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One of my favorite female characters of all time. She has a great balance of imagination and innocence with bravery and smarts.

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Contributors to El laberinto del fauno Wiki

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The main protagonist in Pan’s Labyrinth. She is 11 years old and the child of Carmen, the new wife of Captain Vidal. She has a very big imagination, and greatly enjoys reading fictional stories of fairies and whatnot. Her biological father, whose name is not introduced anywhere in the movie, was a tailor and supported Ofelia’s enjoyment of fairy tales. She was on her way to Captain Vidal’s house/military post, for her mother was pregnant with the Captain’s son. She encounters a fairy in the fore

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Ponyboy curtis from the outsiders. I understand and feel the way he thinks, and he's fine in the movie they made

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Ponyboy curtis from the outsiders. I understand and feel the way he thinks, and he's fine in the movie they made

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He serves Frodo with a loyalty unmatched, serving a double purpose of driving him to destroy the ring and reminding him of the Shire. He enjoys the simple life and I think that is a central theme of the series. He embodies loyalty and his friendship with Frodo is a pure and unfaltering one. In the series his presence is always enjoyable and he is a good character to follow.

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Hey you know the scene where she sits next to Bing Bong and lets him talk about his grief and doesn't try to make it better? That scene lives rent free in my head forever. What a profound statement on how no emotion is "bad," and self-actualization comes from accepting ALL our feelings and knowing they all have their place.

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Sadness

Inspiration

The emotion Sadness (Sorrow)

Personality

Emotional, sorrowful, empathetic, pessimistic

Appearance

Chubby, light blue skin, shoulder-length navy blue hair, sapphire blue eyes, buck teeth, thick purple round glasses, white turtleneck sweater, navy blue pants and slippers, cute

Goal

To find her true purpose in life (succeeded)
To signal others when Riley needs help and support
To help Riley feel true happiness and joy

Likes

Watching scary movies, being dragged, being helpful, rainy days, the movie where the dog died, Tragic Vampire Romance Island

Fate

Gets accepted as an equal to the other emotions

Quote

"Okay! I'm positive you will get lost in there."
"Oh, Participation Award."
"I'm too sad to walk."
"I only make things worse! Riley's better off without me!"

"Crying helps me slow down and obsess over the weight of life's problems."

―Sadness

Sadness is the deuteragonist of the Disney/ Pixar film , and one of the five Emotions inside the mind of Riley Andersen.

Background

Sadness was first born when Riley was a baby; there, she met Joy, the first born emotion. When she caused baby Riley to cry, Joy pushed her aside and fixed the situation. Sadness was only used when Riley threw tantrums.

Official Description

None of the other Emotions really understand what Sadness's role is. Sadness would love to be more optimistic and helpful in keeping Riley happy, but she finds it so hard to be positive. Sometimes it seems like the best thing to do is just lie on the floor and have a good cry.

Personality

Sadness is literally the very definition and being of sorrow and gloom. She was hardly ever used because Joy is the dominant emotion and didn't want Riley to ever be sad. Because of this, Joy treated Sadness poorly. Secretly however, Sadness yearned to earn her place among the other emotions, even though the others did not believe Sadness had a purpose in the mind and almost always prevented her from trying. She is the most sensitive out of all the emotions, as she felt genuinely hurt by Joy's desertion because, "Riley needs to be happy", which made Sadness feel she was truly useless.

Sadness also complains a lot, as seen when she keeps saying she's too sad to walk or do anything.

Sadness is also smarter and has more common sense than the others, which proved expedient in the journey through Riley's mind, as she kept trying to warn Joy about the dangers of taking Bing Bong's "shortcut", which was really a dangerous place to go through, but nobody listened to her. She also suggested scaring Riley to wake her up, but Joy thought that giving her a fun dream would wake her up, which it wouldn't.

Despite her pessimistic disposition and being negative all the time, she is very considerate and compassionate towards others; when Bing Bong was sad about losing his wagon, she sympathized with him and let him tell his true feelings, which made him feel a lot happier. Unknowingly, this is because of Sadness' true purpose - her role is to tell others when Riley wants attention. When Sadness is requested to take control after Riley's sorrow became evident, she is able to let Riley express her true feelings and helps Riley find happiness at last. After the other emotions finally accept Sadness, not only does Joy start treating her better but Sadness gains more confidence in herself as well, now that she has finally found her place.

Appearances

Sadness first appears at Riley's birth. She appears 33 seconds after Riley's first emotion, Joy, is born. Sadness makes Riley cry, but Joy pushes Sadness out of the way and makes Riley happy.

Due to Joy's obsession with keeping Riley happy, she unintentionally mistreats Sadness. As a matter of fact, the other emotions tend to exclude Sadness as well. They won't let Sadness take the wheel at all, no matter how sad the situation needs to be.

When Riley moves to San Francisco, everything starts to go bad; Riley's dad doesn't have time for her, Riley hates the house, they only serve broccoli pizza and the moving van won't come for weeks. Sadness thinks this is a good time for her to handle Riley's problems, but Joy won't let her.

The next day at Riley's new school, Joy tells Sadness to stay out of everything and stay in a small white circle made of chalk, so Riley won't be sad. When Riley is called up to introduce herself, she talks about the good old days in Minnesota and starts to cry because she misses it. It is revealed that Sadness was secretly taking the wheel and she made a new core memory that is a sad one.

The other emotions begin to panic as the sad core memory rolls into the core memory chamber. Joy takes the core memory out and decides to throw it away. Sadness tries to stop Joy, but it causes them and the core memories to be sucked up into a tube and they end up in Long Term Memory. Joy decides to find a way to get back to Headquarters with Sadness as her guide.

During the journey, they run into Riley's old imaginary friend from toddlerhood, Bing Bong, who knows a way back to Headquarters. Joy decides to have him show them the way back. While on their way back, they go though Imagination Land, where they see that many of the childish aspects of Riley's personality are being removed, including Bing Bong's rocket that is sent down the Memory Dump. Bing Bong starts crying and Joy tries to get him to stop by being goofy, but it doesn't work at all. Instead of trying to cheer him up, Sadness decides to sympathize with him and let him express his emotions. In just a minute or so, Bing Bong feels better. Joy is shocked that Sadness could solve Bing Bong's problems without cheering him up instantly.

The next day, the trio finds out that Riley is running away and that all the personality islands are disappearing one by one. Joy decides to leave Sadness behind and return to HQ, but her plan backfires when she falls into the Memory Dump and Bing Bong comes after her.

When Joy looks at all of the forgotten memories, she sees tons of sad ones and realizes that Riley's problems were solved because Sadness was the one in control during those times and Joy finally sees that she went way overboard with trying to keep Riley happy.

Joy makes it out of the chasm, but Bing Bong sacrifices himself and fades into oblivion. Joy tries to get Sadness to come back with her, but Sadness thinks Riley doesn't need her and just cries her eyes out and runs away from Joy. Soon enough, Joy is flung into the air and grabs Sadness and the two make it back to HQ, just as Riley is about to run away.

The others tell Joy to handle Riley's problem, but Joy hands the core memories to Sadness, who turns them all sad and places them in the core memory holder. Riley comes home and the sad memories help her tell her parents how she really feels about her new life in San Francisco and that she misses Minnesota.

Just then, a new memory comes up--it's both yellow and blue. Joy and Sadness hold hands on the new core memory and finally become a team and the best of friends.

Video games

Sadness is set to appear in Disney INFINITY' s Disney INFINITY: 3.0 Edition as a playable character.

Disney Parks

Joy and Sadness have a meet-n-greet area near the Art of Animation exhibitions at Hong Kong Disneyland for a limited time during the coolest summer ever event in 2015. They are currently the only Inside Out characters to appear at Disney Parks.

According to Pete Docter, her appearance is based on that of a tear.
This can be seen in Abstract Thought, as during the fourth stage, Joy and Sadness were reduced to a shape and color - Sadness was a blue teardrop and Joy was a yellow star.

Sadness is the only emotion that wears a head accessory, that being her glasses.

She is the only emotion that narrates in the Memory Dump.

While the other four emotions have defined their function in the mind, that of Sadness is never mentioned in the film, so it could be said that its function falls under the interpretation of the viewer.

In an early draft for the film, Sadness wasn't originally going to get lost with Joy in Riley's mind, but instead, her role would have been given to Fear.

Sadness is the sixth female deuteragonist of Pixar. The other five are Princess Atta from A Bug's Life, Dory from Finding Nemo, Helen Parr from The Incredibles, EVE from WALL.E and Queen Elinor from Brave.

Phyllis Smith, Sadness' voice actor, was chosen for the role of Sadness after Jonas Rivera, Inside Out's producer, noticed her performance in the 2011 film Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked.

She seems to like the Imaginary Boyfriends.

Sadness is the only female emotion to wear a sweater and jeans.

Sadness is the lead emotion in Riley's mom

Sadness seems to be a fan of tragic vampire romance stories.
This was notified when she said she liked Tragic Vampire Romance Island.

(When Friendship Island collapsed) "Goodbye, friendship. Hello, loneliness."

"I'm too sad to walk. Just give me a few... hours"

"I like Tragic Vampire Romance Island".

"I just wanted to look" (on the Memories)

(on being dragged around) "This actually feels kinda nice!"

(on Bing Bong) "He looked sad, so I..."

"I went sad again, didn't I?"

"I was thinking more like rain."

(on Riley laughing so hard milk came out of her nose) "Yeah, that hurt. Felt like fire."

"Remember the funny movie where the dog dies?"

"Joy, no! That's a Core Memory!"

"We'll be stuck in here forever!"(In Abstract Thought)

"Wait, Joy! You could get lost in there!"

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Sadness is the deuteragonist of the Disney/Pixar film Inside Out, and one of the five Emotions inside the mind of Riley Andersen. Sadness was first born when Riley was a baby; there, she met Joy, the first born emotion. When she caused baby Riley to cry, Joy pushed her aside and fixed the situation.

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a great way of showing long term growth from a character and cutting ties from previous mental standpoints given to him by his family

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Aliases

The Blue Spirit (while masked as such)

Lee (while exiled in the Earth Kingdom)

Junior

Hair color

Dark brown/black (white in old age)

Love interests

Jin (formerly)

Mai (girlfriend; formerly)

Allies

Team Avatar, Mai, Ty Lee, Hakoda, Jin, June, Fire Nation military, Kyoshi Warriors, Order of the White Lotus, Druk, Tonraq, Korra, Desna, Eska, Tenzin, Lin Beifong, more ...

Enemies

Azula, Ozai, Azulon, Jet, Combustion Man, Zhao, Gow, the Rough Rhinos, Red Lotus, Ukano, New Ozai Society, more ...

Profession

Ambassador

Fire Lord[10] (formerly)[11]

Firebending instructor[12]

Tea shop assistant (formerly)

Reign

100 AG - 167 AG (67 years)[7]

Successor

Izumi (as Fire Lord)

Yim (as the Avatar's firebending master)

Zuko is a Fire Nation royal and firebending master who reigned as Fire Lord from 100 AG until his abdication in 167 AG. He is the eldest child and only son of Princess Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai. Originally the primary enemy of Team Avatar, Zuko devoted three years to trying to capture the long-lost Avatar to end his banishment and regain his honor as Crown Prince of the Fire Nation. He is recognizable by the distinctive burn scar on the left side of his face, which was given to him by his father, Ozai, shortly before his banishment as a result of an incident in which he unintentionally disrespected his father by speaking out of turn and refusing to duel him.[14]
With support from his paternal uncle, General Iroh, and after much internal struggle and turmoil, Zuko grew disillusioned and rejected Ozai and his model of the Fire Nation. He instead joined the Avatar's group to become Aang's lifelong friend and firebending mentor and was determined to end the war and restore both his and the Fire Nation's honor. While Aang defeated Ozai, Zuko, with the help of Katara, defeated his younger sister, Princess Azula, and took his place as Fire Lord, declaring the end of the Hundred Year War and the start of a new era of love and peace.

At the beginning of his reign, Zuko had to overcome great difficulties and solve several crises, especially those caused by the Harmony Restoration Movement and the New Ozai Society. Nevertheless, he succeeded in maintaining peace and eventually became one of the founders of the United Republic of Nations. Zuko stepped down from his position as Fire Lord in 167 AG and became an ambassador of peace, relinquishing the throne to his daughter, Izumi.

Born in 83 AG, Zuko was the firstborn child of Prince Ozai and Princess Ursa. From a young age, he was disdained by his father due to lacking the "spark in [his] eyes" typical for firebenders. Indeed, Zuko would struggle to become a strong bender; however, he displayed a strong sense of empathy and morality from an very early point. Zuko's early years were the only ones when his family was ever "actually happy". They made frequent vacations to Ember Island, and often watched the play Love amongst the Dragons at the Ember Island Theater. At this point, he and Azula still had a positive relationship. Zuko was schooled by Kunyo in firebending and by Piandao in the art of fighting with dual broadswords.

However, as they got older, Zuko and Azula eventually grew apart, and he became the object of his sister's manipulation, ridicule, and deception. Their mother, however, loved both but favored him over his sister, causing further jealousy and strife. Meanwhile, the relationship between Ursa and Ozai also became increasingly strained and poor, causing the latter to lash out at Zuko more and more. The young prince increasingly faced emotional abuse by both his father as well as his younger sister. In contrast to these dysfunctional relationships, Zuko grew close to his uncle, and the two often spent time together.

When Zuko was eleven years old, his cousin, Lu Ten, died in battle. General Iroh, devastated by the loss of his only child, abandoned his 600-day siege of the Earth Kingdom capital city, Ba Sing Se. This caused a series of events which resulted in the death of Fire Lord Azulon, the enthronement of Ozai, and the disappearance of Ursa. As they had been very close, the loss of his mother was traumatic to Zuko. Though he was now the new Crown Prince, Zuko was also left largely isolated in his family and at the mercy of both Ozai and Azula. Upon his return from the frontlines, however, Iroh tried to support his nephew as well as he could.

Two years later, thirteen-year-old Zuko took part in a war council with Ozai and some of his generals. At the meeting, the prince fiercely spoke out against one general's suggestion to callously sacrifice an entire Fire Army division. The outburst was seen as a grave insult, and Ozai demanded the prince participate in an Agni Kai. He agreed, unaware that it was not the general whom he had insulted, but his father. When Zuko realized the truth, he tearfully begged for his father's forgiveness. Considering this another sign of cowardice and disrespect, Ozai burned Zuko by permanently scarring the left side of his face. Zuko was also stripped of his birthright, and exiled from his beloved homeland until he had captured the Avatar, who had disappeared nearly one hundred years prior. It was a fool's errand by all accounts, but one to which Zuko clung desperately as his only hope of regaining his honor and everything he had lost.

Zuko spent the next two years fruitlessly and desperately searching for the Avatar. He had been given a small ship, and was only accompanied by Iroh and a small crew. With these companions, he traveled around the world and scoured even the most remote locations for his prize. Aside of Iroh, Zuko's party took little joy in this journey.

While traversing the Southern Water Tribe, Zuko and his crew saw a flare of an old Fire Nation cruiser, which itself had been shipwrecked a long time ago, light up the sky, and after seeing the Avatar flee toward a nearby village, Zuko ordered his crew to pursuit. Zuko's ship quickly arrived at the village of Wolf Cove. The exiled prince descended, accompanied by a small number of soldiers. Sokka charged at him; however, possessing more fighting experience, Zuko required only his bare hands to counter Sokka's primitive weaponry and swiftly dealt with him. After being initially struck by the Avatar who came at him riding a Penguin, a short brawl between the two ensued, but Aang ultimately surrendered in order to protect the villagers. On Zuko's ship, the Avatar was locked in the brig before eventually escaping with the help of Sokka and Katara, much to Zuko's dismay and anger. Despite the heavy damage to his ship after the encounter with Aang, Zuko ordered a relentless pursuit, ultimately causing his ship to break. With no other option, the prince sought resources and a place for repairs. In the process, he and his crew were ambushed by pirates, but ultimately prevailed.

