During the investigation of recent hollers in the Complete Monster thread, it's become apparent to the staff that an insular, unfriendly culture has evolved in the Complete Monster and Magnificent Bastard threads that is causing problems.
Specific issues include:
- Overzealous hollers on tropers who come into the threads without being familiar with all the rules and traditions of the tropes. And when they are familiar with said rules and traditions, they get accused (with little evidence) of being ban evaders.
- A few tropers in the thread habitually engage in snotty, impolite mini-modding. There are also regular complaints about excessive, offtopic "socializing" posts.
- Many many thread regulars barely post/edit anywhere else, making the threads look like they are divorced from the rest of TV Tropes.
- Following that, there are often complaints about the threads and their regulars violating wiki rules, such as on indexing, crosswicking, example context and example categorization. Some folks are working on resolving the issues, but...
- Often moderator action against thread regulars leads to a lot of participants suddenly showing up in the moderation threads to protest and speak on their behalf, like a clique.
It is not a super high level problem, but it has been going on for years and we cannot ignore it any longer. There will be a thread in Wiki Talk
to discuss the problem; in the meantime there is a moratorium on further Complete Monster and Magnificent Bastard example discussion until we have gotten this sorted out.
Update: The new threads have been made and can be found here:
for the earliest date a work can be discussed, (usually two weeks from the US release), as well as who's reserved discussion.
- Why do a cleanup?: This trope definitely exists and has a well documented history of use. That being said, it frequently gets misused to a character who meets one of the components, namely that they are smart, charming while not necessarily even being a villain, or create good plans. While these are components, there is also a certain personality required, not to mention that all of the above are required to be present for a character to be a true Magnificent Bastard. As the trope attracts interest, it unfortunately brings in a lot of misuse and I thought the best way to rectify this would be a Perpetual Cleanup Thread, as is being done and has seen success with Complete Monster.
- What makes a Magnificent Bastard: Below is a list of the individual components to make this character. Note that they must all be present, not just some, which has lead to frequent misuse:
- Must be intelligent: Goes without saying, to be a Magnificent Bastard, the character has to be smart in the first place and use their brain to work towards whatever their end goal may be;
- Must be a Bastard: While going overboard in how vile the character is can be detrimental, a key aspect is the Bastard part of the trope, whether the character is an out-and-out antagonist in the work, some manner of Villain Protagonist, or something in between, they at least have some unscrupulous qualities to qualify for this trope;
- Must not be too detestable: Again, there is a ceiling on how bad the character can be before they just become too nefarious, blocking out the Magnificent part of the trope. A genocidal racist or child-raping Sadist aren't going to make the cut;
- Think on their feet: In addition to being a Chessmaster, a Magnificent Bastard, if the character deals with situations in which their initial plan is ruined, has to be able to pull a Xanatos Speed Chess and at least come up with a competent strategy to make up for lost time, otherwise they fail for being unable to think in tough spots;
- Have charm: Even if they don't necessarily make every character they meet fall in love with them and can even be detested by others, the audience has to find an amicable social relation to the character, or they are failing to make the impact required for this trope.
- What to do if a character is listed on a page but has not been approved?: They need to be removed, all candidates need to come through the cleanup thread first. The character could well count but they need to be analyzed properly and voted on first.
- Do we list Playing With this trope?: No; as a YMMV trope, this cannot be Played With, so we only want examples that are Played Straight.
- What do I do if I want a character to be listed as a Magnificent Bastard?: The greatest success Complete Monster saw for its cleanup effort was from the invention of the effort post format, so, borrowing from that, a troper wishing to propose a Magnificent Bastard will create such a post in the following format:
- Begin by describing The work, this will help establish the setting the character is in and for the reader to understand what kind of a scenario they are in;
- Summarize The character's actions, this will provide a listing for readers to understand what they do and how it applies to this trope because charm and lack of smugness are so crucial, this is a good time to be incorporating exactly the flavor of how they operate to explain this;
- List circumstances in which the character must Think on their feet, these are times where a wrench might be thrown in their initial plan and they have to adapt on the spot or even come up with a new scheme all together, this is also a good time to explain how the villain reacts to defeat when they have to face it, a true Magnificent Bastard won't break down into tears at the thought of death, they should have known such a possibility could occur and be able to handle it with more dignity;
- The competition, similar to the Heinous Standard dealt with for a Complete Monster, this section is to deal with how successful the character is in carrying out their plans compared to other characters. While, as a villain, they probably are going to lose in the end, it is good to explain how other characters handle the same situation. There is no exceptionalism case to be made for this trope but explaining the variety helps the reader have a better understanding of the proposal.
- How do you know when the character's arc is done so they can be proposed? When their tenure as a villain or antagonist finishes. This could happen in a single Story Arc in an entire work, a single work of a franchise, or the whole series in general. We'll show lenience to Long-Runners with constantly recurring candidates or series with outstanding continuities (ex. comic books), and it's entirely possible to count in a work or two but not in general for a reason like Depending on the Writer.
- What about candidates evil because of external sources? Those Made of Evil can qualify if they show enough individuality and tactical acumen — in other words, they have the personality to fulfill the magnificence requirement. Conversely, those brainwashed, especially if they're a better person without it, may fail the individuality aspect and cannot count.
- What if they are under orders from a higher-up? Depends. If the boss created the plans down to the letter and the candidate is just following them, sounds like we should discuss the boss instead. However, if the candidate takes creative liberties with the orders, adds their own charm and flair to them, fills in holes in the orders, and/or actively deals with obstacles their boss did not talk about, the candidate shows enough individual thinking to qualify.
- What about Character Development? An MB is something a character can develop into... a nice person who plots well might become more morally gray as the work goes on and hits the "Bastard" criteria, thus making them viable. Likewise, a Smug Snake might shed their ego, become more understanding of the threat others pose and gain the personality or "Magnificent" criteria, likewise making them viable. Conversely, a character who looks like this trope might suffer from a Sanity Slippage or just get outed as not being as smart as they thought they were and become incompatible with MB.
- Can an MB be a good guy? Not in the conventional sense... it is required they have at least some dubious traits lest they fail the "Bastard" criteria. That being said, a character who pulls a Heel–Face Turn or eventually stops taking villainous actions is still fair game: as there was a point in time where they were both "Magnificent" and a "Bastard" at the same time and they've merely adapted as time goes on. Now... if such a character begins showing other issues (i.e.: becomes prone to freak outs or starts getting outwitted) then they're compromising their Magnificence and will probably be deemed a cut. What's important is stylishly operating while at least for some time being willing to take at best underhanded methods to see a job done. A Heel–Face Turn in itself isn't a disqualifier but they do have to have been "Magnificent" and a "Bastard" at the same time and afterwards can't start slipping on the former front.
