Discussion Which type of mc is better

Discussion in 'Novel Discussion' started by Sourceofchaos, Nov 7, 2018.

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  1. Hero

  2. Antihero

  3. Villain

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  1. Sourceofchaos

    Sourceofchaos Well-Known Member

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    So l was arguing with my friend over which type of mc is better, which l found that anti hero is better because it was not too kind or too evil, it was more like doing what we want without a care for the consequence
     
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  2. Jojo775

    Jojo775 Honorary Algae Knight

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    What you're thinking of antihero isn't really it most likely.
    No one said hero has to be goody two shoes, hence most of these antiheroes are just normal heroes with a bit more brain and personality.
    No one is gonna like a vilain for sure, especially the dumb vilains of web novels.
    The only likeable vilains are those who end up softening up and maybe even going down the redemption road like Picollo, Vegeta, but then they're not vilains anymore…
     
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  3. Nimroth

    Nimroth Someone

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    Totally depends on what story they are in.
     
  4. Jigoku Shounen

    Jigoku Shounen An Envoy From Hell

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    Depend on the story.
    But among the 3, Villains are easily the most freedom characters to write. A Villain can literally do anything they want, since they are "Villains", so it's easier for their actions and movements to be predicted, and to set the directions for them to go.
     
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  5. N1gh7R4v3n

    N1gh7R4v3n Bounty Hunter for skittles

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    Anti-heroes are usually better written. They do bad things, but they do it for the best of reasons.
     
  6. Anon Ymous

    Anon Ymous Well-Known Member

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    i hate it when a villain/anti hero is doing something like trying to save the world by killing(sacrifice) people or something worthy and then mc appears beat him up and tell how wrong it is to kill people etc for the cause and then the story end
    nothing is resolved but everyone praise hero for defeating villain
     
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  7. Estarossa

    Estarossa 《Master of Dessert》°Resurrected Ghoul°

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  8. 0000000

    0000000 I B SMILING!

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    Frankly, you gauge these 3 into how they do things and what is their end results.
    Hero: Do Good Things for a Good Ending (save the day and a bunch of backgrounds)
    Antihero: Do Questionable (down to Bad) Things for a slightly GE (probably loads of people died, some may be avoidable IF Anti had been slight softer in approach)
    Villain: Do Bad Things for a Bad Ending (World Destruction/Domination)

    What I want as a friend in materialistic means is that someone who does not end up hurting me too badly (death and missing appendages are no go, minor cuts and scarrings, physical and emotional, are fine). Getting chased by supporters turned mobs/ "righteous fuckers" are common when you are friend to the 3 above, more so if you are in the spotlight as well, so I can go suck it.

    If I am forced to choose between the 3, I would mostly go for the hero, then anti and last is villain. I don't know who in the right state of mind will pick villain. Then again, a hero in human side is a maou in the other side...

    Then there is mentality, Hero are Righteous AF and there goes my slave loli nekomimi harem... Antihero are more "liberal" and can twist rules to fit whatever games they play. Villains... who the fuck will pick villains unless they are Ms, imagine some asshats who troll you or down right maul you in the name of evil...
     
  9. Nyctophilia

    Nyctophilia Pretend Don't Exist

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    Hero = YES man
    Anti-hero = 50/50
    Villian = NO man
     
  10. juniorjawz

    juniorjawz Well-Known Member

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    Anything will work for me.
    I'm more to the good guy, sunshines and happiness kind of guy with any interesting added complexity that doesn't make that MC one dimensional.

    What's important and what makes me interested to that character is the transformation or change to make that character a better version of him/herself, be it through strengthening what he has or changing his/her personality and trait.

    It's this kind of thing I like about an MC.
     
  11. Robbini

    Robbini Logical? Illogical? Random? Or Just Unique?

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    • Light Side / Paragon / Hero = Do whatever is possible to help as many as possible
    • Grey Side / Neutral / Anti-Hero = Do whatever you want to make your desired outcome the end outcome
    • Dark Side / Renegade / Villain = Do whatever you want to either have fun, destroy someone or something or generally create havoc if that's your thing, but don't expect what's left to be in good shape
    Basically, anyone who's played any RPG with a karma / moral system will now that being light or grey tends to give you more things and allies in the long run, whereas being dark side will be for instant rewards and the fact you're 'allowed' to kill anyone begging for you to do menial tasks for pittances because they're too lazy or too scared
     
  12. canaria23

    canaria23 『  』

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    The realistic average guy but one where his efforts pays off, it's best that the average guy is not the hero or villain.
     
  13. AIm21

    AIm21 Well-Known Member

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    The best protagonists is one that make you want to root for him to win to the end.

    What his moral alignment is means squat if he is a terribly written character to begin with in the end.

    Ainz in his world is the big baddy that heroes are usually made to overcome and defeat, but he curbstomps them every time and we love it.

    Tanya in her world committed atrocious acts against people she is at war to get ahead and survive not because she hate those people yet we still root for her as a sort of anti-hero.

