Forum - View topicFavorite Anime Characters and why? (forum contribution).
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18226 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Oh, I guess I'll finally get around to contributing. I will preface this by saying that these are the ten characters that most quickly came to mind when I thought of my favorites and not necessarily my all-time Top 10. Perhaps not surprisingly, all but one of them are female. (Truly intriguing guys are much rarer in anime than truly intriguing gals.)
In no particular order: Rin Tohsaka, Fate/Stay Night - She's the series' most competent and level-headed character, and she's smokin' hot. I first saw this series only about three months ago, and she's already at or near the top of the list. Dark Schneider, Bastard!! - Probably my all-time-favorite male anime character. His mixture of supreme cockiness, bad-ass magic, and genuine caring for the women in his life (despite lecherous inclinations) makes him wonderfully entertaining. Marika Kato, Bodacious Space Pirates - Though I could just as well have gone with Chiaki here instead. Part of it's the character design and part of it's the charming way she disguises the full extent of her mettle and pluck behind her seeming airheadedness. Yoko Nakajima/Seikishi, The Twelve Kingdoms - Watching her start as a rather pathetic character, gradually learn to deal with her shortcomings, and ultimately grow into a respectable ruler is a real treat. Arguably one of anime's best examples of character development. Honoka, The Third: The Girl With The Blue Eye - She's monstrously strong despite her petite build, yet she doesn't let it go to her head. Instead she has a more poetic soul and a degree of empathy strong enough that she sometimes triumphs without actually needing to fight. Shurei Hong, The Story of Saiunkoku - In terms of strength of character she's among anime's strongest and most respectable young ladies. She's one of the rare reverse-harem leads who actually proves worthy of all of the male attention surrounding her, and she's beautiful when she lets her hair down. Shizuru Viola, My-Otome - Although I also liked Shizuru in My-HiME, this less restrained version of her - where she can more freely let her predilections and sexy side show - is the more entertaining one. The vague "Southern belle" accent used in the English dub was also quite appealing (and I normally don't care for that accent). Lafiel, Crest/Banner of the Stars - I'm not even going to try to type out her whole name, but anyone will know who I'm talking about here. She's yet another example of a highly-competent, mentally strong, and powerfully determined young woman, albeit one who also has a touch of fierceness to her. Eclair, Kiddy Grade - Watching her come to a resolution about her powers and past was a fun and satisfying journey. Colleen Clinkenbeard's wonderful dub performance also helps a lot here. Sango, Inuyasha - She was my favorite character in the series from the moment she first appeared. Though pretty, it had more to do with the tragedy and difficult issues that she had to deal with and the fact that she didn't struggle through them smoothly. In other words, she's on my list more because of her flaws than her strengths. EDIT: Corrected various typos. Sheesh. 
Last edited by Key on Fri Aug 10, 2012 8:31 am; edited 1 time in total |
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hellfire104
Posts: 74 |
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I am glad to see somebody nominate Lafiel. There have been almost 1000 nominations and finally she got mentioned. I guess people have just lost their appreciation for grand space operas like the one we get from the Stars series.
Also enjoyed the 12 Kingdoms love. Another show that doesn't get the appreciation it deserves I am afraid. |
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Errinundra
Moderator
 Posts: 6535 Location: Melbourne, Oz |
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As I said in my vote for Holo, Lawrence almost made it onto the list, and for those very attributes. Ginko has more generosity and more authority. And, Key, welcome to the Rin Tohsaka appreciation society. |
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EmbraceMe
 Posts: 2015 Location: Growing old and jaded. |
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It's pretty easy to garner members when you have ZETTAI RYOUIKI. 
