Anime Protagonists who act like Side Characters in their own series
I’m sure all of us can agree that most Battle Shonen are guilty of the whole “The World Revolves around the Main Character” paradigm. Of course, there is nothing wrong with it, they are the main character after all, but it does get a little tedious when the Plot Armour and the Protagonist privilege is blown out of proportion.
Well, I wouldn’t say that the anime listed below are free of these, but what’s interesting about them is how, despite being the protagonist, they aren’t perceived as such in the context of that story.
Interested yet?
Well then, let’s see what we have.
1-Saitama from One Punch Man
Doesn’t matter whether you have just watched the first season or you are caught up with the manga, maybe you’ve also finished the webcomic, in all of those cases, Saitama is the strongest entity on Planet Earth.
The gap between him and the other heroes or villains is so preposterous, it doesn’t even make sense.
The reason he is so laidback is because whether the opponent is a “God Level” threat or a random thug, it’s going to take the same amount of effort to beat them.
Talk about that.
And yet?
Despite his insanely ridiculous strength and the good he has done for the world, there are only a select few who are aware of his prowess.
The Mob of the One Punch Man world is effectively clueless.
Yes, he has been climbing up the ranks, but as far as the populace of the One Punch Man world is concerned, his existence is insignificant.
Not literally, of course.
That’s right, unlike Luffy or Naruto, he is never the center of attention. Which is why, even though it's been almost 8 years since this anime graced the community, Saitama is still such a refreshing character.
2-Koro Sensei from Assassination Classroom
Koro Sensei from the Assassination Classroom starts off as this “Goofy Ah” Octopus-like being who pulls up to a class of trouble students and gives them a not so normal assignment.
They have to kill him within a year or the entire world will be blown to pieces.
Yes, that is definitely taking it a little too far.
Now, Koro Sensei gives them this goal and throughout the year, he helps the students regain their footing, discover who they are, and what they should do with their lives.
The thing is, and Saitama is similar in this sense, Koro Sensei doesn’t get any development, more like, he doesn’t need any development. His backstory is told in a flashback but other than that, he has taken up teaching to help a few youngsters realize their potential.
Just like Saitama, the story focuses more on the two other main characters “Nagisa” and “Karma” as well as the rest of the class. It is an exceptionally well told, nuanced story.
3-Kiyokata Ayanokouji from Classroom of the Elite
Alright, here we have Ayanokouji from Classroom of the Elite. He is the protagonist of the story, but he hides his fangs in plain shadow, maintains a low profile and controls others like a puppet master.
He is both sadistic and ruthless, which is also exactly what makes him so much fun to watch.
The man is good enough to write his own version of the 48 Laws of Power.
He doesn’t care about applause or cheers or any of that cheap nonsense, to him, humans are like tools. He sees them as such and proceeds accordingly.
The anime might be more on the corny side especially with the recent second season, but let no one talk you out of the fact that Ayanokouji is so much fun to watch.
He is a puppet master.
4-Shigeo Kageyama from Mob Psycho 100
Mob Psycho 100 and One Punch Man were created by the same individual, which is why it is hard to not notice the similarities. The protagonist here is an Eighth Grader named Kageyama Shigeo.
He is a psychic and about as strong as they come, but his philosophy in life is that having these supernatural abilities doesn’t make him any better or worse than others.
He is a good kid, with a kind heart.
A sweet and peaceful soul who joins the wholesome guys at the Body Building Club to get in shape so that he can impress his crush. You can’t help but be adored by his character.
He doesn’t like violence and he doesn’t like to fight unless someone he loves is attacked unprovoked.
So, how does all of this relate to the title of this post?
Well, Kageyama is the straight up overpowered MC of what can be considered a traditional Battle Shonen story, but what makes him different is that he is genuinely just trying to live the life of a normal kid.
Psychic powers?
He couldn’t care less about them.
5-Ginko From Mushishi
If the Protagonist is someone who drives the plot forward the main character is someone that is affected by the plot. In most works of fiction, the leading character is a combination of both, but sometimes there is a difference.
For example, in Assassination Classroom, Koro Sensei is the protagonist, but Nagisa and Karma are main characters.
As for Mushishi, the leading character, “Ginko” is not the protagonist in the traditional sense, which makes him an even more suitable character for this list.
There is no overarching plot, it’s just our man Ginko traversing the lands, seeking out supernatural occurrences, all in search of an answer.
The anime is a stark combination of simplicity and depth.
Ginkgo is an observer who perceives the supernatural world through eyes of reason. It is difficult to put it into the world, but this anime has a way of rejuvenating you.
6-Kino from Kino no Tabi: The Beautiful World
If you take a look at their premise, Mushishi and Kino no Tabi are astoundingly similar.
Ginko and Kino both venture into the vast unknown to see and ascribe meaning to that which they see. The world can go on without them, their existence is not necessary, they are just there so that we can see these fictional worlds through their eyes.
That’s it.
Think about that.
Great stories can be told even with minimal involvement from the main character. Kino is a 15 year old traveller who sees the world as it is. One of Kino’s most profound sayings is that “The World is not beautiful, therefore it is.”
Kino isn’t a moral arbiter or protector of truth. No, this individual is simply an observer.
A saying that fits nicely under the pretext of this post is this statement by Kino,
“All people live in a fantasy in which they are the main character.”
How very fitting…
7-Kumiko from Hibike Euphonium
We have covered so many varying genres in this post, Action, Comedy, Psychological, Supernatural, Adventure, Journeys, and whatnot.
Well, here we have a High School Drama to close things off.
The primary character, Kumiko, is a girl who doesn’t really open up to people, but she is dragged to their school’s music club by her friends right after entering High School which then leads to her noticing a lot of conflicts and drama.
The thing is, unlike most characters who get involved, she doesn’t.
She is often at the forefront of a conflict, might even get dragged into it, but she never completely gets involved. She is highly observant which is why she has to step in one way or another, but when it comes time to make a personal decision, she has a hard time.
In a way, this is all part of her development to help her grow into a more mature and assertive person, but the way the anime begins, and for the duration of the first season, Kumiko is like a cog in the machine.
She doesn’t quite understand her own importance.
It is a surprisingly well done anime by Kyoto Animation, you are guaranteed to have a great time.
Alright, so these were some of the anime protagonists who act like side characters in their own series.
A couple of other anime series where the protagonist is also not the center of attention are “Hunter x Hunter” and a delinquent manga called “Out.”
If you’ve watched Hunter x Hunter, you know exactly what I mean. Just consider the Chimera Ant arc for a second, the main antagonist “Meruem” was defeated without ever coming across the protagonist “Gon.”
Think about that.
As for “Out,” this manga is kind of like Tokyo Revengers, and even though the protagonist is a total badass, he is like Saitama in the sense that he very rarely shows up, if ever.
Yes, highly recommended.
And that’s it for this post. Make sure you check out these series if you haven’t already. They are all well worth it.
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