Behind every powerful character lies a heartbreaking origin story. Join us as we explore the most devastating backstories in anime! From orphaned warriors to victims of unspeakable abuse, these characters emerged from darkness to become icons. Their painful pasts shaped who they became, proving that sometimes the deepest scars create the strongest heroes.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the anime characters whose
00:10early lives are marked by tragic events that shaped their future.
00:1420.
00:15Gintoki, Gintama He may be the lead in what is primarily a
00:26gag series, but Gintoki has a surprisingly grim backstory.
00:30An orphaned scavenger, Gintoki is taken in by a swordsmanship school.
00:35There, Gintoki makes friends and learns under the wing of his sensei, Shouyu.
00:43However, war sees most of the students die, and Gintoki is forced to choose between killing
00:48his remaining friends or Shouyu himself.
00:51Shouyu has always insisted that Gintoki look after his fellow students, and is accepting
00:56of Gintoki's decision to kill him.
01:04That doesn't make Gintoki's sadness, or his friend Takasugi's horrified distress, any
01:08less easy to bear in the moment, though.
01:1319.
01:14Tamura Shigaraki, My Hero Academia Villains are made, not born.
01:20Shigaraki, born Tenko Shimura, is the grandson of famous hero Nana Shimura.
01:25Initially believed to lack a quirk, Tenko idolized heroes despite his father, Kotaro,
01:31resenting his mother, and all heroes by extension.
01:38Kotaro's abuse of Tenko and his family has disastrous effects.
01:44When Tenko finally manifests his quirk, it leads to horrific tragedy.
01:49Tenko can decay anything he touches, which leads to him accidentally killing first his
01:54dog, then his sister, mother, and grandparents.
01:58When Tenko intentionally kills his dad, it's awful, though we get it.
02:05And then, as if that wasn't bad enough, Tenko is groomed as Tamura Shigaraki by All
02:10for One, the man who killed his hero grandma and created his experiences in the first place.
02:1818.
02:19Daki and Gyutaro, Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba
02:22Given how cruel they are as demons, it probably shouldn't be a surprise that Daki and Gyutaro
02:28had a rough upbringing when they were human.
02:30Both were born to a worker in the poorer parts of the entertainment district.
02:41Abused by their mother, the duo eventually left her to live by themselves.
02:45The siblings hoped to escape poverty after Daki, or Ume, began training in a brothel
02:51and Gyutaro worked as an enforcer.
02:53However, after she stabbed a customer for insulting her brother, Daki is burned alive,
02:59nearly dying in the process, with Gyutaro nearly killed by her attackers too.
03:08Given how desperate their lives were until that point, we can't blame them for accepting
03:12the offer to become demons.
03:1817.
03:20Krona, Soul Eater
03:22When your mother is a witch trying to resurrect the Kishin, you're not going to have a happy
03:26childhood.
03:27Krona is always a little unhinged, and they got their way through some awful abuse.
03:37For starters, they had all their blood replaced by black blood, allowing the Demon Sword Ragnarok
03:42to fuse with them and manifest as a separate being.
03:46When Ragnarok wasn't insulting or belittling Krona, Medusa kept her child locked up unless
03:52they killed for her.
03:58This horrific environment basically guaranteed that Krona would grow up on the verge of madness
04:03and with little experience with, or empathy for, other people.
04:1016.
04:13Masami Iwasawa, Angel Beats
04:23In one way or another, every character in Angel Beats has a tragic backstory.
04:27They're all dead and hanging out in limbo.
04:30Masami was the child of parents who seemed to be constantly fighting, causing her to
04:35feel severe anxiety and loneliness.
04:47She found an outlet when she began playing the guitar.
04:50Things seemed to be looking up, until she then suffered a stroke, which paralyzed her.
04:54This was due to her father hitting her in the head with a beer bottle when she was younger,
04:59and would eventually lead to her death.
05:01Hopefully, she'll have better luck in her next life.
05:1015.
05:14Mitty, Maiden Abyss
05:16The deeper you go into Maiden Abyss, the more tragic everything gets.
05:20Mitty used to be a cheerful, optimistic young girl.
05:24She makes friends with Nanachi, as they both volunteer to work under the White Whistle
05:29Bondrewd.
05:30Gradually, fewer and fewer children are part of their group, until, at last, Mitty is called.
05:43Nanachi follows, and Bondrewd sends both to the sixth level of the Abyss as part of his
05:49experiments.
05:50Both are transformed, and while Nanachi retains her intelligence, Mitty devolves into a blob-like,
05:55monstrous creature, barely capable of speech, and unable to die, no matter how much pain
06:01is inflicted on her.
