Line #65 Characters/KingdomHeartsVanitas


1	[[WMG:[[center: [- ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' '''[[Characters/KingdomHearts Main Character Index]]'''\
2	[[Characters/KingdomHeartsDestinyIslandsTrio Destiny Islands Trio]] ([[Characters/KingdomHeartsSora Sora]]) \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsDisneyCastleTrio Disney Castle Trio]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsRoxasAxelAndXion Clock Tower Trio]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsTerraAquaAndVentus Wayfinder Trio]] ([[Characters/KingdomHeartsTerra Terra]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsAqua Aqua]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsVentus Ventus]]) \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsPartyMembersAndSummons Party Members and Summons]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsXehanortsIncarnations Xehanort's Incarnations]] ([[Characters/KingdomHeartsMasterXehanort Master Xehanort]]) \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsOrganizationXIII Organization XIII]] ([[Characters/KingdomHeartsXigbar Xigbar]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsSaix Saïx]] \| '''Vanitas''') \| Disney Villains ([[Characters/KingdomHeartsDisneyVillainsMaleficentsCouncilAndAllies Maleficent's Council and Allies]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsOtherDisneyVillains Other Disney Villains]]) \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsIndependentVillains Independent Villains]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsEnemyCreatures Enemy Creatures]] ([[Characters/KingdomHeartsHeartless Heartless]]) \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsAnsemAndApprentices Ansem and his Apprentices]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsXCharacters Kingdom Hearts χ[chi] Characters]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsSupportingOriginals Supporting Original Characters]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsSupportingSquareEnix Supporting Square Enix Characters]] \| [[Characters/KingdomHeartsSupportingDisney Supporting Disney Characters]] -] ]]]]
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4	!!Due to lengthy periods between releases and the prevalence of {{Late Arrival Spoiler}}s, spoilers from installments before 2010 may be unmarked. Read at your own risk.
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6	!Vanitas
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8	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vanitas_masked_khiii_85.png]]
9	[[caption-width-right:350:''"So... why shouldn't you and I look exactly the same? You define me, Sora, the same way that Ventus does. We are brothers who, together, make a greater whole."'']]
10	[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Click here to see him unmasked.]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/720_6star_sp_vanitas_render.png[[/labelnote]]]]
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12	!!!'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MiyuIrino (Japanese), Creator/HaleyJoelOsment (English)
13	!!!'''Appearances:''' ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII II Final Mix]]'' \| ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep Birth by Sleep]] \| [[VideoGame/KingdomHearts3DDreamDropDistance Dream Drop Distance]]'' \| ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII III]]''
14	->''"This χ-blade will open a door -- one that leads to all worlds! Then, Keyblade-bearing warriors will flock here from each and every one of them, to battle for the light within Kingdom Hearts! And just like the legend says, the Keyblade War will begin!"''
15	\
16	The mysterious masked apprentice of Master Xehanort. Master Xehanort claims he's running around worlds creating chaos and attacking people with Unversed, but the reality is that he's doing so under orders as part of a larger plan. He appears to antagonize Ven and Aqua several times, alluding to a plan for the two of them that he has in motion. It's revealed that Vanitas is actually the darkness within Ven, extracted from his heart and given humanoid form.
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18	He returns in ''III'' as Number XI of the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness thanks to Young Xehanort collecting his heart from the time Ventus defeated him and also due to the negative emotions that had been harvested in Monstropolis. He is still determined to merge with Ventus, even if he has to go through Sora to do it.
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20	[[foldercontrol]]
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22	[[folder:A-F]]
23	* AdaptationExpansion: The ''BBS'' novels expand on Vanitas's life prior to the events of the game as well as his motivations. Namely, that killing the Unversed causes him physical pain and he seeks to reunite with Ventus so he can be free of his torment, having been convinced by Xehanort that the χ-blade is his salvation. However the canonical status of novels was never confirmed and later material would contradict this backstory [[spoiler:such as in the ''Re:Mind'' DLC and the two mobile games ''Union Cross'' and ''Dark Road'']].
24	* AnimeHair: It's the same spiky hair as Sora's, but black.
25	* ArchEnemy:
26	** To Ven. Master Xehanort is the BigBad of ''Birth By Sleep'' who caused Ven much harm directly and indirectly, but he doesn't even remember Xehanort for most of the plot while it's Vanitas who keeps showing up to taunt Ven with the possibility of losing Terra forever, threatens his friends' lives if Ven doesn't do as he's told, and tries to kill Aqua right in front of him. Ven is willing to destroy his own heart if it'll stop Vanitas, and when Vanitas returns in ''III'', Ven speaks through Sora for the first and only time to angrily call Vanitas's name at the sight of him. He is Ven's EnemyWithout, after all.
27	** To Aqua. They both keep encountering each other throughout ''Birth By Sleep'' and ''III''. Vanitas even does despicable things like breaking the wooden keyblade that was given to Ventus, and threatened to kill Ventus when he was still in his sleeping state all just to set her off.
28	* ArtificialHuman: Spawned from the darkness of Ven's heart after it was forcibly extracted by Xehanort.
29	* AxCrazy: Case in point: at the end of Aqua's episode, while gloating to Aqua and Mickey about his and Xehanort's endgame, he spouts a big SlasherSmile.
30	* BackFromTheDead: In ''Kingdom Hearts III'' and with him have returned the Unversed.
31	* BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind: After fusing with Ventus at the end of his route Vanitas does battle with his "brother" for control of their shared body. He ultimately ends up losing to Ventus and his heart is destroyed.
32	* {{BFS}}: The Void Gear is huge. So is the χ-blade.
