My Favorites in Anime: Characters-Heroes

Howdy, howdy folks!  Today kicks off my special event for September with a month full of my favorite characters!  You see them at the forefront of all anime shows kicking butt, causing drama, and whatever else moves the plot along.  Who am I talking about? I’m talking about the protagonist, or simply put, the hero.  To start off my Favorite Characters month, this week I’ll be talking about some of my favorite heroes and one major supporting character in anime- I know that supporting character thing was random, but believe me, she’s pretty awesome!  (WARNING: This post contains spoilers!)

Vash the Stampede (Trigun)

Starting off my list of favorite heroes is the $$60,000,000,000.00 man himself.  Among the characters featured for this week, if not the whole month, Vash is pretty unique.  When I named Vash as my Character of the Month for November of 2014, I said that Vash was dynamic in that he played several different parts in Trigun.  Not only does he play the determined series protagonist, but he also plays the wise lecher and the comic relief character.  And he does it pretty darn well.  Sure, much of that may have to do with the way Trigun’s plot is set up- that is, many of the characters like Meryl, Milly, and Wolfwood act more as supporting characters rather than main ones.  But even so, Vash alone makes Trigun an entertaining show.  Let’s face it, I probably watched all of Trigun just to watch Vash.

Cynthia (Pokemon franchise)

Moving right along, this next character is one of the few female characters that I absolutely love.  Those of you familiar with either the fourth generation Pokemon games or the Sinnoh arch of the series will recognize Cynthia.  Although she is more established in the video game than in the series, her presence in the franchise is a historic one.  Not only does Cynthia serve as the reigning Sinnoh Region Champion in both game and anime, but she is also the first female champion in the franchise to gain this title!  Power to the girls, right?!  And she certainly fits the role.  Being both intelligent and beautiful as well as a kick-butt trainer, Cynthia leaves a lasting impression with everyone she meets.  Not to mention, we don’t hear or see Garchomp without thinking of her!  However, she can be indecisive when it comes to ice cream, so best stay away from her in line at Dairy Queen or Baskin Robin’s.

Ichigo Kurosaki (Bleach)

Ok…I know what you’re thinking…why is Ichigo on here?  For those of you who now think I have some pretty lousy taste in characters, bare with me.  Yes, be all means, Bleach is definitely what I would call “pulp” anime.  That is, it’s so popular that it’s a household name in anime and has so many episodes that it would take you years to watch the entire series- shows like Naruto, One Piece, and yes, Dragon Ball Z come to mind.  But with all do respect, Ichigo really is one of those characters  that you just fall in love with.  There is just this energy and charisma he gives off that makes you feel for him.  And no, it’s not because he’s the main character.  And he has some pretty redeeming qualities: he’s an all around great guy who’d give his life to save yours, becomes very attractive by series end (just look at his final Gensogatensho form), and has one of the best cries I’ve heard in anime-ok, that one was weird.  I’d like to think of him as a red-headed Inuyasha voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch-now who doesn’t love Inuyasha?...or Johnny Yong Bosch?  And while his quick growth in epic power is cliché, that doesn’t mean he’s an interesting character.  So call me what you will, Bleach haters!

Ikoma (Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress)

Wrapping up my list of heroes is probably one of the newest characters to hit the anime scene.  And yes, while I made some pretty negative remarks about Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress, none of them were about Ikoma, the series protagonist.  Ikoma was actually the easiest character to like.  Sure, he stole the glasses from Harry Potter and the red cloak from a character who may or may not be mentioned in this event- he’s still calling about that, by the way-, but he does have some qualities that make up for all of that.  You immediately feel sympathy for him what with all the crap he gets from the passengers on the Iron Fortress, he’s a pretty decent fighter against the Kabane, and is actually pretty smart.  And did I forget to mention the make-over he gets in episode twelve (and you thought he was hot with the glasses)?  That aside, I’ve also said that Ikoma is the pleasant alternative to Eren Jaeger from Attack on Titan.  And let’s face it, there are so many parallels to AOT that Eren and Ikoma might as well be related.  Regardless, I’m looking forward to seeing more Ikoma over the next year or two.

So that wraps up my list of favorite anime heroes (and one secondary character).  Stay tuned next week for next Sunday when I go over my two favorite villains.  Yes, I said two.  Anyways, I’m off till then!  If you have a request for an anime show or movie you’d like me to review or a topic you’d like for me to discuss, let me know!

-Hanime on Anime