Now onto my favorite characters: I'm troubled by how few characters pop up in my mind. In addition, the few characters that I do think off, I cannot perceive a good reason for those characters. Anyhow, I'll just write whatever comes into my mind. Hei from Darker than Black - Dark than Black is one of my favorite series. I enjoy it not only for its content but also Hei's awesomeness. Dubbed the "Chinese Electric Batman" by many, he certainly lives up to that nickname. Though I never cared for Batman, Hei does resemble Batman. I love stoic characters so it's little surprise that I really like Hei. He's a character who can kick ass with and without his powers. Oh, Hei being Chinese also rouses my nationalistic Chinese heritage so that may be another reason I enjoy his character. Nozomu Itoshiki from Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei - Being a pessimist myself, I find Nozomu to be a hilarious depiction of pessimists. The strength of his character doesn't come from his pessimism but from his views that often conflicts with his student's views. The situations Nozomu fall into, how he gets out of them, his suicide attempts and his rambling comments make him a likable character. He stands out a lot in my memory, too. Oba Yozo from Aoi Bungaku - There are slight differences between the source's character and the anime's character. However, for the most part, the character is portrayed accurately. My sentiments towards Oba comes from how much of myself I see in him. Although I am very different from Oba, I really understand his character. Like Oba, I also uphold a facade of meaningless acts around others. Like him, I feel alienation towards humans. I'm incapable of revealing my true self and instead chose to masquerade my true sentiments. Oba is one of the few characters that gain my full sympathy. Kiritsugu Emiya from Fate/Zero - I. Love. Byronic. Heroes. I cannot say more about how much I enjoy Kiritsugu's character without spoilers. Kiritsugu is a flawed hero with flawed ideologies but he recognizes his ideal's limitations. It is because of this limitation that he seeks the Holy Grail to grant his wish. Because of his ideologies, Kiritsugu suffered a lot throughout his life. MAJOR SPOILERS: spoiler[He kills his father, loses his first crush/love (Shirley), loses his surrogate mother/mentor, realizes the very miracle he sought is tainted, loses his wife, chances of meeting his daughter due to his betrayal, and fails to accomplish his dream.] /MAJOR SPOILERS. I guess I enjoy watching the pain of others (I must be sadistic... His suffering fuels me.) but Kiritsugu's character won my sympathy like Oba did. Homura Akemi from Puella Magi Madoka Magica - Is there no end to my enjoyment of stoic characters who suffer a lot? If you don't like Homura after watching episode 10 of PMMM, I respect your opinion but I'll treat it as heresy. Homura is cute, is voiced by one of my favorite VA's (Chiwa Saito), and a victor of my heart. Though, I have to admit, I have a very weak heart so I can be won over just by almost any female character. It was also at this point I realized I have too many males in this list so I needed a female to balance it out. Now, I'll return to brainstorming more of my favorite characters. |
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hellfire104
Posts: 74 |
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I need just 2 more people to nominate their ten characters and then I will have the results. So far 979 nominations for 545 characters.
Thanks everyone! |
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Dalvyn
 Posts: 86 |
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I don't know if I will be able to come up with 10, but I'll play along.
(And I might misspell some names. I don't feel like looking them up. To much effort.) Also I was drunk while posting this. I am at least intoxicated while making most of my posts in general. The only time I feel like posting really. 1. Muggen from Samurai Champloo. Why? Because he is a badass. I mean really I don't know what else to say other than his "I don't give a sh*t" attitude really appeals to me. We should all be more like Muggen. Also I watched this show on LSD. It is a damn good show to watch on LSD. 2. Lelouch from Code Geasse. I like the whole playing the making yourself the villain for the good of the human race thing. 3. Gin from Bleach. I don't even like the series much, but I did skip ahead to the final arc when I was bored, and I liked him. I like schemers. 4. Oreki form Hyouka. I like his laziness. 5. Vash from Trigun, I like his philosophy of not killing. 6. Jin from Samurai Champloo. I like the quite badass types. Also I just think the series is amazing. Personally it is my favorite show ever. 7. Dominic from Eureka Seven. Ok, sure him falling in love with crazy girl was a little weird. Maybe even pathetic and sure it didn't make much sense.. And he was kind of a dick. But without any real combat skills or anything shown, he still risked his life for her. Pity she went all normal. Still don't know whats up with that. Would have preferred her to still be kind of a crazy bitch without her reforming for no apparent reason. Did she suddenly become ok without her medicine? Well I found his story to be interesting. 8. Lead character from Gundam 00. That was the one where he was a terrorist as a kid right? It's been a while. But having a non-japanese, and a middle eastern as the MC? Hell yes. And that series tackled some interesting shit. When Kony 2012 happened anyone else think of this series? Lulz. People be crazy. 9. Tiaga from Toradora. I love this series. It is number 2 next to Champloo. 10. I'm sure there is someone I am missing that deserves to be on this list. I will sleep on it and come back to edit it later. I can't think of them right now... But I am sure they are villainish. I like villains. |
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Boomerang Flash
 Posts: 1021 |
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Interesting that you don't know the name of one of your favorite anime characters. The Gundam 00 protagonist is named Setsuna F. Seiei.
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Dalvyn
Posts: 86 |
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I'm terrible at remembering names period. I remember characters more for who they are than the name given to them. Please forgive me for not keeping track of all the names of people I watch/read/interact with. Also It's been over a year since I have watched it. I could also give you a list of the ten greatest f*cks I have had, and I would remember even less names. Still doesn't mean they weren't great. Great series though. Excluding the movie. I hated the movie. |
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zawa113
 Posts: 7358 |
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Don't think I have a particular order. Shame it's anime characters, as Banana Fish doesn't have an anime. Some of my characters, I am only familiar with from the manga, but I'll still list them if they have an anime.