33	* BlackKnight: Has the appearance of one with the black outfit and helmet, and is a powerful and mysterious warrior like many other examples. Fitting considering that Vanitas is [[DarkIsEvil Master Xehanort's]] apprentice while Terra, Aqua, and Ven are Master Eraqus's apprentices and have their own armor.
34	* BloodKnight: He seems pretty excited about the idea of a massive war starting up, especially after he gets his hand on the χ-blade. In his Data Rematch in ''III'', he is gleeful at the chance to fight Sora one-on-one.
35	-->'''Vanitas:''' I've been waiting for this!
36	* BrokenFaceplate: His helmet's right side shatters at the end of his fight against Sora and Ventus in ''III'', revealing his face to Sora for (technically) the first time.
37	* TheCameo: Shows up with Young Xehanort in ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts3DDreamDropDistance'' confronting Sora in one cutscene and nowhere else for the rest of the game. Creator/TetsuyaNomura [[invoked]][[WordOfGod says]] that this is meant to be a representation of Ventus's heart reacting to Master Xehanort's darkness. Despite being just a single cameo appearance, however, this is Sora's first chronological encounter with Vanitas, and he directly references this occurrence when he confronts Vanitas in the flesh in ''Kingdom Hearts III''.
38	* CainAndAbel: The Cain to Ventus and Sora's Abel. Bonus points because he actually refers to Ventus and Sora as being his brothers, and is incredulous when Ven disagrees.
39	* CastingAShadow: In III, Vanitas has some dark-based moves, which inlcudes turning into a shadow in the ground that follows Sora to strike him up, and in the Data fight, he'll attack with [[DoppelgangerAttack Shadowy Clones of himself]] when using his DesperationAttack.
40	* CantKillYouStillNeedYou: Subverted and then played straight; he initially makes a snap decision to kill Ven after finding him too weak for their plans, but after Mickey helps Ven gain the upper hand, he decides to leave Ven alone for a while. Later, when Ven's gotten strong enough to make the χ-blade, Vanitas decides he no longer needs Aqua alive as a backup plan and goes to kill her in Neverland.
41	* ChargeAttack: His Dark Spiral attack, where he dashes multiple times in the air.
42	* ClassicVillain: Representing Envy, Pride, and Wrath. You can add Lust and Greed as well, for both Ven and the χ-blade.
43	* CoDragons: Vanitas serves this role along with [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII Braig]] in ''BBS''.
44	* CollapsibleHelmet: It doesn't so much collapse as it does melt away. However, a previous scene shows him putting the helmet on normally.
45	* ColdHam: What happens when you allow Haley Joel Osment to go just a little bit mad and enjoy some of that delicious, delicious ham that Richard Epcar, Peter St Paul, Leonard Nimoy and Rutger Hauer have been enjoying? You get Vanitas. In cutscenes he's stoic and icy; in battle he's loud and boisterous.
46	* CombatPragmatist: He'll do anything to win, so don't expect a fair fight from this guy. Aqua [[https://youtu.be/yafvTV4gCW4 learned this the hard way]] when he knocked her out from behind without announcing his presence, and tried to kill her then and there while she was unconscious. Realizing he can't win in a clean fight against her (she's ''Master'' Aqua for good reason), he once again employs this trope but with a different trick, targeting the sleeping Ven to distract her -- when [[BigSisterInstinct she]] ends up TakingTheBullet, he again tries to kill her while she's out.
47	* CombatSadomasochist: His in-game battle quotes largely consist of such gems as "Suffer!" and "Show me anguish!" And let's not forget that he cracks up laughing after Aqua kicks his ass in Radiant Garden.
48	* CompressedHair: Given that he has Sora's hairstyle, one has to wonder how that hair stays in his helmet.
49	* CoolHelmet: Although it's called a "[[CoolMask mask]]" in ''Birth By Sleep''.
50	* CounterAttack: Vanitas's signature ability is leaving behind a shadow clone of himself to take a hit in his stead, while the real one [[DeathFromAbove strikes from above]] a moment later. While other bosses have reprisals, Vanitas is the only one to include a feint.
51	* CrushTheKeepsake: He is revealed to have obtained Ven's wooden keyblade. He snaps it in half right in front of Aqua while dissing her.
52	* CutscenePowerToTheMax: He never uses his power to created Unversed in battle, only in cutscenes.
53	* DarkAndTroubledPast: Considering he was "raised" by Master Xehanort to be a powerful weapon, it's safe to say he never had a chance at a normal life. The novels expand on this, showing that Vanitas regularly destroyed his Unversed, which caused him physical pain as they are absorbed, causing him to spawn more Unversed. Xehanort would also "train" Vanitas by beating the hell out of him. Eventually, the cycle of pain and suffering eventually broke him and made him desperate to reunite with Ven and forge the χ-blade as a means of salvation.
54	* DarkIsEvil: In the novels, while Vanitas is a being of Darkness, he didn't start out as evil. However, after four years under Xehanort's "care", he became the cold sociopath he is today.
55	* DeathFromAbove: One of Vanitas's signature moves has him strike opponents from above, creating a pillar of ice upon impact. This is usually done as a counter attack. In his data rematch in ''III'', one of his attacks has him do this three times, the third hit breaking your guard.
56	* DeadpanSnarker: He's prone to some pretty cruel, but still sarcastic, one-liners, such as:
57	-->'''Vanitas''': What's wrong? Giving up already?
58	* DiskOneFinalBoss: While Ventus-Vanitas is the FinalBoss of Aqua's scenario, [[SecretFinalCampaign the game isn't quite done with her yet.]]
