Redemption stories are always the fan favorites where the bad guy(villain) has a change of mind, wants to be good, and joins the heroes. It is a prevalent type of plot that many anime use these days, but mainly Shounen genre uses it the most.
While villains becoming good guys and heroes is prevalent in anime. And heroes or good guys becoming bad guys or sometimes the main antagonist is also viral.
Some characters are born evil and later exposed as bad guys. There are also characters who were forced to become the bad guys because of the hostile world. Maximum characters of this category are psychologically broken. It makes viewers feel that the character is right, even if it is terrible.
Below are the ten anime characters who had every right to become evil.
My Hero Academia- Stain/Chizome Akaguro (2016)
Director: Kenji Nagasaki
Genre: Adventure, Science Fantasy, Superhero
Where to watch: Crunchyroll, 9Anime, GogoAnime, Netflix
Stain is one of MHA’s favorite villain characters (My Hero Academia). Fans of MHA were surprised when Stain’s past was revealed. In the Titular Vs. Hero Killer Arc, Stain said that once he was also a hero under training like the others were along with Izuku Midoriya (Deku).
MHA showed us how ideologies could clash and result in an anti-utopian situation where there are people with special powers called Quirks. Therefore, as this anime progressed, we saw the society of MHA change, and slowly heroes were becoming bad guys with other motives.
Stain got his inspiration from All Might and wanted to become a hero like him. Still, when he faced reality behind becoming a hero, the corruption, and the twistedness of the hero society, he left heroism and chose evil.
Many heroes were fake and two-faced. They show people that they are heroes, but the only thing that they wanted was money and other things.
It was harming innocent society. It made Stain kill the pro-heroes and purify society.
Code Geass- Lelouch vi Britannia/ Lamperouge (2006)
Director: Goro Taniguchi
Genre: Action, Drama, Mecha, School, Sci-Fi, Super Power, Military
Where to watch: 9Anime, GogoAnime, KissAnime, Crunchyroll
Lelouch is one of the favorite characters from all the anime. He is one the most complicated character ever made in anime, and like all the other characters on this list, he also started with good intentions. His moral sense soon broke, and he became a mad guy. Now Lelouh will do anything to achieve his goals.
But at the end of Code Geass, Lelouch compensated because he became a common enemy to humanity, which united all the other groups.
Lelouch’s role as a common enemy helped the world. It ultimately gave the world peace and freedom. He staged his execution publicly at the hands of his best friend, Suzaku.
Even with all his flaws and maniacal personality, his nature was genuine. He always cared for his sister Nunally and best friend Suzaku, even though they were the opposite of the coin.
Future Diary/Mirai Nikki- Yukiteru Amano (2011)
Director: Naoto Hosoda
Genre: Action, Romance, Drama, Adventure, Thriller, Action Fiction,
Where to watch: 9Anime, GogoAnime, KissAnime, Crunchyroll
From the beginning of the anime (Future Diary), The protagonist (Yukiteru Amano) is displayed as a crybaby, constantly stressed and unable to face traumatic situations directly.
He initially relied on Yuno (his friend), who saved him from dangerous situations. Also, the lack of confidence made Yukieteru very submissive.
He had no intention of becoming a God when the game of survival started, but as the story progresses and the death of his parents, he becomes serious in the game to bring back his parents.
Yukiteru Amano slowly becomes more dangerous, cunning, and vicious and vigorously uses the diary for everything, along with self-defense.
He let Nishijima’s death happen, and his new twisted personality trusted Yuno, and her insanity was more than Kosaka, Mao, and Hinata.
Still, Yukitera did have some of his past self inside him. Even after all the changes and ideological transformations he developed.
Ultimately, he wishes to become the god to receive his parents and everyone else who died during this survival game.
Naruto/Naruto:Shippuden- Sasuke Uchiha (2002,2007)
Director: Hayato Date
Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Martial Arts, Shounen, Super Power
Where to watch: 9Anime, GogoAnime, KissAnime, Crunchyroll
His Journey is quite complicated throughout Naruto and Naruto: Shippuden. At the story’s beginning, Sasuke starts as an anti-hero, then becomes the main antagonist against Naruto by joining Orochimaru. Then again, he becomes an anti-hero and betrays Orochimaru.
Sasuke is always portrayed as a guy who is cool, calm, and collected. Sometimes, anime fans saw his anger, arrogance, and vengefulness.
Sasuke was one of those characters you shouldn’t mess with in the anime. Itachi Uchiha (Sasuke’s Elder Brother) traumatized him by murdering his entire family and clan.
Sasuke became one of the main antagonists when he came to know about the secret plan of the hidden leaf village and that they were to blame for the execution of his clan.
He fought against Itachi. Soon after Itachi’s death, he wanted to take revenge on Danzo, who was the main culprit for everything he lost.
Later he joins Akatsuki and becomes the common enemy of all Kages of hidden ninja villages. Finally, in the last War arc of Naruto: Shippuden, he gets his redemption, and he and Naruto fight together to seal Kaguya.
