If you want big personality, game chickens are the answer. I have three hens and they are the bossiest, loudest and fiercest chickens in the group. No one messes with the game girls, not even the roosters! They're very curious chickens, and while mine are flighty and not really too friendly, I got them as adults. We recently raised a game/Marans cross, and those chicks were super friendly. They're wary of the cat (who is too lazy to try hunt chickens) and ignore our larger dog who keeps out of their way, but they've chased my sister's little dog if it gets too close to them. If you ever want to hatch chicks, they are also awesome moms.
The cons are they're loud! They fuss a lot and generally make a racket. They are really good at flying too. They go broody a lot and ours stop laying around the end of September/October or so without any extra light, but our started laying again in late December/early January this year. We have one that lays small eggs, one that lays medium eggs, and one that lays large eggs.
x2 on the game chickens. Brahmas are very large chickens, but mine have always been very docile (even the roosters).