I was having a long talk with a friend today. It was a common issue a lot of anime fans face; how can you enjoy caring about a character when so many others claim to love them the most?

I tell you, fangirls today are brutal. Screaming out dibs and then picking out names for their children. Give me a break, guys! The fangirl name has been tainted, and then trampled and pooped on. We can do so much better.

This girl was so afraid people would flame and hate her, she didn't even tell her best friend that she had strong feelings for Alphose Elric. She told me how it just didn't feel right, when so many other people probably felt the same way she did. And I can relate. Doesn't it suck to feel like people will label you and kick you in the teeth for caring? It's not about jumping on the bandwagon, it's about connecting with a character in a unique way that makes you feel very happy. So here's what I said.

Anime characters were made to be befriended and cared about. They were made to tell a story and to make you involved in their fictional lives, to feel intense emotion and perhaps learn a lesson or two. And even if you feel like you're only one of a large crowd, you must understand that you care about this character in a way that only you can. You love them in a unique way that makes this character that much more real. And this is true of every fan who ever cared.

So stop getting at each other's throats already! Let's share these squealy, squirmy, glompy, fangirl-associated emotions instead, and be happy that these characters come more alive each time one of us thinks about them. Isn't that how it should be?

...Hope that entire rant didn't sound like it just came from a children's show or some self-help video. =/