The end of the year is always my favorite time to reflect back on the stories I enjoyed most. A big reason is usually because the characters in the story are either so endearing or so compelling that I can’t help but feel moved by their journey. Especially in this day and age when character focused stories are the norm, it often pays off for writers to focus on making the central characters appealing to the readers/audience in a way that compels them to want to continue the story. These characters were the ones I loved most during 2025 that made me feel a variety of emotions that made the story so much more interesting and exciting.
5. Monica Everitt from Secrets of the Silent Witch
I’m a big fan of witches. I love the design and the magical elements of witches in all sorts of media. When I saw the trailer for Secrets of the Silent Witch, I thought it would be a fun anime with cool action scenes and cute moments. I was surprised how well written Monica was as a character as well as how moving and touching her personal story was. It’s especially moving for anyone who has social anxiety and understands how difficult it is to be in social situations and terrified about making the wrong decisions. Seeing her growth through the show was wonderful as she slowly felt more courageous and comfortable being herself.
4. Tokai Teio from Umamusume: Pretty Derby
Umamusume is a strange concept that is incredibly captivating. It’s basically real life race horses portrayed as anime girls who race each other. It’s basically a sports anime but based on real life horseracing in Japan. What’s interesting is how the anime builds a story around real life racing events and some of those stories are actually really good. Tokai Teio’s story in Season 2 of Umamusume: Pretty Derby was so incredibly moving that the miracle run actually brought me to tears. The pacing was so incredibly well done and the highs and lows Teio experienced made her journey so incredibly touching. Her story was a story about perseverance no matter how many setbacks she faced.
3. Midoriya Izuku from My Hero Academia
My Hero Academia is an series that has been going on for a very very long time now and many, myself included, wondered how the series would end after going on for so long. The manga eventually concluded with a lot of mixed reactions but this was a series I was more familiar with the anime rather than the manga as that’s how I started with it. One of the core things about Midoriya that makes him such an endearing hero is that he’s not afraid to show a wide arrange of emotions as he learns to become courageous and becomes a self-sacrificing hero that genuinely wants to help people, even his own enemies. Him and the supporting cast of characters made My Hero Academia one of my favorite stories ever.
2. Talulah from Arknights: Rise from Ember
The classic fallen hero archetype is one that I always enjoyed when done well. The tragedy behind the fall is often the most crucial aspect of why the character’s fall is so emotionally charged. The tragedy of Talulah was so poignant because, like Amiya and Rhodes Island, Talulah and Reunion was initially a force for good meant to protect and help the infected. Talulah was a hero to the infected of Ursus and she wanted them to live in peaceful coexistence with the rest of Ursus despite how mistreated they were. Seeing her optimism slowly erode as she’s faced with hard decisions and betrayals as she struggles to keep everyone alive was so sad. But the moment that broke her was so depressing and harrowing that it made sense why she had fallen. The game (more like visual novel) portrayed the scene really well but the anime made it so much more heartbreaking.
1. Phainon from Honkai Star Rail
It’s one thing to learn how a hero falls to become a villain, but it’s another thing to witness how a hero must play the role of villain to save the ones they love most. Experiencing the story side by side with the hero, witnessing their righteous conviction to bear the weight of the world and watching as their indomitable will slowly crack becomes a shell of what we once knew them to be creates a sad and deep longing for something to go right for them. That is who Phainon is in Honkai Star Rail’s Amphoreus arc. He is such a loveable and endearing character from the very start of the story that seeing him experience one of the cruelest and most twisted trials in order to save not only his world but the whole universe makes him a character you can’t help but hope the best for. You want to see him succeed and witness his horrifying struggle mean something in the end.
These were my five favorite characters of the year and some of my favorite archetypes. I think it’s important, as a writer, to experience a variety of stories that portray the types of characters you want to write. It really helps to understand how to approach difficult stories and different ways to write those kinds of characters. I can’t wait to experience more stories next year with even more endearing and wonderful characters!
– Raphael
Raph's Cozy Musings 