Jealousy Ranking of the DMC men with Gen! Reader.
Just a ranking from the least to the most jealous DMC.
I divided it into: General energy, crush phase, and short and long-term relationships.
Characters: Dante, Vergil, Nero and V.
-> My masterlist
WC: ~1890
4. Dante.
(Last place for the man of the year.)
Is he a jealous guy in general?
I wouldn't say so. I strongly feel that he is the least jealous guy of the bunch. He is very laid-back and confident; plus, he deeply trusts his partner.
However, he is not immune.
Romantic jealousy level: Low to medium.
His jealousy moments are situational rather than constant. Honestly, most of the time, he assumes things are fine and would only step up if things are clearly not.
However, I think that he might have been quicker to jealousy in his younger years, but now, he is seasoned, more emotionally mature behind the clowning and way less likely to take things personally.
How does he behave when he feels jealousy?
Not quick to anger. If something serious is going on, he will keep his cool and flip into serious and protective mode. He would handle it, rather than lash out.
Crush phase jealousy.
Pre-relationship Dante is even less jealous. But for different reasons than just being really chill. He enters into the “I have no right to feel jealous” mentality, and then bottles it up and brushes it off.
Dante doesn’t truly read as a possessive guy to me. To be honest, he seems kind of used to being rejected and being on his own.
However, he is not totally unaffected. If he sees someone flirting with you, he might:
Stand a little closer.
Laugh too loudly at the wrong moment.
Get quieter or more serious when someone’s pressing their luck
Nothing too noticeable, or that is what he thinks
If someone really won’t back down, Dante happily plays “fake boyfriend.” And afterwards, he’ll roast the guy with you:
“Buddy wouldn't take no for an answer.”
“He had the charisma of a wet rag anyway.”
“Tsk, try-hard.”
He would absolutely flirt with you in front of people who are hitting on you… as a joke, obviously. (It's not a joke)
Anyway, if you point out that he is jealous? Expect immediate denial, every single time.
Early relationship phase jealousy.
Still doesn't get jealous often, but when it happens, he won't deny.
His jealousy is passive-aggressive and humorous.
He’ll throw shade disguised as jokes, like:
“So, your coworker’s texting you at midnight? Mmm, would you look at that. Maybe I could teach him a few things about keeping work and personal life veeeeery separated.”
Either way, most of the time, he turns his jealousy into a bit. He fakes being dramatically wounded, clenching his chest with mock-offended gasps.
Long-term relationship phase jealousy.
Now you've got to the chillest Dante phase ever. Deeply trust you and know you can handle yourself just fine.
He is still protective and would gladly intervene if someone crosses a boundary.
Again, if he gets jealous, he turns it into a joke, but even more so.
“I didn't know you had a girlfriend.” If a girl is hitting on you.
“Guess I'll just go home then” Then he refuses to leave your side all night.
🥉V.
Is he a jealous guy in general?
Big leap from Dante to V. Now things are getting more interesting.
Romantic Jealousy: Medium to High.
While reserved and introspective, this man is deeply sensitive and insecure. He knows he is fragile and weaker than the rest of the men in DMC. Plus, he's got the same “abandonment”/ “inferior issues” that Vergil has.
Therefore, the idea of being replaced because he is not good enough hits a soft spot for him.
How does he behave when he feels jealousy?
He becomes aloof and passive-aggressive. He's not loud or confrontational; he’d never make a scene, but you will feel a change in the atmosphere.
His introspection quickly turns into overthinking, and any negative idea lingers in his head way longer than it should.
Crush phase jealousy.
He watches and listens, silently growing bitter in a corner. He bottles his emotions up, and if he feels them overwhelm him, he flees the scene.
V is not the type that would compete or fight for your attention; he dwelt on his thoughts until he regained control and a better understanding of his emotions. And even there, his negative thoughts sometimes get the better of him.
Early relationship phase jealousy.
Now he’s more anxious about it.
The same “retreat and sulk” routine is still there, but he'll become even more bitter. He’ll drop comments like:
“You seem more radiant today. Must be the company you keep.”
Is not a lack of trust per se, its just that his insecurities get the better of him.
Once he spirals into his own head, good luck dragging him out.
Long-term relationship phase jealousy.
Much better, way more secure in himself and in the relationship.
Not spotless, though.
Some part of him still believes that every love he can get is inherently fleeting.
Still has those melodramatic and validation-seeking moments from time to time.
“Will you eventually abandon me, too, my dearest?”
“V, we are literally engaged.”
🥈Nero
Is he a jealous guy in general?
Yes, but here is the thing: it is not so much a lack of trust or insecurity, but a sense of immaturity and performative masculinity.
Like he thinks jealousy is just… part of the boyfriend job description. Flex, protect your territory, stake your claim, all that macho man bullshit. In his head, that’s what he’s supposed to do as a boyfriend/man.
Eventually, he grows out of it. But until then:
Romantic jealousy: High
Don’t get me wrong. Nero IS noble and protective; he truly believes that love is something you prove by defending it fiercely. Add in that he’s impulsive, emotional, confrontational… and yeah. He reacts before he thinks. And he usually overreacts.
