Mary Murphy
10 Anime Characters Who Get Way More Hate Than They Deserve
Some anime characters get a bad reputation that they honestly do not deserve.
Fans are quick to judge based on first impressions, but many of these characters have deeply layered stories that explain their behavior.
Whether they are emotional, aggressive, or just plain annoying on the surface, there is usually a lot more going on underneath.
Before writing off a character completely, it is worth taking a closer look at what actually shaped them.
1. Boruto Uzumaki – Boruto: Naruto Next Generations
Growing up as the son of a legendary Hokage sounds amazing until you realize your dad is never home.
Boruto’s so-called brattiness is really just a kid crying out for his father’s attention.
That frustration is completely understandable for any child who feels invisible to a busy parent.
As the series moves forward, Boruto stops chasing Naruto’s shadow and starts building his own identity.
He develops real skills, real friendships, and a genuine sense of purpose.
Calling him spoiled misses the emotional core of his entire story arc and the growth he quietly earns along the way.
2. Gabi Braun – Attack on Titan
Few characters in anime history have triggered as much fan outrage as Gabi Braun.
After she killed a beloved character, viewers turned on her fast and hard.
But stepping back reveals a child soldier who was raised from birth to see her enemies as literal devils deserving destruction.
Her story is a mirror held up to earlier characters who were shaped by the same cycle of hatred and war.
The writers designed her arc specifically to challenge the audience.
Hating Gabi without questioning why she became that way means missing one of the series’ most important messages entirely.
3. Shinji Ikari – Neon Genesis Evangelion
Imagine being fourteen years old, abandoned by your father, and suddenly told to climb inside a giant robot and fight apocalyptic monsters.
That is Shinji’s reality every single episode.
The internet loves to mock him for hesitating, but that hesitation is one of the most honest portrayals of teenage anxiety in all of anime.
His emotional breakdowns are not weakness.
They are the natural response of a deeply traumatized kid carrying a responsibility no adult should place on a child.
Neon Genesis Evangelion was groundbreaking precisely because it refused to make its hero invincible or emotionally numb.
4. Zenitsu Agatsuma – Demon Slayer
Loud, whiny, and constantly on the verge of a full meltdown — Zenitsu Agatsuma is genuinely exhausting to watch sometimes.
His screaming can test the patience of even the most dedicated Demon Slayer fans.
Still, dismissing him entirely means ignoring what happens the moment his fear tips past its breaking point.
Asleep or unconscious, Zenitsu transforms into one of the most devastatingly precise swordsmen in the entire series.
His Thunder Breathing technique is no joke.
The comedy of his cowardice actually makes those explosive moments of brilliance hit even harder, turning what feels like a flaw into a genuine storytelling strength.
5. Nana Osaki – NANA
Nana Osaki does not fit the mold of a likable anime heroine, and that is exactly what makes her fascinating.
Her stubbornness and emotionally charged decisions frustrate audiences who want a tidier protagonist.
But real people chasing real dreams are rarely tidy, especially when love and ambition are constantly pulling in opposite directions.
Her story captures the messy, complicated truth of early adulthood with rare honesty.
She loves fiercely, protects her pride sometimes too fiercely, and stumbles badly along the way.
Nana is not meant to be perfect. She is meant to feel real, and on that front, she absolutely succeeds.
6. Izuku Midoriya – My Hero Academia
Midoriya cries a lot.
That is basically the most common complaint launched at him, and honestly, it says more about the critics than it does about him.
His tears come from a place of overwhelming empathy and an almost desperate desire to help people, even when the odds are completely stacked against him.
Starting with zero power in a world built around abilities, his emotional intensity is what kept him going long before One For All ever entered the picture.
Every tear marks a moment of real feeling, not weakness.
His growth from a powerless kid into a genuine hero is earned through every single one of them.
7. Kyo Sohma – Fruits Basket
Hot-headed, combative, and quick to push people away — Kyo Sohma makes a rough first impression that many viewers never fully forgave.
Early in Fruits Basket, his aggression reads as attitude.
What the story gradually reveals is something far more painful: a boy who was told from childhood that his existence was a curse.
Every outburst is a wall built from years of rejection and isolation.
Watching Kyo slowly allow people in, and learning that he deserves love despite what he was taught, becomes one of the most emotionally rewarding journeys in the entire series.
His arc hits differently once you understand the full picture.
8. Katsuki Bakugo – My Hero Academia
Bakugo spent the early chapters of My Hero Academia being genuinely awful to Midoriya, and the fandom noticed.
His explosive arrogance and cruel words made him easy to write off as the story’s bully with a quirk.
That reading is fair for the first arc, but it becomes increasingly incomplete as the series continues.
Slowly and sometimes painfully, Bakugo confronts the insecurity buried underneath all that aggression.
He starts listening, admitting fault, and genuinely pushing himself to be a better hero rather than just the strongest one.
His character development is one of shonen anime’s more believable redemption arcs in recent memory.
9. Sakura Haruno – Naruto and Naruto Shippuden
Sakura Haruno might be the single most unfairly judged character in mainstream anime.
Her early obsession with Sasuke and limited combat role in the original Naruto gave fans a shallow impression that stuck around far longer than it should have.
The jokes about her being useless became almost a fandom tradition.
What those jokes ignore is her transformation under Tsunade’s training.
Sakura becomes a medical ninja of exceptional skill, capable of holding her own against some of the series’ most dangerous threats.
She earned every bit of that strength through discipline and hard work.
The fandom’s memory of her simply has not kept up.
10. Ichigo Kurosaki – Bleach
Being called a generic shonen protagonist is practically an insult in anime circles, and Ichigo Kurosaki has worn that label for years.
Critics argue his motivation is too simple: he just wants to protect people.
But that simplicity is actually a feature, not a flaw, and it gives the entire series its emotional backbone.
Every major arc in Bleach is powered by Ichigo’s refusal to let the people he loves get hurt.
That singular focus creates some of the most intense and memorable battles in anime history.
A clear, unwavering reason to fight is not boring.
For Ichigo, it is everything.
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