Let’s get some character discussion happening. I’d love to hear your answers to this question: Who are your favourite 07th Expansion characters, and why? Tackle this question however you want; you can give an overall favourite, split it up by series or gender, however you want! I’m interested to see what the most popular characters of Rokkenjima are.
For me, my favorite character has to be Battler, and if I had to pick a male and female, I’d also pick Erika.
Battler was a great character progression-wise, he changes quite a lot as the episodes go on, and by the end is quite different from how he began, but he’s still Battler, just as he was at the start. He also has his flaws which makes him feel more human and relate-able, despite all the fantasy elements in the Umineko.
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Rena and Battler~ I get very fan-girly over Battler, especially when he is on the offensive. Rena is all time best Yandere and out of the Higurashi girls I think she is the one I sympathized with the most.
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Keiichi is my favorite, because of how much he changes over the course of the series. I also love how he propels the story forward.
In Umineko, I like Beatrice the best, because her motivations are so complex.
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Dlanor. She’s not nearly as complex a character as Beatrice, but she’s got a lot of personality despite never really being given the focus of the spotlight.
She is introduced as a character that lacks emotion, but pretty much immediately overthrows that claim. She probably oozes more emotion than anyone in the cast aside from Beatrice and Battler. This emotion can be incredibly subtle or extremely overt. Having Miyuki Sawashiro as a VA doesn’t hurt either.
(Dlanor Spoilers) I’m a sucker for the friendly rival archetype and Dlanor fills that roll fantastically. She is also a character with conflicting ideals. She wants to fight evil, but is instead forced to work with evil to perform her duties. She still puts her everything into her work and doesn’t hold back despite her personal feelings. The contrast between her first scene where she gives her “Die the Death! Sentenced to Death! Great Equalizer is the death!” speech and her second scene where she has tea with Battler and Virgilia and explains she doesn’t hate magic made me instantly fall in love with the character. She also serves as an excellent foil to Erika who merely wants to crush fantasy and expose truth, and even Will who abandons his job when his personal feelings conflict with his duties.
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Besides Battler (praise be) my favorites are definitely Erika and Beatrice. Both are great examples of characters you love to hate, but also gain a certain love for when their motivations and personalities begin to show. I’ve never felt that way about characters, ones that make you feel radically different depending on their situation, I love it 
Battler will always hold a special place in my heart, since he’s basically the main protagonist and you see him change over the course of multiple hours. Questioning himself, trying to stay true to his goal, discovering the truth by himself. His whole character arc is a whirl of emotions that was a blast to watch unfold. That is what’s awesome about Umineko, you can pick and choose (almost) any character and just analyse them and find deep, enthralling characters.
Not to say Higurashi isn’t as good as Umineko with characters, Keiichi is a lot like Battler in that respect, seeing an engaging, shifting character over the course of multiple hours which make him so cool to watch grow.
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Overall, Mion is my favorite character, though Keiichi and Rika are very close behind. A lot of the reasons are rather spoiler-y, but I will say that I think Mion is one of the most well-written, realistic characters in the series even with the extraordinary circumstances she’s in. She’s also the source of most of the fun, lighthearted excitement that occurs throughout the series. Perhaps what I like most about her, though, is that her personality is a lot more nuanced than it seems, and she’s one of the most thoughtful characters as well.
On the Umineko side, I like Battler (who I’d love to see meet Keiichi, to be honest) because of his determination and emotional depth.
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I had this epiphany once when I saw a poll for favorite Higurashi character. Every. Single. Goddamn. Character. on the list was a personal candidate. That was the first time I really realized just how much I love Ryukishi’s character writing.
As far as I’m concerned Beatrice is the single best-written character I’ve ever seen, and certainly my favorite. I even dare say she’s the main reason I still think about Umineko on a daily basis and keep finding new things to appreciate about it even now.
Besides her there’s Bernkastel, Battler, Lambdadelta and Dlanor. All excellent characters for their own reasons.
On the Higurashi side of things, I’d say Shion is my favorite character. Meakashi-hen was quite the experience.
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I can’t argue with that at all. She’s my second favorite Umi character and definitely much more complex than most characters in pretty much anything.
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I can not choose between Beatrice and Erika from Umineko if we are talking about females, and about males… On Umineko it’d be Will or Battler. But I like mostly all of them so it is really difficult for me to choose in umineko.
