As a fangirl, not only do I have my favorite TV Shows, movies, and books, but I also have many characters that I love from my favorite shows, movies, and books. Today, I’m going to countdown my top ten favorite male characters (don’t worry; I’ll do female characters in my next article).
Minor spoilers for the following shows/movies/books: Reign, Game of Thrones, Avatar the Last Airbender, Vampire Diaries, Star Wars, Hakouki, and The Mortal Instruments (book) also known as Shadowhunters (the TV Shows). They will be minor spoilers and I’ll avoid anything major, but I still wanted to warn you.
- Francis
Francis is from the TV show Reign. He starts off as a prince and eventually becomes king. He tries his best to be a good king, to help his kingdom. He knows how to fight and he really loves Mary, who is supposed to become his Queen. His character development and arcs really take him to an interesting place, seeing his hopes and dreams of being a good king who helps his queen’s kingdom as well as his own, and they sort of crush that and it takes him to this entertaining place that gives me and other fans of him a lot of feels.
- Robb Stark
Rob Stark is from Game of Thrones. He’s ruggedly handsome and immediately likeable. He starts off as a boy in his development with little cares in the world and ends up having way more responsibility than he’s ready for. He made a major mistake that cost him dearly and although that’s really great character development, it totally crushed me and everyone else. That – That was just… I’m pretty sure we’re still shocked about that one. Too soon?
- Jon Snow
Jon Snow is from Game of Thrones and is Rob Stark’s illegitimate brother. I love how discarded he is and how he feels so unimportant. He joins a fighting force that’s literally criminals. Eventually, he gets close with several of the men and they go through so much together. He makes a few mistakes of his own and just… GAH. He goes through so much and I won’t say he’s come through unscathed.
- Zuko
Zuko is from the show Avatar the Last Airbender. His development is literally one of the best I’ve ever seen in a show or movie, with the exception of Anakin Skywalker. He starts off in one direction and he makes many mistakes, overcomes many obstacles, learns along the way. He grows and changes, and he’s someone we all fangirl and root for. He becomes strong not just in a he’s-an-epic-fighter sense but in every other area as well. You know when you can easily root for a character, then they’re a good one.
6. Damon Salvatore
Damon is from the Vampire Diaries. Honestly, he really needs no introduction. He’s basically the definition of tall, dark, and handsome. He’s sarcastic. Man, his one-liners literally make me smile and laugh all the time. He’s one of those characters that you never know what he’s going to do and it’s not even a spoiler to say that he’s a good-guy-bad-guy-good-guy because that’s constantly changing. He is one of the most enjoyable characters in the Vampire Diaries TV Show (I didn’t read the books – sorry) and I love him so much. I couldn’t get enough of him.
5. Kanan Jarrus
Kanan is from Star Wars Rebels. At first, I was wary of the show and wasn’t sure if I was gonna like it. Then I watched it and loved it because it stayed true to the Star Wars fandom, which is pretty much my favorite fandom ever (no offense to all my other ones). Not only is he the only Jedi in the show, but he’s one of those characters that is unsure of himself. He’s supposed to teach a younger Force-sensative, but he himself was only a Padawan and never completed his training. He’s tough and self sacrificing and will do anything to protect his friends and wants to see the Empire fall. What more could you ask for? This show gave him a beautiful, perfect end, even though the fangirl in me is still protesting about it.
4. Jamie Fraser
Jamie is from the TV show Outlander. Now, this is my most recent TV show I’ve been introduced to and I’ve only seen up to Season 4 Episode 4 since I can’t watch it on TV. He’s a redheaded hunk of a Scotsman and his accent is just one of his many admirable traits. He’s a fighter, strong-willed, stubborn. He goes through so, so much and is forced to change and adapt and learn, and he does and his development takes him on a massive character arc that I’m honestly not sure where it’s going, but I’m excited. Seriously, his accent though *swoons*
3. The Shinsengumi
This one is from the anime called Hakouki and I put this here simply because there are five men in this group of samurai called the Shinsengumi and I love them all. I literally couldn’t choose, so I’m counting them as one. Even though the anime has fictional elements, the basic idea of the Shinsengumi as a group of samurai fighting in the last samurai war, called the Boshin War, is actually historical, and all of these guys were real. There’s my ultimate favorite, Hijikata and he was the Vice Commander and eventually the Commander. He’s stern, serious, strategic, and a skilled fighter (which he was all those in real life). Souji was the youngest and rumored to be the most skilled swordsmen in the group. Harada and Nagakura were two others that I really loved and in the show they had a really cool brotherly dynamic. And Heisuke is the last because he’s young and spunky and fun in the show. I literally couldn’t choose. Go watch it for yourself, just – just get some tissues ready.
2. Jace Lightwood (Morgenstern, Herondale, Wayland)
Jace is from the book series called The Mortal Instruments written by Cassandra Clare but they’ve recently made a TV show called Shadowhunters. Some fans hate it but I love it and I love what they’ve done with it, how they’ve changed it, but still stayed true to the books as well. He’s a fighter and sarcastic. The arc he has with his main love interest, Clary, is only half of why I love him. I mean, he has lots of daddy issues, which creates lots of conflict inside him and thus, a MASSIVE character arc from one book to another and another and the show really expressed this so much and expanded upon it and I seriously can’t wait for the final season (it was canceled but they are giving us a final season in the spring to tie up all loose ends).
1. Anakin Skywalker
Anakin is from Star Wars. Naturally, this is my favorite one. I mean, even people who aren’t Star Wars fans pretty much knows that he becomes one of the greatest villains of all times. His turn to the Dark Side and the slow way it happened, what led up to it, is one of the greatest if not the greatest character arc on screen. I mean, he’s a fighter, he has a lot of pent-up anger, he wants to become powerful, he’s conflicted, scarred from his past… What’s not to love? He does everything he does for his wife and in the end, well, he just suffers and finally, hope is restored and it’s just… breathtaking.
Well, there you have it; my top ten favorite male characters. Whether you agree or disagree, there they are. I hope you enjoyed this list and follow my blog for more nerdy articles, writing advice, and Christian devotionals. I’ll be doing my favorite female leads list in my next one!
