At the end of every year here at Ogiue Maniax, I pick my favorite characters of the year. Usually, it’s one male character and one female character, but exceptions have been made for, say, nonbinary characters or, well, personified abs. So now that I’ve picked characters from 2010 all the way through 2019, it’s time to decide the best characters of the decade!
Note that I’ve taken three important characters out of the running—Ogiue Chika from Genshiken Nidaime, Daidouji Tomoyo from Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card, and Yang Wen-Li (Legend of the Galactic Heroes: De Neue These). The reason is simple: They are three of my absolute favorite characters of all time, and I would easily pick them if they were available as options. Ogiue, Tomoyo, and Yang deserve their own hall of fame. so to keep this competition fair, they’ve been excluded.
THE FINALISTS
Koibuchi Kuranosuke (Princess Jellyfish)
Kurumi Erika, aka Cure Marine (Heartcatch Precure!)
Kaburagi T. Kotetsu, aka Wild Tiger (Tiger & Bunny)
Tsurugi Minko (Hanasaku Iroha)
Nishimi Kaoru (Sakamichi no Apollon: Kids on the Slope)
Yanagin (Daily Lives of High School Boys)
Armin Arlert (Attack on Titan)
Ichinose Hajime (Gatchaman Crowds)
Sei Iori (Gundam Build Fighters)
Kiryuuin Satsuki (Kill la Kill)
Andy and Frank (Yowamushi Pedal)
Sunakawa Makoto (My Love Story!!)
Koizumi Hanayo (Love Live! The School Idol Movie)
Yurakutei Yakumo (Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju)
Shidare Hotaru (Dagashi Kashi)
Kevin Anderson (right) (Tiger Mask W)
Mauve (ACCA 13-Territory Inspection Dept.)
White Blood Cell 1146 (Cells at Work!)
Aisaki Emiru (Hugtto! Precure)
Wataya Arata (Chihayafuru Season 3)
Emma (The Promised Neverland)
And the winners are…
Armin Arlert (Attack on Titan)
Kurumi Erika, aka Cure Marine (Heartcatch Precure!)
Of these two decisions, one was incredibly easy to make and one I mulled over for many hours leading up to this. Kurumi Erika was a no-brainer—her energy, ability to inspire action and positive change, her all-too-human behavior, and her legendary facial expressions all make her an unforgettable character in my eyes. She’s simply amazing in a way few characters are, and it’s clear that many anime fans agree with me, given her ranking as the third most popular Precure in the recent massive NHK poll.
As for Armin, it was a closer call, but what ultimately made me land on him is what he represents in Attack on Titan. The series’s world is one where fear reigns and unthinking violence is often born out of the frustration of not knowing if you’ll survive to the next day. But Armin Arlert shows the value of having a more considerate and broad-minded view of the world, and the way he complements Eren and Mikasa further highlights how important and necessary it is to have individuals like Armin in the world to subtly challenge assumptions. He’s brave without being brash and thoughtful without being hopelessly indecisive.
Erika and Armin are characters who I wish could inspire many more both in media and in people themselves, and I declare them my favorite anime characters of the 2010s.
OGIUE MANIAX 