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Vigilante anime?




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NStar777



Joined: 30 Mar 2016
Posts: 2
PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 7:32 am Reply with quote
For over 2 years, I've been looking for any anime series that involves a vigilante, but while looking, all I've found are hundreds of suggestions for the same types of anime, and, this may be nitpicking, but I don't count them:

Death Note

Weiss Kreuz

Batman: Gotham Knight: Alright, I'll admit, this one does count, but I've already seen it

Zetman

Mobile Suit Gundam

Akame Ga Kill

Cowboy Bebop

Attack on Titan

Trigun

009re:cyborg

Area 88

Casshern Sins

Cowboy Ragtime Show

Eden to the East

Kurau Phantom Memory

Michiko to Hatchin

Nurarihyon no Mago

I do understand why a lot of these are suggested so often, because the characters seem like vigilantes, but people keep making that mistake because in most of these animes, the characters are either soldiers, mercinaries, assassins, bounty hunters, monster hunters or police officers.

Admitedly, there are a couple anime series with vigilantes that I do agree count, such as Future Diary (Main character may not be a vigilante, but one of the minor characters it), and possibly Black Butler, I tried watching that, but I never finished the first episode

If you know any anime series where there is at least one character who is actually classified as a vigilante, please let me know.[/b]
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Saffire



Joined: 25 Nov 2007
Posts: 1255
Location: Iowa, USA
PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 8:15 am Reply with quote
I agree with a good chunk of that list, but there's enough on there I don't agree with that I would like a definition to work with.

Bubblegum Crisis' various incarnations should count.


Last edited by Saffire on Wed Mar 30, 2016 8:24 am; edited 1 time in total
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Key
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Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18187
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 8:15 am Reply with quote
I'm curious as to what your definition of a vigilante is, then. While I'll definitely agree that most of the titles on this list aren't even remotely close to dealing with true vigilantes, there are a couple that I would say do have them. Light Yagami in Death Note very definitely fits the standard definition, as he is acting outside the law to impose justice (or at least that's how he justifies it to himself), and I think a strong case could be argued for Zetman, too.

EDIT: And yes, I absolutely agree that the Bubblegum Crisis franchise fits any definition of vigilantism quite nicely. (I believe they're even specifically referred to as vigilantes at one point in BGC Tokyo 2040.)


Last edited by Key on Wed Mar 30, 2016 8:17 am; edited 1 time in total
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DuelGundam2099



Joined: 07 Dec 2014
Posts: 533
PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 8:16 am Reply with quote
NStar777 wrote:
Mobile Suit Gundam

This is a military based series, I would not count this as vigilante.
Quote:
Cowboy Bebop

Bounty hunters are not vigilantes, they are almost always licensed.
Quote:
Casshern Sins

This one I can kind of understand being counted as such, but vigilantism requires law breaking which is extremely hard to do in a lawless setting.
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NStar777



Joined: 30 Mar 2016
Posts: 2
PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 9:54 am Reply with quote
Key wrote:
I'm curious as to what your definition of a vigilante is, then. While I'll definitely agree that most of the titles on this list aren't even remotely close to dealing with true vigilantes, there are a couple that I would say do have them. Light Yagami in Death Note very definitely fits the standard definition, as he is acting outside the law to impose justice (or at least that's how he justifies it to himself), and I think a strong case could be argued for Zetman, too.

EDIT: And yes, I absolutely agree that the Bubblegum Crisis franchise fits any definition of vigilantism quite nicely. (I believe they're even specifically referred to as vigilantes at one point in BGC Tokyo 2040.)


My definition of a vigilante is someone who goes against the legal system in the persuit of justice.

Light doesn't fit the definition because even though he does kill criminals, he is also known to kill law enforcement officers just to assure he isn't caught.

Also, Zetman actually seems more superhero than vigilante, but, since I'm only going by what I've read about it, I guess it could be worth a watch
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Dessa



Joined: 14 Jul 2004
Posts: 4438
PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 1:20 pm Reply with quote
NStar777 wrote:
My definition of a vigilante is someone who goes against the legal system in the persuit of justice.


