So this is basically a repost of something I posted on a different forum, but I need a place that I can have it so I can link to it easier.

...

Okay, here goes.

This is Van Argeno.

Now this is a statement. Sure, it reflects my opinions.. but it's hard for me to see a flaw in it.

Van Argeno is one of the few Blood+ characters who actually serves his purpose in the series and isn't full of wasted potential.

Saya for example, could have been an excellent character, instead they made her incompetent and almost downright useless. I'm sorry, but I don't like it when the main character is someone who repeats everything other people say in question form when she already knows these things and can't grasp concepts she's heard over and over in the series.

Hagi too, had potential which was thrown aside when they decided to just throw bits of plot around him here and there but never really get into him as a character.

I could go on, but there are far too many characters in Blood+ with wasted potential for me to go through and pick apart each one and their flaws.

Nathan Mahler and Riku Miyagusuku are some of the other characters who, like Van, served their purpose well and weren't riddled with the sense of oppourtunity wasted. (If you wished to claim either of them as the best character, I wouldn't deny it too much.)

Now for Van Argeno as a character.

Okay, first things first, Van is probably one of the better characters for the simple reason that the writers did not try to make him deep.

Blood+ is not an excellent series (feel free to disagree) it's not good at capturing real human emotion and making sympathetic characters.

Van Argeno for this reason, is easier to relate with than any of the other characters who seem either too two-dimensional or too overdramatic.

Van is not a bursting kettle of super angst like Kai or Saya, he's not completely stoic like Hagi, he doesn't feel like a waste like Solomon (who really, had so much potential but eventually went to waste due to poor planning/writing by the staff.) and he's not the type of character who would pretty much be the same if they never even talked at all i.e: Julia and David.

Van is a good example of an ordinary person in this kind of anime with so many super-natural elements.

He's in this situation with monsters and things that would scare any regular person and he gets scared.

Van also wants to succeed, just like anyone else. So he tries to put his fear aside in hopes of accomplishing great things.

Van is not a saint, Van is not a super badass. Van is not the kind of person people aspire to be.

Van is an ordinary guy who looks out for himself.

Does he do immoral things? Yes, yes he does.

And as evident by last week's episode (episode 48), he realizes that said things are bad, hence his apology.

He's not the type of person with no redeeming qualities though.

It's not as if all he is a cowardly guy who is good at nothing.

Working on the side that most wouldn't view as "good" and working for people who can turn into monsters and rip him apart at any second.. that takes a bit of courage, and I admire him for that.

I could even go out on a limb and say what a truly wonderful man he is, helping people like the Chevaliers who probably wouldn't have so much of an easy time finding people like him who would help due to the nature of their plans. (But I'm not going to go that far since it's unnecessary and quite a bit of a stretch)

And on top of it all, he's one of the more attractively drawn fellas I've ever seen (now okay, you can disagree on this point all you like, I know Van might not be everyone's cup of tea when it comes to looks)

Basically, in a show like Blood+, Van is a reminder that not everything is terrible.

When you have to put up with Saya's constant failures, Hagi's lack of personality, Kai's "We're going back to Okinawa" schtick and constant complaints of not being useful to everyone, A guy like Van.. kind of makes everything a little easier to tolerate.

That's my stance on that point.

Who let this woman make albums?

His website.. maybe it's a cosplay group he belongs to's website though..

regardless, he's my favourite cosplayer. And my favourite Kamina.