Why the Edge?
First off, Hi Tumblr, it's been years. 2nd, I'm gonna go on a bit of a tirade, since the subject won't leave my mind.
When you first hear of terms like "Angsty" or "Edgy" characters, most people immediately think of characters with dark clothes, gruff voices and tough exteriors/outlooks on the world. Things that would mostly be either ignored or not liked as much as, say, kindness or fun in an ideal world. And yet, a lot of edgy characters are often fan favorites in their franchises. Why? I'd like to offer my thoughts using 3 characters from different franchises, and see if my thoughts hold any ground.
TL;DR: Dark characters bring realism to the world, but still push us to move forward. To be better and to hope for a better future. They show that we aren't alone in our struggles, as exaggerated as they may be.
First up is the Ultimate Lifeform himself: Shadow the Hedgehog from Sonic the Hedgehog. Someone who many would argue is one of the poster boys for an edgy character, he ticks pretty much all the boxes possible: Dark design, gruff personality and voice (often being more reserved and deeper with his tone and words), and a story largely covered in tragedy and concepts like manipulation, purpose, and identity, things not seen all that much in the franchise as a whole. And yet, these seemingly (at least in real life) less than attractive traits also help him stand out to rival or even surpass Sonic himself in popularity.
I'd like to think this is for two things he brings to he table: Reality and relatability. When I say reality, I obviously don't mean that Sonic's world is real (as cool as that would be), what I mean is that Shadow helps keep the world grounded. Sonic, Eggman and company can often come across as childish or ignorant with their constant joking, exaggerated performances or the ridiculousness of their actions (and yes, this partially applies to Shadow, but not as much). Sonic, for all intents and purposes, should be a mess with how much he's been through and how much he's had to fight (Frontiers, Forces, and Unleashed are just a few examples), and yet he's just about always got a smile on his face, ready to crack a joke or run headlong into danger or adventure. And Eggman, with his insanity and ambitions, should be almost completely malicious, and yet his behavior can have a performative quality to it at times (just look at his famous Ho-Ho-Ho laugh), when he isn't providing comedy with his mistakes.
Now look at Shadow: Carries heavy trauma from both his time on the Ark and the games he's been in (Being manipulated, lied to, literally having his memories reprogrammed in Adventure 2), but those scars are also visible. Especially in the most recent entry, Shadow Generations, he isn't the what you could call Walk it Off type, ready for a new adventure immediately after the old one; nor is he (generally) performative with his darker parts. He gets straight to the point and won't let anything get in his way (He's known to keep just about any promise/threat he makes), but he also does have legitimate friends in Rouge, Omega, Maria and Gerald, and a (decently) healthy rivalry with Sonic, almost like siblings at times with how they annoy each other. These traits and backgrounds are common in real life; we all need support systems, and we all have great potential and baggage (and if you don't, you either haven't experienced it or are lying); things that stay with us no matter how hard we try to be rid of them. I believe that's part of what makes Shadow a fan favorite in terms of literary purpose: to show that we can still do good and make a difference with who we are even with parts of us that we don't like, or consequences that we didn't ask for. We can still be ourselves, it's all about the choices we make and how we define ourselves.
And what about someone who struggles with making good choices? Not just the darkly heroic choices like Shadow would (killing someone when the rest of the Sonic cast wouldn't), but someone who has consistently done evil things?
Like Shadow, Venom has baggage with them, even outside of whatever host they're currently bonded with. Constantly grappling with identity and their beastial nature, and the consequences of said nature, Venom can be considered an epitome of the character who won't stay down. They've done horrible things, like the brutality of their kills or eating both innocent and guilty beings, but they've also been heroic more and more, especially in the last decade with relationships like Eddie Brock and their son Dylan. They've even largely made amends with Spider-Man, their once most hated enemy.
And yet, despite that progress, the past still weighs heavily on Venom, often reflecting on the harsh nature of its first breakup with Spider-Man or even initially refusing to bond with someone in the recent Venom War storyline (essentially willing to kill itself) so that no one has to suffer those same urges and consequences, especially Dylan; who Venom strives to be better for.
I'd like to think that, while the design and powers are definitely part of why Venom is so beloved, their main staying power has been in their evolution, and the realism and hope that it brings. If a likely ancient alien symbiote can change from monster to hero, then who's to say we can't? It's not easy, and will include multiple ups and downs, but there's always another chance, no matter what comes our way.
Last up is the character with arguably the greatest change of the 3: Kratos, the God (or Dad) of War. What makes him stand out from other characters is the sheer scope of his changes, and what those arcs and changes mean.
As the name implies, if there's one thing Kratos is an utter master of, it's violence. A tame kill from him involves ripping his target in half with his bare hands, or ripping someone's head off like it's a ball being shot from a toy gun. A warrior his whole life, with little to no compassion for most of his centuries of living, Kratos for all intents and purposes, was made both IRL and in-story to be a killing machine, and that's it.
And yet, his humanity, while starting out small, has always been a part of him, one that has only grown larger and more important over time. From no friends to having a both blood and found family, from reveling in violence to seeking peace, Kratos has been to the Underworld and back in terms of the depths of edginess, and yet his future is more hopeful than anyone expected even 10 years ago. And yet he still struggles with hope for said future, even with all the good he's done.
He's raised a good person in Atreus, but still mourns how he killed his first wife and daughter. He's still very gruff and blunt, to the point of being mean to many people he first meets, but those who earn his trust see that he has valuable insight and wisdom about life, and he in turn opens himself up to things like joy, embracing the idea of being a prominent and benevolent god and even laughing at a story when those sorts of things were inconceivable in his early days.
Like the other characters, he isn't a happy go lucky character, not by a longshot, but he never stops trying to be better for his friends and family. And the best part for both him and us is that those efforts have paid off and will continue to pay off, even when you could make the argument that he still has work to do for a 'fully happy ending'.
So what's the point of all this? Why do these themes repeat, and why do we love characters like this? I like to think it's because these characters, and those like them, reflect all of us, not just the parts that we like. They show the dangers of our worst faults, but also the possibilities of our triumphs in working through those faults. We laugh and poke fun at the edginess, but characters like these show us that it's okay for things to not be totally okay. Life isn't sunshine and rainbows (as much as we'd like it to be), but even those of us with burdens can contribute to the world. But it's also up to us to make those better choices.
"Who I was, is not who you will be. We must be better." -Kratos, God of War 2018.
Hope you enjoyed my rambling!
