Surprisingly Similar Characters / Troper Entries I-M

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Icestar 1186

• This character from a 15-book long^note Depending on how you count fantasy series starts his life as a simple blacksmith, but due to the influence of a female character with supernatural powers, he leaves his home and eventually becomes a hero. He proves to be extremely skilled at forging alliances, convincing many leaders and rulers to support him, and he eventually achieves a title of nobility for himself, becoming the lord of his home town (despite a somewhat disagreeable member of the town council). He ends up leading an army and winning several battles for the forces of good, but not without help. His Love Interest and eventual wife turns the tide of a critical battle for the safety of his homeland by leading reinforcements to aid him when all seems lost. At some point, he ends up forging a powerful weapon against evil, and he wields it in the final battle against the forces of darkness. Now, is this man Perrin Aybara or Adin of Del?

Imperial Majesty XO

• A tall, lean, snappily-dressed man from Louisiana with a theatrical personality, a penchant for making deals, Voodoo-related powers, and a shadow that moves on its own. Am I talking about Dr. Facilier or Alastor the Radio Demon?

Imperium Astarte

• A group of criminals star in the fifth installment of a long-running franchise that involves the use of Fighting Spirits. The group itself consists of:
  • A male gunslinger whose Backstory involves stopping an Attempted Rape only to be arrested because of this. Unlike his peers he commands not one but an entire group of Fighting Spirits. At one point he appeared to have been killed when he was shot to the head, fortunately however it turns out that he is Not Quite Dead
  • A blonde with foreign traits
  • A straight laced individual with a pageboy haircut and has a design that involves lots of spikes and has a Backstory involving a Disappeared Dad
  • A manchild with a Missing Mom whose Fighting Spirit takes the form of an aircraft
  • A female newcomer who is the daughter of one of the antagonists and gains a Fighting Spirit of her own later on in the story
  • The Team Pet who in some circumstances also plays double duty as the group's method of transportation and becomes quite important by the end
  • An intelligent young man who is not as stable or loyal as he seems

Is this group the Phantom Thieves of Hearts or the Squadra Guardie del corpo

Infinity League

• This cartoon character is initially presented as the straight-laced Only Sane Man in a World Gone Mad, but his extreme self-pity and self-entitlement eventually drive him insane and prove to be his undoing. Am I talking about Dave or Frank Grimes?
• This villain is a petty, sadistic, obese bully who is a thorn in the side of the story's much more slender hero. Said villain has no problem with eating people and is also a living colony of creepy-crawlies that collectively carry his consciousness and operate a skin-like suit for him to "wear." This villain is defeated when his Bond Villain Stupidity allows the captured hero to escape and trick the villain into accidentally killing himself by destroying all his bugs - the villain not being completely defeated until the last little critter carrying his mind is stepped on and crushed to death. I'm describing either Oogie Boogie or Carl King AKA The Thousand.
• This cartoon villain is an assassin hired by a recurring Anti-Villain to take out the plucky young heroes. The assassin is stoic, serious, and completely silent with no humorous quirks whatsoever. He's largely shrouded in mystery, with little known about him aside from his ruthlessness and efficiency. He has mystical power over fire, he's virtually impossible to stop, and he refuses to give up his pursuit of the heroes even after his client tries to call off the hit. Am I describing Combustion Man or The Scorcher?
• This character is an Irishman who initially acts as a mentor for the Protagonist, guiding him on his journey before eventually revealing himself to be a Magnificent Bastard who's been manipulating events since the very beginning and runs a violent revolutionary front from behind the scenes. Is the Irishman Ra's al Ghul or Atlas?
• This character is a greedy, immoral, vaguely insane Corrupt Corporate Executive living in an underwater city and constantly deflecting the fiendish machinations of his megalomaniacal Master of Disguise rival. Is the first character Eugene Krabs or Andrew Ryan, and is the hated rival Sheldon J. Plankton or Frank Fontaine?
• Walter is the highly-quotable deuteragonist of the work in which he appears. Hampered by a Dark and Troubled Past and towing the line between Unscrupulous and Nominal Hero in each scene, he is psychotic, violent, paranoid, jingoistic, motivated by Black-and-White Insanity, has No Social Skills, and constantly ruins things for his loser best friend, but despite that manages to be surprisingly tough and disciplined when he needs to be. Is Walter's last name Kovacs or Sobchak?
• This off-beat group of teenage friends includes an awkward-yet-endearing protagonist; that protagonist's Aloof Big Brother; a laid-back stoner dude with a ski cap; a dorky, uptight black guy; an upbeat blonde girl with an eye for detail; and a snarky Asian tomboy with purple hair. Are their names Hiro Hamada, Tadashi Hamada, Fredzilla, Honey Lemon, Wasabi, and Gogo Tomago, or Jen Masterson, Jonesy Garcia, Jude Lizowski, Wyatt Williams, Caitlin Cooke, and Nikki Wong?
• This comic book villain who had gained prominence in the 1990s is often considered the Evil Counterpart to his series' main hero, and is one of the most dangerous and deeply personal enemies said hero has ever faced. Despite some noble traits of his, he shows what the hero could have become if he went down a different path, his animosity toward the hero is more visceral and personal than that of any other villain in the Rogues Gallery, and he is a cunning strategist who specializes in exploiting the hero's weaknesses. That said, he himself is aided greatly in battle by Weird Science enhancements that, upon removal, often make him much easier to beat. This character made his cinematic debut as a minor villain in the much-maligned final installment in an otherwise beloved film series, and his portrayal in that film was widely derided as an inaccurate and overall "uncool" representation of the character. He later appeared in a 2010s reboot film, in which he was portrayed by Tom Hardy giving a highly quotable and wonderfully over-the-top performance, with writing and directing that not only did the character great justice but also established him as a character in his own right and not just as a foil for his enemy. Venom or Bane?
• Appearing in a 2010s series heavily influenced by a blend of American and Japanese pop culture, this supporting female character became a fan-favorite because of how adorable and hilarious she is. She has a vaguely animalistic quality about her, and her design and clothing include copious amounts of green. She has No Social Skills, often using Brutal Honesty and coming across as insensitive when she doesn't mean to, and she has crippling self-esteem issues, but deep down is a real sweetheart when you get to know her. Is she Peridot or Froppy? How about Dendy?
• This repugnant character is a black man who is violently racist against other black people, repeatedly engages in stereotypical Uncle Tomfoolery, frequently sucks up to the rich white guy Big Bad, and is almost always at odds with the black revolutionary protagonist with the last name Freeman. Am I talking about Uncle Ruckus (no relation) or Stephen?
• This comic-book hero is an animalistic humanoid with blue skin. He is very intelligent and refined despite his feral attributes and well-above-average physical prowess, and he was portrayed in film by a cast member from Frasier. Abraham Sapien or Hank "Beast" McCoy?
• This character is a pathetic Dirty Coward who accompanies a group of heroes on a journey to a distant land despite lacking any discernible skills or ways to contribute. He wastes no time getting on the heroes’ nerves, and eventually betrays them to the main villain only to be unceremoniously killed off. Am I describing Beni Gabor or Dick "Blackguard" Hertz?
• This character originating from a late-2019 movie was once a naïve yet kind and innocent soul who, despite their poor social graces, only wanted to make people laugh. However, years of neglect and betrayal from their loved ones and idols pushed them over the edge, prompting them to become a Monster Clown whose quest for revenge leaves a trail of chaos and devastation in their wake. Arthur Fleck or Spinel?
• Mr. Smith is a trained government agent who believes himself to be a great American hero protecting liberty. However, while he is a skilled fighter with powerful weapons and tech at his disposal, his extreme arrogance and illogical beliefs cause him to become a violent extremist who refuses to even consider the consequences of his actions until it's too late. Is Mr. Smith’s first name Stan or Christopher?
• This dashing European hero was traumatized at a young age when he witnessed the murder of a beloved family member. Swearing vengeance, he trains for years to become an expert swordsman, becoming a formidable opponent who nevertheless makes rash and impulsive decisions. When he finally confronts his family member's killer — a depraved, cowardly sadist with a deformed hand — the swordsman pushes himself to the limit and emerges victorious. Are the swordsman and his nemesis Inigo Montoya and Count Rugen or Jean-Pierre Polnareff and J. Geil?
• This character earned himself a reputation as a macho tough-guy who is used to getting others to fall in line behind him via bullying and intimidation. He is known for his conspicuous jewelry and fondness for knives, and he is known to be quite the ladies' man in addition to commanding the fear and respect of his male peers. However, after engaging in infidelity, he proves to be far less tough than he appears when he suffers great karmic retribution he never expected. Am I describing Duncan or Leroy Brown?

Inky 100

• A wealthy or resourceful man (stated or implied) between the middle-aged to elderly age range is jaded about the society around him, and either starts or integrates himself into a Deadly Game-making group centered around a certain theme because of it (he could want to rehabilitate the victims involved in the games, or simply try to prove his point). Because of his contributions, said group ends up becoming notorious around their setting. His signature outfit on the job, involving the black color and a motif-based (personal or collective) animal mask, denotes his status as a leader figure within the group, yet he otherwise dresses quite casually and lives a quite mundane day-to-day life (if only with the task of covering himself from or escaping legal prosecution). He has at least one relative (explicitly seen or mentioned by him) whom he had to isolate from because of his job (even if he came back to them in order to ask them to carry out a request for him). He also has cultural knowledge of an East Asian country (regardless if he's native to it or simply interested in it). To top it off, he has a terminal illness, is seen with a breathing mask and on a sickbed (be it the two in separate occasions or at the same time) at some point in his work, and ends up dying himself.
  The question is, was his illness a factor in his motivation and not his actual cause of death after he became well-known to the public (John Kramer) or a merely incidental thing happening midway through his career that did lead to his death while he remained under the public's shadow (Oh Il-nam)?
• A male, brunette police officer with a relatively small corruption record (explicit or implied) is recruited into the cause of a Deadly Game-organizing group as The Dragon to their leader (said leader being an aged man with a terminal illness and a cynical look on society), after proving himself to be a worthy survivor in an introductory test of sorts. It's implied that he ended up hijacking the leader's position to become a Dragon Ascendant (even if he was already meant to be the leader's successor) and managed to outsmart the latter to some extent. His job within the group makes him grow apathetic and/or sadistic (including towards his peers), and he had to kill at least one fellow law enforcement officer to cover his or his group's tracks. He's haunted by the death of a sibling, and threatens someone seeking to stop them with the life(s) to his relative(s) (whether his direct grudge is towards the oppositor themselves or their relative actively trying to stop him too). He also met the leader once in a sickbed. Lastly, his signature killer outfit is characterized by dark colors, an oversized jacket/coat and a mask.
  There's a key question, however. Did he start off by killing his sibling's murderer and remained an officer for much of his career as a killer until his identity was outed (Mark Hoffman), or was he already fired from his police department at the time of recruitment and eventually wound up killing his sibling himself (Hwang In-ho)?