59	* TheDragon: To Master Xehanort during ''Birth By Sleep'', during the beginning of the game he was Master Xehanort’s apprentice, though he becomes CoDragons with Braig after he strikes a deal with Xehanort. In ''III'' when he joins the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness, he is demoted as one of its lesser members.
60	* DragonWithAnAgenda: Despite his supposed loyalty to Master Xehanort, he's fine with disregarding his orders if he feels the need arises; for example, he attempts to eliminate Ventus after defeating him in their first battle despite knowing that Master Xehanort wanted Ventus alive for his plans, even openly stating that he is well aware he's going against Xehanort's orders but does not care at that moment. Later, before the start of the Keyblade War, he is willing to interfere with the Organization's plan to use the Seven Guardians of Light in order to retrieve Ventus's heart and restore himself, even though this will force the Organization to rely on the New Seven Hearts.[[spoiler:''Dark Road'' reveals that the only reason he stays with Xehanort is due to the protection he offers him from the Light and that their realtionship is uneasy.]]
61	* DramaticUnmask: After Ven beats him, he unmasks himself to reveal he has the exact same face as Ven (and unlike Ven, the same haircut of future series protagonist Sora).
62	* DualBoss: To Master Xehanort for Terra during the first fight of Terra's FinalBoss [[SequentialBoss gauntlet]], though the fight will end before either opponent has their full health bar dropped depleted entirely. He's this again in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII'', fighting alongside Terra-Xehanort while you play as Sora with Ven and Aqua as your allies.
63	* EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: A male version of the trope.
64	* ElementalPowers: He can use [[EvilIsBurningHot fire]], [[EvilIsDeathlyCold ice]], and [[PsychoElectro lightning]] based attacks.
65	* EmotionEater: Using the power of scream energy in [[Franchise/MonstersInc Monstropolis]], Vanitas is able to reconstruct his heart after travelling from the past.
66	* EmotionalPowers: Has the ability to spawn the Unversed from his negative emotions.
67	* EnemyWithout: To Ventus, spawned from the dark half of his heart. [[spoiler:''Re:Mind'' contradicts this, with Vanitas claiming that he was a preexisting being hidden inside Ven's heart until Xehanort extracted him. However, his dialogue after his defeat (which already exists in the base game) suggests that he still considers himself to be a part of Ven's heart in spite of that. His defeat quote in the Keyblade Graveyard also remains and suggests that he sees Ven as his missing part of himself.]] [[spoiler:''Union Cross'' implies that he may actually be the piece of Darkness that stowed away with Ventus when he escaped in the ark with “Dark Road” later confirming that he is indeed the Darkness that stowed away in his heart. Though given Ventus's heart was shown in BBS to be fractured and cracked until Sora's Heart restored it, it's possible it's a mix of both, as while he is the Darkness that stowed away, he hid in the darkness in Ven's heart and thus extracted with it.]]
68	* EvilCannotComprehendGood: Constantly ridicules Ven's belief in ThePowerOfFriendship. This ends up being his downfall, as while he managed to successfully manipulate Ven into fighting him, he didn't anticipate the sheer [[HeroicSacrifice lengths]] that Ven would go to in order to keep him from hurting his friends.
69	** ''III'' also shows Vanitas being incapable of accepting Sora and Ventus's role as a part of the Light. Vanitas instead resigns to his fate of being the shadow to both boys and accepts himself as Ventus's darkness.
70	* EvilCounterpart:
71	** His closest counterpart is Ventus. Vanitas is literally the darkness to Ventus's light [[spoiler: (or so we thought). It's [[SubvertedTrope subverted]] in ''Re:Mind'' however, as Vanitas reveals that he isn't actually Ventus’s dark half, but rather a being that has existed inside of him for a long time before being extracted by Master Xehanort.]]
72	** He is also one to Sora, having Sora's versatility (he uses all three major elements in BBS) and energetic nature. He's enjoying most of what he's doing, but unlike Sora his joy is manic and sadistic.
73	** He can be considered as one to Roxas as well. They were both born after being ripped out of someone (Ventus and Sora respectively), yet they end up looking different than the person they originated from (Roxas looks exactly like Ventus, while Vanitas looks like a black haired, yellow-eyed Sora). Their character development also differs, as while Roxas has friends, grows vengeful against the Organization for what they put him and his friends through, rebels and is ultimately a good guy, Vanitas became a monster underneath Xehanort's tutelage and is ultimately alone. They both also end up getting new Keyblades at the climax of their stories, but whereas Roxas gets Oblivion and Oathkeeper and becomes a hell of a badass, Vanitas gets the singular χ-blade which is not even properly forged and as ''III'' shows, can be beaten by a strong enough Keyblade wielder and his two friends.
74	** Lastly, he is one to Aqua. They are both loyal students of their masters and seek to uphold their legacy, but [[OrderVersusChaos Vanitas relishes in chaos while Aqua pursues order]]. Also, despite Vanitas sharing a physical connection with Ventus, it's Aqua whom he ends up having to fight over and over again throughout ''Birth by Sleep'' and ''III'', to the point that they can be considered [[ArchEnemy archenemies]].
75	* EvilDoppelganger: Other than the obvious physical resemblance, there are also subtler things that Vanitas shares only with Sora. Vanitas sometimes [[WeaponAcrossTheShoulder carries his Keyblade over his shoulder]], which is how Sora carries his while running. Meanwhile, his signature attack is riding a cloud of Keyblades. The only other Keyblade wielder who does this is Sora, during the "Rise of the Union" sequence in ''III''.
