I'm gathering from what you are saying is you think these characters aren't well written so you have love and hate relationship with them. That's more of a writing issue but also I feel that depends on you perspective. The point of this discussion to to talk aboutwhy we like or do not like a character. Once again you seem to be dissecting Larian's writing and character development. That's a whole separate discussion.
I didn't give you what you were after, I'll try a bit harder. I'm actually quite generous when it comes to the writing here, since I'm basically judging it by the standards of an 80s action adventure film not like Greek tragedy hehe. I think the writing is actually fairly strong for what it is, for each of the 5. Actually let me rephrase, I think the performances are strong even if the writing perhaps isn't. In the same way that a good actor can elevate weak material, and a poor actor can trash great material, the same applies here. I think the 5 actors are doing pretty great thus far. But again, not what you're after. So I'll just talk about Gale.
What I like about him. I enjoy that he's a pedantic know-it-all right out the gate. How he just walks out the portal and dives straight into it. I like how he assumes we'll still enjoy his company, no matter who we are. How he'll continue to try and ingratiate himself, even if we balk at him (and I like that there's an option for that at each step in the initial conversation.) I like that he says "most excellent!" like Bill or Ted If we agree to take him on, and how he seems dejected if dismissed.
I also enjoy that he acknowledges that there's someone else standing next to me, (at least if Shadowheart's along for the ride), how that gets kinda awkward talking about her deep dark eyes, and her rebuff. All good stuff.
He basically serves in the role of camp sage, and is a better story teller than the Bard we don't have. I appreciate his digressions and split infinitives, which remind me of myself. Also his hair, and his slightly fancier than average purple Wizard's robe. Slick look there.
He's got a great death interlude, and does some impressive self eulogizing if that should occur and all around fits the part of the wizard with an appetitie. I'd list a few things I don't like, but then my concern is that Larian would read that and fixate on it - assume they need to change something - which would annoy me, and which I would interpret as weakness on the part of the studio execs for not backing up their writer/director/actor. I suppose that was the point I was trying to make before. Also that my meta impression as a player is rather different than my impression as a player character, and my likelihood to take Gale into the party or not, would depend not on my meta impression but the player character one. That's why its different here than a movie or a book, which seems to be the standard of judgement. Things that make the character serviceable for me depend largely on the context of the playthrough and what I'm after. Which is a frustrating non answer to be sure, but still at the heart of it for me.
I don't want them to change anything about Gale. If they feel they missed some opportunities somewhere, or he's not popular enough or whatever, then I want them to make another Wizard so Gale can have a rival. Or so that if I choose to play a wizard myself that we can each stake out our own territory without upstaging each other at every turn. That's all I meant by the other stuff. I think it applies to each of these characters in equal measure.
