History Main / NinetiesAntiHero

* ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire'' introduces Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody – a paranoid, callous war veteran who used to hunt Dark Wizards, complete with a [[ElectronicEyes replacement magical eye]], [[ArtificialLimbs wooden leg]], scar-covered face, long grey hair, gruff voice, Dark Magic detecting gadgets, and a long tattered cloak. His first name means "avenger" in Ancient Greek. In the film adaptations, he uses a long staff while all other wizards use a wand.

* Parodied in ''Series/{{Community}}'' with "Kickpuncher", a series of [[StylisticSuck D-grade]] ''Franchise/{{Robocop}}''-style movies that main characters Abed and Troy watch [[{{MST}} primarily to make fun of]].

* ''Series/{{Heroes}}'': Sylar, the BigBad of the first season, is this from Season 2 onwards.

* Iron Enforcer represented this type of "super hero" in the first season of ''Series/WhoWantsToBeASuperhero''. Unfortunately for him, Creator/StanLee was not fond of this archetype, so he made him a villain instead.

[[folder:Roleplay]]
* The titular character of ''Roleplay/TheBalladOfEdgardo'' is a StockShonenHero that the narrator introduces as "Hot-blooded, hot-tempered, courageous, and always itching for adventure!" He then discovers to his dismay that ''literally everyone else'' has made brooding, antisocial edgelords and they all promptly laugh at him for making "such a naive and low-brow character".
[[/folder]]

* Deconstructed in ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'': an episode saw Optimus Primal's aggression turned way up by a computer virus -- to the point where he tries to kill someone and orders himself locked up. He ultimately storms off to retrieve the anti virus, saying that making a plan first is cowardly. While he's certainly more than capable in battle, to the point Megatron comments on it, he also takes on severe damage as a result, and it's only through the cunning of his normal persona and the plan of his allies that he survives. Interestingly enough, [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Dinobot]] ultimately decries this trope and provides the best commentary applicable to it, calling Optimus' altered mindset a "[[TheBerserker berserker]]" and this line, when Cheetor tries to emulate this approach:
-->'''Dinobot:''' There is no strategy, only blind aggression!

* ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck'' became one of these, Darkwarrior Duck, in an alternate future where Gosalyn disappeared (because she had been sucked through time into that alternate future). He might've been this earlier on, but by the time Gosalyn ran into him he had long ago [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope crossed the line]] and was solidly in the KnightTemplar category.

* VideoGame/{{Pico}}, the SeriesMascot of Website/{{Newgrounds}}: His debut flash, InspiredBy UsefulNotes/{{Columbine}} [[RippedFromTheHeadlines of all things]], features a squad of {{goth}} kids [[AxesAtSchool tearing up the school]], prompting Pico to grab the nearest assault rifle and pump them all with lead, whether they surrender or not. The majority of his Flashes embody the [[DarkerAndEdgier gratuitous edginess]] and VulgarHumour commonplace in late 90s / early 00s Internet media; his appearance in the ''VideoGame/{{Assassin}}'' series is about him gunning down an M-rated [[OnceAcceptableTargets mockery of]] ''Series/BearInTheBigBlueHouse''. While his default appearance doesn't exactly look the part, instead operating on TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior, certain Flashes will age him up into a closer example or pit him against an NC-17 counterpart named Piconjo.

* Hakaider from the anime/tokusatsu series ''Series/{{Kikaider}}'' becomes this in the movie ''Mechanical Violator Hakaider''.

->''"I smolder with generic rage."''
-->-- '''[[VideoGame/PrinceOfPersiaWarriorWithin The Prince]]''', ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'', [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2004/12/03/ "On Discomfort"]]

* WebOriginal/{{Ultimate}}: Ultimate becomes one to make himself more popular. He stops when he realizes what they fight.

* VideoGame/{{Pico}}, the SeriesMascot of Website/{{Newgrounds}}: His debut flash, InspiredBy UsefulNotes/{{Columbine}} [[RippedFromTheHeadlines of all things]], features a squad of {{goth}} kids [[AxesAtSchool tearing up the school]], prompting Pico to grab the nearest assault rifle and pump them all with lead, whether they surrender or not. The majority of his Flashes embody the [[DarkerAndEdgier gratuitous edginess]] and VulgarHumour commonplace in late 90s / early 00s Internet media; his appearance the ''VideoGame/{{Assassin}}'' series is about him gunning down an M-rated [[OnceAcceptableTargets mockery of]] ''Series/BearInTheBigBlueHouse''. While his default appearance doesn't exactly look the part, instead operating on TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior, certain Flashes will age him up into a closer example or pit him against an NC-17 counterpart named Piconjo.

