Manuella Santos is quite possibly my favorite female character to ever appear on Degrassi. Manny's friends include Emma, Liberty, Mia, Darcy, and Kendra. In the beginning of the series, Manny is a down-to-Earth seventh grade student who is best friends with Emma Nelson. Emma confides in Manny about everything. The two definitely have their share of fights throughout the series, but to this day they remain best friends as Manny assists the wedding of Emma and Spinner. Near the end of Season 1, however, Manny starts to become interested in popularity. She joined the spirit squad even though Emma was against it (she feared the squad portrayed sexism). Manny grew closer to Paige and Hazel and started spending less time with Emma.This erupted in a fight between Emma and the squad, but Manny eventually stood up to Paige and made up with Emma. In Season 2, Manny fell in love with Craig, which led to most of the drama that she is involved in. Craig, being tired of his on-and-off relationship with Manny, decided to date Ashley, but, still tempted by his love for Manny, cheated on her. Manny, tempted once again by popularity, starts to dress like a skank and continually fights for Craig's love and affection. Thanks to Craig, Manny gets pregnant and they fight about whether or not to keep the baby. Craig wants a family, but Manny is obviously not emotionally ready. Emma, although against abortions, defended Manny because they were best friends. Obviously a ton more stuff goes on with Manny that is just too long to go into, but the point is that Manny goes through a huge change of character over the seasons. She starts as a good girl just like Emma, gets pulled into the horrors of popularity, and then is saved by her friendship with Emma. As Manny gets older she matures and becomes a fine young woman (this seems to happen after she starts dating Jay, ironically). In Degrassi Goes Hollywood, Manny truly portrays a mature adult, breaking up with her totally gross and rude boyfriend and returns to Jay, her true love. She conducts herself in a professional manner and works hard to fulfill her dream. Starting in Season 5 Manny becomes a great role model and a completely necessary character of Degrassi. The metamorphosis of her character shows that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. Even though she got rapped up in a ton of crap that made her a character I hated seasons 2 through 4, she ultimately becomes a beautiful and responsible young woman that a true Degrassi fan could never do without.
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