I'm getting zilch responses trying to do this game on twitter, so I figured I might as well try it here. To make this work in a forum context, we'll have this operate similarly to the "5 Things You Associate With the Poster Above You" thread and have people ask the poster above them these questions about any series of their choosing.
(https://66.media.tumblr.com/d03bc0b4fbee4c5f92decbf82f14bb7d/tumblr_ofvad9P4Jb1r6toezo1_540.jpg)
So, is this specifically for anime and manga, or can you pick anything serialized?
Anything goes.
So, for example, when you're suggesting a series you want someone's thoughts on, do it like this:
Dr. Ensatsu-ken: Game of Thrones.
Alright, I'll take a stab at this:
Cartoon X/LRY: Pokemon (anime)
Pokemon:
Favorite Male: Meowth - Funniest, smartest, and most developed character in the series. I will always watch any episode that features Meowth as the focus.
Favorite Female: Dawn - Definitely had the best character arc of any of the female leads in the series in DP. She actually lost TWICE before she ever won her first contest, and though she got better it was never easy for her but she also never lost because of bullshit like Ash does in most of his league matches.
Favorite Pairing: Ash X Serena - Fuck your Ash X Misty lie of a ship that 4kids brainwashed you with, Ash X Serena is the only canon ship and it was sealed with a kiss!
Least Favorite Character: Iris - Easily the most insufferable main character in the franchise. Chiding Ash for being a kid when she's so childish she throws tantrums and fits when things don't go her way.
Who's Most Like Me: James - Affiliation with Team Rocket aside, he's a well-meaning guy who is still a kid at heart, frequently effeminate and sentimental, and a loyal friend. Definitely the most sympathetic and relatable character in Pokemon.
Most Attractive: Cynthia - This is the only acceptable answer no matter what media of the franchise you're referring to.
Three More Characters I Like: Misty, May, & Max - All pretty fun characters I'd like to see return at some point.
Dr. Ensatsu-ken: Digimon Adventure
Digimon Adventure
Favorite Male: Izzy/Izumi- Obvious reasons, but he is intelligent, resourceful, useful, funny, and has the most touching bond with his Digimon partner, but he's also very relatable in his own way.
Favorite Female: Gatomon/Tailmon- Out of all of the Digimon partners, she easily had the most character and personality, and while that isn't saying much in and of itself, I really did like her backstory and character arc.
Favorite Pairing: Now, when it comes to DA, for some reason everyone always gets pissed at Matt because they believe that he stole away Sora from Tai. But really they should be getting mad at Sora for stealing away Matt from Tai, because clearly those two are the true ship of Digimon Adventure. Just look at how many lover spats they had and still have to this day in Tri. :sly:
Least Favorite Character: It's a toss-up between Etemon or Demidevimon, if I'm just sticking to season one, since both were annoying villains, and not in the fun way. If I were to include 02 into the equation, though, then it's definitely Yolei. Fuck that character. She was Sakura from Naruto before I even knew what Naruto was, and I despise Sakura.
Who's Most Like Me: Izzy/Izumi (again)- As I said I found him to be very relatable. I'm nowhere near as smart as he is with computers, but as a character I can really relate to how introverted he is. Even among his close friends he is still very aloof and reluctant to open up to anyone, which makes it all the more rewarding when he does.
Most Attractive: Leomon- 'Dat manly, hairy body!
Three More Characters I Like: Tai, TK, and Joe.
Cartoon X: Harry Potter
Favorite Male: Harry himself, I suppose. He is the perspective character and main character, so we see inside his head more and empathize the most with him.
Favorite Female: Hermoine is probably my favorite character in the series. Smart and strong-willed, but still has a lot of maturing left to do, I'd say I enjoyed her the most.
Favorite Pairing: Ron & Hermoine was definitely the couple I was most interested in seeing get together while reading through the series.
Least Favorite Character: Umbridge is arguably the most despicable and contemptible character in the series.
Who's Most Like Me: I always sympathized with Ron the most, and his problems and personality felt the most relatable.
Most Attractive: Hermoine, for the reasons I like her character, and because Emma Watson.
Three More Characters I Like: Snape, Sirius, & Luna for pretty obvious reasons.