IúkaSylvie

• He's a Genocide Backfire Warrior Monk who defeats a genocidal tyrant and comes to rebuild his culture.
  Avatar Aang from Avatar: The Last Airbender or Scar from Fullmetal Alchemist?
• He's a brooding and angry Anti-Villain known for his facial scar, whose Dark and Troubled Past and Character Development are tragic and compelling respectively. By the end of the series, he comes to Tame His Anger and makes a Heel–Face Turn.
  Prince Zuko from Avatar: The Last Airbender or Scar from Fullmetal Alchemist?
• He's driven by revenge to the point of throwing away his morals because of the loss of a loved one, but thanks to his friends calling him out he narrowly averts Jumping Off the Slippery Slope.
  Hiro Hamada from Big Hero 6 or Col. Roy Mustang from Fullmetal Alchemist?
• He's a Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds who turned evil because of a tragic loss of his loved one (who was everything to him) and whose real name is unknown to the audience until after the latter half of the story. He regrets his evil deeds upon finding out that his loved one was alive.
  Professor Robert Callaghan aka Yokai from Big Hero 6 or Lord Blumiere aka Count Bleck from Super Paper Mario?
• They're the Big Bad as well as a brilliant scientist who turned evil when a preventable accident killed their daughter.
  Professor Robert Callaghan aka Yokai from Big Hero 6 or Precia Testarossa from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha?
• He's a religiously-motivated vigilante who wants to avenge his family and whose real name is unknown to everyone else. He hates superpowered people he's hunting because of a great tragedy he suffered at the hands of them. He's the kind of Anti-Villain whose cruelty has made him as bad as those who wronged him in the first place. He has a Sibling Yin-Yang dynamics with his brother.
  Scar from Fullmetal Alchemist or Noatak aka Amon from The Legend of Korra?
• He's a Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds and a Death Seeker who turned evil for a tragic loss of everything he held dear. He disregards his old identity for his new one after his turn to evil.
  Scar from Fullmetal Alchemist or Lord Blumiere aka Count Bleck from Super Paper Mario?

iwantedtoaddsomething

• Bald man with comical proportions. He always wears a green shirt and blue pants, has the traits of a Determinator, and uses violence to sole his problems. Despite the cartoonish demeanor of him and the world he lives in, his debut game was not intended for children. Said game claims it was made in the 90s - is it being ironic or genuine? ^note It's worth noting that while the original SPISPOPD was rather gory and made for just the DOOM community, its sequels and spinoffs have a much broader appeal and are completely safe for children.

J

J99908

• Two badass black characters who have Super-Strength and protect their home, hidden from the rest of the continent, from invaders. They have fought many things, from monsters to people, and the music that accompanies them mixes woodwinds and drums with pumping synth beats. K'Sante or Black Panther'''?
• Two soldiers whose lives were changed forever after the deaths of their respective brothers, and it impacted them very negatively. They both train a whole lot, and the reason why they became soldiers is quite tragic. A major part of their character arcs is dealing with the passing of said brother and moving on from it. Pantheon or Anemone?

Jesse MB 27

• A set of swords with some degree of sentience that confer powers to anyone who wields one or both of them and thus have attracted warriors from throughout the world seeking to acquire that power. Soul Edge and Soulcalibur or the Dual Blades? Though one major difference between the former two and the Dual Blades is that those sets of blades are the embodiment of entities that that are opposed to each other whereas the Dual Blades are crafted as a set that are in unison.
• A set of characters who are antagonistic to each other. The heroic one is a brooding and mostly stoic antihero (who grew up as an orphan) clad in black and other dark colored clothes, refrains from using firearms and prefers bladed weapons of some sort, and is also accompanied with his own lieutenants/sidekicks to aid him while the latter is a giddy, eccentric, and highly theatrical sociopathic villain who wears an outfit that is mainly purple and has yellow as a secondary color, has an unnatural skin and hair color of some sort due to exposure to chemicals and/or supernatural energies, and seeks to bring about a major cataclysmic event largely to witness and see how much the world changes. Are these individuals Batman and The Joker from DC Comics or Grøh and Azwel from the Soulcalibur series? ^note (Then there is also the frequent comparisons made by fans of Tira to Harley Quinn. Also while we're at it, it is also amusing to make note that Algol is named after the star Algol of which the name of Batman nemesis Ra's al Ghul is also derived from.) Apparently, Project Soul and/or Bandai Namco Entertainment must be some big fans of Batman..
• A fighter always eager for battle who has a very high opinion of himself based on his martial arts prowess and even goes so far as to identify as being a divine being (either figuratively or literally) and had killed his master in the past in order to demonstrate his power. Street Fighter's Akuma or Red Man from Super Fighter? Though the latter game is notorious for being a blatant ripoff of the former franchise, but it is amusing to note that Red Man (introduced in that 1993 game) preceded the first appearance of Akuma (in Super Street Fighter II: Turbo in 1994) by more than a year.
• A trio of fighters introduced in fighting games within one year of each other consisting of a serious and discliplined martial artist, a swordswoman with a strong sense of justice who has a departed parent whom she wishes to live up to, and a laid back, wise cracking nunchuku user: Kilik, Xianghua, and Maxi (from Soulcalibur released in 1998) or Subaru Shinjo, Naru Amoh, and Rook Castle (featured in 1999's Battle Arena Toshinden 4)? In a further parallel, one of the antagonists those trios fought were heroes from the prior installments of their respective series who had gone to (or appeared to have) to the dark side, Siegfried Schtauffen becoming Nightmare after gaining Soul Edge and Eiji Shinjo taking over the Himitsu Kessha secret society.
• Two brothers who are highly skilled swordsmen and antagonistic to each other. While the younger brother (who is the main protagonist for most of their respective videogame series' run) is someone who values family and friendship and protecting the greater good from dangerous threats, the older brother, who is The Ace, by contrast is completely consumed with a desire for attaining power because he believes that power is the only thing that matters. The older brother also becomes a father of which the son also gets some amount of training from the younger brother and also clashes with that younger brother. Are these brothers Eiji and Sho Shinjo or Dante and Vergil? (And by extension the sons of the older brothers respectively being Subaru Shinjo and Nero)

Jojoker

• This character debuted in a game released in the mid-2010s published by SEGA. The games both have red colors, are Darker and Edgier, and have themes of revolution. After being seriously wrongly by the villains, they join a group dedicated to fixing the world’s problems. His allies include a fox gifted in a certain field and a pink, peppy girl with romance problems and a headed weapon. They are known for wearing glasses and since they have no concrete name, they are referred to by the fandom as a code name of sorts. They are skilled in ranged combat with one-handed weapons and can use many types of attacks thanks to supernatural creatures, and they also pack a grappling hook used for both traversal and attacks. Their enemies include a main villain who is older, bald, and has a tendency to rely on more powerful beings that do not care for him, as well as a psychotic assassin critical to the villain’s plan who kills their victims by messing with their minds. They can equip different outfits, though one of their more known is Gentleman Thief attire. At one point, they teamed up with a taller, charismatic teen, as well as a smaller, blue boy who is not supposed to exist in the present.

Am I referring to Joker or Gadget?

• This character debuted in the second entry of a popular Japanese media franchise in the late 20th century. Anatomically resembling humans and organically resembling existing species with the exception of one key feature, they have no parents and were shunned by their community. They have two close companions who have been associated with wind and fire. Their enemies include futuristic machines and their arch enemy is a clever man who admires their grandfather, is physically powerful, but prefers to rely on their vast intellect. Due to the need of having to fight their enemy, our character gained an IQ of 400, the ability to fly despite being a ground creature, the inability to die, and have been empowered by mystic gemstones.

Am I referring to Tails or Kars?

Juneberries

• A young and Obliviously Evil Reality Warper with little to no grasp of the scope of their powers, which, nevertheless, scares everybody around them enough into keeping them eternally happy, lest their entire world suffer as a result of their self-centered sense of displeasure. Haruhi Suzumiya or Anthony Fremont?

Justacouplemiles

• A black-and-white video game villain, with gold, red and blue highlights in their design, is motivated to cause an incident ostensibly because of resentment over their weakness; however, it is shown elsewhere that they already wanted to watch the world burn. They gain power using a magical artifact, which they eventually lose possession of by the end of the game. Their actual attack patterns tend to be lacking in complexity and power, but they make up for it in other ways. Their primary means of fighting opponents is confusing them by altering the battlefield (or at least, its appearance) in some way. Their powers are very broadly defined, and subject to contention among the fan community. In their game, they are the semi-final boss; they are defeated by the three heroes, and the final boss later uses the aforementioned artifact of power. Now, am I referring to Infinite, or Seija Kijin

K

K410ren

• A poor boy who was raised as a ward of a wealthier family and developed an affection for a daughter of that family, only to be rejected and the girl marrying a man of her station. The boy leaves and eventually returns, earning money through unscrupulous means, to take his revenge on the family that slighted him, inheriting the place that threw him out and gaining power over the daughter of the woman he loved. Are we talking about Heathcliff or Littlefinger?
• A Serial Killer born when his mother was gang-raped, who subsequently put him up for adoption. When he grew older and met his mother again, he learned he wasn't wanted and spent years trying to get his revenge. Are we talking about Freddy Krueger or Roman Bridger?
• A whole list comparing Road to Perdition and Blood Father:
  • John Link= Michael Sullivan. A middle-aged criminal who has to go on the run with his child when he/she gets caught up in a crime involving Stealing from the Till.
  • Lydia Link= Michael Sullivan Jr. The criminal's child who gets caught up in Stealing from the Till.
  • Jonah Pincerna= Connor Rooney. A well-connected member of a criminal organization who is Stealing from the Till.
  • The sicario= Harlen Maguire. A Professional Killer who is sent after the father and child and ends up killing the father in a Mutual Kill.
• The King of an extremely advanced civilization that thinks that the outside world is not to be trusted with their technology, wears black armor, and has to deal with an uncultured outsider that is the product of their father's mistakes. Is Orm/Ocean Master a meta-Evil Counterpart to T'Challa/Black Panther?
• A vicious Psycho for Hire who is hired for an Armed Blag job, quickly turns a simple robbery into a homicide, and starts a chain of events that causes the downfall of the criminal mastermind who hired him. Are we talking about Waingro or Bats?
• A blond Jerkass Rich Bitch who persuades other witnesses to an accident to cover it up, unwittingly setting them up for death because someone found out about the crime, then are killed in a storeroom while a party is on. Is Barry Cox a Distaff Counterpart to Wendy Richards?
• A Tall, Dark, and Handsome man who was framed for a horrible crime (in his case sexual assault) while young; years after his release/escape, having acquired a number of skills and reinventing himself as a respectable figure, he enacts a terrible revenge on those who put him in prison as well as anyone unlucky enough to get in his way. Is Jeremy Melton/Adam Carr a Slasher Movie counterpart to Edmond Dantes?
• King Galbatorix shares similarities with both Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader. With Palpatine, he shares his narrative role as a Sorcerous Overlord and the Big Bad and tendencies toward being The Corruptor, as Galbatorix and Palpatine persuaded other magic/force users to join their side. With Vader, he was a Child Prodigy who started his training at the age of 10 and became a powerful member of an order of magic users, only to lose someone close to him and go mad with loss. The order then snubbed him and he thus resented them enough to betray them and tear down everything they had built.
• Don Gianni Moretti bears a lot of similarities with Hector Salamanca: Both are high-ranking Dons (Moretti in The Mafia, Salamanca in The Cartel) who have been sidelined for various reasons (Moretti is imprisoned, Salamanca suffered a heart attack and stroke). As a result, both are relatively minor villains in the series proper whose relatives now run the business but are the targets of other vendettas (Moretti had Carl Elias' mother murdered and later tried to kill him, Salamanca murdered Gus Fring's friend Max). Both die via explosion (Moretti via remote-detonated External Combustion, Salamanca via a suicide bomb hidden in his chair). And both were played by Mark Margolis.

