10 Misunderstood Anime Characters Everyone Hates on Their 1st Watch
The first time someone watches an anime, they will decide right away who they like and who they don’t among the cast of characters. It’s easy to like the cheerful, sympathetic hero and their friends, such as Naruto Uzumaki and Tanjiro Kamado, while other characters may be disliked, either fairly or unfairly. It’s fair to dislike a character who does terrible things without remorse, while other characters are actually much better than viewers might be led to believe on their initial watch.
This is often on purpose, with certain anime series depicting certain antagonists or side characters as someone dangerous or vile, only to reveal their true intentions and/or sympathetic side a little later on. In some cases, a character is morally ambiguous, and it’s not clear if fans should like them, so it may take two or more viewings for fans to make up their mind. This often happens in the arc of an antagonist who got redeemed or had to do terrible things for reasons outside their control.
Hisoka Morow Terrorized Gon and Killua More Often Than Not
Hisoka Morow from Hunter x Hunter is a case where a character may not be properly redeemed on the second viewing, but may be seen in a slightly different light, all the same. That’s because Hisoka’s creepy attitude toward Gon and Killua can’t be ignored or forgiven, but then again, there’s more to Hisoka than that.
For good or ill, Hisoka is the type who likes to cultivate other people into worthwhile rivals to challenge everyone involved, and that helps fans focus on the most constructive part of Hisoka’s character. Hisoka also started helping Gon and Killua now and then, so he’s defined by more than his villain role in the Phantom Troupe.
Greed Was the One Who Kidnapped Alphonse and Hurt Izumi Curtis
Some characters in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood were worthy of the audience’s hatred from the start, such as Shou Tucker and Pride, but others didn’t feel so bad the second time around. Scar is one major example, along with Greed, the rogue homunculus who cares more than he’d like to admit. Greed believes in the power of friendship, while the other homunculi aren’t so sentimental.
When viewing Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood a second time, shonen fans may admire how, even in his villain era, Greed still cared about the chimeras serving him. He was seriously upset when Wrath’s squad killed them in Dublith’s sewers, and it’s much more sympathetic when viewers know Greed’s good nature.
Byakuya Kuchiki Almost Killed Ichigo and Arrested His Foster Sister
Quite a few Bleach characters were much more likable on a second viewing, with Captain Byakuya Kuchiki being a prominent example from the anime’s famed Soul Society Arc. At first, Bleach viewers detested Byakuya as the cold-blooded Captain who arrested Rukia and cut down Ichigo, but now fans see him in a different light.
Byakuya’s actions were definitely wrong at the time, but the second time around, Bleach fans can still halfway understand why Byakuya acted the way he did. He was no doubt aching on the inside, forcing himself to obey the law as an aristocrat Captain even if he wanted mercy for his foster sister deep down.
Akito Sohma Was Overcompensating For a Lack of Love
During most of Fruits Basket‘s story, shojo fans were revolted by the clingy, abusive, and self-centered behavior of Akito Sohma. The character was introduced as an effeminate boy who tyrannized the rest of the Sohmas, but then the truth came to light. Akito was a girl who suffered from her twisted mother’s lack of love, and now fans can rewatch Fruits Basket with a fresh perspective.
Akito is another of those characters who must own up to their misdeeds while also being more sympathetic than fans expected in the first pass. Now, shojo fans have more mixed feelings about Akito as someone who was emotionally scarred and tried in vain to heal those scars by inflicting similar ones on everyone else because she didn’t know what else to do.
Lordgenome Protected the Earth From an Even Greater Threat
At first, the Gurren Lagann anime made it clear how Lordgenome, or the Spiral King, was the worst thing to ever happen to humanity. He was the demon lord, a symbol of oppression and fear who was the thematic and physical nemesis of Simon and Kamina. After finishing the anime, Gurren Lagann fans now see him in a more moderate light as an arguably necessary evil.
