There's more to it that just not having friends.
Of course there is, I just hink, personally, that it's one element that stands out starkly between their narrative circumstances.
Lena also just doesn't really have any agency. She has no goals. Her only objective is to make enough money to pay rent. She barely has any conflicts with anyone, and what little is there is solved by her either walking away from it or being turned on by it. There's no confrontation, complications, or consequences for her, and she never has to solve a problem. For example Ian can get out of being fired by blackmailing his boss with a skill check. Haven't really seen anything like that for Lena.
I don't agree entirely. I think Lena has plenty of agency, my problem is that in some cases each choice doesn't seem entirely balanced, so one route comes across as more valid.
Lena would like to pursue music but is in a monerary bind. Because of the nature of Lena's choices, like I mentioned, some of her conflicts only come out on certain paths.
Like what already
unocrus mentioned there are points in her story with more urgency as consequence, but I don't feel any urgency just yet, like you, my experience is that so far Lena can avoid most of the major drama that can happen to her. That's my issue with Louise and Ivy being her only friends, if you avoid the other dramatic points, they're the only source for any that remain, which makes their conflict stand out a lot to me.
Another thing that bugs me is how binary Lena is. She's can be either a vanilla nice girl, or kind of a ho who is also a vanilla nice girl. She's just incredibly milquetoast. The only options to break away from that are the handful of times when you get to bully Stan. She needs more opportunities to actually have a personality because as it stands all she is is her looks. Even other characters only ever talk about how hot she is. It takes more than strumming a guitar every once in a while.
I don't think she lacks a personality myself, but I do agree with some of what you're saying. I've spent some time on this here forum talking about how I feel a couple of her choices lack a middle-of-the-road option where it either comes down to a choice of either of two extremes.
This can make Lena come across in two very distinct ways, but the good girl doesn't seem to leave her either, to me. But that's another reason for my highlight of her friendship group, because I feel Lena really lacks a catalogue of companions to bounce off of.
If you reject Robert and Ian there isn't many opportunities for her to really become an expressive character, Ian has a ton of dialogue with his friendship group that helps his personality come across, also in regards that isn't just about his dating life and that of Jeremy and Wade, although that topic does dominate.
Question for the bit I left in your spoiler:
What are the specifics for getting this?
I wasn't actually aware that anything had come of the Ed thing yet, I assumed it would and I felt like I might have to face it eventually, as I had not
pointed out the various episodes he has of "catching" and commentating on Lena. Yet, nothing's come of it, so what are the specific requirments?
Do you just have to
hold the drawing session in the café? Because I always go for the live music event.
