With the recent uptick in horror action series redirecting fans' expectations of the shonen genre, villainous protagonists don't appear so out of place. In fact, after witnessing the fall of Eren Yeager and retracing his every mistake throughout the course of Attack On Titan, shonen fans are starting to question their protagonists more than ever before.
Even classic protagonists like Dragon Ball's Goku and Naruto's Naruto are not free from this cross-examination. There are actually a number of iconic anime protagonists who would have functioned better in the role of a villain rather than the hero.
10 Goku Plays The Role Of Villain On Accident (Dragon Ball)
Questioning the morality of one of the most popular anime protagonists of all time might sound ridiculous, but Dragon Ball's Goku has had this coming for a long time. In fact, if Raditz's words carry any weight, then Goku's original role was that of a villain rather than a hero.
Bardock's influence on his son may invalidate Raditz's words, but fans have yet to acknowledge that it was Goku who murdered Grandpa Gohan in the original Dragon Ball. Furthermore, Goku continued to put his world and other worlds at risk because of his obsession with combat all the way through Dragon Ball Super.
9 Alucard Is Both A Protagonist & Evil Incarnate (Castlevania)
The son of Dracula has earned a bit of positive recognition thanks to the recent Netflix adaptation of Castlevania. Of course, before Alucard was animated onscreen as a beautiful blonde-haired half-vampire, he was haunting the pages of Hellsing Ultimate.
In Castlevania, Alucard is a cold-blooded killer who makes enemies of Saints. These aren't the hypocritical Saints that fill the world of Castlevania either — these are good, decent human beings that Alucard seeks to destroy. If it weren't for his status as the series' protagonist, fans would have classified Alucard as a villain years ago.
8 Thorfinn Is A Vengeful Assassin Who Refuses To Learn From His Mistakes (Vinland Saga)
The brutal world that fans find in Vinland Saga is not a happy or comfortable place to live. The world is dark, scary, and above all else, filled with villainous characters. Even Thorfinn, the series protagonist hellbent on seeking revenge, is a villainous character compared to the average shonen protagonist.
Throughout Vinland Saga, Thorfinn refused to take responsibility for his actions and dedicated his life to violence. All the while, he made it a point to ignore the advice of his peers and his father, the latter being of particular note because of the motivation that drove him to kill in the first place.
7 Eren Yeager Proved That A Villainous Protagonist Could Lead A Mainstream Franchise (Attack On Titan)
Eren Yeager was such a strong candidate for the role of villain that Hajime Isayama slotted him into this role for the fourth and final season of Attack On Titan. After three seasons of slaying Titans and reinforcing the walls that kept his people safe, Eren's mission took a turn for the worse.
Season 4 gave fans a new perspective from which to see the world of Attack on Titan. From the Marleyan perspective, Eren was always the villain. While it is fair to question the validity of this point of view, the moment Eren started murdering innocent Eldian citizens he justified their claims and locked himself in as the most antagonistic protagonist of all time.
6 Yuji Continues To Give Sukuna A Foothold On The Modern Era (Jujutsu Kaisen)
Itadori Yuji from Jujutsu Kaisen is one of the kindest and most innocent best boys to ever make it into a mainstream anime series. Unfortunately, he also carries the soul of the most dangerous man to ever exist on planet Earth.
The only reason Yuji isn't considered a villain in Jujutsu Kaisen is because of his spotless personality. The moment he admits to a character flaw that can't be shrugged off as part of his boyish charm, fans are just as likely to turn on him as they are to follow him into the depths of Ryomen Sukuna's past.
5 Gon Would Make A Proper Foil To Killua Zoldyck (Hunter X Hunter)
Gon's development throughout Hunter x Hunter is one of the most dynamic character arcs that any shonen protagonist has ever experienced. At the start of his series, Gon is nothing more than a child with hopes of following in his father's footsteps and becoming a Hunter.
At this point, it should be noted that the father Gon models his life after had abandoned Gon on Whale Tail island and never returned. After securing his Hunter's license, Gon would go on to consistently gaslight his best friend and force Killua to risk his relationship with his family to make up for his selfish behavior.
4 Light Yagami Made Villainous Protagonists Popular (Death Note)
Before Attack On Titan's Eren Yeager ever dared mix antagonistic behavior into his role as a protagonist, Light Yagami was taking innocent lives off the board in Death Note. His behavior was so antagonistic that by the end of the series he was considered a villain by the majority of viewers.
Of course, it takes a dedicated fan of Death Note to make it past L's demise, but for those who managed to finish all 37 episodes of the anime, Light's descent into villainy was clear. So clear, in fact, that it is a wonder that fans didn't question his objective much earlier in the series.
3 If Asta Fully Embraced His Devil Power, He Would Be An Extremely Dangerous Antagonist (Black Clover)
In order to keep up with his childhood rival, Asta from Black Clover was forced to embrace a power that looks much more villainous than heroic. In fact, before Nacht made it onscreen, Asta was the only character in Black Clover to fight with the power of a devil and not serve the plot as an antagonist.
With this in mind, it makes more sense for the Magic Knights to see Asta as a villain rather than an ally. Damnatio Kira made this case and would have condemned Asta if it weren't for Julius Novachrono's meddling.
2 The One-Eyed King Has Played Villain Long Enough To Embrace The Role (Tokyo Ghoul)
The protagonist of Tokyo Ghoul is no stranger to playing the villain. Throughout the original Tokyo Ghoul and Tokyo Ghoul: re, Ken Kaneki acted as both a murderous ghoul and a competent Ghoul Hunter for the CCG.
In both scenarios, there were those who considered Kaneki a villain and those who saw him as a hero. In the end, Kaneki nearly brought about the destruction of humanity, but he was fortunate enough to be saved by those who truly deserve to be called heroes, Uri and Hide.
1 Makoto Edamura's Endgame Is As Villainous As The Men He Steals From (The Great Pretender)
The Great Pretender managed to slip under the radar of dedicated anime fans due to its release as a Netflix original anime series. Despite this, the original anime created by WIT Studios has everything that a fan could want in its 14-episode run.
The Great Pretender began by introducing fans to Makoto Edamura, a thief with a plan to steal from the rich and throw a giant party with all the money he boosted. While there are plenty of anime fans who would back Edamura's plan to take down the 1%, it would have been nice to see a few members of his crew question the financial decisions he made after their big heist.