YMMV / Miraculous Ladybug S04E23 "Kuro Neko"

• Catharsis Factor: Both Marinette and Adrien are controversial characters for various reasons, so the scenes where they each get called out by another character (Adrien for acting irresponsible and Marinette for neglecting Cat Noir) act as this to their respective detractors.
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot: Given the season-long buildup of friction between Ladybug and Cat Noir (with her feeling like he doesn't understand her many new responsibilities, and him feeling neglected and sidelined by her), the episode where the tension boils to the surface being resolved in one short episode left many fans disappointed.
  • In particular, many felt the episode failed to explore their crumbling compatibility as a superhero duo in favor of boiling it down to their romantic friction. Rather than explore how Ladybug has become a Control Freak with a Hair-Trigger Temper who often keeps Cat Noir Locked Out of the Loop when she doesn't have to since she can lean on him more.
  • During Adrien's brief career as Cat Walker, he's forced to actually take initiative, plan, strategize, stay on task and not flirt with Ladybug (which in turn has her drooling all over him). Many fans would have liked if the show allowed him to appreciate how difficult it is for her to be The Leader and The Strategist and socialize with him at the same time. Ladybug, likewise, feeling awkward about her incredibly lame puns not being well-received, their interactions not feeling as playful or dynamic as with Cat Noir, and developing a crush on her superhero partner that makes her struggle to stay on task could serve as a learning moment for her to appreciate what Cat Noir goes through and how much he brings to the table. Instead, no lesson is learned by Adrien and Ladybug's only takeaway is "Cat Walker is perfect, but that's the problem since I'm falling in love with him. Cat Noir is better since I'm not in love with him, and thus I can't get Distracted by the Sexy."
• Unintentionally Unsympathetic: While the episode intends us to sympathize with Cat Noir's woes, a number of fans felt differently about his actions:
  • Ladybug has told him countless times that he's irreplaceable, so his repeatedly not believing her seems to be more based on his own insecurities. It also puts the responsibility of his feelings on Ladybug, instead of on Cat Noir himself.
  • He chose not to show up to the two fights where Ladybug utilized other heroes, and when the reporter asked her where he was, it put Ladybug in an awkward position. Her answer might have seemed dismissive, or at least not well thought out, but that could have been solved by him actually being there. As a permanent holder, he has never needed Ladybug's permission to show up to an Akuma fight or not.
  • Even the fans who sympathized with Cat Noir Rage-Quitting in response to Ladybug yelling at him felt that he de-transforming and leaving his Miraculous on some random rooftop, in broad daylight, just after Ladybug left, was horribly reckless and irresponsible. (Since he had no way of knowing she'd figure out what he meant by "take my miraculous" or think to come back in time, or that Shadow Moth wouldn't notice and find the ring after he de-transformed in broad daylight and left it there while being full of negative emotions, or that random happenstance wouldn't cause the ring to get lost or found by some random person like a bird picking it up or the wind blowing it off the rooftop.) Not to mention Adrien abandoning Plagg, who's been with him through thick and thin, so easily just because Adrien was upset with Ladybug.

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