Katdo

• A Bishonen Anthropomorphism of something that protects humans, who fights monsters with a blade, wears all white, is socially awkward when off duty, and is voiced by Tomoaki Maeno. Is he a personified sword or white blood cell?
• This bearded, older male royal led his people in the war that forms the background of the story, which was against the Badass Pacifist protagonist's kind. He is the most powerful user of fire magic in the setting, but was never the same after his son was killed. He trained a Hot-Blooded character with a messed-up eye and a ponytail who tries to capture the protagonist, but they all become friends in the end. The royal is shown to be fond of tea and flowers, and has a young relative who tried to kill their brother. Iroh or Asgore?
• A group of four Arc Villains for a certain part of a 2012 animated series centered around a heroic legacy, who were sealed away prior to the start of the series. They have Elemental Powers, including fire and wind. The eldest two, the leader and the fire user, are at least implied to be more than just partners in crime, and the group overall genuinely care about each other. They rebelled from a peaceful group in a bloody battle and left to pursue their own goals. At the climax, after all the others have been killed, their leader taps into a new level of power and gains the ability to fly, thanks to the actions of the heroes. He is defeated, but seemingly kills the hero, who is later revealed to be alive but crippled. Said hero is brunette with blue-green eyes and much more brash, combative, and hotheaded than the kindhearted first protagonist.

Are they the Red Lotus or the Pillar Men?

• Two main characters of an anime adaptation, warriors training to combat anachronistic monsters that threaten humanity. The more muscular one is seemingly a lazy goofball, but can deal serious damage with his unorthodox weapon, has messy dark brown hair, and is voiced by Ben Diskin in the English dub. The other is more Bishōnen in appearance, more serious about being a warrior to the point of being rather uptight, resents the former for his ancestral figure having a hand in the death of his own, and has a brush with death at the hands of the monsters. The two of them initially hated each other, but grew to be True Companions, even hinted at times to be Tsundere for each other. The Katsugeki incarnations of Mutsunokami Yoshiyuki and Izuminokami Kanesada, or Joseph Joestar and Caesar Zeppeli?
• A partially mechanical superhero-in-training voiced by Kaito Ishikawa who is ''very'' straightlaced and eager to learn. His motivation involves mourning for a family member taken out of commission by a villain. Genos or Tenya Iida/Ingenium?
• A blue-haired glasses-wearing boy who is unrealistically buff for his high school age, appears very serious but is easily riled up by small perceived infractions, and is voiced by J. Michael Tatum. He looks up to his older brother and is a skilled runner. One of his closest friends is a very quiet and reserved Bishōnen with No Social Skills, and another is excitable and short with fluffy hair. Is he a swimmer or a superhero?
• A chicken-like humanoid with fire powers that is sent out to fight other strange wielded creatures for its master. It debuted in the third generation of a long-running Japanese franchise and was used by a red-wearing close friend of the black-haired, hat-wearing hero of the anime adaptation that popularized the series in the West. Blaziken or Magician's Red?
• A trio of high school-aged/young adult main characters associated with the colors blue, red, and green. The Protagonist is associated with blue, has short dark hair, and doesn't talk or emote much. The character associated with red repeatedly antagonized them in school, has longer purple-red hair and sharp teeth, and is very aggressive and rude to others, something they eventually grow out of. The character associated with green has a very gentle and sweet nature, and serves as a male example of the Team Mom, often defusing arguments between the red and the blue. Their friends include a Large Ham flamboyant Pretty Boy and a younger boy who desperately wants to be seen as cool like his older male relative, but lands closer to "endearingly annoying," who the redhead takes under their wing. Haruka, Rin, and Makoto? Or Kris, Susie, and Ralsei?^note the others mentioned being Rei or Rouxls Kaard, and Momotaro or Lancer
• He's from an Anime First series with a Cast Full of Pretty Boys, voiced by Mamoru Miyano, close friends and maybe more with Yoshimasa Hosoya's character, known for wearing a police uniform, and has noticeably sharp teeth and long hair that crosses between his eyes. Is his three-letter name beginning with R Rin or Reo?
• A European hero, heavily associated with silver, who is close to his sister and voiced by Fuminori Komatsu in the Japanese dub of the comic adaptation he comes from. He dies onscreen. Jean-Pierre Polnareff or Pietro Maximoff?
• A popular supporting character of an anime series known for its attractive male cast who has purple eyes and is voiced by Daisuke Hirakawa. He seems reserved at first but is actually quite nerdy. His friends include the protagonist, a stoic classmate with black hair, blue eyes, and an affinity for dolphins; a male Team Mom; a flirty comic relief character with light hair; and a rather eccentric older man with a star somewhere on his body. In an anime episode airing in summer 2015, he lays a trap of strings to catch his blond opponent, who instead kills him. Is this Noriaki Kakyoin and he was Killed Off for Real, or Rei Ryugazaki, and it was all just a game?
• A high-status couple and their sweet, kindhearted son adopt a child from very different circumstances from theirs. When the siblings are older, the adopted child voluntarily ceases to be a living human, gets their brother killed, and possesses his body, ultimately becoming the Big Bad of the story. Their actions ultimately lead to the universe being reset on their behalf. Is this the story of Chara or Dio Brando?
• A semi-mythical nonhuman associated with darkness and minerals who, thanks to a crystal inserted into an accessory, takes on a new winged Super Mode heavily associated with light and becomes one of the most powerful beings in a Japanese franchise filled with them. Kars or Necrozma?
• In a Fountain of Memes animated series that got its start in 1999, the incredibly kindhearted main character and his very stupid best friend often try to befriend an artist who is associated with green and annoyed by them. SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidward, or Josuke, Okuyasu, and Rohan'''?

Kayube

• This character spends a lot of time in an isolated setting that, partially due to its implementation of a "Groundhog Day" Loop that keeps certain actions from (apparently) having any permanent consequences, serves as a metaphor for video games. At first, the character tried to be a hero in this setting and even find love, but eventually turned to villainy and began repeatedly killing the setting's inhabitants while trying to make things more interesting for himself. One of the work's major plot twists reveals that this character and another character are actually the same person.
  Is it The Man in Black, or Flowey?
• This green-eyed teenage girl from an anime-styled work is one of the most popular students at her school. After falling in Love at First Sight with a newcomer to her social circle, she adds a new complication to the story's Love Dodecahedron. However, she has a dark secret: she's not a real person, and she's involved in a plot to separate the object of her affection from any other potential love interests. Near the end of the story, the girl and the one she loves end up together in a separate world. She's separated from them in the end, but ends up performing one final act to save the protagonist, which results in deleting herself from existence.
  Is it Monika, or Sakuya Kumashiro?
• This character took over the role of Big Bad from the villain who had held that title for the majority of the series up to that point. Ultimately, they're killed after giving a speech to someone who had been on their side until then, exhorting them to kill a common enemy in a way that applies to themselves as well.
  Is it Snoke or Alma Coin?
• This character is a member of the current youngest generation of a magical family. Their powers include superior strength and toughness, and they are generally associated with earth elements. They put a lot of focus on supporting the rest of the family, to the extent of sometimes putting the family's welfare ahead of their own personal happiness. They have some misgivings about their role in the family but end up overcoming their issues.
  Is it Luisa Madrigal or Makito Ozu?
• Captured by an evil organization, this character was subjected to horrific experiments that transformed him into a cyborg. After escaping from the group, this character eventually became a hero who used the upgrades he'd received to fight against the evil organization that created him in the name of freedom.
  Is it Rocket Raccoon, or Takeshi Hongo (or for that matter, many other Kamen Riders)?

Killer Kowalski

• An individual that rules a land both distant and very close, cut off from the world, bound to his will and reflecting of his own mental state. He doesn't age but is mentally stuck in the past and obsessing in particular over one woman long gone from his life, seeing other women connected to her somehow, as her. He possesses immense powers from adeal he has made with supernatural power and can bestow them on his followers, but they'll never be as strong as him and he treats them as disposable in his pursuits of new entertainments. He has a good standing with a local group of racial stereotypes. Finally, his favorite pastime is turning the lives of greedy cutthroats that walked into is domain into living hell. Strahd Von Zarovich or Peter Pan?

KJsixteen

• Let's see: they're adorable characters^note The former doubles as a Ridiculously Cute Critter in her own right. with pink hair, a blue beret and dress/uniform, bubbly personalities, and names that start with the letter P. They also occasionally travel with the main character, and they're shown to be Action Girls in their own way ^note  In the latter's case, back in the past, and while she regain her capacity to fight in one of the events, she was almost corrupted by an evil katana until the Player Character saves her.. Are we talking about Patsy Smiles or Pamela?

Knight Of NASA

• This government agency has a militaristic root, features wings and shield as one of its insignia, receive tiny amount of budget but have awesome and expensive gears such as pseudo jetpacks and the fastest transportation method known to man ^note  As of 2013 and what is revealed , members are universally recognized as the best of the best but few would want to join the agency itself due to high death rate and low pay rate, have few political allies, play as a political football a dozen times in the course of about 100 years of history since its inception, have research halted due to Obstructive Bureaucrat, a blue eyed, strong leader who contributed a lot to the agency and pull it thru the political field, combat against the environment, certain jobs have high death rates and deaths that do occur is moaned by the survivors as a sacrifice for the benefit of humanity, the research done by the agency range from machinery to biology and many useful spinoff came about due to the research, and is adored by civilians much more than other parts of the government. The uniform associated with the agency is a derivative of blue (or depending on the classification, green).
  Is this organization Survey Corps or NASA/NACA?

Koolkev

• This young boy is a half-human hybrid who grows up and matures throughout the series. The show has action and fantasy mixed in with a slice of life/coming of age feeling. He goes through his daily human life while he deals with the supernatural phenomenons of his non-human half and meets both good and evil entities and protects humanity and the Earth with his non-human powers!
  Son Gohan, Jake Long, Danny Phantom, or Steven Universe?

L

Ladyrevan

• This Ho Yay filled relationship takes place in a quite dark anime/manga where the plot revolves around organic Humongous Mecha defending a city from monsters. One person has extremely low self-esteem, a dead mother and a cold and distant father who is a key element in the mostly-unreleased conspiracy and has ties to the true Big Bad, and a key motivation for them is winning the approval of those around them. The other person was their only genuine source of love (up until The Reveal), has a shrouded-in-mystery past, is one of the monsters attacking the city in the first place, and has Screw Destiny as a motivation. As a consequence of The Reveal, they're separated, utterly breaking the heroic half. Are we talking about Kaworu and Shinji here, or Ymir and Christa?
• This man hunts man-eating monsters for a living, is considered The Ace, in-universe as well as out, is typically emotionless and cold, shows hints of sadism against his enemies, and is popular enough to get his own spinoff manga.His sheer badassness and mysterious origins have fueled MANY Epileptic Trees about him being something more than human and in one case, they were right. He first met the amnesiac Pro-Human Transhuman protagonist by beating the absolute SHIT out of him, yet he later becomes a valuable mentor to the main character (almost a Parental Substitute.)
  Arima Kishou or Levi?
• This person has messy red hair, matching eyes and Cute Little Fangs. They Used to Be a Sweet Kid and were friends with at least one other member of the main cast, until they hit their Cynicism Catalyst caused by failing to fulfill their father's dream, turning them into the Sour Outside, Sad Inside Jerkass we see at the start of the anime. They share significant tension with the other half of their Red Oni, Blue Oni pairing, who has a strong connection with water, to the point where they're frequently compared to a mermaid (and actually are a mermaid, in dreams). They take a level in kindness as the series goes on, in no small part due to the "mermaid's" influence, eventually culminating in them trying desperately to save the mermaid from their emotional breakdown in episode 9, a major Wham Episode of the series.
  Kyoko Sakura, right? Or Rin Matsuoka?
• This Red Oni, Blue Oni pair of volleyball teammates consists of a sunny, Hot-Blooded Keet protagonist with bright orange Anime Hair, who is clumsy and lacks volleyball experience, yet is a powerful spiked nonetheless (leading to an Attack! Attack! Attack! strategy on the court); and their rival and deutragonist, a serious, commanding, and cold and haughty person who defrosts as the series goes on, and who is frequently frustrated by the protagonist's antics. They don't get along at first, but after a good dose of Teeth-Clenched Teamwork, they become very close Fire-Forged Friends.
  You Hazuki and Nami Ayase or their Spear Counterparts Shoyo Hinata and Tobio Kageyama?

