City of Bones question

I understand why some people may not care that much for Simon. He was kind of the tag a long friend and held, really, no relevance until City of Ashes (for obvious reasons... ) and he was sort of necessary to the plot. But that being said...
SIMON IS MY SPIRIT ANIMAL!
Why do I always connect with fictional people named Simon?
He adds some comic relief and I think he really proves himself as a good friend to Clary, and he also proves he's not the underdog in this ridiculous 'gang' of good looking half angels in black.
With all the craziness of the Shadowhunter/Downworlder realm, Simon's character just cuts through that strong 'hot indestructible warriors' vibe and brings something, real, if that makes sense? Even after becoming a vampire, there is something about him that is so relatable, because come on; who relates to Shadowhunters?

So I find him a main part of the plot.

I didn't really care for Simon in City of Bones either.
We don't exactly get to see much of him and Clary's friendship before Clary gets whisked away to the Institute, and I viewed him more as this annoying guy that was very clearly pining after Clary rather than her best friend. He (sort of) uses Isabelle to try and get Clary jelaous, which is a shitty thing to do by itself, and then gets mad at Clary when he sees her kissing Jace. So unreasonable! Clary might have been a little blind to not have realized how Simon felt about her, but she should not have to feel guilty about liking someone else, especially when Simon never even told her he was in love with her. I find Simon equally annoying in City of Ashes, and though he acts like somewhat of a prick in City of fallen Angels (no spoilers though), he does redeem himself over time.

Out of all the characters in The Mortal Instruments series, I think Simon is the one who undergoes the most character developement. Though I feel like the whole series goes sort of downhill from City of Glass (don't even get me started on City of Lost Souls that book was a steaming pile of crap) at least Simon kept improving, and at the end of the series I can hands down say he was my favorite character except maybe Magnus.
Characters like Clary, Jace, Alec I felt only got worse with time, so I was grateful to have a character like Simon to keep me sane haha

I found Simon kinda annoying, but overall did like him as a character. What I HATED about him was how many times he almost died but didn’t. If a character is dead, they are dead, otherwise what is the point in the story?

He was ok I guess but once I watched the show I definetly cared for him more but apart from that he was an annoying mundane until he turned into a fledgling.

I can see why you were annoyed with Simon but I find he represents the real reality of the book that everyone is human and there are no angels or demons or warlocks. He is in the book a representative of a normal (kind of) teenage boy.

I don't mind Simon. But I do agree that the almost dying parts frustrated me. He is constantly teetering over the edge of a cliff and Clary (obviously) can't see it.
Maybe it's because Clary annoyed me so much that my hatred was reserved for her that i didn't pay much attention to him, but to me he felt somewhat relatable. Not Alec-relatable (that is a much more complex level) but its there. I can see where she was going with him.
He reminds me of a book character named Sam (Lorien Legacies)

Most characters got worse over time and then in tda they annoyed the hell out of me, like Jace and Clary.
But it was nice to see fairly-neutral character that I somewhat liked

****SPOILERS FOR CITY OF ASHES*******
I found Simon a tad bit annoying for my taste, but he does contribute to the overall plot of all the books. I just hate that he's all over Clary. Like dude its obvious she doesn't like you and stuff. Also, the stuff he pulled in City of Ashes was NOT okay. Like you can't just walk in and declare someone your girlfriend like that. He honestly just needs to chill the hell out and take it down a notch and maybe find some cute vampire gf he can chill with. He also provides comic relief at the worst times. Like everyone is all serious and he says something on the dumber side, ya know? Like dude its NOT the time. Overall, I do understand why he is the way he is. I just wish it wasn't so, ya know, out there and loud.

He is better in the show though.

Yes, you are the only one that does not like Simon

I agree. I didn't like simon and I also think he got what he deserved. I think he should have been left at home or something. Clary didn't need him in my opinion. He also seemed always in the way and I never liked his commentary.

Aubrey wrote: "Okay. I get that Simon was nescessary for the plot. That whole stunt with Isabelle was immature and disgusting. I thought that it served him right being turned into a rat. But, honestly why didn't ..."

I agree - was not a big fan of Simon. He gets better throughout the series though

Thanks. That just drove me nuts.

Aubrey wrote: "Okay. I get that Simon was nescessary for the plot. That whole stunt with Isabelle was immature and disgusting. I thought that it served him right being turned into a rat. But, honestly why didn't ..."
What else should he do when a girl he loved for half his life is too stupid to understand what he's feeling?

He didn't always make the best decision but he wasn't that bad. But I probably feel that way since
I'll never hate anyone more than Emma in that other series. I think the author tried to hard to make her cool, and she always butted into other people's business, only thought about her self, assumed a lot of stuff and did action before she had evidence

I also agree with you guys, he shouldn't be mad at her for not feeling the same, she can't help the way she feels.