Random Anime Characters Who Had Major Redemptions (15 items)

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  (#1) Itachi Uchiha

  • Naruto Shippūden, Naruto, Ninja World

  You can't have a list about redemption arcs without including the gold standard, Itachi Uchiha. 

  When viewers first meet Itachi, most find him pretty detestable - after all, he eliminated his entire family on what sounded like a whim. It turns out that while he is responsible for the Uchiha's demise, he did it for a tragic but understandable reason. At age thirteen, he was given a terrible choice: eliminate his clan and save himself and his brother, or be destroyed along with them. While he technically could have told his family about the upcoming attack to allow them to prepare, he was so afraid of civil war breaking out that he didn't consider that an option. 

  Once his backstory is revealed, he's redeemed in the eyes of most viewers - but he also tries to make up for the harm he caused by putting Sasuke in a position where he could develop the powerful Mangekyo shanringan. Sure, that also involves traumatizing the heck out of Sasuke, but it's the only thing he feels he can do for him. 
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  (#2) Meruem Discovers Love In 'Hunter x Hunter'

  When we first meet Meruem, he a power-hungry, bloodthirsty chimera ant who devours his own mother as soon as he's born. He takes lives as easily as breathing, and he has no genuine connections with anyone he meets. That all changes when he meets Komugi, a blind Gungi player who he forms a unexpectedly deep bond with. Initially, he sees her - and humans in general - as stupid and worthless, but his interactions with Komugi lead him to believe otherwise. He respects her because she's the only person he can't defeat. No one has ever treated Komugi with respect before, so she develops positive feelings for him too. 

  By the end of his arc, he loves her wholeheartedly and genuinely, something he never seemed capable of before. 
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  (#3) Greed

  Greed is a homunculus who spends most of the first half of the series reminding everybody how greedy he is. But eventually, he gets tired of reveling in his own selfishness and actually does something that helps another person. Specifically, he lets himself get absorbed by Father in order to protect Ling, the person whose body he'd been camping out in for most of the series.

  This turns out to be a heroic move outside of just Ling. When Father absorbs Greed, his molecular composition changes, turning him into something brittle and easily destroyed.
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  (#4) Vegeta

  • Dragon Ball Z Kai, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn, Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound, Dragon Ball Z: Bardock – The Father of Goku, Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks, Dragon Ball Z: The Return of Cooler, Dragon Ball Z: Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan, Plan to Destroy the Saiya-jin, Dragon Ball: Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!!, Dragon Ball

  Just about everyone in DBZ goes through some sort of redemption arc, but the most noteworthy one is probably Vegeta's.

  He begins the series as an enemy of Earth and a member of the Frieza Force. However, as he starts to build genuine bonds with the people he meets on Earth, and starts to allow himself to actually feel his feelings about Frieza destroying his planet, he becomes one of Goku's greatest allies. 
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  (#5) Endeavor Tries To Be A Good Father In 'My Hero Academia' 

  Endeavor's redemption arc isn't actually done yet, there's a lot more content - and a lot more unresolved questions - in the manga. But he still makes some serious progress within the anime itself. When the anime begins, he's a man who had children solely so that they might inherit a quirk strong enough to surpass his rival, All Might.

  In order to get the outcome he wants, he behaves abusively towards his wife and kids. Currently, he's working on trying to make up for his past misdeeds and build a more positive relationship with his kids - but it isn't going to be easy. 
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  (#6) 'A Silent Voice' Is Totally Focused On Shouya Ishida's Redemption  

  A Silent Voice is basically one gigantic redemption arc. When Shouya Ishida was a child, he bullied a deaf classmate named Shouko Nishimiya. As a teenager, he's tormented by guilt and wants desperately to make up for his previous cruelty. He tries to become friends with Shouko, and though she doesn't wish him ill, the scars from how he treated her have not completely faded. Over the course of the film, he tries both to make it up to her and change his behavior, and to forgive himself for his past.
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  (#7) Hendrickson Realizes His Mistake In 'The Seven Deadly Sins'

  At first, the former Great Holy Knight of the Liones Kingdom was about as evil as they come. Hendrickson had no problem lying, cheating, and manipulating others in order to achieve his dastardly ends. But when he revived the Ten Commandments, he realized he'd gone way too far.

  He decides to work together with the Seven Deadly Sins, a group that once handed his butt to him in battle, to undo what he's done and Ten Commandments. Now that he's dedicated to protecting people and saving the kingdom, the Sins are more or less cool with him.
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  (#8) Franky

  • One Piece (JP), One Piece: Episode of Chopper: Bloom in the Winter, Miracle Sakura, One Piece Film: Strong World, One Piece Film: Z, Miss Valentine

  It's not uncommon for characters in One Piece to go from enemies to allies, but when Franky is first introduced it's hard for the viewer to not deeply hate him after him and his crew humiliate and beat the crap out of Usopp. This beating causes the legendary "Walk To Franky House" scene where Luffy, Zoro, Sanji and Chopper walk dramatically towards the house to get their revenge. Eventually Franky's backstory tugs at your heartstrings and you end up absolutely loving him as the newest member of the Straw Hat Pirates. Suuuuperrrrr!
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  (#9) Reiko Tamura Loves Her Son In 'Parasyte'

  Reiko Tamura is the human alias for a parasite who took over a human host named Ryouko Tamiya. This ended Ryouko's life. At first, Reiko is completely indifferent to this, and to any other damage she causes through her various crimes against humanity. Like most parasites, she sees them as either food or as an experimental subject.

