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The world of anime is replete with characters who have deep and intricate personalities. Some of these characters happen to embody narcissistic traits as well. On the polar opposite end of the spectrum, there are those who are noted for their empathy.
Obviously, these characters are never one-dimensional. There is depth and layers to why they exist the way they do. Sometimes it is simply their nature, while in the case of others, it's something they've developed over time. Of particular interest is also the fact that for some of these characters, maintaining such a front is simply an act of protecting their vulnerable selves.
In any case, the following article provides a list of 5 characters in both of the categories mentioned earlier. As always, the list is subjective, and anime fans are free to uphold their own opinions on who should and should not be included.
Light Yagami and 4 other narcissistic characters in the world of anime
1) Madara Uchiha (Naruto)
Madara Uchiha was one of the premier founders of Konoha and someone who forged an alliance with Hashirama Senju. However, unlike Hashirama, Madara wanted to rule through force.
Madara always knew that he was superior to his opponent in every sense within the anime. Since he was part of the Uchiha clan, he felt that everyone is below him and that he is more or less at the level of a god. In fact, such was the case with Madara that he did not waste his power on anyone whom he deemed weak or worthless.
In any case, after the death of his brother Izuna, Madara's narcissistic nature assumed prominence in the anime. Previously, he was gentle and kind, and he had a friendly rivalry with Hashirama.
However, after Izuna's death, Madara became bitter towards Hashirama and became extremely self-centered and egoistic. This resulted in the development of a narcissistic mindset within him, which led to all of his schemes for immortality and even the Infinite Tsukiyomi.
In fact, the sole purpose of the Infinite Tsukiyomi was because he felt that he is the only one who could correct the shinobi world and offer salvation.
2) Light Yagami (Death Note)
Light Yagami is arguably one of the most narcissistic characters in all of anime. He was a great student, but after receiving the Death Note, he sort of started to regard himself as the god of the new world.
He was extremely proud of his intelligence to the point where he never even considered the possibility of someone outsmarting him. In fact, he had this notion that someone chose him as the owner of the Death Note on account of his brilliant mind.
Light Yagami always thought that he was the only one who could manage something like the Death Note and that his vision of imparting justice (by mercilessly killing others using the Death Note) was the correct one. Such was the state that he did not even spare innocents within the anime as he felt that people were way too foolish to understand his ideology.
3. Asuka Langley Soryu (Evangelion)
Asuka is one of the characters in anime whom the entire community regards as narcissistic. She was extremely proud of her appearance as well as her skills as a pilot.
In fact, she was so proud that she developed an extremely stubborn attitude towards almost everything. She was highly opinionated and would often have an aggressive take towards anyone who did not consider her an adult or even thought of looking down upon her.
However, Asuka's narcissistic behavior is not like the others as this was something she used primarily to protect herself. Deep down, she was an extremely vulnerable woman which viewers get an idea of through her dreams.
4) Vegeta (Dragon Ball)
When it comes to narcissistic attitudes, there are very few who can compete with Vegeta, the Prince of Saiyans himself. Vegeta, on account of his royal lineage, always thought of himself as a cut above the rest.
In fact, such was his attitude that he did not even consider Goku, the only other Saiyan remaining in the world, as his equal. Vegeta would often look down upon his enemies and would not take it lightly if someone else defeated them instead of him.
Vegeta's haughty demeanor never changed, however he did reveal a caring side of himself later in life when he married Bulma and had children of his own. While he learnt to respect others a little, his attitude toward his enemies remained unchanged, which was one of the reasons for his defeats.
5) Gilgamesh (Fate Zero)
The final character to figure in the list of narcissists has to be Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes himself. He is someone who has pushed the boundaries of hubris. Gilgamesh was a king, and when he was summoned as a servant, his attitude annoyed several others.
He would often refer to everyone else with a slang for a slave as they were all below him in both stature and power. There is no doubt that Gilgamesh is powerful, in fact he might very well be one of the strongest characters in the entire Fate series.
However, this power of his led him to become merciless and cruel towards others. He thought of himself as the ultimate and thus he never took it lightly if someone refused him.
There was one point where he brutally injured Saber when she refused to become his bride. The problem was that Gilgamesh thought of Saber as an object. This was most commonly his attitude towards everything and everyone else as well.
