My favorite fictional characters

Favorite male characters:

1. Doraemon
2. Merlin (Fate/Grand Order, Disney's The Sword In the Stone)
3. Whis (Dragon Ball Super)
4. Romani 'Roman' Archaman (Fate/Grand Order)
5. Sun Wukong (Journey To the West - 1986 version by Liu Xiao Ling Tong)
6. Erwin Smith (Attack On Titan)
7. Reinhard von Lohengramm (Legend of the Galactic Heroes)
8. Alucard (Hellsing: Ultimate)
9. Tenmei Kakyoin (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure)
10. Kenshin Himura (Rurouni Kenshin)
11. Momiji Souma (Fruits Basket)
12. Haku (Spirited Away)
13. Son Goku (Dragon Ball)
14. Tony Stark (Iron Man, Avengers)
15. Light Yagami (Death Note)
16. L (Death Note)

Favorite female characters:

1. Maya Kitajima (Glass Mask)
2. Haibara Ai (Detective Conan) 
3. Hildegard von Mariendorf (Legend of the Galactic Heroes)
4. Ayumi Himekawa (Glass Mask)
5. Toph Beifong (Avatar)
6. Kaoru Kamiya (Rurouni Kenshin) 
7. Chibi Maruko-chan
8. Tooru Honda (Fruits Basket)
9. Saber Nero (Fate/Extra: Last Encore)
10. Integra Hellsing (Hellsing: Ultimate)
11. Sailor Uranus (Sailor Moon)
12. Jolyne Kujo (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure)
13. Kagome Higurashi (Inuyasha)

Fate series: My favorite Servant for each Class

Saber:  Arthur (male), Nero
Archer:  Gilgamesh
Lancer:  Enkidu
Rider:  Iskandar
Caster:  Merlin (male), Solomon
Berserker:  
Assassin:  King Hassan

[ to be updated ]

Attack On Titan: Erwin Smith

The Strength to Shoulder Many Lives While Embracing Unshakable Beliefs

"If there are humans who can bring about change, they are those who are capable of abandoning everything. People who, when required to surpass even monsters, are capable of tossing aside their humanity. People who fail to abandon anything will likely fail to produce any result".

"If you begin to regret, you'll dull your future decisions and let others make the choices for you. Then all that's left for you is to die. Nobody can foretell the future. Each decision you make holds meaning only by affecting your next decision." ~13th Commander of the Survey Corps.

This quote and mindset is passed forth from Erwin to Levi to Eren.

Leadership isn't just a role; it's a mindset, a personality. 

Intelligence, wisdom, bravery, resolve. No one else in the series has seen through difficult situations like he does. His sharp intuition, sheer tenacity and his calm analysis have always impressed me. I like the character as someone who's willing to make the tough decisions that are for the benefit of mankind despite these decisions reflecting poorly on him. He accepts his flaws and is never in denial about anything. I immensely respect this kind of people. The best leaders are people whose ego don't shatter in positions of power.

*Arm bitten off, doesn't give a fuck* "SUSUMEEEE!!!"  -- This scene cemented Erwin as my favorite character in AOT.

Do you realize how hopeless the Wall Society was, there literally was no future for them, until Erwin came along?

Erwin's spirit of inquiry is what saves the Wall society from being wiped out.

Always thinking ahead in the battle against Titans, Erwin works out the best possible plans. For instance, he used a horde of Titans - the only working weapon at the time - to fight the Armored Titan. Against the Female Titan - an abnormal that no one had prepared for - he showed excellent judgement: he deduced that the Female Titan was among them and that she would transform again; by instructing Levi to perfectly maintain his equipment, he prevented him from getting into a pinch and took back Eren. Finally, in the battle of Shiganshina, he turns defeat into victory, and managed to recapture Wall Maria!

Back then, he had "read" Levi correctly and used Levi's emotion for Furlan and Isabel to capture them all. Erwin is all too capable of being able to grasp the situation in an instant!


THE QUEST FOR TRUTH

"There is no human ambition that doesn't stem from selfish desires."

Erwin is inquisitive in nature; he looks beyond the Wall - that's why he asked that question in the classroom in the first place. As shown in S3 ep3, young Erwin was perfectly willing to believe that his father's death was justified: as long as the government had a good reason, he’d have been fine with it... which means that he didn't figure it out until he joined the military, which means that his original motivation to join the Survey Corps wasn't his father's death, but the pursuit of knowledge.

"One day, we'll break it down. This wall hiding the truth... will fall."  ~ Erwin at the end of Season 2

Erwin's personal goal has never caused him to make wrong decisions for humanity. It ISN'T a less valuable goal than "protecting humanity". Searching for truth IS saving humanity. They can't win against the enemies without first and foremost knowing the truth about them and the world. Thus, the quest for a truth is a goal that humanity should strive for, and thankfully they have Erwin to do it.

Some people may criticize his dream as being "selfish" or "immoral" whatever, but he was the ONLY leader who was seeking truth. He doesn't just want the people to go beyond the wall. So many soldiers have died. For what? Because of what? What are they fighting for? Why is there this struggle in the first place? Erwin wants to know all of that! This is a goal that I would gladly follow him for - personal or not. Erwin's quest for truth is what saves the Wall society from being wiped out by Marley. If his "selfishness" is bringing humanity forward, that is a form of selfishness that is needed.
Just like L in Death Note who solves crimes not for justice but to satisfy his love for puzzles, the world still benefits massively from him. "Just like how we go to college to benefit ourselves but by raising our socioeconomic status, we uplift the society we're living in". Let's say if someone tried to prove that the Earth was round in a world where everyone believed Earth was flat, why should we care what he did it for? The end result is the same.

Everyone in the Survey Corps has their own selfish motivation. Not that they don't care about humanity, but they all have their own personal reasons for joining and remaining with the Corps. Hange's is Titan experiment. Eren (initially) wants revenge. Armin wants to see the ocean. Mikasa wants to protect Eren. Jean is honoring the memory of Marco. Connie wants his villagers to feel proud of him. Shadis wanted to be special, etc.
But some people only like to criticize Erwin because he is conscientious enough to question himself.
Having a selfish personal reason for joining the Corps is fine. It's human. It's healthy. As long as he doesn't let this personal reason overshadow overall goal of protecting humanity - which Erwin has never done.

