I've always though Buttercup was supposed to annoy us somewhat. The whole thing is a rip into the traditional fairy tale. The handsome prince is the villain, the castle guards are weenies, the prince's right-hand-man is essentially a sadist. Flipside: the hero is a pirate, his sidekicks are loer criminals, and the princess is a commoner and, instead of being purely pleasant and angelic(and totally lacking in all signs of personality), is a bit of a cold bi***(but at least she has a personality). It also follows the format very, very strictly, which means the DiD must wait to be rescued yet again...but she can still make the evil prince's life a pain just by being her demanding self.