76	* EvilIsNotAToy: At the end of ''Birth By Sleep'', he possesses an unlimited army of [[TheHeartless evil underlings]] and a near all-powerful weapon capable of plunging the worlds into never-ending war. This is especially distressing because 1) he's a [[AxCrazy maniac]] and 2) earlier in the game he's shown to be willing to disobey Master Xehanort's express orders. In all likelihood, he would have just killed his "master" and wreaked havoc all over the worlds had Aqua and Ventus not stopped him.
77	* EvilLaugh: He loves doing this.
78	* EvilSoundsDeep: It's Sora's voice, only deeper and more sinister.
79	* EvilSoundsRaspy: His voice is noticeably raspier when he returns in ''III'', particularly once the helmet comes off in his final scene. ''Re:Mind'' returns Vanitas to his normal voice, suggesting that his sound in ''III'' was a change of vocal direction rather than a deliberate shift.
80	* EvilTwin: To Ventus, and to Sora, kind of. The latter he even hangs a lampshade on in ''III''.
81	-->'''Vanitas:''' I'm the piece of Ventus that was taken away. And you're the piece Ventus needed to be whole again. So... why shouldn't you and I look exactly the same?
82	* TheFaceless: Until part way into the final battle against Ventus. And according to the novel adaptation, he was ''[[TheBlank literally]]'' faceless when he was born, getting Sora's face only after the latter's heart connected with Ven's.
83	* TheFatalist: In ''III'', after his defeat to Ventus and Sora, Vanitas turns down Sora's offer at redemption and essentially resigns himself to being the bad guy. In his view, he represents darkness while Sora and Ventus represents light.
84	* FauxAffablyEvil: Tries to be this in ''BBS'', but is too much of a {{Jerkass}} to pull it off. Especially shown with his first encounter with Aqua. At first he tries to be polite, but when Aqua asks him a question, he gets irritated and attacks her. Has gotten a little better at it in ''III'', where he stops insulting and threatening the heroes as much and starts treating them in a mockingly friendly manner instead. Bizarrely, it even seems semi-''sincere'', at least towards Ven and Sora, calling them as his brothers and saying that [[FriendlyEnemy being their shadow is how he can be closest to them]].
85	* FinalBoss: Vanitas manages to serve this role to both Ven and Aqua's routes in ''BBS'' with Ventus [[BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind having an internal battle with Vanitas for control of their body]] while Aqua battles the [[FusionDance fused Ventus-Vanitas]] externally. Interestingly both fights seem to occur at the exact same time allowing Vanitas to fight both of the heroes by himself.
86	* FireIceLightning: Can wield potent dark variations of Fire, Ice, and Thunder spells and can combine the former two with melee attacks.
87	* FlashStep: His CounterAttack mentioned above. Gains a variation of it called Dark Splicer during his final fight with Ventus.
88	* {{Foil}}:
89	** Though the two have no direct relation or interaction, he also seems to be this for Xion. Looks like a member of the Destiny Islands trio with black hair? ArtificialHuman? Get screwed over by Xehanort? These two are living the same life with a different X.
90	** He's also one to Riku. They have the same battle stance, the same basic powerset and weapons, and Riku's Dark Mode resembles Vanitas's suit. Riku, however, is a good guy, if flawed, that cares about his friends and regrets all the evil he did in the first game. The implication is had Riku never abandoned Xehanort's Heartless he could have become something just as bad as Vanitas.
91	* FriendlyEnemy: This trope seems to perfectly ''define'' his newfound understanding of friendship and love in 3. He considers Sora and Ven his brothers and seems to see being their FriendlyEnemy a way to both be himself ''and'' show his brand of love to his FamilyOfChoice.
92	* FullyEmbracedFiend: In ''III'' he fully accepts his nature as a dark creature and turns down Sora and Ven's offer for redemption.
93	* FusionDance: With Ventus, creating Ventus-Vanitas. However, the fusion is incomplete enough so that Ventus is ultimately able to regain control of his body, though he becomes comatose after succeeding.
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96	[[folder:G-N]]
97	* GlassCannon: Relative to the other villains, Vanitas lacks for physical toughness, but is nightmarishly fast, a trait he takes advantage of in his signature CounterAttack. Vanitas Remnant takes this to an extreme, having less health than the very first boss of the game, but being so fast that hitting him at all is an accomplishment.
98	* GoodArmorEvilArmor: Wears a very similar outfit from Riku's Dark Mode, retroactively verifying as a type of suit that is worn by those who possess loyalties to Xehanort.
99	* GoodEyesEvilEyes: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted.]] He has eyes as large as Ven's because he's a Sora look alike.
100	* GoOutWithASmile: As he vanishes in ''III'' after his defeat to Sora and Ventus, a smile crossing his face as he disappears and accepts his defeat [[FaceDeathWithDignity with dignity]].
101	* GreenEyedMonster: In the novels, despite being separated from Ventus, he could still feel what Ven felt, particularly the positive emotions he felt as a result of his bond with his friends. Having to experience snippets of Ven's ability and capacity for happiness that never last while he was trapped in a cycle of pain and suffering (in part due to their contrasting nature as beings of pure light and pure darkness) made him extremely jealous and resentful of Ven and his friends.
102	* HatesEveryoneEqually: The character files reveal he hates ''everyone'' and ''everything'' in the world. Though Vanitas himself muses [[HisOwnWorstEnemy he might also be projecting his own self-loathing]] onto everyone else.
103	* HaveANiceDeath: Played straight most of the time in both ''III'' and its DLC but oddly averted for a specific moment during his Data Rematch. Should Sora die in the midst of his DesperationAttack from one of Vanitas's clones, you get Sora's generic death quotes rather than Vanitas taunting you.
104	* HopelessBossFight: His first encounter with Ven.
