Who are your favorite characters and why?

[Back in Black-Snow]

Thank you all so much for participating! I went to bed and then to work this morning and didn't have time to read or keep up.

Not that I ever post for views and responses, but I don't think I have ever had an OP with as many views or responses.

I just got the ball rolling, I guess. But thank you.

One point of clarification, though. I do want to stress that I was asking for your favorite characters based on how they were written in the text (and I guess how well you think GRRM did writing that particular character).

I am so happy with the responses so far (please keep them coming)! And thank you all again.

Edited September 5, 2023 by Back in Black-Snow
clarification

[Alester Florent]

Favourites:

• Jaime
• Renly
• Wyman Manderly
• Dolorous Edd
• Varys
• Littlefinger (yeah, I know, shoot me)

 

 

[Back in Black-Snow]

47 minutes ago, Alester Florent said:

Littlefinger (yeah, I know, shoot me)

In my opinion, Petyr Baelish is one of the best minor characters George has put on paper. But I won't get physical with anyone about it.

[Alester Florent]

8 minutes ago, Back in Black-Snow said:

In my opinion, Petyr Baelish is one of the best minor characters George has put on paper. But I won't get physical with anyone about it.

He's genuinely witty, and enlivens every scene he's in even before you're wondering what his angle is. He's a terrible person, but he makes for great reading. Renly, Jaime, Edd and Wyman I do genuinely like; Littlefinger is one who I like reading, and (selfishly) want to survive and prosper so that I can read more of him.

[Back in Black-Snow]

39 minutes ago, Alester Florent said:

He's genuinely witty, and enlivens every scene he's in even before you're wondering what his angle is. He's a terrible person, but he makes for great reading. Renly, Jaime, Edd and Wyman I do genuinely like; Littlefinger is one who I like reading, and (selfishly) want to survive and prosper so that I can read more of him.

I'm not sure if I should say this or not, but Little Finger and Tyrion Lannister are very similar characters. We just happen to have Tyrion's POV.

[Nevets]

Characters that are fun to read:

Jaime - I love that dry wit of his.  His chapters are full of snarky comments.

Stannis - Funny as hell even, or especially, when he is being absolutely serious.  His meetings with Renly and with Jon are a delight to read.

Olenna Tyrell - Queen of Thorns indeed.

Tyrion - Another character whose chapters are fun with lots of interesting commentary.  Don't care for the later ADWD chapters though.

Littlefinger - His interactions with other characters are fun to read.  And he has multiple layers to him.  It can take multiple re-reads to realize that he is actually one of the worst people in the series.  It's well hidden.

Edited September 5, 2023 by Nevets

[Roswell]

Who are your favorite characters and why?

1.  Daenerys - Because I love the character and what she brings to the story. 

2  Barristan - He has lived a long life of honor while serving a long line of unworthy men.  He has found a redemptive arc and now serves the most worthy monarch of all in Dany. 

3. Missandei - Has a major role to play.  I feel she has a big part because of her talents for reading emotions. 

[Ser Arthurs Dawn]

2 hours ago, Nevets said:

Stannis - Funny as hell even, or especially, when he is being absolutely serious.  His meetings with Renly and with Jon are a delight to read.

He really is though, what's that about?? The below excerpt makes me cackle every time I read it..

Quote

“Knows me,” cried one of the ravens the maester had left behind. It flapped its big black wings against the bars of its cage.

“Knows,” it cried again.

Stannis turned. “Stop that noise.”

I sometimes call him "the stoic weirdo from hell".

[SeanF]

13 hours ago, Ser Arthurs Dawn said:

He really is though, what's that about?? The below excerpt makes me cackle every time I read it..

I sometimes call him "the stoic weirdo from hell".

Stannis can be very funny.

I love his humiliation of Janos Slynt, at the end of ASOS, and then that single nod of approval, after Jon lops his head off.

[csuszka1948]

16 hours ago, Ser Arthurs Dawn said:

He really is though, what's that about?? The below excerpt makes me cackle every time I read it..

I sometimes call him "the stoic weirdo from hell".

 

This excerpt gives me the feeling that Stannis will lose to Ramsay. The ravens (BR and Bran) are trying to warn him that he should listen to Theon's advice, but he ignores them.

[kissdbyfire]

15 minutes ago, csuszka1948 said:

This excerpt gives me the feeling that Stannis will lose to Ramsay. The ravens (BR and Bran) are trying to warn him that he should listen to Theon's advice, but he ignores them.

I don’t think so. Bran and Bloodraven are working through the ravens to convince Stannis not to burn Theon but rather bring him in front of the weirwood. 