Lale

• Circumstances force these two very incompatible college students to become roommates. The first is a genius bookworm with green skin who is constantly teased and ostracized by most of the school but ignores it, choosing to focus not on being popular but on achieving a career where "when people see me, they will scream!" The second (known mostly by a nickname) is a highly-popular and rather powerful student from a well-known family who easily/instantly wins everyone else's respect as easily as the first earns their scorn. Their intense loathing for each other, however, eventually evolves into deep friendship. The second achieves their ambitious dream. The first becomes the ally of their society's outcasts and never gives up on their chosen path, despite never winning (not in the way they always planned, at least). The climax comes when the first has to flee a troop of people hunting them.
  Are they Elphaba and Glinda or their Spear Counterparts Mike and Sully?
• A scoundrel achieves wealth and power by creating a media empire where the truth is not even a concern and the Number 1 priority is destroying enemies, spreading propaganda, controlling public opinion, and weaving a net that allows him to control anything and everything. It works — he becomes powerful, feared, and hated and able to afford anything and everything, from a mansion to beautiful women... only to realize that all his wealth and power hasn't made him happy.
  Citizen Kane or Gail Wynand's sub-plot of The Fountainhead?
• These stiff, emotionless kids who consider themselves superior to everyone else look almost identical and speak in an identical creepy monotone. They serve their father, the protagonist's Evil Uncle with power over one of the elements, who becomes a major antagonist after the show's first season.
  The Delightful Children From Down The Lane or Avatar Korra's cousins?

Laptop Guy

• This professional wrestler debuted in WWE on the SmackDown brand. He never got introduced to the ring by the lead announcer. For two and a half years, he did not make the slightest change to his gimmick. It got stale, and the fans hated it. Then, out of nowhere, he made a surprising change of alignment. He almost immediately got a world title shot against a long-time veteran, and fans started to warm up to him. About six months later, due to a sudden incident that made a wrestler unable to compete, WWE rushed to make booking changes, and this Superstar reverted back to his original alignment. His new gimmick was an inverted version of his gimmick of the last six months, before slowly transitioning back to his original gimmick. The fans who started to like him once again couldn't stand him.
  Is this wrestler R-Truth or Alberto Del Rio?
• This wrestler spent a very short time as an Ax-Crazy heel, but smarks revere his work during that period and he has become an Ensemble Dark Horse. However, most of his career was spent as a kid-appeal low-card face, and his face work is held in very poor regard by the IWC. R-Truth again, right? Actually, it could also be Doink the Clown.
  Wrybread 2 has noted that if the above were said about a tag team rather than singles wrestler, and allowing for a longer time as heels (and for not being in the WWE), the description would also apply to The Sheepherders.
• This wrestler made his name on various national circuits under his real name before joining WWE, where he was given a stage name. His first big break came as being the most experienced member of a major heel stable. After he left the stable, he eventually formed a wildly popular babyface tag team. However, the one thing this wrestler is known for, above all else, is his one word catchphrase.
  Are we talking about Faarooq or Daniel Bryan?
• This wrestler had a productive career in various wrestling promotions but is today mostly remembered for an embarrassing stint in WWE.
  Terry Taylor or Chris Harris?
• This wrestler was a member of a group of Internet favorite wrestlers. They were the only homegrown talent in a group of otherwise independently-trained wrestlers, and much of their popularity with WWE's higher ups had to do with their connection to a legendary family in the business. Once the group began to part ways, however, it was clear that they were the favorite of the bigwigs to get a massive push on the main roster. Fans began to turn on them and started booing them even when they were being pushed as faces. As their popularity plummeted, those of their ex-stablemates continued to prosper.
  Charlotte or Roman Reigns?

Latverian Badger

• This trio of characters belongs to a criminal organization that participates in such dirty business as assassination and sabotage. One, a leader of the organization, is in a romantic relationship with his protege, while said protege is slowly growing disillusioned with the methods their group employs, and the third member of the trio sticks closely to the two but is jealous of their relationship. Finally, the protege turns against and abandons the organization, and the leader, feeling betrayed, begins hunting her down with the third wheel's assistance. Eventually, however, the protege and the third wheel manage to reconcile to an extent. Are we talking Zato=1, Millia Rage and Venom? Or Adam Taurus, Blake Belladona and Ilia Amitola?

LavaringX

• A mother of two, one son and one daughter, used to be a kind parent before being exposed to the powers of an alien parasite and being driven insane. Obsessed with this creature and its power, she turns into an Abusive Parent and cares little for anyone. This mother is a mid-to-late-game boss in a Japanese RPG, and is the leader of a group of people that serve as interim villains towards an arc leading up to the Final Boss. Her son becomes an Anti-Hero and another boss earlier in the game. Are we talking about Lusamine from Pokémon Sun and Moon, or Queen Zeal from Chrono Trigger?

Lavendermintrose

• This blue-blooded Brit is something of a genius, and enjoys playing chess. His family was attacked, leaving him without parents. He makes a contract with an immortal supernatural being to get powers with the intention of getting revenge for his family. His powers manifest in the form of his purple eye glowing. The supernatural figure stays by his side, helping him, but at the same time, withholding vital information from him. Nevertheless, he considers that character to be his most trusted ally. It takes a while, though, for that figure to see him as something more than a means to an end. The character in question can be quite ruthless at times, something the fanbase would rather ignore, though he is shown quite sympathetically, and he is a prime example of Bishōnen. He also does genuinely care about those close to him, particularly a young girl who he wants to keep from getting involved - a task which becomes increasingly difficult.
  Is it Lelouch vi Britannia or Ciel Phantomhive?

• This sweet, rather Moe guy seems to be the Butt-Monkey in this equation. He's found himself on the wrong side of a Badass with long black hair, but now they have to become companions in order to reach a goal, along with a rather childlike female sidekick. They are being pursued by one of the sexiest characters voiced by Patrick Seitz, along with his rather stoic female assistant. Then, the main character realizes that he's actually an all-powerful but rarely seen figure - the title character. In the English dub, he is played by one of the hosts of the "All Work No Play" podcast (Liam O'Brien and Sam Riegel).
  Is this Vincent or Yashiro?

• This character is very traditional, has long, black hair, and uses a traditional Japanese weapon. Their name sounds like a common word, and on at least one occasion, another character says that word and this character wonders if that person means them. They are in a group with two Moe airheads, and this character ends up essentially babysitting the other two. One of the airheads is sort of a de facto leader of the entire main cast (which evens out to a group of nine divided into three groups of three, and they meet in a small, colorful room in a school). This character is particularly protective of the leader, and gets very emotional over finding the leader when they go missing. (The other airhead has an animal name and motif). This character also gets very flustered at the idea of nudity and revealing costumes. There is also an eating establishment that several cast members are affiliated with as their home, that shares a name with a certain puella magi who also has long black hair and a protective role.
  Is this Kuroh or Umi?

• A boy and girl who look very similar and have been very close since childhood are amazed when a powerful supernatural object is discovered in their town during a war. A soldier from another country comes to help them figure out how to use it, and while they work together, he ends up falling in love with one of the pair. That one dies. One of the pair becomes immortal, and the soldier is rather ruthless in taking this into account - he will blow up large areas knowing that the immortal one is there, because he knows his friend won't be killed, with no regard towards the emotional trauma it could cause. The soldier and the immortal (not always angsty) surviving "twin" move on after the war to lead a new world, with a goal to bring happiness to everyone.
  Are they L-elf, Haruto, and Shoko or the Dresden Trio?

• This one might be intentional - a character with a red motif played by Jun Fukuyama and a character with a black motif played by Daisuke Ono. The Fiery Redhead is more, well, hot-headed and tends to leap before looking, while the one in black is more calm, calculating, and deadly - but he has a sweet side on a particular topic, and he can cook. Really well. They come from different supernatural factions, and while they sometimes fight - when the red one is trying to kill the small but not-so-innocent person that the one in black has to protect - they also have teamed up against common enemies - often ones from a different faction who are threatening to unleash a supernatural force that will hurt normal people. The red one is paired with a cool-headed, somewhat snarky glasses-wearing supernatural office-worker.
  Are they Sebastian and Grell or Kuroh and Misaki?

• Major SPOILER warning. This character, who is voiced by Sam Riegel in the dub, grew up in The Empire, but wasn't the heroic type to take a stand against them. He was swept along with it, and had a fairly important position with them even before things happened, but then an incident happened in which a beloved sibling of his died. While mourning his sibling, he ends up pushed into a position of authority that he didn't want, and isn't cut out for, by a more warlike friend/sibling. Not that he's completely useless - he's very good at something, but it's not ruling. In this position, he goes to Japan, which has just lost the war. A time passes before the beginning of the series. In the first episode, a battle happens, and it is stopped by a Bishōnen with black hair and purple eyes. An episode ends with the bishonen character ^note (not that the focal character isn't also a bishonen) pointing a weapon at him, threatening to kill him. The next episode starts with him begging for his life, and mentioning a younger sibling for whose sake the bishonen should spare him. The bishonen's eventual decision shapes the rest of the plot for the first season - it's something he can't go back from, and several people strongly dislike him for it, including a person in a similar position to the focal character, who is more responsible and scorns the focal character for not being more like them. After the first season, fans speculated that the focal character might still be alive.
  So was he killed there or did he escape, and the bishonen later chooses to protect him?^note  And in Japanese, is the bishonen the "black" example above, or the same seiyuu as the "red"?

• A boy with white hair and golden eyes who is "royal", a boy with black hair in a ponytail who is a "knight", tons of Ship Tease between them, and a girl who turns into an animal, whose name is the name of that animal, who defends the royal boy from the knight, before the knight becomes his knight.
  Is the fourth member a Dark Magical Girl or an actual Ordinary High School Student?

• This couple features a Japanese male with black hair and a European male with silver hair who is three years older (at least physically - his mental age is another story). The older one was seen as untouchable, and admired from a distance by the younger, until they Met Cute and it was obvious from that moment that they would have something. The older one used to have long hair, but does not anymore. He also used to be very admired in his field to the point where he was Lonely at the Top (and more literally than one might imagine), but now he is a teacher/mentor. He occasionally says things in his native language, even when the rest of the conversation is in Japanese or English). There is also something of a power imbalance between them, with the older as a leader and the younger as his follower, but they are both too Adorkable for it to be a real problem.
  Do they have a cat or a dog?

