Disclaimer- The Characters presented here are Nickelodeon and Craig Bartlett's property.
Lila and Brainy… why would they be a couple?
Hello, everyone; well, for starters, I must clear out this isn't exactly a fan fic, but an essay of why I think and wish for Brainy and Lila to become an item.
For starters, we must check out all the data about them both so for later analysis and relation; let's see Lila's first.
Lila Sawyer.
She first appeared in the series' second season, on 'Miss Perfect' episode. We could see her as a country girl that just moved to the city, and quickly making all her female classmates jealous of her getting all the boys' attention, so they decide to give her a lesson via a very harsh prank, that ends not just with Lila covered by a disgusting substance but also making her extremely sad to the point of tears. Later, when Helga and the other girls realize how hard Lila and her father's situation really is, they all feel guilty (in fact, Helga goes into hysteric crying until Phoebe slaps her); in the end, all the girls accept her as part of the gang, and Helga actually admits liking Lila.
Now, about Lila's character, she's a 9 years old redhead with freckled face. She's a far above average student at school (the reason Phoebe didn't like Lila at first, seeing her as competition); enjoys art in general, especially opera, Broadway musicals and dancing, her favorite style being ballet; being a country girl, she's also adept at horse riding, actually being good enough to cool down an out of control horse. She also designs clothing and her favorite color is green (most of the time she dresses up in this color); her favorite animal is the turtle; she also likes cheese, Mexican stuff, and baseball (her position at the class' team is center field).
About her weaknesses, she never learned to swim, yet enjoys boating, as this is the closest she can be to the water; she is allergic to stuffed animals, gets sick with fast movements (like, going on most carnival rides), and doesn't like horror or violent movies, yet she can stand these films sometimes if she's with someone 'special', like she did with Arnie.
Arnold was her first boyfriend, but her first kiss came from Eugene on stage, on the 'Eugene, Eugene' play. Sheena is, apparently, her best friend, due their mutual love for nature and non-violent tendencies. Her catchphrase is 'Ever so', using this expression constantly when talking.
Her only known relative is her dad, his first name never mentioned on the series; they moved to Hillwood from a farm at a town called Pleasentville, without stating the reason, probably due his unemployment, taking the decision to move to the city looking for a better chance in life for both him and Lila; in this aspect, Lila has something in common with Stinky, whose family has a similar background. It had also been said that Lila and her dad moving to Hillwood is probably related with her mom's sudden death, something never mentioned or cleared out in the series, yet Craig Bartlett confirmed this fans suspicion in an on-line chat during 2004, for the 'Save Hey, Arnold! Latin America' site; however, he never gave many details.
Moving on, Lila's most often remembered fact is that Arnold crushes on her since the 'Arnold and Lila' episode, from the series' Third Season. Ironically, this situation starts because of Helga writing 'Arnold Loves Helga' on an alley's wall; when she hears some classmates approaching, Helga quickly erases her name and then, knowing she has no time to erase the rest before hiding, writes another name instead of her own, probably choosing Lila's because it's a short name and just a few moments ago she had heard the boys talking about her. Unfortunately, Lila herself is among the classmates that see this message, and she gets encouraged by Rhonda and Nadine to 'accept' Arnold's affections. Arnold accepts dating her for some time due him not wanting to break her heart, but in the end he politely rejects her. Later, thinking about their time together, Arnold realices he actually feels something for Lila and tries to re-start their relationship; unfortunately, during this time, Lila did just as Arnold, thinking about their time together, and she came to a different conclusion; she 'likes him', but doesn't 'like him-like him' (this also becomes a common catchphrase concerning Arnold and Lila's relationship through the rest of the series).
Lila rejects Arnold yet still considers him a friend; many fans get to dislike Lila over this fact, as everyone loves Arnold and we don't like him getting heart-broken, but these fans tend to forget Lila's side of the story; the girl suffered for a while after Arnold broke up with her on first place; if this had happened to Helga (Arnold breaking her heart), we would all be hating Arnold, as the audience gets to see a side of Helga that most people on the series doesn't, and we all know about her romantic side and all the sacrifices and nice things she does for Arnold on a regular basis without him knowing… and again, it wouldn't be fair for Arnold either because he, for the most part, isn't aware of this part of Helga's character, despite his good nature and optimism telling him she's more than a bully. Returning to Lila, she showed her nice, tender nature since day one, but also showed that she's a delicate, fragile person whose feelings can be easily hurt by others.
On later episodes, Arnold keeps trying to get Lila to like him-like him, and, despite the occasional hint of Lila actually considering giving him a second chance, it never happens and in the end Arnold moves on her after the 'Timberly Loves Arnold' episode.
