Unpopular opinion: Gabriel doesn’t truly love Adrien or Emilie.
What he feels isn’t selfless love—it’s entitlement. He actively disregards the will of others and behaves possessively.
Fatherhood is treated as though it were a hobby. It isn’t a priority to Gabriel. It’s scheduled according to his valuable time and interest, irrespective of Adrien’s needs. It’s cumbersome whenever his son requires affection, attention, or praise—so he frequently drops the chore and moves on to something else.
Adrien has the same amount of autonomy as wall décor. Charming, well-educated, attractive, classically-trained pianist, fluent in multiple languages—the best child money can buy. Proudly on display for the world to admire.
…Except when he isn’t.
Any time Adrien voices an opinion or disagrees, it angers Gabriel. How dare he? Possessions aren’t meant to have free-will—their purpose is to merely exist and be of use.
But this was a big investment, tossing it aside would be a complete waste—so Gabriel uses incentives and punishments to bend Adrien accordingly.
Complaining about my absence? Fine, you’ll be deprived of affection. Questioning my judgment? Then I’ll revoke your freedom and you will remain isolated inside this mansion. Talking back? Your friends are permanently barred from seeing you. Your only source of emotional fulfillment is now gone.
If you want my love and approval, you have to earn it.
But, everything has a limit. When investments don’t pan out…you permanently cut your losses.
Whenever Adrien becomes a major obstacle—preventing him from achieving his true desires—Gabriel will cast him aside without hesitation.
That’s not love.
To have a fully-realized character arc, Adrien must internalize the truth and break the cycle. Love isn’t conditional. There is no list of requirements to meet. It doesn’t have specific terms or strings attached.
He deserves to be loved. He deserves to have full autonomy—to be free. To make his own decisions and not exist as an extension of someone else. He has inherent worth, which cannot be defined by anyone.
There will be an inevitable moment of confrontation between Adrien and Gabriel. I hope it unfolds the way Zuko stood up to Ozai.
In conclusion, Gabriel must face consequences by the end of the series. The pain and suffering he has inflicted on so many must be addressed—not swept under the rug because s-s-sad man just have poor coping skills!!! He is good actually™!! He only do big bad for “““love””” uwu;;
Unless Gabriel’s life is sacrificed, reviving Emilie from the dead would reward his atrocious behavior and defeat the purpose of the story. If the writers believe otherwise, they’re delusional or being willfully ignorant.