On Muppets and Munters, by Catriona

Craft: Do characters need to be sympathetic? Why? Why not? Does it make a difference in different genres?
Frank made a good point yesterday - about the hero of a romance needing to be attractive to the reader - and Susan did the same on Monday - regarding heroes and villains both being more attractive to a reader of thrillers if they've got some light and shade. A moustache-twirling rotter and a suave Superman are hard to care about throughout a book. 
(I'm writing on Tuesday, by the way. It's not...