- What about characters whose stories can take different routes?: When proposing a character in a form of media that has them in multiple story routes. Said character must be consistent with their characteristics in all routes. (ex.: Can't have an example who shows promise on one route yet fails in another.) The only exception is if a later installment of the series confirms the character's actions which made them worth proposing are the canon route.
- Is there a timeframe rule like with Complete Monster?: Yes, please wait two weeks until after the work has concluded before proposing a character (again, usually using the North American air date). As is the case with CM, we want to give a reasonable time frame so that everyone interested in seeing the work has done so and can participate in the discussion without having anything spoiled.
- What about groups like with Complete Monster?: This is a point of divergence between the two tropes. While CM does not allow for a single entry encompassing more than three characters lest their heinousness for crimes becomes too watered down, with MB as long as they are treated as one "unit" it is acceptable to lump all characters provided they share acts of charm and intelligence.
- Can I propose my own work's character as a Magnificent Bastard?: No, this is a YMMV subject and the creator of a content is way too biased to be able to evaluate the criteria we're looking for without a second opinion taking over. That being said, you are more than welcome to encourage someone to consume your creation and if they feel a character counts, are more than welcome to suggest them.
- My example/edit has been approved, but the example subpage is locked! How do I get it added?: The moderators do not add examples to locked example subpages in the MagnificentBastard/ namespace directly. Rather, you need to do the edit to a sandbox page that follows the format Sandbox.MagnificentBastard<Name of the example subpage> (e.g for MagnificentBastard.Fullmetal Alchemist it's Sandbox.Magnificent Bastard Fullmetal Alchemist) and on a Friday, ask in the locked pages edit requests thread for the content to be swapped in.
Thread rules
When voting a troper must specify the effort post they're voting on and cannot merely vote on "Everything I missed" as in the past it has indicated the poster didn't read the effort post and is guessing instead of analyzing.
Resolved items
In general, a character listed on this trope is considered "settled". This means they should not be challenged unless information used to list them was incorrect or information was missed in the initial discussion.
However, when re-litigating a candidate, the same rules apply for when they were originally proposed. If they do not have five or more upvotes than downvotes for approval upon a re-litigation, including votes from the initial discussion if they do not change, then they are a cut.
This especially applies to the characters listed below, who have been discussed excessively and repeated attempts to get them listed/cut may result in punitive action for bogging down the thread.
Definitely an MB
- Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers: Any sadism Darkrai displays is limited in effect thanks to the game's nature and any cowardice which can be inferred about him is Alternative Character Interpretation about his tactical retreats.
- Avatar: The Last Airbender: Azula's Villainous Breakdown is undone in the sequel comic Smoke & Shadow where she regains her composure and ends up stable and in control enough to count.
Definitely not an MB
- South Park: The show's frequent use of vulgar comedy and mean-spirited humor leaves any potential candidates devoid of the dignity or charm to qualify.
Edited by GastonRabbit on Aug 31st 2023 at 4:15:22 AM
Gotta love Jaws!
![[tup]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Thumbs_up_emoticon_3268.png "[thumb up]"){kind=small}
to Yann, OD-10, Baoqing, Chad, Harry, Arasaka, Romara and Talon.
to Romara, Talon, and OD-10.
Talon and Hanako
Ultimate Moral Compass
Arasaka
Yes to Hanako.
Goku Black
Talon and Hanako
Oh shit, yes to Talon. Sorry Emerald, tucked away with all the EPs haha
Buzz
to Arasaka, Romara and Talon
Finished watching S2 of Only Murders in the Building. PM me for discussion
Image Pickin' Backlog
Goku Black
Also for the light novels most of the examples are easy enough to move since people specified or I checked if they knew the source.
What about Sword art online's duo? They mention seasons (as in the anime) but I think the proposer said they count in both? Anyone more familaor.
"That's right mortal. By channeling my divine rage into power, I have forged a new instrument in which to destroy you."
It appears all originate from the light novel except Ordinal Scale, which is an animated film original.
Goku Black
Btw Parasyte is getting a live action Netflix tv series if anyone is interested?
Oooh, I'll nab that!
Also since it's been so long since I've covered anything Fist-related I'm just going to put up my writeups for the two I've got:
- Fist of the North Star:
- 1985 anime: Joker is Shin's most faithful and effective servant. Working to keep tabs on Kenshiro for his boss, Joker also lures Kenshiro into a series of traps to nearly kill him with Shin's forces. When Kenshiro manages to survive an onslaught from their forces Joker is the only to suspect his survival, returning to fight Kenshiro and dying defiantly while sending one final message to Shin, interested in the results of the two great fighters' battle.
- Fist of the North Star: This version of Ryuken becomes a Spirit Advisor to Kenshiro after being killed by Shin. Determined to bring back balance to the North and South Star martial arts, Ryuken forces Ken to abandon all attachments to defeat Shin. Even going so far as to possess a little girl and send Ken nightmares to make his pupil accept his destiny, Ryuken's plots finally see Shin's empire toppled and balance restored.
Lies and Violence!
Hanako.
Heading back over to Ionia, the land recently besieged by Noxus, where we find Zed and his Shadow Order, a group of ruthless assassins out to ensure Ionia's supremacy against foreign threats by any means necessary. Mir will get to Zed himself, but I wanted to take a look at one of his acolytes.
Who is Shieda Kayn?
A Noxian child soldier sent to die in the front lines of the war with Ionia, Kayn survived and was found by Zed, who decided to take him in and raise him to fight against Noxus. Kayn quickly grew into a prodigy weapon master, taking to any blade he got his hands on with ease. He soon became Zed's Dragon and successor in all but name, with his legend growing through the fear instilled in those lucky enough to survive witnessing his swift executions.
For his final test, Kayn was sent to find and destroy an ancient scythe, truthfully a prison for the powerful Darkin demon Rhaast. Kayn instead took it for himself, his pride and arrogance tempted by the demon's promises of power. However, while normally the wielders of Darkin blades are instantly consumed and possessed by the demons, Kayn actually managed to retain his hold over his body through sheer willpower. He's now locked in an eternal duel with Rhaast, each constantly working to override the other's will once and for all. If Rhaast wins then the world's kind of screwed, but if Kayn wins then he'll have all the power in the world to lead Zed's Shadow Order in defeating Noxus and reshaping Ionia to their whims.
