That's a hard one, to be honest there was so few characters on SM I really cared about but probably Kahuna Hala I mean he gives you your first pokémon and the ability to ride Tauros and overall seems like a really nice guy. There's also Kukui and some of the trial captains I like but generally the characters I saw the most to were the ones I cared the least about, yes I do not like or even care about Lillie.
I actually now have sort of abandoned Kiawe and moved onto Gladion. I mean he's had to fend for himself for so long. Even though his new boss is the henchman of his mom. So in honesty he's fighting for his survival in a way. Showing his place is fair.
Like what many are already saying here; Lillie takes the cake. From the very intro of the story to even through the post-game, she is an indirect influence and I really enjoyed how she started out as someone shy and meek, turning into a person who wanted to grow more independent. Much of it is thanks to the player's influence. Doesn't really help that she's pretty much the major waifu of Pokémon thus far. I'd fall for her in a heartbeat if I was the protag. I don't ship a lot of characters together in the Pokémon franchise very much, but her and Sun seem to be special in my eyes and I ship them both hardcore! She's honestly in my top 3 list of favorite Pokémon game characters of all time...not counting the player themselves. Really I almost feel that the events of the story are just as much of Lillie's own journey as it is your own. Other honorable mentions I have are Gladion, Hau and Professor Kukui. Gladion grows just as much as Lillie (even though he probably wouldn't admit it outright) in terms of what it means to be a trainer and carrying the burdens on his shoulder. I feel that over the course of the game, he grows from being a blunt douche into developing a deep respect for the player and their strength. His views also seem to change on battling; going from "might makes right" to everyone having their own special styles and finding the enjoyment in battles rather than it all being about winning. Hau...While yes...he's a rather lackluster rival added to a growing list, he's also unlike any of the others. He's a bit of several, being sort of competitive, enjoying traveling and when you move over, he's basically your new best friend. I found myself looking at Hau like a brother and the way he treats everyone he comes across as almost a part of a family. I constantly compare him to my own friends I grew up with and when you have people like that; the ohana will never turn their backs on you. And I plain love Professor Kukui. He's a very laid-back easygoing and nonformal professor which is a stark contrast to the guys like Rowan and Oak. On the other end of the spectrum, the most underwhelming character in Sun & Moon has to be Guzma. While I love his personality and "Y'all are stupid!" "It's ya boy Guzma!" and all, I feel that he really didn't get a lot of screen time and deserved a lot more. Although you hear about him, you don't meet him in person until you're more than halfway through the game. Compared to some of the other villainous Team leaders, you meet Giovanni about halfway through the playthrough, Archie and Maxie also early on. In Platinum, you encounter Cyrus almost right away. Ghetsis and Colress are also met early on and you can find Lysandre in Lumiose City when you go for the first time. Honestly, I feel that if Guzma had some more story bounced around in the main quest and a few other things had been changed, I would've suspected him as the main villain and have much less suspicion of Lusamine. And she's a fantastic villain. Her story is quite tragic.
Im probably gonna have to go for Gladion. He's se edgy. You can almost cut yourself with all that edge. (Not an Emo joke.)
Lillie And Meme Nebby. But Seriously,Lillie Has Her Development Story In The Game.(A Bit For N?) But She Talk To Her Mother In Ultra Space Had Blown My Mind...Like A Party Horn Just Hyped Out. Geroniny:"Get In The Game,Nebby!"(A 'Get In The Bag,Nebby!' Meme Reference)
While I love a lot of the Alola region's characters, I think Plumeria is my favorite. It's obvious who has the brains in Team Skull no one But honestly, Plumeria was the most level headed of the Skull gang and while I was a little upset that Team Skull didn't have any more admins (one? That's it?), I really liked Plumeria's character and how she was taking care of her "family." I hope that in USUM, we get to learn more about her backstory and her work in Team Skull. Other than that, I really liked Gladion and he stood out to me as more of a rival than Hau.
Lusamine is like a Cynthia's evil version, what makes her my second favourite character actually. her presence, arguments and way to do the things catched me from the first moment, Lillie. Is adorable. her personality is inocent but always keeps her good intentions. She would be my second favourite character.
Gladion and Lillie are my favorite characters in the game. Gladion because he's an edge lord with his own awesome Pokémon partner to compliment his edginess, and Lillie because of her overall development from sheltered girl to potential Pokémon trainer.
Ya boi Guzma obviously. Also, Kukui is pretty chill. Along with his possible brother/cousin the Masked Royale. Honorable mention to edgelord too though
Lillie because of her adorableness (pouting!?) and her fashion sense, dedication to her friends. Also the Nebby combo <3
I honestly like Gladion. He comes up as a rebel and a mean guy, but he soon becomes, well, not a friend. An acquaintance? Yeah.
I think most of us here will agree that Lillie's our fave xD I actually really liked her involvement in the story and what she did to save Nebby from the hands of her evil mother, Lusamine, who is a special mention to me. Gladion came really close to Lillie but he wasn't exposed that much until later in the story, unlike Lillie, who was already there from the beginning (for goodness sake, she was even in the opening scene)
Gladion is so cool! I love sibling characters in general though, so I'd have to go with both Gladion and Lillie.
Edgelord. He's cool and distant but is really just a good old big brother in the end. Hooray for siblings! I also love that they brought Anabel back. She's one tough trainer, and she looks darn good in that new suit XD Taking a page out of Steven's book I see.
Same, I really don't get the hype about Lillie. She doesn't really add anything to the story, she is just dragged through it.