Favorite characters

1. the servant-shepherds: Gandalf, Eddard
2. the blessed heirs: Aragorn, Jon
3. the little ones moving mountains: Bilbo, Frodo, Samwise, Arya

Convenient parallel between LotR and GoT as my two favorite forays in fiction, each with a set of favorite characters who line up, in order, in similar categories. Now, I've considered before whether Jon and Aragorn deserve a co-chair at the top, at the right hand of the king; or perhaps they deserve the throne, and Gandalf and Eddard are the Hands/counsels who are actually mightier but wouldn't wear the crown. But as I continue to distance from my direct initial experiences with these characters, I get the most emotional thinking about Gandalf and Eddard, not about Aragorn and Jon. The latter are inspiring, the former are home.

Harry Potter is a great candidate for that third category as well, though I haven't spent quite enough time with him yet to know where he settles in. There are other candidates for the other categories as well, but they don't belong on the same tier: Merlin and Dumbledore are prototypes of #1, but I have much less relationship with them at this point; Arthur is a great #2; characters like Odysseus belong in this general conversation, though there's no slot for him up there, and he hasn't earned it quite yet anyway.

I can't guarantee Arya actually belongs on the same tier as the best of the hobbits. In fact, I'm pretty sure she doesn't. Those three hobbits are phenomenal characters, in a deep sort of way; I'd need to read more of Martin to discover whether Arya really earns her spot. I know the hobbits do.

Diluting it a bit:

1. the servant-shepherds: Gandalf, Eddard, Dumbledore, Merlin
2. the blessed heirs: Aragorn, Jon, Arthur
3. the little ones moving mountains: Bilbo, Frodo, Samwise, Arya, Harry Potter, Tyrion
4. the soldiers: Odysseus, Hector, Lancelot, James Bond
5. Michael Scott??

I'd like to see if Paul Atreides earns a spot at #2 if I read the books. Robb Stark is hovering around a few of these categories.