History VillainousValour / AnimeAndManga

* In ''Manga/SaintSeiya'', almost every single villain, but the cake goes to Deathmask, who fought on even with a broken arm and leg. {{Justified}} because [[TrainingFromHell their training was so bad they had to be this to survive it]].

** The early parts of ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundam00 Gundam 00]]'' have this in spades, as the pilots of Celestial Being crash around invincibly and the rest of the world scrambles to keep up. You even see {{Mook}}s making HeroicSacrifices.

** Katakuri is a terrifying, brutal warrior who absolutely destroys any enemy he’s pitted against and loyally serves Big Mom... but he is also [[NobleDemon brave, intelligent, respectful to those who earn it, and follows a strict code of honor]]. He’s also the only Big Mom pirate who isn’t a SmugSnake {{Jerkass}} and [[CharlesAtlasSuperpower actually worked to get strong]] instead of coasting off powers or influence. He fights Luffy with remarkable determination and courage, even wounding himself to make the battle more evenly matched after Luffy is injured by UnwantedAssistance from Katakuri’s siblings. By the end of their battle, he and Luffy [[WorthyOpponent have nothing but admiration and respect for one another]], with Katakuri [[GracefulLoser gracefully accepting his defeat.]]

* Seen in Episode 4 of ''LightNovel/{{Katanagatari}}'' with the Maniwa Insect Squad and Nanami. [[MuggingTheMonster Sort of.]] [[MookHorrorShow It was quite scary.]]

** Katakuri is a terrifying, brutal warrior who absolutely destroys any enemy he’s pitted against and loyally serves Big Mom... but he is also [[NobleDemon brave, intelligent, respectful to those who earn it, and follows a strict code of honor]]. He’s also the only Big Mom pirate who isn’t a SmugSnake {{Jerkass}} and actually worked to get strong instead of coasting off powers or influence. He fights Luffy with remarkable determination and courage, even wounding himself to make the battle more evenly matched after Luffy is injured by UnwantedAssistance from Katakuri’s siblings. By the end of their battle, he and Luffy [[WorthyOpponent have nothing but admiration and respect for one another]], with Katakuri gracefully accepting his defeat.

* [[NobleDemon Viral]] in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''. [[IneffectualSympatheticVillain Constantly.]] The Beastman has the guts to take on Gurren Lagann despite it vastly outclassing his mecha in power. His greatest feat has to be stopping the HumongousMecha Dai-Gurren from crushing Adiane with his comparatively tiny mecha, which is akin to an insect holding up a human foot.

* Viral in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''. [[IneffectualSympatheticVillain Constantly.]]

* Starscream of ''Anime/TransformersCybertron'' initially frequently opts for a [[VillainTeleportation "tactical retreat"]], but [[CharacterizationMarchesOn later grows to almost embody this trope]]. Notable moments include [[FoeTossingCharge taking on the entire good guys' team]], growing to giant size and takes on everybody at once soon after in an AwesomeMomentOfCrowning, growing ''even bigger'' ([[UpToEleven to the size of a]] ''planet'') to take on a PhysicalGod, and [[TheStarscream living up to his name]] in a massive BeamOWar-turned-PunchParry against his former boss Galvatron [[spoiler: as a DyingMomentOfAwesome.]]

* ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency'' features [[ThoseWackyNazis Rudolf von Stroheim]], [[PoliticallyIncorrectHero a card-carrying Nazi who kills a dozen Mexicans]] to release [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Santana]] from his slumber. But he also displays a strong sense of duty and self-sacrifice, [[TakingYouWithMe blowing himself up in order to expose Santana to the sun]]. [[spoiler:He returns later as a [[StupidJetpackHitler cyborg]], helping [[TheHero Jonathan]] kill [[UltimateLifeform Kars]] before going to die at [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII Stalingrad]].]]

%% This page has been alphabetized. Please add new examples in the correct order.

** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam Zeta Gundam]]'' has Captain Ben Wooder an EliteMook and MauveShirt who appeared in episodes 17-20. Initially little more than a SmugSnake, Wooder quickly proved to have an intense dedication to carrying out his orders, no matter what he had to do to make them possible. When supremely powerful Cyber-Newtype Four Murasame deserted, leaving the ''Tsudori'' without a pilot for the [[WeaponsOfMassDestruction Psyco Gundam]], Wooder climbed into the cockpit himself, despite having no experience with it and no Newtype powers. That alone would probably qualify him, but it's his exit in Episode 20 that really cements his status. With Four defeated, and the rest of his ship's mobile suits out of commission, Wooder orders the rest of his crew off the ''Tsudori'' and prepares to ram the ''Audhumla'' with it. When Four returns and tries to stop him, he shoots her himself. When Kamille tries to stop the ''Tsudori'' and steal a rocket booster off of it, Wooder climbs into a gun turret and tries to shoot the Mark II Gundam down himself, despite the danger this presents to the ship. His bravery is such that it inspires a number of his men to stay behind and make the HeroicSacrifice with him.

* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' Part 2 ("Battle Tendency") features [[ThoseWackyNazis Rudol von Stroheim]], a card-carrying Nazi who kills a dozen Mexicans to release Santana from his slumber. But he also displays a strong sense of duty and self-sacrifice, blowing himself up in order to [[TakingYouWithMe expose Santana to the sun]]. [[spoiler: He returns later as a cyborg, helping Jonathan kill [[UltimateLifeform Kars]] before going to die at [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII Stalingrad.]]]]

* A humorous moment in ''Anime/DigimonFusion'' occurs after [=FlameWizardmon=] absorbs Tagiru's energy, and then proceeds to throw out every hot-blooded shounen quote in the book, because that's the spirit that empowers him now. Doubles as an example of NotSoDifferent.

* In ''Manga/OnePiece'': [[CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass Hannyabal]] versus Luffy in the Impel Down Arc. Hannyabal knew he was outmatched by Luffy but [[{{Determinator}} never gave up]] [[YouShallNotPass trying to prevent Luffy from escaping Impel Down]]. The touching WorldOfCardboardSpeech he gave during the fight certainly helped too!

* A humorous moment in ''Anime/DigimonXrosWars'' occurs after [=FlameWizardmon=] absorbs Tagiru's energy, and then proceeds to throw out every hot-blooded shounen quote in the book, because that's the spirit that empowers him now. Doubles as an example of NotSoDifferent.

* Marco of ''Manga/{{Eyeshield 21}}''. Unlike most villains in the series, Marco is fully aware of his own limitations, and of the fact that the opposing teams pose a serious threat to his own continued health. Yet he continues to risk his neck, operating as both safety and quarterback, because he refuses to make his team do anything he wouldn't do himself.

* It's possible to overlook the fact that [[GreenThumb Shi]][[MusicalAssassin rabe]] is actually the bad guy for her fight in ''Manga/MahouSenseiNegima'' considering [[spoiler:A. she has [[BrokenBird a legitimate reason for her behavior]] B. was outnumbered six to one C. [[AntiVillain has good intentions]] and D. showed some awesome PluckyGirl and UndyingLoyalty credentials since she was fighting for the guy [[IOweYouMyLife whom she owes her life to]]. The fact that this resulted in Asuna being put back on the ritual altar without any means of getting her back off of it only hits you a moment later.]]
** Made even better by the fact that the good guys' victory [[spoiler: would have resulted in the magic ritual activating improperly, which would have wiped out almost all life on Magicus Mundus, as it's implied the ritual had gone too far for even the bad guys to stop it.]]
** There's also Fate's first fight with [[ShowyInvincibleHero Jack Rakan]]. Going into the fight, Jack is clearly show to be much stronger than Fate, but Fate keeps fighting despite clearly losing, and actually managed to hurt him, which is definitely impressive since outside of flashbacks to the war and Negi absorbing one the energy from one of his attacks, everything thrown at Jack is treated as NoSell.

** [[spoiler: '''King goddamned Bradley.''']] After his reveal as a [[spoiler: homunculus]], his every appearance in action scenes has him going up against a much larger force, or opponents with the advantage of alchemy, special abilities, [[HealingFactor healing factors]] etc. He has nothing but a sword, lots of training and [[spoiler: an eye that gives him limited prescience]]. He will often stop for a BadassBoast before demolishing them. A particularly memorable moment has him [[spoiler: returning from a presumed death in a train accident to appear at the gates of his own occupied command centre. He takes an intercom, calmly declares that the King has returned to his castle,]] and then storms the ''front gate''. By himself. He had an army to back him up, but did he need it? No. When asked why he would choose a full frontal assault, he simply says [[spoiler: "Why should the King have to enter his own castle through the back door?"]]

** When [[spoiler:King Bradley/Wrath's]] purpose in the {{Big Bad}}'s plan is finished, and he is left badly wounded and dying, he challenges the heroes and inflicts some major damage before going out, [[AGoodWayToDie all so that he could meet his death the only way he could respect it]].

