Characters you love that everyone seems to hate.

[Nouw]

Skylar from Breaking Bad. She behaves like a normal person when their significant other starts acting up, gets cancer for that matter too, and it's rather baffling to see people still hating on her even during Season 5 considering the justification for her actions only grow stronger and stronger as Walter gets darker and darker.

I agree, but at the same time...it's fiction, and it's about an anti-hero (at least, the first seasons)...and while her being normal and reasonable and such that makes her still an "opponent" of sorts. Seeing her spoiling the "fun" in a TV show is different from how most people would percieve the situation IRL. (After all, Jesse, of all people, is in many eyes the "new hero" in later seasons, despite that he did and still does awful stuff...Hell, i for one like Gus for how sucessful, well-spoken and precise a DRUG DEALER he is)

For me, it doesn't help that she had been already naggy and controlling from the start (also, I.F.T., and everything revolving around that)...but that said, i can symphatize with her more since she is in on what Walter does and properly articulates where she stands and how she worries for her family and herself.

Captcha: goody two shoes
...well, in Breaking Bad, no one really if you think about it.

Oh I can definitely see it from that perspective but I just think it sometimes gets out of hand. Hate is a strong word and while I did have an aversion for her she was still a likable character for me. Hell, everyone in Breaking Bad is likable and admirable in their own way. Except Todd. And Ted. And okay you know what fuck it, never mind .

 

[TheRightToArmBears]

Amy Pond from Doctor Who. I think that most fandom just doesn't like her (maybe not hate her) but I had a good time seeing her with teh Doctor and Rory. And while it is just eye candy, I can't complain much on her wardrobe because I enjoyed seeing it.

I agree. Although she had her bitchier moments, most of the time she was fun and probably my favourite companion of the newer series. Karen Gillan being unfairly attractive despite the blight of gingerness is just a bonus. Still, I do wish Rory was fleshed out a bit more, he was pretty cool.

Whilst I don't quite love her, I have sympathy with Lori from The Walking Dead (the show, I still haven't gotten around to reading it although I've bought the first book). She was told her husband died, she needed comfort and a father figure for Carl... It's understandable. I understand why Rick acted the way he did about it, but I still think he gave her a bit of a rough time over the whole thing.

Shane was still a prick though.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Also I need to mention Ashley from RE4. I don't really love her, but I do like her. She was a normal teenager who acted like a normal teenager in that situation, and I liked escorting her around. You could always tell her to hide in a dumpster, she didn't have issues with pathfinding and she'd stay where I told her to, know how to duck if she was in the way of my gun, and her getting hit wasn't a one-hit kill.

I actually like escort missions, if done right.

Absolutely!

Ashley is the greatest escort companion of any game. [small]Sorry, Yorda.[/small] The first time I played RE4 I remember my heart just fucking sinking when I realized I was suddenly stuck with a goddamn escort mission. But the moment I drew my gun and I saw Ashley immediately sheltering behind me and staying there no matter which way I turned, I was baffled by how such a simple gameplay mechanic could solve nearly every issue and add so much to the game and the characters.

Ashley does what every escort companion should; She adds to the tension of the action without ever detracting from it. I said it before, but people who don't like Ashley either don't like escort missions no matter how well designed, or simply suck at the game.

 

[Geo Da Sponge]

I seem to have a habit of liking (or at least not disliking) all the Bioware companions everyone else hates. Ashley, Kaidan, Jack, Morrigan, Merill, Sten... I particularly like Jack, Morrigan and Sten.

I like Jack because from my point of view, she's the only Mass Effect team member who will make jokes at Shepard's expense (other than the dancing), and who doesn't wait for him to threaten her species/join a terrorist group/cheat on her to stand up to him. Probably one of the best examples of this can be found in the Citadel DLC from ME3, after she says she has a surprise for Shepard.

Shepard: "...This isn't what I was expecting."
Jack: "That's why it's called a surprise, dumbass."

And Morrigan, well, as deeply unpleasant as she is it's really understandable why she's like that. If you do go out of your way to befriend or romance her as a non-evil character, you get some really heart warming responses.

As for Sten... I kind of had a big breakthrough with this character because of one piece of advice I read from someone on how to get approval from him. "If you think he's wrong, call him out on it. Stand up to him." And whenever I've followed that advice, it's worked. That just makes me really respect his character, the fact that someone who seems so inflexible and stubborn respects it when people stand up to him. I don't think there's much more to it than that.

