You have understood the thrust of hth's argument completely differently from what I understood her to be saying. She isn't questioning the type of character which fandom embraces.

I understood her to be questioning the view that the practice of identifying with character is the heart of fannish experience. The question I read was, can we not appreciate our characters, love them, work with them, talk about them, or judge them on a scale which doesn't go from "is like me" to "is not like me"?

Are there not other axes of interaction with the characters that are as valid mediafan practices as the one you're positing as the heart of fannish practice (which I read as Character Sue)?