* Wrestling/{{Carl|itoColon}}y was a late bloomer, as though he certainly looked like a '90s antihero when he debuted in the '90s, wrestled similarly to both The Rock and Stone Cold, ''and'' had a [[WeaponOfChoice signature foreign object]] in the form of a shovel, he was a nice enough guy who simply had to resort to such tactics to save the family business (the Puerto Rican version of the World Wrestling Council) from La Familia Del Milenio. It wasn't until the mid 2000s that he became a complete jerkass too, such that he at one point hated getting baby face pushes because he felt someone who insults, spits on, and ''{{poison|isevil}}s'' people shouldn't be cheered.

* Ashen the Vioblader (created by WebVideo/MattMcMuscles of ''WebVideo/TwoBestFriendsPlay'' and [[https://twitter.com/Krooked_Glasses Krooked Glasses]]) is the host of ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1gEpQYEVsQ Edgelords]]'', a show that examines '90s anti-heroes (and a few edgy villains), and fits this trope to a T. Edgy-sounding name? Check. Glowing [[RedEyesTakeWarning red eyes]]? Check. Has a ludicrously edgy-looking outfit on? Check. DualWielding a pair of [[AnAxeToGrind axes]] that he uses to chop his enemies up? Big fat CHECK. Unlike other anti-heroes, he's also a parody of this trope and thus displays some humourously dorky moments, like [[{{Squee}} squeeing]] over an anti-hero's edginess, or having his show interrupted by a phone call from his mom.

* WebOriginal/{{Ultimate}}: Ultimate becomes one to make himself more popular. He stops when he realizes [[CompleteMonster what they fight.]]

* WebOriginal/{{Ultimate}} Ultimate becomes one to make himself more popular. He stops when he realizes [[CompleteMonster what they fight.]]

* WebOriginal/{{Ultimate}} Ultimate becomes one to make himself more popular. He stops when he realizes what they fight

** It was subsequently dialed back in 2005 with ''Dark Champions: The Animated Series'', meant to emulate the lighter feel of WesternAnimation/TheDCAU and the like.

'90s Anti-Heroes are the polar opposites of your typical [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] {{superhero}}es. Not only are they flawed, [[DesignatedHero they may lack]] [[HeroWithAnFInGood any heroic attributes]], apart from the fact that [[InvincibleHero they never lose]]. They appeal to the audience strictly due to being totally committed to... whatever the hell they're doing at the moment. They have no compunction about [[ThouShaltNotKill killing]] criminals and, indeed, this may extend to ''anyone'' who gets in their way; when confronted by classic archetypes, such as TheCape, they dismiss them as dupes and fools. To aid in this murderous work, '90s Anti-Heroes with superpowers tend to have superpowers of the directly lethal variety, usually these abilities are demonic or technological in origin, and ''never'' received through the idealistic good graces of ''anyone''. The '90s Anti-Heroes who lack supernatural abilities usually make up for it [[SuperheroPackingHeat by carrying guns]]. ''[[GunPorn Lots]]'' of guns.

** If one only takes his ''surface-level'' characterisation into account, then Kyril would be a bona-fide '90s Anti-hero. He's inhumanly [[LightningBruiser strong, fast, and durable]]. He's kind of a [[TheStoic cold fish]] who [[TheQuietOne doesn't talk much]]. He disregards honour, authority, and reputation, doubly so when it comes to [[AssholeVictim people he believes to be scum]]. He shows a brutal countenance, [[{{Gorn}} mangling]] any foe who happens to be on the receiving end of his cleaver, [[DissonantSerenity nary a sound and expression]]. He engages in morally questionable actions, which include a tendency to TakeNoPrisoners, occasional [[JackBauerInterrogationTechnique torture]], and quelling a rebellion by force. Most importantly, he fights against enemies who are worse, like [[AlwaysChaoticEvil Tolkien-esque]] [[OurOrcsAreDifferent orcs]], [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil rapists]], [[SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil slavers]], [[HumanTraffickers dark-elf traffickers]], [[TheMole traitors]] affiliated with these people, and an EvilSorcerer who threatens to bring about an ApocalypseHow while [[PlayingWithSyringes conducting inhumane experiments]] on citizens. Unsurprisingly, the InUniverse common impression of Kyril, or rather, "[[BlackKnight Sir]] [[RedBaron Kyril the Bloody]]", is a [[AxCrazy murderous]], [[BloodKnight bloodthirsty]] killer driven by [[ItsPersonal hat]][[ThePowerOfHate red]]/[[{{Revenge}} vengeance]] of orc-kind, goblin-kind, and the Black Dogs. Some even believe that Kyril is not fully human -- [[HumanoidAbomination a demon wearing a man's skin]]. [[spoiler:The latter point is correct, if one equates "demon" with "[[EldritchAbomination great one]]".]]