He gets a chance to be in the limelight with the Zed comic miniseries, which centers around his mentor's hunt for the serial killer Khada Jhin. Zed formally names Kayn his successor in case things go awry... which they do, when Zed is captured. Kayn proceeds to take over and brings the Shadow Order to Zed's own master (and the man responsible for releasing Jhin), Kusho, to pledge their loyalty. Kayn takes this opportunity to figure out who among the Order remains loyal to Zed, and when his master returns to confront them for Kusho's treachery... he reaffirms his own loyalty, gladly setting up those who chose to side with Kusho to die while he leads Zed's loyalists to safety.
Any mitigating factors?
Here's the problem: Kayn's chances of counting hinge entirely, in my opinion, on whether or not he wins his duel with Rhaast. If Rhaast wins, then Kayn is the arrogant idiot who foolishly thought he could stand against a darkin's malevolent will. If Kayn wins on the other hand, then he's the absolute badass who unquestionably conquered a demon and can now essentially stomp anything in the way of his dreams. If he loses he's a moron, but if he wins his already existing magnificence is tripled. Both are equally likely outcomes (it's even an in-game mechanic, the player gets to choose who they want to win/play as after a certain amount of time), but at the snail's pace that lore updates—especially when this seems to be endgame material—who the hell knows when we'll get resolution?
With that in mind, Scraggle suggested I just present him as is in the current lore, with any future developments taken into consideration when they happen: he's mayhaps a bit arrogant, but otherwise a competent and deadly soldier who has Rhaast for the most part under control (even pretending he's taken over for a bit to intimidate the Order and see who among them is weak-willed), and loyally serves Zed to see their shared dream brought to fruition. For all his flaws, Zed genuinely sees Kayn as a worthy successor, and so far he's proven himself deserving of that praise.
- [Shieda] Kayn, the Shadow Reaper, is The Dragon to Zed and his intended successor as leader of the Order of Shadow. A Child Soldier sent to die in war by Noxus, Kayn survived and was taken in by Zed, who raised him to be a deadly warrior with a prodigious mastery over both shadow magic and any weapon he could get his hands on. Kayn has even claimed Rhaast, the Darkin Scythe, resisting his control in order to use the living weapon's power for his own ambitions. Later aiding his master in stopping their monstrous patron Master Kusho while personally weeding out and slaughtering disloyal elements among the Shadow Order's ranks, Kayn reaffirms his own commitment to Zed and their shared dream of a triumphant Ionia, intending to one day vanquish Rhaast for good and bend the darkin's full might to his will as the Shadow Assassin.
Talon, Hanako, Kayn
Uhh. Since the SAO MBs got brought up. There is one of those guys I've been thinking of contesting for a while.
Edited by Snowy66 on Aug 24th 2022 at 11:36:04 AM
Goku Black
kayn.
Anyways here's the official cut request for Sword Art Online, the one I'm challenging is Seijirou Kikuoka.
Here's his EP:
- Seijirou Kikouka masquerades as Kirito's benefactor but in reality is a JSDF lieutenant colonel leading RATH, the creators of the virtual reality world Underworld. Swindling Kirito into working for him, he hopes to use the artificial Fluctlights of Underworld as soldiers to avoid human casualties in war and when Kirito is hospitalized, Kikouka has him connected to the virtual reality world, hoping to save his mind out of genuine concern. When attacked, he helps fight the sociopathic Gabriel Miller and through the series learns to value the A.I.s he once sought to use as Cannon Fodder to save human soldiers, successfully escaping after showing Japan's potential at the arc's end.
Okay so here's the issues I have with this guy.
First off, most of Kikuoka's intelligence comes from Informed Attribute, and we virtually never see him outsmarting anyone onscreen. Now this by itself wouldn't immediately be disqualifying, except..
Kikuoka's main arc (Alicization) pretty much revolved around him majorly screwing-up from the very beginning: failing to erase Kirito's memory when dropping him into the Underworld, causing Kirito to poke about the Underworld and ends up triggering a rebellion and overthrowing the ruler, which completely ruins his experiment. While it's okay for an MB to stumble every now and then if they recover, we're talking about his ENTIRE run virtually stemming from this incident.
Even overlooking this, the rest of his showings are honestly quite unimpressive too, with him getting colossally outplayed left and right.
So the purpose of Rath was to find an AI who was capable of rebelling against authority. He and the team failed because the whole experiment was sabotaged from the beginning by Yanai, The Mole, who had created the "Seal of the Right Eye" programming into the Fluctlight AIs, and said sabotage remained undetected for months until Rinko (an outside party) spots it. Kikuoka also completely fails to notice that Gabriel's thugs managed to change the Underworld's Year Inside, Hour Outside time to sync it with real life time until it gets pointed out to him directly. Finally, he is also never really the one to come up with solutions to any of the problems, with his right-hand Higa doing nearly all of the heavy lifting.
There's also one particular scene that could present a problem too. Asuna goes searching for Kirito, with the help of Kikuoka's associate Rinko, where they manage to bypass their security by Asuna Clark Kenting. When Asuna reveals herself to Kikuoka, not only is he shocked but she manages to completely intimidate him (the anime even has her grabbing him by his shirt and pulling him down to eye-level where he's visibly shitting himself). I know an MB is allowed to show fear but, when it's an 18 year old girl who is a head shorter than him... comes off as a wee bit undignified.
His entry does mention he managed to fake his death and avoid prosecution from the authorities, but that stuff occurs completely offscreen so we don't really get to see any of that cunning in person.
It's actually a bit of a fandom in-joke that Kikuoka is a Memetic Loser due to how hard he fucked things up. Like to put it another way, the entire point of his character is: messing up big time and getting played for a chump.
