Forum - View topicWhat Happened To Our Anime Heroes?
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TranceLimit174
 Posts: 964 |
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I was curious as to what you all thought about this. But it seems nowadays a lot of our anime badasses are not around anymore. What I mean by that is character's that are forthright and sure of themselves. An example of someone who doesn't fit here is Shinji Ikari. While I like the character, I feel like the character created a mindset that unless a character posses flaws like those of Shinji (he's just an example, another would be the shy characters from harem series) then they have no depth. Characters that would fit in my opinion our characters like Akira Fudo (Devilman), Kazuma from sCRYed, and while I didn't care for the series Kenshiro from First Of The North Star. I just see this as a recent trend in anime and I was curious about what others thought.
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jfrog
 Posts: 925 Location: Seattle |
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How could you not mention Captain Harlock? He's THE anime badass.
I agree. Unless you're going for realistic characterization (like Paranoia Agent) I'd rather watch an anime with a badass lead, but with the exception of Samurai Champloo (and hopefully Steamboy) we haven't been getting much of that lately. That's why I can't stand Wolf's Rain, it had nobody in it that I wanted to root for. And I hate how everyone talks about how Evangelion has complex, well-rounded characters. Shinji is just your average depressed teenager, except he has an Oedipal complex, too! Oooh! Angst != Depth, people. |
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TranceLimit174
Posts: 964 |
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Haha nice seeing someone agrees man and thanks. I can't believe I overlooked Harlock. He was THE original anime badass after all. He's up there too. Yeah I'm just sick of all of the angst in anime. Its either angst or anime fanservice with comedy it seems. Any other opinions?
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SSJ Ski
Posts: 99 Location: Behind me....wait |
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I think Shinji was created as he was for a reason. And he fits his role perfectly. But the problem is since Eva was popular other people thought - oh let's make our main character like Shinji.
So I agree that I don't like seeing every protagonist be all angsty - it worked for Eva but it might not work for everything. |
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abunai
Old Regular
 Posts: 5463 Location: 露命 |
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Not that I'm going to hold it up as a stellar example of the medium, or anything, but it must be said that Bakuretsu Tenshi does have a "badass" character in the lead - namely, Jo. There are multiple leads, of course, and most of them are pretty tame, but Jo is fairly tough.
...and I'm not even going to mention Daphne in the Brilliant Blue. Um. Oops. - abunai |
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Ken Hayashi
 Posts: 752 Location: Singapore |
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Will Motoko Kusanagi from GITS qualify? She's one tough babe who can kick some ass (and then some more). And she's got an attitude that just rocks!
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ANN_Bamboo
ANN Contributor
 Posts: 3906 Location: CO |
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I don't think there's anything wrong with Shinji being a wuss. Considering what he's had to go through in life, topped off with his dad asking him to risk his life without explanation... I'd be a little freaked out, too. It's unreasonable to expect a teenaged boy to step into the role of hero, given the circumstances surrounding Eva. Plus, it makes him a more interesting character.
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Kazuki-san
 Posts: 2251 Location: Houston, TX |
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I agree with you there, not even to mention that Eva is just shy of 10 years old, it's not exactly a current series. |
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jfrog
Posts: 925 Location: Seattle |
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Yes, it makes sense for Shinji to act the way he does. But he's not a real person, he's an anime character and thus could've been written in any way. And I don't think he's a particularly interesting character. While he does have a lengthy backstory, he's not really that complex or well-rounded, since his mood only ever varies in its intensity. I'd like him to smile just once so that all us viewers who aren't suicidal have something to identify with.
