When we begin watching an anime, we usually make 2 major decisions.
1. This is my favorite character
2. I absolutely hate this character
Now sometimes, this character that you end up hating is not even the villain but someone that just doesn’t sit right with you for something the did on purpose or for something that wasn’t even in their control to begin with.

The Anime community is growing day by day with 1000s of fans worldwide finding new crushing with every anime they watch. These watches lead to amazing discussions, mind blowing theories and ever growing ships. However, these discussions are also the boiling point of a community of collective haters for some characters who did absolutely nothing to deserve the said hate.

While there are of course characters that earn the hate they very well deserved such a Mahito…no one likes Mahito. Characters like his who dont care about others people, choose violence and make questionable decisions are meant to be hated upfront. Yet, there are certain characters that end up being coming a fandoms punching bag simply because they are emotional or realistic and may not be as goated as their favorite characters. Sometimes, these characters just have a growing community of collective haters who just assume they must have done something awful because of the amount of hate that is directed towards them.

Here’s a list of exactly these characters who are constantly dragged down by their fandom, despite being known for being helpful and relatable and often misunderstood in their anime.

1. Armin Arlert from Attack on Titan

The biggest crime committed by poor Armin is that he isn’t strong. Armin’s strengths lie in his intelligence and strategy planning. Besides this, he absolutely has no physical abilities, which makes him stand out in an anime that mainly focuses on strong soldiers defending humanity. Armin often appears to be timid, hesitant and emotional throughout the anime. However many of the fans off attack on Titan mistake these traits to be his weakness, they do forget that in the latter half of the anime, it is his intelligence strategies and tactics that help them win several battles. Despite this, just because he doesn’t always charge into battle some fans label him as useless. Another major reason for the heat directed towards Armin was the decision that was made later on into the series that has been a major topic of conversation within the famdom. It is important to note that this decision was not something that Armin could control. So its fair to say that the hate directed towards him is unfair, just because he showcases a different kind of strength as compared to a typical action hero.

2. Shinji Ikari from Neon Genesis Evangelion

When we think about the main protagonist of an anime we often expect them to be strong and brave. However Shinji is the exact opposite. Shinji is a fourteen year old boy with realistic emotions. It’s rare to see anime characters based on realistic behaviour. Shinji is not a protagonist who is strong and brave and courageous.He’s rather a sacred fourteen year old boy who was neglected by his own father. He is a character who panics, cries struggles and questions himself and struggles with the overwhelming pressure placed on a small life. Now these are not a common trait of what people would consider as the main protagonist of an anime. And this is what makes fans hate Shinji. They forget to see that these reactions of a 14-year-old Boy are the response to a traumatic upbringing. What makes this hate towards Shinji unfair is the fact that he is under pressure that would easily break any adult in the same situation. It’s because he doesn’t fit that stereotypical mold of a hero that hate is directed towards him.

3. Orihime Inoue from Bleach

Now Orihime, isn’t hated for her ability, but she is hated for a unique reason. She’s a victim of shipping wars. Her caring character is simply reduced to a character who could potentially be a love interest to the protagonist. Some people agree, while others disagree. People believe that she is weak, just because she is not a frontline warrior like the rest of her group. But people often forget that it is because of her ability that many of their loved characters are often saved, and her compassion often serves as the emotional centre of the group. She’s frequently seen putting herself in danger despite lacking that offensive power that her companions possess. So it’s clear that there isn’t anything that people should be hating her about but reducing her character into a shipping war does just that. But over the years, new fans have reevaluated her role in the anime and recognized how the hatred towards her is truly unfair

4. Zenitsu Agatsuma from Demon Slayer

It is very much true that when you begin watching Demons slayer Zenitsu is one of those characters who is meant to be amazingly annoying. He is a cry baby, he is annoying, he is overly loud and extremely dramatic. But it’s also fair to say that his character was built to provide comic relief in an anime that is meant to be serious. But it is because of the traits mentioned earlier that he is often written off by the fan base. Demons slayer fans often forget that underneath all that screaming, crying and flirting is a guy who is courageous eough to still fight. If we are to think about it, if you end up in a situation like Zenitsu facing a demon, you would have the exact same reaction as him, if not worse, but he’s still pushes forward. We can see throughout the series how his character grows slowly with each experience. It is an example of how courage isn’t the absence of fear but the strength to act despite it. We also see later on in the series how he proves himself.

5. Sakura Haruno from Naruto

Sakura could most likely be one of the most trolled characters online. So much so that she is hated by fans who haven’t even watched Naruto. People have just assumed that she is useless. However, that’s not true at all. She is a character who built her strength with her own hard work and experiences. Though she made several immature decisions early on the story, she proved herself by being one of the strongest medical ninjas in her world. But unfortunately, fans did not move on from the first impression of Sakura. Beams continue to circulate online, portraying her as incompetent. The hatred has now come to a point where it is self sustaining with people trolling her no matter the progress she makes in the anime.

6. Gabi Braun from Attack on Titan

*spoilers*
Now i would be like if I said I didn’t hate Gabi when she killed Sasha. It’s a very valid reaction of an AOT fan. However, it’s important for us to realise that Gabi’s story was built entirely to show us how hatred is taught and passed down from one generation to another. She was a kid who was taught to believe that she is doing the right thing, because that is what she has been trained to learn her entirely childhood. But we see as the story progresses how she realises the truth behind her beliefs and undergoes significant growth, questioning what is happening around her. But instead of recognizing these facts, fans have permanently defined her as someone who is Sasha’s murderer. But we need to realize something.If it was the other way round, if a Survey Corps Member was to kill a Marleyan we’d be rejoicing.

The Anime community often prides itself in loving complex characters but what happens to the same community when it comes to these characters. Many of these characters are targets of hate because they do not meet certain expectations or because they aren’t fan favorites or just because they show you human emotions that dont fit the bill of a courageous hero. We realise how easy it is for fandom narratives to completely overshadowed the reality of a character’s nature and role in an anime.