Top 5 Anime Anti-Heroes That Redefined Morality And Captivated Audiences

In the colourful world of anime, the boundaries between good and evil are not always clear and can be blurred sometimes. While traditional heroes fight for justice, anti-heroes operate in the grey. They are the flawed and vengeful people who are not afraid to get their hands dirty and give the villains what they deserve,”an eye for an eye”.

These characters fascinate us and are more relatable to us than traditional heroes as humans are complex characters and we are not always the moral goody two shoes that the traditional heroes represent while also not being bad to the bone like the traditional villains and therefore the anti hero character is perfectly relatable and here are our top 5 anime anti-heroes who left a definitive mark on us.

Lelouchi vi Britannia( Code Geass )

Lelouch Lamperogue is perhaps the ultimate example of the ‘ends justify the means’ philosophy. Toppling a global empire is no small feat and he realised early on that treating them with kindness would not work and help win the revolution.

Equipped with the Geass which gives him the power to command anyone to do anything, he dons the mask of Zero and manipulates his friends and sacrifices soldiers like chess pieces and even lies to his own family. Yet, he did all of this with the good intention of creating a gentle world for his sister is what makes him the perfect anti-hero.

Vegeta( Dragon Ball series)

We were first introduced to Vegeta as the prideful prince of all Saiyans who came to conquer Earth and destroy all its population. However, over time after Goku defeated Vegeta the first time we see the softer side of him with him trying to save the same planet he once seeked to destroy.

Even though he was still very prideful and was trying to satisfy his inferiority complex every time he stepped in the ring. He was still a good guy and a perfect yin to Goku’s yang. He was everything Goku was not. He was rude, ruthless and arrogant and always wanted to get stronger so he could surpass Goku while Goku just fought for peace he fought for vengeance.

Guts( Berserk )

If there was a dictionary definition of suffering then it would be Guts. Known as ‘The Black Swordsman’, Guts is a cynical, brutal mercenary wandering a world filled with demons and betrayal. He appears heartless on the surface but his brutality is a surviving mechanism. His humanity is hidden between layers of trauma and scar tissue, making his rare moments of vulnerability some of the most poignant moments of anime.

Light Yagami( Death Note )

Light Yagami is introduced as a genius who is bored with the world. He receives the death note and uses it to kill all criminals under the alias ‘Kira’, Though he had noble intentions, the merciless way of killing each and every criminal despite taking into consideration the severity of crime they commit with no guilt or remorse is the reason why he makes the list and also the reason he is a good matchup to K.

Eren Yeager(Attack On Titans)

Eren started his journey like all other shonen protagonists. He was loud, angry and determined to kill all titans. However, later what separated him from just another Naruto type characters was his character development. He eventually concludes that he had to fight brick by bricks and ends up becoming the world’s biggest monster himself. He abandons his friends and orchestrates mass casualties all in the name of freedom which is why he earned a spot on our list.