105	* HotBlooded: Vanitas's battle taunts certainly sound as if his [=VA=]s had fun with the role. Both Creator/MiyuIrino and Creator/HaleyJoelOsment were obviously enjoying themselves playing a character who looked like Sora but was his ''exact opposite'' in terms of personality.
106	* HumanoidAbomination: He is a being of pure darkness (basically a ''pure'' Heartless) whose existence unbalances the laws of the worlds, and he is the source of all Unversed. Before Ventus's heart joined with Sora, Vanitas's true appearance was that of a faceless wraith - not too dissimilar from the Anti-Black Coat in ''Dream Drop Distance''. [[spoiler:The ending of ''Union Cross'' may imply he's one of the original 13 pieces of Darkness who stowed away inside Ven on the ark.]] Lampshaded by Master Xehanort.
107	-->'''Master Xehanort''': He has no control over the darkness in his heart. The Keyblade is not his to bear. He's an abomination beyond hope of salvation.
108	* IAmWhatIAm: In ''III'' this is his explanation for why he turns away from Sora and Ventus. He ''is'' darkness, so why would he not side with it? Ventus seems to accept this, though ''Sora'' is the one who objects.
109	* IconicOutfit: Despite having the black coat on for a few cutscenes he will ditch it to fight in his Dark Mode suit for battle because it is the iconic look for himself.
110	* IfICantHaveYou: Likely why he tries killing Ven after the latter fails to prove his strength during [[HopelessBossFight their first battle]] before Mickey's arrival and interference, as Ven needs to be strong enough to put up a proper fight in order for their reunion to be possible.
111	* IgnoredEnemy: When Ven and Aqua arrive to find Terra-Xehanort and Vanitas side-by-side awaiting them in the ''Re:Mind'' DLC, Vanitas is audibly annoyed when they of course get caught up in seeing Terra-Xehanort and trying to help their imprisoned best friend. It takes all of 11 seconds for Vanitas to get snappy that his old enemies haven't acknowledged him.
112	-->'''Vanitas:''' Hey ''guys'', feeling a little left out here!
113	* INeedYouStronger: He's always going around telling people whom he fights to get stronger, and to show him their power. Why exactly is one of the key points of ''Birth By Sleep''.
114	* IShallTauntYou: Vanitas enjoys mocking his opponents whenever he gets the chance. His most notable taunts are shown in ''BBS'', in which he constantly shouts "Too slow!" whenever dodging the player's attacks. Also notable in ''III'' if Aqua dies to him during his first boss fight, he'll mock her by stating "See? You're nobody's master now!"
115	* JustBetweenYouAndMe: Does this without shame towards both Ventus and Aqua. Due to his overconfidence about him being stronger, Vanitas has no fears of getting overwhelmed nor receiving a brutal beating from either one of the Keyblade Wielders.
116	* KickTheDog: When Vanitas crosses paths with Aqua again in Neverland, this time he is with Ventus's cherished Wooden Keyblade. Vanitas cruelly mocks Aqua for playing treasure hunter with the "kiddies", proceeding to tell her that, with Ventus's newfound strength, he has "outgrown" the toy, and then snaps it in half, an act that both enrages and horrifies Aqua.
117	* KnowWhenToFoldEm:
118	** In ''Dark Road'' flashbacks set shortly after Ven's arrival at the Land of Departure, Vanitas mouths off to Master Xehanort who them sternly orders him to watch his mouth lest he taste his Keyblade. Vanitas notably stutters in the affirmative and more carefully watches his tone for most of their conversation.
119	** After Ventus awakens and stops Vanitas from finishing off Aqua, Vanitas quickly retreats, knowing that he's powerless to fend off three Keyblade wielders by his lonesome.
120	* LackOfEmpathy: He is shown to be an uncaring, cold, and ruthless individual, having not the slightest sympathy for anyone but himself. Vanitas holds everything and everyone in contempt and holds a great resentment against Ventus and the friends he has. The envy he feels against them is seen in his frequent criticizing of Ventus's friendships with Terra and Aqua, when he callously breaks Ventus's wooden Keyblade while cruelly antagonizing Aqua for playing with the Lost Boys, his constantly calling Ventus "idiot", and forcing Ventus to fight him by threatening to eliminate Terra and Aqua after Ventus refused to.
121	* LaughingMad: Definitely shown in ''Re:Mind'' scenario of ''III'', where he expresses disbelief over Ventus not considering him his brother, rather the same being as him. Vanitas also shows this trope in ''BBS'' after being beaten by Aqua in Radiant Garden.
122	* LiteralSplitPersonality: He is the personification of the darkness that Master Xehanort ripped out of Ventus's heart. [[spoiler:Though ''Re:Mind'' and ''Union X'' implies that he's one of the thirteen original darknesses that stowed away in Ventus's heart.]]
123	* LittleNo: In ''III'' he says "Nope!" during his battles.
124	* MagicKnight: He is able to combine physical combos with magic such as attacking from above and causing a large pillar of ice to erupt out of the ground, or attacking opponents from below while bombarding them with fireballs. He can also leap into the air and fire dark lightning bolts from his Keyblade, as well as energize the Keyblade with darkness. Vanitas can also fire dark energy blasts from his Keyblade, and even has his own personal Shotlock dubbed Dark Cannon, wherein he creates three large crystals which focus together and fire a large beam of dark energy.
125	* MadeOfEvil: He's quite literally made from Ven's darkness. This is the reason for his RedemptionRejection in ''KHIII'', as Sora and Ventus implore their "brother" to join their side and reject the darkness; however, Vanitas states that he is darkness, and in that sense, is already by their side as the shadow they cast. He then fades away, content with the role he has chosen for himself.
