Fanart Friday returns, and I'm always kinda sad when puns fly right over coworkers' heads. Last week, we started off 2015 like we do every year, with a trip through Crunchyroll's anime library, but this week we're putting the spotlight on GENUINELY GOOD PEOPLE!
I wanted to be pretty specific on this--just because someone eventually does nice things for people, or is nice even after complaining and bitching and laying on the snark, that doesn't mean they're actually a nice person. I'm looking for characters who selflessly help others, who put themselves out freely and don't talk shit. Now, with that, let's get started!
DISCLAIMER: None of the art presented is the property of myself or Crunchyroll. All characters and series are tm and © their respective creators and corporate owners. All art is the creative property of their respective artists. Any artists who wish to have their work removed from this article may contact me, and appropriate action will be immediately taken.
by 風雅頌
It's easy to talk about how important "sacrifice" is to being a good person, and how willing sacrifice--of your time, of your freedom, even of your life--is to this theme. Fullmetal Alchemist is all about sacrifice and loss, and nobody exemplifies that more than Alphonse, who's willing to set anything and everything aside to help others.
by 湖寺綾
Then you have folks like Fate/stay Night's Emiya Shirou, who's just an all-around decent guy who likes helping people.
by Risako
Sometimes, being a nice person just isn't enough for people--Fruits Basket's Tohru Honda is like the nicest person on Earth, and yet she was also mercilessly bullied! That didn't really get her down, though--it's not like it made her stop being nice to people or anything.
by nyoro
Selflessly helping others kind of goes to the extreme in Samurai Flamenco, where Hazama--an ordinary, everyday male model--puts his life on the line to become the superhero Samurai Flamenco, and change Japan one small step at a time!
by こめを
When you have a team of people dedicated to helping people and solving problems, the leader has to be the most caring and concerned of all--Bossun would've managed the SKET-dan all on his own if he didn't get any help. (Also, I'm still disappointed that SKET Dance hasn't finished its anime adaptation. C'mooon, just a little more!)
by ultmte READER SUBMISSION!
Remember that whole bit about sacrifice that I mentioned? I get the feeling that Hinata would've jumped in front of anybody to protect them, not just Naruto himself. It says something when her alternate-timeline self in Road to Ninja is a humongous bitch.
by よね
Now why does Alibaba look so terrified? I read a recent chapter of Magi and yeah, there's reason to be scared--I'm wondering where the budget's gonna come from for all that insane action!
by ヒョティール
"All life is sacred." As a vegetarian monk who only fights as hard as he has to, Aang is a far nicer Avatar than his successor, Korra, who explicitly says that she will kill your ass dead if you're being evil.
by 水野かがり＠お仕事募集中
It's kind of a trend that the "big guy" is also the "nice guy," since they have to show control and consideration in their actions. Makoto fills this role pretty well in Free!, I'd say.
by SnowWhiteBirdie READER SUBMISSION!
This... is more than a little depressing. Puella Magi Madoka Magica asks a lot of questions about selfishness and how getting what you want means that somebody else isn't going to get what they want... so what happens when you don't really want anything in particular except to make other people happy?
by 雨夜風
CR user TheAncientOne, who you all should look to as a bastion of wisdom, recommended Ah! My Goddess' Belldandy for this installment--and she's the first character who came to mind for me, too!
by 四ッ谷カズヒコ
Usually, there isn't much room for niceness in a violent action series like TRIGUN, but Vash the Stampede is all about love and peace, and goes so far as to get grievously injured himself before he allows someone else to get hurt.
by 亘井
okay okay here's Funabori from D-FRAG okay on to the next one
by OroNoDa READER SUBMISSION!
It makes sense that Orihime is the criminally underused healer of Bleach's unnamed team of heroes--she's the only one who'll stop and check if her teammates are okay! (Well, maybe Chad would too.)
by 吉銀
We've been seeing a lot of D.Gray-Man's Allen Walker lately! Is it just that he's really the only nice one on the team? Lenalee counts, too!
by MadPandaKira READER SUBMISSION!
There was a good discussion in last week's comments on whether or not Gon's purity makes him the "nice guy" in Hunter x Hunter. I'm on the side that says yes--conditionally. Gon is very pure and primal, and while he's more than willing to put the hurt on someone (or kill them outright), he doesn't want to fight anyone unless they also want to fight.
by ソウノ@お仕事募集中
Adventure Time is an excellent show, but I think what turns people away from it isn't the "lolsorandom" humor, but instead the look of it all. Yeah, it looks kiddy, but who cares? Check it out, and find out how Finn and Jake actually make pretty good role models for kids (and this isn't exactly a kids' show anyway).
I've always believed this is how Clark Kent disguises himself among ordinary people--it's more than just the glasses. Anyway, I think Superman is a character who doesn't get enough credit, mainly because he's here to help everybody--from a planet being attacked by a vicious demigod to a girl who thinks jumping out a ledge is the only way she'll find peace. Everybody deserves a second chance, everybody deserves to be treated with respect. That's why I like Superman.
That's also why I think Batman's a gigantic bag of dicks.
And that's everything for this week! There's no way I could have included everybody--who are your favorite genuinely good characters? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
As always, your work is welcome here on Fanart Friday, regardless of your skill level or experience. Just PM me a link to your work (full URL, please) and I'll make sure to include it in a future installment! Here are the next three themes for Fanart Friday:
-Next week, on JANUARY 16th, hop in your Tachikoma and brace yourself for one hell of a trip through PRODUCTION I.G's library! What are your favorites from this awesome studio? THIS IS THE ONLY THEME I'M TAKING REQUESTS FOR THIS WEEK!
-Then, on JANUARY 23rd, I'm being proactive and asking for your CATALOG WISHLIST! What titles do you want to see in Crunchyroll's streaming library?
-On JANUARY 30th, we round out the month with a special look at BAAU, or BAY AREA ARTISTS UNITE! No requests for this week--it's all about them! Be sure to check out their site!
Thanks again for coming by to check out Fanart Friday! Have a great weekend, and I hope you swing by again next week!
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