Still, as a straight up thread for favorite characters, it's a solid plan. Except that my fav character is the broken badass Ash Lynx from Banana Fish, so he sadly can't count for this list. Rock Holmes from various Tezuka works and Metropolis-I find this character quite interesting. The more you see of him across multiple works, the more you get to know him. He rather has three stages, the innocent child, which is then severely wronged by the world and he becomes a villain with good intentions. In later works (like Black Jack and Buddha, he's in his atonement arc and has a tendency to keep getting screwed over anyway. But ok, back to Metropolis, he's an anti-hero, and I find that quite interesting. As much as he's trying to kill the mains, he overall cares very much for humanity. Fakir from Princess Tutu-most of these lists seem to have one Tutu character or another. Fakir was my favorite though, perhaps he is a bit similar to Rock in that he starts as a well intentioned extremist and becomes a legit good guy. Mr. Yotsuya from Maison Ikkoku-the biggest mooch on the planet easily. I think that in real life, I would hate Mr Yotsuya, he steals the main's food, spies on the other neighbor from the main's room, comes in uninvited by making a hole in the wall, and exploits the poor main at every turn (either for food or financially, and then he does sneaky things like "I thought only the manager had to remain unaware"). But watching from a distance, he's just hilarious! He's a jerk who does who knows what for a living (professional voyeur perhaps?) and he takes total advantage of everyone he can, and somehow those qualities make him endearing when I know I'd hate him irl, it's so weird.... Fujiwara no Sai from Hikaru no Go-Normally, I find extreme naiveness to be annoying. Here we have a ghost from a past era who is amazed at a simple umbrella, but he's also completely adorable and totally likable! Hikaru Shindo from Hikaru no Go-I love his ghost pal, but I love the main just as much! We really get to see him grow up, both physically and mentally, he's just a great shonen hero in a great shonen! Part of it is his excellent rivalry with Akira Toya, son of one of the top Go players in Japan. But it's also great to see him and Akira bounce off each other and their infrequent meetings serving as springboards for both of them to better themselves. Julian Minci from Legend of the Galactic Heroes-I find I'm one of like 3 people who like this character a lot. Most see him as a replacement goldfish, which is true in some ways, but I liked him before that. I liked his whole Earth Terraist arc too. He starts off as Yang's...I dunno, house boy? I kinda never got that. Anyway, I liked seeing him get more involved with the story as time went on. Yang Wen-Li-Legend of the Galctic Heroes-It's strange I find the Empire politics more interesting, but as a group, I definitely prefer Yang's group. Even if he can sometimes be strangely racist, Yang does encourage wine at his table meetings ("Alcohol is humanity's friend. You wouldn't abandon a friend"), but he's calm and collected in that really awesome way, especially because you get the impression he never wanted to be in this whole war thing anyway, he wanted to be an historian (which might be part of why the series feels like it's written for historians). But that he didn't want to be here but is so awesome at it? Even cooler! Sure, Reinhard is awesome at his job too, but I'd feel far more comfortable sitting down to have a glass of wine with Yang any day. Momiji Sohma from Fruits Basket-Well he's adorable for one, but he also has that dark past that's so much fun to explore! You can't help but feel sorry for him but then love him for his chipper attitude! Also, a manga only event spoiler[he goes from adorable but girly looking to bishonen and he's just as cool!] Does anyone who saw or read Furuba not like Momiji? Kyo Sohma from Fruits Basket-I don't dislike any of the Furuba characters, but Kyo and Momiji are my favs. Kyo is clearly the romantic interest, and being a ginger cat helps a lot too (I have a ginger cat!) and once again, everyone in the Sohma family has a dark past and Kyo is no exception. Some of the reasons I like him are likely manga only though, I'm sure, but having never seen the anime, I don't know where to disconnect. Shinjiro Hayashida from Cromartie High School-What's to like about a guy who has the intelligence of a bag of rocks? I dunno, the purple mohawk with its own mind maybe? I honestly have a hard time saying why I like him, maybe his wacky and incredibly stupid antics that seem even wackier and stupid than anyone else's? Or maybe how concerned he is when Freddie drops his juice... Shion Sonozaki from Higurashi series-Yeah, I pick her over Mion. Maybe it's because she's just a little bit crazier for my tastes. But she's also part of the main cast while being separate from it most of the time, which means she doesn't need to identify as part of the group as much. |
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Key
Moderator
Posts: 18226 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Oh, I could be its president. (Well, no, I don't have the creepy obsessiveness that some Japanese otaku do, so I guess I'd better downgrade that to "executive officer.") |
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Veers
 Posts: 1197 Location: Texas |
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Okay, had some time to think about this hard enough to come up with 10, but not hard enough to really compare against runner-ups to verify these 10 are really my favorite 10 ever, so here goes. No particular order. Hope it's not too late; I'm assuming you were looking for a minimum number of responses rather than a set maximum.
