I wrote Kevin off as the big brother but young me only saw him in that role. Which I still love, but that's not all there is to Kevin. He's probably the biggest change in terms of perspective. Kevin is always so great with fans, he really does everything he can to make you feel heard online and in person. Not to mention he can party with the best of them LOL. His return made me appreciate him so much. If I had to rank, he'd be practically tied with Nick.
As a teenager I used to say I was a "Brian and Nick" girl. I would lean more towards one or the other depending on what was happening. During Nick's hot mess years of 2003-2006 I leaned more Brian, for example. But like Julie, that's because I thought Brian was 90s Brian. While social media really helped me appreciate everyone in the group more, it made me step back from Brian. He's not the person I thought he was, and that's okay. I always respected that he's someone who stands by his beliefs. I just don't agree with him on a lot of things. Backstreet Boy Brian I still love, but Brian the person, not so much. I can look past it mainly cause I have a brother who thinks like he does, so I've got practice in it. I'll forever have a soft spot for one of my original faves, if that makes sense.
Nick, I loved 90s Nick. I've always been a dork, hyperactive, loving random things. I've joked with Julie that if he was a normal person that we met we'd probably all be good friends since he's pretty quirky himself. I think had I not been a teenager during his hot mess years I might've moved on to a different "fave" Boy. I mean by the time he dropped the weight and started working on himself in like 2007, I was barely 21 LOL. Mature Nick is definitely my favorite Nick and his voice sounds even better today. I'll always identify as a "Nick Girl".
Howie - man, I wish I'd known he had the sense of humor he had back when I was younger. I never appreciated it till Unbreakable after Kevin left and he got more time. I ignored Howie, like I liked him in the 90s but I never paid attention to him LOL.
AJ - Funnily enough I've always had the same level of appreciation for AJ. Mainly cause his voice is always able to give me chills when he really lets go. AJ is AJ, no matter what decade when it comes to his choices about style or whatever LOL.