Oh, and Sten has a wicked sense of humour sometimes:

*After Morrigan has repeatedly brought up the idea of her and Sten having sex in order to tease him*
Morrigan: "You seem so deep in thought, my dear Sten. Thinking of me, perhaps? The two of us together at last?"
Sten: "Yes."
Morrigan: "I... What did you say?"
Sten: "You will need armour, I think. And a helmet, and something to bite down on. How strong are human teeth?"
Morrigan: "How strong are my teeth?!"
Sten: "Qunari teeth can bite through leather, wood, even metal, given time. Which reminds me; I may try to nuzzle."
Morrigan: "NUZZLE?!"
Sten: "If that happens, you'll need an iron pry-bar. Heat it in a fire first or it may not get my attention."
Morrigan: "...Perhaps it would be better if we did not proceed."
Sten: "Are you certain? If it will satisfy your curiousity..."
Morrigan: "Yes! Yes, I think it is best."

PS.
Captcha: UNTIL TONIGHT

 

[Sarah Kerrigan]

I like Baird from Gears of War, but people usually hate him just to be funny..I like him as a character, and Judgement made me like him even more.

Also, Hawkeye from the Avengers. So what if he doesn't have powers, he's still useful.

 

[Erttheking]

The odd thing is that generally speaking both the people who like Shinji and who hate him are all kind of right. The most common argument you'll hear against Shinji is that he's surrounded by hot chicks and pilots an awesome super robot, yet still he whines. And that's in essence what it's all about: When you're depressed and have zero faith in yourself, it doesn't matter how many people love you or how seemingly great your life is. You could be the richest man alive, loved by the whole world, but if you can't love or accept yourself, all of that means nothing.

There's more than enough people in the real world that have everything going for them, yet are misserable with themselves. And many of them will have people telling them "You have so many things going for you, why can't you just be happy?"

Well...I have an unusual stance on the character. I consider the argument "You're surrounded by hot chicks, why are you so upset?" to be a really invalid one, considering that means he's choosing between incest, domestic abuse, and pedophilia. Giant robots? The whole "Pain and trauma and you killed your best friend" thing.

That being said, I still don't like Shinji. I really don't like the route his character arc takes him, mainly because I've suffered from periods of depression in the past and while there were points where I sat around feeling sorry for myself, I didn't JUST do that. I got medicine, I started going out more, I found some good friends I could talk to about my problems. In short, I actively tried to get better. Shinji on the other hand never really tries to help himself and just continues to feel sorry for himself while his life gets worse and worse, like its circling the drain. But I don't really blame him, I blame the writing. A character angsting can be sympathetic and tragic, a character angsting all the time without ever doing anything about it, and the story never LETTING him do anything about it is annoying. It's just not interesting.

So in summary, I don't hate the character, I hate the writing.

 

[Sir Pootis]

This is going to sound weird, but my choice is Raiden from Metal Gear Solid 2.

People constantly complain about him being so whiny, when it's hardly the case. Also, let's face it, MGS2 would have just been really boring from Snake's perspective, as it wasn't meant to be about a singular character.

 

[[REDACTED]]

I seem to have a habit of liking (or at least not disliking) all the Bioware companions everyone else hates. Ashley, Kaidan, Jack, Morrigan, Merill, Sten... I particularly like Jack, Morrigan and Sten.

I like Jack because from my point of view, she's the only Mass Effect team member who will make jokes at Shepard's expense (other than the dancing), and who doesn't wait for him to threaten her species/join a terrorist group/cheat on her to stand up to him. Probably one of the best examples of this can be found in the Citadel DLC from ME3, after she says she has a surprise for Shepard.

Shepard: "...This isn't what I was expecting."
Jack: "That's why it's called a surprise, dumbass."

And Morrigan, well, as deeply unpleasant as she is it's really understandable why she's like that. If you do go out of your way to befriend or romance her as a non-evil character, you get some really heart warming responses.

As for Sten... I kind of had a big breakthrough with this character because of one piece of advice I read from someone on how to get approval from him. "If you think he's wrong, call him out on it. Stand up to him." And whenever I've followed that advice, it's worked. That just makes me really respect his character, the fact that someone who seems so inflexible and stubborn respects it when people stand up to him. I don't think there's much more to it than that.

