After her brother teased her that girls get too much help in online video games, Feng Lan became the first person in Second Life to play as the opposite sex: a beautiful elven boy named Prince. Nobody was aware of this, of course, so instead of being showered with adoration by male players, Prince is hounded by hormonal female stalkers. Oh well, them's the breaks! Prince soon gets the nickname Blood Elf, for his ruthless fighting style and the pleasure he gets from being bathed in the blood of his enemies. He leads a rag-tag group of misfits called the Odd Squad.

Zhuo Ling Bin has been in love with Feng Lan for 8 years, and went to play Second Life under the name Wicked when he heard she joined the game. He has no idea that she was playing a he and even declared Prince his sworn rival. Eventually he learns her true identity and becomes Prince's ally. He is caring, protective, and extremely loyal.

Ming Ju Wen is a young Professor with an IQ of 200 who teaches at Feng Lan's university who enjoys the freedom of the Second Life game world playing a beautiful bard by the name of Guiliastes. He pretended to be gay to hit on Prince, but eventually realized that he was falling in love with Prince despite his sex. Prince, on the other hand, loves to beat the everliving shit out of Gui for this. Gui is very protective of Prince and has a heated rivalry with Wicked for "his" affections.

Tetsuo is perhaps the most dynamic character in the series. His troubled childhood laid the foundations for a life of gang violence and drug abuse. But after a chance encounter with one of the government's escaped experiments triggers the development of Tetsuo's psychic potential, things get a lot worse. Not only do you now have a drugged up psychopath with superpowers terrorizing the city, but he also awakens Akira, the psychic prodigy who set off World War 3 thirty years ago. This doesn't go over well. But, on the bright side, in the post-apocalyptic world that follows, Tetsuo resolves to sober up and learn how to properly wield his power. Of course, things are never that simple.

Song I Associate With Him: "Coming Undone" by KoRn
Related Links: Top 7 Anime/Manga Antagonists

Kaneda comes off as a loud and obnoxious asshole. He'd annoy the crap out of me in real life, but it's great fun to watch him annoy everyone else! He's quite rash in his actions, but also very resourceful, and about as unkillable as a cockroach. Although he remains loud and obnoxious throughout the story, his softer side starts to shine through over time, particularly towards Kei and Tetsuo. He wins Kei over with his persistence and boyish charm, and though he acts tough, he could never forget that Tetsuo is his best friend no matter how crazy Testuo becomes.

Akira is... well... God incarnate. Although, technically, in Akira cosmology, all life is God incarnate. God is an endless river of energy that flows through all things, and the human boy Akira simply awakened to this power fully. This unity with cosmic consciousness disintegrated his ego personality leaving a pure channel for the will of the universe. Akira hardly ever talks, and is very calm... unless, that is, something traumatizes him, in which case he sets off an explosion with the power of a nuclear bomb, except it's not nuclear as much as a manipulation of the spacetime continuum. Reality is very fluid for Akira. The past, present, and future all coexist.

Related Links: Akira Wallpaper 1 (1920 x 1200), Akira Wallpaper 2 (1366 x 768)

Kei is an active member of a resistance movement against the Japanese government. She's strong, smart, and tough, but once she meets Kaneda, and encounters the vastly powerful Tetsuo, she gets dragged into a world beyond her wildest dreams. It is discovered that Kei herself is gifted with the psychic ability of Medium and, as such, plays a pivotal role in the future of the world. Other psychics can channel their powers through her as one, making her an unparalleled supernatural warrior who is able to confront someone like Tetsuo.

The Colonel is a disciplined, sensible workaholic who's surrounded by complete morons. I swear I've never seen a military this incompetent. The ignorant government officials who can't see past their campaign dollars are even worse. And if that wasn't enough, he also has a science team which is more concerned with prodding the potential of psychic kids like Tetsuo than they are about unleashing World War 4. This makes the Colonel's task of overseeing the Akira project very difficult.

The Demon Lord Lucifer was once the most glorious being in Heaven, but was cast down by God for his pride. His amnesic soul was bound to the legendary sword of the organic angel Alexiel called Nanatsusaya, and he faithfully stalked her tragic reincarnations by donning the bodies of those around her. As Kira Sakuya, he was Setsuna's only real friend. He often appeared harsh and distant to protect the people he cared about. Though Kira was normally indestructible, Rosiel figured out how to kill his body and revive him as his true self. The kind, thoughtful Kira was gone, replaced by an ancient power that had no regard for life, love, or anything but himself. Lucifer was not too happy about having been sealed in a sword for so long, and decided to make up for lost time by plowing through the forces of Heaven and challenging God himself. And what's more, I was cheering him on. Kudos to Lucifer for making me think.

