Ando and Hiro

[fajrdrako]

I was talking about sidekicks on Friday answering the fannish5 Friday 5 question. When I started answering I was thinking that I don't like sidekicks - who are sideliners by definition - but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that wasn't true.

And in conversation with monsieureden this morning, I realized that I'd missed one of the best sidekicks ever - which ought to be fresh in my consciousness, because it's a current, beloved show - and the character is Ando, who hangs out with Hiro Nakamura in Heroes. He's a classic sidekick, and he's wonderful.

I think the thing I love most about Hiro is that though he's Japanese, and hardly spoke English at the beginning of the season, there's nothing 'foreign' about him - he's the most accessible 'everyman' international sort of character I can think of. Besides that, I love his courage and sense of adventure.

And Ando is a worthy sidekick for him!