Imagine you were accused of a crime you didn’t commit by society, the system, a friend, or a lover. How would you fight back (if at all)? Whether working to expose your accusers or to forge your own path, it’s difficult to move forward when you can no longer rely on the people or systems you once trusted. But it is possible. Just ask the characters on our list. These five anime characters didn’t let false accusations take them down; instead, they overcame them.
Shusei Kagari (Psycho-Pass)
Shusei Kagari has never committed a crime, but he is serving a life sentence.
He isn’t framed but betrayed by a system. In Psycho-Pass, the Sybil System is absolute. It guarantees a safe, orderly, and sanitary world — just don’t look behind the curtain. At the tender age of five, the Sybil System labels Shusei as an unreformable latent criminal.
He’s given a choice: serve his sentence in an institution or as an Enforcer, an expendable law enforcement tool. As expected, Shusei chooses the latter. However, his reasons for his choice aren’t clear. Does he wish to hunt down other criminals, or is he desperate to connect with the society that has rejected him?
Either way, Sybil’s unquestioned authority makes the easygoing Shusei cynical and bitter. Despite his feelings, when a group of terrorists discovers Sybil’s lies, Shusei refuses to side with them — even though exposing Sybil could set him free. To Shusei, the terrorists are just as bad as Sybil. They each seek to control others’ lives, and Shusei refuses to be controlled by anyone. Instead, he embraces the system’s accusation, choosing to forge his own path by protecting the people who are “protected” from him.
Inuyasha (Inuyasha)
Before the demon Naraku attacks Kikyo to get his hands on the Shikon Jewel, he disguises himself as Kikyo’s half-demon lover, Inuyasha. Believing that Inuyasha desires the jewel to become a full demon, Kikyo imprisons the real Inuyasha. Then, injured and heartbroken, Kikyo dies believing her lover betrayed her.
Enter Kagome, a modern-day high schooler who is also Kikyo’s reincarnation. Traveling to the past through a sacred well, Kagome frees Inuyasha and set out with the half-demon to recover the now shattered Shikon Jewel. She needs Inuyasha’s strength, but he’s still plagued by guilt over failing to protect Kikyo from Naraku — and he hasn’t learned to control his demon side.
To defeat Naraku and avenge Kikyo, Inuyasha goes on a dangerous quest for the Tessaiga, a powerful sword forged from one of his demon father’s fangs. However, mastering the Tessaiga requires Inuyasha to overcome his guilt and master his demon side. It is by confronting and overcoming his past that Inuyasha is able to unlock his true potential and set things right with Kikyo.
Dr. Kenzo Tenma (Monster)
In Monster, Dr. Kenzo Tenma sacrifices a promising career at the prestigious Eisley Memorial Hospital and loses his fiancée when he chooses to operate on an orphan boy, Johan Liebert, over attending to the wealthy mayor.
As Tenma performs surgery, he vents to the seemly unconscious Liebert about his troubles. When the patient recovers, he shows his gratitude to Tenma by murdering the hospital’s administrators. Of course, Tenma becomes the police’s prime suspect, but without proof, they’re forced to set him free. Taking his life into his own hands, Tenma investigates the murders on his own and discovers Liebert is the one responsible. Oh, and he’s also a serial killer.
Unable to go to the police or ignore Liebert’s crimes, Tenma buys a gun and hunts Liebert down. However, when it comes time to pull the trigger, someone else beats him to it. With Liebert wounded, Tenma once again puts his life-savings skills to work. He not only proves that he’s the bigger person but also clears his name by exposing Liebert. Despite everything he’s been through, Tenma proves himself incorruptible.
Vash the Stampede (Trigun)
In Trigun, Vash and his twin brother, Knives, are humanoid plants. Vash believes humans and plants can peacefully coexist, whereas Knives vows to exterminate all humans. Knives experiments on Vash and accidentally unleashes brother’s Angel Arm, an inborn weapon so powerful it obliterates the town of July. Framed for the deaths of July’s 200,000 citizens, Vash earns the label “The Humanoid Typhoon” and a 60-billion-dollar bounty.
With such an astronomical bounty and terrifying nickname, Vash becomes a living bogeyman. To overcome his unjust reputation and atone for July, Vash refuses to defend himself from bounty hunters. All he wants is peace and friendship, but with greedy bounty hunters and a murderous twin chasing him, Vash must isolate himself to protect the people he loves.
As twins and the only sentient humanoid plants, Vash and Knives are unique, making their inevitable confrontation more painful and deadly. But Vash stays true to himself, overcoming Knives without destroying him.
Ganta Igarashi (Deadman Wonderland)
As the only survivor, Ganta Igarashi is traumatized by the murder of his classmates, but his ordeal has just begun. The true perpetrator, the Red Man, frames Ganta for the murders and gets him convicted. Like Alice falling into the nonsensical world of Wonderland, Ganta descends into the equally nonsensical Deadman Wonderland where he’s forced to use a blood gift (known as a Deadman power) to fight for survival in a sadistic penal system.
As Ganta battles to escape Deadman Wonderland, he discovers that the Red Man is his childhood friend, Shiro. Subjected to brutal government experiments, Shiro develops multiple personalities. She is desperate to escape her captors and framed Ganta to enlist his help.
Realizing Shiro is also a victim, Ganta risks his life to save her. Together, they escape Wonderland and end the government experiments. Ganta loses his childhood innocence in the brutal Wonderland prison but by remaining compassionate and finding his hidden strength he manages to survive.