*** Garma Zabi kamikaze-ing his ship into the ''White Base'' and Dozle Zabi's OneManArmy attack with the Big Zam on TheFederation. When the Big Zam is rendered nonfunctional, Dozle responds by getting out and blazing away at the Gundam with a regular, human-scale assault rifle, bellowing defiance the whole time.

*** Garma Zabi kamikaze-ing his ship into the ''White Base'' and Dozle Zabi's OneManArmy attack with the Big Zam on TheFederation.

** The unnamed gold-toothed alchemist, easily the vilest of Father's human minions, is confronted by Edward(a martial-arts alchemist), Roy(a walking flamethrower), Scar(an alchemist killer), and Riza(a ColdSniper). He responds by calmly summoning his highly-trained EliteMooks to distract them while he finishes drawing a transmutation circle in the middle of the room, which he activates to absorb Ed and the other human sacrifices. At one point Riza shoots at him and he doesn't even flinch.

* Say what you will about EvilPrince Ruu-Kain in Anime/BlueCometSPTLayzner, but he will NOT cheat if he fights you and he will NOT tolerate anyone [[CombatPragmatist cheating]] in front of him. i.e, when one of his men cheats during a fight, Ru-Kain disapproves and has him jailed.

* In the early engagements against the Combat Cyborgs in ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaStrikers'', we're presented with a small group of specialists carrying out a daring mission against a whole world full of mages led by a pair of warriors who could mop the floor with them in a straight fight. (The Numbers who can stand up to Fate and Nanoha are introduced later.) Nevertheless, through a series of hair-raising encounters and desperate escapes, they finally win through and make off with the {{Macguffin}}'s box.
** Mitigated by the fact that they are backed up by a very literal army of robotic drones armed with state-of-the-art antimagic technology and show no compunctions about being willing to open fire on an unarmed transport carrying, among other things, a helpless child; [[spoiler: later revelations about said child's nigh invulnerability notwithstanding.]]
** For instance, and before switching to the good side, Fate Testarossa shows an exceptional amount of bravey, particularly when it becomes evident the Time-Space Administration Bureau is going after her and her own mother and boss using the girl almost like an expendable soldier, she still presses on in finding the Jewel Seeds.
** This is one of the lesser-observed common threads often found in ''Nanoha''. The Wolkenritter in ''A's'' start out stronger on an individual basis than the protagonists, but they're massively outnumbered and, by the middle of the series, outgunned as well. They still carry on their fight, though, until TheReveal.

* ''Anime/DragonBallZ'':
** Cell shows this from time to time, as he's pitted against near impossible odds, yet finds ways to still outsmart his opponents. When he finally reaches perfection and realizes he's no longer the underdog, he gives the heroes more time to prepare as a concession that someone may prove to be a WorthyOpponent. It's later subverted when Cell breaks down and runs out of all his tricks but [[TakingYouWithMe one to defeat Gohan]].
** At times, this might apply to Majin Buu as well. In terms of raw power, he frequently ends up outclassed, and there's often a back-and-forth between the protagonists and Buu over who is actually stronger. Come to think of it, that's what much of the battles in ''Dragon Ball Z'' revolves around. Even matches are rare.
** Much of [[EnsembleDarkhorse Vegeta's]] popularity and various trips around the HeelFaceRevolvingDoor are fuelled by the fact that he is genuinely courageous in a fight, and is a true {{Determinator}} when it comes to pushing himself harder and further to achieve the standards he sets himself.
** Deconstructed with Frieza. While Frieza is a true {{Determinator}}, refusing to give up and continuing to try to fight Goku even after being dismembered by his own attack, his defeat is ultimately brought about ''because'' of his inability to KnowWhenToFoldEm.
* Here's a simple one. In the final episode of ''Anime/{{Noir}}'', Kirika is attacked in close-quarters by a knife-wielding battle nun. After her first attack is dodged, the nun finds a gun in her face while her knife is poised too far away to stand a chance of killing Kirika first. Does she give up and beg for her life? No. She steels herself, moves to flip the knife downwards again and promptly gets shot in the face.