Dr. Ensatsu-ken: A Song of Ice and Fire
I have to go to bed early tonight, so I'll answer this one tomorrow evening after work.
In the meanwhile I had one in mind for Spark of Spirit, but you can feel free to answer it as well, CX:
Ushio and Tora
If you insist...
Favorite Male Character: Ushio - I can tell why the "dumb hotblooded" protagonist lost so much of its luster over the years but Ushio was quite refreshing. He was still a teenage boy with faults of his own but he had a sense of honesty and goodness to him that counteracted his naivety. I like seeing a protagonist trying to be a good guy without being called stupid for wanting to be so.
Favorite Female Character: Mayuko - She's kind of the series counterpart to Ushio in how she constantly tries to be good. She's also a bit naive in how she thinks having Asako and Ushio be a pair would make everyone happy at the expense of herself, but at least she tries to make it work. I'm particularly thankful the anime left in the standalone story where we learn more about her relationship with Tora and how she can see who he really is. By the end, she might have had it the roughest among everyone.
Favorite Pairing: Tora and Mayuko - I just said it before. They are opposites in about every way but they do bring out the best in each other. Tora makes her less naive and Mayuko makes him less hateful. Good chemistry.
Least Favorite Character: I'm not sure I have one on a narrative level. Every character served a purpose to the story and served it well. If we mean least favorite as "character I wanted to die" thing it's pretty simple. Hakumen no Mono.
Who's Most Like Me: Hyou - It's hard to explain why except that I identified with his quest in a lot of ways. Most of the characters were relateable, but Hyou was the one I felt I could easily be like.
Most Attractive: I wouldn't even know where to start.
Three More Characters I Like: Tora, Asako, and Kirio. The cast is pretty great, really.
VLord: Yu Yu Hakusho
Ushio & Tora:
Favorite Male Character: Tora - I felt the most invested in him at the onset and that carried through the entire show. He's charming in his "tsundere" relationship with Ushio and can vacillate between being hilarious and heroic on a dime. His development throughout the course of the series and the payoff in his heroic sacrifice makes for my favorite character arc in the series.
Favorite Female Character: Mayuko - For basically all the points Spark's mentioned. She seems aloof but is a lot more aware of things and mature than she lets on, and like Ushio, has this self-sacrificing nature that is both admirable and a bit melancholy at the same time. I also love her relationship with Tora too.
Favorite Pairing: Tora & Mayuko - Again, for the reasons Spark said. They're polar opposites that are cute together, and that Mayuko still hasn't gotten over his death at the end of the series and tears up whenever she sees a hamburger is both sweet and heartbreaking.
Least Favorite Character: Satoru, mostly because of all the Beast Spear successors, he did the least and left the least impression as a result, and I was a bit disappointed in that since he had a good introduction.
Who's Most Like Me: Nagare's laid-back nature and inferiority complex reflects both who I aspire to be and how I often feel at the same time.
Most Attractive: Hinowa is "my type" both looks and personality-wise, so I'll go with her.
Three More Characters I Like: Hyou, Kirio, and Sumako had great character arcs that I felt especially satisfied by.
Spark of Spirit: Person of Interest
VlordGTZ: Hunter X Hunter
I'm still doing ASOIAF tomorrow, but since both CX and Spark are free, I have one for each of you:
LumRanmaYasha: Dr. Slump
Spark of Spirit: Arrow
And I'm not sure if he's up for it, but if Avaitor would like to participate, then:
Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes
Favorite Male: Akira Toriyama - No joke, since Toriyama himself is a regularly recurring character in the series and I absolutely love him in it. The way he depicts himself as a cheap perverted loser out for a quick buck is just so hilariously self-depreciating but at the same time actually quite relatable, and his sense of humor really shines in the chapters that focus on his character in the series in particular. The way he depicts himself in the series contributed a large part in why I fell in love with the man's sense of humor and him as a mangaka himself.
Favorite Female: Arale, naturally. She's pretty simple, but always entertaining to watch and her vocal quirks are irresistibly imitable.
Favorite Pairing: Arale & Obatchaman. Like, they're literally made for each other, and I was happy seeing that they would be together in the future.
