Your favourite fictional blackout companions

Tuesday's blackout was, granted, inconvenient to say the least. For me—although I had to prepare for my cousin's wedding in the dark—it was a nice big throwback. I showered, got dressed, and put on makeup in the candlelight, but I became very nostalgic in the process.

For a lot of us 90s kids, it was extremely common to light up a candle during regular load shedding routines. If you consider a time even before that, there were hurricanes (lanterns). 

While we worried and enjoyed our way through the black out, Daily Star Books' readers told us which fictional character they would want to spend a blackout with. Here's what they had to say:

"Two of my personal favourites were Watchmen's Dr Manhattan and Raven from Teen Titans," Raian Abedin says. He reasons that Dr Manhattan, during a power cut, would glow brightly in the dark and have a calming presence. 

"Free light source plus [a] dude I can sit and ruminate with, it's perfect." 

Sara Kabir responded that she would spend the blackout with Bilbo Baggins from The Hobbit, because "he would be the best company to just lay around and chat [with] for hours, sharing stories while having tea, reminiscing about his adventures outside the Shire". "And maybe", she added, "I'd be a little bit wiser from the experience".

@appletiniontherocks said she would spend it with Electro from Spiderman. "I just want the electricity back", she explained. At the end of the day (read: about 8 hours) of no electricity, didn't we all though?

Joyita Faruk said that she would like to have the company of Todoroki Shoto—-a superhero and one of the main protagonists of the manga series My Hero Academia. "He'd be able to keep things lit with his fire quirk and keep me cool with his freeze at the same time. He's also just a chill guy so the company would be comfortable," explained Joyita. 

Istiak Ahmed Bappy added, "Mangan's Sister, from Araby by James Joyce because I would like to know her real name!" 

According to Maliha Huq, she would like to spend it with Alberto Knox from Sophie's World, written by Jostein Gaarder. "Knox is a true philosopher and a great teacher. He taught Sophie how to think philosophically. According to him, 'Any one question can be more explosive than a thousand answers.' 

"Having someone like Knox during a black out would make me wonder about life's important questions which also intrigued young Sophie Amundsen. Knox would curate a crash course in philosophy especially for me. Sitting by the candlelight, I would intently listen to his lectures and discover once again, 'A true philosopher must never give up.' Because philosophy is a never-ending process of questioning, building on itself throughout history." 

Sabrina Fatma Ahmad picked Haroun's father Rashid from Salman Rushdie's Haroun and the Sea of Stories. The reasons for her choice seem to be self-evident as Rashid is known as the Shah of Blah and the Ocean of Notions for his ability to devise stories impromptu. Rashid is a professional storyteller which would make him an entertaining company during a blackout. 

"Dawsey Adams from the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society [because] he clearly knows how to survive without electricity and can hold spirited debates about literature when required," explained Arwa Kaizar. 

Redwan Islam Orittro chose Albus Dumbledore, which is in fact a notable choice considering his prowess in the magical world. Tasfia Zuhair and Dhrubo Karim picked Suho Lee and Thor—the Norse god of Thunder and the Marvel superhero—respectively, while Tabassum Mumu chose Gil Pender, known for his passion for time travelling, from the movie Midnight in Paris.