* Deconstructed and [[TakeThat satirized]] in ''Film/SmallSoldiers'' in the form of the Commando Elite, a group of toys given sentience via [[AIIsACrapshoot a military-grade microchip]] who invoke this trope in-universe. They are [[TheUnfettered willing to use whatever methods]] to find and destroy the Gorgonites (whose only crime was [[FantasticRacism not being human like them]]), including attacking bystanders who had no involvement with either side of the conflict, kidnapping and attempting to kill hostages, and [[ItMakesSenseInContext turning a girl's Gwendy dolls into killing machines]] with one of their fallen comrade's microchips. Chip Hazard, the Commando Elite's leader, repeatedly justifies their actions because the Gorgonites are "[[DesignatedVillain the bad guys]]" and they are "[[KnightTemplar the]] [[DesignatedHero good]] [[TautologicalTemplar guys]]".

** Faith. Also an AntiHeroSubstitute. Unlike virginal Buffy, she drank, swore, and had sex. She's also more ruthless as a Slayer than Buffy, and she wound up JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope after an AccidentalMurder and went on a FaceHeelTurn.

* Parodied with ComicBook/{{Huntress}} in ''Film/BirdsOfPrey2020'', a former MafiaPrincess turned violent assassin who [[BikerBabe rides a motorcycle]] and vows revenge on the gangsters who [[YouKilledMyFather killed her family]]... and is also [[TheComicallySerious comically serious]], has NoSocialSkills, and has the mindset of a rebellious teenage girl who desperately wants to be taken seriously by those around her. She just comes off as [[{{Manchild}} grossly immature]] despite her genuinely lethal skills and athleticism, especially with her {{insisten|tTerminology}}ce that people call her "Huntress" and not "the Crossbow Killer", and her cool, badass facade frequently cracks throughout the film. The only person who thinks she's legitimately cool is the AxCrazy {{Cloudcuckoolander}} ComicBook/HarleyQuinn.

[[caption-width-right:350:Everything that was wrong with [[UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks comics in the '90s]] in one cover.[[labelnote:From the top:]] Title (if you can read it) includes "Blood"; Improbable blade; Torn cape; [[WolverineWannabe Wolverine knock-off mask]] that frames face; EyesAlwaysShut; Gritted teeth; Improbable anatomy; Improbable muscles; [[HandCannon Improbably huge and just plain improbable gun]]; Lots of pouches; Huge boots; [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Artist's signature on rubble.]][[/labelnote]]]]

* Sever (Creator/LucyLiu) from ''Film/BallisticEcksVsSever'', a gun toting DragonLady dressed in black leather with a perpetual KubrickStare on her face and on a quest for revenge against her corrupt former employees. She isn't above kidnapping a child in order to achieve her goal, and usually gives short and cold responses to someone like "IllKillYou" and "[[Film/RoadHouse Pain don't hurt]]."

[[caption-width-right:350:Everything that was wrong with [[UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks comics in the '90s]] in one cover.[[labelnote:From the top:]] Title (if you can read it) includes "Blood"; Improbable blade; Torn cape; Wolverine knock-off mask that frames face; EyesAlwaysShut; Gritted teeth; Improbable anatomy; Improbable muscles; [[HandCannon Improbably huge and just plain improbable gun]]; Lots of pouches; Huge boots; [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Artist's signature on rubble.]][[/labelnote]]]]

'90s Anti-Heroes are the polar opposites of your typical [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] {{superhero}}es. Not only are they flawed, they may lack any heroic attributes, apart from the fact that [[InvincibleHero they never lose]]. They appeal to the audience strictly due to being totally committed to... whatever the hell they're doing at the moment. They have no compunction about [[ThouShaltNotKill killing]] criminals and, indeed, this may extend to ''anyone'' who gets in their way; when confronted by classic archetypes, such as TheCape, they dismiss them as dupes and fools. To aid in this murderous work, '90s Anti-Heroes with superpowers tend to have superpowers of the directly lethal variety, usually these abilities are demonic or technological in origin, and ''never'' received through the idealistic good graces of ''anyone''. The '90s Anti-Heroes who lack supernatural abilities usually make up for it [[SuperheroPackingHeat by carrying guns]]. ''[[GunPorn Lots]]'' of guns.

* Sever (Lucy Liu) from ''Film/BallisticEcksVsSever'', a gun toting DragonLady dressed in black leather with a perpetual KubrickStare on her face and on a quest for revenge against her corrupt former employees. She isn't above kidnapping a child in order to achieve her goal, and usually gives short and cold responses to someone like "IllKillYou" and "[[Film/RoadHouse Pain don't hurt]]."

* Parodied in ''The Man in the Ceiling'' by Jules Feiffer. Jimmy's friend Charley Beemer (who doesn't like capes) commissions him to draw his idea of a comic, which would feature a superhero named Bullethead, a weapon of death who drills through his enemies with his head, with lots of severed bodily parts to be drawn in detail (which the author refuses to show, since it's written for children).

