Lydia Martin was a student at Beacon Hills High School on the MTV series Teen Wolf.
She is also a Banshee and an active member of Scott McCall's Teen Wolf Pack.
Lydia is portrayed by Holland Roden.
Biography
Her paternal grandmother, Lorraine, was a banshee who never knew about her abilities which lead everyone to believe she was insane, but she and Lydia appeared to have a close relationship. She would read The Little Mermaid to Lydia and thought it was cute when her granddaughter wanted to be called Ariel.
Sometime after Lorraine was committed to Eichen House, young Lydia witnessed the aftermath of a treatment in which a doctor dilled into her grandmother's head. Her mother, Natalie Martin, was present and yelled at Lydia, Lorraine told the girl her that "they were coming".
Lydia's parents filed for divorce after the events of Season 2.
Lydia's character has developed quite a bit since she met Allison Argent, Scott McCall, and Stiles Stilinski. At first, Lydia was manipulative with her friends, using them whenever it suited her ambitions. She was, on the surface at least, shallow and spoiled but this turned out to be an elaborate act to hide the fact that she possesses a genius level IQ. She is well versed in chemistry and understands both classical and archaic Latin.
The ruse, along with her relationship with Jackson Whittemore, was part of a carefully orchestrated plan to maintain her popularity at Beacon Hills High School. However, she harbored real love for him that surfaced when they broke up. She showed true feelings for Jackson in order for him to be free of the Kanima and save his life.
As the supernatural elements began to close in, her carefully crafted façade began to fall apart. After being attacked at the winter formal by Peter Hale, she found herself haunted by her attacker and later possessed. This was all so that Peter could return from the dead should his death occur.
Jackson's abrupt move to London, England left Lydia emotionally numb. She returned to her "just on the surface" existence and took a number of lovers over the summer, expressing a "love them and leave them" philosophy.
When supernatural threats arose again, Lydia found herself drawn to gruesome murder scenes again and again. She learned she was a Banshee and decided to use her abilities for the greater good. With help from Peter, Meredith Walker and history from her grandmother, she mastered her abilities.
She fell in love again too. While she had entered into a purely physical relationship with Aiden to aid her friends in defeating the The Alpha Pack, she developed deeper feelings. She once again suffered genuine heartbreak when Aiden was killed.
Her feelings for Stiles developed over time. She, at first never noticed him, but she eventually built a strong, caring friendship with. When he is taken by the Ghost Riders, she is forced to look inside herself and discovers that she truly loves him.
When the Hunters return and the Anuk-Ite begins to gain power, she investigates for a way to defeat it while trying to avoid being one of Gerard's victims. When all is resolved, she and the rest of the pack decide to do all they can to take down the old man's protégé Tamora Monroe.
Lydia's Age
Lydia is one of the few characters for which we have an firmly established age.
In Omega, Sheriff Stilinski reports Lydia is a "16-year-old" she then celebrates a birthday a few weeks later in Party Guessed making her 17.
In Season 4, Natalie Martin alluded to Lydia's upcoming 18th birthday as "a few weeks" away. It apparently passed off screen.
In Season 5, Lydia is confirmed to be 18 by Deputy Parrish.
Season 1
Lydia makes new friends and is attacked by the Alpha Werewolf. (Read More...)
Season 2
Lydia helps bring Peter back to life and helps Jackson transform from Kanima to Werewolf. (Read More...)
Season 3
Lydia starts having sex with a werewolf, finds out she is a Banshee and keeps finding herself at murder scenes.
Lydia helps Stiles push a Nogitsune out of his head and decides to use her developing banshee abilities to help people. (Read More...)
Season 4
Lydia discovers her grandmother had similar abilities as a banshee and figures out that her IBM computer contained The Benefactor's Dead Pool. (Read More...)
Season 5
During the start of senior year, she is sent to Eichen House after an attack from Theo Raeken.
She learns how to control her banshee abilities through Meredith Walker and uses her developed skills to help stop The Beast of Gevaudan. (Read More...)
Season 6
Lydia subconsciously tries to remember Stiles after he is taken by the Ghost Riders. After he returns, she affirms her love for him with a kiss.
When the Anuk-Ite is released from the Wild Hunt, Lydia helps to try and stop its influence on Beacon Hills. (Read More...)
Teen Wolf: The Movie
Now the head of her own company that is on the verge of producing "sound energy", Lydia's abilities manifest once more and are linked to Allison. She travels back to Beacon Hills with Jackson in tow and helps enact a ritual at the Nemeton that resurrects Allison.
While trying to help her old friend, She and Jackson help investigate mysterious fires being started and snuffed out at the Beacon Hills Preserve which leads her to realize the pattern leads to Adrian Harris.
It is revealed that she left Stiles because of a repeated premonition where the two are in an accident and he dies. This also prevented her from using her scream since then until she uses it to force Allison to remember everything about her life.
Banshee
Main Article - Banshee
Lydia is a Banshee. Peter Hale claims it was his attack on Lydia in Formality that was the spark that activated her innate abilities.
Lydia can emit a high pitch scream which can be used defensively as it harms peoples hearing. She can also sense when someone is dying by tuning into a supernatural frequency that only she can hear. Her grandmother, Lorraine Martin also had this ability.
Gallery
Quotes
- “Jackson is gonna perform tomorrow, but he’s not gonna be at his peak and I prefer my boyfriend at peak performance.” — Lydia to Scott in Second Chance at First Line.
- “What the hell is a Stiles?” — Lydia to her mother when he comes to see her in The Tell.
- “Nobody likes a loser.” — Lydia to Scott in Second Chance at First Line.
- “Never frown, because some one could be falling in love with your smile.” — Lydia to Allison in Formality.
- “A lot can happen in one night. ” — Lydia to Allison in Motel California.
- “Sweetheart, my last boyfriend was a homicidal lizard, so I think I can handle a werewolf.” — Lydia to Cora in Currents.
- “I'm something!” — Lydia to Jennifer Blake in The Girl Who Knew Too Much.
- “A genius, yes. A psychic, no.” — Lydia to Cora in Currents.
- “The other night, I helped save someone's life and that felt really good, but when I look at you, all I can think is how you helped kill Boyd. You're not just a bad boy, Aiden, you're a bad guy, and I don't want to be with the bad guys."” — Lydia to Aiden in Illuminated
- “I don't believe that. Not all monsters do monstrous things.” — Lydia to Meredith in Monstrous.
- “I'm in blue. Orange and blue: Not a good combination.” — Lydia to Stiles in Ice Pick
Video
Season 1