Edited by Snowy66 on Oct 30th 2022 at 3:12:33 AM
The Moron
Okay, so Mir went through the Light Novel stuff and sent me the list of works to move to Literature (the way I understand it, unless the example specifically counts only in an Anime adaptation - or in other words, if the character counts in the source material - it needs to be moved to Literature now). So with that in mind, I've compiled the list of entries that need moved and the list of entries that can stay (thank you very much to Mir for letting me know which one is which). I'll post both of them here - if anyone can comment on whether they know the characters in question count in the source material or only in an Adaptation, please let me know. To give enough time for anyone to comment who wants to, I'm gonna wait probably a day before actually moving anything, but here's the list:
- Accel World:
- White Cosmos is the King of Oscillatory Universe, the secret leader of the Acceleration Research Society and the older sister of Black Lotus. Aware that all previous Virtual Worlds were destroyed, Cosmos became determined to finish Brain Burst by all possible means, like leading the brutal murder of Saphron Blosson and lying to her pupils or manipulating her own sister to murder the Red King when he was trying to create a lasting peace, causing Lotus' exile in both real and virtual worlds. Years later, Cosmos summons the virtual ghosts of fallen Burst Linkers, leads experiments on living players and uses the Luminary to control powerful virtual beings to deal with the unbeatable Tezcatlipoca. When Tezcatlipoca is born, Cosmos immediately seizes control of him, thanks her enemies for their unwilling help for her plans and kidnaps Lotus' boyfriend while using the threat of Tezcatlipoca to blackmail him to be her spy, confusing Silver Crow with the contrast between her affable attitude and her atrocities.
- "Black Vise" is the vice-chairman of the Acceleration Research Society. Actually Ivory Tower, one of the Seven Dwarves of Oscillatory Universe and the right-hand of White Cosmos, Vise uses his ability to change forms to maintain dual identities and run hidden experiments in the Accelerated World. Having participated on the brutal murder of Saphron Blossom in the past, Vise offered mercy to her boyfriend, who became the infamous Chrome Disaster out of grief. Fascinated at such power, Vise used and discarded other Burst Linkers such as Dusk Taker and the unwilling Wolfram Cerberus to create a second Chrome Disaster using the Negative Incarnation stored on the ISS Kits. When Nega Nebulus discovers links between the Society and the White Legion, Ivory Tower evacuates the Society members and participates on the defense of White Legion Territory, showing respect towards his enemies and being forced to expose his Black Vise form to save himself. When his secret identity is revealed to the other Kings, Vise sacrifices himself to trap them into a death loop after declaring his excitement at seeing that the impulsivity of Nega Nebulus could challenge his careful planning.
- Anti Magic Academy The35th Test Platoon: Sougetsu Ootori is the hammy, silly Chairman of the Inquisition, using his seemingly harmless personality and position on the side of good to hide the fact that he is a god seeking the destruction of the planet. Fooling enemies and allies alike with his fake persona, Sougetsu simultaneously serves as the Principal of the Anti-Magic Academy, building it from scratch and training hundreds of youngsters with potential in a variety of skills. Sougetsu manipulates his students to carry out a bevy of plans for him unbeknownst to them, and plays members of Valhalla and the Alchemists alike to his tune, ultimately planning to force Takeru to strike him dead and doom the planet to annihilation thanks to Sougetsu's connection to the life force of the world. Driven by an engineered desire to destroy all things—himself included—Sougetsu nonetheless respects his foes and has a roaring good time carrying out his plans, chuckling even when beaten that he regrets nothing and is pleased with how he lived his life.
- Baccano:
- Luck Gandor is an unfailingly polite mob boss who runs the Gandor crime family alongside his brothers, Berga and Keith, using his affinity for charisma and manipulations to function as the practical brains and face of the organization. Having slowly brought the Gandor family into more power than it's ever held with his strategies and people skills, Luck instills total respect from those under his control with his cool head and refusal to bring the chaotic force of drugs into his corner of Manhattan. Giving even those who betray his trust the opportunity to redeem themselves yet never hesitating to coldly execute them if they prove undeserving of his friendship, Luck keeps even the likes of Claire Stanfield and Maria Barcelito under control and uses them to further the Gandor's control over Manhattan, taking out rival crime families and turning enemies into allies every step of the way. Upon becoming immortal, Luck pays back fellow immortal scumbag Dallas Genoard for murdering Luck's friends by sinking him in a river to drown unendingly, however later shows mercy to Dallas' younger sister Eve and allows her to save Dallas from his horrible fate, showcasing that Luck's morals and standards are just as notable as his ruthlessness.
- Claire Stanfield is the feared hitman known as "Vino," functioning as the single most dangerous character in the story while simultaneously being one of the most entertaining. A brutal badass who has pulled off impossible feats for years, Claire's introductory story sees him slaughtering his way through dozens of murderous criminals to protect the passengers aboard the Flying Pussyfoot train, Claire having used the railroads as means of travel by disguising himself as a conductor. Upon setting up in Manhattan under his close friends, the Gandors, Claire immediately brings respect and fear to the small crime family with his mere presence, and goes about utterly decimating rival gangs to secure power for the Gandors, using his affinity for disguises to play the arrogant Gustavo Bagetta right into a trap. As fun as he is deadly, Claire always has a snappy one-liner and a healthy dose of his zany egotistical outlook on the world to make even the most psychotic enemies blanch at his sheer audacity, befriends many characters from all walks of life with his affable personality, and has a genuine love for the silent Chane Laforet, eager to do whatever it takes earn her affection and respect.
- Dances With The Dragons: Cardinal Moldeen Ogus Gyunei is the mastermind behind the series events, seeking to unite the Alshok Territory with the Seven-Cities Alliance and prevent the catastrophic Holy War from occurring. Arranging for the assassination of his own decoy, Moldeen uses this to expose and then kill the traitor in his organization. Hiring two assassins to use as bait to lure out a defector, Moldeen is also revealed to be responsible for the failure of the first treaty, which he did to create favorable conditions for Alshok. Admitting to be willing to deceive, betray, spill blood and even support oppressive regimes in the name of his end goal, Moldeen will stop at nothing to create a world where future generations can live in happiness.
- Date A Live: "Nightmare" Kurumi Tokisaki was once a normal, human girl. After being turned into a Spirit and lied to by the First Spirit after killing her best friend, Kurumi resolved to undo the First Spirit's existence no matter what it took. Introduced as a mysteriously charming transfer student, Kurumi stays one step ahead of Shido Itsuka and Ratatoskr, ultimately engineering a Sadistic Choice where either a spacequake destroys the city or her "City of Devouring Time" consumes Shido's entire school. After being saved from a rampaging "Efreet" by Shido, her next appearance sees her help Shido against Miku and DEM while trying to uncover Nia's location. Helping Origami go back in time to stop her parents' murder, Kurumi learns the horrible truth and uses her time powers to help Shido correct the mistake, including convincing her past self to offer aid. Against the overwhelming might of Mio Takamiya and Isaac Westcott, Kurumi put a clone back in time as a contingency to impart critical knowledge to Shido in case she's killed and steals back Nia's Qlipha Crystal from Westcott to even the odds. Brimming with self-confidence to match her enigmatic nature, Kurumi was both a deadly enemy and a pivotal ally.
