Animated Characters

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xsherryxcherryx

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What features do you believe make an animated character enjoyable to watch? It has been said time and time again that shows with likable characters are generally more successful than those without likable characters, but what exactly makes a character likable? Tastes vary, I understand, which is why I wanted to create this thread in order to discuss this issue. I would like to ask a some questions; I hope that you will all take the time to answer them, though feel free to digress and explain your views further.

Do you prefer heroes or villains? Do you prefer comedic characters or serious characters? Does a character?s ethnicity or gender influence your opinions? Do you prefer characters who develop over the course of the series, or characters who stay the same throughout the series?

Finally, what is your ideal character? In other words, what features would a character require in order to become your new favorite character?
 
I wholly think that what makes a good character is that they're not a total (CENSORED) like many I won't mention here. If said character is someone's best friend then they have to act like one: be there for their time of need, comfort them in their woes and troubles, literally drop everything they're doing to help someone else. That is a true best friend and not some monkey who leaves his friend with the resturant bill. To me, a likeable character has heart. Sure, if they are going to have a cheeky streak, they'd still have to know when to draw the line and not go overboard.

To me, a character I'd get to like is someone who is caring, sweet and so loveable it'll be hard to hate (without making them annoying), preferably females. Male characters I'd like are the type who aren't brain-dead morons who can't cope with anything on their own but someone who is dependent and yet still makes minor mistakes any man can make. Mainly, father figures or kind big brother types get my vote.

And I tend to swing towards comical characters too, the kind that are silly and still maintain their own style of "proper" sense but not be totally stupid: Sort of like a mix of Ed (Ed, Edd n Eddy) and Mr Scatterbrain (The Mr Men Show).

As for gender and race? I'm not bothered by either so long as these sort of characters stay well away from being typcasted as stereotypical shells.
 
A really good cartoon character is one whom you could imagine actually having a conversation with if said character were real. I can easily imagine having a nice chat with any of the Looney Tunes characters, for instance (except perhaps with the Tasmanian Devil). They all seem to have intellectual and emotional lives, aside from their roles as slapstick comedians. Spongebob comes close to this prerequisite, as does Squidward. Many of the characters in Pixar movies also have that depth: Mike and Sully, Remy, Crush, Woody, Jessie, Hamm, ...these are characters that have well-rounded personalities, who don't have to stoop to abject stupidity to come off as funny. And I agree with AardvarkDog about how good-guy characters should behave: a friend should act like a friend; someone who loves someone else shouldn't be cruel to that person for a "laugh"; and you should be able to tell a hero from a villian by the hero's behavior, and not just because his name is in the cartoon's title. The hero/heroes should be people you can root for, not obnoxious brats you wish the villian would pound into poo. Oh, and just to make this crystal clear: stupid does not automatically equal funny. God how I wish more toon writers understood that...:sad:
 
Good Design: interesting, eye catching characters will catch on.
Good voices: add to originality
Cuteness: chicks dig it.
Humour: put a smile on the veiwers face.
Use a wide use of emotions: e.g. just because the character is moody doesn't mean that it's his/her only emotion.
 
Amen to that! Honestly, I'm sick of overacting, obnoxious stupid characters everywhere in cartoons these days, it's really poor writing. I find characters who are low-key stupid (Patrik from Spongebob for example) far funnier than characters who are high-key stupid (far too many to name.) :yawn:
 
It all depends on how much interest there is in a character and as to what he or she does. I hate mean characters that act like that,
 
Typically I like them when they're original, paticulary their personality, character design, and voice. Thats why I don't like some characters in Anime such as Brooke who's basicly an odd twist of Jack Skelington who's yet another old pervert. I also don't like alot of the characters Tom Kenny voices as some are okay but his voice is just used too much to me.
 
Overused Cartoon Cliches of Modern Times
1) Hoping Tom Kenny, who voices the popular character Spongebob, will make your show popular.