Least Favorite Character: There's not really a character I really dislike. But, even though I generally found him funny, Tsuruten did try to peek at his own daughter's panties, which was pretty creepy and uncomfortable even though it was supposed to be a joke, so I'll go with him.
Who's Most Like Me: Obatchaman is a better person than I could ever hope to be but I've always related to naive but well-meaning and polite characters like him since that's how I've always felt I was and how people have often told me I'm like.
Most Attractive: Midori. She's one of Toriyama's most conventionally attractive characters for sure, but her actual character is also really fun and enjoyable. I really like the relationship between her and Senbei, especially after they get married.
Three More Characters I Like. Akane is basically Nabiki Tendo before Nabiki Tendo and I love her conniving wit. Taro is basically the manga version of Steve Dallas and I can't help but love his ill-fated attempts to look hip and cool. And Dr. Mashirito, of course, is one of the most iconic and funniest gag villains ever and every storyline featuring him is an absolute delight.
Yu Yu Hakusho:
Favorite Male Character: Kurama - Out of the main four, he has the best character arc in the series in my opinion.
Favorite Female Character: Shizuru – I always liked her personality.
Favorite Pairing: Kuwabara and Yukina – I found their interactions with each other to be pretty sweet.
Least Favorite Character: Doctor Ichigaki – Whenever I re-watch YYH, the fight against his team always feels dull to me. I doesn't help that the stuff with Team Rokuyukai and Team Masho are far more entertaining.
Most Attractive: Um, I have no idea.........Botan I guess?
Three More Characters I Like: Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Hiei - I don't think I need to explain why all three of them are great characters.
I'll do Hunter x Hunter tomorrow. I'm cramming for an exam right now. :sweat:
LumRanmaYasha: Pokemon Adventures
Pokemon Adventures:
Favorite Male Character: Ruby - He has easily the best character arc in the series, and is among the most morally and psychologically complex of the protagonists in terms of his motivations and characterization too.
Favorite Female Character: Yellow - I've always loved her. Her childish naivety that she can do the right thing without hurting anyone that gets challenged through the course of her arc and desire to keep her Pokemon from evolving because she's afraid they'll change really resonated and felt relatable to me as a kid, and still does. Even though I only finally continued past the Yellow arc of PA this year, I have re-read the Yellow arc several times over the years and her character and arc still sticks with me to this day.
Favorite Pairing: Ruby & Sapphire - Not only is the relationship between the two really endearing and the emotional foundation of the RS arc, they're the only characters who actually become an official couple in the series, and we even see them work through their relationship in the ORAS arc which I really appreciated.
Least Favorite Character: Lack-Two - It's a little unfair to judge him as a protagonist since there really is only a volume of the B2W2 arc that's ever been scanlated, so I don't know if he gets better over the course of the series, but man does the kid feel like such a Gary Stu. Like, I know a lot of people didn't care for Emerald because he was ridiculously talented and acted high and mighty too, but those were ultimately presented as character flaws and the series showed that he needed to mature and learn some humility from very early on. Lack-Two seems to have all the answers and thinks he's above everyone else and doesn't have much of a personality beyond that, and I don't really care for that.
Who's Most Like Me: X, mainly because I relate to his depression and social anxiety issues. Though, I'm probably more like Trevor in terms of my personality and nerdiness.
Most Attractive: Cynthia. Again, no matter what the media, Cynthia will always be my answer.
Three More Characters I Like: Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum comprise my favorite cast of main characters between any of the arcs and I absolutely loved the friendship and dynamic between them and how that payed off in the climax of the DP arc.
Favorite Male Character: John Reese - The series is partially about his quest for redemption and he never misses a chance to prove himself. He's also the funniest character in the series and has the best back story. Not to mention his fight scenes are the best.
Favorite Female Character: Detective Joss Carter - From the outset you'd figure she would be that character that would make it hard for our heroes to do their job by being someone who plays by the rules. But that quickly changes as she is pulled into the world of the Machine without knowing it. Her character arc is one of the best in the show.
