NEXX! vs. Nex, Pt. III: Heroes vs. Villains

At the end of the second post in this series, I said there’s an important reason why Nex isn’t and never would be like NEXX!. (“NEXX!” is what I call the Winx fandom’s version of Nex.) What is that reason? It’s simple.

Nex is a hero.

Think about it, Winx fandom. If Nex is as heartless and immoral as you think he is, why is he a hero instead of a villain?

Winx Club characters aren’t complex or morally grey. They may have misguided goals sometimes, but they all still fit into one category or the other. For example, the Earth Fairies in season four sought revenge on the Wizards of the Black Circle and on humans (for not believing in them). But after the Winx talked some sense into them, they abandoned their vengeance and started protecting Earth again. So they were still heroes.

Heroes in Winx Club have more positive traits than flaws, and they wanna save the world because…well, they’re good. Good must always triumph over evil. Villains have more flaws than positive traits (if they have any at all), and they all want the same thing: to rule the world! Why? Because they’re evil, of course!

Since Nex is a hero, Rainbow meant for him to be a good person overall. Yet the Winx fandom thinks he has no morals or redeeming qualities, and he doesn’t care about anyone but himself. That’s what you’d expect from a villain, right? So if the fandom is right about him, why isn’t he a villain?

And if he’s secretly a villain, why hasn’t Rainbow revealed “the truth” yet? Most secret villains (like Avalon and briefly, Selina) get exposed in their first (or only) season. But Nex has been around for three seasons now! Why would Rainbow wait that long?

Just a Job?

My former reader, who inspired the name “NEXX!”, thought that Nex only saves people because it’s his job as a Paladin (or Specialist). But if Nex doesn’t care about saving people, why would he take on a job like that in the first place? Why risk his superior life for those less important than him?

Remember the petrification scene at the end of “Bloomix Power” (Winx season 6, episode 4)? When he rushed in front of that basilisk to protect Roy and Aisha, he didn’t know what would happen. If he got turned to stone, who would undo the spell? What if no one could? (None of the Lynphea College student statues had been restored at that point.)

This is the essence of heroism: helping someone at your own expense. It’s something Nex does every day. So how can you say he was “just doing his job” if his job is something not everyone, especially not an egomaniac, would do?

Nex is a hero, in the literary and literal sense.

What About Riven?

The “Nex is like Riven” crowd might say, “Riven is rude, aggressive, rebellious, and misogynistic, but he’s a hero, too. Doesn’t that prove Rainbow would make a hero like NEXX!?”

Fair point, but here’s the difference between Riven and the other heroes: Riven was a minor antagonist in Winx season one. Rainbow gave him extra flaws and a dark personality to justify his betrayal. Look at this screenshot from season one’s ending. Even as kids, we should have seen it coming!

Riven is the only hero who wrestles with his dark side every season. But I still wouldn’t call him “morally grey” or even an antihero. We know the supposed reason he acts the way he does: his mother abandoned him when he was young. He’s broken (hence his name), but he still wants to do the right thing, even if he doesn’t always know what that is.

Heroes don’t have to be perfect. In fact, a well-written, relatable hero shouldn’t be perfect. They should make mistakes and do un-heroic things sometimes because so do real people. But regardless of their shortcomings, heroes care about other people and their well-being.

Rainbow describes Nex as “sociable” (socievole) and “friendly” (amichevole). In other words, he’s a people person. He likes spending time with others, and he likes being part of a team. Remember what he said to Aisha in “Into the Depths of Andros” (Winx season 8, episode 8)?

Thanks, Aisha! See? Teamwork never fails!

That doesn’t mean he can never be selfish or disregard other people’s needs. Those flaws come out when he’s at his worst.

But when he’s at his best, Nex is a warm, outgoing, fun-loving guy who enjoys other people’s company. He encourages his friends and Aisha (sometimes too much ?), and he’s willing to put his life on the line for others.

Final Thoughts

NEXX! doesn’t exist. He never has and never will. I hope someday, the Winx fandom will take another look at Nex and re-evaluate what they believe about him. Like I said in the last post, he doesn’t deserve so much hate, especially for flaws he doesn’t have.