What's the Best Revenge Story in Anime? Let's Talk About Sweet, Sweet Vengeance
You know how the story goes by now: a decent schmuck who's just a little bit down on his luck and a little bit overlooked gets cruelly kicked out of his party, or framed for doing bad things, or outright sold into slavery by highly unscrupulous former comrades. But, it turns out that they messed with the wrong guy, because decent schmuck is actually \[insert power here\] and now he's either going to live his best life, make his former comrades die horribly, or both.
Mother's Basement has started calling them "one of those fuckin' things." But is there an anime following this kind of formula that you'd actually consider *good*?
Does the revenge story still exist in anime beyond that generic story archetype? What did it look like *before* we started to see "one of those fuckin' things" every season? Is it all edgelord-driven, angsty torture porn or are there some really thoughtful shows that really reflect upon the issues surrounding vengeance (and anything else that comes up in the story)?
Is it all fantasy worlds and heroes parties, or are there good revenge stories in other genres and settings, too?
And, perhaps most importantly, what do you think is the **best** revenge story in anime?
There's something about revenge that really appeals to our innate sense of justice, seeing victims balance the scales of justice with their own hands, so I'm curious to see what people in this community have taken from the intersection between anime and sweet, sweet vengeance.
Feel free to treat this as a hybrid space between making recommendations, answering any of the questions I've raised here (or coming up with your own spin on it), and arguing for your own personal favourite. I haven't seen much anime that's specifically a revenge thing (although if there's a powerful sub-plot in a show, I'd also be interested to hear about it), so I'll look forward to checking out shows that get brought up!
Mother's Basement has started calling them "one of those fuckin' things." But is there an anime following this kind of formula that you'd actually consider *good*?
Does the revenge story still exist in anime beyond that generic story archetype? What did it look like *before* we started to see "one of those fuckin' things" every season? Is it all edgelord-driven, angsty torture porn or are there some really thoughtful shows that really reflect upon the issues surrounding vengeance (and anything else that comes up in the story)?
Is it all fantasy worlds and heroes parties, or are there good revenge stories in other genres and settings, too?
And, perhaps most importantly, what do you think is the **best** revenge story in anime?
There's something about revenge that really appeals to our innate sense of justice, seeing victims balance the scales of justice with their own hands, so I'm curious to see what people in this community have taken from the intersection between anime and sweet, sweet vengeance.
Feel free to treat this as a hybrid space between making recommendations, answering any of the questions I've raised here (or coming up with your own spin on it), and arguing for your own personal favourite. I haven't seen much anime that's specifically a revenge thing (although if there's a powerful sub-plot in a show, I'd also be interested to hear about it), so I'll look forward to checking out shows that get brought up!
Commentaires
I would also consider code geass to have the setting of a revenge story, as it is about lelouch getting his revenge on the empire, though by the end, the anime becomes much more than that.
They're both very interesting because they have some very different takes on revenge, and other matters come to the forefront.
Very different to your *Count of Monte Cristo* (also an anime!) type stories, where it's one person destroying everyone who once destroyed them.
[meta] >!Psycho-Pass!<
In that case the recent [Mugen Gacha](https://anilist.co/anime/184322/Shinjiteita-Nakamatachi-ni-Dungeon-Okuchi-de-Korosarekaketa-ga-Gift-Mugen-Gacha-de-Level-9999-no-Nakamatachi-wo-Te-ni-Irete-Moto-Party-Member-to-Sekai-ni-Fukushuu--Zamaa-Shimasu) executed the revenge part in a way that was really satisfying. It wasn't without any flaws but I actually enjoyed it a lot.
I've only heard bits and pieces about *Mugen Gacha* but what I have heard is absolutely wild! Does it do anything in particular to stand out from the crowd for you?
Anyone that disagrees, hasn't seen any of the episodes
I haven't finished it, but it def is the most revenge story
Anime version: *Gankutsuou*
Notable mention: this season's *Roll Over And Die* is *falsely* labeled as "one of those fuckin' things." The MC has no interest in revenge (even though she absolutely has every right to go on a roaring rampage) and instead focuses on helping people and trying to live in peace.
I had no idea that *Roll Over and Die* went in that direction, though, that's really interesting. I figured it'd go straight down the revenge route.
You can really tell it was a monthly publication and that Dumas was paid by the word.
That probably helped with the pacing.
If your edition was fewer than 17 years old, then it was unabridged apparently. Which surprises me, because I found the pacing pretty dreadful for more or less everything after prison.
I suppose my fundamental problem is that the book turns swashbuckler-gothic-prison-horror-treasure-hunt hybrid into an aristocratic melodrama with very little in the way of transition. And I see very little of Dantes in the Count. They might as well be two different books.
I get what you mean, though. The vibe is incredibly different, and suddenly he's like this all-powerful entity. The Count has something of a masculine power fantasy going on!
I find it interesting that, as the Count, he's actually written rather like a vampire, with his grim fixation on execution and torture. He didn't come back to life - he's in a living state of death.
But then (as you say) you get these other melodramatic elements that don't quite fit the whole vibe, and that was odd, too. I still really liked it, but there were some odd combinations going on.
(No idea what the other two books were.)
A lot of classic books are sprawling. Even something like *Dracula* never gets fully adapted-- I guess nobody wants to see a cowboy vs vampire duel-- but it's not that the books had pacing issues.
(And I can totally relate to spending a whole summer with the Count!)
There's so much of *Dracula* that goes unadapted. Like the entire "Last Voyage of the Demeter" was only just put to film a few years ago, and most adaptations completely leave out Dracula's elaborate plans in favor of "tragic love story" or whatever.
Oh, another revenge story is *Reign of the Seven Spellblades*. Go into it blind.
She is not immediately overpowered, and is in fact the least powerful claymore at the beginning (because she is only a 3/4 human/demon hybrid)
Too bad the anime made up its own ending, bue still worth a watch, and then read the manga.
I really need to read the manga, I never got around to it.
I love the OP, which is the reason why I'm aware of it, but I've never made time to actually check it out.
Blade of the immortal
At its core, Kuroko is taking down the GoM 1 by 1 for his friend and to prove his style of basketball can beat theirs
Black Butler for the dubbed folks.
Kurapika picking off the Phantom Troupe one by one for his clan and Gon pummelling tf out of Neferpitou for what he did to Kite.
Craziest part is they literally both put their lives on the line to do it, that's how much it meant to them.
Or, at least, that's how it felt as a manga reader. I don't think I got far enough to see it unfold in the anime.
What? Don’t boo me. I’m right!
But that anime has very satisfying revenge moments, the MC's subordinates are interesting and fun, and the MC learns from his mistakes (he could save people on top of getting his revenge, instead of just getting his revenge no matter the cost).
Other than that, Vinland Saga, 91 Days, Afro Samurai, Rising of the Shield Hero, Black Butler, Blade of the Inmortal, Jigoku Shojo, Talentless Nana
Also: 91 days
Ohsi no ko
In terms of anime, Berserk and Attack on Titan are my top tier revenge tragedies. They are sad, they are violent, they are cathartic, they hit all the same buttons for me as Shakespeare or Aeschylus did. Attack on Titan is very much in the Cautionary Tale mode of revenge tragedies, with Eren Jaeger's quest for vengeance leading him to become the monster he hates.
Berserk is.... just a fucking classic. None of the anime versions quite live up to the manga, but watching Guts go through hell and keep on marching is also incredibly cathartic.