AAA'07 Awards - Best Character

Man, what is anime without its characters right? They themselves are the very symbols of anime. When someone says "I wanna draw anime!", they sure ain't talking about the scenery! Love them or hate them, they are pinnacle to the anime's success.

The following characters are chosen based on their motivational values, personality, and of coz how much I enjoy watching them :) Here they are, from number 5:





Guchuko is born in the fridge, is a cute blob with eyes, and is always running around with a scythe, cutting everything in her path. Interesting enough for you? If that ain't enough, see what she did to someone's door:



To get out she cuts the door open, then out of courtesy she tapes the door back together again. This, my friends, is PURE WIN :D

This is tsundere-moe in its purest form! She's angry and is capable of cutting and burning someone to a crisp, but she has this fluffy white exterior and blushes when someone gives her a truffles ball. When she does something good in return, she hides immediately out of shyness XD moe~

Quoting from epicwin.org, "A purple-haired, scythe-wielding, beamspamming, tsundere moe blob? Come on, how can you NOT love it?" XD agreed!

Click here to see her antics.





Kaiji is a jobless bum and a petty criminal. What's there not to like?

Ok ok, putting aside his nose, he's really quite a character. He often fights the battle between protecting himself and trusting others, very much like what we're dealing with in real life.

Except, his situation is more dire. He owes someone a lot of money, and the only way to recover that money is through gambling. One of the best moments in the anime comes when he contemplates on whether he should walk the path of no return.

Unlike his predecessor Akagi (the mahjong legend), he's not always the clear winner. He might be smart, but his wavering confidence in the gamble and the people themselves makes him more human than the typical main character genius. When he gets betrayed, or when he's making a very difficult decision, you can really feel his emotions flowing. He really has a gambler's mindset, which is perfect for the anime!



He also has a realistic sense of confidence. He cheers when he finds a solution, gets worried about the slightest mistake and cries when someone else does something inhumane. He's very naive and learns along the way about man's evildoings.

Standing up, getting smacked in the face, and standing up again having hopes in the humanity of it, all this adds realism to Kaiji's personality, putting him in my number 4 spot.





Does this girl need any introduction at all? :D

For obvious reasons, it is very interesting to see a girl otaku. Especially one in such a zanny show like Lucky Star. She has a lot of likable traits in an anime comedy: she's friendly, outgoing, cheerful and really quirky at times. Her personality can really rub off on you!

And she can be really moe at times too :3 It's no wonder that she was voted 7th most moe character by the popular 2channel forum this year. Luckily I got her figurine for my birthday (thanks sze!)



Since she's into anime and games, any fan would feel familiar with her, including me. I love it when she gets overjoyed and explains (in hardcore fashion) about the things that she likes, which enriches her character.

For example, she boasts that she can name all the Pokemon monsters *gasp!*, plays H-games for fun (ohhh yeaaahh), and controls a male character in an mmorpg (virtually married to a female character controlled by a guy XD)

Mix all this with her eccentricity (and some Kyoto Animation magic) and you'll have some really great chemistry with the other characters as well. She can solely make the other characters shine. She best partners with tsundere majesty Kagami, it's seriously fun to watch their interaction as Konata tries to slyly outtalk Kagami while Kagami tries to brush off her hardcore talk XD

Really, what is Lucky Star without Konata?





I am SO not the fan of wimpy Gainax male leads, until this year!

Simon starts off as this under-confident little boy from an underground city, conforming to what others ask him to do. Immediately, he reminds you of Evangelion's Shinji, and you start sighing endlessly. Typically, he would grow up to be an emo kid, who would contemplate to slit his throat anytime.

And yes, it did turn out that way for some episodes. Unlike Shinji though, he has a role model to follow: the great Kamina, or Aniki (big bro) as Simon likes to call him.

You notice that he grows, not in his height, but his character. He grows not within time, but within anger, regrets, love, hate and many human feelings that make his character rich.

Suddenly, after a while, he has become stronger and people started respecting him. He starts showing signs of confidence and self-motivation. With you realising his steady growth, he becomes this super awesome dude that kinda reflect Kamina's personality, but is different altogether. It's really great to have two awesome guys in one show, eh?

This journey from boy to man epic-fy the story further, and is (i love to say this:) a pure joy to watch. His character is rich with slow and concise transition in persona, and that alone is enough to make him drill into my number 2 spot.

SPOILER: Click to see Simon in all his glory (don't worry, it's not that kind of pic)

But hey, who is Simon without Kamina right? :D

To sum up Kamina in one word: AWESOME. Everything he does is awesome, from the way he holds his sword to the shape of his cool shades. Oh, and let's not forget his crazy super go-getter attitude! So you better not forget this word: AWESOME.

Seriously, watch the show for yourself. Everything he does shouts this word: AWESOME.

He is the very engine of the cast. I would say that his character is centric to the world of Gurren Lagann. It is a given that he is chosen as the big boss of the "Great Gurren Brigade". When it seems like the Human Eradication Army is wiping them out, you can count on Kamina to shout a few crazy words, and off the team goes with hopes of winning!

And he really has a way with words! His speech could be more powerful than what's written under that big picture in some big motivational poster. It's not really the words that matter, it's the way he says it. His character is really brought to life by his desire to motivate others, especially that wimpy Simon. Heck, even a Gainax male lead couldn't help but become great under Kamina's care!



The coolest part of him is actually how reckless he can really be. He says, "If there's a wall, we'll break it! If there's no road, we'll pave it with our own hands!", when in fact that wall is really super hard and that paved road will lead to disaster.

But that's the point right? To overcome the crazy odds! Kamina's energy has rubbed off on me, just like how it did to the newcomers of the brigade. I was at the edge of my seat when they had to do the impossible. It's like as if I'm part of his crew! To top it off, after the *tut tut spoiler moment #1* he has become even more powerful and become the man of all men. It is after that moment when he truly shines!

Therefore, the number one spot this year can only be reigned by Kamina-sama, due to his energy, his manliness, and his AWESOMENESS :D


Alright that's all. Stay tuned for the last page of the AAA'07 Awards: The Best of the Best!