[Takiedevushkikakzvezdy]

8 minutes ago, kissdbyfire said:

I don’t think so. Bran and Bloodraven are working through the ravens to convince Stannis not to burn Theon but rather bring him in front of the weirwood. 

For what purpose, though?

[kissdbyfire]

29 minutes ago, Takiedevushkikakzvezdy said:

For what purpose, though?

It’s a long-ish story... You can read the essay here: 

https://forthehearttree.wordpress.com/2023/01/05/theon-and-the-heart-tree/

[Rosetta Stone]

1. Daenerys
2. Visenya
3. Aegon the Conqueror
4. Barristan Selmy
5. Greyworm
6. Jorah
7. Walder Frey
8. Drogon

[The Lord of the Crossing]

On 9/4/2023 at 7:35 AM, Back in Black-Snow said:

I would rather focus on who you like based on how they are written by the author.

My favorite characters are Dany, Asha, Jorah, and Barristan.  George was excellent in their chapters but I put them on the list because I like them.  Jorah does not have his own chapters but he is a good supporting character. 

I don't like Theon but I also cannot deny that he is written very well by the author. 

 

[Here's Looking At You, Kid]

1. Dany is the one whose chapters bring me the most enjoyment in reading.  I like the larger than life character and her story is equally large in its scope.  I am not only talking about the magic and the grandeur of the dragons.  Her story also covers a big area with a lot of cultures and people.  It is wide in terms of time as well.  She takes the reader back to thousands of years in the past through her dreams and visions.

2. Barristan.  I can see myself traveling with Barristan while looking to serve and protect young Dany.  Two old soldiers in the last half of their lives looking for Dany.  We are two old soldiers who question the past and look to future for a great cause to serve. 

[StarkTullies]

My favorite POV characters (in regard to likeability): Jon Snow, Ned Stark, Brienne Tarth, Sam Tarly, Bran Stark, Sansa Stark (post-Ned's death), and Quentyn Martell.  Ignoring awkward age differences in regard to the young children, I would be friends with any of them.  None of them are perfect, but they are all genuinely kind and caring people.

Jon befriended his enemies and stood up for Sam against his bullies, Ned is an honorable great guy, Brienne has one of the strongest moral codes in the story, Sam constantly struggles against his fears to always try to do the right thing, Bran is a kind and innocent child mostly immune to the non-stop tragedies around him, Sansa learns from her mistakes to overcome her past undesirable traits to continually become a better person, and Quentyn is a poor conflicted young man caught between trying to be a good person and trying to please his father (with the two things not always aligned).

My favorite POV characters (in regard to reading enjoyability):  It depends on the book.  Theon (I think he is the best-developed character in the series, and his breakdown in Book 2 and then build-up in Book 5 are my favorite chapters in the series).  Ned (his story is the heart of A Game of Thrones).  Cersei (a diabolical lunatic, but her deranged thoughts are so entertaining in a dark and disturbing way).  Catelyn, Book 3 (seeing her world fall apart leading to the tragic Red Wedding is terribly sad but well-written).  Daenerys, Books 1 and 5 (I'm no DanyFan, but her character development in these two books are great).  Jon Snow, Books 3 and 5 (this is where he solidifies his role as a great leader and my favorite character, and the multiple angles of his story juggling the WIldlings, Others, southern politics, Stannis and Melisandre are intriguing).  Tyrion, Books 2 and 3 (all of his political machinations in Kings Landing are incredibly interesting and his way of thinking is interesting despite how much I loathe him).

Favorite Non-POV characters:  Too many to list, so I will just say that Brienne of Tarth has some amazing traveling companions in A Feast for Crows.  Septon Meribald and Dog, Podrick Payne, Hyle Hunt, Dick Crabb, the Elder Brother, Gendry... I love them all.

[The Stannis Inquisition]

I like Stannis and his whole dark, twisted court. That prologue in ACoK at Dragonstone really cemented them as my favorites in the series and are what got me to continue reading. I always thought it brought to mind a sort of warped take on the Arthurian mythos.

[Aline de Gavrillac]

I like reading the POVs of the characters which I like.  This is character-driven, coming of age story.  My favorite of all is Daenerys.  I find myself enjoying the stories in Slaver's Bay and the Dothraki Sea much more than the one in Westeros.  

1. Daenerys
2. Brienne
3. Quentyn
4. Barristan

Among the non-povs, I like Greyworm, Missandei, and Belwas.  Goofy Belwas is a really fun character.  

[Arthur Peres]

1- Robb

2- Ned

3- Arya

4- Davos

5 - Theon

6- Oberyn

7- Tyrion

8 - Euron