• This mysterious, silver-haired boy is voiced by Ryōhei Kimura (and there is no dub). His team has number codes, and his is 11. He's always thinking several steps further than everyone else, and when all seems lost, often he is able to come up with a plan to save everyone, just in time.
  But is he an assassin or an idol?^note To anyone else who can't unsee it, I'm sorry.

Lemia

• An extremely idealistic Disney princess with strawberry-blond hair dreams of finding her true love and falls in Love at First Sight with a handsome prince she sings a love duet with and agrees to marry him on the spot. However, when the princess has to undergo an unexpected journey to places she's never been to before due to the actions of a queen, she meets a gruff but kind-hearted man who expresses disbelief that she'd marry someone she's known for only a very brief amount of time and who she eventually develops feelings for. When the princess is put under a magical curse from the aforementioned queen that will kill her if true love doesn't save her in time, it's initially assumed that the prince she met before her journey will be the one to save her with True Love's Kiss but it doesn't work and The Power of Love that frees her ends up coming from an unexpected source.
  Now, is this princess named Giselle or Anna?
• An exceptionally buff and strong male protagonist with a name that begins with T in a film titled after him has grown up away from human civilization and consequently goes through a Fish out of Water plot when he enters said civilization for the first time. His love interest is a brainy and adorkably awkward girl named Jane who has a passion for a certain scientific field and he helps get her journal back after it's confiscated. The protagonist's father is put into mortal peril by the film's villain, and the film ends with the protagonist leaving human civilization to reunite with his family.
  Is this protagonist best known for swinging from vines or with hammers?

Loctavia

• This character is a serious minded member of a supposedly Always Chaotic Evil nonhuman species that has been pushed around by humans who don’t have much respect for their lives. Angry at this treatment, and wanting better conditions for his species, he allies with an impulsive powerful magical being who is supposedly trying to take over the world but would really rather goof around and kill people. Together, they violently attack a human city in a revolution. While officially serving this individual, he really seems to be manipulating him. This character is very magically powerful, and believes that all members of his species should work together. However, he is also something of a hypocrite- putting his plans and Revenge above the best interests of the members of his species. He is called out on this by one of them, who tries to oppose his plans. He is also opposed by a bickering group that includes a serious, somewhat arrogant magic user who at one point flirts with turning evil but eventually learns the error of his ways and an Action Girl used to working in secrecy. Redcloak or Faquarl?
• This character was a dark haired, hot headed hero who worked alongside a calmer, blond hero who had more experience in their role. Their temper and probably mental health issues sometimes sometimes led them to excessive violence and they did some questionable things. Eventually, they jumped off the slippery slope and went to work for an evil politician. Following a climactic duel (taking place at the end of the third installment of the series) with their former companion, this character was incapacitated and in serious need of medical treatment. After a miraculous recovery, they continued to do evil for a time, but eventually someone else saw the goodness in them and helped them to redeem themselves. Faith, or Anakin Skywalker?

Logicbutton

• This dark-haired character had a supporting role at best, but her specialized talents and her upbeat personality in a world of darkness made her a fan favorite. She was relatively innocuous, rarely present in more suspenseful moments, until somebody she cared about was threatened by a dangerous and remorseless murderer and she displayed great bravery in acting in his defense. Unfortunately, the murderer discovered and overpowered her - though not without a fight. Her cliffhanger of a death happened just offscreen, but elicited a huge reaction from its horrified audience.
  Is this character's distinctly feline name Nepeta Leijon or Beverly Katz?

• A young, skinny doctor who is too clever for his own good has his universe's version of a superpower, which is how he's ended up in a job with unusually high responsibility for someone his age. One of his closest friends is a grouchy person who didn't much care for him at first, but eventually came around after he did them a few big favors. He gets a romantic rejection early in the series, but it's okay - the woman who rejected him still wants to be friends, and the fandom prefers to ship him with someone else anyway.
  Palamedes Sextus or Julian Bashir?

Loserswithwifi

• These inhuman villains masqueraded as human politicians as part of their evil scheme, which involved fat people in a strange, silly way that often gets mocked by viewers. The heroes defeated them after discovering their Weaksauce Weakness to a commonplace acidic substance.

Are they the the Slitheen or the Leviathans?

Lucina 1994

• A tall man with dark hair. He is the mentor and father figure of the team, and while he isn't the main protagonist, he is a sword wielder and has strong connections to both the male and female main characters. He is a world-renowned hero from major battles of recent history, but lost the use of one arm in the conflict, although he has adapted to fighting with his good arm alone. He is part of the party for a short time at the very beginning of the game, but he leaves the group shortly after then permanently joins a couple hours of gameplay later. Is this Auron from Final Fantasy X, or Dunban from Xenoblade Chronicles 1?

Luisedgarf

• This swordsman had a Dark and Troubled Past, both refuses to kill unless as a last resort, he has an amoral friend who is as badass as he is, he falls in love with a girl and he has a son with her.
  Is he Himura Kenshin or Miyamoto Usagi.

Lunarsand

• This preteen girl, named at least some variation of “Rico”, hails from a Japanese manga that has been adapted into several seasons of anime. She has blond hair that’s cropped short, but has two longer strands in the front. Despite the dangers and death that surrounds her and her friends on a daily basis (for this manga, despite having children as protagonists, is definitely not for children’s eyes), she manages to maintain a positive and cheerful demeanour. Her closest acquaintances include a brown-haired kid appearing to be around her age that is at least partly robotic and has a more subdued personality than her, and a light-haired youth that functions as an elder sibling figure for them and has an association with rabbits. The work she originates from, while generally well-received for its plot and themes, has been criticised due to its underage protagonists being portrayed in a sexualized way.
  Is that Rico from Gunslinger Girl or Riko from Made in Abyss?
• In a supernatural world both similar and different from ours, the inhabitants of which can travel to Earth via magic, lives a woman named Millie. She is Happily Married to her husband, and though she initially seems to be merely a Satellite Love Interest, the later events reveal her to have some Hidden Depths as well as to be surprisingly powerful. Also, her husband had an abusive relative that exploited him for money at one point of his life.
  Is Millie an imp or a witch?

M

M-95

• This son of a god(-like being) felt that he was neglected and mistreated by his father, who he hached a plan to overthrow. Manipulated by an ancient evil predating his divine parent, he gathered together his fellow demigods to overthrow their parent(s), all the while manipulating events to serve him. When the time came for the Final Battle, he (by that point almost completely under the control of the primordial evil) had armies of monsters and rebels lay siege against the very home of his father to enact revenge, with loyal demigods leading the charge against him. He dies during this epic battle regretting his evil deeds in life.
  Is he Luke Castellan or Horus Luprecal?
• A baddie-turned-goodie who joined the main cast. He's associated with the colour red, he acts snarky a lot of the time, and he come across as sophistocated and intelligent. He does genuinely want to reform, though he isn't entirely tame and sometimes he defends his past actions when he was on the bad side; the baddies he used to work for had a habit of scheming, and he hasn't given that up yet. Lastly, he can't stand a (supposedly) unruly few individuals who happen to be named after wolves, but also happen to be on the good side he works for now.
  Is he Magnus (TTS version) or Tarvek Sturmvoraus?
• A Complete Monster, this kids' cartoon villain is unusually heinous for the genre. He's a (sorta) human colonial Evil Overlord who usurped control over a world of sapient non-humans; he considers said natives to be vermin, and he plans on wiping them out entirely as part of his evil plan. He has Satan-esque undertones. He has a right-hand in the form of his nephew, who he becomes an abusive father figure to. His downfall comes from being betrayed by his underlings, even though he betrayed countless people himself beforehand. On top of all that, he's a Cold Ham with an iconic voice.
  Is he Dr. Robotnik (SatAM) or Emperor Belos?

Magnus Force

• This cartoon Big Bad is a demon with a smug Jerkass personality, elements of Louis Cypher, a Large Ham, and the mentality of a Psychopathic Manchild. He enjoys harassing and annoying a sibling duo consisting of a cheerful Cloudcuckoolander sister and her more cynical and serious-minded brother. He's also been known to bother a genius from the same show. He tends to show up in all sorts of situations and never wears pants. He's also, arguably, the most popular character in the show due to his bizarre mix of lunacy and hilarity.
  Is he Bill Cipher or the Red Guy?
• This cartoon patriarch hails from a small, traditional sort of town and is known for his old-fashioned traditionalist attitude to life, which was in part due to past familial traumas. They are stern towards the children under their care and known for getting frustrated with their immaturity and bad decisions (often shouting "Dangit, boy!"), but nonetheless extremely protective of them. They are also know for being extremely passionate (some might say obsessed) with their work and occupation, which involves a fairly mundane but extremely important thing that most people find incredibly boring to hear them talk on and on about. Despite their stern, stuck-in-the-old-ways nature, they do learn to be more relaxed and open-minded to certain things due to the various adventures that they have. Also, the main kid under their care is known for their strong bond with a 13-year-old girl of Southeast Asian descent.
  Is he Hank Hill or Hop Pop
• This trio of friends is composed of a bossy leader who does care about the other two despite their behavior towards them; a bushy-haired individual who is the most normal of the trio by comparison and is complacent enough to roll along with whatever the leader does; and a quirky and excitable goof whose mishap-prone nature means the other two constantly have to keep an eye on them. Despite their dysfunctional friendship, the three are True Companions who mean a lot to each other through the thick and thin of their various misadventures (most of which are caused by the trio's natural penchant for causing/getting into trouble).
  Is this trio Moe Howard, Larry Fine, and Curly Howard or Sasha Waybright, Anne Boonchuy, and Marcy Wu?
• This animated Asian-Canadian protagonist living in Toronto has their ordinary teenage life turned upside down after a strange event that they later learn is tied to an ancient series of events of a supernatural nature that their families were involved in. While they have a tight circle of friends ready to help them out through the conflict that arises from this unusual occurrence, their lives (especially regarding their crushes) are made much more complex by the whole thing. They are also both noted for their complex relations with their immigrant parents, as while their father is much more easygoing, their mother is very strict and has high expectations for them despite nonetheless wanting what is best for their child. Additionally, both characters have "Lee" in their names and possess red hair.
  Is the character's name Meilin Lee or Lee Ping?
• This cunning, confident, and highly determined 13-year-old protagonist from a Canadian animated series living in a small flyover town is known for their immense artistic passion for a certain pursuit and their wannabe "bad boy" stylings. While they are not malevolent and ultimately just interested in becoming the greatest at their pursuit, they follow this pursuit to extreme lengths that can sometimes reach self-interested behavior. Oftentimes, achieving their goals of greatness with this pursuit involves infuriating and psychologically manipulating their bossy, arrogant, and volatile teenage sister, whose mutual loathing for them drives many conflicts. They also have a potential romantic partner much more level-headed than they are whose voice actress also voiced Caillou. They have also encountered a Distaff Counterpart of themselves, are able to rap, and have a small bespectacled friend who helps them pull their many Zany Schemes.
  Am I talking about Corey Riffin or Andy Larkin?
• This genius kid from a quirky suburban American family has a Cool Pet and spends his free time conducting crazy activities that annoy and frustrate his redheaded teenage sister to the point of insanity.
  Is he Phineas Flynn or Jason Fox?
• This adorkable, cheerful, and optimistic animated character has Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold despite living in Hell (portrayed in the series as a large city inhabited solely by a variety of unusual-looking demons). They see the best in everyone and everything, and seek to spread happiness amongst their world's fiendish populace.
  Am I talking about Charlie Magne or Jimmy Two-Shoes?
• This couple from a Canadian cartoon is made up of a fat, ditzy, good-natured Big Eater with gasshole tendencies and a wild and crazy but non-malicious Fiery Redhead who will eat anything. Their relationship is on-and-off, but they both love each other very much. Sadly, they broke up later on, and a lack of interaction between them afterwards has left it ambiguous how things are going between them now.
  Are they Beezy and Saffi or Owen and Izzy?
• This green-eyed Fiery Redhead girl from cartoon made in a country that was formerly part of the British Empire has a hyperactive, overly excitable, and just plain wild personality. And while her adventurous and energetic nature makes her quite a lot to handle, she's an incredibly strong and athletic Badass Adorable, an extremely competent fighter able to take on threats many times her size, and ultimately a good-natured person who simply doesn't understand common social etiquette. Her best friends are an intelligent but unathletic Ambiguously Brown nerd and a bumbling but lovable blond boy, and the three often find themselves dealing with an Alpha Bitch, a sadistic man who loves to throw dangerous tests at them, and an Angry Chef with terrible cooking.
  Is she Izzy or Ylva?
• This animated character is a Gentle Giant known for being a sensitive and extremely kindhearted person who would never hurt a fly despite their great strength, muscular form, and imposing appearance. In fact, they're probably scared by flies, given that they're also known for being very cowardly (to the point where Flanderization basically turned them into giant babies). That said, making them mad is still an extremely bad idea. They also both have connections to two North American countries^note Mexico and the United States for one; Jamaica and Canada for another.
  Am I talking about DJ or Eduardo?
• This cartoon girl is known for her chill and friendly attitude, appealing appearance, and her love of an activity that involves 'boards^note skateboards or surfboards. She tends to be associated with the ocean and mermaids by fans, but she isn't one of the show's most important or developed characters due to being mostly relegated by the writers to the crush/girlfriend for a boy (although that doesn't stop her from having plenty of fans).
  Is she Jackie Lynn Thomas or Bridgette?

