What does a colossal nerd do when he finally gets a free evening? He uses a spreadsheet and a scoring system to try and rank his all-time favorite heroes!
I've been wanting to do this ever since I ranked my favorite stories, but with characters, I knew I would have a much longer list (I mean, seriously, great stories often have at least two or three really, really great heroes!). Because the list was going to be so massive, I felt I needed a system to help me be somewhat objective in how I scored everyone. This seemed like it would be a lot of fun, but I was also kinda worried it wouldn't be accurate. I was rating blindly, not comparing between characters for my first time around, and I felt sure the math would show things that weren't necessarily true. However, I was surprised to see how well this system reflect how I feel! There was even a big surprise for my two HTTYD heroes.
So, if you're interested, please click the "read more"!
Sadly, I'm sure that image is gonna be super small, so you'll want to open it in a new window.
I was really hoping this scoring system would allow me to answer the age-old question: "Who do you like more, Hiccup or Toothless?" Boy, when I first met the online fandom, I felt super conflicted. I relate so much to Hiccup... he's kinda my anchor in the story, my touch point, and he's used to convey so many of the great themes of HTTYD, but at the same time Toothless was such a huge draw. Toothless was the epitome of what I had always dreamed of in a friend and companion. He was so cool, frightening, and epic, but at the same time, he was charming, cute, and utterly loveable! I just couldn't decide, so I would cop-out and answer "both". With this system, I hoped to finally, objectively choose a favorite based on the parameters that I value in a story's protagonist. While I was scoring, I felt so nervous because I saw Toothless scoring some categories notably low, and I thought to myself "Welp, he's getting second". Then I entered the formula to calculate all the results at once, and I gasped and audibly, half laughing, said "Oh no!". Hiccup and Toothless tied for first! I couldn't believe it. So... yeah, I'm still stuck! I seriously was not trying to get this result, but I'm kinda happy with it. At least now my indecision is somewhat more justified XD
I really like how some characters who are similar wind up in the same groupings. Like how the Tenth Doctor, Gandalf, and Alphonse all tied for sixth. These characters are the kindhearted, stalwart defenders of others, and they all wind up together! Edward Elric and Midna would HATE each other... mostly because they are both extremely snarky and both willing to go to huge extremes to achieve their goals (ha... and they are both short!). Ryoma and Takumi are royal brothers of a kingdom caught in a brutal war. Thor and Prince Zuko are both dudes with anger and family-issues. Ironman and Greedling are both extremely suave, sarcastic, but at their hearts, they are extremely devoted and desperate to protect their friends.
So, yeah, I liked this a lot. Obviously, it is extremely subjective... and I don't expect that everyone who reads this would agree with how I scored the characters, BUT that's the beauty of it. This system allowed ME to figure out how I feel, and maybe it could be used to help you guys come up with lists (haha, if you have too much time on your hands and you're curious like me).
So, there are my favorites. I'd be happy to discuss the reasoning I had behind any of them, after all, I love all these characters and talking about any of them would be a treat! I'd also love to hear if anyone else has a list or a system of ranking their favorite heroes! And if anyone wants to use this format, feel free. I found it very helpful :)
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