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Anime enthusiasts often find themselves captivated by characters for their personality or appearance, rather than their ethical motivations. While villains are straightforward to identify and are admired for their notorious evil actions, another intriguing group of characters occupies a more ambiguous moral space.
This group includes heroes, main characters, and beloved figures who, despite committing questionable acts, are often excused due to the myriad of justifications offered by the anime. These justifications might involve a tragic backstory, altruistic goals, or occasional support for the forces of good, yet these elements don’t necessarily make them paragons of virtue.
Take Gojo Satoru from Jujutsu Kaisen, for instance. Many fans view him as a hero, but a closer look reveals a more complex character. Unlike Geto, who seeks humanity’s destruction, Gojo uses his formidable abilities to maintain order among sorcerers and eliminate harmful curses. However, his actions are rarely driven by pure altruism or an unwavering commitment to justice.
Gojo Satoru’s Arrogance Makes Him A Questionable Hero in Jujutsu Kaisen
Gojo Satoru is supposed to be one of the good guys from Jujutsu Kaisen, or that’s what his fans would like to believe. Indeed, Gojo is definitely not one of those sorcerers who want a total annihilation of humankind like Geto. He also uses his immense powers to keep balance within the sorcerer community and kill dangerous curses that can harm people. Nevertheless, most of his actions hardly stem from genuine goodwill or a desire to do the right thing.
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At his core, Gojo is an egomaniac who genuinely believes he stands above everyone else, and he’s not exactly wrong. As the unrivaled powerhouse of Jujutsu Kaisen, his overwhelming strength naturally breeds a kind of godlike detachment. In many ways, the protection he offers humanity is not out of generosity but from confidence in his powers.
Zenitsu Can Be Really Annoying At Times in Demon Slayer
Everyone loves Zenitsu Agatsuma, for he comes across as a likable side character with an interesting quirk in Demon Slayer. He might seem like a weak-willed character at first who becomes scared at the drop of a hat, but he still perseveres through every difficulty. So, his popularity among the fans makes sense, but that does not make him a very good person.
Zenitsu is a demon slayer who can only fight at his best after losing consciousness. This dependence on his unconscious state highlights how much he struggles when he’s awake, highlighting his mental vulnerability. Not to mention, his constant whining about every single thing only adds to his annoying attributes. His womanizing habits also make him an irksome simp-type character who essentially harasses women to a great extent.
Jinwoo’s Power Turned Him Into Something Inhuman in Solo Leveling
Jinwoo is the overpowered hero of Solo Leveling, who enjoys a massive popularity for his confidence and abilities. He faced horrific, traumatic experiences when he first started as a Hunter and even had to die to get the powers he has now. However, it is undoubtedly true that the kind and compassionate man he used to be is no more, and now he is just a shell of a human being.
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After surviving death, Jinwoo unlocks a cheat code to get stronger than anyone else and also loses his humanity. He becomes absolutely ruthless, who can only see the victory in front of him and not the consequences. Just to avoid inconvenience, he swiftly kills Kim, whose death was not absolutely necessary for Jinwoo. Not just that, but as the story progresses, Jinwoo most likely will become a god-like entity with selective compassion left in him.
Tobirama Failed The Uchiha Clan As Hokage in Naruto
Tobirama should be celebrated as someone of exceptional caliber who became one of the best Hokage of Konoha. Under his leadership, Konoha thrived exceptionally, turning into a stable and prosperous village. However, there was one thing that Tobirama would always be guilty of, and that had to do with how he could not get past his abhorrence for one particular clan.
Tobirama’s deep distrust of the Uchiha clan is well known, especially given the harm Madara and other Uchiha had inflicted on the people he cared about. However, once he became Hokage, it was his responsibility to rise above personal grudges and treat every clan fairly. He should have taken steps to mend the long-standing rift between his clan and the Uchiha, which also housed innocent people, but he didn’t. That failure ultimately became the foundation for many of the major conflicts in Naruto.
