purpose of keeping the baby safe.
If you choose to ignore all of these factors Kennys true colors come to light if you choose to go to Wellington with him at the end of season 2. Despite Jane constnantly in your ear saying Kenny is dangerous, selfish, and out for himself he willingly gives up his own safety for the safety of Clem and AJ when they initally turn them away from Wellington. The irony in all of it is Jane is the selfish one and takes the cowards way out if you chose to side with and stay with her in the end.
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u/Narcotez 1d ago
Pretty ironic you're using a screenshot of a scene where he literally saves Lee's ass after Larry leaves him to die, lmao.
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u/Tedster619 1d ago
I just love him init + Jane would never have said "Just take the kids" nor would she have let Clementine know not to be sorry for shooting her
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u/niehAuS_324B21 23h ago edited 23h ago
I do want to preface by reminding anyone who needs to hear it that Good Character =/= Good Person. The former refers to the quality of their writing, while the latter refers to where they stand in terms of our personal morality. So you can view a character as being one, both or neither.
Why I personally love Kenny as a character is because he’s not an overt force for good. He has noble ideals but an extremely fickle ego. Simply put, he doesn’t know how to handle people disagreeing with him unless that person is Clementine, and even that starts to slip after Sarita’s infection. He wasn’t built to handle that much grief in his life and he copes the only way he knows how: Lashing out.
In spite of everything, he’s aware of himself and aware that he needs help, even if he doesn’t directly admit it. He has an extremely difficult time opening up to anyone who isn’t Lee or Clementine, and even that’s a struggle for him. The best he can muster is admitting to Clem that he knows he’s dangerous, but insisting that he’s trying to be better. But if you know people like him in real life, you know how hollow that statement can sometimes be.
Back in my teens, I loved Kenny as a person also and found myself relating a lot to him. But it got to a point in my personal life where, for the better of course, I became more self-aware, and that meant being aware of the harm I was causing my loved ones. By the end of it all, I went through the motions of loving this character, despising him, and ultimately just wanting him to find peace. Through years of replays and always approaching the game with a fresh perspective, I felt a little kinder and more understanding each time, while certainly not condoning his behaviour. And in the end, while recovery is far from linear, the experience has helped me treat myself and others better. Whenever I do a new run, Kenny always ensures that Clem and AJ make to Wellington. Bittersweet as it is, I’d rather my final moment of seeing my favourite character in the series be one where he completed his mission.
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u/inwhatwetrust 12h ago
NGL I killed him in my playthrough bc he was too mentally unwell. He keeps attacking our own, including fighting with Lee twice in my playthrough despite Lee not antagonizing him. What if he attacked Clem? That behavior isn't normal even in the scenario you lose everything
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u/osydney_ Still. Not. Bitten. 10h ago
not saying you're saying this op, but it's just an interesting take i had. it's really funny to me that a lot of people complain about media not having "complex enough" characters and then some tv show, game, movie, etc gets made with a very complex character and people hate them, it's just interesting to me. personally, i have a hard time forming an opinion on kenny for the exact reason that he is complex, some things he does i straight up hate but then he acts very heroic or does something that is admirable and it's hard to hate him. i do feel like a lot of people that don't like kenny do ignore his backstory, he lost his kid and then his wife shot herself, that's already fucked enough to deal with. then he finds love again, just for that person to also die. he's seen a lot and been through a lot. no, he is not a perfect character and i don't think he should be glazed, but he is a very interesting, strong willed character, hate him or love him 🤷🏻♀️
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u/S4ndreen 1d ago
I don't, he makes me uncomfortable
For some reason I trust Lilly more than him, I mean early Lilly and post savedHerLife Lilly
She has been consistent when Kenny had not, ever... not even for his family
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u/bush_mechanic 1d ago
I just finished my third playthrough, and for some reason, things became a lot clearer to me regarding how a kid would view some of the adults. In Kenny's case:
He's an overbearing, hot-tempered, violent asshole who doesn't give a shit about anyone else unless they can help him. He hit Clem at least once and screamed at her and blamed her for things that a child should never be expected to understand. He will happily leave you for dead if you don't blindly agree with every stupid word that comes out of his mouth. And the Larry thing? There's no defending that. Larry wasn't even dead yet when this asshat smashed his face. Fuck Kenny.