"It was only after joining the Survey Corps and coming face-to-face with a Titan that I came to understand the futility of mankind. Wealth, power, noble ideals... all of those would disappear in an instant if the Titans were to breach these Walls. This is why... we will use any means necessary to ensure that the missions and our efforts to take back this world are not abandoned!" ~Erwin

• A selfish guy would listen to Levi and stay home while his soldiers were fighting. 
• A selfish guy would put himself in the safest place of his own Formation.
• Erwin knew that he would never be able to reach his personal goal about knowing the truth if he died before this happens. Yet when a Titan grabbed him, he ordered everyone to keep charging and save Eren.
• He did not just ask other leaders to help him overthrow the government; he put humanity above his selfish gain: if the gov truly acted in the interest of humanity then he would accept his death.
• When Erwin’s gamble paid off and it’s proven that the government cared nothing for humanity, he reacted not with triumph but with sorrow. Rather than thinking of himself, he worried about the future of mankind: He told Nile that they were on a more dangerous path than ever before.
• He revealed himself right in front of the Armored Titan on the Wall to see if he could distract Reiner from his mission of targeting Eren (all the while bemoaning how he wanted to go to the basement yet still remained on the Wall overseeing the battle).
• Then of course in the end, when his dream is a barrier to humanity's survival, he chooses to put his dream aside and leads the suicide charge.

"The moment humans reveal their truest nature is when they are in the brink of death". At the brink of death, Erwin chooses humanity. Actions speak louder than words. It was genuine all along. Erwin just has some (psychological) issues. He didn't understand that his goal is, in nature, selfless. He wanted to free humanity of their government's lies and injustices. 


SACRIFICES

"But he sends people to their death!", people say.  He is someone who looks ahead and anticipates the consequences of his actions.  On top of which, he knows - pretty much from the get-go - that in order to accomplish anything, many will have to die. This is a brute fact of existence and thus Erwin acts accordingly.

"The lives of 100 soldiers vs. the lives of everyone within the Walls - the Commander had made his choice" - Season 1, Female Titan Arc.

And while it may seem very cold, it is worth considering that it is also what the main trio has to work toward realizing as well. Eren, Armin and Mikasa are all very eager to sacrifice themselves pretty much as soon as they join the Survey Corps. But they falter when it comes to the lives of others. This is to be expected, of course, for all sorts of reasons, from them being kids to leadership not coming naturally to them.

The soldiers weren't forced to join the military and the Survey Corps, and Erwin told them that they might not know what was going on all the time, and if they didn't think it was worth it to offer their hearts for humanity like that then they could join the Garrison or the MP. He formed an honest recruitment speech that scared many off to minimize casualties and guarantee skill, also to distract potential spies with the mention of the basement.

Pixis, Shadis and Armin have given similar orders that sacrificed people's lives. Levi proposed a plan to sacrifice soldiers' lives to save Erwin and Eren in Shiganshina. When they have to fight giant monsters with nothing but horses, swords and 3D gears, every mission is a suicide mission, regardless of the Commander.  Think of the alternative.  If Erwin was someone soft-hearted enough to compromise battle strategy, Levi wouldn’t follow him.

Nonetheless, Erwin earned the reputation of having the most minimal lives lost in the history of leaders. He only asked for sacrifices when there was no better choice. In situations where casualties could be minimized, Erwin chose that option; for example, his coup d'etat didn't cost a single life. His Long-distance Scouting Formation reduced death rate to 30% and he was the only leader who cared enough to do that in the first place.

"When fighting Titans, we're dealing with all sorts of unknowns, thus we can never be prepared".  They’re fighting an enemy who they don’t understand, and is worlds stronger than them. When you have a one in million chance of success, you take it, even if that chance relies on you sacrificing everything you have. Unfortunately that’s the hand Erwin’s been dealt every time because of the awful world he lives in. Erwin is a great Commander. Yes, he’s cost a lot of lives, but he’s not done it without reason and he’s aware of what he did and wishes there was another way.

"Limiting ourselves to the best course of action will never give us the edge over the enemy. We must take necessary and costly risks. Unless we fight like that, mankind cannot prevail". ~Erwin

The Titans are not the only enemy he needs to fight. Erwin also needs to fight against the authorities that are against outside wall expedition and the MPs who constantly try to eliminate the "threats" for the sake of "peace" within the Wall.

And it's not like Erwin is a coward who hides behind his comrades. He always LEADS in front. Sacrifice aside, it is his determination and his ability to not only lead the front line but also in the political scene, he is extremely shrewd, able to dodge assassination attempt and turn the tables on those seeking to keep humanity still blind behind the Walls.


CONSCIENCE

"It would take an expert conman and a pack of lies..."
Erwin believes himself to be a conman for fooling people for his selfish goal but the truth is that his selfish goal has never superseded his duty. He's a walking self-contradiction. Time and time again, he’s shown that he cares about humanity and is more than willing to sacrifice his life if needed. But the guilt is eating him up and makes him believe he is a lying conman. People may have died under his command, but those deaths were necessary for humanity to move forward. He is the primary reason that the Wall society and Eren's gang are able to get as far as they could. Although someone has to be in his position to shoulder the burden of everyone's lives, the fact that he sees himself in such a way by itself shows his humanity. He accepts the reality of war as a personal burden and shoulders the responsibility accordingly. How many leaders are conscientious enough to do that?

Many times, we see leaders who are too confident that they're doing everything for "a greater cause" and never question themselves - that's when it can become dangerous. But Erwin is constantly questioning himself and his guilt comes from being in the position of a leader than anything else. Before he knew it, he found himself at the top giving orders to subordinates. "So when he faced his subordinates, telling them, ‘for the sake of humanity’, he felt like he was lying to them. He has been struggling with these conflicts and anguish all along the way."

"I don't care if I'm remembered as a monster, as long as humanity survives". ~Erwin

His life is synonymous with sacrifice. He never once carried out a selfish action his entire career. He gambled his life multiple times with nothing in his heart but the survival and advancement of all humanity.

There was no bullshit or deception in his words and actions. Part of why he sounds so damn convincing is because there's a lot of logic and meaning in his words. From the start, he told the cadets that he was aiming for the truth in Eren's basement, and that only those who were willing to risk their lives should enlist in his Corps. Also, in his youth, Erwin spread his theories among his fellow trainee cadets (S3P2 ep3-4 where Nile confirms it). That's the reason why so many graduating cadets joined the SC along with him.

Erwin is not the kind of person who prioritizes his own dream. He follows through with his responsibilities, and when the time comes, Erwin is able to give up on his dream and make the best decision. ~Isayama

As another fan said: "Historia's situation in S3 is parallel to Erwin's. She claims that she doesn't care about humanity. She rejects her duty to carry on the family ritual and thinks this makes her a 'bad person'. As a result, Eldia finally has a chance at survival and the truth is revealed to the masses."