Lila is often considered a controversial character due fans seeing her as a major obstacle for Helga finally getting Arnold's affection. However, Lila actually supports Helga's love for Arnold, to the point of giving up her role of Juliet and giving it to Helga so she can kiss Arnold on stage at the end of ' School Play' episode. Despite having knowledge of Helga's biggest secret, Lila never uses this information on later episodes and she's always friendly towards Helga, even helping her again in 'Helga's Masquerade'.
About Lila's character, Craig Bartlett describes her as a 'Very toony character, designed to break Helga's nerves'; he also states she was born as an extremely innocent character, but after her role in 'School Play' she became a little (in my opinion, HUGE) monster, with many fans hating her despite the girl helping Helga in the end, probably because Lila had full control of the situation and became one of the very few characters Helga can't damage on any way, since this would make Arnold to get angry with the Pataki girl, plus Helga would feel extremely guilty for hurting the innocent redhead, as it happened in Lila's debut. Mr Bartlett had said that Lila would never do anything against Helga or any other character, and actually, had even stated that, in an eventual sequel of the series, Lila wouldn't just be present but become friends with Helga, forming a quite comedic duo (I see them as a trio, along with Phoebe); about Lila, he adds, she's a really lovable character and 'I love her', and he also expresses his affection for Lila's voice actress, Ashley Buccille.
Now, many fans express dislike for Lila due her being too perfect makes her seem too shallow, empty or ignorant about the facts of life, in other words, that she's too simple minded. Now, using some psychology here, maybe Lila looks like this just because, at home, due her mother's absence, she has to be mature, optimistic and sweet in order to be a good moral support to her dad, to the point of being a 'perfect daughter' that makes him happy and glad to return home after a hard day. After Lila's debut, her dad gets a good job and it seems they live more decently by the time of 'School Play', yet she still remains the same; in this aspect, and meaning no offense, Lila is like a clown, who has to smile to the audience and make them laugh, no matter how sad the clown might be on the inside. She probably shows this 'perfect image' to people because she doesn't want anyone to know about her sadness; Helga does pretty much the same, except that the blonde uses sarcasm and aggression to hide her sensitive side and the resentment against her family, while Lila uses a 'mask' of optimism and perfection to cover up her sadness or mistakes, and that's why she can easily take them off her system.
In most fanfics, the authors show Lila as an amoral person that toys with Arnold's feelings and enjoys making Helga suffer, two things completely out of her character. She didn't even let Arnold hit others on the bumper cars, and he had to explain her that the 'Whack-A-Mole' game didn't involve hurting a real mole; imagine a person like that doing evil things without reason! Sure, Lila is human, and she might eventually show bad feelings and reactions, especially if we consider the fact she and Helga can actually become friends in the future and each girl rubbing a bit on the other; Helga would learn how to use her rage or sadness in a positive way, and Lila would learn mischief or ways to handle difficult people.
As much as some fans might hate her, the fact is Lila can't even hurt a fly and doesn't deserve this treatment. In fact, I used to dislike her too before understanding Lila's situation; I never had major rejection problems with my classmates, but I know how it feels to live without one of my parents, have a modest life, and being the school's new kid. I know it's hard to adapt to a new neighborhood and make friends; I tell you, it's not easy, and even if my 'mask' was closer to Helga's, I definitely can understand the little redhead now that I know her better.
Brainy
Brainy is a 4th Grader at PS 118, as part of Mr Simmons' class. He has a spiky hairdo, similar to Bart Simpson, that fuses with his skin color; therefore, his hair might be a very light tan, instead of silver as some fans think, because then it would be pretty obvious on the series. Brainy usually has a mysterious smile, wears glasses and a mustard colored, white collar shirt with brown pants. He's normally considered a 'geek' and his trademark trait is his wheezing voice, that fans often compare to Darth Vader's.
Fitting with the mysterious smile, Brainy is quite the enigma; nobody knows too much about him. Even his name, 'Brainy', seems to be just a nickname, and many fans think his real name is 'Brian'; his surname is unknown yet Craig Bartlett had mentioned it's the same as Arnold's, even if they're not related in any way. Brainy has the tendency of appearing out of nowhere and on the craziest places as long as Helga is present, as he did in 'The Ghostly Train', where he's comically kicked out of the train (and, ironically, thanks to that, he's the only one that sees the REAL ghost train); another case is in 'Wheezing Ed', where he appears in Elk Island's caves. Usually, when he appears like this (and there's someone around besides Helga), someone asks him what is he doing there, and he only replies with 'Mmm… I don't know' or 'Mmmm… something'; this is also the most he talks to other characters, as he rarely says anything more than a simple 'Uh… Hi'; funny enough, Craig Bartlett is his voice actor.