Then how the heck do you say that Weiss Kreuz isn't vigilante? Just because they're employed as assassins doesn't mean that they're not vigilante. Heck, once you get later in the franchise, they go against Kritiker, too, because Kritiker is in the wrong as well.
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Alan45
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Joined: 25 Aug 2010
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 1:29 pm Reply with quote
definition from the OED: A member of a self-appointed group of citizens who undertake law enforcement in their community without legal authority, typically because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate.

Basically anyone pursuing justice without formal authority. I find it interesting that it appears to require a group. Most super heroes are pursuing vigilante justice. This is why there is a problem with the concept of super heroes.
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Captain X



Joined: 10 Apr 2011
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 1:53 pm Reply with quote
Would Fist of the North Star count?
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Saffire



Joined: 25 Nov 2007
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Location: Iowa, USA
PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 2:09 pm Reply with quote
Captain X wrote:
Would Fist of the North Star count?
I think that falls under "can't be a vigilante without laws to break". I amused myself for a bit considering magical girl shows that might qualify, but there aren't a lot of laws covering magical entities or extradimensional evil.

Would an independent militaristic peacekeeping force like Gundam 00 or Full Metal Panic count? Celestial Being operates for the sake of ending war, and Mithril is an anti-terror organization. They're not always the nicest people but vigilantes rarely are in my experience.
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Key
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 4:36 pm Reply with quote
NStar777 wrote:
My definition of a vigilante is someone who goes against the legal system in the persuit of justice.

Light doesn't fit the definition because even though he does kill criminals, he is also known to kill law enforcement officers just to assure he isn't caught.

I don't see that disqualifying him from being a vigilante, though.

Quote:
Also, Zetman actually seems more superhero than vigilante, but, since I'm only going by what I've read about it, I guess it could be worth a watch

Super-heroes are commonly vigilantes, actually. The only times they aren't is if they are exclusively acting as Good Samaritans or are sanctioned by the government. (One Punch Man has a good example of this, as does Tiger & Bunny.)

Saffire wrote:
Would an independent militaristic peacekeeping force like Gundam 00 or Full Metal Panic count? Celestial Being operates for the sake of ending war, and Mithril is an anti-terror organization. They're not always the nicest people but vigilantes rarely are in my experience.

Once you raise to the level of a formal military force, I don't think you can be considered a vigilante anymore. At that point you're more of a peacekeeping force.
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Night fox



Joined: 01 Oct 2014
Posts: 561
Location: Sweden
PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 6:45 pm Reply with quote
I suppose you could say that there's a group of vigilantes in Terror in Resonance, depending on how you look at it. Another show that comes to mind is Gilgamesh, which has a supernatural (or maybe it's more of sci-fi) setting and a group of espers that seek justice outside the law.
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Calathan
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Joined: 27 Aug 2005
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 30, 2016 11:13 pm Reply with quote
Among the ones listed in the original post, I would certainly consider Eden of the East as having a vigilante (the character Kuroha Diana Shiratori).

Something else that comes to mind would be Sailor Victory. While I would definitely consider the main characters to be vigilantes, I'm kind of doubtful it would be what you are looking for (it is a parody mecha OVA).
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CoreSignal



Joined: 04 Sep 2014
Posts: 727
Location: California, USA
PostPosted: Thu Mar 31, 2016 4:05 pm Reply with quote
@NStar777,I can't really think of too many, especially since a couple I thought up are on your list. I might try Speed Grapher. The main character is a photojournalist with super powers who rescues a girl from this evil corporation/organization and then he's basically on run with her avoiding both the organization and the cops while trying to take down the bad guys. The show deals a lot with corrupt politicians and government officials.

I might try Terror in Resonance as well for the reasons Night fox mentioned. I'm also surprised you don't count Eden of the East since the main character is sort of a lone revolutionary.
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