Erwin is someone who truly understands what must be done in order to achieve a certain goal. He has the greatest mindset out of anyone in the story to be an effective leader. Although Erwin said seeing the basement is more important than the survival of humanity before they went to Shiganshina, he ultimately broke free of those chains (being a slave to the basement), and like Armin said, Erwin was truly able to give up anything (even his life and ability to see the basement) for Levi to kill the Beast Titan. He was flawed, but his dedication outweighed his flaws.

The result is that humanity inside the Walls has gotten much further with Erwin as their Commander than they would have otherwise. It was only after the coup d'etat that it was revealed to all that there was a truth far greater than what was being told, and that was all thanks to Erwin who overthrew the corrupt government.


BATTLE OF SHIGANSHINA

This battle determines the fate of humanity. For the first time, his dream stood as a barrier to humanity's victory. Erwin had a choice to charge or to save himself. But he knew that retreating to Trost would cause utter annihilation to humanity, because the Beast, Armored and Colossal Titans would come chasing them and kicking down the Wall again.  Ultimately, Erwin chose to charge. Without him fronting the charge, no one would have done it. He led himself and them into death to keep the Beast Titan from seeing Levi. Had he not led the charge, everyone would have perished. So in essence, Erwin made the choice to save Levi, Eren and humanity.

The argument that "Armin can win without sacrificing anyone, unlike Erwin who had to sacrifice others" is null because the situation was set up in such a way that Armin must not use anyone else because his situation required that the Colossal Titan be isolated from any threats. Meanwhile, Erwin was put in a situation in which the only way out is to charge as a unit.

Erwin's final speech was so effective because he didn't just tell them, "Don't go down without a fight" - the soldiers were way past the point where that would work - but to look at the bigger picture: All those thousands of soldiers who died before died for nothing unless the current soldiers carry on in their name, with the same hope that others would then carry on the fight and give their sacrifices meaning. Erwin's conflict was always about bigger picture vs. small picture - run away to pursue your dream or stand and fight to protect the dreams of others. In his speech, he was conning himself. He said that it would all be worth it and the soldiers who came after him would make his life mean something, but he desperately wanted to see the basement. That speech was to trick himself (and others) into dying.

Erwin really wanted to go to the basement and was considering sacrificing everything for a shot at reaching it, but the guilt about all the soldiers' deaths and the duty to humanity made him feel obligated to make sure those deaths meant something, but he was having extreme difficulty giving up on his dream. In the end, he did not want to make the decision himself, that is why Levi stepped in and made the call for him. This is why Erwin gave a faint smile before going on the suicide charge: He is relieved that he did not have to make the choice himself, because someone was able to do it for him.


ERWIN - LEVI - EREN RELATIONSHIP

Erwin was the first leader to conclude that Eren had no reason to lie and took him into the Survey Corps.
It's also thanks to Erwin that humanity gained Levi as a soldier. Without Erwin, Eren would have been killed by the Military. Without him, Levi would have still wasted his life as a criminal underground.

In the spin-off manga "No Regrets", Levi made the choice to join the Survey Corps on his own, having been convinced by Erwin's words, while in the anime, he followed him because he simply felt that Erwin had answers that he did not.

It makes perfect sense in the manga:  the parallel between the Walls and the Underground city, the urge for Freedom and Truth.

When he was in the Underground, he dreamed of the sky, only to find out that the people up here are being confined by something greater than themselves, too. The true freedom that he seeks is still missing.

And Erwin totally earned my respect when he spoke... a speech that made Levi change his life - from an enemy and a thief to the most loyal follower and a hero in about 2 minutes and it was earned.

The OVA should have included Erwin's speech to Levi:

"YOU'RE WRONG! IT'S THE TITANS! Where did the titans come from? Why do they exist? Why do they devour humans? I don't have the answers. None of us do. Limited by our ignorance, we'll continue to be devoured by the Titans. If we just stay shut behind the Walls, we are never going to escape this nightmare. Take a good look around you! No matter how far you go, there aren't any walls here. In this wide open space... I believe there is something there, illuminating our despair. But there are those who seek to prevent us from venturing beyond the walls. They are consumed by selfish thoughts of their own losses and gains from behind the walls where it's safe! It's only natural. During the past 100 years, hindered by the walls, the eyes of humanity have been clouded. They cannot see the landscape that lies on the other side. But what about you, Levi? Will you let your eyes remain clouded? Will you kill me and return to the darkness of the underground? We will not give up our journey outside the wall. So fight for the Survey Corps, Levi! Humanity needs your strength!"

• On to my other Erwin post:  
• Parallel between Kenshin and Erwin
• Leadership post-Erwin
• Levi's decision is wrong on both story and writing standpoints

Best anime duo

• Shinichi + Akai
• Erwin + Levi
• Reinhard + Kircheis
• Reinhard + Hildegard
• Reinhard + Oberstein
• Iskandar + Waver
• Integra + Alucard
• Giorno + Bucciarati
• Nero + Hakuno
• Weather + Anasui
• 
  

