Comfort Character(s)?

[k e r f u f f l e]

I was researching this topic a while ago and I find it so interesting.

As a brief overview, a comfort character is a fictional being from media that makes you "feel better", to whatever degree you experience.

So I want to ask:

- Do you have/had any comfort characters?
- Why did you pick them?
- How do they effect you?

 

[Croconaw]

Do you have/had any comfort characters?
I’m going to go with Croconaw. I’ve become very attached to this particular Pokémon over the years. It’s literally part of my identity now.
Why did you pick them?
I don’t necessarily have a reason. I just find comfort in this character.
How do they effect you?
Croconaw makes me happy. It’s part of an alias that I often go by on gaming platforms and other places online. It makes me feel like someone when being referred to as “Killer Croconaw” or “KC” for short.

 

[Holla]

Do you have/had any comfort characters?
Chrom and (female) Robin from Fire Emblem Awakening.
Why did you pick them?
Big fan of the series and it was my first game in said series. These two characters in particular are my faves and I've always paired them together.
How do they effect you?
Thinking about the troubles they went through and how strong they are together always makes me happy. I also like that they have flaws which helps make them more relatable even though they are fictional. I’ve enjoyed reading various fan fictions centered around the two of them as well and will often picture moments from the game, said fan fictions or my own imagination when I want to take my mind off something. I’m not a huge fan of character romances but I can’t get enough of these two for some reason.

 

[daringred_]

Do you have/had any comfort characters?
right now, it's my own ocs. (probably a little self-conceited, but oh well.) more specifically, claire and lisa, although i love them all dearly. four of them are in my signature!

Why did you pick them?
i mean, i made them asdfghjk, and why is a bit of a long story. my last year(s) of highschool were especially tough, and i've never had a particularly affectionate/caring home life on top of that. claire started as a self-insert to help me "escape" into my favorite shows etc. but quickly became a character in her own right who's now only similar to me, and the others followed at a steady pace. they and their "world" have changed a fair bit since i first made them.

How do they effect you?
they generally just help me cope. i don't really have friends, and my family's... meh. i spend a lot of my time in my room alone. so, when i get sad, it's comforting to put on my playlists and think about them -- sometimes along to the songs, sometimes just in general. i mean, if you include the (unfinished) book, i've written around 100k in content for these guys, and a lot of it's only shorthand stuff! idk. my depression has made me as good as completely numb these days, so i don't exactly get "happy", but looking at or thinking about these guys does make me feel at least something.

 

[tumut]

I have characters I really like but the whole concept of comfort characters is really weird and degenerate to me.

Like isn't it basically kinning but without the weird past life spiritual embodiment of fictional character thing?

Spoiler

Anyway anyone else remember this guy?

 

[k e r f u f f l e]

I have characters I really like but the whole concept of comfort characters is really weird and degenerate to me.

Like isn't it basically kinning but without the weird past life spiritual embodiment of fictional character thing?

No, I wouldn’t say that.

Comfort characters make you feel better. Kinning, however, is literally where you go as far as to say you are that said character (either online, in real life, or both).

Feeling chilled out when you watch Marvel movies because you love Spider Man is different than believing you are Spider Man.

 

[Anitagonist]

I have characters I really like but the whole concept of comfort characters is really weird and degenerate to me.

Spoiler

View attachment 415402

Anyway anyone else remember this guy?

So there ARE people like this in the AC community if that was sent to you I'm truly sorry some people believe they have a right to everything that just isn't true and like poster above it's not weird or degenerate just a character that makes you happy and unfortunately some take it too far

my comfort character is probably Wendy Marbel from the anime Fairy Tail idk why she just brings a smile to my face she's so precious! Also her dub voice actor just makes her even cuter I just love her character there's no way to explain it xD

 

[Croconaw]

I have characters I really like but the whole concept of comfort characters is really weird and degenerate to me.

Like isn't it basically kinning but without the weird past life spiritual embodiment of fictional character thing?

Spoiler

View attachment 415402

Anyway anyone else remember this guy?

That’s just manipulating. It’s basically trying to get the recipient of that message to feel bad. If that happened to me, I would just block them or ignore them.

 

[.: Meri :.]

- Do you have/had any comfort characters?
Oh, definitely—any fictional character I get a crush on tends to automatically become a comfort character for me, so uh... there's too many to list. ;v;

- Why did you pick them?
My comfort characters can be pretty different, but one recurring trait between all of mine is that they're really sweet, kind-hearted characters, whether obviously or at their core. I think I'm very drawn to warm personalities like that. They also tend to have strong convictions/a lot of inner strength, which I find very inspiring.