Soon afterward, Zuko docked at Ketu Harbor, a Fire Nation base off the coast of the southwest Earth Kingdom where his ship could undergo the substantial repairs necessary to fix the damage inflicted by Aang. Zuko wanted the repairs done quickly so they would not lose the Avatar's trail and warned Iroh not to mention the Avatar during their stay so no other firebender would start looking for him. The commander of the harbor, Zhao, quickly found out the truth, and in a fit of rage, Zuko challenged him to an Agni Kai, which he eventually won thanks to the firebending advice from his uncle. A bitter rivalry erupted between Zhao and Zuko, both wishing to capture the Avatar and deliver him to the Fire Lord.

During the course of several weeks, Zuko pursued the Avatar and his friends through several parts of the either occupied or war-torn Earth Kingdom, finding and almost capturing him on Kyoshi Island. Later, Zuko saved his Uncle Iroh from earthbending soldiers, who had locked him up and were planning to transport him to Ba Sing Se to stand trial for his actions in the Siege of Ba Sing Se. During his pursuit of the Avatar, Zuko and the rest of his crew ventured into Fire Nation waters and tried to capture the Avatar in the Crescent Island Fire Temple, a mission in which Zuko only barely evaded the prospect capture by Commander Zhao and being sent home as a traitor. Later, Zuko unsuccessfully tried to capture the Avatar with the help of pirates. Zuko's poor relationship with his crew started to improve when when he displayed a show of camaraderie and respect by saving the helmsman of his ship from falling to death during a dangerous lightning storm. In a risky move, Zuko donned the persona of the Blue Spirit and infiltrated the Pohuai Stronghold in order to save the Avatar from the clutches of Zhao. This was not to save Aang, but so that he could personally be the one to deliver the Avatar to the Fire Lord. After Aang fled when Zuko tried to attack, he planned to capture the Avatar utilizing the help of June and her Shirshu Nyla after watching her catch a stowaway on his ship, but Aang and his friends managed to evade capture. Zhao eventually found out that Zuko was behind the Avatar's rescue in Pohuai and exacted his revenge by blowing up Zuko's ship while it had been docked in a harbor. The explosion destroyed the ship and grievously wounding Zuko, who was now presumed dead. When Zuko reunited with Iroh, he stowed away aboard Zhao's ship when his uncle accepted the offer to be Zhao's adviser out of grief.

During the Siege of the North, Zuko managed to sneak off Zhao's ship and eventually made his way into the innermost part of Agna Qel'a, where he managed to kidnap Aang, who had meditated into the Spirit World. After trudging through a raging blizzard, Zuko found a cave and took shelter. Soon after, Aang's spirit returned to his body. After the Avatar woke up, the airbender tried to escape, but failed due to his restraints. Zuko taunted the Avatar; however, Katara, Sokka, and Yue arrived on Appa, having followed Zuko through the snowstorm. Katara defeated Zuko, and prepared to leave with Aang. The young Avatar saved Zuko's life for a second time, insisting that Zuko must be brought along instead of being left unconscious in the snow, where he would surely die. Upon returning to Agna Qel'a, Zuko eventually managed to escape and attacked Zhao for trying to kill him. After the battle had been won by the Northern Water Tribe with the help of the ocean spirit, La, acting through Aang, Zuko and Iroh escaped the North Pole and traveled on a driftwood raft for three weeks until they reached land.

For their actions in the Siege of the North, both Iroh and Zuko were branded as traitors by Fire Lord Ozai, who sent Azula to track the fugitives and bring them to justice. After being adrift for weeks, Zuko and Iroh reached a village resort, where Azula unexpectedly greeted them and informed them that their banishment was at an end and that they could finally return home. Zuko believed his sister, and was ecstatic at the prospect of going home. Iroh, however, remained skeptical, as he had never known Ozai to forgive anyone. The next morning, the duo nearly boarded Azula's royal sloop when Azula's ship captain referred to them as prisoners, revealing the plan and enabling them to escape after a brief showdown. Zuko and Iroh, now fugitives, sliced off their topknots with Zuko's dagger, symbolizing their alienation from the Fire Nation. As they lived as fugitives, they struggled to live off the land, with Iroh starting to panhandle for money, and Zuko stealing from others disguised as the Blue Spirit. Zuko and Iroh started to drift apart, until Zuko eventually decided that they no longer had anything to gain by traveling together and parted ways with Iroh. Zuko wandered through the Earth Kingdom, passing through forbidding and uninhabited areas. Despite his worsening hunger and lack of supplies, he decided not to rob a young couple when he noticed that the woman was pregnant. While riding and slipping in and out of consciousness, Zuko saw visions of who appeared to be his mother, Ursa. On the brink of utter starvation and dehydration, Zuko made his way into a quiet Earth Kingdom town, where he befriended a young boy named Lee, without revealing his true identity. When Gow, a ruthless Earth Kingdom mercenary, and his men bullied Lee's family, Zuko defended the family that had taken him in. During the battle, Zuko became overpowered and resorted to his firebending, revealing his identity. Shocked and horrified, the citizens of the town quickly turned on Zuko, and even Lee refused to thank him for his actions. The ostracized prince then mounted his ostrich horse and left the town.

Zuko secretly followed his sister Azula while she had been tracking the Avatar with the tank train and eventually revealed himself in a deserted town where she and Aang were about to face off. The face-off soon escalated into a full-blown brawl, with Team Avatar, Iroh, and Zuko acting, albeit unwillingly, against Azula. All six cornered Azula, who feigned surrender, only to attack and badly wound Iroh with her lightning generation in a moment of distraction. Zuko, Aang, Katara, and Toph each launched an elemental attack, but Azula disappeared, utilizing a clever firebending move, while Zuko ran to his wounded uncle. When Aang and his companions approached, he angrily demanded that they leave, spraying fire at them. Zuko tended for his uncle's wounds, and Iroh slowly began to teach him how to redirect lightning attacks in the future. When Iroh praised him, Zuko eagerly asked to try it out with real lightning, but Iroh refused, not risking the chance of him killing his nephew. Zuko, seeing a thunderstorm in the distance, told his uncle he would find his own lightning. He climbed up a mountain in the middle of the storm, intent on accomplishing the task. He raged at the storm and the world, lamenting how it had never held back before in hurting him. No lightning came close enough, and, finally exhausted and emotionally spent, he broke down bitterly in tears, screaming into the sky. Zuko and Iroh eventually arrived at the walled city of Ba Sing Se, meeting Jet in the process, who saw through their ruse and identified them as firebenders. Iroh and Zuko found employment at a tea shop in the outer ring of the city, where Jet accused them of being firebenders and attacked Zuko before being arrested by the Dai Li. Zuko reluctantly adapted to his new life, even going on an awkward date with Jin, until he learned of Aang's presence in Ba Sing Se and attempted to steal the bison from Long Feng's captivity. However, Iroh convinced Zuko to abandon his quest and let Appa go, a move that caused him to develop a fever and experience hallucinations, signifying his metamorphasis. Zuko was captured and placed in the Crystal Catacombs following Azula's coup, where he encountered Katara. Although Zuko and Katara shared a brief moment of compassion, Azula convinced Zuko to betray his uncle and the Avatar in a desperate attempt to regain his honor. Zuko ultimately chose to ally himself with Azula and fought against Aang and Katara. In the ensuing fight, Aang was killed before later being revived with spirit water, and Iroh was arrested. While Azula reassured Zuko that he had restored his own honor, the prince still appeared conflicted and somewhat regretful about his decision.

Returning to his country as a hero, Zuko learned that had Azula lied and told Fire Lord Ozai that he personally killed the Avatar. Zuko suspected that Aang survived due to Katara's spirit water, and hired an assassin to ensure Aang's death, fearing his father's wrath. In the Fire Nation, Zuko's only real friend proved to be his girlfriend Mai, with whom he went on a vacation onto Ember Island along with his sister and Ty Lee. However, the trip proved to be an emotional journey for all, though despite its unpleasantness, it was also enriching. Iroh, while imprisoned, managed to lead Zuko to learn that his maternal great-grandfather was Avatar Roku, Aang's previous incarnation, which partly explained Zuko's inner struggle. Prior to the Day of Black Sun, Zuko inadvertently catalyzed his father's plan to destroy the Earth Kingdom with Sozin's Comet when he mentioned the resolve of the people of the Earth Kingdom. Zuko became ever more guilt-ridden over his betrayal of Iroh and contributing to the planned burning of the entire Earth Kingdom, leading him to confront Ozai during the eclipse. Zuko openly berated his father and stated his intention to help Aang, using his uncle's teachings to redirect his father's lightning. Zuko left the Fire Nation and attempted to join the Team Avatar, but was largely rejected by Aang and his allies, with only Appa and Toph trusting the prince until he proved himself to them by defeating the assassin he had hired. However, Katara still remained bitter and apprehensive after his previous betrayal in the Crystal Catacombs, stating that she would kill Zuko with no second thought if he tried to hurt Aang again. Zuko's change in temperament led to his firebending weakening when he started to teach Aang, though he managed to overcome the block in his firebending by visiting the Sun Warriors and the dragons and discovering that fire was a source of life and light, and not just hatred.

After helping Sokka free Suki and Hakoda from the Boiling Rock prison, Zuko amended with Katara by locating her mother's killer, Yon Rha. It was after this manhunt when Katara finally accepted Zuko as an ally and as a friend. In the days before Sozin's Comet, Zuko and the rest of Team Avatar stayed on Ember Island, where they saw a play performed by the Ember Island Players, leaving them embarrassed and uneasy. When Aang disappeared shortly before Sozin's Comet, Zuko led the effort to track down the Avatar, leading him to June in the Earth Kingdom. Although she could not locate Aang, she was able to bring them to Iroh and the Order of the White Lotus. Zuko tearfully apologized to his uncle, who easily forgave him, stating that he was never angry with Zuko, only sad because he had thought he had lost his way. Later, Iroh suggested that Zuko become the next Fire Lord, citing Zuko's "unquestionable honor". Arriving at the Fire Nation capital with Katara, Zuko dueled Azula for the throne in a Comet-Enhanced Agni Kai. When Azula faced defeat, she aimed a lightning strike at Katara that Zuko leapt forward to save her from, leaving him wounded and immobile. Katara eventually defeated Azula due to her waterbending skills and quick thinking, and managed to heal Zuko. After Aang stripped Ozai of his bending and ended the war, Zuko was crowned as the new Fire Lord, giving a speech promising world order and harmony with the aid of the Avatar at his coronation.

Reign as Fire Lord (100 AG - 167 AG)

Early reign

Main article: History of Zuko (100 AG - 102 AG)

See also: Resistance against Fire Lord Zuko

After Zuko's coronation, he began to send out several search parties for his mother, but their efforts were fruitless. He also made efforts to make the Fire Nation government less dictatorial, overcome the country's imperialistic tendencies, reform the education system, and start the persecution of Fire Nation war criminals. Additionally, he purged Ozai loyalists from his government, and supported the removal of the Fire Nation colonies in the Harmony Restoration Movement. Despite this, Zuko was worried that he could become a tyrant like his ancestors, and made Aang promise to kill him if he ended up like his father.

Zuko's efforts were met with resistance from nationalists, leading to six assassination attempts within his first year as Fire Lord. The last of these assassins was Kori Morishita, the daughter of the mayor of Yu Dao. When Zuko came to the colony to confront Kori's father, he was surprised to learn that the mayor's wife and daughter were earthbenders, and that the residents of the city included people from both Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom heritage living alongside each other for generations. Realizing that it was unfair to uproot the inhabitants of the oldest colonies, the Fire Lord changed his approach to the Harmony Restoration Movement and ordered the Fire Army to secure Yu Dao. This led to brief a confrontation with Aang and Katara, though it ended when the Fire Lord agreed to the Avatar informing the Earth King about the situation and trying to convince him to change his mind. As Zuko suffered from insomnia due to fears about assassination attempts, Mai arranged for the Kyoshi Warriors to become his bodyguards. Still suffering from the pressures of being Fire Lord, Zuko started secretly seeing his father in prison, but this led to Mai ending their relationship when she found out. When he was told that the Earth King was intending to invade Yu Dao, Zuko ordered his army to defend the city. Zuko traveled to the colony for the Battle for Yu Dao, where he led his forces against the Earth Kingdom army. Aang intervened in the Avatar State, and although he asked Aang to reconsider, he came to believe that his death would be for the best. At that very moment, he was saved from falling into a chasm by Aang, and heard that the Avatar was able to reason with the Earth King. Zuko later acknowledged that the colonies could neither be Earth Kingdom nor Fire Nation, and worked with the Earth Kingdom to form new coalition governments. He and Earth King Kuei signed the Treaty of Yu Dao helping to secure peace between their two nations. Additionally, the Fire Lord agreed to pay war reparations to the Earth Kingdom to help them rebuild, which was an unpopular choice with some Fire Nation citizens.

With Ozai still refusing to speak about his mother's whereabouts, Zuko turned to Azula for help. After Zuko released her from a mental health facility, she spoke to her father in prison and later found and burned a collection of Ursa's letters at the palace. Azula promised to tell Zuko what was in the letters, in exchange for being allowed to travel with Zuko unbound. Azula, Zuko, and his friends set off to Ursa's hometown of Hira'a despite the skepticism of Team Avatar. Azula suffered a psychotic episode during the journey and had to be restrained. As the group camped, Zuko found a shocking letter that Azula had saved, which implied that he was the son of Ursa's childhood love, Ikem. In spite of Zuko's doubts and another fight with Azula, the group reached Hira'a, where they were welcomed by a man named Noren, his wife Noriko, and their daughter Kiyi. After hearing that Ikem had gone to the dangerous Forgetful Valley, Zuko and the others made their way to the area, where they were confronted by the waterbenders Rafa and Misu. Afterward, the valley's ancient spirit, the Mother of Faces, appeared before them, and revealed to Zuko that she had given Ursa a new identity and memories as Noriko. Zuko returned to Noren's house, ready to accept his new family, but at that moment, Azula attacked. After Zuko confronted his sister, she fled the house and ran into the wild, leaving behind the letter. Afterward, the Mother of Faces asked Ursa if she wanted to regain her original face and memories, and she accepted. Ursa was overjoyed to see Zuko, apologized for leaving, and told him that the letter about his paternity was a lie to fool Ozai. She promised to tell everything about her life to Zuko, starting at the beginning.

Zuko searched for Azula in the Forgetful Valley for weeks, but to no avail. Some time later, Ursa, Noren, and Kiyi were ready to come to the capital despite his mother's reservations about returning. Cautious to make a safe return to the capital, Zuko and his family were nonetheless ambushed by the New Ozai Society, intent on Zuko relinquishing the throne. Although Zuko and the Kyoshi Warriors were defeated, reinforcements arrived and fought back against the attackers. One month later, Mai's brother Tom-Tom was kidnapped, supposedly by the mythical Kemurikage spirits. Zuko went to the High Temple with Aang, Mai, and Kei Lo to research the spirits, where Aang learned from a true Kemurikage that they had not returned to the human world in millennia, indicating that the kidnappers were imposters. Zuko discovered that a militia called the Safe Nation Society had been formed in response to the kidnappings, and ordered the group to be disbanded or be imprisoned. The false Kemurikage ended up kidnapping Kiyi and, in response, Zuko locked down the city and ordered the homes of the Safe Nation Society to be searched, which concerned Aang. When the orders were carried out, the Safe Nation Society instigated a riot in the city that led to their imprisonment. At the palace, Ty Lee discovered a passageway where Azula was hiding. As the siblings confronted one another, Zuko told her that the throne would never be hers, but his sister responded that her plan had been to mold Zuko into a ruthless and authoritarian Fire Lord. However, at that moment, Zuko learned that his friends had been able to save Kiyi and the other children. After the end of the crisis, Zuko apologized to his people for his poor conduct and vowed to be a better Fire Lord worthy of their trust.

