History ByronicHero / AnimeAndManga

* Seto Kaiba from ''Anime/YuGiOh''. Abandoned at an orphanage with his little brother, Mokuba, by his relatives when their parents died, he grabbed an opportunity to get him and his brother adopted by a big shot CEO. He beats him at chess (Gozaburo Kaiba is very skilled at chess mind you) and impresses Gozaburo so much that not only does he adopt the brothers, he decides to mold the young Seto into his protege and successor... which he does through strict education and training. Seto is hardened by these experiences and successfully overthrows his adopted father to become the new head of the Kaiba Corp. However, he has become much like the man he despises, has a very hard time letting go of the past, and looks down most people (notably Joey) with the only soft spot being toward Mokuba (and children in general) along with his rivalry with Yami Yugi.

** ManipulativeBastard Lelouch Lamperouge is arrogant, is generally fine with slaughtering his enemies, is fairly vengeful, and frequently lies to and keeps secrets from his own men, as well as his friends and family. [[DiabolusExMachina Although the universe has screwed him over a couple of times,]] [[ALighterShadeOfBlack and the enemy he fights is an expansionist empire who preaches Social Darwinism to justify their policies of oppression and racism, and frequently engages in mass genocide]]. Although to his credit, he never thinks he is a good person, and actually [[spoiler:reveals the full extent of his crimes to the world, and publicly has ''himself'' executed for them. He didn't have to do any of that as soon as he became Emperor, but he did anyway because he knew he deserved no less.]] The director said that he specifically chose Jun Fukuyama to voice Lelouch on the grounds that his voice, along with the character's traits, would make him such that the viewer would side with him no matter what he'd say.
** Suzaku could also count. Brooding, uncompromising, self-destructive DeathSeeker who seeks atonement for [[spoiler: killing his father and causing Japan to be enslaved by Britannia.]] He tries sacrificing himself under the guise of chivalry to both Britannia and supposedly Japan as an excuse to fulfill his death wish but mostly serves to derail Lelouch's plans before they would otherwise bear maximum results. In season 2, he becomes even worse, descending into KnightTemplar territory and conquering EU nations for Schneizel. [[spoiler: He eventually joins Lelouch, but not before [[DespairEventHorizon they're both broken beyond repair]].]]

** [[KnightTemplar Light Yagami]] is a villainous one. Physically attractive, cunning and intelligent, arrogant with a major God complex, prone to quiet brooding when things don't go his way, very passionate about his ideals, and absolutely convinced that what he is doing is right.

* [[Kaguya Shinomiya]] from ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'' is attractive, highly intelligent, and (mostly at first) an aloof BrokenBird, who really suffers inner conflict because of her past and the cruel and petty environment she grew up in. She used to be rather haughty, manipulative, and arrogant, because of her unhealthy upbringing, but deep down she's a good person. This is due to the fact she genuinely ''wants'' to be one, as she ''wasn't'' raised to be a good person at all: her family just taught her to be a selfish jerk, concerned with other people only for personal gain and because it could fit her interests. Some traits of her upbringing are still there; she's rather cynical at times and can be somewhat manipulative and underhanded when it comes to getting the job done (though it's ultimately very much for others' sake), but she has genuinely evolved into a kind, selfless, and well-meaning person.

** Most of the cast in general, really, but Shinji, Rei, Misato, and Gendo stand out the most.

** Greed also has elements of this, mostly in his second incarnation. A greedy but rebellious being, he listens to no one but himself. To this end, Greed only [[ChaoticNeutral acts on his whims]] without much regard to others. He's passionate about his desires, intelligent, hedonistic, is very intense about his emotions and struggles with morality, and he can be quite cynical. He also shows some charisma as he is able to attract followers. The [[spoiler:Second Greed's conversations with Ling]] also resemble internal conflict.

* From the Anime/{{Leijiverse}}, ''Anime/CaptainHarlock'' is a brooding badass whose devotion to Earth leads him to abandon its corrupt government and defend it alone.

* Kaguya from ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'' is attractive, highly intelligent, and an aloof BrokenBird, who really suffers inner conflict because of her past and the cruel and petty environment she grew up in. She used to be rather haughty, manipulative and arrogant, because of her unhealthy upbringing, but deep down she's a good person. This is due to the fact she genuinely ''wants'' to be one, as she ''wasn't'' raised to be a good person at all: her family just taught her to be a selfish jerk, concerned with other people only for personal gain and because it could fit her interests. Some traits of her upbringing are still there; she's rather cynical at times and can be manipulative and underhanded when it comes to get the job done, but she became kinder, far more selfless, and ultimately means well.

* ''LightNovel/FateZero'' seems to love exploring these kinds of traits.

* Consider [[TheCynic Hachiman]] [[FriendlessBackground Hikigaya]] in ''LightNovel/MyTeenRomanticComedySNAFU''. Is he intensely introspective? Yes. Is he cynical and jaded and has he experienced a bargain bin of a [[FriendlessBackground dark and troubled past]] bundled with [[DidNotGetTheGirl regrets]]? Yes. Does he see his own values or passions as above everyone else's? Yes. Is he doggedly determined to follow his values and passions despite trampling over others? Yes. Is he especially physically attractive?... No -- well, good enough (though it becomes clear later on that while not gorgeous, he is fairly good-looking and it's really his [[DullEyesOfUnhappiness "dead fish" eyes]] that earned him a reputation for being unattractive.