- How do they effect you?
At risk of sounding redundant ahahaha, they've just been a huge comfort to me and have really gotten me through a lot. Pretty much anything regarding them (be it just looking at official art, talking about them, or actually playing/reading/watching whatever they're from) is my go-to when I'm feeling anxious or down, and they've gotten me out of some pretty bad depressive episodes before. I draw a lot of strength from them and their outlooks on life, and they make it a lot easier for me to take care of and be kind to myself.

 

[spawnpoint]

- Do you have/had any comfort characters?
yea, ive had plenty over the years, sometimes they can last weeks or months
- Why did you pick them? half the time i don't exactly choose who they r myself? i just get really invested in something and sometimes a character stands out and i get obsessed with them and theyre a comfort lol, sometimes even if i dont want to at first (example: spamton from Deltarune)
- How do they effect you? most of the time they end up being a crush and i imagine myself in romantic scenarios with them and it makes me really happy since i dont have my own partner, sometimes they arent romantic tho and i just like them for other reasons, like for example if a character is really funny and makes me laugh a lot

 

[tomatospooks666]

- Do you have/had any comfort characters?
yup! mainly it's my husband, stanford pines, but there's some other characters like harvey from sdv and luigi that also make me happy in a similar way. there's also characters that i consider my kinnies that i feel a more "that's me" connection to.
- Why did you pick them?
¯\_( :/ )_/¯ there's no real rhyme or reason to finding charas that make me happy. it just happens when it happens.
- How do they affect you?
they make me feel a little less alone in the world. kinning characters helps me better understand myself and comfort characters are nice b/c i can imagine being friends (or more) with them.

 

[Mimi Cheems]

Do you have/had any comfort characters?
Yes! I have had and do have several of them. My main one being Bucky Barnes from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Hearing him speak has always brought me a sense of serenity. I love him so much and he makes me feel so safe and comfy. Another one would probably be Harvey from Stardew Valley (or even Alex from Stardew Valley, or both)! I think another one is Kyojurou Rengoku from Kimetsu no Yaiba. He reminds me of All Might from BNHA. I'm not a BNHA fan anymore, so maybe that's why I find Rengoku so comforting. He reminds me of something/somebody I once loved and cherished. Don't get me wrong, I'll always LOVE All Might! But... The BNHA fandom has traumatized me, lol. Onto bigger and better things! So, alas. Rengoku. All Might but in Demon Slayer xD

Why did you pick them?
I think how I pick most of my comfort characters is by their personality or how their voices sound. I have always been a person who loves listening to people speak, well.. Listening to loved ones talk. It makes me feel comforted, safe. Happy, even! Bucky has a really raspy voice and it always makes me feel nice. But then again, I don't think I've ever sat myself down and decided 'hey, this is gonna be a comfort character', because it just sorta? Comes to me naturally, I suppose?

How do they effect you?
Bucky Barnes has helped me through so much in life. I've definitely had it easier than others but I still struggled a lot mentally, growing up. Bucky saved my life a few times. I am forever grateful for the impact this character has had on my life. I even have him/his silhouette tattooed on my arm. It will always remind me of how he's saved me, made me feel safe, or just... been there for me when nobody else was!

 

[Xara]

do you have/had any comfort characters?
oooh boy, i’ve had plenty lol. i can’t remember every single one that i’ve had over the years, but the ones that i do remember are shay van buren from mpgis (which is the oddest thing to have a comfort character from lmao), bill denbrough from it, mickey milkovich from shameless, james from teotfw and my current one, peeta mellark from the hunger games.

why did you pick them?
i’ve honestly never picked a single one of my comfort characters. what typically happens is i’ll find a show or a movie that i really like and before i know it, i suddenly have an attachment to one of the characters; an attachment that turns into comfort and a coping mechanism very quickly. i’d even say that they pick me, but that wouldn’t make much sense lol. i’m not sure what it is about a character that makes them comforting to me, especially when all of the comfort characters i’ve had thus far are as different as night and day. though, i’ve noticed that the majority of them are male, so maybe that stems from me never having had a good or comforting maternal, platonic or romantic relationship with a male before? idk lol.

how do they effect you?
they make me happy and provide me with comfort and a safe space that i don’t have with anyone that actually... exists lol, which i know sounds sad. i have a hard time connecting and interacting with people due to a plethora of issues i have, so i don’t really have anyone. my comfort characters make me feel slightly less alone, i guess. :’)

 

[TofuIdol]

Do you have/had any comfort characters?
I've had plenty of comfort characters over the years that I can't list them all, but the one
I can always remember comforting a lot with Rise Kujikawa from Persona 4.