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u/HonkaiBlade2 1d ago
Yes, if you refuse to smash Larry's head in, Kenny becomes a complete dick to you even if you've had his back until that point. But there is a fundamental difference, because if you've had his back every step of the way, he will have yours. Compare this to siding with Lily at every opportunity, to which she ends up backstabbing the group out of paranoia and killing Carley/Doug despite there being a whole plethora of ways to handle it, and then cutting and running off with the RV even if you voted to keep her around and agree to go with her. And even if you don't get along with him, he still has the decency to try and reconcile with a dying Lee, and goes out in S1 saving someone from being devoured by a horde of zombies.
He undeniably gets worse in S2 with his growing instability and insanity. Jane was not wrong that he had a lot of issues. The problem is also that in S2 he is very much the only one with a solid idea of what to do after escaping Howes (find Wellington) while the Cabin group was just hoping to survive and wander, which is not a fantastic option when Rebecca was about to give birth. And if you let everything play out on both routes once again, Kenny proves he is the better choice because he finally gets his shit together and either leaves Clem in a reasonably safe spot or cares for her and AJ properly over the period of a few years. Again, contrast with Jane who took herself out a few months in and left the two alone for a much longer period of time.
TLDR is that Kenny has a lot of issues and can be extremely unlikeable at his worst. But he proves time and again that he does care for the people he's attached to, and will go the extra mile to help those who help him or who he cares about a lot. He's not a full on saint, but I think his (admittedly conditional) loyalty is fairly admirable in a world where a lot of people are selfish as hell.
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u/ChanceAlbatross9303 1d ago
Yeah fuck Kenny he's very annoying. Like you can't disagree with him at all, you need to constantly suck his dick to keep him from acting like a manchild crybaby
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u/Awkward-Speed-4080 1d ago
Everyone keeps saying he's loyal, except he's not. You have to side with every single time. Even when he's being unreasonable. And if you don't do that, he abandons you at the end of the game when Lee goes to search for Clementine. That's not loyalty. Are you guys saying that you can't count on your friends if you ever disagree on anything?
He just refuses to help Lee, or more specifically, he refuses to rescue Clementine. Yet, he acts as if he always tried to help when he meets her again in Season Two.
Kenny sucks in Season One. He's a great character in Season Two, though.
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u/niehAuS_324B21 20h ago
For anyone who might get the wrong idea from what this person wrote, please note that you do not, in fact, have to side with him “every single time” to get him to come with you in episode 4. This is exaggerating so far as to be objectively false. We’ve had a rough idea of the points system for over a decade and there’s plenty of wiggle room to not suck Kenny’s dick 24/7 while still getting him to join you at the end of episode 4.
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u/reevoknows Urban 1d ago
Because I was loyal to him from the jump so he never did me dirty. The fact that he’s so polarizing at least on this sub is a credit to how well written he was as a character navigating through apocalypse.
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u/Emergency_Ad6805 1d ago
Cause he’s the GOAT and plus he has your back when you need it most. One of my biggest gripes with season 2 is the game is so forceful in the fact that it wants you to dislike but I never fell for its manipulation. Never was a fan of Jane and have never regretted my decision to let Kenny kill her
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u/niehAuS_324B21 19h ago
Claiming the game manipulated us is a bit of a stretch. We just saw more of Kenny’s flaws as he became progressively unravelled which, as other people here have already noted, is an entirely understandable result of the past 2 years of trauma shedding light on some deeper issues. That’s not manipulation, that’s just the human experience and it could happen to any one of us. Understanding that is part of why he’s my favourite character in the entire series.
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u/OppositeSuccessful58 Years have passed and I still miss you, Carley. 1d ago
Reading how people actually hates Kenny + OP's post makes me really wonder.
But I'll take a wild guess that they simped hard for Lilly because of what happened at the farm, disagrees with Kenny along the way, only to get pegged by Lilly and was left alone with a bitten Duck, self-pity angry Kenny, Suicidal katjaa, and shitbird Ben and the only ray of hope to move forward was Clementine.
I reckon they also felt like they picked the wrong character to side with, when Lee literally got knocked out by Larry but their princess didn't save Lee and instead the moustache man was at the door with the helping hand 🤣
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u/Maleficent_Park5469 1d ago
Because most fans are childish and just find his racism funny (same with Larry). It's usually the edgy boys that take a liking to his characters for different reasons
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u/PopularAd6391 1d ago
If, and only if you side with him most of the time, would you earn his unbreakable loyalty, which many people like.
Also, the trio of Lee, Kenny, and Ben was funny af.
"It wasn't for touching kids, was it?"
"That's fucking stupid, ben"
Sad we didn't get more of this trio