- Durarara:
- Izaya Orihara is an information broker and one of the most dangerous men in Ikebukuro wanting to declare his "love" for humans by manipulating them for his own amusement. Introducing Masaomi Kida to his follower Saki Mikajima she would have Saki form a romantic relationship with Masaomi while Izaya instigates a gang war between Masaomi’s gang, The Yellow Scarves, and The Blue Square, leaving Masaomi vulnerable, endangering Saki, and dismantling both gangs in the process. Also a member of The Dollars, Izaya has recruited thousands into the Dollars before turning them against their leader by reveal to them his identity, Mikado Ryuugamine, allowing them to reek havoc throughout Ikebukuro. After being stabbed by "Jinnai Yodogiri", Izaya would allow himself to be capture, tricking his captors into revealing information on "Jinnai Yodogiri" before sending his newly formed group to defeat them afterwards. Also holding immense animosity for Shizuo Heiwajima for not being able to manipulate him, Izaya has provoke Shizuo constantly, cost him his job, frames him for murder, manipulates a girl to kill Shizuo, and tries to kill Shizuo himself. When Shizuo manages to beat Izaya, he attempt to goad Shizuo to kill him, content that the masses witnessing Shizuo will then view him as a monster.
- Kasane Kujiragi is a Dhampyr who uses the name "Jinnai Yodogiri" to orchestrate the events of series' final arc. After Izaya Orihara ignores her warning to not interfere with her plans she has him stabbed and later interrogated for information, before allowing him to continue manipulating people to keep them distracted from her own scheming. Also a wielder of Saika, Kasane would hand over Saika to Shingen Kishitani having him spread Saika throughout Ikebukuro creating more Saika wielders and expand Saika influence to almost everyone in Ikebukuro giving Kasane complete control over masses minds and the city. She would also posses Shingen’s son Shinra to make Shinra’s Love Interest Celty Sturluson more vulnerable allowing Kasane to defeat her and give Celty her head to put her under Kasane’s control. Kasane would later save her half-niece, Ruri Hijiribe, from her stalker while taking full blame for the crimes Ruri committed as the Hollywood Serial Killer, so that Ruri can continue living a normal life.
- Heavy Object: Among the people in a world where war is the norm, the following make a devious record with what they have:
- Volume 6: Sogia, formerly White Bears leader Yulenzak, body guarded Princess Staivia, Dimiksy's sister. Years ago, he learned of Dimiksy's plan to assassinate Staivia under and his assassination of Excelsyla to obtain her Object, however the conspiracy couldn't be thwarted or slowed. Deciding to go into hiding and stop this plan, Sogia and the White Bears were supposedly killed by fake Information Alliance troops from Dimiksy's faction. However Sogia's unit, having anticipated it, faked their deaths and became Unicorn to thwart Dimiksy from the shadows, even willing to shed their morals. They've also used manipulation to get Qwenthur and Havia reassigned so they learn of Dimiksy's plans. They've also interfered with the duo's operation in Athabasca. When Qwenthur and Havia fight Dimiksy and his Object, Broad Sky Saber, Sogia and Unicorn steal the Forest Roller Object in hopes of using it against the Sky Saber. Unfortunately, the Roller gets destroyed by Dimiksy's laser cannon, having anticipated the attack, which revealed the Object's anti-laser beacon. With Sogia's aid, Qwenthur and Havia corrupt it to make the laser kill Dimiksy and save Staivia in the process.
- Volume 10: Nyarlathotep, was formerly from the Capitalist Enterprise spy cabal Outer Gods. As a spy, he had numerous times both gotten plastic surgery and faked his death. Once their leader, Azathoth/Acres Kiss-of-Rose, retired and began leading one of the 7th Cores ruling the Capitalist Enterprise, Nyarlathotep retired and became a family man in Soberania. But when his family gets killed in Soberania's destruction at Azathoth's hands, the vengeful Nyarlathotep resorted to psychological warfare in order to start the Gigant Hustler, an event showcasing Object fights. Nyarlathotep then infiltrated the Hustler and sabotaged a participant to draw Azathoth into the event. Once the event is canceled, with one of his Objects destroyed, Azathoth plans an attack to divert attention away from him... only for Nyarly to kidnap and kill him at the remains of Soberania. In order to avert a war between every faction, Nyarlathotep faced a farcical military trial by the Legitimacy Kingdom. He then killed the assassin sent to silence him and faked his death once again, before departing elsewhere.
- Volume 11: Alisa and her sisters, Rica and Orisa, from the Information Alliance's Martini Series, help Flag Eggnog start wars between the Vanderbilts and the Winchels, and even assisting him with the drug war and the Plasma 177 construction meant to keep him in power. In actuality, they're manipulating Eggnog in order to obtain data on nobles for the Perfect Browsing project, a system that would display how to resolve a worldwide crisis by just typing a text string into a search engine. They start many sample incidents and disasters as possible, preferring to get info from a noble near the top of an enemy world power, using Eggnog who was so dimwitted to believe they're allies. Nearing conclusion of the Celestial Flowers attack, the sisters contact Flag and reveal their true goals and manipulation, noting that they'd now obtained data on the full-speed collapse of a royal's life, planning to upload it entirely for everyone to see, before hanging up on the confused, infuriated prince and leaving him to his ruin.
- The Hero Laughs While Walking The Path Of Vengeance A Second Time: The brilliant, charming Ueki Kaito ruthlessly takes any means necessary to avenge himself against those who betrayed him after he saved their world. Recruiting a young slave girl, Kaito viciously helps her poison both the slaver and the other slaves, transforming them into goblins and then killing them. Later allowing the Royal Capital to be ravaged by beasts, Kaito uses the destruction of an outer wall to escape. Pained by guilt after an innocent girl is caught in the debris, Kaito henceforth swears to avoid harming the innocent in his quest for vengeance.
- The Isolator: The Liquidizer is a Ruby Eye of ambiguous age who controls her murderous instincts by focusing on her goal of "the extermination of humanity" and an administrator in The Syndicate sheltering Ruby Eyes. Liqudizer keeps control over her superpowered murderers by allowing them to occasionally murder people and tries to get other Ruby Eyes to join. If they decline, she accepts it and warns them about the Jet Eyes of the Specialized Forces Division. Suspecting spies in her apartment, Liquidizer sets a trap that almost kills them and calls her student Ryuu Mikawa—the Trancer—to deal with the reinforcements in battle, only defeated by Minoru's unbreakable barrier. Escaping, Liquidizer deals with the Stinger, a powerful unaligned Ruby Eye, and is forced to ask for help from the SFD to save Trancer. She makes a deal with the Jet Eyes to free her valued student from the custody of the SFD, being successful while dealing with an assailant. An enigmatic woman, Liquidizer also speculates about the nature of Jet and Ruby Eyes, a doubt that she shares with Minoru and Mikawa, making them question their roles in life.