Why did you pick them?
I feel that you don't really pick comfort characters, that they kind of just click with you.
But with me, sure I wasn't an idol like Rise was, but I could relate with her not having a true
version of who she was. Always putting on different masks around other people, to always
have everyone like me, and when I wasn't needed with them just discarding that mask of me.
Wondering if I really had somewhere my own identity of a person than the facade I was putting
on as a teenager. And overtime coming to understand, that each part of myself I showed was me,
and to accept who I was.

How do they effect you?
It makes me happy that there are characters that I can place myself in their shoes and relate to, when
I feel like sometimes its hard for most people to understand me. And makes me enjoy those characters
even more.

 

[piichinu]

there's a character in specific i really like and someone told me it was my "comfort character.."
we don't need to create words for things that are already normal and exist. it's called liking a character.
i'm not going to fight anyone over it, though. have fun with it ig

 

[Kairi-Kitten]

- Do you have/had any comfort characters?

Yes, all of my OC's and in particular my demon girl OC/Kairi my first OC/Kairou my nekomimi OC and my ultimate one Tasuki from FY whom i've had a crush on since 13 he legit makes me smile :' )

- Why did you pick them?

I first created my OC Kairi at 13-14 without realizing it haha and as a 24-25 year old started to realize I had this wonderful OC to make me smile+Tasuki my old crush so I ship them <3

- How do they effect you?

Just pure happiness to take my mind off my mental/physical weariness and issues :' ) they bring me peace of mind and distraction when I need it!

 

[nyx~]

- Do you have/had any comfort characters?
I have quite a few tbh, the biggest ones currently being Kirishima Eijirou from MHA and Xiao from Genshin Impact.
- Why did you pick them?
Characters mainly become my comfort character (and favorite most of the time) when I feel I can relate to them. I don't really choose them per say but I know from the first couple scenes that there's something about them that's comforting to me.
- How do they effect you?
They honestly just make me feel better/up my mood. When I feel down I tend to look through fanart and watch edits and stuff of them cause it brings comfort to me. They're also a big motivation for when I'm drawing since I tend to be more excited about it when it's a character I love.

 

[k e r f u f f l e]

there's a character in specific i really like and someone told me it was my "comfort character.."
we don't need to create words for things that are already normal and exist. it's called liking a character.
i'm not going to fight anyone over it, though. have fun with it ig

Understandable.

I’d say the concept in question is like a sub-genre to liking a character. Not all people fall into it because of the psychological angle.

 

[Holla]

my comfort character is probably Wendy Marbel from the anime Fairy Tail idk why she just brings a smile to my face she's so precious! Also her dub voice actor just makes her even cuter I just love her character there's no way to explain it xD

I just had to respond to this as I love Wendy too! I actually cosplayed as her back in 2019 and even got to meet her voice actress!

Her natural voice is not much different from the one she does for Wendy either. It’s precious.

Spoiler: Pic

 

[mitfy]

Do you have/had any comfort characters?
yes, plenty. they come and go as my interest in something waxes and wanes but the most persistent and permanent one is kuroo tetsurou from haikyuu. i've always loved him but as the series went on i got more attached to him and i projected a lot onto him when it came to writing fanfiction and just participating in fandom in general at the time. it was a really really validating feeling for the manga to progress and realize that he really is a lot like me and it wasn't just me y'know. not even in a like, fictional crush or "thats my brother now" way, just... as a character, him alone, is a huge source of comfort for me.
another i can say is 707 from mystic messenger. i probably kin the mc but whatever, cuz even from the beginning he was a cc, and so are the others (in the game) to a lesser extent.
Why did you pick them?
i think like many others have said, you don't really pick who becomes a comfort character. just like how you might like a certain character without specific reason, the same goes for comfort characters. sometimes a fictional guy just suddenly means a lot to you.
How do they effect you?
oops, i think i kind of explained that already in the first bit. but since i only brushed over it before, it's worth mentioning that i am otherkin and fictionkin. because of this, there are also many comfort characters that extend from that (though mentally i kind of categorize them differently, but i couldn't verbalize how. just that they are ccs to a certain part of me? rather than my current life and identity). comfort characters from kins are a special kind of comfort because they remind me of who i once was, and that in another world those were real people who cared about me. i'm sure it sounds insane to someone who has no idea what otherkin is/how it works, but like... imagine a toy or stuffed animal from your childhood that you used to love - it reminds you of a completely different time, a different you, but seeing it again still holds a sense of comfort and familiarity (even if it may be bittersweet). it's like that. the effect some of these characters have is like seeing a childhood stuffed animal or childhood best friend again. basically they just bring me a sense of ease and happiness. and the same when its unrelated to kin stuff! being able to relate to characters and/or project onto them can be a good way of dealing with your own problems, yknow? i could go on and on abt the whole topic but. ya :]