I like Sanji during my childhood (2000s) because I always prefer versatile characters in any media.
Versatile as in having a lot of abilities and functions, both for themselves, other characters, and for the story.
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Sanji is one of the best characters in manga to balance the classic trope of "being a fucking clown while also being a badass," because he goes to the extreme of each side and simultaneously blurs the line that they share. Embarrassed, outclassed, and impressive in the most thankless way all within one arc.
He's like Super Saiyan Yamcha, or Kintaro Oe as a Getbacker, or a Ranma character set in Fist of the North Star. More of a Naruto character than most Naruto characters.
Fighting in Air Land Sea (Underwater) ✓
Combat skill, non-combat skill ✓
Frontline fighter, Stealth operative ✓
Dramatic moments, comedic moments ✓
Pair up with the serious bunch, pair up with the goofy bunch ✓
Dynamic with males, dynamic with females ✓
Physical struggle, emotional struggle ✓
Heroic, selfish ✓
Smart/Genius moment, dumb moment ✓
Angry boy persona, sad boy persona ✓
Trashtalk speech, wise speech ✓
Glorious actions, embarassing actions ✓
Nice behavior, creepy behavior ✓
Unarmed combat, weaponized combat ✓
Gun, swords ✓
Royalty status, servant status ✓