When you think about Teen Wolf you think about the male leads or some ships, and avoid or skim past a character that has  the most character development. That character is Lydia Martin which is everyone’s favorite resident Banshee to Beacon Hills.

The Beginning

Season 1 Lydia Martin seemed one dimensional at first.  She was your typical popular girl on campus who dated the good looking jock and Captain of the lacrosse team. Viewers began to catch glimpses into the life of Lydia Martin.  The first glimpse was during parent teacher night where her parents bickered over about the parenting of their daughter which scratches the surface of a tumultuous and broken home. Holland Roden (portrays Lydia Martin) mentioned that a lot of Lydia’s behavior was an act to hide what was going on at home.

Lydia Martin was portraying herself how she wanted people to perceive her, and had been hiding behind this persona that she had developed for years.  However, there was one person that saw through her: Stiles.

During Winter Formal in Season 1, Lydia reluctantly attends the dance with Stiles after Jackson broke up with her. The two sit out most of the dance until Stiles has had enough, and gains the courage to ask her to dance. In true Season 1 Lydia Martin fashion, she declines his offer which leads to Stiles calling her bluff.  He says aloud how he knows how intelligent she is and that underneath her “lifeless exterior” lays her true form. A stunned Lydia decides to take that first dance with Stiles, and formed a friendship that would grow throughout the seasons.

The Middle

Lydia took time to adjust and form into herself. More so she wasn’t comfortable with being vulnerable around others. She didn’t know what Allison meant about love, or that feeling of love. Sure she has many of boyfriends over the years, but nothing quite like the love that was share between Allison and Scott. She had trust issues no thanks to her ex Jackson Whittemore who was emotionally abusive to Lydia causing her to believe that she was a problem.

This idea plagued her for awhile, as she felt out of the loop amongst her friends about what was going on around her, and, more importantly, what was going on with her. She began to distance herself and tried to figure things out on her own. She conceals her vulnerability during a lacrosse game as she cried in the car only to have Stiles find her crying.  Lydia, reluctant at first, allows Stiles to help her. However, Stiles leaves her to finish a supernatural task causing Lydia’s guard to rise again as she showed a hint vulnerability. This vulnerability is brushed aside and ultimately forgotten as Stiles never came back to talk to her.

It wasn’t until the end of Season 2 did Lydia learn about the Supernatural world that surrounded her. After she confides in Stiles about losing Jackson, she searches for answers which leads her to seeing Jackson alive in his Kanima form along with Scott as a werewolf and her best friend Allison hunting down familiar faces during a battle.

Finally clued in and on the same level of those around her, Lydia begins to wonder what exactly is wrong with her. During this time of discovery, she finds herself found by the wrong person, Jennifer Blake (the darach). Jennifer divulges to Lydia the news that Lydia is a Banshee which is something that was sparked by the bite from Peter Hale and passed down from her grandmother.

Lydia did not accept her abilities at first, and tries to hide them or suppress them because being the messenger of death did not come lightly. She lost people she cared about emotionally and physically. Everyone she cared about left her and this fear continues to remain.

The Present

After losing her best friend Allison and Aiden, Lydia finds herself alone in her grief. Her confidant, Stiles, is gone now as he navigates his relationship with Malia, and Scott seeks comfort with Kira. She tries to grieve on her own and finds herself isolated from the pack. She seeks out information about her abilities, and discovers clues to Beacon Hills mysteries.

It wasn’t until she landed herself in Eichen House in a catatonic state did she learn about her true abilities thanks to Meredith. With the pack to rescue her from Dr. Valack, Lydia is relieved to see her friends. Perhaps she thought she was forgotten or that they were prevented from saving her. Lydia’s spirit was weak and almost accepting of death that was slowly welcoming her.

Seeing the pack brought her back to life, but she knew she would endanger them. It was lucky that she was saved by Stiles and the pack. Being close to death and waking up to Stiles’s face may have played a part in how she feels for her friend now. However, her past of losing those she loves causes her to hide how she feels in order to protect not only herself, but those she cares about.

Lydia, throughout Season 5 and into Season 6, shows her true characteristic of selflessness. She wasn’t able to save Allison and Aiden from death and now feels that burden on her shoulder to protect those she cares about most. Lydia is no longer self-centered as seen in Season 1 and 2. She wants to help those around her and the supernatural. She extends help to Jordan Parrish when she discovered he was a Hellhound, and to Malia in controlling her animalistic side when she loses her anchor.

She holds true to Scott’s core pack value of saving and rescuing people at all cost which leads to Season 6 where Lydia will do anything to save Stiles and bring him back. Lydia is also lowering her guard and showing her vulnerability around the pack as she discovers what a life without Stiles would be like. Not being able to tell the person you love how you feel and ultimately lose them forever is hard. This is huge for Lydia as she has never been this vulnerable before.