Favorite character: Tenmei Kakyoin

• Kakyoin's true first name is Tenmei, but Araki's editor misread and published it as "Noriaki". Araki still calls him "Tenmei".
• Kakyoin is kind and genuine. After his defeat by Jotaro in episode 2, Kakyoin retains a strong sense of responsibility even though everyone knows he had no control over it, even asking why Jotaro would save his life despite the cruel things he'd done while under Dio's control. And he teared up when hearing Jotaro's answer!  
• Kakyoin's motivation to join the Crusaders was a noble one: He wanted to protect the Joestars who were kind to him, to return the kindness that Jotaro showed him, even when he really didn't want to face Dio again, and to conquer his fear.
• Kakyoin is ruthless with his enemies but loyal and cares deeply for his friends. He is an absolutely brutal fighter because while the thing he despises most from an internal standpoint is weakness, he hates evil even more. He sees evil as those who manipulate and make people weak for their own gain, like DIO did. He despises manipulation and to him, that is evil.
• The smartest Crusader, the tactical mind, the sanity throughout the bizarre journey. Without him, they would have lost Polnareff early on, then got killed by Death 13 and would have never made it to Egypt. And even if they'd somehow made it, they would have lost to Dio.
• In every fight, he always thinks about the others before himself, eg, "how to save Jotaro," "how to let the others know", etc. In his 2nd encounter with Death 13, when he could die at any second, why did he carve letters into his arm? Because if Death 13 killed him, then Jotaro and co. would figure out who the enemy was from the clue he left them. Even in his final moment, all he thought about was how to figure out Dio's Stand so that the others would survive. He willed himself to destroy the clock to give the message because that's what best guys do.
• Kakyoin vs. Death 13 was an amazing battle of the mind. When you encountered an enemy that controlled your mind and made you think you were going crazy and even doubt yourself, how could you maintain your sanity and save everyone? Think about it: it's quite terrifying to almost die in your sleep then wake up remembering nothing about it.  In the end, only Kakyoin knew that Death 13 existed and had nearly killed all of them. The other Crusaders have forgotten about the baby Stand User but Kakyoin never cared about that; all that mattered to him was that they were safe.
• He's not only fighting for them but dying for them. At the moment he realized he had found "his people", he ended up dying for them. It's quite sad when only 3 of them managed to catch the Last Train Home. 
• Friendship with Jotaro:  Kakyoin was the only guy who could crack through Jotaro’s tough exterior and earn both his respect in battle and a friendship. Kakyoin despises submitting to people or sucking up to them. We know he didn't have any friends because he felt like a freak with his Stand. He probably wanted to goof off with everyone else but he never really learned how. Now he’s got the Crusaders who all know exactly what he is dealing with. Kakyoin thinks only a respectable individual can be his friend. The same goes for Jotaro.
• Kakyoin is the JoBro of Part 3 and should get more screentime than Polnareff. I think the reason that Kakyoin was absent for most of the Egypt Arc was because his Hierophant Green would make all the fights leading to Dio look like a joke: With a long range and an ability to morph, plus the tactical mind of its User, HG could defeat most of the 9 Egyptian gods easily. Ponareff's character arc was nice and concluded with the Judgement Arc, so the best thing to do would be to have him hospitalized instead of Kakyoin. The fact that Kakyoin's character is shaped by his isolation as a child could be explored really well if he was the one transformed into a child in the Alessi fight, and the Anubis episode could have allowed for more screentime with Jotaro. The exploration of their friendship is few and far between, but when it pops up, like against Steely Dan, it's amazing and it would be nice to get more of that. I'd also like to see more battles of wits like the Death 13 fight. Both Kakyoin and Jotaro catch some flak for having "weaker characterization" than Polnareff. But, flamboyance doesn't equate to interestingness in my book. I like Polnareff, but not enough to feel like he should have hogged the spotlight too much. Kakyoin is just a pretty neat and awesome character, even if Araki did not fully flesh him out.  All he needs is a bit more depth - like Bucciarati in Part 5. 
• Character growth.  Kakyoin proved to be a brave warrior throughout the trip, and was able to keep his nerves even in the direst situations such as having been punched through by The World. When he met Dio for the first time in his life, he was shaking in fear. But in his final stand, he was looking Dio straight in the eyes and challenging him. Kakyoin has accomplished his personal goal in this journey.
• I wish he had survived and reappeared in Parts 4, 5, 6.  Would love to see the adventures of Kakyoin and his Emerald Splash post-Dio, now that his world had opened up.
• His 2 theme songs are awesome:  
• Kakyoin's theme
• Kakyoin's theme 2

Favorite character: Gilgamesh

Gilgamesh is a character that I went from dislike to like as I went through the Fate series. I initially disliked him when I got into FATE starting with Unlimited Blade Works and Fate 2006.  Then I realized that Gilgamesh FSN version is just where the author (Nasu) inserted a quick villain to be an "anti-Shirou" device, no more and no less - anyone could fill that role - whereas his character is very well-developed in is character is very well-developed in Fate/Zero (by Urobuchi) and subsequent works where we can see his reasoning, his legend (which is one of the coolest) and his dynamics with other characters. Even his interest in Arthuria in Fate/Zero has some basis in ideologies rather than FSN's "yo, I'm just here to be the MC's love rival".

If I have to say anything about Gilgamesh, it's that he's defiantly got a personality. His backstory and complexity fascinate me despite the fact that I don't normally like arrogant people. Gilgamesh in his younger years was never "good" in a Disney sense, but not evil, either.

An interesting "grey" character is much better than a boring hero. The Epic of Gilgamesh is the earliest hero story of mankind where the MC has more character development than most fictions nowadays. Fate/Zero is just a glimpse into that. There are also F/E CCC, Extella and Babylonia, which together give us a complete picture of who he is.

Guardian of Humanity

All of Gilgamesh versions would die for humanity.

"At first I acknowledged the gods and protected humans. When my childhood ended, I hated the gods and favored humans."

Born from a goddess and a human king, Gilgamesh was created by the gods to connect humanity closer to them. However, he dislikes past kings because they were god-fearing weaklings in his eyes, and he chose to depart from the gods so that humanity could thrive. And his rule, with him rejecting the gods, began the Age of Mankind!  

The protection of gods is no longer needed in the world of man. As proof, I built a fortress, and you all answered my call. I know now, with certainty, that it was no mistake! And now this final trial will test it, and us, to the utmost. 

Now is the time to deny the primordial gods and begin the Age of Man! Mind yourselves, my elite warriors! This is the battle for true separation from the gods! Give your lives to me, the king! Pass on the glory that is Uruk to generations to come, to the last man!

~ Gilgamesh's declaration to Uruk as Tiamat approaches

In UBW, Gilgamesh wasn't trying to destroy humanity; he's trying to save it. He's willing to make himself a villain as long as it means humanity's improvement in the long term. While he floated through the Grail's mud at the end of Fate/Zero, it showed him visions of all of humanity's worst moments. Gilgamesh loves humanity's potential and was already expecting us to expand to the stars in his vision but he found that we grew complacent instead. For he who thinks lives are worthy only if they strive to live their hardest, seeing modern humans' complacency compared to the people in his kingdom (which is described in Babylonia where people remained steadfast and unbroken before the daily assaults of deities) made him feel disgusted. And being given a physical body by the Grail, Gilgamesh felt that he had the responsibility to steer humanity's path.

I think that his thinking was, to some extent, correct:  comparing Babylon in ~2600BC vs. the Middle East today, and ancient Egypt vs. today's Egypt,... I can't help but wondering: After thousands of years, humanity should be much much better than that, right...?  As another fan pointed out: "Gilgamesh's end-goal of 'purging' through Angra Mainyu (aka: All the World's Evil) was "fair" from his point of view: It's 6 billion humans vs. 6 billion evils born from themselves. And it made sense to him that humanity should be able to defeat its own evils". So he tried to fix it by kick-starting a Darwinism process with himself as our immortal leader to guide us - though his method in UBW was bad. But then, being an "Ally of Justice" doesn't mean being chivalrous or altruistic. Like EMIYA who has to do a lot of killings as a Counter Guardian to 'save' humanity, what Gilgamesh tried to do is what Counter Guardians do on a larger scale.