Asuka Is Just As Flawed As Shinji in Neon Genesis Evangelion
Asuka Langley Soryu from Neon Genesis Evangelion is an interesting character who deserves just as much, if not more, criticism than Shinji for her abrasive personality. She is someone who suffered from apparent emotional abuse due to having gone through a difficult childhood. This is also why she grew up with an intense hunger for attention and validation that were denied to her from the very beginning.
However, this does not explain why anyone would act like a selfish and egotistic being for the longest time. Her behavior toward Shinji and almost every person other than herself showcases just how much of a dislikable disposition she has. Thus, even though she went through a lot, Asuka was not a good individual in any way or form, just like the majority of the other characters from the franchise.
Light Yagami Had No Right To Play God in Death Note
Light Yagami begins in Death Note as an exemplary student and a seemingly respectable young man with noble intentions. He genuinely wishes to be better than others and set an example by doing something for society. This is why, when he gets his hands on the Death Note that can kill anyone with just their names written on it, he plans to utilize it to eradicate only the bad people.
Even then, what right does a human like Light have to pass judgment on others, and that is a genuine question that never crossed his mind. In the end, he became the very thing he wanted to eliminate and walked down a path of evil that was somewhat ingrained in him from the very beginning. Thus, despite being the hero and one of the most popular characters in anime, Light is not at all a good human being.
Attack on Titan’s Hero, Eren Yeager, Is A Mass Murderer
Eren Yeager is hailed as the tragic hero of Attack on Titan, who wanted to fight for freedom. He is someone who even decided to take the path of self-sacrifice so that his own people could live freely. Yet, those who support him forget the fact that he only thought about a very small number of people and essentially passed the judgment of death on more than half of the population of Earth.
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Eren was not born evil, as everything he did grew out of his desperate wish to secure a better future for his friends. However, to this day, there is this argument as to whether rumbling was really necessary because the justification leading to this mass massacre makes little sense. Ultimately, the blood of millions of innocents keeps Eren from ever being considered a true hero.
Reze Is A Cold-Blooded Killer in Chainsaw Man
The character of Reze gets introduced in Chainsaw Man for a very brief time, as she only appears in the movie. Even in that short appearance, Reze manages to capture everyone’s attention and also make herself a memorable part of the franchise. Fans felt very bad for her in the end, when they realized maybe things could have developed better between her and Denji had the situation been different.
However, her sudden change of heart should not miraculously alter the fact that she had been manipulating Denji from the very beginning. She not only made active passes at him to lure him into a false sense of comfort, but also relentlessly pursued him to kill him and get his heart. To accomplish her goals, she also kills countless others and bombs entire sections of cities, killing more innocent Chainsaw Man characters who had nothing to do with the devils.
Hisoka’s Obsession With Gon Is Deeply Disturbing in Hunter x Hunter
Hisoka is one of the most talented hunters of Hunter x Hunter, and his abilities become clear even from the first episode. He gets introduced as a ruthless villain, but he slowly comes around as a morally grey character who also ends up helping the protagonists from time to time. However, he is not at all a good human being, because most of the time, he does things solely because he wants to fight strong hunters.
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Hisoka is also a selfish man who has zero sense of duty or loyalty to anyone. He does not blink twice before betraying anyone he works with because his interest always comes first. But that is not the only thing that makes him shady. His unhealthy fixation on Gon and the unsettling way that interest manifests only turns him into an even greater menace than he already was.
Dabi Punished Innocent People For His Father’s Sins In My Hero Academia
In My Hero Academia, Dabi’s backstory had every element that would let others prove how much of a sad character he is. Yes, he had a rough upbringing, and the way he got burned definitely makes one feel bad for him. However, it’s also true that his family did nothing to deserve the blame he piles on them throughout the series.
Apart from that, Dabi could have returned to his parents after surviving that accident and let them know that he is alive. Instead, he decided to hold onto his resentment for his family, mainly his father, and become a villain. Not only that, he also killed many innocent people and bore a one-sided grudge against Shoto. His hatred for his youngest brother is especially absurd, since Shoto is just as much a victim, making Dabi a deeply broken and spiteful person.