* Seen in episode 4 of ''LightNovel/{{Katanagatari}}'' with the Maniwa Insect Squad and Nanami. [[MuggingTheMonster Sort of.]] [[MookHorrorShow It was quite scary.]]
* Almost certainly intentional, at the end of the first season of ''Anime/CodeGeass'', Lelouch finally gets the upper hand over the arrogant, racist Cornelia... in the most douchy way possible, and inspires her and her men to put up a valiant defence against overwhelming odds that ends up making her look like the hero. Cornelia might qualify as this before as her greatest virtue is her valour, but this is the first time she's truly outmatched.
** One of the reasons Jeremiah Gottwald became [[EnsembleDarkhorse so ridiculously popular]] was that, much like Cornelia, his racism and arrogance was tempered by genuine courage on the battlefield, and his [[MemeticMutation loyalty]] to those he served. Consequently, his ButtMonkey [[TheChewToy Chew Toy]] status at the start of the series seemed somewhat unfair, and fan demand turned him into something much more.
* It's possible to overlook the fact that [[GreenThumb Shi]][[MusicalAssassin rabe]] is actually the bad guy for her fight in ''Manga/MahouSenseiNegima'' considering [[spoiler:A. she has [[BrokenBird a legitimate reason for her behavior]] B. was outnumbered six to one C. [[AntiVillain has good intentions]] and D. showed some awesome PluckyGirl and UndyingLoyalty credentials since she was fighting for the guy [[IOweYouMyLife whom she owes her life to]]. The fact that this resulted in Asuna being put back on the ritual altar without any means of getting her back off of it only hits you a moment later.]]
** Made even better by the fact that the good guys' victory [[spoiler: would have resulted in the magic ritual activating improperly, which would have wiped out almost all life on Magicus Mundus, as it's implied the ritual had gone too far for even the bad guys to stop it.]]
** There's also Fate's first fight with [[ShowyInvincibleHero Jack Rakan]]. Going into the fight, Jack is clearly show to be much stronger than Fate, but Fate keeps fighting despite clearly losing, and actually managed to hurt him, which is definitely impressive since outside of flashbacks to the war and Negi absorbing one the energy from one of his attacks, everything thrown at Jack is treated as NoSell.
* Viral in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''. [[IneffectualSympatheticVillain Constantly.]]
* ''Anime/SpaceBattleshipYamato'' has some, starting from Domel, who, after his master plan to destroy the ''Yamato'' backfires at the last moment, try to stop it and the doom it brings for Gamilas by blowing up himself with the ship, to Deslar, who, in spite of being the BigBad of the first series and TheDragon in the second, is an extremely brave character (and, in spite of inferior technology, much more effective against the ''Yamato'' than the generals of the White Comet Empire) who later pulls a HeelFaceTurn. Later the third season gives us one combined with RootingForTheEmpire: we are first introduced to the Bolar Federation as one of their fleets try and fails to fight a Galman fleet (shown crewed by Gamilas people, usually the villains), and, later, one of their officers, Ram, is shown as a sympathetic character who dies in battle after apologizing for unwillingly involving Earth in the war between Bolar and Galman. Only later we find out that the Bolar are space Nazis, and then that the Galman soldiers that attacked the ''Yamato'' are [[WellIntentionedExtremist Well Intentioned Extremists]] working for the post-HeelFaceTurn Deslar.

