"Mel is a bad person she manipulated jayce"
Ekko, at the unripe age of 10/11, scammed him, and Jayce still didn't make the connection years later when meeting Ekko again.
ALSO, SO WHAT? She is a politician. That is what they do. They manipulate people to achieve their own agenda. Luckily, the outcome was mutually beneficial for both of them. It was mutually beneficial. Meaning it was not a parasitic relationship like ambassa and cait, for example.
Jayces whole characterisation is that he is an idealistic genius. Yes, he's intelligent but in the field of science. He had not spent his life navigating the realm of politics like Mel had. He is a gullible person. That is what they showed us in the very first episode when ekko scams him.
Mel manipulated jayce yes HOWEVER that does not mean the relationship was manipulation, too. TWO THINGS CAN BE TRUE AT ONCE.
Also, most likely, if Jayce failed again, Mel would also be risking a lot. She would most likely lose credibility among the council and even lose her position as Counciller. Granted, she is intelligent and thought the reward outweighed the but still. She was also risking her position by backing him.
That's all i gotta say. I'm so tired of the Mel hate the only valid hate against her is her not doing anything to help Zaun.