- Konosuba: Arch-Devil Vanir, one of the seven Dukes of Hell and retired general of the Demon Lord, renovates a dungeon to battle against adventurers and prank them, letting him feed of their negative emotions and keep himself entertained. Unable to enter the inner-sanctum of a dungeon because of a purifying circle, Vanir attempts to kill the drawer by body-jacking Darkness. Though struggling to take control of her body, Vanir eventually does so and even forms a cordial relationship with her. Accepting his defeat and remaining brave even in the face of seeming death, Vanir is revealed to have survived and now runs a magic item shop to help Kazuma on his future adventures.
- Magical Girl Raising Project:
- Kanoe Hitokouji, aka "Pfle", is a brilliant Combat Pragmatist who defeated 102 other magical girls in a battle royal. Abusing the mechanics of the virtual world she is trapped in, Pfle manipulates her way to becoming head of the Magical Girl Resources Department and uses her position to reduce the Magical Kingdom's stranglehold on the magical girls. For her goal, Pfle sets up new magical girls, Magical Kingdom Inspectors and various criminals to fight each other and eliminate threats to her plot before erasing her own memories to hide her crimes. When Shadow Gale is kidnapped, Pfle works the kidnapper and later makes an alliance to save Shadow Gale. Keeping the powerful Osk from killing Shadow Gale and defeating the dangerous Puk organization even while at a vast disadvantage for resources, Pfle eventually manages to die while securing Shadow Gale's safety and ensuring her own legacy shall be passed on.
- Noriko Nonohara, aka "Nokko", is a ten-year-old veteran magical girl who uses her powers to control her emotions. Having toyed with other magical girls to have them kill each other for her own profit, Nokko used the money to care for her ailing mother. Trapped in a Deadly Game, Nokko is assigned the role of "Evil King" and must kill the other participants to escape, a role she plays by subtly manipulating the others into distrusting one-another and whittling down their numbers. Masquerading as another fighting the Evil King, Nokko eventually fakes her own death with only a few others left to easily induce them into killing each other. Discovered at the last minute, Nokko merely accepts defeat and requests the survivors send her mother some money to live before killing herself.
- Outbreak Company: Jinzaburō Matoba is a government worker in charge of subjugating Eldant through otaku culture via addiction and monopolization. Hiring Shinichi Kanou as a disposable pawn, Matoba endeared him to the Eldant royal family to establish his programs secretly intending to use it to take hold of Eldant. When Kanou learns the truth, Matoba breaks Kanou down by revealing him disposable if he defies the governments and when he does, Matoba sneakily covers Japan's intentions all the while setting up Kanou's many assassination attempts. When Kanou offers another way to maintain relations with Eldant without a full invasion, Matoba decides to side with Kanou believing his methods are far more effective than his superiors, fooling them into an unintended confession about their true motives and using it as blackmail to silence them. While an opportunistic bureaucrat, Matoba does what he believes is best for Japan.
- Re Zero: Echidna, the Witch of Greed, once viewed all living things as her children and despaired when she was unable to save them from death and suffering. Devoting herself to becoming an all-powerful protector, Echidna creates the powerful spirit servants, twists the nobleman Roswaal L. Mathers into devoting himself to her and researches soul transference to achieve immortality. Hundreds of years after her body dies, Echidna meets Subaru Natsuki in her spirit realm and puts him through a series of trials to confront his past and slowly gains his trust as she explains to him the mysterious nature of his "Return by Death" ability. Meanwhile having Roswaal attack Subaru and force him into a dire situation in the real world, Echidna nearly lures Subaru into signing a binding contract with her, only stopped by the sudden arrival of the other Witches. Saving her faithful Roswaal after he is injured and fighting on his behalf, Echidna even makes amends with her wayward "daughter" Beatrice, her soul resting in peace after accepting her.
- Shakugan No Shana:
- Bel Peol, known as the "Arbiter of Reverse Reasoning" and "The Strategist", lead Bel Masque in the first two seasons. In the past, Bel Peol sacrificed her right eye as part of a plan to retrieve her master's body; later convincing a Denizen into going for a dangerous mission, resulting in his death for her cause. Trying to destroy Misaki City, Bel Peol nearly succeeds in all her attempts thanks to her tactical brilliance and pushes the heroes to their limits. Joining her master, the Snake of the Festival upon his revival, Bel Peol acts as his Dragon and together they usher in the creation of Xanadu, a paradise for Denizens and humans alike, fighting fiercely for it. A ruthless, goal-driven woman, Bel Peol nevertheless showed fondness to her underlings and exceedingly intelligence thinking in the field of battle, proving herself a worthy leader of Bel Masque.
- The Snake of the Festival or "The God of Creation", is the original leader of Bel Masque. Summoned in ancient times by the Denizens of the past, the Snake tried to create a paradise for them before being sealed in the Abyss. In present convincing protagonist Yuji Sakai to become his vessel, the Snake retakes leadership of Bel Masque, giving a speech so powerful it gains him the complete loyalty of all the present Denizens. Leading the Denizens in the devastating Second Great War, the Snake oversees the brutal combat to have his body recovered from the Abyss. Returning to Misaki City to create Xanadu, the Snake uses his own body and a member of the Trinity as sacrifices to create his new world. Realizing the Denizen's wish for peaceful coexistence, the Snake completes his mission despite massive opposition and returns to sleep, wishing his vessel success for the future.
- Sword Art Online:
- Akihiko Kayaba is a brilliant programmer desiring a fully-immersive Virtual Reality simulation and creator of Sword Art Online, the world's first VRMMORPG: trapping 10,000 players within and setting it so they die in real life if they do in the game while preventing authorities from stopping his game. Disguised as Heathcliff, a charming leader of a group of players within Aincrad, Kayaba reveals himself when hero Kazuto "Kirito" Kirigaya deduces his identity and duels the latter, releasing the players and seemingly killing himself when beaten but in reality sending his Fluctlight to continue existing on the internet. Reappearing out of disgust for the next season's Arc Villain, Kayaba assists Kirito in defeating the antagonist and entrusts Kirito with his final invention: made to allow others to create their own virtual reality games and have it shared with the world. Returning once more in the Alicization arc, Kayaba helps save the virtual reality world the heroes are within by taking control of a robot in the setting, proving himself Kirito's most honorable foe.
