The highly anticipated second season of Vinland Saga began airing on Jan. 10, 2023, and promises to be a much different sort of story than the first season. While season one of Vinland Saga focused on an action-pack story centered around Askeladd who overshadows the main protagonist, Thorfinn who wants revenge on Askeladd.
Season 2 on the other hand will be leaning on finding peace and will feature far less action than the previous season. Vinland Saga fans have often dubbed this part from the manga (called the Farmland or Slave arc) as the best arc in the series.
10 Thorfinn (Vinland Saga)
Thorfinn is a great example of a character whose revenge loses purpose. Fans will see a unique transformation of Thorfinn's character in season two as he's lost his target of revenge. While Askeladd does kill Thorfinn's father, Thors, Askeladd serves as a sort of father figure for Thorfinn in the series.
Because so many years go by since Thorfinn fails to kill Askeladd, and he gets more and more integrated into Askeladd's group he loses his ambition for revenge. Even if Thorfinn could take Askeladd's life toward the end of the series, it's hard to know if he really would've done so anymore.
9 Scar (Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood)
Alchemy was forbidden among the Ishvalan and the only one who took it upon themselves to learn it was Scar's brother who gave him his alchemy via his arm. Scar lost everything to the alchemists and since then used what his people saw as the most forbidden all for revenge.
He's introduced immediately into the series as a serious threat and effortlessly murders several alchemists as the series progresses. Scar's character arc is fantastic in Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, and he becomes far more complex than simply a revenge-driven character.
8 Sasuke Uchiha (Naruto)
Sasuke Uchiha is no doubt one of the most iconic revenge-driven characters in anime, and he serves as the deuteragonist of shocking plot twist in Naruto that Itachi wasn't quite as evil as he had seemed.
This revelation sent Sasuke's story into a spiraling downward arc where he committed more crimes and became more villainous rather than an antihero trying to fulfill justice. In the end, it's his relationship with Naruto that can save his character and finally put an end to the cycle of hatred.
7 Kurapika (Hunter x Hunter)
Kurapika served as a major inspiration for Sasuke's character and is aiming to avenge his fallen clan the same as Sasuke. Kurapika has far more obstacles, however, as the Phantom Troupe are great in number.
Much like Sasuke, Kurapika's path toward revenge is bringing him down toward a villainous past where he is becoming evil to destroy evil. Given the brilliant story patterns of Hunter x Hunter, it wouldn't be surprising if fans learn that the Kurta Clan isn't quite as pure as it appears and that the Phantom Troupe might not be as evil either.
6 Frieza (Dragon Ball)
Frieza is one of the best Dragon Ball villains and has returned to the series so many times that he now serves as the major overall villain for the franchise and the recurring archnemesis of Goku and Vegeta. His lust for revenge has persisted ever since Goku defeated him on Planet Namek.
While Frieza did receive his life back in part to Goku's efforts this time, it's unlikely that Frieza has any attention to laying his plots of revenge to rest. Thanks to his thirst for vengeance, he's been able to supply fans with some of the best action and character development in Dragon Ball.
5 Guts (Berserk)
most legendary swordsmen in anime & manga still hasn't had his revenge. His story has been one of the hardest to watch, and the Eclipse contains some of the most horrific scenes in anime history.
After going through that, fans can't help but Guts and desire for him to kill Griffith once and for all. There's no news of whether a new anime series will air yet, but the manga is still going even after the late Kentaro Miura's ing and things are looking even worse for the revenge-driven antihero.
4 Eren Yeager (Attack on Titan)
Attack on Titan is nearing its conclusion as the next part of the final season begins airing in 2023. Fans have been on Eren's journey of revenge against the titans for a long time now and with more mystery unveiled about the titans the story grows tenser.
Like so many other characters, Eren's revenge has taken him down dark and unexpected paths. Fans were blown away by the plot twist where Eren forces his father to murder the Reiss family and claim the Founder Titan. The scene showed that Eren would manipulate anyone regardless of the timeline to get to the end goal he wants.
3 Takasugi Shinsuke (Gintama)
Takasugi served as the main antagonist for most of Gintama up until his legendary fight with Gintoki in one of the best sword duels in anime & manga. His revenge was aimed at both the government and Gintoki, the man who had murdered their master before their eyes.
The fight between the two was much needed and helped release a lot of tension between the two characters. As the greater enemy of Utsuro arises, alongside his identity, Takasugi releases his revenge and s Gintoki as an ally against the common enemy.
2 Edmond Dantes (Gankutsuo: The Count of Monte Cristo)
Edmond Dantes, also known as the Count of Monte Cristo, is one of the most intriguing characters ever written. The anime Gankutsuo is a futuristic sci-fi take on the novel the Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas.
There are many similarities between the two, but the anime does take many liberties of its own. While most anime protagonists take their revenge via action, Edmond does it through politics and drama. He uses the laws of the land against those who wronged him and brilliantly exposes them. However, there is, of course, plenty of action to go alongside it all.
1 Lelouch vi Britannia (Code Geass)
Lelouch vi Britannia has long since been one of the most popular anime characters ever and for good reason. He is the main protagonist of Code Geass and works on toppling the Holy Britannian Empire of which he is secretly a prince of.
He fights through with tactics and strategy by deploying troops who've gained his loyalty and those who he's manipulated with his Geass power. In the end, he's able to achieve his initial aim of revenge, but his story becomes much more than this and his climactic final scene helps give Code Geass one of the best conclusions to a story ever written.