Head Chieftain Hakoda invited the Fire Lord and the Earth King to a conference in the South Pole, where the world leaders discussed the Southern Reconstruction Project to advance the development of the Southern Water Tribe. Zuko was quick to offer his support to fund the endeavor, but the Earth King was more hesitant. However, Kuei was kidnapped during the conference by Gilak and his band of Southern nationalists. Zuko aided in the rescue of the Earth King, coming to the Bridge of No Return, where he avoided Thod's chi-blocking by wearing heavy armor under his winter clothing. Aang managed to save both Hakoda and Malina in the battle, but Gilak fell to his demise. With the crisis over, Zuko joined Kanna and Pakku in their igloo to share a meal with his friends.

Zuko subsequently continued to work on improving relations with the Earth Kingdom. He faced yet another crisis, however, when a large corsair alliance called the Crimson Sails Armada began to attack Fire Nation shipping and stole his government's reparation payments to the Earth Kingdom. Zuko knew that the reparations' failure to arrive could cause another fallout with Kuei's government, and thus wanted to recover the money and goods. However, his military was spread thin and he was unwilling to yield to the pirates' blackmailing; accordingly, he sent a secret mission of freelance agents to recover the reparation payments and learn why the Crimson Sails Armada had suddenly become so aggressive.

Later reign

Zuko's commitment to allow the older Fire Nation colonies to remain in the Earth Kingdom and regulate the balance of power between them, rather than to forcefully remove them, eventually led to the creation of the United Republic of Nations with Republic City as its capital. Zuko subsequently aided Aang in making the United Republic a prosperous and safe country, which included combating the surging activities of bending criminals in Republic City.

In his 20s, Zuko found a juvenile dragon that he named Druk. Over the years, Druk grew up and became Zuko's loyal companion, and the two of them flew around the world together. At some point in his life, he married and had a daughter named Izumi. He also became a grandfather to Iroh, who grew up to serve as a general of the first division of the United Forces. Zuko and Aang remained lifelong best friends, with Aang regularly turning to Zuko for advice. Zuko, in turn, would always trust the Avatar's instinct. According to his grandson, Zuko also remained a good friend and an important ally of the Southern Water Tribe.

In 158 AG, Zuko joined forces with Southern chief Sokka, Tenzin, and Tonraq to deal with Zaheer, Ghazan, Ming-Hua, and P'Li, four criminals who desired to kidnap the new Avatar, Korra. The group was able to defeat the four and send them to specially-constructed White Lotus prisons, which would serve to neutralize their bending abilities. Zuko collaborated with Northern chief Unalaq and ordered the construction of a top-secret prison in the western tundra of the North Pole, specially designed to hold the firebender P'Li.

Zuko continued to remain in power until he abdicated the throne of the Fire Nation in 167 AG to his daughter, Izumi, at which point he chose to leave the Fire Nation Capital in favor of living on Ember Island. He retained his formal title of "Lord" and became an ambassador for world balance, giving counsel to those who requested it, albeit, in an unofficial capacity, all the while working to improve the lives of his countrymen and ensure the safety of the new Avatar. He also continued to support the policies of his daughter, Fire Lord Izumi.

Two weeks after Harmonic Convergence, Zuko grew aware of the escape of the criminals Zaheer, Ming-Hua, and Ghazan from their custody under White Lotus sentries and was particularly disturbed to hear that Zaheer had become an airbender. After sending a notice to Lin Beifong of their escape, he traveled to the Northern Water Tribe, where he and Chief Tonraq met with Desna and Eska, the new Northern chiefs. Zuko told them that they needed to check up on P'Li's prison in the western tundra. While riding the elevator to the bowels of the prison, Zuko explained that P'Li possessed the ability to create explosions with her mind and casually remarked that ironically he once sent an assassin with similar abilities to kill the Avatar, but that it did not work. Eska shared with Zuko her own experience trying to assassinate the Avatar after the latter spoiled her wedding.

Zuko soon scouted the area around the prison atop his dragon, Druk, and only found what he thought to be a snowstorm. When he pointed this out to Tonraq, however, the Southern chief recognized it as Zaheer's doing. The two groups clashed, with Zuko finding himself matched against Ghazan. The old firebender was able to dodge his opponent's attacks for a short while but was ultimately knocked down by a large fragment of rock. Zuko was only left to watch as the fugitives made a successful escape with P'Li in tow.

Sometime later, Zuko flew toward the Misty Palms Oasis on Druk with Tonraq in tow after the latter received word from Lin to meet her there. They awaited Korra's return in a local cantina, where he was pleased to make his reacquaintance with the Avatar. He learned that Zaheer and his friends were called the Red Lotus and that their murder of Earth Queen Hou-Ting was only the beginning of their actions.

Upon Mako and Bolin's return to the Misty Palms Oasis, Zuko came out of the cantina, where he was greeted by a starstruck Bolin, who could barely form a coherent sentence. As Mako excused his brother and bowed respectfully, stating they were honored to meet him, Zuko returned the gesture.

Zuko followed Team Avatar toward Zaofu to use the Metal Clan's radio transmitter to reach the Northern Air Temple to warn Tenzin of the Red Lotus' approach. However, as the others prepared to head toward the temple, he prepared Druk to head back home toward the Fire Nation to protect Izumi in case Zaheer would target her next. Before he could leave, he was approached by Korra, who asked him for advice as Aang's best friend on what Aang would have done if Zaheer had given him a choice between giving himself up or letting a nation be attacked. Zuko answered that it had been Aang's dream to rebuild the Air Nation, though that he also knew that in times of turmoil, the world needed the Avatar the most. Zuko grew surprised when Korra thanked him for his advice, saying that Iroh had been right to go talk to him, as he had been unaware that she had met his late uncle. Before he could ask any more about Iroh, they were interrupted by Mako, who alerted them that they had finally been able to contact the Northern Air Temple, prompting Zuko and Korra to follow him toward Zaofu's communication's room.

As the team departed for the temple, Zuko went home to his daughter, though two weeks later, he journeyed to Republic City, where he bowed respectfully to a recovering Korra. As she left, Zuko voiced his concern, along with President Raiko, about the lack of information concerning the Red Lotus and their true numbers. He subsequently went inside the temple, where he attended Jinora's anointment as an airbending master now that she had received her tattoos.

Later, Zuko reunited with Iroh in Spirit World.

After Kuvira had nearly stabilized the entire Earth Kingdom, Zuko traveled to Republic City with his daughter to attend Prince Wu's coronation as the nation's Earth King. However, after Kuvira was bestowed the Kyoshi Medal of Freedom for her service, Zuko bore witness to her declaration of usurping power in the Earth Kingdom, renaming it the " Earth Empire".

Well-respected as one of Republic City's founders, a statue was erected in Zuko's honor at the center of the plaza outside Central City Station in Republic City to commemorate his many accomplishments. In addition, the "Fire Lord Zuko Library" in Republic City's Roku Plaza district was named after him.

However, his and Avatar Aang's creation of the United Republic of Nations earned the animosity of Earth Queen Hou-Ting and Kuvira, who both considered the state to be illegally occupied territory.

" I've struggled for so long to do what's right; to even know what's right. [...] But asking you to end me if I went bad; that was like asking you to figure out right and wrong for me. [...] I understand now. The struggle isn't something a Fire Lord can escape."

During his exile, Zuko became bitter, impatient, and a complex young man, akin to a tragic villain. More than anything, he wanted his place as heir to the Fire Nation throne and his father's love. Zuko had convinced himself to believe that capturing the Avatar would make these wishes come true, making him one of Aang's most determined enemies.

Zuko believed one becomes strong by struggling and fighting for what they want. However, he expressed contradicting mindsets; he did not want good luck because he felt he could control his fate, but also believed he was marked unlucky and that the world was against him. His reaction to the perception of the world always set against him is iron-willed defiance and inflexible determination. He was clever yet hot-headed, often letting his temper get the best of him. He seemed averse to the thought of harming others without any motive or benefit, having consented to Aang's request to spare the Southern Water Tribe in exchange for himself as his prisoner, and left the village unharmed. He rarely thinks his situations through, causing him to get in trouble; he captured Aang at the North Pole but chose to make his getaway through the perilous tundra, and he casually took the sunstone off its pedestal in the Sun Warriors' temple only to fall into a trap. Said traits were criticized by his uncle, urging Zuko to try to control himself and think things through more often, which he managed to do over time.

Zuko had other contradictory traits, beliefs, and behaviors. He was domineering and controlling, a result of his upbringing as Fire Nation royalty, and disdained to work with people he believed were inferior; yet he adamantly refused to view people as expendable. He believed it was wrong to sacrifice able-bodied and willing troops as a diversionary tactic. During his banishment, he displayed zeal in pursuing the Avatar, using whatever means he thought necessary. Although he had said capturing the Avatar was a greater concern to him than the safety of his crew or himself, he showed compassion to those close to him, as evidenced when he chose to rescue Iroh when he was captured rather than pursue Aang and by risking his own life to save a member of his crew during a fierce storm. When the crew spotted Aang, he ordered the ship and crew to safety instead of chasing the Avatar. Even after all the hardship that he suffered at the hands of his sister, Azula, Zuko was still willing to vouch for her, giving her several chances for them to work together in order to find their mother. He even went as far as to show brotherly affection for her, inspired by Sokka's actions toward Katara. He was liable to commit brash actions against his sister, however, despite his best efforts to stop fighting her, even going as far as almost throwing her off a cliff.

Zuko was able to show mercy, even to his enemies. When fighting an Agni Kai with Zhao, he decided to spare him unscathed, though Zhao had expressed every intention to hurt Zuko. Even after Zhao had arranged for Zuko to be murdered, Zuko offered his hand in an attempt to save Zhao's life when the Ocean Spirit was about to drown him.

The prospect of returning home and earning forgiveness was Zuko's sole motivation. After losing his first chance at the Northern Water Tribe, he was filled with abject despair. He found himself in the direst situation possible-being hunted by his younger sister, the ruthless and relentless Azula, while attempting to survive as a penniless fugitive in the Earth Kingdom. Apart from his ever-supportive uncle, Zuko had nothing. At first, he lashed out and turned to robbery, even stealing from those who were kind to him. After some time, however, partially in thanks to a talk from Iroh, he gained a more reasonable outlook. Theft was still necessary from time to time, but he refused to steal from needy people or people who showed him kindness. He defended an Earth Kingdom village against a group of thugs who terrorized its people. He became more patient, kind, precise, and calculating; said traits necessary to evade Azula's pursuit while staying incognito from local authorities. He set Aang's pet bison and primary mode of transportation, Appa, free from Dai Li captivity at Iroh's suggestion.

After his return to the Fire Nation, Zuko thought he had everything he ever wanted: a position of honor, respect, and his father's love. However, he still felt angry and confused. His triumph was nothing like he imagined it would be. His temper went out of control; he became suspicious of Mai and got into fights with several people. Later, he stated he was angry with himself, saying he did not know right from wrong. He received a letter telling him his great-grandfather's death would reveal his destiny. He found Sozin's last testament and learned of his history with Avatar Roku. Assuming the letter was sent by his uncle, he visited him in prison, demanding to know the message's meaning. Iroh explained Avatar Roku was his mother's grandfather, and Zuko's inner conflict was part of the legacy of his forefathers' conflict. Iroh presented him with the Crown Prince headpiece, an ancient royal artifact, traditionally worn by the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation and given to Roku by Sozin in their youth.

Zuko became upset when he was not informed of a war meeting to which his sister was invited and showed happiness when a servant later came and asked him to head to the war room, as Ozai would not start the meeting without him. He told Mai he found himself unhappy, even when his father treated him as the perfect son. He said that he had been the perfect prince during the meeting, the son that his father had always wanted, but he had not been himself.

During the events of Day of Black Sun, Zuko realized it was his duty as the heir to the Fire Nation throne to restore peace to the world by joining the Avatar and fighting his father's (and forefathers') tyrannical regime. His zeal and resolve resurfaced in an entirely different direction. He resolved to confront his father and his many evils. He revealed in a discourse his banishment made him a firsthand witness to the misery and pain the Fire Nation has inflicted on the World. He discovered sharing the Fire Nation's greatness had nothing to do with the war - only fired by a ruthless desire for power. He swore to his father he will do everything in his power to see his defeat. He attempted to free Iroh from prison, but when he escaped by himself, Zuko followed Aang and the others as they fled to the Western Air Temple.

While at the Western Air Temple, Zuko became regretful about his former disrespect and ruthlessness. He confronted Team Avatar and apologized for his wrongdoings. When his request to join them was rejected, he humbled himself and offered himself up as a prisoner-a stark contrast to the proud attitude he bore before. Zuko also revealed his calculating abilities and problem-solving skills while accompanying Aang to the Sun Warrior ruins, for example, by using his sword to reflect sunlight to hit the temple's sunstone, allowing them to enter the structure.

At the start of his reign as Fire Lord, Zuko was assertive in having the Fire Nation pay for its crimes and having its colonies disbanded. However, after viewing the situation at Yu Dao and how the lives of Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom citizens had deeply intertwined themselves, Zuko became conflicted about his duties, and after being called a coward by Mayor Morishita, he sided with his people, devoting himself to protecting them and their way of life, withdrawing his support of the Harmony Restoration Movement and even fighting his friends, Katara and Aang, because of this.

During this time, Zuko developed night-terrors, chronic insomnia, and a somewhat paranoid attitude. This would have increased further when he discovered that (at least some of) the assassins attempting to take his life were his own unhappy people, as he cared so much for his country. Zuko eventually became so desperate and conflicted over the duties and pressures of being Fire Lord that he turned to his imprisoned father Ozai for advice on how to deal with the pressures of the title. Despite this, he continued to deny Ozai's claims that a Fire Lord's decisions were right by default. However, when being informed of the Earth Kingdom's impending attack, he begrudgingly admitted to himself that his father was right and prepared himself to go to war again.

Eventually, Zuko came to realize that his emotional instability over his position as Fire Lord was not caused by the pressures of being a ruler or by the choices he made for Yu Dao, but due to his fear of ultimately becoming the same tyrant as his father was. However, he eventually came to terms with the fact that there was a side to himself and his personality that he could not understand.

After an Earth Kingdom professor pointed out the similarities between governing a nation and taking care of a family, Zuko began doubting his own qualities as a leader again as his family was completely broken and a large part was due to his actions. However, he did show remorse and the will to fix past mistakes by trying to mend the rifts between his family. He freed Azula from the mental institution and asked for her help in his search for their mother, even allowing her to travel unbound and with dignity. After a conversation with Sokka about siblings, the latter noted how, despite their bickering, he and Katara were family, and as an older brother, he would always look after her. Inspired by those words, Zuko, who never truly attempted to connect with his younger sister, Azula, tried to do the same.

During the search for his mother, and upon finding out that Ozai may not be his legitimate father, he realized that he might not be the true heir to the throne. Despite knowing that he must stay Fire Lord, Zuko felt the most hopeful and relieved in the group upon hearing the news. He believed that he could start anew and "gallivant" around the world helping people, as Azula remarked, much to Aang's dissatisfaction; he believed that Zuko must stay as the leader of his nation to continue ushering a new era of love and peace.

When their search brought Zuko in contact with a young child, Kiyi, he displayed the characteristics of a good father, reflecting the parenting style of his mother and Uncle Iroh, by displaying an inquisitive and doting attitude toward the girl. When she showed him her doll, he kindly played along and chastised Azula for her violent commentary, exhibiting a protective side. He also seemed quite at ease around the child, showing genuine friendship and politeness during their interactions, seemingly truly enjoying the girl's company. His caring feelings toward Kiyi only strengthened after he discovered she was his half-sister, and he disregarded any royal formalities with her.

In his old age, Zuko displayed a more calm and wise demeanor, as well as a strong sense of protecting his family and the Avatar. He also retained a certain penchant for being the source of awkward moments when conversing with others, as evidenced by reactions to his revelation to Chiefs Tonraq, Desna, and Eska that he had once hired a combustionbending assassin to kill Aang when en route to P'Li's prison cell.

While growing up in the Fire Nation, Zuko showed no extraordinary skill in firebending. In his teen years, however, his ability began to develop significantly under his Uncle Iroh's tutelage, most noticeably during the last year of the Hundred Year War. He became able to fight on par with much more experienced firebenders, showing himself to be a late bloomer. Having continuously refined his skills, he has reached the point of becoming a firebending master, but despite his skill and fast development as a firebender, he has noted on more than one occasion that he is not as skilled or as powerful as his younger sister, Azula.

