I like Gale. I think he's kinda funny and is just a silly lil' guy. Plus wizards are very versatile and good in almost any situation. Him and Shadowheart are pretty much always in my party when I play solo. I like his story, dialogues and his enthusiasm for learning magic (like how excited he got by the reveal at the end of Act 2). I don't romance him 'cause I always go with Shadowheart (I do wanna try Minthara but I never could bring myself to kill the refugees) and I don't like men, but all I have to do is turning him down and we're all chill again. I saw some people said they find him annoying or condescending. He's allegedly a prodigy in the study of the Weave (Mystra and Elminster approved) so he should be proud of his achievement and I've never found him to be obnoxiously full of himself, if anything he seems very unsure about his place in the world to me. Plus shadow wizard money gang, we love casting spells. On the other hand I do not like Astarion. I don't hate him and I guess I could somewhat understand where he came from but that doesn't really make him anymore likeable to me. I find him kinda annoying. He's funny sometimes but I just don't like his personality in general, and the fact that he doesn't seem very remorseful about what he did in the past either. Even if he had no choice, seeing him just brushing it off as "It was all Cazador's fault" and willing to sacrifice them just doesn't exactly give me the best kinda vibe. I only ever have him around to pick locks and disarm traps when I play solo.