126	* TheManBehindTheMonsters: The Unversed are under his control, as they are incarnations of his feelings. Vanitas himself is under Xehanort's control as he is his master, although the exact degree of control he is under is [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder debatable]].
127	* ManipulativeBastard: Though nowhere ''near'' Xehanort's level, he manages to coax Ventus out of the Land of Departure. He also [[EvilGloating boasts]] about having taken advantage of [[Franchise/MonstersInc Randall]]'s desire for revenge to further his own schemes.
128	* MayTheFarceBeWithYou: He acts like a {{homage}} to Darth Vader and Sith Lords in general:
129	** He wears a mask most of the time to keep his face a mystery, which is not removed until before or after the final battles against him.
130	** He has a RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver suit, with a the aforementioned mask that appears air-tight.
131	** He sometimes has a raspy voice, and lives a painful existence. Additionaly, this pain and misery fuels his powers such as control over The Unversed.
132	** He believes himself to be beyond redemption yet is content with being an embodiment of darkness.
133	** He acts as an dark-side version of Sora (torn from Ventus) and has his own dark version of a keyblade.
134	** He seeks to reunite with Ventus who is like family to him and has Sora as a second family member due to being heavily defined by Sora's likeness.
135	** Notably, Sora at one point pleads for Vanitas to not be defined by his tragic origin and join the forces of light.
136	** Vanitas also acts as TheDragon to Master Xehanort, and carries out his orders, and Xehanort himself seeks to cheat death much like Darth Sidious / Palpatine.
137	** He has his own grandiose orchestral musical theme, "Enter The Darkness", much like Vader has his "Imperial March".
138	* MeaningfulName: His name has almost as much hidden meaning as Xion's.
139	** It is derived from the Latin word for ''emptiness'', indicating that he is incomplete without Ven. It also ties into the same ThemeNaming as the Wayfinder Trio, who are all named after Latin words, which fits because he is an apprentice like them and whereas Xehanort antagonizes everyone in some form or another, Vanitas is primarily ''their'' enemy.
140	** "Vanitas" also sounds similar to "Ventus," hinting at the connection between the two, and similar to "vanity", reflecting his smug, self-absorbed nature.
141	** As mentioned below, the Japanese character for ''emptiness'' (空) can also mean ''sky'', hinting at his connection to Sora.
142	** His name is also connected to a Biblical quote — "all is vanity and ''a striving after wind''", perfectly representing his relationship with Ventus.
143	* MonsterProgenitor: He is essentially the original Unversed and they all trace back to him. However, unlike most versions of this trope, he is not millennia old. At first it seems that once he dies, [[NoOntologicalInertia they die too]], but as it turns out in ''III'', he reveals in his appearance in Monstropolis that the Unversed were drawn to the world that harvested negativity as a fuel source and exploited its system in order to reconstruct his heart after it was destroyed, which allowed him to return.
144	* MookMaker: Vanitas's arguably most dangerous and destructive ability, the power to create and control the Unversed. As he was born from the purest form of darkness, Vanitas can manipulate his own negative emotions and spawn them as Unversed. Vanitas can also absorb the negativity of any defeated Unversed to increase his power, and is able to summon them if needed. [[CutscenePowerToTheMax However, this is only in cutscenes, not gameplay.]]
145	* MultipleReferencePun: "Ventus" (Latin for "wind") and "Vanitas" ("emptiness") sound similar, and the latter can be defined with the kanji 空, which means both "sky" and "emptiness". And could also, due to one of those meanings, be read as "Sora".
146	-->'''Master Xehanort''': Empty creature from Ventus riven...to you, the name Vanitas shall be given.
147	* NemesisWeapon: His Void Gear is this to Ventus's Wayward Wind. Ventus is part of an elemental theme with his peers and friends, Terra and Aqua, while Vanitas's Keyblade represents emptiness. Given that they both were once the same being and Ventus's belief in ThePowerOfFriendship, there is a definite connection there.
148	* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: His helmet bears a striking resemblance to the one worn in public by [[Music/DaftPunk Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo]].
149	[[/folder]]
150
151	[[folder:O-Y]]
152	* ObviouslyEvil: At ''no point'' could this guy pass for a good guy. Not that he bothers trying though, which is the main thing that sets him apart from Xehanort.
153	* OminousWalk: Like with Master Xehanort, It's also how Vanitas first appeared during the Secret Movie for ''II'', joining Xehanort halfway through. Mix that with his dark outfit and feature-concealing helmet, and they serve as a good warning sign for how bad the situation is for Aqua, Terra and Ven.
154	* OmnicidalManiac: Heavily implied to be this in the game, but never outright stated. By the end of his backstory in the novels, he wants to make everyone, in every world suffer. In the game, he gets really excited by the prospect of the Keyblade War, and the legends about its catastrophic, universe-ending consequences.
155	* OutOfFocus: In ''Birth By Sleep'', he serves as TheHeavy in Ventus and Aqua's stories, and their FinalBoss (Well, [[DiskOneFinalBoss finalish boss]] in Aqua's case). However, he's more or less TheGhost for the majority of Terra's story. The two only meet at the very end of his story, where Terra briefly fights him (alongside Master Xehanort) before he runs off to ambush Aqua and Ven. And even then, the two don’t exchange a single word of dialogue.
156	* PersonOfMassDestruction: He is the source of the Unversed, who inhabit and terrorize various Worlds, and Vanitas himself is a very powerful Keyblade Wielder.
157	* PragmaticVillainy: He'd ''like'' to just kill his enemies straight-off, but he's smart enough to know that this won't get him anywhere and bides his time accordingly.