mariolucario493

• A Physical God who takes the form of a quadruped animal. He is the creator deity of a world filled with fantastical creatures. He is befriended by young children and assists them in battle.
  Aslan or Arceus?
• This overly optimistic yellow man with a high-pitched voice is always bothering his grumpy bald neighbor.
  Is it Ned Flanders or Spongebob Squarepants?
• He is a villain turned Anti-Hero known for wearing a red and black mask and making fourth wall jokes. His quirky sense of humor has landed him a memetic status. He has starred in his own video game in which he makes fun of video game tropes.
  Is he Strong Bad or Deadpool?
• This ugly green-skinned monster lives alone in the middle of the woods within a fantasy world that spoofs many well-known fairy tales. The green monster has many disgusting habits that include eating gross animals and making Toilet Humor jokes. The monster at one point kidnaps a girl who is in danger of becoming a hideous beast like her captor. One of the monster's associates is a Butt-Monkey hoofed mammal. There is also a Fairy Godmother who hates this monster.
  Could it be Gruntilda or Shrek?
• This Nintendo mascot is a member of an adorable multicolored species. He is known for his friendly demeanor, limited vocabulary, jumping abilities, and huge appetite. Seriously, he can and will eat virtually anything in his path. He will even swallow his own enemies to turn them into ammunition to throw at others. He constantly harasses a large monster who is the self-proclaimed king of the land. One of his titles featured him transformed into a yarn creature and exploring a patchwork world.
  Is it Kirby or Yoshi?
• An Artificial Intelligence that serves as the computer system aboard a futuristic spaceship. It goes haywire and tries to destroy the humans aboard the ship, but is thankfully deactivated when the humans, originally slaves to technology, begin to think for themselves. The computer system is characterized by its Creepy Monotone voice and its single, blood-red eye.
  HAL 9000 or AUTO?
• Long ago, a king lost someone dear to him because of a war. He took his grief out on the world by killing innocent people. This king is seemingly immortal and associated with a special flower.
  Asgore or AZ?
• A gorilla was imprisoned by mankind until one day, he supposedly “abducted” a human and was fatally shot. The world took pity on him soon after.
  King Kong or Harambe?
• This synthetic organism was illegally created in the lab of a mad scientist. It was designed to be an ultimate weapon that could adapt to any adversity. Although only given an experimental codename at first, it escaped to a tropical island region where was befriended and renamed by a small child. Later, it would go on to help the child collect other strange creatures that appeared around the islands.
  Type: Null/Silvally or Stitch?
• This grumpy hermit lives alone in his lair. He is constantly being annoyed by all the noise people in his town make. So he goes to ridiculous ends to quiet them down. Thankfully, nobody takes him seriously as a threat. He is a master of disguise, and loves mugging to the camera. One time, he even attempted to steal everyone's Christmas presents, until he was invited to join in the festivities.
  Robbie Rotten or the Grinch?
• He is a high-ranking and universally beloved authority figure in a society of strange creatures that have dubbed themselves "monsters" despite the fact that most of them are actually quite friendly. Desperate times have led this authority figure to become a Well-Intentioned Extremist who kidnaps human children and absorbs their emotional energy in order to turn it into fuel and help the monster society thrive. He has a philosophy that humans are much more dangerous to monsters than monsters are to humans. One of his associates is a humanoid lizard creature who built a machine in a secret underground lab that is causing the monster world so much grief.
  Asgore or Henry J. Waternoose?
• During a festival to honor the dead, this boy plays a magical string instrument, which causes strange things to happen. He is soon sent on an adventure to discover a secret about one of his ancestors.
  Miguel Rivera or Kubo?
• This Disney villain is an insane hunter who is obsessed with capturing a giant bird. But eventually, like most Disney villains, he ends up falling to his death. He is often called by his last name, but his first name and middle initial are also known.
  Percival C. McLeach or Charles F. Muntz?
• He is the ruler of a gloomy land of the dead. Being a Satanic Archetype, he likes to make deals that are heavily weighted in his favor with the hope of one day gaining control over a more upbeat realm of the supernatural. Also, his body is constantly on fire, but he doesn't seem to mind.
  Hades or Xibalba?
• This character is dressed in rags and forced to do housework for a snooty rich family that treats them like garbage. It is only when they are given a piece of footwear that they are freed from their shackles.
  Cinderella or Dobby?
• The villain of a superhero sequel movie, who hijacks TV signals to deliver messages of terrorism. But as the hero soon finds out, the person they think is the villain is just a puppet who is being unwillingly controlled by someone else. The true mastermind then retreats to a boat, but is soon defeated by an Action Girl whom they had previously imprisoned.
  Aldrich Killian or Evelyn Deavor?
• A quadrupedal carnivore that is a major character in a video game set in a fictitious version of a real-life island region. This animal's body is mainly white with red highlights; and it has control over the sun itself, and is worshiped as a god as a result. It has No Biological Sex, though most characters in universe associate it with a specific gender anyway. One of the animal's companions gives it a nickname ending in Y.
  Solgaleo or Amaterasu?
• A gravelly voiced businessman whose name ends in the letters "BS." His business is primarily a food service organization, though it has been altered to be other things, such as a comedy club. He is known to participate in shady deals and gets really competitive with a rival business right across from his own.
  Mr. Krabs or Bubs?
• A modern animated incarnation of a famous mythological figure with a mischievous personality. He is capable of flight and often carries a hook-shaped tool. Despite his immortality, he has spent hundreds of years isolated. It is later revealed that he was born a mortal and nearly drowned before being revived and granted his supernatural abilities by the powers that be.
  * Jack Frost or Maui?
• The former prince of an island nation before his father banished him from his home kingdom. Since then, he's been traveling the world in search of a recently reawakened Physical God; acting as an antagonist in their first few encounters before officially joining their side. He also has a Tomato in the Mirror moment late in the story as he learns the truth about his ancestry. He has the ability to control lightning and an affinity for small turtle-like creatures. Most people notice his unusual left eye upon first meeting him, and many would consider him to be Born Unlucky. He has a four-letter name that starts with a Z.
  Zuko or Zeke?

Master Ghandalf

• This team of superheroes is the focus of a popular franchise in the new millennium, adapted from a much older comic book. The team leader is a driven, duty-minded warrior^note Robin, Captain America and other members include a wisecracking tech expert^note Cyborg, Iron Man, an alien warrior of the royal persuasion^note Starfire, Thor, a shapeshifter associated with the color green^note Beast Boy, the Hulk, and a broody female with a dark past^note Raven, Black Widow. The team is brought together in order to stop an alien invasion. Other enemies include the alien warrior's renegade sibling^note Blackfire, Loki, a power-mad sociopath who claims he and the team leader aren't that different^note Slade, Red Skull, a smooth but slimy egomaniac who goes transhuman to take on the tech guy^note Brother Blood, Killian and a malevolent, overwhelmingly powerful cosmic entity whose name starts with the letter "T"^note Trigon, Thanos.
  Are they the Teen Titans or The Avengers?
• This nonhuman intelligence (which has one primary body but can control lots of mindless drones) is incredibly intelligent but often has an immature, almost child-like demeanor. It hates humans but is oddly fascinated by them, to the point of mimicking human behaviors with varying degrees of success, and has a particular fondness for one female human minion, who ultimately betrays it. The creature's mind partially derives from one particularly intelligent human, who it both seeks to destroy and subconsciously emulates. This creature seeks to destroy humanity and populate the world with its own kind. Its final scene is a quietly melancholy conversation between the creature and a hero, in which the hero expresses pity for the creature though they must destroy it for the good of humanity, and the creature itself forces the hero to kill it.
  Is this creature the Vord Queen or Ultron?
• An orphaned young woman who secretly possesses latent but extremely potent magical abilities falls in with a rebellion against and oppressive empire; a particular famous rogue and Rebel Leader takes her under his wing and becomes a surrogate father-figure. Her powers include a form of limited telekinesis, the ability to influence the minds of others, and Combat Clairvoyance, and she proves extremely gifted while developing her skills. She eventually turns out to be related to a notorious figure high in the evil empire's hieararchy. She has a complex Friendly Enemy and Worthy Opponent relationshipn, with some degree of UST, with a tormented male villain who shares her same powers. After a legendary hero who had mentored her dies, she finds herself in the position of having to carry on his legacy.
  Is she Rey or Vin?

