Hmm as far as character tropes go, I like bubbly and optimistic characters a lot, even those that some people find annoying rather than endearing. I also love the same dumb-yet-powerful best friend trope! I find myself wanting to include these in my story often, especially since I often err towards not-super-powerful main chars... so BFF gotta pick up the slack! xD;;
As far as story tropes go, I'm the hugest sucker for tournament arcs, regardless of whether or not they're done well or actually aid the story @u@;; Fighting, cooking, singing, performing, doesn't matter. Any kind of tournament arc always gets me like 10x hyped for whatever I'm reading/watching.