While Gilgamesh does not like individual humans, he loves humanity as a whole. Like Merlin, he doesn't like individual humans but the stories, the legacy, the achievement of humanity. He works his people very hard because he thinks that lives are worthy only if they strive to live to the fullest. He challenged people to grow because he thought protection could make them complacent and stagnant. I do not agree with this line of thinking. (But as we can see in F/E CCC, he enjoyed pushing Hakuno because he wanted "to see the story of the human Hakuno"). At the same time when people were threatened by something huge (eg, Humbaba, Altera, the Shadow, Tiamat,...), he went to fight them to protect humans.

An Epic Journey

Coming face-to-face with his own mortality set him on a quest for immortality, only to fail to gain it and eventually, he accepted that he would someday die. To Gilgamesh, it's more than the fear of death itself: "The despair that he felt was because he saw death as an end of his duty as the observer of humanity: in order to fulfill his mission completely, he wanted to observe humanity's path until its very end."

Gilgamesh wanted to escape human limitations, to get answers to questions not available to his contemporaries, and most importantly, he wanted to overcome mortality both for himself and mankind. At the end, he came to term with his limitations as a human. This completed his journey, achieving the final crucial step: By pushing himself past disappointment and grief and focusing on the needs of his people, Gilgamesh triumphed and became a nobler sort of hero. Is he a role model? No. But he can serve as a symbol for an aspect of humanity, of growing past mistakes and accepting limitations. In the end, Gilgamesh is considered a hero not just for his incredible deeds but for coming to understand and accept his true nature.

• One of Gilgamesh's achievements was the construction of the city walls of Uruk to defend his people from enemies. 
• Gilgamesh designed and beautifully remodeled the ancient Sumerian city of Uruk. 
• Uruk's flourishment speaks for itself.
• His departure from gods (despite his mother being a goddess) enabled humanity to stand on its own feet. This feat alone qualifies him as Best King in my standard.
• He protected humanity against superthreats like Humbaba.
• His wish to escape human limitations, to get answers to questions not available to his contemporaries and to overcome mortality. 
• He proclaims the worldwide glory of "He Who Saw the Deep", who shall be remembered for his wisdom, who disclosed a secret and who brought back reports of what had been before the Deluge.  
• His path was long and difficult, a road less traveled, a way of many trials and tribulations. He nevertheless completed the journey and became wiser than any on Earth, and he engraved what he had learnt on a stela for the sake of posterity. 
• He's a true renaissance man who embraced humanity advancements. For example, the future he wants to for humanity is one in which we'll emigrate to other planets and explore the universe, which is pretty awesome! Tell me how many modern leaders even have this on their mind?!

Gilgamesh wants to see exceptional things, especially people who are trying to do impossible things and have the abilities to come very close to obtaining these dreams, those who defy gods/destiny, those who never give up no matter what.

This character has so much depth and complexity that I can't put all into words.  Easily 1 of the top 3 in the Fate franchise. I take Fate/Zero Gilgamesh as canon and much closer to the complexity of his legend. Urobuchi says that he tried his best to give more dimensions to Gilgamesh but "didn't quite succeed" because he had to keep his character somewhat close to FSN. In my eyes, he has succeeded, since Fate/Zero characterization of him has set the precedent for his subsequent installments in CCC and Babylonia. 

These other instances illustrate the reasons why I came to appreciate this character:

Banquet of Kings scene - see this entry for my take on this brilliant scene.

Then:

Kirei talk with Gilgamesh (part 1)
Kirei talk with Gilgamesh (part 2)

Kirei's talks with Gilgamesh felt like therapy sessions for Kirei. Gilgamesh's read on humans is remarkable. As a little example, he could instantly tell when Kirei deliberately withheld information and lied to him. Kirei was an enigma, even to himself, and that fascinated Gilgamesh. Kirei was selected by the Grail because he had a wish worthy of it, yet he did not even know what that wish was. He did not even know what pleasure was, and just blindly believed it to be a sin as decreed by his religious faith. He was a man who was unlike others yet performed outside of his nature for he was instructed to do so.  Gilgamesh had quite the plaything in front of him to try to unwrap and enlighten. By having Kirei undertake the exercise of learning the wishes of the other Masters, Gilgamesh was able to pick up on what Kirei unconsciously was drawn to the most: the plight that Kariya Matou was suffering in his "foolhardy" attempt to save Sakura. (If you paid attention closely when Kirei was talking about Kariya, you see that he smiled for the first time in the series). As Gil pointed out to him, 'it is possible to find pleasure in suffering and tragedy'. Kirei quickly rejected the thought as inhumane and a sin, and thus something he, as a member of the Church, should reject. Yet the Grail granted him new Command Seals. Thus, with the aid of Gilgamesh's prodding, started the path of Kirei finding his own (albeit twisted) happiness, freed from being Tokiomi's minion...

This scene shows how Gilgamesh is not only a fighter or an experienced king, but a man. He has seen much of what the world has to offer and learned much in the process. According to him, one should seek pleasure instead of drowning in hypocrisy. I can’t really put it any better: This scene shows the audience how wise Gilgamesh is! (when his ego isn't talking). He taught Kirei to question doctrines. He didn't mind what Kirei chose, as long as it's his own choice. [ Not sure if I agree with the "do whatever you want as long as it pleases you" line of thought - it makes me THINK -- this is why Fate/Zero is brilliant! ]. Gilgamesh likes it when people are honest. He is also self-aware.  As an example, you can totally say he's a tyrant and an asshole to his face and he will laugh and praise your honesty (eg, Andersen, in contrast to the pretentious majority on this planet who would 100% get mad if you told them they were fat/short/thot/etc).  Everyone whom he has taken a liking to are those who never kiss up to him. He likes Kirei, Iskandar and in a terrible way, he "likes" Saber as well. There are 3 characters in the series that Gil uses the more friendly "omae" for: Enkidu, Kirei and sometimes Saber. Iskandar, he calls "sonata" which is very respectful and he only uses it for him. None of these people ever had to work to make him like them. In fact, Kirei spends most of F/Z trying to ignore and insult him. Despite this, Gil is barely ever rude to him and only threatens him once: he says if he ever tires of Kirei, he'll kill him, but considering they spend the next decade together, it just enforces how much he likes him.

"'All the evils in the world'? Bring thrice as much if you want to taint me!"