As a child, Zuko could only create small bursts of flame and was by no means focused or controlled in his bending, but by the time he was thirteen, he was confident enough in his abilities to readily accept a challenge of Agni Kai against General Bujing.

Around the time of Aang's discovery at the South Pole, Zuko was still learning the basics from Iroh yet was skilled enough to momentarily knock Aang off his ship, but he was defeated when Aang went into the Avatar State. He utilized what he had been taught to defeat Zhao, an older and more experienced master firebender. Throughout his pursuit of Aang, he demonstrated his skill often; he defeated multiple foes on two occasions. Later, his skill grew. He fared well in a duel against Aang, delivering multiple fire blasts for a sustained period without tiring, but was defeated when he was paralyzed by June's confused shirshu. He created a shield of fire to protect himself from a massive explosion on his ship. During the Siege of the North, he fought Katara while the moon was nearly full. He held his own against her while she was strengthened by the moon but needed the power of the sun to gain the upper hand and defeat her with one fire blast. He also landed a decisive victory in a rematch against Zhao.

After the Siege of the North, Zuko's firebending became more advanced and powerful. At first, he was unable to land any blows against Azula and was defeated rather easily. He fought somewhat better during the Confrontation at Tu Zin; in a three-way battle with Azula and Aang, he exchanged several fire blasts with his sister and kept the Avatar on the defensive. As his travels in the Earth Kingdom continued, however, he learned more advanced firebending techniques from Iroh, such as lightning redirection, becoming more efficient and refined. During a battle with the Rough Rhinos, he sent a small bolt of fire through Vachir's bow, breaking the string. He demonstrated the ability to fire multiple small blasts through two fingers rather than his whole fist. During the battle in the Crystal Catacombs, he demonstrated how far his prowess had grown. His fire blasts were more powerful, and he charged his attacks before releasing them, creating devastating bodies of enourmous flame. He also demonstrated the ability to create two fire-whips capable of smashing through crystal pillars. He battled evenly with Aang, even though he had skillfully used airbending and earthbending. After switching opponents with Azula, he battled evenly with Katara, a waterbending master who had the upper hand against Azula.

Little was seen of Zuko's firebending after he returned to the Fire Nation; however, he was confident enough in his abilities that he offered to teach Aang. He utilized a wall of flame to stop an attack from Combustion Man and was capable of dodging many of the rocks Toph hurled at him. Later, he temporarily lost his firebending from a subsequent lack of rage, the former source of his power. In order to reconnect with the original source of firebending, he and Aang traveled to the ancient city of the Sun Warriors together. There, Zuko learned "The Dancing Dragon", an ancient firebending form that he performed alongside Aang. Learning this form appeared to have influenced his style of firebending to be more fluid, creating a more dancelike form as opposed to the rigid, militaristic forms commonly used by Fire Nation soldiers. He was also challenged by the Tribesmen to carry a piece of the Eternal Flame all the way up to the cave of the masters. Zuko and Aang performed their newly learned technique in unison with the dragons, who engulfed them in a spiral of multi-colored flames. After viewing this, Zuko found a new source of power in reverence for fire's power as a source of life and energy: "the sun inside you". He quickly developed a much more advanced and refined fighting style as a result. This was displayed at the Boiling Rock, where he briefly battled against Azula alongside Sokka. During the fight, Azula failed to knock Zuko off balance, a stark contrast to their previous fights in which she held the upper hand against him rather easily. He deflected her fire blasts using only his arms or his own fire and traded fireballs with her. When he faced Azula again, Zuko was able to duel her to a standstill, firing several large and powerful fire blasts and deflecting many of her attacks. Later, he attacked Aang with powerful fire blasts to make him fight back. When he chased him into Ozai's old family vacation home, Zuko created several lashes of fire to envelop his surroundings and augmented them to the shape of the hallway Aang was running through. Furthermore, he used his firebending in conjunction with his broadswords, demonstrated an ability to form fire daggers, and limited use of breath of fire.

With the power of Sozin's Comet, Zuko's firebending was tremendously enhanced. In his Agni Kai with Azula during this time, he was able to match her powerful sheets of blue flame and even steadily gain the upper hand, not showing any visible strain in exchanging and blocking Azula's attacks while she was pushed toward exhaustion and increasing mental instability. He displayed several incredibly powerful techniques: blocking an enormous stream of fire with a short fire-blast, spreading to take the shape of a wall and split the stream, unleashing an enormous charged-blast, which Azula was unable to block, forcing her to dodge, propelling himself into the air, charging his fire and sending down a fire attack as he came. His final attack was a fire tornado he created with his feet while spinning, knocking Azula off her feet.

After the War and assuming the mantle of Fire Lord, Zuko's firebending remained as sharp as before and under strict control, despite the mental and emotional turmoils he was struggling with due to his new position. He evaded several attempts on his life, particularly the attempt of Kori Morishita, an earthbender and skilled weapons user, whom he disabled in a matter of seconds. During the battle for Yu Dao, Zuko's skills were again on display as he managed to single-handedly overwhelm a large number of Earth Kingdom soldiers with minimal effort and stand on equal footing against General How. The flames he produced were also hot enough to instantly melt metal chains.

Zuko handled Azula quite well during their fights throughout the search for their mother, blocking her fire blasts and defending his friends simultaneously, especially during her psychotic episodes. In another instance, he neglected to firebend at all, merely opting to dodge Azula's attacks and allow her to tire herself out. This demonstrated how far Zuko's abilities had progressed, matching his sister for raw power in spite of not approaching their fights with his full potential in hopes of not harming her. Subsequently, however, Azula recovered and proved to be more than a match for Zuko by becoming the victor in a brawl and showing her newfound ability to redirect lightning. Ultimately, Zuko was unable to match his sister in bending ability.

During an ambush by the New Ozai Society, Zuko demonstrated the ability to generate a fire vortex featuring green and purple flames, marking the first known instance that a human had created dragon fire. In his first visit to the Southern Water Tribe as Fire Lord, Zuko also demonstrated the ability to propel himself through the air with firebending, similar to Azula, while carrying the additional weight of Earth King Kuei.

At the age of 88, Zuko still proved to be a capable fighter, although less agile, enough so to face Ghazan, a powerful earthbender, for a reasonable period of time before getting overpowered.

Aside from his bending, Zuko also developed a masterful skill in swordsmanship, and he specialized in dual wielding swordplay, using a set of dao blades, skills he gained after being trained by the swordmaster Piandao. He would use these skills as his primary tactics whenever he was in his Blue Spirit disguise, unable to firebend, or when he needed to fight but also needed to conceal his firebending. He was able to defeat multiple foes using only his swords, including experienced firebending soldiers. He also dueled evenly with Jet and his dual hook swords until the fight was broken up by the Dai Li. Zuko was able to defeat several Earth Kingdom soldiers with minimal effort by employing his swordsmanship skills in combination with unarmed combat and, in the same confrontation, demonstrated the ability to combine his sword skills with his firebending, allowing him to deliver more powerful and destructive attacks. His skill was such that his father, Fire Lord Ozai, opted not to face him during an eclipse when neither of them could firebend. He also defeated Sokka, a very proficient swordsman in his own right and a fellow student of Piandao, with ease in multiple sparring matches.

He also had some experience with knives, being able to pierce a small object, like a horn, from a distance.

While not as naturally adept at strategy and academics as his sister, Zuko is quite intelligent. Throughout his travels, he proved himself to be a skilled strategist, able to exploit any situation to his advantage. For example, Zuko used his ship's damages as a smokescreen to conceal his movements from Zhao. He is also able to form alliances with people with special skills, such as June, and use them to his advantage. As he matured, Zuko developed greater strategic skills and foresight, planning ahead to avoid landing himself in compromising predicaments. When he and Aang needed to enter a specific room in the Sun Warrior ruins, Zuko was able to outsmart the celestial calendar by using his dual dao swords to reflect the sun's rays on the sunstone at the correct angle, activating the mechanism to open the doors. He also displayed good military, organizational, and leadership skills when he became Fire Lord, which he demonstrated when he re-organized the Fire Nation Army into a more compact and effective force and later commanded it in the battle for Yu Dao. His time being a "bad guy", as he put it, also gave him insight into certain situations. In the South Pole, Earth King Kuei was used as leverage by Gilak to capture Hakoda. Upon hearing the demands, Zuko correctly deduced that the man did not intend to keep either party alive and was able to warn his friends against complying.

As a leader, Zuko has also displayed charisma and good public speaking. His speech to redeem the name of the Fire Nation at his coronation was warmly embraced, not only by his own people but by people of the other nations as well. Despite a very tumultuous start, Zuko eventually came to be regarded as an excellent, benevolent Fire Lord, with his actions in helping create Republic City being recognized for many years.

As a teacher, Zuko pulls from many traditions encompassing his own history of learning and the myriad teachers he had. He can be harsh when needed, and also understanding and patient, calling on the lessons of his uncle. Zuko wants his students to understand that they needed to own, apologize, and make up for their own errors, and that taking in the whole of the world and all its differences and complexity would help them find their own balance.

At Emerald City ComiCon 2017, Gene Luen Yang implied that Zuko and Mai rekindled their relationship three years after their break-up in The Promise Part Two,[102] though official confirmation of this happening has not yet occurred.

Zuko's hair is black in all of his appearances in Book One: Water, differing from the dark brown used throughout the rest of the franchise.

Zuko's first major act as Fire Lord was to send out search parties for his mother.[64]

Zuko is the first character to have an entire episode, "Zuko Alone", completely to himself with no other main characters appearing except in flashbacks, the second being Korra in the Book Four episode "Korra Alone".

Zuko's name was listed on a Fire Nation wanted poster as 祖寇, which translates as "ancestors robber".[98] Later, in "The Tales of Ba Sing Se", his name was written as 蘇科 on his segment's title card, which is the phonetic transcription based on the official guide for foreign names, and which can also be translated as "awaken rank". In The Search Part One, however, when Ursa writes a letter to Ikem, she writes Zuko's name as 豎髙 (verb "erect"; lit. "vertical high/tall") with the second character being a variant of "高".[56]
The name Zuko is phonetically similar to suko, a Cebuano word meaning "angry". This derivation corresponds to Zuko's ill-tempered personality portrayed in all three books.[103]

In Iroh's opinion, Zuko is a bad tea maker, though he seemed to have gotten better by the time of "The Boiling Rock, Part 1", as he was seen serving tea to the members of Team Avatar and they drank it with no sign of distaste. He may have picked up the skill while helping Iroh run a tea shop in Ba Sing Se.

Zuko successfully used his uncle's lightning redirection technique twice, against his father and his sister.[60]

Zuko had above-average abilities that helped him survive certain situations. In "The Waterbending Master" with Avatar Extras bonus commentary, when the pirates infiltrated Zuko's ship, one of the commentary bubbles said that Zuko had above average hearing abilities, waking up when he heard one of the pirates opening a rusty door. In "The Siege of the North, Part 1" with Avatar Extras bonus commentary, when swimming through the underwater tunnels, one of the commentary bubbles said that Zuko could hold his breath for an unusually long amount of time. In addition, it is stated by Uncle Iroh in "The Avatar State" that they had survived for three weeks without food or water.

In the pilot episode, it is shown that Zuko was originally supposed to have a pet hawk, but it did not make it into the show. A pet hawk did make it into the show as Hawky, Sokka's pet, though it only appeared for one episode.[104]

Zuko took part in all three Agni Kais shown in the series: the first between him and Ozai,[29] the second between him and Zhao,[14] and the third between him and Azula.[63]

According to the Avatar Extras bonus in "The Cave of Two Lovers", Zuko's story throughout the series is similar to that of the Buddha.

Zuko is the only person from the Fire Nation known to use dao swords to firebend.[22]

According to the Avatar Extras for "The Waterbending Master", Zuko was gifted in playing the tsungi horn, in contrast to Aang, who was terrible at it.[54]

Zuko was shown to cry five times, in "The Storm", "Zuko Alone", "Bitter Work", "The Day of Black Sun, Part Two: The Eclipse", and finally, in "Sozin's Comet: Part 2, The Old Masters".

Zuko was the first of only two characters to bleed in the series. He bled for the first time in "The Avatar State" when Azula scratched his forehead with her nails. The second character to bleed was Appa in "Appa's Lost Days".

According to the Avatar Extras for "The Avatar Returns" and the Avatar Extras for "The Ember Island Players" respectively, "Zuko was originally going to be the love interest for Katara" and "The writers and creators toyed with the idea of Zuko and Katara falling in love". Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko deny that there was ever any intention for Zuko and Katara to become a couple. However, this statement is contradicted by writer John O'Bryan, who said that the topic of Zuko and Katara becoming a couple came up a lot in the writer's room.[105] This is corroborated by writer Joshua Hamilton who said that the staff argued about whether Katara should end up with Zuko or Aang.[106] M. Night Shyamalan has also recalled that during the production of Book Three: Fire, DiMartino and Konietzko were undecided, "At that time they hadn't even decided where things were going to end, even like who Katara was going to end up with."[107]

Throughout Book Two: Earth, Zuko visibly started losing muscle as he was forced to live off the land of the Earth Kingdom as a refugee. This changed in Book Three: Fire, when he was reaffirmed as a prince; as seen in "The Beach" and "The Ember Island Players", his body was much fitter than it was in Book Two.

Taking the throne at the age of sixteen years, Zuko is the youngest known Fire Lord.
Additionally, he is the second youngest known person to become the ruler of a state, the first being Earth King Kuei.

Zuko is the first of two known rulers in the Avatar franchise to willingly abdicate his throne, the other being Earth King Wu.
He is also the second known Fire Lord, after his father, not to have died prior to their successor taking the throne.

Zuko's voice actor, Dante Basco, also voiced General Iroh, Zuko's grandson.

Zuko is the second of three characters to have joined a Team Avatar and to have a father who is antagonistic toward them and their allies. The other two are Toph Beifong and Asami Sato.

There are many parallels between Zuko and Asami Sato.

Both were born to upper-class families and lived under the influence of their ambitious fathers.

Both characters eventually spoke out against their fathers after realizing that they had little regard for righteousness and could no longer feel actual affection toward anyone.

Their reactions to this acknowledgment were also similar, as both Zuko and Asami had to make a choice between joining the Avatar to stop their fathers or serving their fathers, and both characters made the former choice, turning against their parents with quick lightning-based attacks.

Lastly, both characters were temporarily reduced to greater poverty and isolation as a result of following their beliefs.

Both Ozai and Hiroshi were ultimately imprisoned for their actions.

Although the Blue Spirit was Zuko's disguise, the character was depicted as a different person altogether in the play The Boy in the Iceberg and the non-canon short "School Time Shipping".

The Blue Spirit mask used by Zuko was among the collection of masks from the play Love amongst the Dragons that Ursa kept hidden in her quarters behind a painting of her and Ozai.[71] She had them secretly made to remind her of Ikem and Hira'a Acting Troupe.[72]

Zuko has a close relationship with his grandson, General Iroh.[13]

In his old age, Zuko holds the title of "Lord".[13][11]

When describing Zuko in his old age, the creators likened him to the archetypically tough characters played by Clint Eastwood.[108]

Zuko is the first character in the entire Avatar universe known to have been scarred by a close relative, the second being Lin Beifong in The Legend of Korra. However, he was scarred deliberately, whereas Lin accidentally.

Zuko is the last surviving male member of the original Team Avatar.

Despite the extent of the burn scar inflicted by his father, Zuko retained full functionality in his left tear duct.