Lordgenome drove humanity to near-extinction to avoid provoking the wrath of the Antispirals, a steep cost for survival that Lordgenome thought was worth paying, and Kamina thought was not worth paying. Lordgenome has much to answer for, but at least he didn’t defeat and terrorize humanity just for the sake of it.
Turbo Granny Has Become Shonen’s Weirdest Mentor
Turbo Granny is a strange case of a spirit turned half-other power turned shonen mentor in the Dandadan series. Turbo Granny may not be a true hero, but this spirit is more than the creepy monster fans met in the episode “That’s How Love Starts, Ya Know!’ At the very least, Dandadan fans can give Turbo Granny more of a second chance than they can give to the Serpo aliens.
No one will entertain the thought of forgiving or liking the Serpo aliens, but if Turbo Granny keeps this up, she may earn another chance from Dandadan fans. It’s entirely possible how this obnoxious spirit was just lonely, or that her powers twisted her personality. Now that Turbo Granny is a harmless cat charm, she can show her better side, or at least, she found the need to form one.
Ayato Kirishima Lost His Father, Just Like Touka
Like a number of ghouls in the Tokyo Ghoul manga/anime franchise, Ayato Kirishima is a lost soul who expressed his anger and pain in the wrong ways. Some ghouls, such as Tatara and Yamori, seem to be bad to the bone, but Ayato was merely a lost punk who needed a new, gentler perspective on things.
At first, Ayato was only seen as part of the Aogiri Tree squad that captured Ken Kaneki, but now, Tokyo Ghoul fans can see the victim in him. Just like his older sister Touka, Ayato lost his loving father to a CCG investigator, and Ayato needs another chance to process that pain and figure out what to do with himself.
Sanemi Shinazugawa Tried to Push Genya Away From This Dangerous Lifestyle
It’s not just the villains in Demon Slayer who might earn fans’ sympathy or get a second chance in the anime. Sanemi Shinazugawa, the intense Wind Hashira, drew fans’ ire when he doubted Nezuko’s goodness and pressured her into being the monster Sanemi thought she was. Then, Sanemi got into a fistfight with his brother Genya, and he got away with it.
Sanemi felt like nothing but a bully hiding behind his rank, but now, Demon Slayer fans can see how much he’s hurting. He and his brother Genya both suffered greatly when demons wiped out their family, and Sanemi has been pressuring himself a great deal to make sure no one has to experience those losses again. That’s the real reason Sanemi keeps antagonizing Genya — to push Genya to quit the Corps altogether and survive in an ordinary civilian life.
Itachi Uchiha Was Heartbroken to Follow His Orders
Itachi Uchiha from Naruto is what anime fans might call an anti-villain: someone who has the role of a villain while having the heart of a hero. Naruto fans once feared Itachi as the monster who slew his clan and tried to capture Naruto the jinchuriki, but that was just an act. Itachi was a good-hearted person who acted out of love for his village, but he couldn’t tell anyone, not even his brother.
Sheer guilt and grief ate Itachi from the inside after he protected his beloved village from his own traitorous family, and no doubt he felt terrible about having to hurt Sasuke to maintain the illusion. Fans still might not forgive Itachi for killing everyone, but at least Naruto devotees can see Itachi for who he is, not just for what he did.
Minerva Orland Faced Pressure From Her Father to Get Stronger
The Grand Magic Games tournament arc in Fairy Tail introduced or fleshed out quite a few rivals of the Fairy Tail guild, some of whom were monsters, others of whom were just circumstantial antagonists. Minerva Orland fit the second category, a tough wizard from Sabertooth who was more of a victim than Erza and the others might have expected.
Minerva was strong because she had to be, with her cruel father Jiemma pushing her too hard to be a fighter above all else. Thus, Minerva’s strength no longer feels like a tool for bullying, with Fairy Tail fans instead seeing it as something Minerva now owns as a force for good after her redemption.