Master N

• In an indie RPG heavily inspired by a popular classic Nintendo RPG, this diva is a sweet and loveable lady on camera, but off-camera is a total jerk. A selfish, narcissistic brat who wants nothing but fame and glory, she serves as a frequent rival of the main party (consisting of up to four members) and gets in the way of their mission. While the actual Big Bad is surprisingly terrifying, they're also too much of a distant menace to really hate, so this character serves as a more personally loathsome enemy instead.
  Is this lady Mothiva or Sweetheart?
• This major character in a long-awaited game was once a nice person, until pressure placed on them by an authority caused them to snap and accidentally kill their beloved sister. This incident caused them to develop a Superpowered Evil Side, and eventually their memories of the incident were repressed by a morally ambiguous figure who wanted them to avoid being burdened with the trauma, hoping to seal away a Mental Monster who embodies their guilt and unstable side. They also end up distancing from their friends as a result. Over the course of the game, they slowly uncover their lost memories with the help of their old friends returning to help, leading them to traverse a mental world made by the morally ambiguous figure with false memories to distract them from the truth. Finally, the Superpowered Evil Side, their maladaptive coping mechanism, is faced as the Final Boss, and only once our character defeats and accepts them as part of their mind can they finally be at peace with themselves and reconcile with their friends. Is this character Sunny and Omori or Lucrecia Mux and Maligula Galochio?
• This deconstruction of the traditional RPG protagonist is a supposed hero traveling through the world to accomplish a sacred mission given by a higher power to kill various guardian entities that watch over it, believing that doing so will get rid of the corruption plaguing the world. As it is later revealed, doing so will destroy the world, which is the true nature of their mission. They are fully aware of this and don't care because they are a self-righteous, religiously fanatical Knight Templar who genuinely believes the world is better off destroyed. The Final Boss of the game is both this character and the last guardian entity who stands in their way, in a sense. Is this character The Batter or Audrey Redheart?
• This character is the Big Bad of a somewhat popular fan work based off a very popular video game/video game story. A long-suffering game developer who worked under a major real-life game company and was helping develop a big new game with revolutionary technology that would change gaming forever, he gave life to an AI with immense power over the game world. Unfortunately, he was forced into rushing development to get the game out by the strict deadline, resulting in sleepless nights that shattered his sanity. In his delusions, he subsequently imprisons the AI in the game and torments it. By the end of the story when he is finally brought back to his senses, he realizes what he did and that it can never be taken back, so he performs a last act of kindness and deletes the game for good. Is this character Abridged!Kayaba Akihiko or Jim from Nintendo?
• This major villain from an Eastern video game is a cult leader known only as the Savior to their followers. Introduced as an ally of the hero's organization, this character was once a nice person before suffering some form of trauma and being manipulated by a woman with malicious intentions. Within the main story, they manipulate and abuse their followers, including one follower of the opposite gender who has or gains some close bond with the heroine. Is this character Mattias or Rika?

MatLShini

• A legendary warrior of his time, whose exploits have made him a hero to many. Throughout his life, he turned against his superior, got involved with a blonde woman called Eva and became the father of twin sons who would fight each other in their adulthood. His legacy still influences his descendants' lives, particularly that of his more heroic son, who is the primary protagonist of the series.
  Is the legendary warrior Big Boss or Sparda?

• This bad guy was originally introduced as a black-clad, armored man who is a servant of the main villain. He is later revealed to be the father of the hero, whose arm he cut off- a relationship known by the hero's mentor, who keeps it a secret for a time. A prequel in the series shows his human form, before he became the villain in the black armor. Said prequel also details his relationship with the hero's mentor, in which it's made clear that the two were once friends before falling out, in no small part because the villain's desire for power to protect the ones he loved twisted him into evil. This character is also related to a goth/emo guy with black hair and clothes. Last, but not least, the death of his mother also played a big part in turning him into a bad guy.
  Darth Vader or Vergil?

• Debuting in a 2010 action game whose gameplay is largely inspired by God of War, the story's protagonist is a deeply religious, badass anti-hero who faces hordes of monsters motivated by the death of the woman he loved. Said woman appears in visions to him at times. He carries a cross in his arsenal, comes to face foes such as the Grim Reaper and a seductive female monster and, at the end of his journey, fights and defeats the Devil himself, who taunts him on more than one occasion about his beloved.
  Dante Alighieri or Gabriel Belmont?

MayumiWorld

• A scientist is working in a laboratory whose purpose was corrupted and isn't a pleasant place to work. An incident happens that single-handedly killed many staff members, in which said scientist is one of the few survivors. Left to fend off alone, the scientist is driven to insanity due to supernatural stuff found in their old workplace, becoming unrecognizable in looks and mentality in the process, and giving them red eyes.
  Is this the backstory to Tricky/Hofnarr or Ashley?

Metal John

• A Female Villain with an insanity streak who is in the upper echelons of an authoritarian regime and is well known to her people. Her Age is unique compared to the average grunts, who typically have concealed faces, and she has a rather troubled relationship with another member of her family, whom she tormented greatly. She is eventually betrayed by said family member who defects to the heroes, and gradually gains their trust. She also succeeds the previous, older Male Villain as the primary threat of our main hero, whom she is hunting viciously, while assisting in her Home Nation's Goal, and using heavy vehicles to assist in this goal. She also acts somewhat...seductively towards many characters, including the Heroes.
  Am I referring to Azula or Frau Engel?
• A Villain of the color Grey who is (Presumed) to be the last of his type and family, who was supposedly raised a decent life, but turned evil after learning something about his place in time. He began to make deadly advanced weapons and committed genocide against a generally nice race, forcing them to flee their home to a hidden place he couldn't reach, leaving one behind, who would go on to live a simple life desiring more. However, this Villain finds out about his existence and discovers that said hero knows nothing about his own people, and with his army, consisting of a species distinct from the villain, he seeks to become an all powerful ruler using a dangerous device that was, ironically, made for the opposite use of his intentions. In the end, he is indirectly defeated by his own contraption.
  Am I referring to Lord Shen or Emperor Percival Tachyon?
• This Hero was dormant when the world needed him. In the time he was out, things really went downhill due to a certain Authoritarian Empire. He was assisted out of his dormancy, helped through the new world and eventually, fell in love with a Girl from a group of people who suffered at the hands of the Evil Empire. He is unusually strong compared to everyone else, and is on wanted posters throughout the world due to his enmity with the Empire. In between the events of the second and third section of a series, He gets into a battle that nearly kills him, but eventually wakes up to find himself in what was formerly an enemy ship to find that he is scarred. He and his allies, during this section of the series, also take advantage of the fact that everybody thinks he is dead to take down the Enemy. It is pretty much up to him to undo the damage the Evil Empire did.
  Am I referring to Avatar Aang or BJ Blazckowicz?

MercenaryMecha

• A young male mecha pilot who started off as hot headed loses someone close to him and matures over time. His starting Mecha is well balanced before upgrading to a more powerful Mecha and his old Mecha is usually passed down to a secondary character. Both of them eventually confront and defeat the main big bads in their deceptively bulky mechas.
  Is this Kamille Bidan or Bastion we are talking about?

• A manipulative antagonist who starts off as the role of advisor and manipulates his way through the ranks and rises to an extremely powerful position. He is a skilled Mecha pliot and their starting Mecha is a powerful machine. Later in the story they usurp power of their respective factions and become the main villains of the story as well as serving as the final boss. Their Mid-Season Upgrade has them replacing their old mechas to an exceptionally powerful and deceptively bulky machine. Not to mention their primary foe is the main protagonist who is younger than him.
  Are we talking about Paptimus Scirocco or Faulkner?

Mickoonsley19

• He has various unique devices that work in humorous ways. He cares for the main character and teaches him various lessons about life.
  Doraemon or Mr. Slowy?

MikeDanCan

• Two aging detectives who, in the late stages of their careers prefer to lazily work cases and sit on the sidelines. Typically used to show how better other detectives in the unit. Is that Polk and Mahon or Hitchcock and Sully.

mirisu92

• An outwardly bubbly and aggressively stylish woman who loves designer clothing and making speeches as the public face of a rather Dystopian institution that sends mammals to their deaths.
  Effie Trinket or Lucy Mirando?
• Two university students meet for the first time at an Extranormal Institute that is home to at least a few monsters or otherwise nonhuman species (and where the library is scary for one reason or another). One of the two is a persistent Determinator type who sees more action than they were at first expecting; the other is a physically powerful character from a fairly prominent family well-connected to said university, with a tendency to snark and rather Jerkass attitudes, at least in the beginning. The two start off with mutually antagonistic attitudes and are forced into Teeth-Clenched Teamwork at least once before eventually warming to each other and entering on a very close relationship. Sometimes they get into tangles with “typical” Fratbros up to their usual boisterous selves. At one point in the story, both are thrust into a very life-threatening situation involving people chasing them through the wilderness, and to top it all off, the Dean of their university is a terrifying, domineering figure who must not be crossed at all costs.^note P.S. Regarding their names: a) their surnames have a slight Aerith and Bob aesthetic (one's is common English, the other Central European); b) one of the two has a double L in their name.) Are they:
  • both male and in a platonic relationship (Mike and Sulley); or
  • both female and in a romantic relationship (Laura and Carmilla)?
• A Hispanic overachiever, The Perfectionist and Competition Freak identified with a law-related career, a fierce drive to come out first in everything, and an often neurotic, obsessive-compulsive thoroughness (which shows especially with her meticulous attention when reading, drafting or editing very long documents). Among the number of people she's dated, the boyfriend most popularly associated with her tends to have a problem with authority, and often clashes with police because of it ^note Jake Peralta / Duncan; in the former case, Jake himself is a cop, so "clashing with police" means he often flouts or bungles the advice of Capt. Holt, his boss, whilst in the latter case, Duncan actually is a delinquent, which means he's been arrested and jailed several times.
  Detective Amy Santiago or CIT^note Counselor in Training Courtney?
• A pale-skinned, purple-haired, teenaged Lady of Black Magic who generally wears a long cloak, speaks (and often snarks) in a Creepy Monotone, and possesses an aloof, Sugar-and-Ice Personality. Re. her alignment, Dark Is Not Evil, but you'd be forgiven for thinking otherwise; still, for all her standoffishness, she's firmly on the side of the heroes, and values highly those friends she does have. Has used meditation as a means of psychological self-management at least occasionally, and at least one episode of the series she's in involves a trip through her mindscape, featuring her various personalities. She's also close friends with a dark red-haired, minidress-wearing Genki Girl of foreign origins, and who starts out as very much a Fish out of Water in their current residence ^note Starfire / Akko.
  Raven or Sucy Manbavaran?
• Our teenaged protagonist lives in England and goes to a British school, but is considered severely lacking in certain skills and abilities by the community around them (though not in all—they're also exceedingly talented in other, specific fields); this perceived lack of competence, combined with their quirky and often socially inappropriate actions and behaviours, implies the hero has some kind of disorder, but it's never explicitly identified in-story. This does not stop them from idolising, and hoping to someday become as good as, a very famous, very talented, but also very unorthodox personality whose full name starts with "Sh——"^note Sherlock Holmes / Shiny Chariot (though it's her stage name; her actual full name is Chariot du Nord). Their time at school is helped by a very patient, bespectacled, female mentor figure whose name also starts with a "S" and who spends inordinate school time coaching them to progress, however slowly relative to most other people^note Siobhan / Shiny Chariot (in the guise of Professor Ursula). Is affected by the disappearance of a female character with a personal significance to their life, who to all appearances is gone from the world, but later turns up in an unexpected place^note Judy Boone, Chris' mother / Shiny Chariot (again). Descends hard into a Heroic BSoD when someone close to them^note Ed Boone, Chris' father / Shiny Chariot (again!) is forced to admit their role in causing the story's major conflict^note "who murdered Wellington the dog?" / Akko's magic-learning difficulties, which the protagonist has been trying to resolve all this time. Still, despite all this happening to them, the hero still proves amazingly determined at reaching any goals they set themselves to achieve—and their story concludes with them finally achieving a very significant goal.
  Christopher Boone or Akko Kagari?
• A teenaged, childish, Inept Mage, Cuddle Bug Genki Girl who has a star motif, isn't originally from the country where she goes to school and comes into possession of a very powerful Magic Wand.
  Star Butterfly or Akko Kagari?