In July 2020, the game SMITE launched a battle pass that featured two skins with which the player could alter the appearance of the Japanese storm god Susano to look like Zuko in Book Three or his appearance as the Blue Spirit.[109][110]

Zuko's addition to the plot of Avatar came from executive producer Eric Coleman; during production, when Ozai was planned to be the main villain, Coleman suggested that they needed a character who would follow Team Avatar.[111]
Additionally, Zuko was initially to be portrayed as an adult. Coleman, however, suggested that the character be portrayed as a really driven kid chasing Aang. It was followed by Konietzko asking whether he can have a scar, to which Coleman agreed. As a result, Coleman was dubbed "the godfather of Zuko".[111]

In April 2024, the video game Fortnite added Zuko as a purchasable outfit in the Item Shop, along with Katara and Toph Beifong, as part of the game's collaboration with Avatar: The Last Airbender.[112]

1. Estoesta, Joann, Wahlander, Lisa, Huebner, Andrew, Scheppke, Gary, MacMullan, Lauren, Mattila, Katie, Ridge, Justin, Volpe, Giancarlo (writers) & Spaulding, Ethan (director). (September 29, 2006). "The Tales of Ba Sing Se". Avatar: The Last Airbender. Season 2. Episode 15. Nickelodeon.

2. EXCLUSIVE: Yang Continues 'Avatar: The Last Airbender' in The Search. Comic Book Resources. Retrieved on June 25, 2012.

3. Casey, Dan (2013-03-20). Comic Book Day: Join 'The Search' with Gene Luen Yang. Nerdist. Archived from the original on March 23, 2013. Retrieved on April 27, 2013.

4. From older Welcome to Republic City online game, originally on Nick.com. Game now broken, archived at The Lost Lore of Avatar Korra - Fire Lord Zuko.

5. From older Avatar: The Last Airbender official site, originally on Nick.com. Encyclopedia now broken, archived at The Lost Lore of Avatar Aang - Character: Zuko.

6. The Legend of Korra-The Art of the Animated Series, Book One: Air, page 109.

7. Sunu, Steve (December 1, 2014). Exclusive: Yang Guides Avatar: The Last Airbender through Smoke and Shadow. Comic Book Resources. Retrieved on December 1, 2014.

8. DiMartino, Michael Dante (October 23, 2014). Legend of Korra Live Community Q&A: Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. Avatar Wiki. Retrieved on October 23, 2014.

9. DiMartino, Michael Dante; Konietzko, Bryan; Yang, Gene Luen (writer), Sasaki of Gurihiru (penciling, inking), Kawano of Gurihiru (colorist), Heisler, Michael; Comicraft (letterer). The Promise Part Two (May 30, 2012), Dark Horse Comics.

10. Wilgus, Benjamin (writer), Ridge, Justin (artist), Dzioba, Wes (colorist), Comicraft (letterer). "Swordbending" (2009), Nickelodeon Comics Club.

11. Introduction, Avatar: Generations. Navigator Games & Square Enix Mobile London (August 11, 2022). Square Enix.

12. "Ketu Harbor", Avatar: Generations. Navigator Games & Square Enix Mobile London (August 11, 2022). Square Enix.

13. Yang, Gene Luen (writer), Hill, Ryan (artist), Heisler, Michael (letterer). "Rebound" (May 4, 2013), Dark Horse Comics.

14. Legend of Korra: The New Faces. Nickelodeon. Retrieved on June 30, 2014.

15. From older Avatar: The Last Airbender official site, originally on Nick.com. Encyclopedia now broken, archived at The Lost Lore of Avatar Aang - Character: The Blue Spirit.

16. DiMartino, Michael Dante; Konietzko, Bryan; Hedrick, Tim & Hamilton, Joshua (March 10, 2015). "The Coronation" commentary. Book Four: Balance Blu-ray.

17. Yang, Gene Luen (March 2, 2017). The Comic Elements of Avatar and Korra - ECCC 2017. Retrieved on March 2, 2017.

18. Wiktionary (June 13, 2006). suko. Wiktionary. Retrieved on December 15, 2020.

19. Basco, Dante (host), Varney, Janet (host), O'Bryan, John (guest). (August 17, 2021). "Meet the Writer with John O'Bryan". Avatar: Braving the Elements. Episode 11. iHeartRadio.

20. Basco, Dante (host), Varney, Janet (host), Hamilton, Joshua (guest), Zuckerman, Jeremy (guest). (May 31, 2022). "Secret Tunnel! with Joshua Hamilton and Jeremy Zuckerman". Avatar: Braving the Elements. Episode 51. iHeartRadio.

21. Roundtable discussion with M. Night Shyamalan (March 30, 2010)

22. DiMartino, Michael Dante; Konietzko, Bryan & Heck, Colin (December 2, 2014). "The Ultimatum" commentary. Book Three: Change Blu-ray.

23. Higgins, Chris (June 22, 2020). New Battle Pass Brings Avatar Skins to Smite. ag.hyperxgaming.com. Retrieved on September 23, 2020.

24. Avatar and Korra characters joining Smite in the next Battle Pass. earlygame.com (July 11, 2020). Retrieved on September 23, 2020.

25. Basco, Dante (host), Varney, Janet (host), DiMartino, Michael Dante (guest), Konietzko, Bryan (guest). (June 25, 2021). "Origin Stories with Mike DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko Pt. 1". Avatar: Braving the Elements. Episode 2. iHeartRadio.

26. Stewart, Marcus (April 9, 2024). Avatar: The Last Airbender Skins Now Available In Fortnite. gameinformer.com. Retrieved on April 10, 2024.

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This article is about the character in the animated series. For the character in Netflix's live-action series, see Zuko. Zuko is a Fire Nation royal and firebending master who reigned as Fire Lord from 100 AG until his abdication in 167 AG. He is the eldest child and only son of Princess Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai.

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Chihiro from spirited away. I like her development in growing mature and brave.

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✔

This Hero was proposed and approved by Heroes Wiki's Pure Good Proposals Thread. Any act of removing this hero from the category without a Removal Proposal shall be considered vandalism (or a "villainous" attempt to demonize said character) and the user will have a high chance of being smitten blocked. You cannot make said Removal Proposal without permission from an administrator first.
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Alias(es)

Sen

Human
Lazy Spoiled Crybaby (by Yubaba)
Little Girl
Girl
Chihiro

Occupation

Bathhouse Worker (formerly)

Elementary School Student

Powers / Skills

Courage

Cleverness
Medicine from the River Spirit

Goals

Save Haku from Zeniba

Return the seal that Haku stole (Without choice as he was forced to do it by Yubaba) to Zeniba.
Survive and escape from the bathhouse with her parents (all succeeded).

Family

Akiichirō Ogino (father)

Yumiko Ogino (mother)

Enemies

Yubaba

No-Face (formerly)
Bôh (formerly)
Yu-Bird (formerly)
Kashira

Chihiro Ogino, also known as Sen after being temporarily renamed by Yubaba, is the main protagonist of the Oscar winning 2001 Studio Ghibli film, Spirited Away.

She is voiced by Rumi Hiiragi in the Japanese version of the movie, and by Daveigh Chase, who earlier voiced Lilo Pelekai in Lilo & Stitch, in the English version.

Chihiro made her debut in the movie as a whiny and petulant 10-year-old little girl, yet eventually becomes a brave and selfless little girl. At the beginning, she has to move to a new home with her parents, but encounters an enchanted bathhouse. Her parents are turned into pigs and she is forced to work at the Bathhouse in order to survive.

Chihiro is first seen on the way to her new home with her parents. Her father realized that he took a wrong turn and the three entered a mysterious tunnel that leads to an abandoned theme park with abandoned restaurants before Chihiro's parents found a restaurant that's still in business. When her parents are eating, neither of whom (not even Chihiro herself) being aware of it being spirit food, she wanders off to eventually find out she is in a spirit world. Chihiro meets a boy named Haku and later finds out that her parents have been turned into pigs and are beaten away from the food by dark ghosts. When she runs off, she finds out that where people were planning on putting a river, there is water in it. Soon, she becomes transparent until Haku gets her to eat some kind of berry (after a warning that not eating food from this world will make her disappear and assurance that it will not turn her into a pig). The two then find out that she was not dreaming when they see her parents as pigs. Haku tells her when things quiet down, to go out through the back gate and go downstairs until she reaches the boiler room to meet Kamaji. He tells her to insist she wants to work in the bathhouse even if he says no or Yubaba, the witch and chief of the bathhouse, will turn her into an animal (with Yubaba having already chosen piglet to fittingly suit her parents' fates). Going down the stairs starts out as safe until one of them breaks and she screams running down and runs into a wall. Finally, she reaches the boiler room and asks Kamaji (who receives four bath tokens at once) for a job, but due to having a lot of soot balls under a spell working for him, he refuses. When Chihiro attempts to help, she only gets reprimanded for it, and he tells her that if they don't work, the spell will wear off and they'll turn back into soot. As an older girl named Lin gives him food and takes yesterday's bowl from him, Kamaji tells Chihiro to make a deal with Yubaba. In the meantime, Chihiro has to leave both pairs of footwear in the boiler room as they are going to the top floor, where Yubaba lives. Yubaba is initially reluctant to hire her, but eventually does so in exchange for her identity, renaming her Sen. Haku takes Sen to visit her parents' pigpen and returns her clothes. Within, Sen finds a goodbye card from a friend with her real name written on it. Haku tells her that Yubaba controls people by taking their names and that she will become trapped in the spirit world if she forgets her name, as he has.

While working, Sen invites a silent, masked creature named No-Face inside the bathhouse, believing him to be a customer. A "stink spirit" subsequently arrives, and Sen is quickly assigned to tend to the guest by her nauseated superiors. She discovers he is actually the powerful guardian spirit of a polluted river. In gratitude for cleaning him, he gives Sen a magic emetic dumpling. Sen is congratulated by her gleeful coworkers, who had shunned her as an outsider. Later, while most of the staff sleep, No-Face tempts a worker with gold. The greedy employee takes the bait only to be swallowed whole. No-Face begins demanding food, producing gold to tempt the naïve staff. As the workers swarm him, hoping to be tipped, he devours two of them and grows larger.

Sen discovers paper shikigami attacking a dragon and recognizes the dragon as Haku transformed. When a grievously-injured Haku crashes into Yubaba's penthouse, Sen follows him upstairs. When she reaches Haku, a shikigami that stowed away on her back transforms into Zeniba, Yubaba's identical twin sister. She transforms Yubaba's baby son Boh into a mouse, creates a decoy baby, and turns Yubaba's pet bird creature into a tiny, fly-like bird. Zeniba tells Sen that Haku has stolen a magic golden seal from her and warns Sen that it carries a deadly curse. After Haku dives to the boiler room with Sen and Boh on his back, she feeds him part of the dumpling, causing him to vomit both the seal and a black slug, which Sen crushes with her foot.

With Haku unconscious, Sen resolves to return the seal and apologize for Haku. Before she leaves the bathhouse, Sen confronts the now-massive No-Face and feeds him the rest of the dumpling. No-Face chases Sen out of the bathhouse, steadily vomiting out those he has eaten and thus gradually returning to his former self. Sen, No-Face, Boh, and the bird creature travel to see Zeniba. Enraged at the damage caused by No-Face, Yubaba blames Sen for inviting him in and orders that her parents be slaughtered. However, Haku reveals that Boh is missing, and so he promises to return Boh in exchange for Yubaba freeing Sen and her parents. Yubaba agrees, but under the condition that she gives Sen one final test, and if she fails, she belongs to Yubaba.

Sen, No-Face, Boh, and the bird creature arrive at Zeniba's house. Zeniba, now the benevolent "Granny," reveals that Sen's love for Haku broke her curse and that Yubaba had used the black slug to control him. Haku appears in his dragon form and flies both Sen and Boh back to the bathhouse. No-Face unexpectedly shows itself as a very good spinner for Zeniba and accepts her proposal to stay as a helper.

On the way back, Sen recalls a memory from her youth in which she had fallen into the Kohaku River while trying to retrieve her fallen shoe but was swept safely ashore. After correctly guessing that Haku is the spirit of the Kohaku River (and thus revealing his real name), Haku is freed from Yubaba's control. When they arrive at the bathhouse, Yubaba tells Sen that in order to break the curse on her parents, she must identify them from among a group of pigs. Sen correctly states that none of the pigs are her parents, releasing her parents from the curse and herself from her contract with Yubaba. Haku takes her to the entrance to the spirit world and promises to see her again in the future. Chihiro reunites with her restored parents, who have no memory at all of what had happened to them. They walk back to their car, which has become covered in fallen leaves and dust after days passed in their absence, and drive away to their new house after Chihiro looks back at the entrance to the spirit world for the final time.

Chihiro was ranked #27 on Empire's Best Animated Film Characters List.

Her hair when she is in the water resembles Ponyo's hair.

Chihiro was based on a real-life girl: the then-ten-year-old daughter of a friend of Miyazaki's, making Chihro a homage. This girl also made Miyazaki continue working after promising retirement from filmmaking after Princess Mononoke (1997).

Hayao Miyazaki said that after Chihiro leaves the bathhouse she loses her memory.

It's unknown if she loses her character growth along with this.

The hairband that Zeniba gave her is magic but it's unknown if this would help bring her memory back.

In some versions, there is an extra scene with Chihiro in her classroom. And Haku is announced as her new classmate. The scene was available here but it has since been blocked by Studio Ghibli
Whether this ties in to her losing her memory is unclear.

In an interview regarding Chihiro's character design, Hayao Miyazaki informs the audience that "[He] created a heroine who is an ordinary girl, someone with whom the audience can sympathize. It's not a story in which the characters grow up, but a story in which they draw on something already inside them, brought out by the particular circumstances. [He] wants [his] young friends to live like that, and [he] thinks they, too, have such a wish."'

Chihiro Ogino is the icon of the Rename template.

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Chihiro Ogino, also known as Sen after being temporarily renamed by Yubaba, is the main protagonist of the Oscar winning 2001 Studio Ghibli film, Spirited Away. She is voiced by Rumi Hiiragi in the Japanese version of the movie, and by Daveigh Chase, who earlier voiced Lilo Pelekai in Lilo & Stitch, in the English version.

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The dad from Train to Busan has a really good character arc in the movie. The way he changes from being a selfish workaholic to a selfless caring father is really nice to see. The movie made me cry ;-;

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Seok-woo was a fund manager and the main protagonist of Train to Busan. He is protrayed by Gong Yoo. He’s a divorced fund manager obsessed by his work and cares little about his daughter, Su-an. This is what is shown when he offers her a Wii for her birthday which was the same gift as that of Korea’s Children’s Day. Su-an then asks him to take her to Busan to see her momma, which Seok-woo begrudgingly accepts. It is on board the train that Seok-woo will really care about Su-an and do everything

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I LOVE vulnerable, scared, crybaby heroes--especially heroes in science fiction, fantasy, and other large-scale conflict stories like that.

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Shinji Ikari

Casual

Plugsuit (01)

Young Shinji

Age

14 (born June 6, 2001 (Gemini)

Known Relatives

Gendo Ikari (Father, Deceased)
Yui Ikari (Mother, Deceased)
Rei Ayanami (Clone of mother)
Unnamed Maternal Uncle (Manga)
Unnamed Aunt (Manga)
Unnamed Cousin (Manga)

is the Third Child, the main protagonist of the series and the designated pilot of Evangelion Unit-01. He is the son of Gehirn bioengineer Yui Ikari and NERV Commander (formerly Chief of Gehirn) Gendo Ikari. After his mother's death, he was abandoned by his father and lived for 11 years with his sensei, until he was summoned to Tokyo-3 to pilot Unit-01 against the Angels. He lives initially just with Misato Katsuragi; they are later joined by Asuka Langley Soryu.

Appearance

Shinji has medium-length straight brown hair and grey-blue eyes. Shinji is also very skinny, and often has his shirt tucked in, showing that he is a rather tidy person. When spending time at NERV or out in the city, he wears his uniform which is a white dress shirt, blue t-shirt, dark pants and white rubber shoes, though when in his apartment, he will often wear something more casual. Shinji's plug suit has a very light blue torso, complemented by the rest being a dark blue color with black portions as well.

Personality

Shinji initially shows a passive and laid-back personality, inheriting such traits from his relaxed life with his sensei. When he is told to pilot Unit-01, he denies, not wanting to do it. Though Shinji denies it, he yearns for praise, and he eventually begins to pilot Unit-01 to gain the approval and love from his father. He also continually tells himself "I mustn't run away!", further demonstrating his need to move forward and let go of the past.

