Okay, if you are looking for quirky characters, anime has you covered. However, there are some characters who just have one specific trait that in some ways ends up defining them. This is my list of favourite quirks that complement the other features of the character, fit into the narrative being told, and still manage to stand out and be remembered. Feel free to add your own in the comments below.
Please Note – There are spoilers below. You have been warned.
Honourable mentions this week go to: Baldo from Black Butler for cooking with explosives, Fuko from Clannad for carving starfish, Isana Yashiro from K for his umbrella, Lita from Sailor Moon for her constant falling in love, and Himemiko from Kamisama Kiss for clacking her teeth together.
Number 5: Nice Holystone from Baccano
Despite her name, Nice is definitely an explosives junky which ultimately caused the disfiguring accident she had as a kid. Did that in any way curb her enthusiasm for things that go boom? Not remotely. When things get bad, Nice always has a supply of noisy helpers and a big smile on her face.
Number 4: Io Otonashi from Acchi Kocchi
In a show full of one trick and quirky characters it is amazing that I remember Io so vividly, sitting as his desk and spinning his pen. It’s probably just how impressive he is at spinning it that makes it stick but that image really defines his character for me.
Number 3: Saki Hanajima from Fruits Basket
I don’t know if this one is ever explained in the manga, but in the anime, Saki spends a lot of time reading people’s waves. She senses something odd about the Soma’s, knows when people are sad, and generally scares the living daylights out of anyone who is mean to Tohru. At times this is invaluable as Saki is a hard worker in the background ensuring that Tohru is able to enjoy her high school life.
Number 2: Gray Fullbuster from Fairy Tail
Once again, the show is full of quirky characters with a whole array of interesting character traits, but Gray and his stripping down to his underwear is what stuck with me. He was definitely one of my favourite characters and it makes perfect sense that an ice mage wouldn’t be worried about the cold. The fact that this is usually subconscious until someone points out to him that he’s stripped is just funny (as is the back story as to how he developed this trait). And yes, the joke is overplayed, but still funny.
Number 1: Edward Elric from Full Metal Alchemist
Edward takes being offended by comments about his height to a whole new level. To the point where he actually insults himself and his height far more than any other character in the show. It’s absurd and hilarious. It also adds a bit of reality to his character. He is just a kid and he’s having to face issues far above his emotional maturity and deal with the world of adults. Having a few of these very childish traits (he also hates milk) really just rounds out his character.
So what are some of your favourite character quirks?
I think Nice and her explosives were my favorite part about Baccano. Who doesn’t like a girl that loves to blow shit up and laugh about it. Gray’s stripping never failed to be amusing either.
At the moment, my favorite character quirk is Shizuo from Durarara’s anger issues (Does that count?). Poor guy doesn’t like violence but all those mutilated vending machines might disagree.
Midorima from Kuroko’s Basketball. He is obsessed with horoscope and lucky items.
Edward <3 That's all I have to say, really hahaha
Great post 🙂 Very cohesive and diverse. I think you were able to capture every character's essence and get your point across.
Gray is my favourite followed closely by Edward.
Fuko and her starfish carving is also very cute and hilarious. Thanks for sharing.
I never really got the whole starfish thing. It certainly made me remember the character but I never really got why she had that obsession.
Ed is definitely my favorite one out of these 5
Kuragehime (Princess Jellyish) Tsukimi obsession with jellyfish. Jiji and her obsession with old men. lol.
ed definitely was a trip. he toasted his own self worst then anything i’ve ever seen. just lol
Hmm, had to think about this one for a while, but there are two that spring to mind, both from somewhat older shows.
The first is Gai Daigoji, from Martian Successor Nadesico. He was completely obsessed by the Gekiganger anime, and it was great to see him go completely nuts at times during a mecha battle trying to imitate key moments from his show. He reinvented the word Otaku lol
The second character is Lum from Yurusei Yatsura. She was crazy about her “darling”, the boy Ataru. She loved him so much that she would not allow other girls to even look at him, and applied electric shocks to him if even did the smallest thing wrong (which resulted in absolutely ridiculous episodes lol).
Thanks for yet another great post 😀
Okay, I genuinely don’t know either of those characters so now I am going to need to look them up.
I am (almost) in shock that I know two characters that you don’t know lol 😀 Ofcourse I am totally kidding. If you want to see a completely crazy Anime series though, Yurusei Yatsura is the one to watch. Even though it dates back to 1981 (!) it is one of the few Anime comedy series that I really enjoyed. I literally at times had tears in my eyes from watching it,(not from crying, but laughing ofcourse lol) and even after all these years, the humor is still fantastic. Martian Successor Nadesico is also a great watch and also contains crazy humor. I am currently watching that last one, and will do a review of it in the not too distant future 😀
1981? Okay, now it makes sense that I’d never heard of that one. Martian Successor Nadesico I don’t actually have an excuse for not watching other than it’s been sitting on my watch list forever and much like Hunter X Hunter I just never seem to get around to it but haven’t taken it off the list.
Lol…yes it is back in 1981 that this series premiered, but it is one of the more succesful Animeseries of the time, lasting 195 episodes. I guarantee that after watching one episode of it, you are pretty much hooked 😀 Yes, I know the feeling of setting series aside to watch them “at some point”. I always have too little time on my hands every week (than again I also have way too many hobbies 😂)
Gray-sama! LOL – his gimmick never gets old! It still makes me laugh the same everytime he does it. I loved seeing the backstory to it too! LOL did his friend Lyon also pick up that trait? Just not as bad as his right? I can’t remember. It’s been awhile.
Also, Death the Kid’s is a pretty good one too. I’ve never looked for quirks in a character before…hmm, something to pay attention to! As always, I enjoyed your top 5!
Glad you enjoyed it. I think Lyon did pick it up (or at least seems like it from the flashbacks, though I don’t recall him doing it in the present day).
I like characters with quirks when it isn’t the sum total of their personality but a part of an interesting character.
I like Edward Elric and Grey they are awesome
I really liked how they explained Edward’s short stature in Brotherhood. I won’t say it because it’s a fairly big spoiler, but it was nice that the whole issue of his height wasn’t just a running gag and actually intertwined with the plot, if Edward’s theory was correct.
You’re also right that it’s a constant reminder that he’s still just a kid. With how mature Ed and Al usually seem, how smart they are and the stuff they go through, it’s easy to forget that. I especially liked that one episode where they first got to Shou Tucker’s house and they just played around with Nina in the snow. That was a big contrast and breath of fresh air to what had been happening to them up until that point, and a pure reminder of their childhoods. Then that mini-arc slams them back into a horrible reality…..I love FMA, but it’s a real roller coaster of emotions sometimes.
That roller coaster is probably why so many people love it. The story itself is pretty standard but the characters and the emotions they make you feel just carry you along.
Thanks for the comment.
I loe Minako’s messing up every pun and phrase she says, it matches her character so well. And Sakaki from Azumanga Daioh loving cats, but that one cat she tries to pet hating her, always a classic.
I’m partial to Death the Kid’s obsession with symmetry and Tamaki Suoh’s sulking when he’s criticized or fails at charming someone.
Death the Kid’s obsession with symmetry is pretty awesome. As is L’s… well L being L.
Kid obsession with symmetry is ridiculous. definitely keep things really random. and tamaki is a whole other story all together. lol