Let's take a look at the characters of one of my favourite titles,
Hidamari Sketch. I know the defining traits of the characters are not always important in "healing" animes, but let's do it anyway.
Yuno
- Our titular protagonist and narrator.
- Innocent but extremely earnest.
- Not quite your average airhead, but she is fairly clumsy and often the butt of jokes.
- Easily appreciates the simple pleasures in life, which is responsible for more of the "feel-good" emotions of the title.
- Voiced by the not-quite-so-irritating version of Asumi Kana.
Miyako
- Everyone in Hidamari-sou is paired up, and Miyako's our Yuno's BFF, being the in same year, same class, and moved in at around the same time.
- Dirt poor, and but has an extremely outgoing and cheerful attitude.
- Lacks common sense, but has extremely high artistic potential, and surprisingly high athletic ability, especially for an arts student.
- Always hungry and begging/stealing people's food. Because most of the nutrition went into her tits.
- Like Yuno, she easily finds fun in in the simplest of stuff, even if some of which are disgusting/weird to the others.
Hiro
- "Motherly" character for the residents of Hidamari-sou.
- Known for her cooking ability.
- Known for her appetite.
- Also known for being extremely conscious of her weight, her many diets and failure to keep at them.
- Always positive and encouraging, especially for Sae.
- The most mature character in the cast, and often able to tell what the others are really thinking.
Sae
- The pairing character for Hiro, and in the same class as her. Sometimes she is regarded as the "fatherly" character.
- The "serious" role in the cast, often doing the tsukkomi for Yuno's random faux pas, Hiro's jokes and Miyako's antics. Often the one to point out the logical fallacies of others.
- Surprisingly easily embarrassed, for her (not implied) lesbian tenancies towards Hiro and obviously fake romantic experiences.
- And usually the most stressed out of the group, juggling school and work as an amateur writer at the same time.
- Has a tsundere admirer.
Nazuna
- She is literally Yuno right at the beginning of
HidaSketch with all of her traits quadrupled.
- And that actually qualifies her to become a true airhead. Clumsy, often helpless, distressed, etc.
- Unlike Yuno, she's voiced by the worst possible version of Omigawd Chiaki.
- Silly hairstyle
- Actually not an art student, unlike everyone else.
(what was her name again..?)
Nori
- She has a computer.
I'm not a big fan of the new additions to
HidaSketch. Nazuna is the epitome of a stereotypical character with a ton of exaggerated traits. I guess she adds to the show by being worst in art than Yuno, since she had absolutely no art potential at all. But everything her role could do, Yuno could have. I think she's just here to bring back the "clumsy innocent girl with little talent" gap left by Yuno after she graduated from that stage.
Nori complements Nazuna perfectly by having literally NO traits at all, except for the fact that she's the only one who owns a computer. Seriously, even her character icon is that of a computer mouse. MAL described her as "the most level-headed and normal out of everyone"... isn't that the role filled by Sae? Even supporting characters like the landlord, Yoshinoya-sensei and Chika are way more interesting than her. (Okay, maybe Yoshinoya-sensei doesn't count, because she's one of the most awesome character of all time)
It feels as though they exist only to fill up the numbers after Hiro and Sae graduated.