** If one only takes his ''surface-level'' characterisation into account, then Kyril would be a bona-fide '90s Anti-hero. He's inhumanly [[LightningBruiser strong, fast, and durable]]. He's kind of a [[TheStoic cold fish]] who [[TheQuietOne doesn't talk much]]. He disregards honour, authority, and reputation, doubly so when it comes to [[AssholeVictim people he believes to be scum]]. He shows a brutal countenance, [[{{Gorn}} mangling]] any foe who happens to be on the receiving end of his cleaver, [[DissonantSerenity nary a sound and expression]]. He engages in morally questionable actions, which include a tendency to TakeNoPrisoners, occasional [[JackBauerInterrogationTechnique torture]], and quelling a rebellion by force. Most importantly, he fights against enemies who are worse, like [[AlwaysChaoticEvil Tolkien-esque]] [[OurOrcsAreDifferent orcs]], [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil rapists]], [[SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil slavers]], [[HumanTraffickers dark-elf traffickers]], [[TheMole traitors]] affiliated with said people, and an EvilSorcerer who threatens to bring about an ApocalypseHow while [[PlayingWithSyringes conducting inhumane experiments]] on citizens. Unsurprisingly, the InUniverse common impression of Kyril, or rather, "[[BlackKnight Sir]] [[RedBaron Kyril the Bloody]]", is a [[AxCrazy murderous]], [[BloodKnight bloodthirsty]] killer driven by [[ItsPersonal hat]][[ThePowerOfHate red]]/[[{{Revenge}} vengeance]] of orc-kind, goblin-kind, and the Black Dogs. Some even believe that Kyril is not fully human -- [[HumanoidAbomination a demon wearing a man's skin]]. [[spoiler:The latter point is correct, if one equates "demon" with "[[EldritchAbomination great one]]".]]

* Eric Draven in ''Film/TheCrow'' is a subversion, in contrast to his counterpart from the [[ComicBook/TheCrow original comics]]. While he may look the part with his gothic-inspired attire and tragic backstory, he is one of the most amicable individuals on this list. At one point, he even [[PapaWolf confronted Sarah's mother]] over her drug use, using his powers to cleanse her system of the poison before telling her to come back to her. His more malicious side only shows up whenever around [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge the scum responsible for his death and the death of his love]], and anyone who either profited from such (Gideon) or stands in the way of him and said vengeance (Top Dollar's mooks).

[[caption-width-right:350:Everything that was wrong with [[UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks comics in the '90s]] in one cover.[[labelnote:From the top:]] Title (if you can read it) includes "Blood"; Improbable blade; Torn cape; Wolverine knock-off mask that frames face; [[EyesAlwaysShut Youngblood's]] [[WebVideo/AtopTheFourthWall disease]]; Gritted teeth; Improbable anatomy; Improbable muscles; [[HandCannon Improbably huge and just plain improbable gun]]; Lots of pouches; Huge boots; [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Artist's signature on rubble.]][[/labelnote]]]]

* ''Captain Sturdy'', a {{pilot}} for a proposed series that aired as part of ''WesternAnimation/WhatACartoon'', presents a subversion and parody of this archetype. The eponymous character, an aging Silver Age era superhero, watches as a '90s anti-hero type character demonstrates how a hero should approach criminals, and tells a hypothetical criminal to put his arms in the air. When the character is told "what if he has no arms?", the hero then does a 180 and [[StrawmanEmotional begins to mope about the hypothetical criminal's]] [[TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth misfortunates]]. Captain Sturdy already didn't have a high opinion of the '90s anti-hero character, but after this he especially became disillusioned with how the Union of Super Heroes are [[PoliticalCorrectnessGoneMad more concerned about avoiding offending people than doing what is necessary and pragmatic for the common good]].

* W*ING Kanemura from the rival promotion to FMW of the same name was initially a villain coming into FMW to invade but became a '90s antihero when ''[[EvilerThanThou another]]'' invasion from IWA Japan in the form of Victor Quinones's "Puerto Rican army" forced him to team up with the FMW Sekigun. Despite his HeelFaceTurn he still threatened his enemies with death, even when they [[FriendlyEnemy weren't really enemies]] such as when wrestlers from ECW like Wrestling/BallsMahoney came to celebrate FMW's success.

[[folder:Myths and Religion]]

* ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls1998'': In "Super Zeroes", when the girls briefly decide to split up as separate superheroines, with Blossom taking on a Franchise/WonderWoman-ish persona and Bubbles dressing up as a cute Creator/{{Sanrio}}-inspired bunny girl, the sullen and quick-tempered Buttercup reinvents herself as "Mange", a [[ComicBook/{{Spawn}} brooding, shadowy character with glowing green eyes]] who only emerges at night -- thus, when trouble arrives in the middle of the day, necessitating several hours of awkwardly brooding on the couch until nightfall.