How does he behave when he feels jealousy?
Extremely visible. You will know it, and so will everyone else. He’ll glare, snap and confront someone if he feels like it.
Pouting, angry muttering under his breath and throwing an arm around you in public like it’s a competition.
(Like the rest of the Spardas, he has the “abandoned”/ “never would be good enough” chip on his shoulder)
The upside is that he calms down fast.
Crush phase jealousy.
Basically, a mix of sulking and pretending not to care. He fails at both.
He really tries to act cool and level, but he is too protective and obvious:
“I mean, sure, they can talk to whoever they want. Not my business, I just really hate that guy for… personal reasons.”
Gets a bit insecure here, too. Side-eyes himself more than he should.
“What does he have that I don't? Tsk, whatever, he's not even that cool.”
Early relationship phase jealousy.
Now the performance kicks into high gear. He’s openly reactive, more protective, and wears his heart on his sleeve.
His jealousy is genuine, but it’s also amped up by performative masculinity. The idea that “This is what he is supposed to do as a man”
Again, don't get me wrong, he is protective and caring. And it shows.
If someone crosses a boundary, he will be there, no matter if the person is twice his size.
But also, if someone laughs a bit too loudly at your joke, they will spawn next to you. Hand over your shoulder and glaring shamelessly.
Long-term relationship phase jealousy.
Grows up from that territorial, “performative man/boyfriend” mentality.
Way more secure in the relationship and himself.
Jealousy still happens every now and then, but he can manage it better now. He'll talk through his feelings (probably badly, but still) and ask for reassurance if needed.
Nevertheless, he turns into a pretty chill boyfriend.
Early relationship with Nero: if someone buys you a drink, -> death glare all night.
Long-term Nero if someone buys you a drink ->“Cool. Tell them to order me one too.”
For this reason, I think Nero and V could be interchangeable; on the one hand, Nero's jealousy is more explosive and obvious, but he grows out of it eventually. And on the other hand, V's jealousy is lowkey and understated, but he doesn't fully overcome it.
🥇Vergil
(No one is surprised here. We all knew where this was going.)
Is he a jealous guy in general?
I love Vergil; this is my man, and I adore him, but oh god, he is by far the worst in this area. Huge (and common) Vergil L.
Romantic Jealousy: Very high.
Like V, he feels everything intensely but shows very little. The difference is, Vergil’s flavour of jealousy is wrapped up in possessiveness disguised as protection.
Vergil hates losing control. And jealousy is loss of control embodied; it gnaws at him. He’d suppress it, but it’s absolutely in his wiring.
How does he behave when he feels jealousy?
On the outside? Stone-cold and stoic, just like always. He will never make a scene in public, but you will feel the weight of his eyes. His tone sharpens, his stare hardens, and his hand rests just a little too close to Yamato. Anything to look as intimidating as he could while still maintaining it lowkey.
Vergil has too much pride to beg for attention. He’d rather carve the jealousy into silence than show weakness.
However, on the inside?Pure rage. He can easily tip into controlling behaviour if he’s triggered. And he’s got the same issues as V: inferiority complex, abandonment trauma, control obsession, fear of vulnerability and being replaced, all that fun stuff.
None of which does wonders for your capability of building healthy relationships.
Sadly, he also has an “All or nothing” mentality; To him, jealousy feels like betrayal. If he doesn’t have all of you, he has nothing. And if the relationship fails, in his head, that makes him a failure.
If really triggered, he can get dangerous.
Crush phase jealousy.
Highly contained, he masks it with indifference even though his internal dialogue is pure chaos.
He will glare from across the room as if everyone had personally wronged him.
I'm going to keep it honest with y'all: most people would stop flirting with you simply because they feel creeped out by the 6’3 guy in the corner staring at them with a big ass katana.
If asked about it, he will deny it, of course. He would rather die than accept it; he is far too prideful.
Early relationship phase jealousy.
Still relatively guarded but more direct now. Highly vigilant and intimidating.
Stands too close behind you until the other person decides to leave.
Glances at people as they approach.
Hand resting on Yamato’s hilt.
Speech gets clipped and aggressive.
He doesn't trust others easily, if at all. Hell, I think he would even get jealous of Dante, too, if you spent a lot of time with him.
Plus, if you add that he spent most of his life thinking that he was less loved/chosen than Dante.
Long-term relationship phase jealousy.
Best case scenario: therapy. Because let’s be real, no one is fixing him, and you, as a partner, should know it above everything else.
You won't fix him. He'd better fix himself if he knows what’s good for him.
But assuming post-DMC5 Vergil has put in some internal work? The jealousy is still there, but it’s much more controlled. With a deeper bond and trust in your loyalty, he can be protective without sliding into possessive or controlling territory.
He’s more mature now, but the instinct is always there.
And if someone crosses a real line? That person is gone. Not dead (probably), but “disappearing from the face of the earth” levels of gone. Post-DMC5, redeemed Vergil is at least trying to stop murdering people… but let's not test him.
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OP-> I like that you can tell that I don't fuck with jealousy at all.