Favorite Pairing: Harold and Grace. You only see their relationship in flashbacks, but it continues to be a motivating factor to Harold even years after he is supposedly dead and "moved on", though he can never quite shake her. The same is true of Grace as she still considers herself with him. Their relationship is so touching that I can't help but not consider it my favorite.
Least Favorite Character: It's unpopular to say Shaw, but I'll say it. She changes the least of every character in the show, her personality is flat, and her storyline in season 5 was incredibly repetitive. She has good moments, and I don't hate her, but she is easily the least interesting character in the show.
Who's Most Like Me: That would have to be Fusco. Though I've never been as corrupt as he was, I could easily see someone like Reese kicking me and my stupid foibles into shape. It takes a while for Fusco to finally shape up, but it is a hopeful message that even he can be redeemed.
Most Attractive: Probably Root. Amy Acker is pretty easy on the eyes.
Three More Characters I Like: Elias, Leon, and Zoe. I wish we could have seen more of Leon, though. He was hilarious.
Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes
Favorite Male Character- Hawkeye, a good deal closer to the character from the comics than Jeremy Renner's spin. He always has a good quip to add, but despite his joking nature, he's the first to fight when something's up.
Favorite Female Character- Wasp. Janet is initially haughty at first, merely there to finance Hank and to look attractive as a fighter, but she's a natural born leader, and when the going gets tough, she's great at taking charge. Her development is stronger in the comics, which had decades of time to build her up, but the show did well with only two seasons.
Favorite Pairing- Power Man and Iron Fist. They had, what, two episodes, but what we got of the classic team was glorious.
Least Favorite Character- I'll have to come back to you, actually. I haven't seen the show in a while, but I don't recall being disappointed in any character's interpretation.
Who's Most Like Me- I'd guess a combination of Tony Stark's egocentricism and Clint Barton's wisecracking foolishness, with a shade of Hulk rage.
Most Attractive- If we're talking the movies, you can't top the Chris'. But in EMH, idk, Captain Marvel?
Three More Characters That I Like- I'm going to cheat a little and say the Fantastic Four, since their episode was great. Hulk and Thing's poker game fight was excellent. :D
A Song of Ice and Fire:
Favorite Male Character: Theon Greyjoy- This may seem like a strange choice for show only watchers, and even some book readers, but if you know me you know that more than just a great character, I love a great character arc, and when it comes to character arcs, I'm an absolute sucker for redemption arcs. That's what made it so hard to pick between Theon or Jaimie as my favorites, but in the end I had to give the slight edge to Theon because of how unique his POV chapters feel, ESPECIALLY in A Dance with Dragons in which you get a lot of insight into his character's psyche in a way that only a book can tell you, which is an advantage that the show unfortunately doesn't have the luxury of expressing in the same way. What I like about him is that despite starting out as an unlikable character to the contrary, you can completely understand the reason for him being the way that he was when he was a ward of the Starks. He was essentially a glorified hostage to make sure that his father never again tried to rebel against the Iron Throne or any of the lands of Westeros. And keep in mind, he grew up on the Iron Islands for the first nine years of his life, so being taken away to live with another family knowing full well that behind all of the courtesies and fair treatment he was essentially living on the edge of life and death is already a pretty traumatizing thing. But the funny thing is, when you really get into his character, THAT's not what ate at him. What got to him, much like what got to Jon Snow, is that he saw what the Starks had as a family that his own family lacked, and while he couldn't admit it to himself, he always wanted to be one of them. Of course, as we know Theon is a character who makes some pretty bad decisions early on in the series, and his whole character arc deals with paying for the consequences of those decisions, but through his suffering and the complete breakdown of his identity, Theon rediscovers himself and starts to become truer to who he really is at his core. Is that a noble, just person? Well, not really, but he is a much more interesting a likable character by enduring his hardships, and I can't wait to see where his character arc leads him in The Winds of Winter, and whether or not he manages to survive the series or not.