Shinji shows a great fear of emotional pain and of being hated or left behind, likely due to his perception of being abandoned in his youth and, subsequently, blaming himself for not being good enough to make his father stick around. In general, Shinji is shown to be introverted and disconnected from physical reality due to having little to no meaningful contact with others. In social party situations, he is shown to be quite uncomfortable, and he often has difficulty controlling his emotions around others due to his hard time letting go of the past. He is shown to the extreme of this, forsaking many lives (even his own) to save one person.

Due to Shinji's high nostalgia and fragile emotional state, he chooses to shut out the world, as evidenced by the headphones he wears rather often, plugged into an SDAT music player. He usually plays tracks 25 ("You Are the Only One") and 26 ("Blue Legend"), though in episodes 02 and 23, the songs are varied to different background music and vocals.

Through all this, Shinji is also aware of his own faults, has a detailed memory of the past, and generally is outwardly gentle. He is the only one who tries to find a reason to fight the Angels, and sometimes his justification for fleeing from piloting is to avoid hurting others.

Around the age of three, Shinji lost his mother to the Unit-01 Contact Experiment. As he witnessed this event, he was subjected to considerable trauma that had lingering effects upon him.

Shinji first appears in Episode 1 at age fourteen, where he has been summoned to Tokyo-3 by his father, Gendo Ikari, to pilot Evangelion Unit-01. After refusing to do so, Gendo brings in a backup pilot, Rei Ayanami, who is so badly injured that she falls while trying to get off a stretcher. Reluctantly, Shinji agrees to pilot the unit, and is able to defeat Sachiel after his Eva goes Berserk. Shortly after the Angel's defeat, Misato Katsuragi takes Shinji to live with her rather than letting him live on his own.

Several weeks later, Shinji begins to attend school, where he meets Tōji, Kensuke, and Hikari. When it is discovered that Shinji is the pilot of Eva Unit-01, Tōji beats him up, in retaliation for his little sister being injured in the Angel battle. Shortly thereafter, Shamshel attacks, and Shinji pilots Unit-01 once again. However, before defeating the Angel, Shinji's battle puts two of his classmates in serious danger. Because of this, Shinji spends several days wandering the town, until he sees Kensuke and spends the night with him. The next day, agents from NERV come and take Shinji back to NERV HQ. After being reprimanded by Misato, Shinji overcomes his own weakness, stays with NERV, and goes back to live with Misato.

Later, at NERV HQ, Shinji sees Rei happily chatting with Gendo, who has burns on his hands. After asking Ritsuko about them, she describes an incident where Gendo put his hands on scalding metal to save Rei, to which Shinji is skeptical. Shinji begins to eye Rei, though he brushes it off as curiosity about why she is always alone. Soon thereafter, Ritsuko has Shinji return Rei's ID card to her; Shinji accidentally walks in on Rei as she is getting dressed, and clumsily knocks her to the floor, touching her naked body. A bit shook up, Shinji follows Rei to NERV, returns her ID card, and asks her about his father; when he tells her that he has no faith in Gendo, she slaps him.

With Rei still unable to enter battle, Ramiel approaches, and Gendo sorties Unit-01 with Shinji as the pilot. Shinji is immediately hit by one of Ramiel's attacks and is forced into retreat by Misato. As Shinji wakes up and begins to recover from his injuries, he helps defeat Ramiel with a positron beam. During the battle, Shinji's first shot fails to destroy Ramiel. When Ramiel fights back, Rei, in Unit-00, steps between them, taking heavy damage. Shinji then destroys Ramiel with another blast. Shinji quickly escapes Unit-01, and opens Unit-00's hatch, burning his hands as Gendo did in the past, to see Rei. He expresses a deep sadness for her but tells her to smile nonetheless.

We soon learn that Shinji is embarrassed by Misato and her unhealthy lifestyle. After she visits his school, however, a new robotic unit called Jet Alone appears in a demonstration but goes out of control. Shinji must use Unit-01 to get Misato into Jet Alone so she can shut down its reactor. Then, after Tōji and Kensuke point out that Misato's personality is only shown to Shinji because she considers him family, he happily accepts her.

In Episode 08, Asuka makes her series debut and immediately regards Shinji as "dull". Despite this, Asuka displays an interest in Shinji (after learning of his innate ability to synch with Unit-01); as Gaghiel attacks, she seizes her chance to impress Shinji, and tells him to get into the cockpit of Evangelion Unit-02 with her. Eventually, as the two cooperate, they can open Gaghiel's mouth underwater, and the armada of Navy ships present are able to destroy it.

As the Angel Israfel arrives, Shinji and Asuka are both deployed in their Evas to destroy it. After Asuka hits it and divides it in two, it revives as two separate Angels, which defeat both Evas; Shinji and Asuka proceed to argue about whose fault it was. Kaji and Misato devise a plan to take down the Angel after it heals and returns in a few days time; however, the plan requires the cooperation of both Evangelion units. Shinji and Asuka, during their next several days living together, undergo numerous tests and training exercises to synchronize themselves to better attack Israfel. When the battle day comes, the two defeat Israfel seamlessly through a synchronized dance routine.

Shinji and Asuka hang out at a pool after their friends go on a field trip, where Shinji is having trouble with schoolwork. Showing off a bit, Asuka solves his problem with relative ease, then compares his topic of thermal expansion to that of her breasts, much to Shinji's embarrassment. Meanwhile, Sandalphon has been active in a nearby volcano, and Asuka takes the call. Trying to show off to Shinji, she takes a dive into the volcano, where she loses her Eva's knife, but eventually encounters the Angel. Shinji throws his knife to Asuka, and after a short struggle, Asuka defeats Sandalphon. A few days later, the power to NERV HQ goes out, and Shinji, Asuka, and Rei must make their way to NERV together in order to defeat the Angel Matarael. Though they come into conflict many times, they are all able to deploy their Evas and defeat Matarael before it can attack NERV HQ.

In Episode 12, it is discovered that Shinji is rapidly increasing his synch rate with his Eva, much to Asuka's dismay. As Sahaquiel approaches in the fashion of a meteor destined for NERV HQ, Misato hatches a plan in which Shinji, Asuka, and Rei must all cooperate to stop the Angel by catching it with their A.T. Fields at maximum. As it nears the ground, Shinji is the first to get under it. He struggles to last long enough for Rei to expose the core for Asuka to destroy, killing Sahaquiel. Later, Shinji does a test in Evangelion Unit-00, but when the nerve connections go bad, the Eva goes Berserk just as it had previously, though Shinji escapes virtually unharmed.

Shinji is next seen visiting his mother's grave with Gendo, who reveals that there is nobody there, nor does he have any pictures of Yui. Though Shinji attempts to make a connection with Gendo, the latter dismisses him completely. Shinji returns home and begins playing the cello, with which Asuka notes he has great talent. He says he started playing at age five, and still plays now and again because, "No one told [him] to stop." She then says she's bored and wants to practice kissing and though Shinji is nervous, they share a kiss, though Asuka is upset by his lack of emotion.

During Episode 16, Shinji's synch test gives the highest results among his, Rei's and Asuka's, an event that inspires confidence in him. Due to this and the arrival of the unusual 12th Angel, Shinji ventures to face it alone, resulting in Unit-01 being captured in the Angel's shadow, trapping him in a Sea of Dirac. As the Eva's life support starts to turn off, Shinji begins to lose hope, and the Angel tries to communicate with him, talking about the psychology and understanding of others, and revives the memories of his abandonment, alongside his imperfections. However, once the life support cuts out entirely, Unit-01 goes Berserk, and frees itself from the Angel's grasp, killing it in a shower of blood.

Soon after, Unit-04 vanishes, and Unit-03 is transferred to Japan. Shinji and Asuka are left at the care of Kaji while Misato goes to supervise the test activation of Unit-03. During the night, Shinji asks Kaji about Gendo, thinking he has started to understand his father, to which Kaji replies he just believes he understands.

Following the failed activation test of Unit-03, and its abandonment and re-classification as the 13th Angel, Shinji is sortied to defeat it alongside Rei and Asuka. Even after Rei and Asuka are dispatched by the unit, Shinji still shows reluctance to fight it, claiming that he'd rather die than kill the pilot inside. Seeing this, Gendo cuts the synchronization between Shinji and Unit-01, giving control of the Eva to the Dummy Plug that proceeds to slaughter the Angel. When Shinji finds out that the pilot was Tōji, he refuses to abandon the Eva, claiming he will destroy half of NERV HQ in pure revenge against his father. With Shinji unable to reason, Gendo orders the technicians to raise the LCL pressure to force him out of his rampage. As a result, Shinji is taken to Gendo, and abandons NERV and his duties as an Eva pilot, right as the 14th Angel starts its assault, destroying the Geofront defense and defeating Unit-02 and Unit-00 without difficulties. As Shinji hides in a nearby shelter, he sees the disembodied head of Unit-02 crash against the building, then hurries outside, only to witness the devastation caused by the Angel. He encounters Kaji watering his garden, and he explains to Shinji that while that is all he can do, Shinji can do much more, and convinces him to pilot Unit-01 once more. Shinji engages the Angel as it is about to destroy Central Dogma, and guides it outside before the Eva runs out of energy.

Zeruel mercilessly proceeds to try and destroy Unit-01 core. However, the Eva reactivates and goes Berserk, easily overpowering the Angel, and proceeding to devour its S² Engine into itself. After the incident, Shinji was absorbed inside the Eva's core, which caused him to go through a series of mental journeys that guided him to realize he pilots the Eva to receive the kindness of others, and remembers that he saw Unit-01 years before his arrival at Tokyo-3. On the outside, Misato and Ritsuko try to salvage Shinji's soul back to his body, but the experiment goes awry, and Shinji initially decides not to come back. However, after recognizing the scent of the Eva as his mother's, Shinji finally comes back through the core of the Eva.

In Episode 23, when Armisael attacks and Asuka is too mentally fragile to control her Eva, Shinji is launched to attack it. As he touches it, however, it fuses with his hands, and forces him to see hundreds of Rei faces telling him, "it hurts." Through this, the real Rei discovers that her desire is to be with Shinji, and contains the Angel and self-destructs, killing both Armisael and herself. Shinji is devastated, though he soon arrives at the hospital to see Rei, alive. Shortly after, Ritsuko shows Misato and Shinji the Eva graveyard, as well as the many clones of Rei.

After being too scared to go home, Shinji finds himself at the edge of a crater at the beginning of Episode 24, where he meets Kaworu Nagisa, sitting amongst the wreckage from the battle with Armisael. Since Shinji is desperate for any sort of affection, they quickly connect. After Shinji returns to NERV, he, Kaworu, and Rei undergo synch tests, after which Shinji is greeted by Kaworu while loitering at NERV's HQ, seemingly reluctant to return home. Kaworu accompanies Shinji to a NERV public bathing room and, at one point, Kaworu places his hand on Shinji's, who doesn't react. Kaworu also declares that Shinji deserves to be treated well, and that he likes him. When their bath is done, Shinji tells Kaworu that he needs to go to bed, to which Kaworu is confused and asks if they will go together. Shinji is quick to decline the offer, though he does spend the night at Kaworu's apartment, sleeping on the floor beside his bed, as he is afraid to go home.

The next day, Kaworu is identified as the 17th Angel as he descends into Terminal Dogma. Shinji is placed into Unit-01 and pursues Kaworu, who manipulates Unit-02 to slow down Shinji. After Kaworu activates the door and enters, he appears to reach an understanding that the giant crucified there is not in fact Adam, but rather Lilith, and after Shinji defeats Unit-02, he allows Shinji to grasp him in Unit-01's hand. Shinji is hurt that Kaworu betrayed him, "just like his father did," and lied to him about his identity after befriending him. However, Kaworu tells Shinji that his life is complete and had more meaning after meeting him, and requests to be killed, claiming that the only freedom there is, is to choose how one dies. Following a prolonged period of silence, Shinji grants his request.

Episodes 25 and 26 have Shinji feeling lost and hopeless after killing Kaworu, who he saw as human, as Shinji again feels alone and that nobody cares about him. Tormented by guilt, he falls into despair and begs for others to help him. Much of the TV ending is devoted to Shinji being taught by the other characters about the ability of individuals to make their own destiny by reshaping their viewpoint. At the end of their discourse, Shinji comes to terms with his self-loathing and how much it distorts his perception of reality. Finally, he learns that he has value as an individual, and accepts his own will to live. In Episode 26', Shinji chooses to reject Instrumentality for individual existence, even though it will mean running the risk of experiencing more pain. Shinji eventually learns that he needs other people to exist in order to experience happiness; and realizes that he wants real feelings of his own even if it means once again exposing himself to betrayal and pain. Despite their differences, both endings suggest that buried deep within Shinji, is the capacity for redemption and change.

Relationships

Gendo abandoned Shinji shortly after Yui disappeared into Unit-01, sending him to live with his sensei. Shinji resents Gendo for this, despite having run away from Gendo the last time they spoke, three years before, the last time they visited Yui's grave. In Episode 01, Shinji shows Misato the letter his father sent, summoning him to Tokyo-3. The entirety of the letter is blanked out, except for the handwritten words, "Come. - Gendo Ikari".

Nonetheless, Shinji still longs for words of praise from Gendo. He never understood his father's motives (neither did anyone else, except perhaps Fuyutsuki) until the very end of the series-at the same time as Gendo realizes Yui's. Gendo, in Episode 21, resembles Shinji even more strongly and reveals he is used to being hated and alone. He can be seen as a kind of negative adult mirror of Shinji, in contrast to Kaji, as Gendo reveals in End of Evangelion that he resents not being able to connect with Shinji and was afraid of hurting him, so he chose to shut himself away from Shinji, as he believed that when he was close to Shinji he only hurt him, so Gendo thought it was better to do nothing at all, just like Shinji shut himself away from other people, as Gendo believed he wasn't worthy of love. He apologizes to Shinji as he accepts his "punishment".

After moving to Tokyo-3, Shinji lives with Misato in her small apartment with her pet penguin Pen Pen. He disapproves of her lifestyle of beer, snacks, and instant meals. He also shows an obvious fright toward Misato's perceived attraction to him. However, Misato shows that she has deep respect and regard for Shinji, breaking to tears after she thought he was lost to the Angel Leliel.

Despite a rocky start, Shinji's relationship with Misato becomes one of his strongest connections. Though they are slow to admit it, they understand each other well due to each being aware of the insecurities of the other. Their interpersonal problems stem from their fear of losing those they love, and though Misato tries to help Shinji understand that life involves both joy and pain, she herself struggles with the same fear. Shinji's fraught relationship with his father mirrors Misato's with her own, and each understands the feelings of abandonment and isolation that plague them, albeit with differing outcomes. When Toji and Kensuke point out that Misato allows Shinji to see that side of her because she considers him family, their connection becomes even stronger. He is comfortable enough around her to answer Kaji's prying questions about her personal life without embarrassment. He often comically scoffs at Toji and Kensuke's infatuation with Misato. Misato, however, has difficulty in reaching out to Shinji in later episodes and Shinji is horrified when she offers her body to him, seeing her as a mother figure. As his "boss"/NERV Chief Tactical Officer, Misato can be quite intense, causing Shinji to not come home at night more than once, though they always reconcile. Shinji comes to admire Misato's resolve in combat situations-something which often serves to fuel his own dire confidence, leading him to disobey her orders on certain occasions. He compares her calm yet bossy demeanor when they first meet Asuka to Ritsuko's own stoicism. Shinji, for much of the earlier parts of the story, wants Misato to always praise him, and while she is quick to do so when Shinji shows prowess and courage, she also criticizes him when he acts recklessly and goes against orders. Initially, this frustrates Shinji, but it is through Misato's prodding over the length of the series that Shinji comes to realize why he pilots the Eva, as she has much influence in helping him develop a greater sense of responsibility and maturity. Losing Misato in The End of Evangelion and in the manga devastates him. In the manga adaptation, it is unclear how much of the story Shinji remembers (if any at all) after he rejects Instrumentality, but in the very last panel, he is shown going off confidently into the future with Misato's cross pendant (which she gave to him just before she died saving him) tied to his suitcase.

