“ | This is one of the good guys! ... Well, as close as we get to it. | „ |
~ Harumi Nakahara. |
“ | I have no interest in being a villain, and I don't think that I can become a good person. I'm at a halfway point where I'm not even sure which path I should walk down... but I guess even there, I can still interfere in someone's life and help bring things to a positive conclusion. | „ |
~ Accelerator |
“ | I never said I was a hero. I never claimed to be anything | „ |
~ Black Adam |
Heroes by Proxy are heroes who have no desire to be good or heroic, but were forced into it by circumstance or a story's unique angle. This can be due to things like betrayal from the villain, brainwashing, or having no option in the matter. Whatever the reason, these heroes do the right thing but not based on their morals or initiative. They are the polar opposite of Villains by Proxy.
There are several different models this can manifest in:
- The Nominal Hero: Heroes who do good, not because they feel their actions are right but rather because they can directly benefit from the actions being taken. Heroes like The Bride from Kill Bill, Denji from Chainsaw Man or Varrick from The Legend of Korra are perfect examples of this.
- The Unwitting Hero: Neutral parties who are tricked into doing the right thing by others. Grim from The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy.
- The Assigned Protagonist: Characters who become protagonists based purely on responsibility being thrust upon them and not because they actually want to. Heroes like Doctor Venture of The Venture Brothers, Denji and Shinji Ikari epitomize this. Though some of characters of this type, such as John Constantine, may eventually start doing the right thing of their own accord.
- The Best of the Worst: Heroes who are heroes only because they live in a Dystopia where, as bad as they are, they're still the best of a bad situation, such as The Boss from the Saints Row games.
- The Token Evil Teammate: Heroes who in any other scenario would be doing evil but do good, purely as a favor to another hero. Characters such as Hiei from Yu Yu Hakusho, Erika Wagner from Under Night In-Birth, and Alastor from Hazbin Hotel embody this concept.
- Reprogrammed Artificial Intelligence: Artificial intelligence villains that become heroes only because they were reprogrammed to be one. Heroes like IG-11 fall under here. In addition to having moral agency issues, they also never show remorse for their evil deeds. However, some, such as K-2SO and AP-5, can still willingly be heroes if they can freely choose to do what is right in addition to having a clear personality outside of their programming.
- Villain's Side Heroes : Villains who are assisting the heroes only for defeating other villains that are far more dangerous than themselves. Heroes like Bowser from Super Mario, Plankton from SpongeBob Squarepants, and Dr. Neo Cortex from Crash Bandicoot are perfect examples of this.
Important Note: None of these characters are Pure Good since, unlike Heroes By Proxy, that category applies to intentional doing good. Also, don't add heroes who started off not wanting to be heroes but embraced the role later, even if they are not Pure Good. Save that for Reluctant Heroes. Due to many of these heroes not having any desire of being good, many of these heroes are also villains.
All items (579)
- Abby (Let Me In)
- Abnes
- Afro Samurai
- Agent 47
- Agni
- AJ Frost
- Al Bundy
- Alastor (Hazbin Hotel)
- Alex (Lockout)
- Alex Shepherd
- Alex Standall
- Alfred Brown
- Alien Hominid
- Aliens (Alien Hominid)
- Alistair Krei
- Alto Clef
- Alvis
- Andrei Ivanovich Yermak
- Andrew Glouberman
- Andy & Chris
- Angela Bennett
- Angela Jitrenka
- Angelica Pickles
- Angelo Lagusa
- Angry Video Game Nerd
- Anne (Stardust Crusaders)
- Annie Leonhart
- Aqua (Konosuba)
- Ariadne Oliver
- Arle Nadja
- Arthur Dent
- Arthur Morgan
- Asa Mitaka
- Asha Greyjoy
- Ashley (WarioWare)
- Ataru Moroboshi
- Augus
- Awaki Musujime
- Baatar Jr.
- Badger
- Bahamut (Final Fantasy XVI)
- Barry Johnson
- Barthélémy Karas
- Beatrix Kiddo
- Beavis & Butt-Head
- Behemoth
- Bender Bending Rodríguez
- Benkei Musashibō
- Bigby Wolf
- Billy Butcher (TV Series)
- Black Adam (DC Extended Universe)
- Blackavar (Watership Down)
- Blackjack (Killzone)
- Blair (Soul Eater)
- Bloodsport (DC Extended Universe)
- Bobby Green
- Bokkun
- Bowser
- Bowser Jr.
- Brain (Animaniacs)
- Cactus McCoy
- Cait (Fallout 4)
- Cale Tucker
- Cameron Poe
- Canal Crew
- Captain Flynn (Skylanders)
- Captain Hero
- Captain Stretchypants
- Captain Underpants
- Carl Brutananadilewski
- Carl Johnson
- Carl Lee Hailey
- Carmen Sandiego (Where in The World is Carmen Sandiego?)
- Carmine (Pokémon)
- Cats (Minecraft)
- Celestia Ludenberg
- Chang Koehan
- Charlie Collins
- Charlie McGee
- Charlie the Unicorn
- Charon (Fallout 3)
- Chet
- Chili Pepper Cookie
- Choi Bounge
- Chuck (Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt)
- Claire Bennet
- Claude (Grand Theft Auto)
- Clay Calloway
- Colonel Woodrow Dolarhyde
- Combat Agent Six
- Commander Peepers
- Conker the Squirrel
- Connor Cornwall
- D-9341
- D.A.R.
- Dae-su Oh
- Daffy Duck (Looney Tunes)
- Dairou
- Dante (101 Dalmatian Street)
- Darklings
- Davey Stone
- Deadpool (X-Men Movies)
- Deadshot (DC Extended Universe)
- Deathstroke (Injustice)
- Deku Butler's Son
- Demitri Maximoff
- Denji
- Dennis the Menace (UK)
- Depth Charge
- Desna & Eska
- Detective Lipton
- Dethklok (Metalocalypse)
- Devon Marks
- Dexter Grif
- Diablo (That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime)
- Diesel (Thomas & Friends)
- Dingodile
- DJ (The Meg)
- DJ Octavio
- Doc (Cowboys & Aliens)
- Doctor (The Guest Story)
- Dr. Colosso
- Dr. Elmer Hartman
- Dr. Finkelstein
- Dr. Nefario
- Dr. Neo Cortex
- Drop Dead Fred
- Dru Gru
- Duncan Vizla
- Gabriel Belmont
- Game (There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension)
- Garfield
- Gary King
- Gato (SNK)
- Gavin (Ice Age)
- Gaz Membrane
- Gen Nakaoka
- Geoffrey Plumb
- George McFly
- Gertie
- Ghost Rider (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
- Ghost Rider (Marvel)
- Gillian Bellaver
- Giselle (Pokémon)
- Glenn Quagmire
- Global Occult Coalition
- Gold Saints
- Gomorrah
- Gord Brody
- Goro Akechi
- Goth Kids (South Park)
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- Grandsanta
- Greg Heffley
- Gregg the Grim Reaper
- Grim (The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy)
- Grim Reaper (folklore)
- Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez
- GTA Online Protagonists
- Gumball Watterson
- Guo Huai