Lafiel - Crest/Banner of the Stars - Strong, proud, and determined, but rational and not afraid to take what help is offered to her, Lafiel was probably one of my first sort of "favorite anime characters" and remains so still. She herself doesn't change that much over the course of the shows, but her she still gets good development and relationship with Jinto is really good stuff. Akemi Homura - Madoka Magica - I like most of the PMMM girls, and honorable mention goes to Kyouko specifically, but Homura is really my favorite here. I think this thread has already said everything there is to say about why. Her selflessness and courage contrasted against her hopeful ideals checked by harsh realities and the choices she makes as a result, the extent of her character development, and the well-executed tragedy that is her story make her a top pick. Kyon - Haruhi Suzumiya - He really is the best narrator ever. Even though he serves a sort of "stand in" role in the story, Kyon always felt distinctive enough as his own character. He also has a good sense of humor and provides a great point of view for the franchise's stories. Roy Mustang - Fullmetal Alchemist - He's awesome and he knows he's awesome, but like Lafiel he doesn't lose sight of himself. His dynamic with Hawkeye is fantastic, and he also brings a great balance to the show as a foil to Ed. Roy's unashamed climb up the organizational ladder provide a realistic and (relatively) mature conflict in a story with a rather unrealistic premise, and I really liked that. Youko Nakajima - Twelve Kingdoms - (Key, you have been watching too much NAKAIMO! Her name is Nakajima! Edit: oh, you fixed it) Probably one of the best examples of character development I've seen in anime. Watching her grow up is at times frustrating, but ultimately it's immensely rewarding. Holo - Spice and Wolf - She may not be anime's best troll but she's certainly the classiest. On a more serious note, though, Holo is an interesting character in the scope of the story, too, and her interaction with Lawrence is always a treat, be they joking or serious. Osaka - Azumanga Daioh - The best space cadet ever. The sense of humor Azuma employs with Osaka may not be to everyone's taste but I often find it hilarious. Emiya Kiritsugu - Fate/Zero - EmbraceMe kinda just summed this up so I'll just point to his paragraph. Saber - Fate/Stay Night /Zero - A king with regrets, a king who questions herself, a king who questions what it even means to be king. The historical fiction twist is what first piqued my interest in Saber, but it was the story's mostly-sincere treatment of her inner turmoil and ideals that really got me hooked. Sure, Rin may have zettai ryoiki and and the best route and be more level-headed than the rest of the cast, etc., etc., but honestly I think Saber is, in a sense, the most human. Saber's development is a little more subtle to me than some of the other Fate characters, because it's more about her accepting things she's already aware of (and most of all herself) rather than sudden BAM moments or plot reveals, but I liked that about her. Kitsu Chiri - Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei - Tossup between her and Nozomu Itoshiki himself, honestly. I'll go with Chiri, though, because I have a lot more in common with her than with Mr. Despair. Plenty of other characters I could list that I like but that's 10 so I'll stop there. |
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Mesonoxian Eve
Posts: 1858 |
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I suppose I'll play along.