158	* PreFinalBoss: He's this for Terra's story. While you can advance the fight by targeting Xehanort instead, his AI is set to let Vanitas take point and only attack if he's in danger and sees a safe opening, making it far safer to win by targeting Vanitas.
159	* PsychoStrings: During one or two notes at the beginning of his theme, "Enter the Darkness".
160	* PsychoticSmirk: His default expression when unmasked.
161	* PureIsNotGood: He's made of pure darkness. This seems to be the root of the Unversed.
162	* RecurringBoss: For Aqua and Ventus in ''Birth By Sleep''. He's also this [[DownplayedTrope to a lesser extent]] in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII'', being the only member of the Seekers that is fought in a boss fight ''prior'' to the heroes going to the Keyblade Graveyard, though he is faced there as well.
163	* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: His outfit is identical to Riku's, just recolored red and black. Interestingly enough, they're the same colors that dominate the outfits Sora himself wears though his clothes tend to have more color variety in comparison.
164	* RedemptionRejection: Sora and Ven try to get him to join their side in ''III'', but Vanitas has no interest in doing so. He is born of darkness, accepts his nature and sides with those who also embody darkness of his own free will.
165	-->'''Ventus:''' But I didn't ask for this. We should be free to choose. Not just light, not just darkness. ''We'' decide what we are.\
166	'''Vanitas:''' But... Ventus, I ''[[FullyEmbracedFiend did]]'' decide who I am. You see?\
167	'''Ventus:''' And what you are is darkness?\
168	'''Vanitas:''' [[BluntYes What I am is darkness]].\
169	'''Ventus:''' ... Okay.
170	* RedHerring: At first glance, he has a lot of similarities to Riku, wearing an outfit similar to his Dark Mode and using the same battle stance. But then the mask came off, and his appearance seemed to be essentially a darker clone of Sora's.
171	* RedOniBlueOni: The bloodthirsty red to Master Xehanort's blue, at least in ''Birth by Sleep''.
172	* TheResenter: In the novels, to the Wayfinder trio.
173	* {{Rewrite}}: It happens with Vanitas in ''Re:Mind''. [[spoiler:He is established in his debut game ''Birth By Sleep'' to be the living embodiment of Ven's darkness, extracted from his heart. Ten years later, in ''III'''s ''Re:Mind'' DLC, he suddenly reveals to Ven and Aqua in a new scene that he is actually a separate being who was merely hidden inside Ven's heart and ripped out by Xehanort (though the line from ''III'' referencing himself as a piece of Ven is still left in when he dies, suggesting that he still views himself as a part of Ven). Ven and Aqua don't care enough to get more information before he fades back into darkness. ''Union Cross'' supports this with the reveal that one of the 13 pieces of Darkness sealed itself inside Ven to escape on the ark.]]
174	* {{Sadist}}: His in-game battle quotes consist of such gems as "Suffer!" and "Show me anguish!" The leisurely way he prepares to stab Aqua to death when she's unconscious and helpless, compared to his usual LightningBruiser speed, also suggests he's taking the time to savor the act of actually killing her or possibly of killing her [[ForcedToWatch in front of Ven]].
175	* SarcasticConfession: He told Ventus that Terra would be a different person, but in a tone that would make Ven absolutely refuse to believe him.
176	-->'''Ventus:''' Alright! What do you mean about Terra being a different person!?\
177	'''Vanitas:''' [[ExactWords Exactly what I said]], idiot. The Terra you know will be gone forever.\
178	'''Ventus:''' [[ShutUpHannibal That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!]]
179	* SignificantDoubleCasting: In both Japanese and English, he shares Sora's voice actor.
180	* SlasherSmile: When he's possessing Ventus, he can give some pretty creepy ones.
181	* SmugSnake: He also possesses a high degree of arrogance, believing his skills surpass all others; in his first fight with Aqua, he claims that he will be the only one that will walk away alive, even bursting into a fit of laughter upon defeat. When fighting her for the final time, Vanitas taunts her by sarcastically asking if she has given up, and boasts that Aqua was just "wasting her energy" trying to stop him. Right before possessing Ventus, he remarks that Ventus never stood a chance against him and Master Xehanort.
182	* TheSociopath: Fits all the criteria of one, but the Unversed make him a rare [[SubvertedTrope subversion]]. Instead of feeling only shallow emotions, Vanitas is composed of nothing but negative emotions and he creates a new Unversed with each negative emotion he feels. A true sociopath could not feel deep enough to create them in the first place.
183	* SplitPersonalityMerge: Tries to force this with Ventus at the climax of ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep Birth by Sleep]]'', which would cause TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt if he succeeded. Ven eventually manages to break the merger by destroying their joined heart. ''III'' shows Vanitas is still trying to take Ven's heart for himself.
184	* TheStarscream: It's hinted he planned to take the power of Kingdom Hearts for himself once he got the χ-blade. Thankfully, Aqua and Mickey put an end to his madness once he attempts to use the χ-blade's power for himself.
185	* StormOfBlades: He can conjure a whirlwind of Keyblades from the Keyblade Graveyard to fly around and while riding will launch ice magic from his perch. In ''III'', he seems to have picked up his master's ability to manipulate them telekinetically as his DesperationAttack in the Keyblade Graveyard has him fling them at you after riding around the arena. In his data rematch, this returns as his desperation attack, but he will now add shadow clones of himself like the Vanitas Remnant. Also, at low health, he'll gain a new attack where he fires a barrage of Keyblade's with every swing.