Oh, and Sten has a wicked sense of humour sometimes:

*After Morrigan has repeatedly brought up the idea of her and Sten having sex in order to tease him*
Morrigan: "You seem so deep in thought, my dear Sten. Thinking of me, perhaps? The two of us together at last?"
Sten: "Yes."
Morrigan: "I... What did you say?"
Sten: "You will need armour, I think. And a helmet, and something to bite down on. How strong are human teeth?"
Morrigan: "How strong are my teeth?!"
Sten: "Qunari teeth can bite through leather, wood, even metal, given time. Which reminds me; I may try to nuzzle."
Morrigan: "NUZZLE?!"
Sten: "If that happens, you'll need an iron pry-bar. Heat it in a fire first or it may not get my attention."
Morrigan: "...Perhaps it would be better if we did not proceed."
Sten: "Are you certain? If it will satisfy your curiousity..."
Morrigan: "Yes! Yes, I think it is best."

PS.
Captcha: UNTIL TONIGHT

What? People dislike Sten? Are you shitting me?

 

[Casual Shinji]

The odd thing is that generally speaking both the people who like Shinji and who hate him are all kind of right. The most common argument you'll hear against Shinji is that he's surrounded by hot chicks and pilots an awesome super robot, yet still he whines. And that's in essence what it's all about: When you're depressed and have zero faith in yourself, it doesn't matter how many people love you or how seemingly great your life is. You could be the richest man alive, loved by the whole world, but if you can't love or accept yourself, all of that means nothing.

There's more than enough people in the real world that have everything going for them, yet are misserable with themselves. And many of them will have people telling them "You have so many things going for you, why can't you just be happy?"

Well...I have an unusual stance on the character. I consider the argument "You're surrounded by hot chicks, why are you so upset?" to be a really invalid one, considering that means he's choosing between incest, domestic abuse, and pedophilia. Giant robots? The whole "Pain and trauma and you killed your best friend" thing.

Yeah, I know. I just thought that this argument actually fits surprisingly well, in a meta sorta way, with the theme of depression and low selfesteem the show has, despite it being used to critisize the character.

 

[Dirge Eterna]

I like Claptrap but not his voice so much. My 6 year old even dislikes him, he tells me to kill him so he will shut up lol. I feel kinda left out on this thread though because I don't know anime, my whole experience is watching Vampire Hunter D and Princess Mononoke.

 

[Snowbell]

But most of all I hate her for

Spoiler

killing Wrex.

If you're a busy-body Paragon who chats to Wrex and Ash at every oppertunity then he doesn't have to die - and he's super useful in ME3 if you want a peaceful post-Reaper galaxy.

I like emo characters.

Wait, that's misleading by it's very nature. allow me to rephrase: I like characters that are often called "emo" because they failed to live up to the standards of masculinity the gaming crowd (bronzed Adonises all) set for them. That is to say, if you're not a character who sweats and bleeds testosterone, whose only reaction to being tied to a chair and forced to watch as his every friend and loved one was dismembered limb by limb was to growl a guttural promise of revenge before roaring into battle, then you're emo.

Really? I didn't know people in general loved only the muscle-bound men in video games? I'm all for the skinny boys! James in ME3 made me very uncomfortable with his muscles and his posturing - I got the odd feeling that he was a character that was supposed to sexually appeal to the female audience. Ew.

Back on topic: I really don't hate Kyubei in Madoka Magica. Yes he's emotionally manipulative but he's saving the whole universe, those girls included. However, I wouldn't say I love him, he is adorable though.

 

[Uncle Comrade]

But most of all I hate her for

Spoiler

killing Wrex.

If you're a busy-body Paragon who chats to Wrex and Ash at every oppertunity then he doesn't have to die - and he's super useful in ME3 if you want a peaceful post-Reaper galaxy.

I agree, I really liked Ashley in ME1 (still haven't got around to playing 3 yet). I see lots of people seem to hate on her for shooting Wrex, ignoring the fact that it only happens if Shepard is unable to talk Wrex down, and unwilling to kill him. In which case, it was less of her murdering your best bro-friend, and more her saving her commander's life from an angry mercenary who wouldn't listen to reason.

