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(#4) Greed
- Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
While anime heroes regularly sacrifice themselves for the greater good, the same can't be said for villains, who are typically self-motivated or narcissistic. This is doubly true when the antagonist is the living embodiment of avarice, which is exactly why Greed's final moments in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood are so impactful.
For most of the series, Greed lives like a parasite inside Ling's body, and uses him to do whatever he wants. The two start off as enemies, but slowly develop a friendship, and shockingly, Greed seems to genuinely care about his human host.
When Father, another homunculus, tries to kill and absorb Greed in order to gain his power, Greed severs his physical connection to Ling so he doesn't get consumed as well. Had he not expended energy saving Ling, he might have been able to fight Father off. Instead, he prioritizes saving his companion's life in a bizarre act of generosity.
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(#7) Lucy Heartfilia
- Fairy Tail
Ever since she was a child, Lucy Heartfilia has been close with Aquarius, who is a Celestial Spirit and one of the 12 Golden Zodiac Keys. When she was little, Lucy summoned the spirit to play with her, but as an adult, she calls her forth to help out in battle.
While taking on Tartaros, a group of Fairy Tail villains, Lucy realizes she can only defeat them if she summons the Celestial King. To do that, Lucy has to smash the celestial key that preserves the bond between her and Aquarius.
Destroying the key will ensure victory, but Lucy will never be able to see Aquarius again. While no one dies, Lucy's decision to permanently end her friendship for the greater good is remarkably heroic.
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(#15) Netero Detonates The "Poor Man's Rose" In 'Hunter x Hunter (2011)'
In a deathly battle against Meruem, Netero activates Zero Hand in an attempt to finish Meruem off. But even this ability fails to defeat him, leaving Netero's strength and aura completely drained. Netero makes a heroic sacrifice by piercing his own heart in order to detonate the Poor Man's Rose implanted within himself. He finally reveals Meruem's name and manages to strike fear in him while warning him not to underestimate humans. As the bomb explodes, Meruem is severely injured. And the lethal poison from the bomb eventually kills Meruem, Shaiapouf, Menthuthuyoupi, and Komugi. Without Netero's brave sacrifice, The King would never have been defeated.
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(#9) Rem
As a shinigami, Rem is not allowed to intentionally extend a human's life, as it's an offense punishable by death. However, when Light Yagami puts Misa Amane in danger, Rem breaks this rule by killing L and Watari to save her.
Light is counting on Rem's feelings clouding her judgment, and the shinigami's decision to intervene plays right into the self-proclaimed god's hands.
When Rem dies, she's fully aware of Light's manipulative actions, as he routinely tries to control pretty much everyone in Death Note. She could have easily let Misa die, but she willingly sacrifices herself out of love for the human girl.
Killing L and Watari isn't necessarily heroic from a plot perspective (since they're both working for the good of society), but Ren's sacrifice is still inarguably noble, as she gives up her life to protect a loved one.
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(#8) Yuzuru Otonashi
- Angel Beats!
In the final moments of his life, Yuzuru Otonashi never stops to consider his own wellbeing. After he's gravely injured in a train accident, he uses the remainder of his strength to help as many of the other crash survivors as he can.
This noble act comes at the cost of his own convalescence, and before long, he's passed on into the afterlife setting of Angel Beats.
Otonashi's final act of selflessness isn't truly felt until after his death, as before he perishes, he signs a waver that allows doctors to harvest his organs. In Japan, it's extremely rare for people to agree to organ donation. Whether it was his parents choice or his own, overcoming cultural reluctance to save lives is a major act of heroism.
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(#10) Madoka Kaname
- Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Madoka Magica Movie 1, Madoka Magica Movie 2, Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Most of the time, Madoka Kaname sits back and watches while her friends risk their lives fighting witches. She can't decide if she wants to be a magical girl, as she doesn't know what she'd wish for in exchange for her service, and she's not sure the perks justify the inherent danger.
After repeatedly seeing her friends suffer in the pursuit of witch-killing, Madoka sacrifices her humanity to put a stop to the main antagonists of Puella Magi Madoka Magica.
Madoka becomes a magical girl, and wishes for history to be rewritten so that witches never existed. In doing so, she becomes a god-like being, but permanently loses her status as a normal human. She may be powerful, but she'll never be able to interact with her friends and family again.
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About This Tool
The concept of a hero is a kind of ambiguity. Each has his own idea. It is not necessarily a powerful cartoon character that can be called a hero, there is a lot of no strength but the courage of the cartoon characters can still become heroes. My initial pursuit of the hero is not very dedicated, pure thought is just a funny joke cartoon, but when you further appreciation, you will find that the hero characters have their deeper meaning.
The random generator tool collates 17 entries from all of the anime characters, recording the characters that viewers consider to be the most heroic. You can see examples of Portgas D. Ace, Neji Hyuga, Lellouch Perouge, Greed, vegetable a, Lucy Heartfilia, and so on, all of them are enhanced by the plot.
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