Characters that you disliked, but grew to like in the end.

[Legion]

The title is self explanatory really. What characters did you dismiss when you first encountered them, but over time found yourself enjoying more as time went on?

Andrew Ryan was one for me. At first he was simply the bad guy trying to kill me, but as I explored Rapture I started to understand his perspective (even though I have never approved of his methods). While he is still very much a villain in the game, I like him as a villain.

The Tachikoma in Ghost of the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Their voices and dialogue wound me up, and even later they still did occasionally, but at the end of both seasons they show themselves to be awesome characters (can't really say why without spoilers).

EDIT:

Reading the responses reminds me of another one, which is Jamie Lannister from a Song of Ice and Fire. At first he just seems like an arrogant incestuous bastard (which he is really, I guess), but then in the later books he shows some redeeming characteristics and while he still the above, you see a more admirable side to him as well.

 

[BlueberryMUNCH]

I'm gonna go ahead and say Tidus from Final Fantasy X; seems like it was Square's intention too.

I mean, his growth through the game is just SO stark and it's written so well.
Whiny, bitchy sports star -> pseudo leader of the group.

...a lot of disagreement inbound, surely xD.

 

[BiscuitTrouser]

Zuko from avatar. I mean seriously the whole "honor" thing got REALLY old as a motivation. Also i hate the "dark cynical and brooding" archetype in real life and in fiction too with the burning fury of a billion suns. So he really rubbed me the wrong way pretty much all the way through, more than hes meant to for being the bad guy.

At the end i loved him though. Second favorite character. The character development is really good toward the end for him especially between him and my favorite character Iroh.

 

[Scrustle]

Groose from Skyward Sword. At first I thought he was just one of those annoying full of himself bully archetypes that exist only as a foil to the protagonist. But then later on he shows he has good intentions and learns humility and becomes a pretty funny support character. He also has a pretty stylin' do.

 

[Scarim Coral]

Groose from Skyward Sword. At first I thought he was just one of those annoying full of himself bully archetypes that exist only as a foil to the protagonist. But then later on he shows he has good intentions and learns humility and becomes a pretty funny support character. He also has a pretty stylin' do.

This and also Pinkie Pie.

Now hear me out, I was new to the show existence and decide to watch the first episode. It was that scene when Pinkie Pie keep bugging Twlight after she throw her a party (the part when she talk nonstop). To me she pretty much fill in as the "annoying character" archtype seen in other cartoon shows.
However watching the rest of the episodes, I grew to like her due to her random antics!

 

[FalloutJack]

Most of my first impressions tend to be spot-on, actually. Comes with the territory.

 

[Casual Shinji]

All the characters in Eureka 7.

The moment you're introduced to any of them they just come across all too cool for school, both in design and behavior. But after the 10th episode or so they finally start to develop interesting personallities, and you come to care for them quickly after that.

 

[sextus the crazy]

I'm gonna go ahead and say Tidus from Final Fantasy X; seems like it was Square's intention too.

I mean, his growth through the game is just SO stark and it's written so well.
Whiny, bitchy sports star -> pseudo leader of the group.

...a lot of disagreement inbound, surely xD.

It seems to me that squenix pulled this off much better with Neku from The World Ends With You. Even towards the end of the first part of the game he's grown as a person and you can see that he is able to make a personal connection with another human being.

 

[thelonewolf266]

I Hated Councillor Udina in Mass Effect but then I thought in Mass Effect 3 he was actually kinda decent and we all know how that one turned out sly bastard almost tricked me.Baal in Stargate SG-1 was also a giant dick but I kind of ended up liking him just for how tenacious and condescendingly arrogant(in a funny way) he was.

 

[General Grind]

Kallor in Malazan Book of the Fallen.
Kills millions of people and

Spoiler

even one of the few legitimate good guys in the series

and once the bitter hate faded, he became one of the most interesting and tragically likeable characters in the series. Still a horrible human being to be sure.

Also tons of other characters from the same series.