- Seijirou Kikouka masquerades as Kirito's benefactor but in reality is a JSDF lieutenant leading RATH, the creators of virtual reality world Underworld. Swindling Kirito into work for him, he hopes to use the artificial Fluctlights of Underworld as soldiers to avoid human casualties in war and when Kirito is hospitalized, Kikouka has him connected to the virtual reality world, hoping to save his mind out of genuine concern. When attacked, he helps fight the sociopathic Gabriel Miller and through the series learns to value the AIs he once sought to use as Cannon Fodder to save human soldiers, successfully escaping after showing Japan's potential at the arc's end.
- Myriad Colors Phantom World (2016 anime): Enigma is an artificial phantom created using human and phantom DNA. Escaping from her abusive creators, Enigma starts to hunt the students of the Hosea high school in order to steal their special abilities by draining their energy. Seemingly defeated by the protagonists, Enigma takes the body and identity of protagonist Haruhiko Ichijou's mother and goes to live with him, successfully faking a motherly personality that bonds with him. After Haruhiko's friends manage to realize her identity, Enigma is able to beat them and steal Haruhiko's summoning powers, intending to use them to control all phantoms to take revenge on humanity. When she is later defeated by Team E, Enigma is impressed by the human potential and admits that she enjoyed her time with Haruhiko, to which he agrees before she dies.
- The Worlds Finest Assassin (2021 anime): Cian Tuatha Dé, Lugh’s loving father, is the head of the House of Tuatha Dé, and an incredible assassin in his own right who made Lugh into the skilled killer he is today. Disguising his hits by posing as the Alvan Kingdom’s medical expert, Cian uses a wide variety of tactics, disguises, and clever traps to kill his targets while not getting caught, all while believing that murder is necessary to protect his kingdom. Raising Lugh to be his heir, Cian has him kill death row inmates so that he won't grow hesitant over killing people, while letting him know that he will be raised not as a weapon, but as a person, who must possess human values to be a better killer. Cian is even able to get the experienced Lugh into the position of aristocrat by having him injure the supposed runner-up as a test of strength. Getting Lugh to pose as a successful merchant to get closer to his targets and privately build a team of assassins, Cian ultimately does what he can to give Lugh the life he thinks he deserves, while doing what he must to assist him in his plan to defeat the Hero.
If anyone has any objections to which ones are moving and which ones are staying, feel free to voice them.
to OD-10. Cut Kikuoka.
I've been wondering if anyone from Octopath Traveler might count. Specifically, I had my eye on Therion. Anyone else got any ideas?
Edited by Iceaura39 on Aug 24th 2022 at 8:11:44 AM
It is I, the narrator, categorising addict and writer of books you haven't read.
Yes to Kayn and cut Kikouka going by that post. It's very difficult seeing that clown as anywhere near as bright as the likes of Kayaba from what Snowy's saying.
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
Haven't played but I wouldn't be surprised given how vast it is.
@ Star, Thanks mate! I'll get through those later.
Edited by 43110 on Aug 24th 2022 at 4:15:48 AM
Ultimate Moral Compass
Kayn
Cut Kikouka
"No running in the halls!"
Goku Black
Alright with Kayn up. Here's his boss.
Who is Zed, the master of Shadows?
Zed was an orphan who was left on the steps of Kinkou Order. He became a student of Great Master Kusho and eagerly wanted to learn everything he was teaching but felt he was in the shadow of Kusho's son Shen. Still the two eventually became like brothers. They were sent to capture the Serial Killer Jihn, the Virtuoso. Jihn kidnapped Zed and forced him to watch as he was planning to blow up his love interest Yevani in front of him but Shen helped save him. Before Zed could finish him, Kusho saved Jihn and instead imprisoned him.
Zed returned home where a combination of issues started to take his towl on him from seeing Jihn's murders to the rising imperialistic intentions of Noxus for Ionia. Noxus under mad Emperor Boram Darkwill started a horrific campaign of violence in Ionia, villages were massacred and chemical weapons were deployed on the battlefield.
Zed eventually decided that requiring justice would require darker solutions than the balance Shen wanted. The city was under attack so he decided that what needed to be done. He seized the power of the tears (a shadow power linked to demons) to fight of the invaders. As noted when the kinkou whose balance and only being demon hunters meant they weren't helping. Zed wanted to create a new order of mercernies to defend Ionia. Yet he knew just taking over would corrupt the Kinkou order turning them blood thirsty and he couldn't live with that. He needed a way to make the older order and his new one enemies.
So he had a massacre of the Kinkou order intending to just kill a few to send a message. He tried to limit the carnage but it ended up way more than expected. He made sure Shen would hate him and not follow him into this life by kissing his girlfriend in front of him and uh "killing his father". Anyways with the shadow powers, he saved his city and turned his back on Shen and the order.
Zed also wars with the desert tribes of the Vashyata. For in some cases selling out to Noxus or staying neutral well Ionia burned.
Anyway in his own comic, Zed pulls of a perfect hit against a kinkou order member named Alyon. By using his shadow powers and teleportion to corner and kill Alyon but he respects him enough that he makes sure its clean, his items aren't stolen like his crew, Kayn wanted. Zed keeps them under a close leesh to avoid issues. Zed pursues a returned Jihn who uh frames him for blowing up a village and than just disappears from the comic...
Anyway Zed remeets his old flame Lady Yevani to try and get Shen's help to go after Jihn. He wants to apologise to for the chaos and well when that doesn't work. He notices her two kids, one has magic that looks animalstic like the species her bodyguard is (Vastayan). He threatens to tell her husband if she doesn't of course arrange a meeting with Shen. He does at least ask her if she's happy after this and to take care.
Anyways the meeting doesn't go well as Shen's right hand woman Akali ends up triggering a war between them. Zed leaves Kayn in charge and tells him that though he wasn't born Ionian, he views him as his successor and sorta adopted son. And to take care well he secretly trails Shen and Akali well they go after Jihn.
He follows them effortlessly well and notices that Jihn has been unleashed by someone... Jihn blows up the town and Zed saves Shin's life from drowning. Shen and Zed fight and Zed could have beaten him but holds back at having to kill his brother. Zed finally tells him why he did this and the two aren't buddies or anything but he agreed to help him take down John. They beat him and put him back under arrest but Zed figures out who released him.
