It’s certainly no secret that my favorite characters of all time are gray characters.

You know, because life is complicated, and so are the best characters. Sometimes, good people do bad things. You know, like stab a few … dozen … people. I mean, it happens, right?

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday is about villains, but really, what are villains but the heroes of their own stories?

1. Johann Liebert from Monster

I’m going to start this list by cheating, 100%, just to set the tone because, ha, gray characters. (See what I did there?) Johann is most definitely a villain, and there’s really nothing gray about him. I mean, he’s got lots of problems, okay? But who doesn’t? My love for Johann stems from many things. First, he’s unapologetically evil, but that’s not all he is? The most dangerous part of him is how easily he wears a mask and appears normal. He is also has some sort of moral code, because he refuses to harm Tenma and tries to protect his sister, and that scene where he cries? Oh, the feels. What it comes down to is I love his complexity because he’s more than just evil, and there’s a backstory to him, and some of his motives actually sort of make sense?

2. Simon from Furyborn

We don’t get Simon’s whole backstory, which is kind of disappointing, but there’s more of him in Kingsbane so yay for that. Simon is pretty bad-ass, and there’s obviously a lot to his personality. I mean, he’s sometimes short-tempered and ruthless, but you would be too if you had to deal with Eliana and her nonsense. I just loved how loyal he was to … well, pretty much everyone. Loyalty is hot. It’s a pretty nuanced character who can ruthlessly cut down their enemies while also putting themselves in harm’s way to save a stranger.

3. Wolfe from Ink and Bone

Wolfe is all sorts of complicated, and I haven’t read the whole series yet, so no spoilers! But obviously, he’s got a past, and I want to learn more about him. He’s not exactly in a great situation, but he tries very hard, and he’s an advocate for the poor kids that are stuck with him. Also, the thing he’s got going with Santi? So much yes. Very adorable.

4. Gellert Grindelwald from Harry Potter

I’m going with the book Grindelwald, not the movie version, because the book is always better, right? He was always my favorite character, because even though we didn’t know much about him, there was enough there to form a picture in my mind, at least. It was obviously the wrong picture according to JKR, but that’s okay. That’s the beauty of books. What I loved about Grindelwald is that he was trying to do something positive. You know, for the Greater Good. In his defense, the time period he grew up in and when his movement started, yeah, 100%, Muggles were doing some really craptastic things. Meanwhile, the wizards were curing major Muggle diseases and living with magic and magical creatures and why wouldn’t Muggles want all the ease the Wizarding World could introduce?! I for sure would like some magic. The image I get, of course, is of a Dark Lord who is trying to bring both worlds together. One who disarms rather than kills in order to steal the Elder Wand, despite that never having been done before and not even knowing if that would work. One who erects Nurmengard to silence his dissenters rather than, well, outright killing them or committing genocide. Prisoners, in theory, can be reformed. Dead people kinda can’t. Also, Grindeldore will forever be my OTP.

5. Rowan Damisch from Thunderhead

A.k.a. Scythe Lucifer WHICH IS THE BEST SCYTHE NAME EVER. Also, a rebellion in and of itself, which I wholeheartedly support, because the Scythedom is crap, okay? There, I said it. I know that Rowan is technically breaking the rules and doing all sorts of illegal stuff and that’s wrong and bad and shame on him … but I’ve been rooting for him from day one. Look, someone’s gotta take the nasty job of fixing a broken system, and obviously it’s not gonna be Goddard, so …

6. Cardan Greenbriar from The Cruel Prince

Cardan is a piece of crap Fae who clearly has some issues in his personal life, which he resolves by being even more of a piece of crap. But I still love him anyway. Sure, he’s awful, but again, he’s unapologetically so because that’s just who he is. He’s not lying about it or pretending to be something else. Yet, there’s also a different side to him. That’s the most important thing for me with gray characters. There’s something deeper than that obnoxious, garbage character, and every now and then the mask cracks and we see those hidden emotions.

7. Der Erlkonig from Wintersong/Shadowsong

I think we can mostly agree that kidnapping is bad, yeah? So that’s maybe one strike against Der Erlkonig. But he’s in love, and people do crazy things when they’re in love (you know, like kidnap one’s sister in order to blackmail someone into marrying them … or something like that?). Eventually, I actually enjoyed the romance. More than that, though, I enjoyed Shadowsong a bit more than Wintersong, because it delved more into Der Erlkonig’s history, and we got to see more about his personality. And there is so much more to him. I don’t want to say too much about him, because it’s mostly spoilers, so maybe you should just read this duology instead.

8. Keeper of the Bees from Black Bird of the Gallows

He was garbage, okay? What he did was obviously not cool, and we’re all on the same page there. But also, his situation was not cool? And he raised a lot of really interesting questions. Would you do the same thing, were you in his shoes? I’d like to say no, but … I can’t even fathom what it would be like to be that desperate to break free at that point. Unfortunately, his character didn’t get a whole lot of screen time and backstory, and that was one of my qualms with the book, because it was hinted at but not really explored. Still, he was a great character.

9. Boromir from Lord of the Rings

As far as gray characters go, Boromir is pretty much the quintessential example, isn’t he? He’s only human (and how dare he), and he falls prey to evil and darkness … but for a good reason? It’s the age-old dilemma of is it still wrong to do bad things for the right reasons? Boromir is desperate to save his people, to please his father, to protect Gondor. His death was a bit of a redemption, but also one of the most tragic scenes to me and ugh. The feels.

10. Elizabeth Lavenza Frankenstein from The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein

Elizabeth knows she’s not a great person. She’s not stupid. But she’s surviving. Her wickedness serves a purpose. The 1800s were not a good time for women. Surprise! Elizabeth knows what it’s like to be nothing and have nothing, and she doesn’t intend to go back there. So she wears  a mask and manipulates others and molds herself to fit what others need her to be so she can secure her position in the life she wants to lead, rather than being thrown out with nothing. I loved her because of how sympathetic she was. Yes, she was doing horrible things, but her struggle really highlights the limitations of women in the time period, as well as giving a clear picture, through other characters, of the sort of life she might live should she fail.

What gray characters do you love (or love to hate)?