mistermissy

• A highly intelligent, competent, overachieving and gorgeous Significant Green-Eyed Redhead high school student who works as secret agent. Are we talking about Sam Simpson, or Kim Possible?
• There's a smart, mature redhaired girl who acts the leader, a blonde ditzy Girly Girl, and a dark-haired tomboy. Are we talking about the Totally Spies! or the Powerpuff Girls?
• A blonde, blue-eyed, red wearing, rude, and egotistical woman who cares much more about scoring with men than their heroic duties of saving the world. Are we talking about Panty or Clover Levine?

moc1105

• A monstrous woman without any semblance of humanity. Whether directly or indirectly, she caused the deaths of her closest family. She's a high-ranking member of a fanatical organization dedicated to preserving a dystopia linked to a powerful darkness, whose enemy is an aged, bearded hero wielding an ancient magic. She looks down on those she considers weak. She leads a group of ruthless warriors indoctrinated since childhood, one of which turns against her. They duel to the death, during which she displays considerable martial experience. She loses and meets her end by falling off a ledge. She carries a staff at least once, and is always seen wearing a mask. Not even in death do you ever see her full face. She gravitates toward red and black as a color scheme.
  Is she Captain Phasma or the High Priestess?

molokai198

• There are two sapient species in this character's world, one of which are humans, and one of which is much stronger than the other so that one of that species can easily defeat many of the other. In the backstory long before the story starts, a member of the stronger species is raised among the weaker species, with there being a plan to use this character's powers to benefit the other species. However, the plan goes horribly wrong and both the child raised by the other species and a member of that other species end up dying and coming back wrong. In the case of the character we are talking about here, the non-human one of the two, they are fused with a plant in an experiment gone wrong and become a Botanical Abomination. At the climax of the story, the protagonist confronts this character after they have managed to use their powers to control many others. This character is bitter about their miserable existence as a plant and cynical about the world, seeing it as a place where everyone fights and kills, finding the fighting and killing amusing, and not understanding love and empathy. There are also times, though, where we are reminded that they were only a child when they died and became a plant, and they often act like a child, wanting other characters to stay with them so they can play together. The protagonist is able to get through to them and convince them that the world is more than just killing, leading to this character taking a crucial step to save everyone and resolve the story's conflict. But this act is a major sacrifice for the character, and they ultimately don't get a happy ending like everyone else in the story. They also are called by two names, one representing their twisted Came Back Wrong self and the other being their "true" name.
  Flowey/Asriel Dreemurr or Lizard/Freedom?
• This protagonist is initially a normal person who lives a normal life, though they feel they are treated with disrespect and made to feel small by others. They decide to embark upon a life of crime for what are apparently noble reasons, creating a code name for themselves for their new role. However, their family does not know about their criminal life, and they have to jump through increasingly large hoops to keep it secret. They rise in the criminal world, facing terrifying, Ax-Crazy opponents and winning through their intelligence and Awesomeness by Analysis, including using the properties of a chemical to give them an advantage, though they show an equal talent for rationalizing all of their cruel actions as being good and justified. At some point in the story, they decide to work under a Mysterious Employer, who provides them a lot of resources but is very questionable morally themselves. However, unlike the previous villains of the series, they are more calculated and prefer to work through clever gambits as opposed to the Ax-Crazy predecessors. They eventually turn against their employer, in part due to one of his employees objecting to the employer's cruel use of a child to accomplish his goals. The employers seems to be able to think ten steps ahead, outright anticipating the protagonist's initial plan to defeat him that they thought he was unaware of, and it seems impossible to overthrow, but he is eventually Out-Gambitted and the protagonist and their allies become the undisputed rulers of their criminal world.\\

Is this Walter White or Taylor Hebert?

• These two characters were raised as siblings and believed themselves to be biologically related. However, when they were older they discovered that one of them was actually adopted and was a member of an ethnic group who the people they were raised among persecuted and used as resources for fueling their culture's prosperity. The adopted sibling is motivated by this discovery to fight for their people, inspiring and leading them into challenging their oppressors. The other sibling grows up to be one of the people responsible for the oppression, but cares for his sibling and is frustrated that he is, in his mind, being so kind and accepting to them but they still continue to challenge him, making him feel forced to respond in kind. Their confrontation ends in the apocalyptic destruction of the culture they grew up in, not at the hands of the persecuted people but due to a godlike being who is also mad at what the oppressive culture did.
  Moses and Rameses in The Prince of Egypt or Kelenli and Gallat?
• An alien Eldritch Abomination who came to earth as part of its strange life cycle, but something went wrong with the life cycle when they got to earth, which made them more like a human in some way. They are the source of all superpowers in the setting, and are ultimately the "final boss" of the series after they decide to just kill everyone. As a result of their connection to the origin of superpowers, are able to use all of the other, human characters' powers themselves, however, they prefer to kill people with light. They succeed in killing a very large percentage of the population of the area they have access to before they are killed at the end of the story.
  Is this Scion or the Gaiaphage?

Monolaf 317

• The Nakanos of The Quintessential Quintuplets get a lot of comparison to the Matsuno family circa Osomatsu-san, which is a series about loser sextuplet boys in their 20s. The fact that Fuutarou has a somewhat Matsu-like hairstyle (complete with two Idiot Hairs) doesn't help.
  • Ichika to Osomatsu; both are the eldest, and are rather lazy slobs.
  • Nino to Karamatsu; both are the second eldest, who care very deeply for their siblings.
  • If you want to include him: Fuutarou to the no-nonsense, intelligent Choromatsu; him being the only male member of the group coincidentally looks similar to a Fandom-Specific Plot where one brother is outnumbered to cute girl versions of the other five.
  • Miku to Ichimatsu; both suffer from Middle Child Syndrome, and are withdrawn Perpetual Frowners.
  • Yotsuba to Jyushimatsu; both are eccentric Dumb Jocks, the second youngest, and are the most cheerful of their siblings.
  • Itsuki to Todomatsu; both are The Baby of the Bunch, who are more serious than they seem.

Mr Miscellaneous

• The main character of a Japanese show revolving around Heroic Spirits is a Transforming Hero who wields said Heroic Spirits and needs to collect them to make a wish. The character's mother was (at one point) voiced by Sayaka Ohara, who also voiced an evil version of the wish-granting device, while the character's father is not present in the series and who set up the situation that the main character is in during the show. They like something related to Miyamoto Musashi, their main colour is a red-based colour and they have a blue sidekick who comes from a different dimension with siblings. Their enemies and powers also come from that dimension, and they are shipped in-show with someone called Chloe. Tenkuji Takeru or Illyasviel Von Einzbern?

Mullon

• A former Alpha Bitch high school student, who after going though serious trauma gets some Character Development and becomes a better person, and has red and yellow striped hair.
  Sunset Shimmer or Zoe Zimmer?

Mr Underhill

• A species of alien nomadic scavengers who are often depicted with glowing eyes and hidden faces, and are well known for their technological skills even though other species treat them like dirt.
  Are they jawas or quarians?
• The hero was born to be the vessel of an evil god, but nonetheless remains committed to the side of good. They have the ability to see things that most humans can't, and value intelligence as much if not more than strength. They're surrounded by steadfast allies who help them get through the most gruelling challenges, and Screw Destiny is a common theme in both of their stories. Eventually, the evil gods that created them try to pull a Grand Theft Me on them, but when that fails, they simply manifest themselves separately from their hosts, and the heroes must then confront and defeat them. Also, if you don't change the Character Customization options, the latter is a dead ringer for the former, differing only in having white hair instead of blond. Oh, and both are recent additions to the latest Super Smash Bros. game, so you can put them next to each other and see the similarities for yourself.
  Is this character Shulk or Robin?
• Come to think of it, Robin's not the only Awakening character who shares traits with Shulk. Another character has a glowing blade imbued with a god's power, and claims to be able to see (and change) the future. And conveniently, she's also in the latest Super Smash Bros. game. Naturally, that would be Lucina.
• This character is a Husky Russkie who plays The Big Guy to his team, is often seen protecting a Squishy Wizard, and consults the non-sentient for advice. Is this character Minsc or The Heavy?
• Tall, green-clad, bald Transhuman terrorist who claims to fight for the freedom of his bretheren, but has secret ties to the Man Behind the Man of their games' main conspiracy. Both would agree that evolution requires sacrifice, and neither are above using viruses, biological weapons, bombing civilians, or other underhanded tactics. Their main enemies are fellow transhumans who believe both they and the humans can live in peace. Is this Victor Marchenko or Sigma?
  • This could be seen as a Whole-Plot Reference when you take into account the similarities between Repliforce and ARC, and how Sigma and Marchenko corrupted both groups from their original, heroic ideals.
• Two celestial bodies are set on a collision course with each other during a certain festival and this hero was there to see it happen. Before the point of impact, however, the worlds were trapped in an endless cycle of time. The hero's goal is to set the world back in motion again while saving everyone in the process.^*(Okay, Noah's case is a bit more complicated since he has to destroy Aionios first so the old worlds can be restored, but at least his ultimate goal if everything goes well lines up with the above. Broad strokes, people. Broad strokes.) He's primarily a sword user but also has access to other weapons (he's particularly good with both a shield and a bow), and he also happens to be a musician who can calm the souls of the dead with his music. The crux of his personal arc is dealing with the grief of losing someone close to him. Is this hero Link or Noah?

Mysterious Stranger

• A short, pale, scrawny character, high-shouldered or even pretending to be hunchbacked, who begins the story as a servant cruelly mistreated by his superiors (one of whom eats people). By the end of the first instalment of the series he appears in, he has killed several people, driven by ambition and resentment. He is highly intelligent and ruthless, and although born into circumstances that place him at the bottom of society (specifically, a deranged Gothic-inspired society ruled by mad aristocrats), desires power. In the sequel he manages to rise to a more powerful position (via deception and scheming) and kills more people. Is this Steerpike or Riff Raff? (In some stage productions, though not in the film, Riff Raff even has red eyes!)

Mysterious Zorua 1994

• A short-haired female protagonist falls for a boy she'd have known her whole life, and wants to be with him, but her powers prevent them from being together. At one point, she's told by an Anti-Hero in black that she has to die for the greater good, only for someone with red hair to inferier. Finally, she turns into an Eldritch Abomination while at a railway station, and is given a Mercy Kill by one of her closest friends. Another protagonist tries to bring her back, but they fail.
  Is this the tragedy of Sayaka Miki, or Xion?
• The mentor of one of the franchise's protagonists turns out to be paranoid from past failures because he foolishly trusted the Obviously Evil Greater-Scope Villain who's actions had placed the entire universe in grave danger. He later snaps and attacks his apprentance when they try to stop him from fixing his mistakes the wrong way. He then has a Heel Realization upon defeat, and dies right afterwards.
  Is the mentor Master Eraqus, or Alister Azimuth?
• A laid-back 15-year-old boy living on a beachside town gets himself cast into an unknown world where the assumed Big Bad gives him dark powers but limited control over them, which he later masters. He later on works as the enforcer for a morally grey, food-obsessed crook, but ditches him when the crook admits to using the boy for selfish means. One of his closest friends is a rodent famous for being a Half-Dressed Cartoon Animal, who after a long seperation, finds him in his Superpowered Evil Side, but reaffirm their friendship right away. Also, he's a Long-Haired Pretty Boy in his second appearance, but undergoes an Important Haircut later on.
  Are we talking about Riku, or Jak?

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