    Rimaru in its world is a hero character that wants to save those he can no matter monster or human and relax in its new life as a slime yet people don't care about that and enjoy his daily antics with his servants.

    So moral alignment is not what determine a protagonist is the best, but how it makes the reader continue to follow them by whatever they do in there individual world.

    Or it just mean salaryman reincarnated is the best MC.
     
    Last edited: Nov 7, 2018
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  14. Superioreos

    Superioreos Well-Known Member

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    Leylin best villain MC.
     
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  15. Sourceofchaos

    Sourceofchaos Well-Known Member

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    Well l choose anti hero because in most novel l read especially japanese where the mc was thrown or reincarnated into another world acting all justice justice and tried to help everybody without even a need for repayment, l mean what the heck is wrong with these people.
    I mean if you just somwhow got transported into another world without your consent it was called kidnapping and when you arrive there you have to lower yourself to some kingor what not when if it was just based on rareness of class alone you as the hero is far more rarer than a king and yet you have to lower yourself and then have to save their world just because it was attacked by some maou, l mean l know you guys was given a cheat because you got transported but to use those cheat to save a world and it people that you don't even know or even the same as you it was idiotic to me, after all those cheat can be considered as payment for calling without your consent ao it was up to you wheter you use it right, and also not to mention other problem that came your way because of your unneccesery meddling.
    While if you became an anti hero you can whatever you want because you are free.
     
  16. Cupcake Ninja

    Cupcake Ninja [Kind Sage][Lord Benevolence][ The Great Paragon]

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    nah mate you can love and hate pure villains at the same time and in equal measure. They dont have to be some basic bitch baddie turned goodie type of "villain" either. They just have to have a reason for their evil.

    Personally, for me, the best villains are ones you can understand, sometimes even relate to. You dont have to like what they do. Just understand the reasons why they do it, what drives them, what created them, and as i said even better if you can make the audience empathize with them too.

    The worst villains are ones that are just straight up evil or cruel for no particular reason, or who suddenly have a "change of heart" later after having done truly heinous crimes. Like nah bitch you're bad and you chose a wicked path so you best be a man with a pair and follow it. No one really likes a villain who doesnt follow through. Makes them seem like total flakes. As for the pure evil bastards, well they're fun to hate but they grow boring fast unless they're REALLY creative in their assholery like Jeoffry.

    Me, i prefer the smart type of villains. The ones obsessed with a single goal and forsake everything else in pursuit of it. For example i remember reading a sorta dark harem manga some years back(something something Brinhildr i think?) and there was this scientist bro. Created all kinds of cute girls with awesome powers but sacrifieced untold numbers of lives to do it, broke ever moral code in the book. Why? Dude just wanted to bring back his sister or something. And to that end he didnt give a damn about what he had to do. That is a admirable amount of pure, merciless focus. He didnt wuss out later on either. Nah, he stuck with it. He was cruel and ruthless and cold, but he was clear minded and knew what he was doing. Might've been a bit of a sociopath, true, but still. Villains like him i respect cuz they understand they're villains and have reasons to be villains in a way that i cant condone but, given the right circumstances, might feel i can relate to if i had someone i cared for that much.

    Would you do what he did? People automatically want to say, "no, im not that crazy, i'd never do something like that" but thats just not true. Under the right circumstances, give right motivation, you think you could. You start thinking, "well if X happened, i might". We all might. And that "might" is where the villain isnt just a villain. He's you.
     
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  17. gheist1234

    gheist1234 |Path Finder| 『WuxiaWworld Vet.』|Beardy| |Zen|

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    Depends, anti-hero doesn't do things for neither greater good or greater evil, some anti-heroes just do what needs to be done for their benefit, like with Leylin from WMW, on the gods world lots of people die, but it is all for his wish to reach immortality
     
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  18. DiabolicGod

    DiabolicGod Well-known lazy Member

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    I'm clearly for villain MCs, as when they are written well, I can identify the most with them, more than with well written hero and antihero characters. that stems from the fact that any reasonable MC gets labeled as a villain, like Leylin from WMW, when even I, a relative normie have thought of doing many things that would get me an instant label of 'Villain' even when I'm no MC nor able to do them

    and no, just thinking "I'd like to do this to get rid of the bother" without thinking about consequences, mental (for yourself) and in total, is not what I'm speaking of. I mean thinking about scenarios I'd like to do and what could happen from any angle possible, including a fly setting off a bomb
     
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  19. DiabolicGod

    DiabolicGod Well-known lazy Member

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    that is a problem of the author imo. they mostly appear in the work of an author who can't think up any non-one or two dimensional antagonists
    I mean, come on, how hard is it to just introduce them, if they are relevant, with some poor past and that they got plausibly manipulated by the evil guys into doing this and that
     
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  20. Wujigege

    Wujigege *Christian*SIMP*Comedian

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    It depends on overexposure
    If all you read is anti-hero stories, even a Mary sue or rather a Gary stu will be a breath of fresh air