Master Kusho, Zed told him to fake his death as the true leader of Zed's organisation. Kusho released Jihn as a way to create fear and eventually plunge Ionia into Civil war which Zed isn't letting happen. Zed destroys him but keeps the secret that Shens father was a monster..
Magnificent?
I mean of course. He's brilliant and created an entirely new order to protect his people. He's an expert assassin. He can read and knows just what to do to ensure someone does what he wants. He even created a pretty good scheme to ensure that his brother didn't end up like him which uh kinda worked a bit too well. He loves Ionia and will not stand to see innocents in it slaughtered.
Like to be fair. It doesn't always go right? His initial plan at the order was just to kill a few members before the bloodshed generated it into a way bigger massacre but uh well the end goal still worked out so.
And hey in the end he usurps Kusho and beats Jihn.
Bastard ?
Zed is complex. He was a rather insecure orphan who loved Shen. Its only seeing cruelty that made him release that someone had to make hard decisions to keep Ionia safe. He is ruthless and has warred with Vashtya clans due to them either siding with Noxus or staying neutral well their homeland was burnt. He felt it was a betrayal they could have used their magic to help them but chose not to.
Yet. He is also genuinely empathetic. He doesn't want his Ionians to become warmongers. It's why he became this so the people can be free. He despises Jihn who loves violence. Loves Shen. And he will never hurt civilians. He thinks of Kayn as his son and even tells him he doesn't care that he wasn't born Ionian.
Conclusion?
He's a fascinating character. And I think keeps easily
Edited by miraculous on Aug 24th 2022 at 5:10:59 AM
"That's right mortal. By channeling my divine rage into power, I have forged a new instrument in which to destroy you."
Lies and Violence!
Zed, cut Kikuoka.
I think I'm gonna go ahead and post my next Cyberpunk 2077 EP since the candidate is so intertwined with the last one I did.
Who is Hanako Arasaka?
Hanako is the youngest child of Saburo, his only daughter, and Yorinobu's beloved sister. Following her mother dying shortly after childbirth, an overprotective Saburo would never allow Hanako to leave their family compound and had her raised and schooled there for her entire childhood. On the sly, however, she took up netrunning and freely explored the web and managed to discover much of the dark secrets surrounding the Arasaka name. While maintaining the guise of an unerringly loyal and noble daughter, Hanako would often secretly rebel in small ways, such as making contact with Yorinobu on the web and feeding him information, and later proved vital in convincing Saburo to bring her brother back into the fold. Her isolation also allowed her to develop her netrunning skills to even greater heights and she focused her efforts on improving the works of legendary netrunner Alt Cunningham, who invented the Soulkiller program for Arasaka that allowed them to store someone's consciousness into a digital engram. Hanako's work formed the basis of the later Secure Your Soul program when she began work to allow Soulkiller to place engrams in clone bodies.
Of course, all this paled in comparison to what she role she would play in the future of the Arasaka Corporation. After eldest brother Kei's death, the old and conservative loyalists began flocking to the demure Hanako to use her as a figurehead in preparation for Saburo's presumed eventual passing from age. In truth, Hanako proved far more devious than they had planned for and she quickly grew to dominate the faction. All this proved to turn Hanako from a sweet girl who opposed her father's wicked ways to a cunning power player who walked in her father's footsteps to empower the corporation no matter the cost. Her first true rival in power turned out to be her beloved brother Yorinobu who took control after he murdered their father. Hanako was smart enough to see through her brother's lies, but went along with them until it became apparent he was seeking to bring about the corporation's ruin. When Takemura and V kidnap her to tell her the truth, her brother's violent rescue would lead her to falsely believe he sought her death as well. Here she made her decision to use V's desperation to survive and manipulate them into helping her seize back control.
Using V to acquire a copy of the Soulkiller program, Hanako made contact with Saburo's engram he had previously stored. Knowing she would need him to regain control over the company, she plotted to use him to turn the Board of Directors to her side and implant her father's biochip in her brother to both eliminate him and have Saburo fix all the problems he had caused. This all comes to fruition in The Devil ending where Hanako meets with V to hash out the details of their deal and to later arrange for V and Takemura to rescue her from the house arrest Yorinobu placed her under. This leads to her helping them sneak into Arasaka Tower and retrieving the copy of Saburo's engram, which she then uses to turn the Board of Directors against Yorinobu. At that moment, Yorinobu's hit squad massacres the Board and even try to eliminate Hanako at the request of a very reluctant Yorinobu. Wanting him alive, she tasks V with capturing her brother, and, in a sad scene, comforts him by placing his head in her lap while preparing to place Saburo's biochip in his head.
Weeks and months fly by for V in rehab following their surgery to remove Johnny's biochip, and they see on the news Saburo has fully replaced Yorinobu and named Hanako his right hand and heir. When the damage from Johnny's time in their head proves fatal regardless, Hanako surprisingly stays true to her word and sends Takemura to give V an offer. They can either return to their normal life and live for a few more months under the full luxuries offered by Arasaka, or use Soulkiller to place their consciousness in an engram and admit them to the Secure Your Soul program to wait until the eventual day they can find a proper host for V. In this ending, Hanako wins completely by securing her own legacy alongside her father all the while supporting their new plan for domination by selling immortality to the wealthy but not sharing it with the common masses. However, all other endings see V reject her offer for help and they get their own help in raiding the tower to separate themselves from Johnny. At first, this doesn't seem like a big deal for Hanako as she has other plans and allies she can call on at this point to challenge Yorinobu. That is until the game Dropped a Bridge on Her and the epilogue reveals Alt Cunningham killed Hanako during her purge of Arasaka during the other endings.
Is she magnificent?
Hanako personifies the Silk Hiding Steel trope while maintaining the classical Yamato Nadeshiko style. She uses her outward kind demure nature to have people underestimate her and allows her to get off plots to destroy her enemies and secure her own power. Throughout the game, she proves herself capable of standing up to Yorinobu on equal footing and only loses in the other endings due to a powerful A.I. killing her in a method she never could have seen coming.
Is she a bitch?
If letting her father perform a Grand Theft Me on her brother doesn't make her this, then fully following in her father's footsteps and not caring who the Arasaka hurt definitely does.
Final Verdict?
Another simple![[tup]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Thumbs_up_emoticon_3268.png "[thumb up]")
I'm thinking.
Think you're tough because you made it through Lord of the Rings? Real men survive The Silmarillion.