Also, people tend to really overexaggerate her discomfort around aliens and religious beliefs and make out that she's some sort of Spaceboro Baptist Church racist zealot, when (as others have said already) she has good reasons for not trusting other species, and part of her character development is learning to be okay with aliens.

 

[NoeL]

I'm not sure if this is representative of the greater populace, but Vegeta was always my favourite DBZ character. Most of my friends were Piccolo fanboys so it was unpopular at the time.

Really though, I don't socialise enough to know who everybody hates.

 

[JasonKaotic]

I'm going to go ahead and say Squall from Final Fantasy VIII because they give him a valid and sympathetic reason for him to act the way he does, and he does become a better person later. But I'm a Final Fantasy VIII fanboy so you should probably ignore me.

I'll also go with Vanille from Final Fantasy XIII. I definitely understand the hate for most of the other characters, but Vanille was one of the only things keeping the game from being completely dull. I suppose I can see why some people might find her annoying, but people calling her one of the worst things about the game is a bit much.

 

[iwinatlife]

Well I like Aizen from Bleach

He is just an amazing magnificent bastard of truly rediculous proportions and manages to pull off almost anything as just as planned because he has so many crazy gambits running simultaneously
Unsuprisingly (if you have read all the books) I also love Petyr Baelish aka littlefinger

Spoiler

Because he caused the whole crisis for the throne he tipped the plot domino and lets everything fall his way and also had the best addition from the show in the "chaos is a ladder" speech

 

[Zombie Badger]

I really don't get the hate Raiden from Metal Gear Solid gets.

 

[Grach]

Ruby Rhod. I find him kind of so stupidly funny.

Now nobody will ever take me seriously again.

 

[Fieldy409_v1legacy]

Ruby Rhod. I find him kind of so stupidly funny.

Now nobody will ever take me seriously again.

I do the "ZZZZ!" thing to people all the time....

 

[Furrama]

The odd thing is that generally speaking both the people who like Shinji and who hate him are all kind of right. The most common argument you'll hear against Shinji is that he's surrounded by hot chicks and pilots an awesome super robot, yet still he whines. And that's in essence what it's all about: When you're depressed and have zero faith in yourself, it doesn't matter how many people love you or how seemingly great your life is. You could be the richest man alive, loved by the whole world, but if you can't love or accept yourself, all of that means nothing.

There's more than enough people in the real world that have everything going for them, yet are misserable with themselves. And many of them will have people telling them "You have so many things going for you, why can't you just be happy?"

Well...I have an unusual stance on the character. I consider the argument "You're surrounded by hot chicks, why are you so upset?" to be a really invalid one, considering that means he's choosing between incest, domestic abuse, and pedophilia. Giant robots? The whole "Pain and trauma and you killed your best friend" thing.

That being said, I still don't like Shinji. I really don't like the route his character arc takes him, mainly because I've suffered from periods of depression in the past and while there were points where I sat around feeling sorry for myself, I didn't JUST do that. I got medicine, I started going out more, I found some good friends I could talk to about my problems. In short, I actively tried to get better. Shinji on the other hand never really tries to help himself and just continues to feel sorry for himself while his life gets worse and worse, like its circling the drain. But I don't really blame him, I blame the writing. A character angsting can be sympathetic and tragic, a character angsting all the time without ever doing anything about it, and the story never LETTING him do anything about it is annoying. It's just not interesting.

So in summary, I don't hate the character, I hate the writing.

A lot of people are afraid to try and reach out and get help, which was the essence of his character. Yes, it is frustrating to watch, and it isn't for everyone. The contention for many IS that he can't just get up and reach out... but that IS the conflict. In the series he doesn't start to get better until he does reach out right at the surreal end. CONGRATULATIONS and the series just... ends. That was it. That was the story.

Not the movie though, in that one he chooses not to get help or reach out or really learn to like himself and destroys everything and everyone. But the meta in that narrative was a bit different. I highly recommend this video for a more in depth discussion on Shinji's movie character vs his anime one: http://chezapocalypse.com/episodes/s3e2-end-of-evangelion-and-the-audience-author-membrane/

I'm not fond of the post modernism philosophy, or that THE BUDGET RAN OUT GUYS, but I still contend that it is dang good writing. If you're willing to understand it anyway. And me, there are a few characters who I wouldn't be buddies with, but I still like them as characters in their own separate universes where they operate independent of me.