Regarding Evil
By Lasafara Fett
He stood over the body, heartbroken. Growling, he turned around. "I will get them back. I swear."
This sentence could easily describe half the characters in any anime. A major part of anime is the loss of one or more loved ones, and the attempt to bring them back from wherever they have been banished to. Heroes spend most of their time attempting to bring back their loves, but sometimes, so do villains. So what is it that makes a hero a hero, and a villain a villain?
Part of what makes a villain is his or her outward appearance. A viewer is very likely to trust and love a big-eyed, blonde, well-dressed character, whereas the same viewer would have a hard time trusting someone who glared at everyone, or who kept their shirt unbuttoned.
A hero wears clothes that fit them and he or she wears them right. The buttons are done up, the shirt is tucked in, and the belt is hooked. Unless the hero has just been through a tough battle, the clothing remains this way all the time.
A villain, on the other hand, pushes the envelope. He or she wears tight fitting clothing that reveals just a little too much, often with buttons unhooked. Watching a villain is often like watching a peep show. A villain becomes easy to spot, because the male will almost always have something showing, while the female is almost always in a mini-skirt.
A hero's hair is almost always back and away from the face. The face is open and visible for the whole world. Also, the hair is usually red or blonde. Examples of this can be found in such anime as Slayers, Zoids, Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Yugioh, Pokemon, and Princess Rouge. These are not the only examples, but they are indicative of the stereotypes used in anime.
A villain's hair often covers parts of the face. The face is often turned to the side, away from the viewer, giving the impression of something to hide. Hair color is almost always silver. Again, examples abound in anime. Cowboy Bebop, Princess Rouge, Excel Saga, Yugioh, and El-Hazard all support silver-haired villains.
The other part of what makes up a villain is the behaviors and motives. A hero has admirable motives and good behaviors. A villain has dishonorable motives and bad behaviors. But the question then becomes, 'How do the viewers know what the motives are, and what standards are the characters to be held up to?'
It is my belief that Pegasus, from the anime Yugioh, is in fact a hero in disguise. Physical appearance is often used to fool the viewer into believing that a certain person is something other than what they truly are. As such, Pegasus is actually a good person, who has been visualized as the villain for the purposes of the creator.
Outwardly, Pegasus has the appearance of a villain. Although his clothing is certainly done up well and right, his hair is the ultimate denouncer. Silver and long, it covers the left side of his face. This creates a wall between Pegasus and the viewers, keeping the viewers from trusting him completely.
There are other examples, however, of a good character being visually denounced as evil. Zelgadis from the anime Slayers has silver hair, which covers the right side of his face. However, he is most definitely a hero, and is only questioned at the beginning of the first season.
Pegasus's actions are a little more troublesome to the viewers. After all, he does sentence three people to the Shadow Realm, and does his best to bring harm to Yugi as well. However, one wonders how this is different from what Yugi is doing to Pegasus.
Yugi is intent on restoring his grandfather's soul. This is what brings about the duel between himself and Pegasus. He is obviously only thinking of his grandfather. Joey is much the same, only thinking of his sister while dueling. Therefore, because they think only of others as they duel, they are admired and given praise.
However, Pegasus is also only thinking of others. He is attempting to resurrect his wife. This is no different from what the others are attempting to do. If one is being selfish, then the argument can be applied to the other. If there were a way to bring back a dead lover, would anyone balk at the price?
Pegasus does what he does out of a pure love for his wife, much as Yugi wanting to save his grandfather, or Joey wanting to restore his sister's eyesight. If it were either of them attempting to resurrect the dead, the viewers would rally around them. Only because it is Pegasus do the viewers condemn the action.
Pegasus's motives are certainly in the right place. He is not thinking of only himself, and he is doing everything out of love. His behaviors, however, are certainly less than admirable. But no less than that of Yugi and company.
Pegasus is not the only one who has condemned people to the Shadow Realm. Yugi did the same thing to Yami Bakura. Yugi has walked over people as well. Just as Pegasus didn't care what harm he brought to Yugi, Yugi did not care if he hurt Pegasus. In fact, Pegasus's well being was the farthest thing from his mind. Why is that?
If Yugi were really the ray of light and happiness he is often made out to be, wouldn't he have attempted to discover what had caused Pegasus to kidnap his grandfather? Wouldn't he have tried to talk to Pegasus? Upon finding out why it was that Pegasus was fighting, wouldn't he have tried to support Pegasus, possibly lending him the use of the Puzzle, and definitely helping him gain the Eye back?
Yugi is not the true hero in this anime. Yugi is the partial ray of light that most people want to squash. Pegasus is the true hero. He goes through a trial, and though failing, is the one who comes out looking the best. He is the type of character Shakespeare would have included in his plays. Yugi would have been the one pulling the curtains apart.
A/N: Not really fiction, you might say. Also, I expect flames. If I get enough of a reaction to this, I might even write responses to the reviews. Remember, however, that these are all MY views, and no amount of flames is going to change that. I will be willing to match argument with argument.
Disclaimer: I know, most people put this at the top, but I didn't want to ruin the image of a research type paper. I don't own ANYTHING mentioned here. Except the basic idea that Pegasus is the one true hero. Which is why I'm boycotting the show until Pegasus returns.