06:13It's a horrific thing to happen to anyone, much less a little girl.
06:2014.
06:21Kotomi Ichinose, Clannad
06:24Kotomi is painfully shy and withdrawn when viewers first meet her in Clannad.
06:29It turns out that she and Tomiya, the main character of the series, were once good friends
06:33when they were little.
06:35They renewed their friendship, but one day, they witness a bus crash, which traumatizes
06:40Kotomi.
06:45It reminds her of the plane crash that killed her parents, and made her afraid to get close
06:50to anyone again for fear of being hurt.
07:00Fortunately, Tomiya doesn't let her withdraw from the world again, but it takes a lot of
07:08effort to bring Kotomi back into contact with people.
07:1513.
07:16Kaoru Hanabishi, Ayori Aoshi
07:19Kaoru's problems originate from his birth.
07:21He was the oldest son of the head of the Hanabishi clan, so things should have been rosy.
07:29Unfortunately, his father and mother lived together without the benefit of marriage,
07:45which caused a bit of a scandal.
07:47His father died when he was five years old.
07:49His grandfather insisted on adopting him, and cutting off all his ties with his mother.
08:04He suffered a great deal of physical and verbal abuse thereafter, before running away to live
08:09on his own.
08:2012.
08:23Hakuryuu Ren, Magi, The Labyrinth of Magic
08:27Being a prince isn't all it's cracked up to be.
08:30Just ask this guy.
08:31At the age of six, he was caught in a massive fire when enemies revolted against his father.
08:42He fled with his older brothers, both of whom died, but not before revealing that it was
08:47their own mother who started the revolt.
08:55One of his brothers stabbed himself and poured his blood all over Hakuryuu, hoping the liquid
09:00would protect him from the flames.
09:02Although scarred, Hakuryuu lived, and had to confront the fact that his mother had brought
09:07about his destruction.
09:1111.
09:12Yuno Gasai, Future Diary
09:15Yuno is one crazy kid, and we mean that literally.
09:29Someone might go a little nuts with her history, though.
09:32Her father largely ignored her, while her mother was obsessed with turning Yuno into
09:36a perfect person.
09:38To that end, she locked her in a cage and starved and abused her.
09:42Eventually, Yuno was able to turn the tables and lock her parents up.
09:49Unfortunately, she forgot to feed them, and they eventually starved to death.
09:54After which, she kept their bodies around for conversational purposes.
09:58You know, healthy, normal stuff.
10:0410.
10:05Ceres Victoria, Hellsing Ultimate
10:08Vampires typically have a life bathed in blood, but Ceres Victoria's began before she joined
10:14the undead.
10:15Through an illusory flashback, we learn that Ceres' father was a police officer.
10:26His undercover work was exposed, and the gang he was infiltrating found and murdered
10:31him.
10:32As Ceres hid in the closet, his killers were confronted by her mother, who was also killed.
10:43Ceres tried to attack them as well, and although she stabbed one in the eye, she was shot and
10:48left for dead.
10:50That alone would be enough for a lifetime of trauma, but the unspeakable things one
10:54of them did to her mother's body… well, we can see why Ceres has such a strong sense
10:59of justice as an adult.
11:049.
11:07Torfinn, Vinland Saga
11:09Initially a wide-eyed young boy from Iceland, Torfinn's whole life changes after he stows
11:14away on a ship with his father, Tors.
11:17Tragically, along the way, they are ambushed by Vikings led by Ashlad, with orders for
11:22Tors' death.
11:28Distraught and furious, Torfinn stows away again, joining Ashlad's band in the hopes
11:33of one day killing him.
11:35Torfinn's youth is spent constantly at war and surrounded by violence.
11:39However, Torfinn is denied his revenge and is sent into slavery.
11:44Robbed of his family and his reason for living, Torfinn begins his adulthood truly adrift.
11:50It's no wonder he feels as if nothing good has ever happened to him.
11:588.
12:01Hyakkimaru, Dororo
12:03Some people are born into tragedy.
12:05Hyakkimaru's father, Lord Kagemitsu Daigo, made a pact with demons before he was born.
12:18In exchange for power, Daigo's firstborn is born without skin, limbs, and many other
12:28bodily functions, like being able to feel pain.
12:31Set adrift by his father, Hyakkimaru is adopted and given prosthetic limbs by a surgeon, Dr.
12:42Jukai.
12:44As he kills demons, he regains the limbs and sensations denied to him, though he also risks
12:49losing his humanity.
12:51There's stealing the next generation's future from them, and then there's this.
13:007.
13:01Edward and Alphonse Elric, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood
13:05Given that these two brothers are introduced as being partially or fully metallic, there's
13:09no chance of a happy origin story.