When he sits at the bus, Brainy goes right to the back seats along with the other geeks (Eugene, Sheena and Curly), as seen in 'Rhonda's Glasses'. He's rarely hanging around with the other characters despite, apparently, being on friendly enough terms with most of them. His parents appear in 'Parents Day' and they look a lot like him, including the posture and mysterious smile; his dad uses similar glasses.
Brainy seems to be very in love with Helga, following her any and everywhere, being a constant pest for her; one of the series' best known running gags is Helga's love monologues being interrupted by Brainy's wheezing behind her, and Helga sucker punching him with 'Old Betsy' (her left fist), breaking his nose and glasses, and usually knocking him out; sometimes she gets upset enough to give him a full off-screen beating. Brainy's love for Helga becomes obvious after her session with Dr Bliss ('Helga on the couch'), when he actually proposes her marriage, showing Helga a ring and wearing a bow tie himself; Helga takes this nicely and, since she was in a very good mood after the session, gives him a good natured soft slapping (almost a caress) on his cheek, making him smile.
Craig Bartlett had stated that Brainy knows about Helga's secret love for Arnold and, in my opinion, this is exactly what attracts him to her; her passionate, secret side. According to Mr Bartlett, in 'The Jungle Movie', there was a scene with Helga feeling down, and Brainy helping her to react and go back into action. Unfortunately, we never got to see this moment and Brainy getting a very important scene that would change his relationship with Helga forever.
Interestingly enough, Brainy, out of all the students in Arnold's class, he's one of the three ones that never got a starring role in any episode (the other 2 are Sheena and Joey). Also, besides Craig Bartlett's claims, he's one of the students whose surname had never been revealed, just like Sid, Sheena and Nadine; at this site, the most famous/curious surname comes from my friend Nintendo Gal- Uchiha Princess; Brian Jehoshaphat Williams.
Some fans insult Brainy calling him a retard, or someone with Down Syndrome. However, others, like me, agree that he's, in fact, very intelligent, or, at least, quite sneaky and sly; we ignore his school grades, but it most take a good amount of talent to spy and stalk Helga as he does. If he could control his breathing problem, Helga wouldn't even know he's behind her; not to mention he's probably quite agile to appear on such weird places. It's possible that he feels the need to be close to Helga during her love rants so she can return her to reality, plus giving him a chance to see her secret side, considering the punch as a fair prize he pays for this priviledge.
Besides, the fact he's aware of Helga's secret puts him on Lila's rank as a potential threat; he surely wouldn't hurt Helga, but he has the chance of using this information for blackmail. However, he would probably use this info in a positive way, trying to help Helga; he has good feelings and no matter how much he loves Helga, and despite Arnold not being close to him, Brainy never gets any resentment towards Arnold and it's possible he respects and even admires him as Helga's object of affection.
Brainy has this obsession with Helga because of how she secretly expresses her feelings with an uncommon passion (especially on a girl her age), while he barely can talk, probably due ashtma or some other breathing condition that, it seems, had made him a bit shy about interacting with other people, and therefore a girl as articulated as Helga is quite attractive to him. However, this doesn't mean Brainy lacks an artistic side; he actually has DJ skills, as seen in 'Cool Party', meaning that he probably can use music instead of talking to express himself.
Okay, now we know our characters a bit better, you might say 'Cool, now, what do they have in common?; the answer, so far, is probably 'Not much', and it's interesting to notice they actually have very little, if any, interaction in the series.
So you can understand me, I'll need to mention another character you need to know in order to get Lila's personality right.
Arnie
Arnold's weird cousin; even if it hadn't been really mentioned from which side of the family they're related, it seems to be from Arnold's mother side, as they both share their head form and are named after Stella's grandpa.
Arnie is a curious kid (to say the least); his hobbies are pretty absurd, including collecting lint, counting random objects, and reading the ingredients of food and cleaning products. Some say he might have Asperger Syndrome, or that he's just a kid with no ambitions, plain and tasteless, like his favorite chewing gum.
The only person that got a liking to him when Arnie visited Hillwood is Lila, who found in him a unique type she actually likes, no matter what other people say about it; it's important to mention that Arnie is a perfect opposite to Arnold, showing that Lila would never have another feeling besides friendship towards someone like Arnold; Lila probably might see some common traits that she likes that, added to Arnie's unique ones, made him the 'perfect boy' for her.