Also Jamie Lannister from A Song of Ice and Fire along with Littlefinger, Varys and Victarion.

 

[The Wykydtron]

Draven from League of Legends. I've never played him because he's an AD Carry and I just can't play one of those things to save my life but his arrogant "League of Draven" egotistical jerkishness used to really annoy me... Now he seems pretty cool to me for some reason.

His global ultimate doesn't seem that global to me though. It's actually double global because it goes from Draven and then returns to Draven so it must just be me. Maybe because nobody ever does anything dramatic with it. Woo you just sniped a low health person in a straight line, Caitlyn does that all day with zero effort get with the times man!

Also Leona... She seemed really lacklustre in the rare occasions she would actually be in a game (she's underplayed as hell.) I bought her just because I wanted to compare her to Diana and she is so dang fun.

Any Carry who does good damage early game (Graves) is going to dominate the lane with Leona as soon as she hits lvl 3. The moment she lands her Zenith Blade > Eclipse > Shield of Daybreak > Eclipse detonation combo her target will be stunlocked from the word go.

She has a good mid/lategame as well. Suck it Alistair.

Suzaku from Code Geass is a funny one. He goes from rage, to not so rage, then rage again, then pretty cool, cool but tragic then back to rage.

Season 2, rage, rage, rage, rage, more rage, increasing rage, rage, rage, fuck this guy's life then oh wow this guy is actually pretty awesome. I'm sure anyone in the Lulu is Right camp can understand this vague as heck statement rather well XD

 

[CowboyfromHell666]

Arthas from Warcraft III. Well, I went from a "Oh wow this paladin is such a badass!" to "DUDE WHAT ARE YOU DOING YOU FUCKING MORON" to "Oh my lord. You may have fucked with your own father's ashes and basically screwed your own men to your thirst for vengeance, but you are a true tragic hero and a total baller."

 

[DazBurger]

Tyrion Lannister.
Seemed like an ass in the first episode, but quickly showed his true colors.

 

[Aerosteam]

Master Chief from Arby 'n' the Chief. At first all he does is annoy Arbiter and talks in an ungodly amount of 1337 speak, but in the current season it shows that Chief actually has feelings for others after he accidentally killed Cortana. Also the way he represents gamers in general can get hilarious.

 

[RJ 17]

I Hated Councillor Udina in Mass Effect but then I thought in Mass Effect 3 he was actually kinda decent.

I was going to say this too. In the first two games he's nothing but an absolute prick, but in the 3rd game he seems pretty decent...until about halfway through the game, that is. I think it's because this is really the first time you get to have some "get to know him" conversations with him, or because you're so desperate to get help for Earth and he's the most politically powerful human in the galaxy...lotta good that means, though.

 

[bigfatcarp93]

Javik all the way. I gave him the benefit of the doubt, but it didn't take long for Javik to get on my dick nerve. At points, I downright hated him. But, when he apoligized to Liara, that was enough of a turning point that, by the end, I really started to like the guy.

 

[Palademon]

Kamina.
Not until the overall importance of his existence is explained was he at all likable for me.

 

[neonsword13-ops]

Junpei Iori from Persona 3.

He seemed like a nice dude at first. We were made friends on the first few days of school.

Later on, though, he turned into a real dickbag. He was jealous of me being the "Chosen One" and that he didn't get any of my great powers.

But in the end, he told me how much of a jerk he has been in the past few months. He was sincerely sorry for the way he acted and just wanted to be friends again.

What a bro he turned out to be..

 

[Temple Guard]

Kazuma Kuwabara from Yu Yu Hakusho. Listening to him talk was painful to me, but as the series progressed I came to admire his never give up attitude.

 

[Outcast107]

Tarlok(Sp?) from Legend of Korra.

I hated this guy. I LOATH HIM so much. I was looking forward to whats coming to him at the end, But then we learn his back story, as well as aftermath of what happen. He became a like character. Not really out-right favorite, but I like him at the end.