  That changes when she gives birth to a human child. At first, she doesn't have much of a bond with the kid - but eventually, she forms one so powerful that she sacrifices her life to protect him. Watching her accept a torso full of bullets causes Shinichi - and the viewers - to question everything they've ever thought about parasites and their capacity for love. 
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  (#10) Kojiro Shinomiya Swallows His Pride In 'Food Wars!'

  Kojiro Shinomiya is a 79th Generation Tōtsuki Academy Alumnus and once served as the First Seat on the Elite Ten Council. Not only that, but he's the first Japanese person to win a Pluspol award, and he's generally known as an incredible chef. With a record like that, it's hard to blame him for being full of himself...but full of himself he very much is. He goes out of his way to try and get both Soma and Megumi expelled for minor infractions, and is completely inflexible when it comes to culinary rules. 

  But when he actually tastes Megumi's food, he's blown away by its purity and deliciousness. He decides to stop being so tough and put some genuine effort into mentoring his charges. 
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  (#11) Isabella Loves The Kids After All In 'The Promised Neverland'

  Isabella is the 'mama' in charge of what appears to be an orphanage but is actually a meat plant serving the needs of demons. Basically, she's sending children she claims to love and care for to be devoured. 

  How is it possible to redeem yourself after sending kids to meet grisly fates? It turns out that Isabella didn't have much of a choice - she was once one of those kids, and the only way she could see to avoid being eaten was to accept a job raising the next generation. This is understandable, but still not honorable - Emma gets the same opportunity but refuses it and focuses on an escape that will save everyone. 

  But Isabella doesn't just keep doing the wrong thing forever - she allows Emma and the other kids to escape after months of trying to stop them. Because, in the end, she really does love them. 
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  (#12) Magma Becomes Marginally Less Awful In 'Dr. Stone'

  Magma doesn't go full circle into being a great guy, but he does take the long journey from being a completely self-interested jerkwad to being kind of okay. When he's first introduced, he wants to be the leader of his Ishigami Village. To do that, he wants to marry Ruri and then take her life, seizing control for himself. Also, he's constantly sabotaging Senku's scientific progress and making threats against his life.

  But when Senku, Chrome, and Magma find themselves hunting for tungsten in a dangerous cave, he not only saves Senku's life, he also uses his strength to help them all escape when they're trapped. Sure, it's mostly because he can see how Senku's scientific advances will benefit him personally, but some redemptions aren't about total transformations - they're about a jerk being slightly less of a jerk for once in his life. 
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  (#13) Ken Ichijouji

  • Digimon Adventure 02

  Have you ever gotten violent in a video game because you were frustrated or even devastated about something that happened in real life? That's what Ken Ichijouji thought he was doing when he tried to work out his grief over his brother's untimely passing by becoming the Digimon Emperor and forcing Digimon into slavery. Not understanding that Digimon were actually living beings, he became a violent overlord.

  When he realized that his stress relief actually had major consequences that impacted sentient beings, he was horrified. Once he got over the shock, he decided to change his ways and join the rest of the Digi-destined in protecting the Digital world. 
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  (#14) Accelerator

  • To Aru Majutsu no Index, To Aru Majutsu no Index

  Known for being the single best esper in Academy City, Accelerator starts the series by blasting his way through a seemingly endless number of Misaka clones until he gets a massive powerup. But after Touma is actually able to punch him despite his vector abilities, he chills out a little bit with the whole rampage thing. Later in the series, he ends up in the unexpected role of Misaka Clone Last Order's guardian.

  It seems like a total reversal, but the reason for seeking a powerup wasn't glory - it was because whenever people attacked him, his vectors destroyed them, whether he liked it or not. Despite this, he was constantly being challenged because of his strength. He not only wanted peace for himself, he also wanted to be so strong that he'd never have to hurt anybody else again. 
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  (#15) Canute Rises To The Challenge In 'Vinland Saga' 

  Unlike most of the characters on this list, who have to redeem themselves from cruel or at least sort of jerky behavior, Canute has to make up for cowardice. Although he's in a powerful position as the King of Denmark, he ignores many of his countries problems and relies heavily on his guardian, Ragnar. 
  
  But after Ragnar kicks the bucket, Canute has to figure out how to stand on his own - and he does. He summons the courage to actually rule his nation and go toe to toe with enemies like Bjorn.

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