13:12When the boys were young, their mother, Tricia, passed away, leaving them orphaned, as their
13:17father had been away for many years.
13:22Already talented in alchemy, the duo studies further, eventually attempting to perform
13:28human transmutation, essentially trying to bring their mom back from the dead.
13:33Horrifically, not only is what they create not even human, but Ed's arm and leg and Al's
13:39entire body are sacrificed as payment.
13:43Alchemy is about equivalent exchange, but there's no equaling the trauma they experience
13:48here.
13:496.
13:50Ciel Phantomhive, Black Butler You don't summon a demon to be your butler
14:01if life has gone according to plan.
14:04On Ciel's tenth birthday, he found his parents and dog dead.
14:12He was then abducted and enslaved by a cult.
14:15After suffering their abuse, which included torture and branding, among other unsavory
14:21things, Ciel eventually managed to summon the demon, Sebastian.
14:25By contracting with Sebastian, he set the demon on those responsible for his many ordeals.
14:38Ciel can come off as cold and a bit of a brat, but after what he endured, the kids earned
14:43all the leeway in the world.
14:475.
14:49Lucy, Elfenlied Lucy is an outcast, and the small horns she
14:53was born with are a clear sign to everyone that she isn't human.
14:57Because of it, she is feared and mistreated by those around her.
15:01The fact she believes her parents abandoned her also causes her grief.
15:05As a child, she befriended a stray puppy and came to love it.
15:15When she revealed the puppy's existence to a girl she considered a friend, the girl betrayed
15:19her trust.
15:20Some local schoolboys heard about the puppy, stole it from Lucy, and beat it to death in
15:25front of her.
15:26So, she killed them.
15:33After that, she was taken in by a secret organization who experimented on and tortured her endlessly.
15:38Well, that does explain the bounce of rage.
15:434.
15:44Ymir, Attack on Titan This dark series has plenty of horrifying
15:48backstories to choose from.
15:50Although Levi's was certainly a contender, all of them pale compared to that of the founding
15:55titan Ymir.
15:572,000 years before the current storyline, Ymir was a young girl whose tribe was conquered
16:03by the Eldians.
16:04She had her tongue cut out and was hunted for sport.
16:07While being chased, Ymir encountered a mysterious being that bonded with her, creating the power
16:13of the titans.
16:18However, she was so beaten down that she continued serving the Eldian king Fritz, giving her life
16:28for the asshole who then forced their daughters to cannibalize her.
16:32Even death didn't end her enslavement, as Ymir continued serving her descendants by
16:37constructing their titan bodies outside of time.
16:443, Everyone, Naruto Franchise Ninjas cut onions constantly in this franchise.
16:59It's downright infamous for its tragic backstories.
17:02The title character grows up alone and ostracized by his village.
17:06His rival Sasuke's entire clan is murdered by his brother, Itachi.
17:10And the reason why Itachi had to do that is heartbreaking, too.
17:14Characters like Gaara are raised to be monstrous weapons.
17:24Heroes and villains alike get a raw deal.
17:27The world of Ninja is harsh and unforgiving, and filled with young people whose lives are
17:32defined by trauma.
17:34The fact that it's probably easier to list the Naruto characters without sad backstories
17:39is kind of why we had to lump them all together like this.
17:452, Everyone, One Piece It's just a goofy pirate anime, right?
17:57Well, turns out practically most of the main cast has a backstory that ranges from sad
18:03to downright horrific.
18:06Basically, every member of the Straw Hat crew and several major side characters went through
18:11something in childhood, or their early lives, that will make you bawl your eyes out.
18:16Nami's mom is killed in front of her, and she has to work for her murderer for years.
18:24Brook's whole crew dies, and he spends 50 years in solitude.
18:28Robin and Law are both survivors of two different genocides.
18:32Everyone, One Piece can be joyful, sure, but it's all the heartbreak the characters have
18:36experienced that makes the happy times shine brighter.
19:02Guts!
19:03Berserk!
19:04Some births are more difficult than others.
19:05Guts, for example, was born from his mother's corpse, as she hung from a tree.
19:10But wait, there's more!
19:11He was adopted by an abusive mercenary named Gambino, who regularly assaulted Guts and later
19:17rented him out for the rest of the army.
19:24When Guts was old enough to finally kill Gambino and flee, all he knew was a life of suffering
19:29and hardship.
19:32For a long time, Guts' only source of happiness is fighting and killing, traveling around
19:38with mercenary groups in search of a glorious death.
19:47Is there an anime character with a dark past whose absence from our list haunts you?
19:52The first step towards healing is telling us your favorites in those comments below.