This attraction to Arnie is a very possible start for a relationship between Brainy and herself. Both boys are kinda mysterious and, ironically, they both fell for Helga. Brainy, however, is a lot more complex than Arnie; he's nice and sweet, and noble enough to understand and accept that his loved one will never accept his affections yet still feels the same about her; sure, he's kinda weird and is obssessed with Helga, but this doesn't mean he's bad (after all, Helga does pretty much the same with Arnold); he's in love with Helga's true esence, and this can also make him fall for Lila, another girl that has a hidden side covered by a 'mask' (in her case, a 'perfection' one). Lila is also looking for a different, special boy; if she could see a bit of this in Brainy, she'd probably go crazy for him. In one of my fics ('How much we had changed'), perhaps the first one I do with this pairing, she falls for him right after Arnold leaves to San Lorenzo with his parents, and she kinda explains it well with her words.
Here's the scene.
–oOo–
"Can you explain how could you fall in Love with Brainy?" Helga asked, Intrigued.
"Well… I guess it's your fault."
"What?" Helga said, puzzled.
"It was a little after Arnold left; we were all worried about you, and even Stinky and Harold made these weird commetns all the time, hoping you would react, but you were gone, as if working 'in automatic'; no crying, no talking… nothing at all; and that's how Lorenzo and Brainy started taking care of you; the first as a guardian of sorts at the school, and the other was like your shadow. Those days you were like a ghost of yourself; that's why some of us took turns to watch you from a distance once in a while, to be sure you wouldn't get hurt; one day it was my turn and when I followed you I noticed him, walking like 3 steps behind you, at the same pace… and it was kinda cute how he was hiding behind garbage cans and trees so you couldn't notice him following you; that made me smile. And then, when you crossed the street without looking, oh, sweet heaven, I got so scared; that car almost hit you! He carried you just in time to prevent the accident; at that moment you buried your face on his chest and cried like a baby girl on his arms. While I was looking, he spotted me for a moment and then hugged you, as if you were a sacred object, and he looked at you with such tenderness; yes, I think it was then when I fell for him; at that moment I wanted to be you!" Lila explained, blushing.
–oOo–
As you can see, in my story, Lila falls for the boy because of the love and kindness he gives to Helga, and through the fic Lila shows human feelings like jealousy and envy towards Helga's relationship with Helga, even insulting her (on her own not so harsh way, of course); in the end, she opens up to the boy and he replies in the same way, glad to have someone that loves just him. Brainy wouldn't fall for Lila on his own, not because she doesn't deserve it but due his love for Helga and not having eyes for anyone else, plus Lila is a popular girl and he doesn't think someone like her would see him as anything but a friend, even if, due her beauty, kindness and sweetness it would be impossible for him to to feel good with her.
This would be the way to go; Brainy is in love with Helga because he knows the real deal and what's in her heart, so I'm sure that Lila, being a sensitive person, would feel the same for Brainy if getting to really know her, and he would react the same way as they grow closer.
Veredict.
Why is this couple so convenient? Simply, they both get out of the way for Arnold and Helga getting on a relationship without other people in the middle. Plus Lila wouldn't be hated by Helga anymore, and Brainy wouldn't need to explain Arnold why he appears behind Helga once in a while, even if I think Brainy would have a hard time not living without getting punched… unless Lila replaces the hits with kisses and caressing.
Definitely, the characters would need to suffer certain changes on their personalities to get to this point; however, I'm basing this pairing on human reactions and the force of destiny to form a couple. If Helga and Arnold are destined, as well as Gerald and Phoebe, why not Lila (Arnold's main crush for the most of the series) and Brainy (in love with Helga since the beginning)? Also, in some way, they both had been close to Helga and had helped her, first Lila on the school play and the costume party, and him with all the times that helped her get back to reality during a love rant despite getting injured by doing this, plus the never-done-scene at the Jungle Movie. Lila would get her special person with Brainy, and he'd have an almost perfect person to love him, so I think they'd make a good couple.
Okay, I think that's all. It's not that much but you people deserved to know my point of view and hear/read my reasons behind the pairing. Remember that, even if most of the info here is public domain, the opinions and comments are totally of my own, based on my perception, without trying to change the mind set of any other fan of the series. I hope you liked this essay.
Thanks for reading, and see you around.
Atte. Rei Hikaru Chiba.
I want to thank my dear friend Acosta Perez Jose Ramiro, for his help with the translate and adaptation of this essay.
Please review this, if you don't insult me is better, but if you need to do, please don't be rude. ^^