In Higurashi… Takano, Rika and K1 are my favourites from the original novels, not including the extra arcs, the past of Takano amaes me, it really catched me the first time I read it, Rika is a wonderful character and deserved really a better life and Keiichi did remorse over his bad actions.
On Rose Gun Days, Leo, Jeanne, Gabriel and Meryl. Wel, they are a lot, Gabriel is a perfect villian, Leo is a perfect hero, I find really interesting how Jeanne acts and her beliefs, she¡s really a good character on the story. And Meryl, she really surprised me, at the start of the novel I thought I would not like her because of her attitude and all those things but specially on Last Season I loved her.
In Higanbana, as a male I’d choose Kyou or Izanami in male characters, I loved both of their stories. For girls Yukari, Michiru, Higanbana or Marie, Marie is really a girl that, even if she’s a yokai, tries to help the people, in some cases that irritates Higanbana. Yukari, I think i cannot write what I really feel about Yukari, she’s really strong, she has passes through a lot of difficult situations and she has overcomed them. Michiru,I think I love her because of the chapter called “My best friend” she was so lovely there. And Higanbana, in “Before the spider lillies bloomed” (I don’t really remember well if that was the title)
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I’ve only read Higurashi, but my favorite character in Higurashi was easily Shion.
Meakashi was my favorite arc, and Shion was a much more interesting point of view character than Keiichi. It helped that Meakashi was the only arc that really made me feel the feels, and despite how…psychotic it was I honestly felt like Shion’s motivations were much more sympathetic and well established than any of the other characters.
Also, some of the best bgms are extremely prominent in Meakashi.
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Higurashi’s my only 07th Expansion Experience, so picking from the main cast, I’d have to give status of favorite character to the Sonozaki twins. Rena’s a strong contender, but I loved the twins in not just every arc, but every scene they were in, both together and apart, and their relationship with each other is quite honestly just really sweet. All the trouble they get up to is just icing on the cake, too. I’ve said I think that Ryukishi07’s sense of humor isn’t quite praiseworthy in some areas, but something about the way the twins are written makes them seem human and not just cardboard cutouts hamming it up during Go Fish or something.
Even after having gone through all of the hardships and separation that their family has forced them to live through at such a young age, they’re still extremely close and can find it in each other to forgive and forget; even Shion, (Spoilers for Meakashi-hen, Minagoroshi-hen) when we first truly meet her in Meakashi, is a pretty impulse-driven character who can hold a grudge, tries her best early on to rein that part of herself in around her sister. There’s so many scenes that I can think of that made me love these two, but if I had to pick just one, it’d probably be the one where Mion almost gets asphyxiated by her sister. Almost. Probably sounds a bit weird out of context, honestly. In the vein of Meakashi-hen spoilers, while it’s evident where Shion’s mind was influenced due to the syndrome, I feel as if her constant assertions that she had become a demon was a way of – intentionally or otherwise – disassociating herself from her crimes, because underneath all of that, she was still there. Just buried under so much anger and resentment towards so many things that just exploded outwards all at once. Meakashi’s a depressing arc, but it hit close to home in a lot of areas for me personally, both with its upbeat beginning and grim ending. Disclaimer: I have never actually murdered someone, so I cannot truly relate to Shion Sonozaki in Meakashi-hen. That life experience is something I’m willing to not have.
(Minor Spoilers for Meakashi)When we meet Shion in Meakashi-hen, we’re immediately presented with the idea of a capable, active character who does things and makes snap decisions. …Unlike Keiichi. Ha ha.
While we never get much POV time with Mion, she’s a genuinely nice and loyal person who loves her friends and will do anything in her power to keep them safe. I see a lot of characters who adopt the whole “group leader/mother bear” thing, but Mion pulls it off really nicely, I think. (Spoilers for Matsuriyabashi-hen, Meakashi-hen)The few fragments we get to experience the world from her eyes in during Matsuribayashi-hen plus when she confesses to Shion in Meakashi-hen about how she was almost ready to strangle Oryou really give the impression that she’s a person who has remained largely unaffected by her family’s dated traditions and shady dealings, and a person who has a strong sense of justice. She does what she feels is right, even when it might just be hurting herself – such as when she peels 3 nails because she thought it was unfair that only Shion had to suffer that torture – and while some might call that naive, I quite honestly find it admirable that she so firmly believes in her own rules. Even when she was forced to act as the family head and oversee the torture of her own sister, she let that mask slip for long enough to both attempt to help Shion keep it together and help get it over with. In a way.