Favorite Female Character: Arya Stark- Once again the books' ability to go into the characters' POV is a huge advantage here. If Theon's character arc had a strong theme of discovery his real identity, then Arya's is all about losing it. Rather than a redemptive arc, this is the opposite extreme of someone who descends into darkness and violence, but once again it's hardly black and white and what makes this so interesting is how you can follow Arya's mental and psychological mind-track every step of the way. While she starts out as an innocent, playful tomboyish character with a large third for adventure, she must deal with a cruel set of horrible, unpreventable circumstances that spiral her life into chaos and steadily change her goal of becoming a valiant swordswoman into a revenge-driven assassin. Yet, this arc is so fascinating, and the events and characters surrounding it so genuinely memorable that you can't help but be drawn into Arya's journey, and in turn find her loss of identity to be simultaneously tragic yet strangely gratifying in its own strange sort of way. And once again, it's worth mentioning that it was a really hard choice I had here, with Brienne coming in as a close second.
Favorite Pairing: I know that this category is probably meant for romances, and in that case I would probably go with Jaimie and Brienne for obvious reasons, but really I want to interpret it in another way and instead place my favorite duo of friends from the series here thus far, and that would easily be Tyrion and Bronn, once again for obvious reasons. One is a cunning imp, the other is a feisty swordsman, but both make an absolutely entertaining pair. While Bronn may have just been hired help and bailed on Tyrion when things got too tough, I still like how even then they left on good terms and considered each other friends, since it's their non-tolerance for either partaking in or putting up with any bullshit that brought them together in the first place. They are both opportunists at heart and that allowed them to stick together for three great books. But what really works here is how well they play off of each other. In this regard, I have to give the show a lot of credit for really getting this right, as well.
Least Favorite Character: If we're talking about the show, then The Sand Snakes, easily. They are all atrocious characters, and not for the right reasons. If we're talking about the books, then I'd have to give it's a lot harder for me to pick because while there are plenty of characters that I detest, it's not for being badly written, but only because they are intended to come off that way. I guess in that regard I'd have to say "Young Griff," Who I feel we are maybe meant to identify with a little bit but who feels like too much of an arrogant little prick for me to really get behind him. Then again, knowing Martin's writing style, that may have been the intention all along.
Who's Most Like Me: Samwell Tarly- This one was the easiest category for me when talking about this series. Samwell in general feels like a stand-in for most of the audience, and the first time I came to know this character, I immediately had the thought: "Yep, if I lived in this world, that'd be me." He's an initially weak-willed, reluctant recruit of the Night's Watch who hates violence (and absolutely sucks at fighting), but loves books and gaining knowledge. He slowly opens up to his friends more, especially to Jon Snow, once he manages to bond with them, though, much like I do after my initial shy phase around meeting new people, and despite being thrown into an intimidating environment, he quickly adapts and finds his useful role within his new environment. This is something that I can relate to a lot, especially these days with my recent job and having to apply my knowledge on a regular basis. But at his heart, Samwell is also essentially the closest thing that Westeros has to nerd, so of course I can relate to him on that level as well. ;)
Most Attractive- Ummm....in the books, I have no idea, since while I have character descriptions to go on, I really have no idea what they look like in the author's original vision. For the show, I'd go with Margaery since Natalie Dormer is the type of actress that I personally find attractive.
Three More Characters that I like:
This is way too hard to narrow down to just three, so I'll split it into four categories:
Major POV Characters: Tyrion Lannister, Jaimie Lannister, and Jon Snow, for pretty obvious reasons:
Minor POV Characters: Jon Connington, Barristan Selmy, Brienne
Non-POV characters: Sandor Clegane "The Hound," Varys, Petyr Baelish "Littlefinger"
Mysterious Characters: Euron Greyjoy "Crow's Eye" (WAY better than in the show), Cold Hands, Lady Stoneheart
Those are some great choices, Dr.
When I first started reading A Song of Ice and Fire my favorite character was, rather predictably, Tyrion. Eventually, as I progressed further into the series, his older brother eventually usurped his spot, thanks to his truly excellent growth as a character.
Thanks! To be fair, Tyrion IS a great character, and also has a great character arc throughout the series so far (The Mereneese Blot does a great series of blog post analysis articles about it and other character arcs from the series), so he's definitely a lot of peoples' favorite for a reason, and easily still in my top five. But yes, Jaimie has surpassed him in my eyes as well, which is something that I couldn't have even fathomed at the beginning of the series.