How Gilgamesh overcame All the World's Evil when he was bathed in the Grail's mud in Fate/Zero (excerpt from the Light Novel):

—A vortex started up. Sin, the evil in this world, circulated and multiplied and chained and changed as it whirled into a vortex. Gluttony lust greed depression wrath sloth hypocrisy pride envy, over and over again encroaching and sprouting, whirling into the vortex.

The crime of rebellion, the crime of intimidation, the crime of adultery, the crime of destruction, the seven cardinal sins, the crime of coercion, .............. all crimes should be assessed and sentenced to capital punishment or severe punishment. Refuse and deny all hatred. Kill kill kill. It is absolutely forbidden. Kill kill kill. He will absolutely not agree. Ah it is really boring to have only this one thought—

“—!?”

The vortex of sound that was the curse now circled. There existed something here that should not exist; from within the barrage of denying curses, a voice cried out, 

"Yes!"

Impossible. Affirmations and correctness did not exist within this cursed vortex of hatred. Because everything had determined that everything was ugly and hateful, this word could not appear here—But that voice announced again clearly, 

“That is right.”

That is right. The world was originally already like this. Since the truth has been put before your eyes, why do you sigh? Why are you surprised?

“—!?”

The voice of the curse asked, "What was right? Who was there to acknowledge it? Who was there to permit it? And who was to bear the burden of sin?"

Facing the bombshell tossed from the darkness—in reply, a resounding and concrete sneer:  "A foolish question. That goes without asking. The King will acknowledge it; the King will permit it. The King will bear the burden of the entire world."

“—!?”

The mud asked, "What is a king?"  But at the same time it asked the question, it realized it had contradicted itself. In this place that strictly did not allow the existence of entities, the mud had admitted that there was someone else within it. Some strange foreign object that could not exist had appeared here. That was—King—the presence of an absolute controller, as well as one without equal.

"His name was—King of Heroes, Gilgamesh."

“That is I!”

The black mud cracked and dispersed away, leaving flying droplets. The foreign object it could not digest even by mobilizing all its hatred appeared from within the black mud. Within the burning ruins, he once again stood upon the ground. The perfect, golden-proportioned body was no longer the spirit form that it had taken during its time as a Servant, but a true flesh body. The black mud that denied all life crystallized the impurity within itself and then abandoned it, with the result that a certain Heroic Spirit had realized his wish of obtaining a corporeal body and returning to this world.

Even standing right amid a burning hell, the majesty emanating from the body of the king made the surrounding flames afraid to come close. Gilgamesh generously bared his naked statue-like body, sneering impatiently.

Even though he felt it to be very troublesome, he could not refuse to meet battle since this was the challenge issued to him by the gods. Gilgamesh began to laugh wryly again at his status as the King of Heroes.

Also, Kirei's revival:

"The black mud which had been unable to corrupt Archer followed the path of the mana supply that had formerly linked Archer to his Master, arrived at Kotomine Kirei’s physical body and became the source of a life-force supply that substituted for a heart". Thus had Kirei revived.

Why did the mud spit Gilgamesh back out?  Because the Grail could not corrupt him even after utilizing all of its hatred. Servants are normally corrupted upon contact with the Grail, but Gilgamesh is incorruptible due to his powerful ego that can stave back the mental pollution. The anime makes it look like "being spit out of the mud" was no big deal, but this is one scene I hate Ufotable for leaving out. It's one of the reasons Gilgamesh is the most badass King - who else but he could emerge from that, even better than before?  

"I have been bearing the burden of humanity from the beginning of time".  He doesn't "break" under such burden and we all know that he will never "break". Other instances that demonstrate his strength were when his only friend died and then when his search for immortality failed, he turned pain into character growth. I like how he can stand up to everything. Strength of mind, strength of body, courage and intellect - Is there anyone else more fitting to be a King of All?

Babylonia Arc - Grand Order

It is here that Gilgamesh's good qualities really shine: He fully commits to the betterment of his kingdom and genuinely cares for his subjects. In turn, he is rewarded with their loyalty and love even in the face of destruction. He also shows a better degree of patience and tolerance when first meeting Gudao and co., testing their value by having them first perform menial tasks. Also, his interaction with Ishtarin makes for comedy gold! This Gilgamesh here is Fate/Zero Gilgamesh who is tempered and wise - the older version of him after he returned from his long quest for immortality - and rules over Uruk with more wisdom. He no longer considers Ea his greatest treasure, but the people of Uruk themselves (he gave away most weapons in his treasury to his people). This Gilgamesh is the one who has reached the depth of mankind's wisdom and has returned to instruct mankind.  However, it's not a 180° change of character - he still retains a lot of arrogance.  [ I actually like that it isn't a complete 180° change because that wouldn't be interesting anymore - especially when he brings comedy to many scenes that he's in ].  In short, older Gilgamesh is "He Who Saw the Deep", he who leads the present to the future.


Addendum: 

1. The view on Immortality in Fate (concerning Gilgamesh)
2. In Fate/Strange Fake, Gilgamesh acts as a mentor to his little Master, telling her that "children eyes should be shining with potentials and wonders" because he sees through it that the adults are using her as a figurehead, so he tells her to follow her own path, and shows her that is more in life than duty and sacrifice.  One look at this tells me that Fate/Strange Fake intends to do the Sesshomaru-Rin moe-moe relationship type with Gilgamesh-Tine :P
3. In Fate/Extra CCC, Gilgamesh learns to like Hakuno; although he scolds him from time to time, he dispenses wisdom along the way and saves his life by breaking the rule at the end.
4. In Fate/Extella, Gilgamesh offers himself as "second in command", pretending it's to honor his father's promise when he's just there to watch out for Hakuno.
5. Even in Fate/Zero, he's nice to Iskandar and Kirei, offers a bit of wisdom to Saber (by telling her she's not wrong and to continue on her path), and spares Waver out of admiration for his loyalty (while other Masters don't spare each other).
6. Gilgamesh subreddit :D

[ To be updated ]

Favorite character: Saber Nero

Some people say Nero's personality is "flat" but I disagree. Nero isn't flat. She has more personality than Arthuria. (Comparing the two is inevitable since the designer made their appearances so similar).  I really like her in Fate/Extra: Last Encore, the way she encourages her Master, the way she shares her experiences. Her lively, uplifting personality is a source of motivation for the MC. SHAFT managed to make her very cute in art, voice and manner.  Her "Imperial Privilege" is a cool ability!  She's confident and arrogant but not annoying, like a female Gilgamesh, and very entertaining to watch.