Berserk- Griffith (1997)
Director: Shin Itagaki
Genre: Action, Adventure, Demons, Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Romance, Supernatural, Military, Seinen
Where to watch: 9Anime, GogoAnime, KissAnime, Crunchyroll
Kentaro Miura is one of the most excellent manga writer who made a masterpiece- Berserk. He was able to create a twisted and evil world with some amazingly memorable characters.
He goes through the worst tragedies and is the best example of how constant abuse, torture, etc., can make a good man the evilest.
After getting betrayed by his most trusted friend (Guts), he chooses the most self-destructing path by bedding Princess Charolette when let into prison, and he is tortured for many years.
He was later rescued by a group that was led by Guts. Eventually, his extreme desire to make his kingdom took him to a path of destruction where he sacrificed a lot of people.
The group began their search for Kinsmanship during Gifts Eclips with God Hand. Griffith was killed during this time.
Later, he gets reincarnated, and his sole purpose is to create his utopian city, Falconia.
Redo of Healer- Keyaru (2021)
Director: Takuya Asaoka
Genre: Adventure, Ecchi, Fantasy, Magic, Harem
Where to watch: 9Anime, GogoAnime, KissAnime, Crunchyroll
The protagonist, Keyaru, in Redo of Healer, has a similar fate to Griffith in Berserk. He was a kind-hearted, gentle and caring person at the beginning of the anime.
But later, he becomes a twisted, mad, and vengeful person as he gets betrayed, drugged, tortured physically and mentally, got violated by both men and women for a long time.
After all, what he did was not justified, but Redo of Healer viewers feels that whatever he did was right and justified. He had the right to become evil because he was tortured for days and months.
Keyaru became a sadist, cold-hearted, vengeful, and manipulative. He realized that it was his mistake that everything happened to him because he was naive.
Therefore, during his reincarnation, or we can say do over, he relaces his older self with his present self, who knew everything that would happen to him. He ultimately becomes an evil cunning person to get his revenge.
Deadman Wonderland- Shiro (2011)
Director: Kōichirō Hatsumi
Genre: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi, Shounen, Supernatural
Where to watch: 9Anime, GogoAnime, KissAnime, Crunchyroll
In the story’s beginning, Shiro has a charming nature. But in reality, she was the reason Ganta was imprisoned and accused of his classmate’s murder which he never did. She was the one who was responsible for everything.
But she had a second personality. The first one was sweet and charming, but the second one, her real character, was morally twisted, dangerous, and sadistic.
Shiro always knew that she had this inside her because she was under experiments when she was a child. These experiments led Shiro to her dangerous personality, which developed as a coping mechanism for pain and suffering.
Both of her personalities wanted the same thing, i.e., Ganta’s death.
Attack On Titan- Eren Yeager (2013)
Director: Tetsuro Araki
Genre: Action, Mystery, Drama, Fantasy, Shounen, Super Power, Military
Where to watch: 9Anime, GogoAnime, KissAnime, Crunchyroll
Attack on Titan (AOT) is a famous anime where the protagonist becomes the main antagonist.
It has the same concept of the enemy as Code Geass, and AOT watchers witnessed how Eren Yeager becomes the face of mass destruction from a person who wanted to kill titans and protect humanity.
Eren suffered a lot, and all the struggles, deaths, and everything else around him significantly impacted him.
It resulted in the change of his ideology from one to another. His stubborn character made him the most static and unbending nature in anime history. While his friends and teammates moved on, Eren never changed and wanted revenge.
Titan devouring his mother in front of his eyes left a mark on him. But, if we see the story, Eren plays the Lelouch card, where he becomes the common enemy and unites the world.
Fate/Staynight- Archer (2006)
Director: Takahiro Miura
Genre: Action, Fantasy, Magic, Romance, Supernatural
Where to watch: 9Anime, GogoAnime, KissAnime, Crunchyroll
Archer is Shirou Emiya from a different timeline. After winning the fifth Holy Grain war, he was inspired and wanted to become a hero of justice.
To achieve his goals, he trained hard to become stronger, and after some time, he started to work like Kiritsugu.
But as we move forward in the anime, we see that Archer’s goal of becoming a hero was not fulfilled because he was forced to kill people countless times against his will.
Archer soon wanted to go to the timeline where Emiya Sirou exists to kill his past self. He believed that if he killed his past self, he could create a paradox in time and erase himself as Counter Guardian.
Death Note- Light Yagami (2007)
Director: Tetsuro Araki
Genre: Mystery, Shounen, Supernatural, Police, Psychological, Thriller
Where to watch: 9Anime, GogoAnime, KissAnime, Crunchyroll
People may think that Kira (real name Light Yagami) had noble intentions, but he was never wholly a good guy. Light Yagami used Death Note to purify the world of all evil criminals but slowly was eaten by it. He began to enjoy using it.
Light Yagami was an anti-hero. But after meeting L, he became the villain. He is ruthless, manipulative, and cunning as the story progresses.
He killed innocent people to hide his identity as Kira. He manipulated and betrayed everyone, including his family.
Feature Image Source: Youtube