Related Links: Lucifer, Lucifer - In His Head
Song I Associate With Him: "The Dance" by Within Temptation

Rosiel's "son" and faithful servant. Though he is kind, gentle, and idealistic, he is definitely no pushover and knows firsthand that the world is a cruel place. Katan stands by his master even after Rosiel turns nuttier than he already was. He also gets accidentally turned into a ravenous killer blob for a little while... but a ravenous killer blob with a conscience!!

Mi-ka-el is the magnificent, golden-haired hero who wields the flaming sword of justice that slays any evil before God Lucifer's disgruntled little brother. And by "little" I mean short, with an even shorter temper. Fittingly, he's the angel of fire. He also hates Lucifer and women. ~_~;

Signature line: "What? You wanna fight? Cool!"

This androgynous trickster was known as Belial in Heaven. S/he had affairs with many angels but didn't care about any of them. Only one person ever turned Belial down, and that was Lucifer. S/he was obsessed with him ever since and followed him to the depths of Hell, but if he ever returned her love, s/he would lose all interest and life would be empty again.

Anyone that can survive getting fried, cut up, slashed in two, and having their heart ripped out is pretty damn awesome. Darshu is powerful and he knows it. Furthermore, he is not afraid to flaunt it in a very arrogant manner. I'll forgive that he's muscular.

After Griffith joined the God Hand, there was a long dry period where all I had to focus on was Guts' overflowing machismo. But there's finally a REAL man back in Berserk! One who walks on gusts of wind and attacks with faeries!! And he dual wields!!! *_* To distract himself from his tragic past, Serpico lives only to serve his half-sister Farnese, and his over-protectiveness has caused him to cross blades with Guts on several occasions. He is an expert strategist, frighteningly good fighter, and very, very sneaky. He is also afraid of fire.

Signature line: "Farnese, you'll catch a cold."

Well look who managed to bleed his way onto my list! Though Guts is just about the antithesis of everything I go for, he still has his moments. Perhaps it's all that splashing blood and raging testosterone! Guts is a one-man army whose berserker rage and demonic armor allow him to achieve inhuman feats. He is at constant war with fate, his own dark side, and a universe that is out to destroy him... But Guts stubbornly refuses to die. He lives to get revenge on his ex-best friend Griffith, and to protect Caska.

Related Links: Runaway Dream, Favorite Pairings List
Song I Associate With Him: "Last Cup of Sorrow" by Faith No More, "Destroyer" by Static-X

Even though she's the only female in Griffith's band of the Hawks, Caska is treated like one of the guys. She was second in skill to only Griffith himself until Guts joined the group. She has a no-nonsense attitude with great leadership skills and does not back down from a fight. Although after a certain, err, tragic sequence of events, she was left in an infantile state of denial, there is hope that she may regain her memory and fight alongside Guts once more.

A legendary warrior who has reigned undefeated for over 300 years, Zodd desires to one day find an opponent worthy of his skill. During their first encounter, Guts and Griffith were the first mortals capable of wounding him in several decades. His power and temperament are very similar to Zaraki from Bleach. He's just plain COOL!! Now that Griffith is reborn, Zodd serves as one of his chief Generals.

Slan is the only female member of the God Hand and always has the most interesting thing to say. She enjoys pain, torture, and manifesting in troll entrails to play S&M bondage games with Guts. Seriously, why can't people keep their hands off Guts? Does he exude some kind of superhuman pheromones?? I mean we got Griffith, Farnese, Schierke, Slan... there's other men in the world besides Guts, you know! SERPICO!! Won't somebody please hit on Serpico?? (preferably with chains)

Related Links: Carol of the God Hand

Warmhearted and fun to be around, Judeau is still deadly in a fight. It's a real shame he had to die, but oh well, anything for Griffith-sama's glory.

Manji is a skilled warrior with a whole arsenal of funky-looking weapons hidden up his sleeve. He is also immortal by virtue of being enchanted with blood-worms that can repair any bodily injury. They don't do anything for the pain, though... oh dear god, the PAIN. The dark humor surrounding Manji's frustrations are what lands him here: "I'm sick of playing this scene. Three times on the god damned koushuu highway. First time, I hang my butt out to dry three days. And all I get to play is clean-up guy at a bloodbath. Next time, I have to fight three hard-ass bastards to the death. My arms and legs hacked off... and no tegata. And today... today I gotta ask some green kid for help, and just look at me. What kind of bullshit kharma is dumping on me like this, over and over? I mean, come on!! That's it. I've had enough. I'm not taking it any more. You jerks are the last straw!! I'LL KILL YOU ALL!!" Awww, poor Manji.