"I will set my life ablaze for the sake of those who think I am beautiful!"

Nero is passionate and energetic but not overdone. She bravely smiles and accepts her past mistakes and flaws without regret. Even though she had suffered a lot, she still tries to be the most cheerful as she can be.  She radiates that "I am a Queen!" charisma. (On the contrary, while Arthuria is noble and dignified, I don't feel that radiance from her...)

Also, I love her chemistry with Hakuno! It's more fun and friendly than Arthuria's with Shirou. In Fate/Extella, she has the most beautiful speech/moment with Hakuno ever!

My only complaint about Nero is her design:  it's Arthuria replica with big breasts. Ugh. I don't want her to look identical to Arthuria. A little change in her appearance would go a long way in distinguishing her as a character - like how a fan artist drew her in this picture on the left.

Fate series: Caster Gilgamesh Valentine scene

https://youtu.be/4taEA0YcpUQ

Gilgamesh:  "What, a gift?  From you, to me?

..... You really don't know fear, do you? 
I didn't think you would get ahead of me and give me something.

Well, I will take it as a strong point of yours.
After all, you're the idiot who got through that difficult situation with courage alone.

Then? Where is it?
Don't make me wait too much. Hurry up and hand it over!

............
Hey, is this that thing? That thing which all the Heroic Spirits are making a fuss over about?  Valentine's chocolate?

N---!
You fool! Just who do you think I am?! 
Even if I'm being more prudent now, I'm still the great King of Uruk, who collected all the treasures of the world!  
Well, Ishtar took a part of them, but, leaving that aside.  
To give me something like this...
Aren't you ashamed!? Reflect on yourself!"

[ Choices:
1. As I thought, homemade chocolates from an amateur weren't good!
2. If only we had a high-class brand shop in Chaldea! ]

"You fool! I'm not talking about quality. It's about quantity.  
This won't last two bites.  
With this amount of sweets, our banquet will be over in an instant!
Do you think that your fun time with the King will last only a few minutes?!

..... Hmph. You're truly hopeless.
But this must be the limit of a poor Master.
It can't be helped. This time, specially for you, I'll show you a real Valentine.
Follow me, Guda.
You'll learn what my Uruk (treasure) really is!"

Basically... Gilgamesh first complained about your gift, saying that 'quantity matters as much as quality'.  Then he said, "Do you think that your fun time with the king will last only a few minutes?"  ( XD )

Then he invited you on "A Whole New World" trip to see Uruk - it is his greatest treasure so it's like him showing you a part of his heart. He sure knows how to make you feel special.

Caster Gilgamesh is so nice, isn't he?  And Uruk looks absolutely stunning!  (I didn't think that ~2600BC could look that beautiful).

This is a fanservice event but an awesome scene and this is what Caster Gilgamesh would totally do.

Hellsing Ultimate: Alucard

First of all:  THE CHARACTER DESIGN OF ALUCARD IS FUCKING COOL!  His personality is uniquely interesting.  He catches your eyes every time he's on screen.  Alucard >>> any other vampire ever. of all time. He is the absolute pinnacle of vampire fiction.

Not in every vampire fiction can you see Dracula adopting a child and taking on a fatherly role. Not in every vampire fiction can you see Dracula being raped as a child. Not in any other vampire fiction can you see Dracula transform into a girl. LOL

Alucard in HELLSING ULTIMATE is a character with great depth. His sadistic and powerful yet loyal personality is explored thoroughly and he is bad-ass and dangerous - all the while makes it extremely entertaining to watch.

Part of what makes him interesting is his unbreakable spirit.  When you think about it:  The Ottoman sultan raped Alucard not for sex (maybe there's a little of it) but to send the message that the Ottomans had absolute power over Wallachia, and to break Alucard's spirit. What was his response? Instead of whining and blaming his kins for not coming to his help, he rose to power and led an army to fight the Ottoman Empire and killed his rapist.

VAN HELLSING:
What makes this scene brilliant is that you actually feel sorry for THE Dracula. When Van Hellsing told him, "You have nothing, Count! Nothing!" as he drove the stake into his heart, you forget it's the evil Dracula for a moment. It's just someone who had been utterly defeated. Van Hellsing knew Alucard wanted to die but he chose to bind him to his family which would be the greatest punishment.  We see Alucard cry remembering that moment when he almost found peace in his life, and the words Abraham said, "You have nothing" which speaks close to home considering Alucard's past and the reason he became what he is: because he lost everything.  I really wish the author would have shown us more of Alucard's past (and Integra's past) instead of The Dawn. The Dawn is pretty good but not showing what went down between the Hellsings and Alucard is kind of an important thing to skim over.

We are never offered insights into Alucard's life as Dracula, and I don't like extrapolating from Bram Stoker's Dracula because they aren't the same characters. Every novel depicts Dracula as extremely evil and vicious (eg, he steals a baby from its mom in Transylvania to feed to his brides and when the mom comes sobbing and screaming at the gates of the castle, he calls his wolves to eat her. He devours every last crew member on the Demeter ship that takes him to England, except the captain, who ties himself to the steering wheel with a crucifix and dies of exposure. When he gets to England, he scares an old man to death just because he’s passing by. He takes his sweet time draining Lucy when she has 3 men devotedly in love with her, and turns her into a vampire that eats small children. He accidentally scares Lucy’s mom to death as well while he’s draining Lucy).  Anyway, that is Dracula in other works and I would like to think that "they" are different entities from Hellsing's because they just come across so differently.  And Alucard is simply just…not that bad? He’s a monstrous fucker but…not to that extent?  Also, Hellsing's Alucard holds certain viewpoints that are vastly different from any other Dracula version, namely, his respect for people who have overcome great adversities in life, his repulsion for mindless killings (eg, a vampire kills when it doesn't need to feed itself), his self-hatred, self-reflection, etc.  Alucard is only interested in humans who are persevering despite everything, because that’s what he considers the defining (and best) trait of humanity. And that's what makes his character so relatable.

Alucard maybe a monster, blood-thirsty and battle-crazy, but he is honest about who and what he is. You may not like a person like Alucard, but you can respect a person who is honest about himself.  I think Alucard is ready to return to the light when he tells Anderson, ".... until my past is overshadowed by the greatness of my future". The affections he has for Integra and Seras are neither fake nor shallow.  Here we see a vampire who has an infinite strong will and values, who treasures real emotional bonds with the two humans (who waited 30 years for his return!). What did he do that earns this kind of loyalty from these humans? Besides the fact that they both owed him their lives, he treats these two with genuine kindness. This being had lost everything in his previous life and once again had everything taken from him by Abraham Van Hellsing 100 years ago, has finally found a belonging place with the two humans who likewise have found a home in him. This is real family bond that transcends bloodlines, species, and time.  With these people, in the present time, he has found everything he could never find as Dracula.  By the end of Hellsing Ultimate, he ends up with an adorable Master and a loyal Servant. Things he sought as Dracula and could never find.