Shinji is attracted to Asuka, though the reasoning is not explicitly stated. It might be that her bullying sometimes causes Shinji to bite back at her, as Asuka wants his attention, and he views Asuka, in a strange fashion, as a source of strength, one that he misses when Asuka is laid low by her encounter with Arael. However, Shinji directly expresses his feelings for Asuka by trying to kiss her as she sleeps, when he masturbated at the accidental exposure of the then-comatose girl's breasts, and in the Episode 26 Instrumentality sequence when he says "I want to help you somehow and be with you forever.", and Asuka states she wants Shinji all to herself and that she is not only aware of his masturbation at the hospital, but also implies that it is, in fact, a habit of his. In Episode 22, Asuka laments that Shinji "won't do anything, won't help me, won't even hold me.", revealing Asuka's frustrations at Shinji not picking up on her advances, particularly earlier in Episode 9 and their kiss in Episode 15, despite him barely understanding them. Asuka also seems very jealous of Shinji's interactions with Rei, which furthers her antipathy at her.

This is also paired with Asuka eventually letting go of seeking Kaji to validate her as an adult, as she starts to begrudgingly accept Shinji's piloting prowess and to find an equal in him, something she is unwilling to do with Rei. After Episode 16 however when Shinji surpasses her synch scores, she starts resenting his success as in her view, Shinji hasn't worked for it whereas Asuka spent her whole life training for piloting Eva and she is unsure of how to deal with not being the best. Asuka's expectations for Shinji as a strong male, that she used to project on Kaji, clash with the reality of him as a "housebroken male", despite him being much more than that: Asuka believes Shinji is unwilling to help her, in combat or otherwise, despite him showing bravery even without request - like when he rescued her from the volcano in Episode 10. Additionally, Asuka interprets Shinji's inaction during their kiss in Episode 15 not as lack of understanding, fear or insecurity, but as conscious rejection, which she greatly resents.

Despite Asuka's own abrasiveness toward Shinji, she develops a rather skewed mentorship with him. It is her constant battling, coupled with her seemingly unquenchable energy, that often gives Shinji strength and confidence he didn't know he had. During the days that they lived in a furnished room at NERV HQ practicing their dance routine, Shinji began to understand where Asuka was coming from and allowed himself to confide a little in her. In the end, it was her perfectionism which awakened Shinji's confidence, allowing them to synchronize and defeat Israfel. Asuka's ambivalence regarding their mutual feelings often confuses Shinji, leaving him unsure as to what he feels for her, as Asuka, in order to avoid intimacy forming between them, sometimes reverts to her self-defense mechanisms, and pushes Shinji away, even if Shinji seems barely affected by those, as per his passive nature he seems content to merely have her attention.

Her frustration with Shinji often leads to her recounting her own insecurities to him, much to her surprise. Their occasional public bickering often comically leads to annoyance on the part of the NERV staff-particularly Fuyutsuki, who feels that they are constantly embarrassing the organization, and Misato, who has to live with them. Due to this constant bickering, their classmates often tease them by referring to them as "newlyweds", which results in them blushing and getting embarrassed. These instances give subtle clues that their friends and others around them see a relationship between them that even Shinji and Asuka aren't yet aware of.

Asuka forms less of a connection to Shinji in the manga but they still show interest in each other. They meet under slightly different circumstances, as Asuka has already defeated Gaghiel by herself. Her more childish personality turns Shinji off at first, but they quickly grow closer. They almost kiss in an elevator, but are interrupted by Misato and Kaji. Shinji demonstrates feelings for Asuka in the manga's hospital scene, and states he wants to protect her. Unlike in EoE, they fight together against the MP Evas, and they do not kill her. They meet again in the ending of the manga, when Asuka is stuck in a crowd and Shinji pulls her hand, and they seem to have a faint memory of each other and some sort of lingering feelings. Sadamoto conceived their dance training in the manga as akin to a "kiss", underlining their psychological connection, in place of kiss scene in Episode 15. Asuka would be Shinji's symbol for his longing for the opposite sex, differently from Rei's "motherly" existence. Asuka is present as his childhood friend in the alternative world in Episode 26 and Rei seems to think they are an item. In contrast to the simple "favourable feelings" Shinji has with most other characters, Evangelion Chronicle describes their relationship as "complex feelings" and "love and hate

In End of Evangelion, Shinji spends much of the movie seeking Asuka and has multiple fantasies and exchanges with her, including of a clear sexual nature. Shinji says he is just like her, but Asuka says Shinji can't understand her. Shinji replies that Asuka never tells him anything, and thus it is impossible to do so. He is certain nobody cares about him. Asuka comments on his masturbation earlier in the hospital, and implies it is in fact a habit of his. Asuka gives him an ultimatum, demanding him give herself to her, but Shinji is unwilling to give back any affection himself, much like Asuka herself is, and believes nobody is nice to him, which Asuka and other characters disagree, but Shinji doesn't believe it. Shinji desperately asks for Asuka's affection and even proclaims he wants to be with her forever, but Asuka refuses, as she is unwilling to serve as just an emotional crutch and escape to him. This causes him to lash out at her, and he begins choking Asuka. However, Asuka is the second person to come back after he rejects Instrumentality, and Shinji finds her laying by his side. Shinji starts choking her again, to feel the existence of an Other, of the person he had hoped to meet again, but instead of reacting with aggression or hostility, Asuka caresses Shinji gently (similarly to how Yui had done a few minutes earlier in the movie) which stops him as this first open act of compassion demonstrates to Shinji that he might be accepted after all. Overwhelmed, Shinji begins to cry. It is left open where their relationship will go from there. Hideaki Anno has also written a song about their relationship, which was fully produced and recorded, but ultimately unused, in favor of Komm, süsser Tod.

Shinji first encounters Rei at the Nerv HQ in Episode 1, after being summoned by his father regarding the oncoming Angel attack. Despite being heavily injured, Rei insists on piloting the Eva when Shinji protests against getting in the robot, eventually forcing him to face his responsibility. She is shown as a practical and mysterious figure, acting solely on commands and refusing all social contact. Shinji is initially puzzled at Rei's behaviour, and the bond she seems to have with Gendo, in contrast to Shinji's own and much more strained relationship with his father. Through his persistent efforts to befriend Rei however, she ends up opening up somewhat to him and realizing more about herself and her role in the Human Instrumentality Project. The extent of Shinji's attraction to Rei is unclear even to him; certainly, it is of a different sort than his sexual and seemingly romantic attraction to Asuka. It is implied that he is drawn to the vestiges of his mother that lie within Rei. As they grow closer, their relationship is a source of both joy and pain for both of them. It should be noted though, due to being genetically related to Rei's ultimate fate, the two may never have a romantic relationship, or even wish for one. Rei also seems to associate Shinji with Gendo with some level, implying she might also feel a form of familial connection with him. Shinji relates to Rei's sense of isolation and loneliness; it is not until Shinji is absent that Rei begins to understand that she was in fact feeling these things. She comes to realize that she wants to protect him, and in the battle with Armisael, she self-destructs to save Shinji. After Rei comes back as another clone, Shinji becomes alienated from her, however, in End of Evangelion she decides to hand control of Instrumentality to Shinji instead of Gendo, and gives him the choice to accept or reject it. She is last seen in her Quantum form briefly watching Shinji just before he notices Asuka on the beach.

Rei has a much stronger bond to Shinji in the manga and their relationship has far more development, as Rei is greatly impacted by touching Shinji's hands and as Armisael attacks her, she realizes she has feelings for him she cannot understand. She also realizes she is jealous of Asuka dividing Shinji's attention. However, she is absent from the ending. While Asuka was as a symbol of "heterosexual desire", Sadamoto designed Rei as a "mother figure", thinking of her as "the Yin opposed to Asuka". As such, he decided to give Rei more room in the manga, emphasizing Rei's maternal role.

Shinji looks up to Kaji as a sort of mentor, and accepts behavior in him that he would disapprove of in other characters. For instance, in Episode 08 when Kaji asks him about Misato's sleeping habits, implying that Shinji and Misato might be in a sexual relationship and simultaneously implying that he is intimately familiar with these habits as well, Shinji just laughs rather than being overwhelmed with embarrassment. After the Israfel fiasco, it was Kaji who came up with the idea of the dance routine to help Shinji and Asuka synchronize with each other. His relationship with Misato is constantly paralleled with Shinji's own relationship with Asuka, A common interpretation is to see Kaji as Shinji's positive adult role model, with Gendo as a more negative model. Similarly, Misato and Ritsuko are mirrors for Asuka, as are their respective relationships. Kaji gives advice to Shinji multiple times on many matters though Shinji has difficulty understanding him, as Kaji has his own insecurities. He motivates Shinji to pilot again in Episode 19.

In the manga, Kaji's mentorship of Shinji is more developed, and after the accident with Toji and Unit 03, Kaji makes Shinji realize the true power of his actions (and inactions), as Kaji is considerably more critical of Shinji in the manga. After the battle with Bardiel, Shinji says Touji's death was Gendo's fault alone, but Kaji replies that Shinji had a chance to save him but decided to just sit back. He tells Shinji he is no different from him, and needs to stop pretending nothing has happened. Shinji asks him what he can do, and Kaji tells him he must fight and not look away from the truth. This helps him to accept his role as Unit 01's pilot. Shinji is the first (after Misato) to realize that Kaji had been killed.

Though fans have speculated on the exact nature of Shinji's relationship with Kaworu, it is clear that Kaworu represents a sort of idealized figure to Shinji, as he appears out of seemingly nowhere when Shinji is completely desperate for any sort of connection with anyone, as all of his friends are either dead, unreachable or alienated from him. Kaworu had premeditated encountering Shinji in the lake. He immediately shows great interest in Shinji, making him initially uncomfortable. However, Kaworu telling him he liked him surprised Shinji as he is afraid of talking to Asuka, Misato or Rei, as Shinji has internalized his belief that nobody cared about him thanks to his own partly self-imposed isolation - afterwards, feeling that Kaworu has simply used him further reinforces this, as he thinks everyone is lying to him, because Shinji is unwilling to recognize the ambiguity and insecurity in other people, and the risk and uncertainty involved in reaching out to them himself, something Kaworu temporarily allowed him to ignore. Kaworu uses the ambiguous "suki" form which includes intimacy or friendship or anything more and can simply mean "like" or "fond of", and that he is deserving of "koui" (好意), which means simply "good will" or "favor", not "koi", "love". When he mentions this to Misato later, Shinji also used the ambiguous "suki" form. This line has necessary ambiguity in order to represent Kaworu's own lack of understanding regarding levels of intimacy and societal norms, part of what shocks Shinji and allows Kaworu to bypass his barriers of self-defense, as he isn't even aware those exist, as he himself has none. When Shinji is fighting Kaworu, he states Kaworu has betrayed him, just like his father did, indicating he might have been seeking a similar form of support from him, reinforcing his role as an idealization. This metaphorical meaning of his presence is emphasized further with the reappearance of Kaworu in End of Evangelion, when Shinji is traumatized by experiencing Misato's death and seeing Asuka's dead Eva, Shinji becomes desperate, but Kaworu reveals himself to be part of Lilith to stop Shinji from going into a frenzy and allow Third Impact to begin, although Shinji only enters Instrumentality after Lilith reverts to Rei's form and melts by seeing a woman's breasts, when Yui asks him what he wishes for. Though the precise nature of their relationship is debatable and yet to be determined, Kaworu forms a strong connection with Shinji. His absence from Instrumentality and even the Congratulations scene when even characters like Aoba are present bring into question how much Kaworu affected him besides Shinji's own desperation. Shinji, in fact, seeking unconditional affection from everybody, unwilling to return their own needs, is a fact that has hindered Shinji's happiness throughout most of the series, and Kaworu, being a somewhat non-human character without his own emotional needs (whereas Rei had slowly developed those) is the only one that does that. Moreover, the way Kaworu treats Shinji as a sort of avatar for humanity also brings into question if his affection is directed towards humanity as a whole.

This, paired with the fact that Shinji had killed what he saw as a human being and someone he cared about, was part of what drove him into his state of absolute despair in Episode 25, in which he declared that he felt unworthy even of the piloting which had consumed his identity, thinking that if all he did was hurt and kill others, it was better to do nothing. By that, though, he may have condemned Asuka, who was fighting against the Mass Production Evangelions, to death. Had this not been the case, it is very possible he and Asuka could have defeated the Evas and stopped Third Impact altogether, a fact that greatly benefits SEELE. Shinji depositing all of his hopes for self-worth onto Kaworu, and having that fail him, also reinforces Shinji's notions that if he can't rely unconditionally on people and never risk rejection then he is not actually loved by anyone at all and everyone should just die, part of what motivates him to start Third Impact. In End of Evangelion, Shinji desperately seeks this same sort of unconditional affection from Asuka, and is still certain that he is unloved and unworthy, as he demonstrates he has, in fact, returned to his own childish beliefs about himself, even after the way Kaworu (whom he does not even mention) treated him, and other characters respond to him that he is, in fact, liked and treated nicely by them, but Shinji refuses to believe it. In contrast to Kaworu, when Shinji, in a similar state of desperation, asks for Asuka's own unconditional affection, Asuka refuses as she does not want to be an emotional crutch and an escape for him, and demands he gives himself to her as well, but Shinji is unwilling to give back any affection himself. Asuka says he doesn't really like anyone, as he doesn't even love himself. When Kaworu and Rei as Adam and Lilith state they collectively represent the hope for understanding and love, Shinji replies it is just a pretense, but if he returns to the real world, at least there he will know his feelings are real.

In volume 10 of the manga Shinji is repulsed when Kaworu does CPR on him while he is hyperventilating, and insistently questions Shinji on human feelings, which he rebuffs and then angrily storms off. Shinji in the manga constantly avoids Kaworu as when he met him Kaworu killed a stray cat, which upsets Shinji. He recalls this just before Shinji kills him and says Shinji can no longer be indifferent to him if he decides to kill him, and Shinji imagines himself strangling him personally when they met. Shinji admits to Misato that he was indeed drawn to him and his mysterious nature, because he thought he did need new friends after killing Tōji, but asks Misato why people are drawn to others, and Misato tells him it is because man was made incomplete and needs to seek out others in order not to feel alone. Sadamoto has stated that their relationship in the manga is like that of a younger primary school student seeking admiration from an older, middle school one, not romance. Sadamoto has also explained he wished to make the relationship less ambiguous in the manga. Sadamoto says Kaworu feels for Shinji a reflection of Rei's feelings, however Shinji rejects him as he is not Rei. The choking scene in the manga is inspired from a film called Betty Blue, by Jean-Jacques Beineix. This is contrast to the scene in End of Evangelion, which according to Megumi Ogata was based on an experience of a female acquaintance of Anno's. He says it does not have the same meaning as the film's. He also says he does not understand the success of his character. Sadamoto has also has expressed the view that Kaworu was interested in how humanity evolves and their relationships. Shinji's voice actress Megumi Ogata also agrees with the translation for the Netflix/Khara release, saying she originally interpreted Kaworu's lines as "like", and says she's glad that the new version is closer to the Japanese original, as she interprets her relationship as friends. Like other characters, Anno described Kaworu as being based on himself, though he likened him to Rei as part of his Jungian shadow, in contrast to Shinji, Asuka and Misato as his conscious parts. This comparison was also made with Gendo. Hideaki Anno has also denied "carnal feelings" on Shinji's part.