I find a lot of new cartoons use him...not cool. Not cool at all, it's just plain weird to see him all over the place. :sweat:
 
Personally, I don’t care how many animated programs he provides voices for, as long as he puts effort into each voice. His work on “Brandy & Mr. Whiskers” and “Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends” sounds completely different than his work on “SpongeBob SquarePants”, so I have no problem with him.

Granted, some voice actors have made a living providing the same voice over and over. I’m looking at you, Patrick Warburton. I would complain about it, but his work is awesome and the voice always seems to fit the character.
 
Character development,jokes that are actually funny (not fart and gross-out gags),decent-to-excellent animation,interesting storytelling and shows that don't talk down to their viewers basically.Who acutally try to engage them.
 
Both. But villains have to be exceptional. Shego and Drakken exceptional
serious character with sarcastic or dry humour. Yes. Nearly all my favorite characters are girls. With a few exceptions
a developing character can bring surprizes. So I probably prefer that but have liked steady state characters too.
A normal figure, hair that moves (like in the wind or running), cute outfits, acrobatic action, sarcastic dry or even a dark sense of humour :raven:, a wide range of emotions and friends.
 
Generally I prefer heroes, but often a good villain is needed in order to make the heroes heroic. Of course, my all-time favorite type of shows are comedies with no clear-cut heroes or villains; I prefer when every character's not clear-cut 'black' or 'white', but rather everyone is merely painted in various shades of gray.



Overall, comedic. Despite my reputation on the net as a cynical, jaded, nitpicking crank, I love to laugh. But of course, there's nothing wrong with a character who is generally serious but who can also goof around at times or a generally funny character who can get serious when it's required.



In the case of ethnicity, I generally try not to make that a factor, as I try not to see colors, but there are times when it can't be helped. In the case of gender, yes and no. Many of my favorite characters tend to be female, sometimes accidentally, sometimes not. It could be an unconscious thing, or it could be because I do like to see dynamic and interesting female characters whenever possible.



Very good question. Hmm....

For a character to make my favorites list, they would have to be funny, strong, and capable of holding their own in conflict. They have to be doers as opposed to reactors, characters who make things happen rather than ones whom things just happen to. They must be nice and appealing, but not wimps or doormats. It helps if they are in some way "larger than life" and are capable of pushing some boundaries. And it's a plus if they have an edge to them; not mean, but just a hint of spice.
 
Just wanted to say, you make great threads, The_Huntsman. :)

Do you prefer heroes or villains?

Um, I guess I would say heroes, but my favorite type of show is a show that doesn't have set heroes or villains, like The Simpsons for example. Some characters can show off antagonistic traits but they're not villains, per se.

Do you prefer comedic or serious characters?

I'm leaning toward comedic, though I guess I would say my favorite type of character would those who are comedic with a serious side when necessary. I love comedies that can pull off dark episodes every now and then.

Does a character’s ethnicity or gender influence your opinions?

I try to let ethnicity not get in the way of me liking a character, as I don't find their race to matter; but if a character acts like a racial stereotype, I tend to not like them. Gender doesn't influence me at all.

Do you prefer characters who develop over the course of the series, or characters who stay the same throughout the series?

It really depends on the type of show it is. Character development is always good, though.

Finally, what is your ideal character? In other words, what features would a character require in order to become your new favorite character?

Well for one, I don't like characters who are too "black or white", i.e too Mary-sueish or too villainous for no apparent reason. I like characters who's personalities are well-balanced, not too one-sided or one-dimensional. I don't think likable characters needs to necessarily always be sweet, good, and kind. There are theoretically unlikable characters like Eric Cartman that have a certain spark that makes you like them, even though you'd most likely hate them in real life. Ideal characters to me have to be endearing and charming in a way. You should be able to relate to them on some level, or at least be able to feel for them. Basically, my ideal character is a likable and dynamic one.
 
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