* Marco of ''Manga/{{Eyeshield 21}}''. Unlike most villains in the series, Marco is fully aware of his own limitations, and of the fact that the opposing teams pose a serious threat to his own continued health. Yet he continues to risk his neck, operating as both safety and quarterback, because he refueses to make his team do anything he wouldn't do himself.
* Starscream of ''Anime/TransformersCybertron'' initially frequently opts for a [[VillainTeleportation "tactical retreat"]], but [[CharacterizationMarchesOn later grows to almost embody this trope]]. Notable moments include [[FoeTossingCharge taking on the entire good guys' team]], growing to giant size and takes on everybody at once soon after in an AwesomeMomentOfCrowning, growing ''even bigger'' ([[UpToEleven to the size of a]] ''planet'') to take on a PhysicalGod, and [[TheStarscream living up to his name]] in a massive BeamOWar-turned-PunchParry against his former boss Galvatron [[spoiler: as a DyingMomentOfAwesome.]]
* Haguro from ''Manga/WolfGuyWolfenCrest''. Morality aside, he fights off and kills [[spoiler:a [[BodyHorror horrifically transformed]] Chiba]] with a ''katana''. His goal is to kill a super-powered [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent werewolf]] after crying like a baby the first time seeing it.
* A humorous moment in ''Anime/DigimonXrosWars'' occurs after [=FlameWizardmon=] absorbs Tagiru's energy, and then proceeds to throw out every hot-blooded shounen quote in the book, because that's the spirit that empowers him now. Doubles as an example of NotSoDifferent.
* Binolt from ''Manga/HunterXHunter'', a minor ([[AntiVillain Anti]]) villain in the Greed Island arc, has the power to analyze the whole body of his enemies by eating their hair. When he analyzes Biscuit's hair, he knows he will lose, but he still challenges her as a fighter. Biscuit acknowledges this valor and that he isn't just scum.
* [[spoiler: Reiner Braun]] from ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'' is pretty much made of this trope, being a [[TragicVillain Tragic]] AntiVillain with a strong sense of duty. He's noted for his great determination and courage, as well as always thinking of [[TeamDad others]] before himself. When faced twice with large hordes of Titans, his only thought is for the well-being of his [[VillainousFriendship partner]] and he willingly places himself at a disadvantage to protect them.
* Pops up from time to time in ''Manga/{{Kinnikuman}}''. One of the most famous being when Ashuraman and Sunshine acknowledge ThePowerOfFriendship for one another and even forfeit their fight against the Muscle Brothers tag team.
* Say what you will about EvilPrince Ruu-Kain in Anime/BlueCometSPTLayzner, but he will NOT cheat if he fights you and he will NOT tolerate anyone [[CombatPragmatist cheating]] in front of him. i.e, when one of his men cheats during a fight, Ru-Kain disapproves and has him jailed.
* In ''Manga/SaintSeiya'', almost every single villain, but the cake goes to Deathmask, who fought on even with a broken arm and leg. {{Justified}} because [[TrainingFromHell their training was so bad they had to be this to survive it]].
* As with ''Saint Seiya'' above, ''Manga/TigerMask''[='=] villains have gone through [[TrainingFromHell such a hellish training they had to possess immense strength in body and mind to survive]]. This is shown best by Red Death Mask, who reacted to his broken knee by grabbing the journalists' bench and using it to ''[[GrievousHarmWithABody catapult the journalists on Tiger Mask]]'' (wrestling legend Giant Baba flat-out admitted that, in his place, he would have given up at the broken knee), and [[BigBad Tiger the Great]], who not only continued fighting through the ''worst'' NoHoldsBarredBeatdown in the series, but as he laid dying he was still trying to rise up and fight.
** This continues in ''Anime/TigerMaskW'', with the best ones being Big Tiger II, who continues fighting even when short and in his fifties (though he may not have noticed he was supposed to have long retired due [[PintSizedPowerhouse being just that formidable even in his old age]]) and [[BigBad Tiger the Great the Third]], who, just like his grandfather, takes an ''immense'' amount of punishment and his words when his body finally can't cope with it anymore is [[DefiantToTheEnd a last declaration he will not lose because he's Tiger the Great the Third]].
* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' Part 2 ("Battle Tendency") features [[ThoseWackyNazis Rudol von Stroheim]], a card-carrying Nazi who kills a dozen Mexicans to release Santana from his slumber. But he also displays a strong sense of duty and self-sacrifice, blowing himself up in order to [[TakingYouWithMe expose Santana to the sun]]. [[spoiler: He returns later as a cyborg, helping Jonathan kill [[UltimateLifeform Kars]] before going to die at [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII Stalingrad.]]]]

** This continues in ''Anime/TigerMaskW'', with the best ones being Big Tiger II, who continues fighting even when short and in his fifties (though he may not have noticed he was supposed to have long retired due [[PintSizedPowerhouse being just that formidable even in his old age]]) and [[BigBad Tiger the Great the Third]], who, just like his grandfather, takes an ''immense'' amount of punishment and as he finally falls down in defeat is ''still'' trying to attack even as his body can't cope with it anymore.

* As with ''Saint Seiya'' above, ''Manga/TigerMask''[='=] villains have gone through [[TrainingFromHell such a hellish training they had to possess immense strength in body and mind to survive. This is shown best by Red Death Mask, who reacted to his broken knee by grabbing the journalists' bench and using it to]] ''[[GrievousHarmWithABody catapult the journalists on Tiger Mask]]'' (wrestling legend Giant Baba flat-out admitted that, in his place, he would have given up at the broken knee), and [[BigBad Tiger the Great]], who not only continued fighting through the ''worse'' NoHoldsBarredBeatdown, but as he laid dying he was still trying to rise up and fight.

* As with ''Saint Seiya'' above, ''Manga/TigerMask''[='=] villains have gone through [[TrainingFromHell such a hellish training they had to possess immense strength in body and mind to survive. This is shown best by Red Death Mask, who reacted to his broken knee by grabbing the journalists' bench and using it to ''[[GrievousHarmWithABody catapult the journalists on Tiger Mask]]'' (wrestling legend Giant Baba flat-out admitted that, in his place, he would have given up at the broken knee), and [[BigBad Tiger the Great]], who not only continued fighting through the ''worse'' NoHoldsBarredBeatdown, but as he laid dying he was still trying to rise up and fight.