Capable of such destruction, reveling in the carnage of war, yet somehow able to admire innocence and revere goodness, protecting it where he can, transmuting it to power as he sees fit (Seras). He is not the Dracula in Bram Stoker's novel or any other Dracula. For one, we see so much of his inner world. His will and his spirit have proven unbreakable, but he is not untouched by regret... or desire, or hope.
What really captures the essence of Alucard is the moment in the last episode when he is about to vanish: When he turns to the light of the rising sun and reminisces about his previous deaths, he is not sad or bothered by his imminent death but instead he's admiring the Sun, "And each time I think... how lovely that sunlight, which I forsook so many centuries ago..."  He still finds beauty in the world, in life itself, even when his life is at its bleakest moment. Other things, like the way he places his hand over Seras' when she was pulling the blade out of him in OVA 9, really communicate the emotion inside him. He's not just a monster. He's not a hero, either. Alucard is incredibly compelling and complex.  He still has much humanity in him, whether or not he wants to embrace it.  (More on "humanity" in my next post).

PS:   I forgot about [this interview](http://hiranomoe.com/r/read/hellsing_guidebook/en/0/1/page/5). Kouta Hirano, in regards to how Alucard became a vampire, said:  "He turned into a vampire by his own power. Not because someone turned him, or that he was a natural born vampire or anything like that. He turned into a vampire by his own will."  hahaha.. Only in Hellsing do you see an atheistic take on Dracula. I LOVE IT!

My favorite Ghibli male: Haku

Haku (Nigihayami Kohaku Nushi) in Spirited Away is easily my favorite Ghibli character.

Although Haku appears 12-year-old, his mental age is far beyond that - demonstrated by his behaviors, confidence and his real identity being a god (he’s probably as old as the river).  His thoughts are wise, and actions decisive.  Although he forgot his real name and therefore lost his identity, he retained his good side that was aware of the status quo of the world he was trapped in.  Because of his understanding of that world, he tried to save Chihiro from being consumed by it.

The moment that Haku proved himself a trustworthy character is the emotion in his eyes when Chihiro was reaching to touch his hand:  He showed a genuine relief when he’s gained her trust.  Haku appeared at Chihiro’s side at the time when she desperately needed someone.  He guided Chihiro on the right path, but didn’t hold her hand too much as to make her completely dependent on him.  When he has chosen to protect someone, he goes to great lengths to do so, even at the expense of his life (remember the scene when Yubaba said she would take his life in exchange for Chihiro’s safe return).

I always find the scene in which Haku and Chihiro were falling through the darkness into the bottomless pit spine-tingling.  For the fact that they were so close to both killing themselves at that very second, but Haku surprisingly managed to take every ounce of his inner being to stay awake and save them both from a horrible fate. 

Haku is like a calm river that breathes life into things.  Objectively, he is a better guardian to Chihiro than her parents seem to be at the beginning of the film.  At the end, even at the time of parting, Haku also gives Chihiro hope and peace of mind by reassuring her that they will meet again.

Miyazaki said that due to an attempt to keep the film’s duration to 2 hours and the fast-approaching deadline, he had to cut a lot of scenes, therefore Haku was “greatly simplified” in the film we see.  This makes me curious about what other dimensions of him that Miyazaki had in mind.  We don’t really get to know Haku as well as Howl and Ashitaka.

But, I am pleased with what I see.

When you were in the most trying period of your life and alone, frustrated and lost and the world you knew fell apart, wouldn’t it be reassuring to have someone there who put his arms around your shoulders, consoled you and told you, “It’ll be all right, I’m here”?

Itsumo nando demo

Howl's Moving Castle: Sophie

Sophie in Howl’s Moving Castle maintains a positive attitude and optimism in the face of adversities, even when she was turned into an old woman!  She’s straightforward in her thinking and actions.  Another thing that I like about her is that she was nice, but NOT the kind of “angelic niceness” that helps everyone at the expense of herself.  Remember when she refused to help the Witch of the Waste walk up the stairs?  She's a human, not an angel.  Thus, she feels ‘real’.

Sophie's curse reflects her inner emotional state: at the beginning, she is young but her soul is old because she sees herself as an old woman, eg, has no hope that anything good will happen for her, has no dream or aspiration, etc. This is why she told herself, "Your clothes finally suit you" when she became an old woman. Note that her first shift in attitude came when she had her table-smashing outburst - something that "old", repressed Sophie would never do. Her grey hair at the end of the movie indicates that the curse is still present but it doesn't hold any power over her, unless she lets it. The curse goes away when her attitude changes. Whenever she feels young, passionate or self-confident, the spell breaks. That's why she becomes young again when she's asleep, feels loved and when she loses herself in the beauty of nature... The whole point of her character is self-acceptance and inspiring the same thing in others. When she gets cursed, her appearance changes but she’s still a person that is old at heart. But although she ends up being just a housekeeper for Howl, she gains confidence because she is loved by Howl and his companions. They value her. So she starts to value herself.

But there is one thing that drops her from my list of "favorite female characters":  When the Witch of the Waste caught fire because she grabbed Calcifer, Sophie poured water on her to save her.  Calcifer had explicitly told her multiple times that his life and Howl’s life were connected in a way that if one of them died, the other would die, too.  Given that information, she should have done everything in her power to keep Calcifer alive.  After all, Howl and Calcifer were so kind to Sophie.  The Witch had never done a single nice thing for them. Instead, she had repeatedly sabotaged them despite their kindness to her. ALSO, when the Witch grabbed Calcifer, her hands weren't getting burned at all (Sophie got burned when she touched the fire, but the Witch didn't)....  So why the hell did Sophie feel the need to dump water on Calcifer?!!  In that moment, Sophie gave up both Howl’s and Calcifer’s lives for the witch's life… She realized a few minutes later that she messed up and cried.  Yes, I understand how movies always try to preach “always be nice to people no matter what”; however, "always helping others at great costs to yourself" is not a motto I would live by.  Sophie would gain more respect from me if she could prioritize and think more rationally in stressful situations.  It was by pure luck that Howl and Calcifer survived that catastrophe.  If it wasn't, it would be the biggest mistake which she would live to regret.