Now Movie Hitomi, that was a depressed character done well. |
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Kazuki-san
Posts: 2251 Location: Houston, TX |
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But he did smile, more than once even, granted..spoiler[it was only during the times he was playing out scenes when he was insided Eva 1, but it did happen.] and about him being well-rounded.. spoiler[if you look at his life, it's not a surprise he turned out the way he did. I mean he watched his mom die.. well absored really.. but to him it was die, inside of Eva 1. Whether he consciously remembers it or not it would traumatize him, so it's no wonder he doesn't like piloting an Eva, because to him it killed his mother.] If you try to apply what is happening to him to a real world situation, I bet most would act as he did. I mean it's all well and good to say "I would love to go pilot a Mecha and kick some a**" but if it was reality there would be very real danger involved, I doubt most 14 yr olds would volunteer. Not to mention that the whole reason his dad brought him there was to be his tool. It would be like your dad handing you a gun when you turned 14 and saying "go off and fight this guy who is trained in warfare and tactics and with weapons, while you have no training at all." Would you gladly take the gun and head off to face your opponent? Doubtful. Last edited by Kazuki-san on Fri Jul 23, 2004 12:35 am; edited 2 times in total |
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Kagemusha
 Posts: 2783 Location: Boston |
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Guts. Need I say more? Even his name tells you theres no skrewing with this guy. Where as many "deep" anime heroes we see nowadays would go become brooding goth boys and cry about what happened to them, Guts takes the approch of getting a giant sword, getting lots of cool weapons, getting really pissed of, and then killing everything in sight. Theres no reasoning with him. He just wants to kill kill kill.
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monkeyDluffy4
 Posts: 145 Location: Watanabe Shaved Ice |
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There have been a few anime badass charaters lately, although mostly in longrunning shonen series. One Piece's Luffy and Zoro (although Zoro's confidence is shaken spoiler[as a result of his battle with Mihawk]) are full of confidence and seem to enjoy fighting. Naruto's Hatake Kakashi is pretty badass, too. And don't get me started on Kaiba (So it's with cards, he's still a badass. The only thing in his way is Yugi). And if Spike of Cowboy Bebop is not a penultimate badass, then I don't know who is. (I say "a" as there are a few (very few) characters who have reached his level of confidence and strength)
I think having main characters who seem more human can be a good thing once in a while. it lets you connect with them. I could never see myself running around and pounding anybody I don't like with my rubber-stretching abilities and (quote from Shonen Jump) "Unstoppable Optimism," but sure, I could see myself depressed, under pressure from my father to do something I don't want to do, and lonely. I think both kinds of characters are necessary. One type makes for interesting insights, and the other makes for an entertaining smackdown. |
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Tony K.
 SubscriberModerator  Posts: 12104 Location: Frisco, TX |
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I would like to say there are quite a few "badasses" in Rurouni Kenshin. Pretty much anyone other than Kaoru, Yahiko, and any supporting cast members that don't fight would fit this category. My favorite character, of course, is the guy in my avatar.
As for angsty characters, I don't really mind it all that much, as long as there's a good reason for it. Now, I said this earlier in another post, but I'll say it again. I don't really like Shinji, but at the same time, I don't hold it against him for being who he is, given how crappy his relationship to Gendou was and the hardships he faced prior to becoming a pilot. However, it does seem to get a little old and irritating when he acts like he does sometimes, especially when he shouldn't be doing so. Maybe I missed the hidden explanation within the writing or something, as I haven't seen the show in a while, but for now, I'll stand by what I remember. Just remember though, I don't hate him, but I don't like him either. His attitude just really stands out sometimes. 
Now Tsukasa from .hack//SIGN she's annoying... I know the whole thing about her life in the real world, but since they didn't put much detail as to why she acted so stuck up in the beginning, I only gave the series an "excellent" rating instead of "masterpeice." Can anyone help me remember something I missed? |
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Jimmy Balls-O-Steel
Posts: 60 Location: The Great White North |
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I've yet to see the anime, but I like how the manga shows that Guts is a deep character. He is how he is, and for a damn good reason. I'm suprised that nobody mentioned Alucard from Hellsing (unless someone made a posted something about him as I'm typing this). Seriously, how is Alucard not badass? Especially when, in the manga, he says spoiler["Besides, for me, sunlight isn't some great anime. I just hate it.] It may seem somewhat boring the fact that spoiler[he truly is all-powerful,] but watching him do his thing (Hell, even watching be arrogant while not really doing anything at all) is a truly great watch. And he's not angsty or broken. Vash the Stampede could be a true badass, but he's got issues with people being killed in any way, shape or form. But hey, it works. |
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Tony K.
Subscriber Moderator Posts: 12104 Location: Frisco, TX |
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Holy moly  , how could I forget him, he's such a psychopath when encountered on the battlefield.
Yes, he and Father Anderson are two of my top religious zealots that are complete nuts when trying to accomplish their goals through violence. Good call. Oh, and I also want to point out another possibly angsty hero. Would Kamui from X (TV) count? He's not angsty at all in the beginning, but I believe he get's that way just a little bit after that whole Katori thing. |
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