] It's only twelve chapters in, and already I'm getting all swoony for our dear Colonel.

I warmed to his character right away, both in the book and in the movie. One cannot help but gravitate to his quiet strength. He is the one stable, rational person the widow Dashwood and her daughters meet. Every one else is pretentious, jealous, silly or insipid. Of all the characters surrounding the Dashwoods in the first 12 chapters, Colonel Brandon is the only one the reader can most readily identify with as a genuine gentleman.
Yes there is an aura of mystery about him, but his personality is sincere. There are no pretences, no meddlesomeness (like lovable Mrs. Jennings), no conceit just a quiet sincerity that comes across immediately. Vicki I. (Who was "head over heels" for the Colonel from the first time she read the book)

] In my first read, I was just trying to take it all in, but I was happy to see that Colonel Brandon's character was practically unaltered from the book to S&S2.

] Now I'm beginning to appreciate the characters on their own merits, and already I am won by the way he silently appreciates Marianne's musical skills (the only point where I thought of the movie), and in the last few chapters, as he silently pines for Marianne. *Sigh* Elinor's appreciation for his good characters and nature only add to it.

] Of course, this made me also want to give Willoughby and Marianne SUTHs when they insult him.