They’re so close and yet so different, and I think over the course of the very few arcs that was see both Mion and Shion together consistently, we see them developing even more distinct personalities. They’re pretty perfect foils for each other too, of course. After my re-read of all the arcs, I couldn’t help but appreciate the twins more than I ever could have when I first experienced the series through the anime. I’d like to give them both hugs. They really need them.
In terms of minor characters/side characters, Akane isn’t bad, and every time she’s onscreen and acting as her chatty self I always crack a smile. You can’t stay expressionless when Akane is talking, at all. Her dialogue is in the same vein of entertaining as what the twins say.
Wow, that was a long post. I left out a couple things too. What large spoiler tags. Better safe than sorry, though.
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Let’s see… In Higurashi, my favorites are the Houjou siblings, hands down. With what little we see of Satoshi, he’s an all-around great guy who is normally very kind and gentle and protective of Satoko. It’s quite a surprise for a teenage boy to be so selfless as to work himself ragged so he can earn money to buy his sister a birthday gift, and to plan things for Watanagashi so Satoko can try to have a good time. Plus, he’s absolutely sweet, and his “Muu” catchphrase is adorable!! Then Satoko won me over in Tatarigoroshi, where Keiichi saw her as a little sister to where he went to extreme lengths to try to keep her smiling. She was so sweet with how she cared about him to teach him how to cook, and with the baseball scene. Then the tragic part hits, and you see this sweet and energetic girl become so withered and lethargic that the littlest things make her break down (and it’s so amazing in Minagoroshi where she stands up for herself and Rika is so proud of her strength). The scene where K1 promises to protect her as a big brother should in Tatarigoroshi is the only time in Higurashi other than “Trust me…” Where I cried.
In Umineko, my top 3 are Evatrice, Erika, and Ange, and my favorite male is Will. I loved Evatrice’s EP3 arc (and she’s purple, which is my favorite character). I love characters who are cruel and arrogant but clever, so I naturally fell head over heels for her. I was so happy in her brief appearances because she was there, and her change in EP8 for Ange was… It hurts my heart still. Erika, I’ve mentioned before in the Erika discussion thread, but she falls into the parameter of arrogant, clever, and cruel. Then Ange… Ah… She did not deserve any of what happened to her. She’s depressed enough to try to kill herself from her introduction in EP3, and she just wants her family to come back, which she’ll achieve at any cost. She doesn’t care if she or anyone else gets hurt, so long as the possibility that a version of her will be happy can exist. Then there’s Will, who’s a complete polar opposite to Battler. He’s technically a concept, connected to a variation of Yasu, and puts his personal feelings aside to view the truth without desecrating it. He has Diana, Lion pinches his butt whenever he acts like a jerk, and the scene where he solves everything is so cool.
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My favourite has to be Dlanor. She is certainly not the most important character nor the most complex bit despite that she is a really strong character. She has a really clear persona, she is the justice that destroys evil magic and protects Knox in Umineko, she is also very profesional and cold in his work as an inquisitor and she carnes about his teammates. All of that make her very likeable for me. Also, she look cool.
But probably the thing that madre me like Dlanor that much is probably the Knox decalogue that she carries. Before his appearance i felt like the gane in Umineko wa not fair at all so when I heard about Knox I felt in love with Dlanor instantly. Also, when she said to Virgillia and Battler that she didnt hate magic I started to like her for more than The Decalogue. And the Equalizer moments, at episodes 5 and 6 are some of my favourite action parts in Umineko.
Finally i like to relate to her because of the way i understand magic after Umineko and because of my love for The Decalogue (I certainly teach Knox todo almost every person i meet so… ).
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It’s really hard to decide but since I’m such a drama-tragedy fan (lol after a second thought this doesn’t make it any easier knowing the outcome of the case) I’d have to go with Eva.
The way how our views are influenced and can differ from reality are so flashed out with the relation of Ange and Eva that it has to be one of my favourite themes overall. Realising that I’ve been trapped by Ryukishi and made the same mistake Ange did, which actually made their life a living hell and defied every good Eva did for the sake of Ange, was a huge shock and I liked how big an impact it had on the story, not only me.
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It’s Edo “Battler” Nagori for me.
You perfectly summed up my love for Dlanor 
Thanks for that! 