(ShB/EW SPOILERS) Why do people like Emet-Selch?

[Brinne]

Emet-Selch seemed to really lack the ability to empathize with others, notice how others are feeling, or know how to de-escalate a situation.

Hard disagree on this one. Emet-Selch can rightfully be held to account for his lack of social graces and communication skills (which continues to damn him as he fumbles his way through Shadowbringers), but in terms of pure feeling, he's strongly characterized as one of the most empathetic, feeling-for-others characters in the cast, which is a large part of why he basically wound up destroying himself. Rather than being struck by his insensitivity towards Hermes, I was struck that he was going out of his way to try to be considerate to Hermes - breaking Convocation protocol to allow us at their meeting for his comfort, for example - and entertain his point of view without shooting him down even as he was being shouted at, and that Hermes's emotional outbursts seemed to trouble and linger with him more than any other character on Elpis - he simply was an utter failure at communicating any of that in a way Hermes could understand or accept, which, yes, can be partially attributed to Emet's dumb pride. But denying that he's deeply intuitively tuned into the feelings of others and can't turn it off to his own detriment kind of ignores the entire thrust of his Shadowbringers arc - "his kindness was his downfall" per Ishikawa and all that.

Examining the psychological snapback that happens, often in a deeply cruel and exaggerated way due to the overcompensation and self-hatred, when an intrinsically kind person feels "forced" to do hateful, cruel things is a lot more interesting to me personally than just mostly ascribing him as a jerk who continued to be a jerk.