#like on the surface on the VERY broadest level it's easy to say who's 'nicer'

[neosatsuma]

one of my favorite things about the Aubrey-Maturin books is the living, breathing quality of the characters (those are Real Guys who I know) which owes a lot, I think, to their realistic idiosyncrasies. They aren't caricatures who always react the same way to similar circumstances or whose skills you can necessarily predict. For one thing: they grow and change! Stephen develops some regard for his own life. Jack learns mathematics (and enjoys it!). But being good at one thing also doesn't imply any talent in other, seemingly similar areas. Stephen is actually pretty good in a fight but he's a hopeless klutz in most other physical pursuits. Jack is really athletic in the rigging but awkward on land. And then there's the day-to-day!! Something that might annoy one of them ordinarily will slip by unnoticed because he just got a letter from home. A mild inconvenience might cause disproportionate upset because he hasn't had coffee yet. They're so fluid and dynamic and multifaceted and reactive to their environments and THAT'S how you write REAL PEOPLE, BABEY!!!!