186	* SupernaturalGoldEyes: Although he has gold eyes in all of his appearances, according to an interview from Nomura, Vanitas resembled a heartless-like creature with red eyes before Ven joined his heart to Sora's to give Vanitas Sora's general appearance. The change in eye color makes more sense after the reveal that he's part of the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness and thus presumably carries part of Master Xehanort's dark heart. However, that might not actually be the case, as Xehanort's eyes are originally ''silver'', which means gold eyes aren't necessarily a trait that denotes Xehanort's presence. Gold eyes most likely denote a being of pure darkness because Heartless have gold eyes and the Nobodies Xehanort put a fragment of his heart into have gold eyes.
187	* SwordBeam: Fires crescent wave of energy from his blade as a combo finisher. Also during the final battles with him, he'll fire an x-shaped SwordBeam as well. In his Data Rematch, his standard combo now throws a crescent wave of energy with every swing, with the last crescent moving slower but spiraling as it travels. When using the combo a second time in a row, the final swing throws a slower, spiraling, x-shaped SwordBeam.
188	* ThemeSongReveal: His battle themes borrow from Sora's {{leitmotif}}.
189	** In addition, the Unversed boss themes contain part of Vanitas's theme, hinting at the fact that that they all come from him.
190	** Vanitas's boss theme, Enter the Darkness, has a portion that's very reminiscent of Roxas's theme, and since there's an obvious visual connection between Roxas and Ventus, one can connect the dots between Ventus and Vanitas.
191	* TooSlow: One of his stock lines. While absent in the main boss fights in ''III'', it returns in his data rematch.
192	* TragicVillain: The BBS novelization goes out of its way to show that Vanitas is just another victim of Xehanort's schemes. Xehanort "{{train\|ingFromHell}}ed" him by forcing him to destroy his Unversed, which causes him immense physical pain. He would also train Vanitas by beating the hell out of him. All the while, he could feel the joy and happiness Ventus was experiencing at the Land of Departure due to their shared connection, which made him extremely jealous and resentful and desperate to merge with Ventus to be free of his life of constant suffering.
193	* TwinTelepathy: A seemingly one-sided version with Ven, with Xehanort's Report XII noting in passing that "Vanitas can feel some of what Ventus feels". The novels make a little more use of the idea, with Vanitas feeling Ven's happiness at being with Master Eraqus, Terra, and Aqua at the same time Vanitas himself is suffering under Master Xehanort's watch -- this is what turns Vanitas into TheResenter to Ven, Terra, and Aqua.
194	* UnblockableAttack: In his Data Rematch in ''III'', his Blizzard salvo while riding his Keyblade whirlwind are now coated in a slight red ring and are now unblockable. Furthermore, his Keyblade whirlwind is unblockable whenever it glows purple, especially in his DesperationAttack.
195	* TheUnfettered: No matter how sympathetic he is, Vanitas has absolutely no moral and very few pragmatic compunctions to what he will do.
196	* UnwantedRevival: According to his character file, Vanitas was okay with staying dead until he was brought back to serve Master Xehanort's purposes. At that point [[HatesEveryoneEqually his hatred of everything around him]] had him [[DeathSeeker longing to fade away again]] (if he fails to reclaim and take control of Ven for a second time).
197	* VocalEvolution: In ''III'' his voice is notably more gravelly compared to his appearance in ''Birth by Sleep''. Due to fans disliking the change, Vanitas's new scenes for ''Re:Mind'' tone it down, making it closer to his voice in ''Birth by Sleep''.
198	* VillainHasAPoint: While it's intended as a taunt, his initial taunts towards Ventus ultimately prove to be foreshadowing a central theme of the Wayfinder Trio's tragic downfall, that their friendship ''was'' weaker than they wanted to believe and this, along with their lack of worldly experience and emotional maturity to go with their immense power, is what causes them to meet their ends.
199	* VillainousBreakdown: After being defeated for the final time by Ventus, he's reduced to panicking and attempts to grab the floating χ-blade before dying. This is given added context in the novelization as Xehanort had convinced him that the χ-blade was the only way he could achieve salvation from his constant pain.
200	* VillainsNeverLie: For all his manipulation of Ventus and Aqua, Vanitas never actually tells an outright lie. He's very fond of ExactWords and {{Sarcastic Confession}}s, but nothing he tells them is technically untrue.
201	* WaveMotionGun: He has his own personal Shotlock called Dark Cannon, which fires a large beam of dark energy from his Keyblade.
202	* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Is portrayed as such in [[http://remember-kingdom-hearts.tumblr.com/post/28798364782/bonus-translation-of-the-novel-chapter-dark-memory the]] [[http://remember-kingdom-hearts.tumblr.com/post/28870649241/bonus-translation-of-the-novel-chapter-contrast novelization]], in stark contrast to the unrepentant sociopath in the actual game. He's initially unable to fully control his ability to spawn Unversed, which are created autonomously every time he feels a strong emotion, and he hates them as a sign of his lack of control and a reminder of the true nature of his existence. Furthermore, Master Xehanort forced him to train by fighting the Unversed, and Vanitas felt the emotions and physical pain they did upon being killed every time, which in turn fueled his dark emotions more and spawned stronger Unversed. And while all this TrainingFromHell was going on, he was still connected to Ven and felt all the joy and happiness Ven was experiencing training under Eraqus alongside Aqua and Terra.
203	* YinYangBomb: Master Xehanort's plan was to have Vanitas and Ventus fight and forge a powerful weapon called the χ-blade.
204	* YoungerThanTheyLook: A strange, double case. He is only four years old during the game, but has the physical body and mentality of a fifteen or sixteen year old. And at the same time, that fifteen/sixteen year old body just so happens to look a few years older on account of him being tall and muscular. His deep voice does not help matters much.
205	[[/folder]]
206	----

Context Characters / KingdomHeartsVanitas