Ritsuko's relationship with Shinji is different from the ones she shares with the other pilots. She acts in a more motherly, kindly, less intense sort of way than Misato does, perhaps because she is aware of the sufferings a pilot undergoes and of Gendo's own indifference toward his son. Shinji's cynical attitude mirrors her own detached stoicism; in a scene from the manga, when Misato notes Shinji's rather glum mood, Ritsuko responds, "A cheerful, confident Shinji would be all the more disconcerting." Initially, in the series, Ritsuko is on friendly terms with Shinji and colludes with him in chiding Misato on her disastrous approach to instant food, preferring to be invited over for dinner "when Shinji's cooking". In the anime, it is Ritsuko, not Misato, who asks Shinji to take Rei's ID card to her apartment. Shinji's closeness with Rei disturbs Ritsuko; in the manga, it is implied that her jealousy toward Rei also stems from Rei's friendliness with Shinji, since he is Gendo's son. (Moments before attempting to strangle Rei, Ritsuko notes how the girl has "both the Commander and his son wrapped around her little finger.") Ritsuko notes Shinji's complacency and trusts him to do as he's told, making him an ideal pilot in her view. Nonetheless, she seems to resent having to use child soldiers, though she believes this is acceptable as a necessary part of a greater goal. In episode 23, in retaliation for SEELE's interrogation and Gendo's indifference, she takes Shinji (with Misato in tow) to Terminal Dogma, reveals some of NERV's deepest secrets, and destroys the Dummy Plug system before their eyes.

Shinji is friends with Tōji Suzuhara, Kensuke Aida and Hikari Horaki. He is sometimes confused by Toji and Kensuke's more typical teenage male behavior and by Kensuke's burning desire to be an Evangelion pilot. After befriending them after Episode 3, they start teasing Shinji often about his attraction towards Asuka and Rei and seem to want to motivate him to become more secure. They seem to be somewhat unaware of Shinji's anxiety at piloting Eva, particularly Kensuke who envies him for it. When Toji is chosen to pilot Unit 03 in Episode 17 however, he seems to want to confide this to Shinji but is unable to reach out to him. Shinji refuses to fight Unit 03 when he is informed another child is inside it, and when he finds out the pilot was Toji by the end of Episode 18, this disturbs Shinji greatly, motivating him to retaliate at Nerv and Gendo, and later to temporarily quit piloting. Though it is unclear as to whether or not he knew of Hikari's feelings for Toji, he preemptively discounted her from his friends after the incident with Unit 03.

In Rebuild 3.0, it is not Ritsuko but Fuyutsuki who reveals NERV's secrets regarding the Dummy Plug system and the Human Instrumentality Project to Shinji over a game of shogi. The consequences of this revelation, other than causing Shinji's mental breakdown, are still unknown. In all the continuities, Fuyutsuki has a soft spot (albeit not always visible) for Shinji, presumably because he reminds the Deputy Commander of Yui Ikari; unlike Gendo, Fuyutsuki shows concern for Shinji's well-being.

Other media

Neon Genesis Evangelion manga

The Shinji of Yoshiyuki Sadamoto's manga is considerably different from his animated counterpart. Although Shinji still has issues with his father and his past, and is plagued by self-doubt and feelings of worthlessness, he is considerably more apathetic, depressive, and he is also prone to being angry, snide and sarcastic rather than being fearful and cringing. Shinji in the manga is also much more violent than he is in the anime. For example, one of the first things he does after being forced to attack Toji (who is severely injured and crippled in the anime, but actually dies of his injuries in the manga) is to try to punch his father. He is also something of a know-it-all and slightly more audacious and cynical when it comes to dealing with others, for instance mentally thinking of Asuka as a "bitch" and displaying a dislike for her, though they get closer over time. Fan opinion of this characterization is mixed, with some preferring the manga Shinji because he has more of a "backbone", more like a typical hero. However, other fans feel that removing Shinji's neurotic anti-hero aspects makes him less human and harder to relate to.

Throughout the majority of the manga, Shinji appears to be attracted to Rei Ayanami, and their relationship is far more developed than in the anime. After the battle against Ramiel, Shinji offers support to an injured Rei to walk to the rescue team, in a similar way it is implied at the end of Evangelion 1.0. He openly encourages Rei to fight for her life for she would be glad to have survived eventually. One day she invited him into her home to drink tea, even though she never made tea before. She gets burned in the process, leading Shinji to aid her against the burn and to prepare the tea for both of them. She also encourages him to speak to his father. At one point, she says a monologue about her feelings towards touching his hand in multiple occasions, ending with her asking to hold his hand again. He is also more visibly upset over her death after Unit-00's explosion. They share a final conversation before Shinji leaves to the new world, in which Rei thanks him for teaching her many things, which ends with her smiling at him and asking if it was the right expression.

However, after the death of Kaworu, Shinji visits Asuka in the hospital, similar to how he does in The End of Evangelion. He confesses his love to her in a way, claiming, "The Asuka I want to protect isn't this empty shell!" However, instead of shaking her and revealing her body, Asuka wakes up and chokes Shinji until she is subdued by the nurses. This suggests that Shinji's manga adaptation has feelings for Asuka as well.

Shinji's reason for refusing to pilot Unit-01 is also different in the manga. Unlike in The End of Evangelion, where he refuses to pilot out of fear, in the manga he does not wish to pilot simply because he is unsure about what to fight for anymore. He is then convinced by Misato that he will pilot to become stronger, to no longer be afraid and rely on others, and he reluctantly agrees, since he knows Misato is dying. Shinji's relationship with Misato is a little more fleshed out; he shows a great level of sadness when Misato pushes him into the elevator after kissing him as unlike in The End of Evangelion where he merely sobs, he cries out her name many times once it closes and then succumbs to tears.

The final stage of the manga depicts Shinji's world after he rejects Instrumentality. In this world, he was never an Evangelion pilot, had a few friends who cheered him on, and meets Asuka and Kensuke for the first time on his way to a boarding school in Tokyo (in mid-winter, a season Japan hadn't had since Second Impact). It is unclear how much of the pre-Instrumentality world carries over into this one, although the déjà-vu Shinji experiences on seeing Asuka and Kensuke, as well as "relics" resembling Angels, suggests that some significant portion of it has. Shinji is different in this world: although he is still plagued by self-doubt, he is much more confident and open, and is ready to meet change head-on. In the very last panel, as Shinji leaves the train station in Tokyo, Misato's cross pendant is seen tied to his suitcase. He thus fulfills the promise he made to her in her final moments, though it is unknown how much of Misato's memory carries over into this reality.

In the manga, Shinji lived with an aunt and uncle instead of with his sensei before going to NERV. One of them is the older sibling of Yui Ikari though the dialogue does not make it clear whether it is Shinji's aunt or uncle.

Evangelion spinoff manga

The Shinji Ikari Raising Project manga portrays Shinji as acting more like his manga counterpart since he's more confident about himself. Shinji here also is something of a pervert, which goes along with Shinji's personality in the possible world sequence of Episode 26 as well as Girlfriend of Steel 2 video game Shinji. In Angelic Days, however, Shinji acts like his anime self, to the point where he doesn't have the perverted side of his personality that the video game shows. He also still acts shy and introverted around others, although he's friendlier with everyone. In ISRP, Rei is presented a distant cousin of Shinji. In these adaptations, Shinji is childhood friends with Asuka, who tends to get jealous of Shinj's dividing his attentions with other characters, particularly Rei. In Angelic Days, he eventually reconciles with his feelings for Asuka and they become a couple.

In Neon Genesis Evangelion: Gakuen Datenroku, Shinji is again portrayed similarly to his anime counterpart. He joins with Rei, Kaworu and Asuka to defeat the Angels, and manifests his EVA as a stylized handgun. He later learns that his father has been replaced by an alternate Gendo from an alternate universe, who plans on trapping Rei in the Tree of Y'ggdrasil in order to free Yui. Gendo instead tries to trap Shinji within the tree after Rei rebels, prompting Kaworu to sacrifice himself in order to save him. With his last words, Kaworu thanks Shinji for his friendship, which helped him embrace humanity. At the end of the story (with Gendo having been killed), Shinji is shown attending another school alongside Rei and Asuka, with the three children now adjusting to normal lives.

Neon Genesis Evangelion-ANIMA-

In Evangelion ANIMA, Shinji is now 17 years old. He apparently lets his hair grow, making him look like Kaji. He also inherited the watermelon field of the latter. He first pilots the Evangelion Unit-01 Type-F, but after the attack of EVA0.0 (Quatre) and the subsequent unification of his soul with Eva-01, he pilots the Super Evangelion and its various upgrades.

In the ANIMA universe, Shinji defeated the MP Evas during SEELE's invasion, because Asuka and Unit-02 had been chosen as the keystone of Third Impact. Three years after thwarting the ritual, Shinji has grown up to be more assertive and self-confident, to the point of even becoming the new class representative. While he still doesn't find any particular joy in piloting the Evangelion, he doesn't seem to hate it anymore and he is willing to do it in order to save those he cares about. Likewise, Shinji has gotten over most of the issues regarding his father, although he still thinks about him from time to time and wishes he could talk with him. In fact, the very last thing Shinji does in ANIMA is expressing his desire to go meet his father, who had returned to the real world during the events of Volume 5.

Early in the story, Shinji is killed during the fight with the rogue Rei Quatre; but survives when the core of Unit-01 (now called Super Eva) becomes a dimensional heart for both of them. This grants him a special connection with his Evangelion, to the point that it responds to his emotions even when he's not in the entry plug. However, Shinji's new heartbeat is seen as an aberration by Armaros, who sends the Angel Carriers and the Torwätchers to either steal the heart or outright destroy it.

Shinji is still good friends with Toji despite the Eva-03 incident, and although his interactions with Misato aren't as frequent, it's pretty clear that they're both in good terms. His relationship with the Reis is a bit more complicated, especially with Rei Trois, because Shinji fears he's subconsciously seeing her as a replacement for his mother. Fortunately, he grows out of this mindset in the course of Volume 3. He doesn't hold a grudge against Rei Quatre for killing him, but although she kisses him a couple of times, he either reacts with shock and confusion, or doesn't react at all. By contrast, he almost has no problems with Rei Six, mostly due to her innocence and child-like nature.

As for Asuka, it's shown thorough the story that Shinji cares a great deal about her. When she is on the moon, he tries to contact her almost every day from Earth, and when Shinji believes that she has died, he and Super Eva burst into flames due to pure rage. After Asuka fuses with Unit-02 and becomes Crimson A1, Shinji is one of the few people whom she listens to, and when his heart is stolen by a Torwätcher, Shinji mentions that he can sense Crimson A1 touching it, and that her warmth soothes him. Their relationship becomes a key element for the plot of Volume 5, both at the start and at the end. It opens with Asuka, back to normal, hugging Shinji in the entry plug of Super Eva and rescuing him from a berserk-like state. Then, during the climax of the final battle, Asuka, temporarily refused into the Crimson A1, summons a new Eva and a new body for Shinji, who had previously died. Asuka does this after Kaji tells her to "Think of the one you love. You must give him a vessel."

Video games

Shinji's personality in video games is usually reminiscent of his anime self, but his choices depend on the player choices. Most games, such as Girlfriend of Steel 2, allow him to pursue relationships with Asuka and, less commonly, Rei and Kaworu, and many other characters including Misato and Hikari, or original characters such as Mana and Mayumi. Some games have no romantic options or only one ( Petit Eva game). Shinji is generally more confident in games like Battle Orchestra.

Super Robot Wars

In Super Robot Wars V, Eva Unit-01 goes berserk after fighting the fourth angel and fight Koji Kabuto and Mazinger Z. After regaining his sanity, he and Rei rejoin the battle against the Angels.

Shinji makes a cameo appearance alongside Asuka, Rei, and Kaworu in the fifth issue of Marvel's Edge of Spider-Verse miniseries.

Shinji appears in episode 31 of kids train mecha TV anime Shinkansen Henkei Robo Shinkalion THE ANIMATION. In this series, Shinji pilots the 500 TYPE EVA train mech. This is a tribute to the real 500 TYPE EVA bullet train that ran on the Sanyo Shinaksen line from November 2015 to May 2018. The 500 TYPE EVA mech differs from Evangelion Unit-01 in that it's an actual transforming giant robot instead of an ADAM-derived cybernetic organic lifeform. Megumi Ogata reprises her role as Shinji in the episode. Shinji would make a reappearance in the winter 2019 Shinkalion film, making a small appearance in the final battle.

Character notes

According to an interview with Yoshiyuki Sadamoto featured in volume 2 of the manga, Shinji's design is a male version of Sadamoto's design for Nadia, the title character from Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water, which Hideaki Anno also directed. He also initially designed the protagonist as an "Asuka-type girl" but this was eventually changed in favor of a boy, as Sadamoto suggested it'd fit a "robot story" better. Similarly, the relationship between Asuka and Shinji would be similar to the relationship between Jean, Nadia's love interest and eventual husband in the earlier Nadia.

Sadamoto drew Shinji in an ordinary summer school uniform with a white shirt, making him "an average character". He wanted a "realistic and ordinary" boy, a character "that'll be hard for others to make". Since Shinji lacks the enthusiasm and courage of other robot-anime heroes, Sadamoto gave him a different heroic interpretation: "rather than a reflection of a hero, sort of a refraction of a hero". At first, he tried to create a character "that would tap into the consciousness of today's anime fans". Shinji was first drawn with slightly different features, which were changed by the main staff. In one of Sadamoto's original proposals, he had long hair which would have covered his face or fluttered in the wind. Sadamoto changed his mind, finding his original design "too wild".

Shinji's birthday is the same day as his seiyu Megumi Ogata. This is a trait that can be found in several of the Evangelion characters, Rei Ayanami being an exception. Shinji's SDAT walkman is a WMD-DT1 model. It could be seen that Shinji's preferred weapon in battle is the progressive knife seeing as he will usually go for that first in a battle. Shinji has never learned to swim.

Shinji was named after Evangelion animator Shinji Higuchi. For the last name, he chose the Japanese word Ikari ("anchor"), linking it, alongisde the names of other characters in the series, to nautical jargon or Japanese Imperial Navy warships, particularly Gendo and Kaji.

Shinji's character was conceived to reflect Anno's personality "both in conscious and unconscious part". Like all characters, Anno based Shinji on himself, and like Asuka and Misato, Anno considered Shinji as part of his conscious self. He was thus represented as "a melancholic oral-dependent type" caught "in [an] oral stage", like Anno considered himself. Seeing Shinji as a reflection of Anno, assistant director Kazuya Tsurumaki avoided depicting him as a brave character, since "Anno isn't that much of a hero". "Shinji was summoned by his father to ride a robot, Anno was summoned by Gainax to direct an animation", he said. Like other male protagonists in Gainax series, Shinji was conceived with a weak and insecure personality. Gainax wanted to reflect the psychological state of animation fans and the Japanese society, in which fathers are always at work and emotionally absent. Anno set the protagonist at "age fourteen", when "independence of mind starts manifesting". Initially, Shinji. was more mature, robust and less introverted than the final version; he should also have been portrayed as a studious boy, a "quiet A-student". His scholastic conduct would not be seen in a positive light, but as a sign of passivity. As an overall goal, Shinji's age meant he was at a formative point in life.

For the Evangelion manga, Sadamoto wondered "what the world looked like through Shinji's eyes", changing the main theme from "running or not running away" to "being honest with themselves". This led Sadamoto to change Shinji's characterization and psychology. He wanted to reflect contemporary teenagers in the character and as more of a "bad boy", and was influenced by the Gulf War, wondering how a 14-year-old would have behaved on a helicopter. Sadamoto also drew on his own experiences as an adolescent, saying that his characterization was "more like a flunk-out" than Anno's version. He conceived Shinji with a "clean image that a woman tends to project" in his mind, portraying him as a "cold, unambitious" character, "the type who would commit suicide, but can't bring himself to do it". "It was my intention to create a wistful character who had given up on life", he said. Sadamoto has mentioned he identified with Kensuke the most out of all characters, as Shinji himself is instead modelled on Anno, and for that he preferred to have an alternate intepretation of Shinji, but not one based on himself. Instead, Sadamoto identified with Kensuke.

In contrast to his comments in the 1990s regarding NGE, Anno says that, when making 3.0+1.0, he now identifies with Gendo rather than Shinji. For this reason, he felt incapable of developing Shinji's story, and asked for the input of his voice actress.

Notes and references

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Shinji Ikari (碇シンジ[?], "Ikari Shinji")1 is the Third Child, the main protagonist of the series and the designated pilot of Evangelion Unit-01. He is the son of Gehirn bioengineer Yui Ikari and NERV Commander (formerly Chief of Gehirn) Gendo Ikari.