Tai-Tai is a kenshi of the hardcore Itto-ryu sword school, but he's not the best among them. Even so, his sweet desperation to avenge the death of his love and strategic ability to defeat stronger opponents makes him very admirable. Indeed, it is his precarious vulnerability that lands him a place here. It's hard to out-sympathize blocking knives through your own hands.

Related Links: Anotsu, Makie & Taito Wallpaper (1920 x 1200)

Makie may as well be the goddess of war incarnate. Never has she known defeat, and even the great swordsman Anotsu Kagehisa bows in reverence to her skill. But, to Makie, her lethal talents are a curse. She would much rather Anotsu see her as a woman instead of a blade, and she finds no joy in being a death-bringer. She tried being a geisha at a pleasure house, in an effort to atone for her actions by giving happiness to others, but this didn't last long.

Related Links: Anotsu, Makie & Taito Wallpaper (1920 x 1200)

Some guys are pretty, some have brains, some have skill, some have power, some have angst, some have a sense of humor, and some just bleed a lot - Ichigo's got it all! He's the most well-rounded character I have ever seen, and he achieves this in a strikingly non-washed out way. His willpower and determination have no bounds. Best yet, the more bloodied he gets the stronger he becomes. It is as if each strike works to awaken the welling power within. He has super-human speed and wields the powers of darkness (my two favorite abilities). His huge sword's true form is that of a slender katana (my favorite weapon) and he has a hyper psychotic Hollow lurking in his soul (always fun). He has bounded up my list at an unprecedented speed, matched only by his huge evolutionary leaps in the anime/manga. The scary thing is that he achieved this based primarily on his personality - even though I was determined to hate him.

Related Links: Strong Enough (Fan Art), Ichigo Trinity, Ichigo vs the Top 10 List, Top 10 Anime/Manga Fights
Song I Associate With Him: "Holding Out For A Hero" by Bonnie Tyler

Ex-captain of the 12th Division of research and development, Urahara was exiled from Soul Society for... well, basically for being way too smart. He was a scientific genius capable of making untraceable gigai, 3-day bankai training, the infamous hougyoku and countless other nifty things. Though he now keeps a low profile as a cutesy, hat-wearing, fan-wielding owner of a mystical convenience store, his immense power becomes quickly evident in battle. Most of the time, however, he prefers subtly manipulating his unsuspecting pawns by playing the role of omniscient trickster. Urahara is hardcore about everything he does, recognizing that the greatest breakthroughs come from testing one's limits. Besides his vast intelligence, his chief weapon is a versatile cane-sword named Benihime ("Crimson Princess") that controls blood.

The 6th Division Vice-Captain isn't bad on the eyes as is, but when he lets down his hair he is simply mesmerizing. It has been said his hair is red to match the gallons of blood he loses in every fight. While he is undeniably powerful with his awesome serrated whip-sword, the poor thing just can't win. It seems to be his lot in life to show how insanely strong an enemy is before it's Ichigo's turn to fight. Not that I'm complaining... I'm more than happy to lick him clean! He loses his headband in every fight too, and though one has to wonder why he even bothers wearing it anymore, it is probably the main reason he's still alive. Although he typically comes off as crude and obnoxious, he is caring, self-sacrificing, and fiercely loyal at heart. Renji has one of my favorite, flashiest bankai, and I love his revamped Sesshoumaru-esque fur-and-bone getup!

While he has no chance whatsoever of making it to the Top 10 List, Zaraki just plain oozes cool. Without even knowing the name of his battered sword and given numerous handicaps, he managed to hand Ichigo his ass - twice! He then took out two other Captains simultaneously. If Zaraki ever learns any of his real powers, he would be annihilation incarnate.

Related Links: Top 7 Anime/Manga Antagonists, Top 10 Anime/Manga Fights

This sly fox hides his true power and motivation behind a perpetually grinning poker face. An opportunistic trickster with a sadistic sense of humor, he is happy to play with the minds and lives of others. All in good fun. ^_^ I doubt even his supposed allies know what really goes on in his head.

Known as Goddess of Flash, Yoruichi is the mistress of speed. Though she was the Captain of the 2nd Division and leader of Covert Ops, she forfeited her rank by helping the fugitive Urahara escape Soul Society. Out of action for over 100 years, she hid her identity in the form of a black cat.

Also known as the-cute-thing-on-Kenpachi's-back... the cute thing... FROM HELL!! Despite her diminutive appearance, Yachiru is the Vice-Captain of the 11th Division and the only one able to call her Captain "Ken-chan" without getting sliced in two. She enjoys jumping on people's heads, finger-painting with blood, and getting Kenpachi lost.