Gilgamesh’s attitude is why he never won the Grail War, as he would refuse to bring out his most powerful weapon, EA (a unique weapon that could split Heaven and Earth upon use, often considered the strongest Noble Phantasm), as he never deemed anyone worthy. The only time he did bring it out was against Iskander, and that was the most one-sided fight in the entirety of Fate Zero.
Tanjiro Kamado and 4 other empathic characters in all of anime
1) Naruto Uzumaki (Naruto)
There are many empathic characters in anime, but few come close to Naruto. He is someone who believed in giving not just one, but multiple chances to people since he believed that everyone had it in them to change and improve.
Naruto would often cease fighting his enemies because he believed that the power of love was the ultimate winner. His ideology in the course of the anime was to understand his enemies' pain and share his own with them, eventually making the enemy realize their mistakes.
Such was Naruto's attitude in the anime that he went alone to talk to Nagato and managed to persuade the latter to have faith and convinced him that the former could change the world of shinobi and eradicate all forms of hatred.
In the anime, Naruto even ran after Sasuke for several years despite all the crimes the latter committed. Here, the former believed that he could change his friend for good. It is not unbeknownst to us fans of the anime that this attitude of Naruto developed on account of his childhood sufferings.
2) Tanjiro Kamado (Demon Slayer)
Like Naruto, Tanjiro is also an extremely empathetic individual within the animated landscape of Demon Slayer. He has a kind heart and is ready to show mercy even to demons, as long as they are reasonable.
Tanjiro is highly protective when it comes to his friends and he is ready to sacrifice his life to protect his sister Nezuko and cure her. However, one thing that separates Tanjiro from other empathic anime characters is that, he maintains a limit.
He would not cross the line where helping others could lead to his close ones getting hurt. However, if he is in an one versus one combat, then there are times when Tanjiro would hesitate to land the final blow on the enemy as he believes that those who regret their actions deserve to be forgiven.
3) Tadano Hitohito (Komi Can't Communicate)
Tadano within the anime Komi Can't Communicate is an extremely ordinary character. In truth, Tadano prefers to keep himself at an ordinary level at all times in order to avoid drawing too much attention.
However, Tadano is still quite an empathetic character who is more than ready to help anyone in need. In fact, this is one of the reasons why he was able to gain Komi's trust in the anime as he was the first person ever to try to be a true friend to her.
He was the first person to understand her and he did so because of his caring nature. The issue with Tadano, though, is that while he is empathic, he is also a bit clueless when it comes to showing emotions.
4) Izuku Midoriya (My Hero Academia)
Izuku Midoriya from My Hero Academia is the epitome of empathy. He is someone who often showcases overly exaggerated emotions and considers the life of his friends as way more worthy than his own.
Such is his attitude towards self worth that he would be more than happy to die as long as the person he is trying to save comes out unscathed. There have been several instances of him breaking his own bones just to save others on account of his carelessness towards his own well being.
The worst part is that he has received several warnings that if he continues to harm himself, eventually he could get paralyzed, which might hamper his goal of becoming a hero. Fortunately, this warning sort of pushed him to take a less dangerous route when fighting, though he often goes back to his old habits from time to time.
5) Shirou Emiya (Fate Stay/Night Unlimited Blade Works)
Shirou Emiya during his childhood faced an extremely tragic incident, where he was the sole survivor of the same. As a result, he felt himself unworthy of being alive at the cost of others.
Hence, he developed an ideal within himself that he needs to continuously help other people so as to ensure that his life has a meaning. He consistently suffered from extreme guilt, as a result of which he would often go out of his way and offer help to other people.
This idea of his led to several issues when Saber was summoned during the Holy Grail War under his command. He thought it was his duty to keep Saber safe from harm and to keep her from fighting other servants. This frequently resulted in a conflict of interest between him and Saber.
Shirou felt that no one should suffer harm for his sake in the anime, despite the fact that Saber was extremely powerful and could defeat almost every servant (except Gilgamesh and Hercules) in a one versus one scenario. Eventually, Saber sort of understood his ideals and the two began to work together. However, he also had to suffer extreme hardships as well on account of the same.
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