1: Akari Mizunashi - Aria - If there were ever a character I wish could be turned real life, this one is it. Yes, yes, her outlook is completely unrealistic, but that's what makes her special to me. I wish I could have even a fraction of this outlook in myself, which says quite a bit about the rest of us. As the series closes, we get a brief look at her years later and OMFG she's smoking hot. 2: Louise Francoise Le Blanc de La Valliere - Familiar of Zero - One of the most recognized tsundere in anime history, she's also drop dead gorgeous. Yet, these aren't why I find her a favorite. Beyond the superficial attractive features lies a woman who has genuine concern for those around her, all the while trying to define herself in a society that gives her little choice. Her facial expressions are, to me, one of the best drawn, especially the eyes. 3: Kirino Chiba - Bamboo Blade - When I first watched this series, I was expecting a "Rocky"-type story featuring a Kendo club. What I got instead was one of the best club stories I've seen, and Kirino really set the tone for the entire series. As captain, she has genuine concern for the club while relating to them on a friendship level. She also has that "girl next door" look to her, and I find her pleasing with it. 4: Wirhelmina Carmel - Shakugan no Shana - Indeed, a very attractive woman who says so little, and indeed, provides so much as a mentor to Shana. Indeed, her skills also shine through as she has to fight the path of a Flame Haze mentor to that of caring for someone as a human. Indeed, she does well. 5: Pino - Ergo Proxy - If it wasn't for this artificial being, I wouldn't have appreciated the series as much. It's not as though she has a stellar role in the series, but it's how she delivers those roles which set her place in my favorite list. The performance she gives when being told what death is both haunting and realistic considering what she is. Her innocence in the series is awesome. 6: Sanya Litvyak - Strike Witches - Not going to lie here as she's my favorite for two reasons: she's drop dead gorgeous and she's quiet unless her friends are in trouble. In one episode, she's attacking the Neuroi and puts one of the hottest scowls on her face I've ever seen. 7: Miu Matsuoka - Strawberry Marshmallow - Without doubt, one the funniest girls I've ever seen in anime. She definitely speaks her mind and she's sharp as a tack by taking advantages of openings to deliver them, which often has her kissing floorboards because of it. Her genius really shines when she takes advantage of Ana's name in front of her classmates and does it with a straight face. 8: Mai Taniyama - Ghost Hunt - I'll admit her attitude gets on my nerves sometimes, given she has a hard time accepting some decisions, but there's something behind the attitude which really makes her attractive. She's got a level head on her shoulders, even if the writers make it hard to see. 9: Signum - Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's - Impressive is about all I need to sum her up. I was enthralled with her performance in the series, and the reasons behind her actions made it that much more impressive. The hospital scene when she says it was okay for her enemies to visit put her in my favorite list instantly. 10: Kagami Hiiragi - Lucky Star - Made you sweat, didn't I. Yeah, right. You knew she was going to be on this list as she comes in #2 in my all-time favorite characters. Beautiful and sassy, what's not to love with this one. Yeah, as for Rin Tohsaka, I was going to list her as well, but since she's already mine, what was the point. 
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Aylinn
 Posts: 1684 |
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My list of favourite characters is too long to write it down. Usually I find an interesting character in every show - caring about the character's or characters' fate makes a series watch-able - and the characters I like have different personalities, so there are villains and the good guys on my list. It's not the same kind of liking, though. Some of them I like because they are well-thought-out and well-written, which makes them more intriguing but not necessarily because I would found them likeable if they existed. Certainly, I would not like someone like Lulu from Code Geass or Matoba from Natsume's Book of Friends, even though I found them entertaining.
I have no top 10 as it frequently changes but there are two characters which I always come to my mind when such topics are raised: Akito and Shigure from Fruits Basket - for being the most fascinating, twisted and charming characters from their series. |
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Unicorn_Blade
 Posts: 1153 Location: UK |
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1) Scar from FMA/Brotherhood - regardless which series you pick, Scar was a great character who went from being a ruthless serial killer to spoiler[a saviour]. His background story made him a believable character.
2) D from Vampire Hunter D- for the mysterious aura (and admittedly- beauty), despite being more of a loner not too fond of company, he can go out of his way to help people selflessly. 3) Medicine seller from Mononoke- great talent for dealing with some really creepy spirits and a sense of humour. 4) Kyoko Mogami from Skip Beat! - totally crazy, obsessed and dangerous at times, but so kind-hearted and helpful that I found it hard not to like her. 5) Ray from Eureka 7 - not a character I would have enjoyed or liked at the beginning, but the flashbacks made me root for her, such a complex character despite having so little screen time. Brave, loving an devoted. 6) Faye from Cowboy Bebop - another female character that would not be a pick if I only saw the beginning of the series, but again a backstory adds a lot. (Sometimes unwillingly) funny, daring and despite appearances, loving woman. 7) Lust from FMA - cool, sexy, deadly, has been my favourite since I first saw the series 8 years ago and remains in the top 10. 8) Ohana from Hanasaku Iroha - level-headed, hard-working, kind-hearted, a very unusual-usual girl. 9) Tsume from Wolf's Rain - another lonely rider in the collection, does not start promising, but there is more to him than it seems. I actually love all four wolves, but this one was my favourite. 10) Brandon Heat from Gungrave- for the loyalty to his friends and his convictions and not loosing himself, even after, well, being spoiler[dead.] |
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nobahn
 Subscriber Posts: 5120 |
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Saya Minatsuki from Black Cat.
spoiler[RIP, Saya] Saya is, without a doubt, one of my favorite characters because she chooses not to kill whenever possible -- a remarkable contrast to the ethos that is usually found in anime. |
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