Determinator/Anime and Manga: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

** Vegeta is a bit of Determinator himself. Perhaps even more than Goku, part of why he's such a badass is the insane amount of punishment it takes to bring him down. Seriously, he gets his ARM SNAPPED IN HALF, but when Trunks tries to jump in and help he's all like "NO STAY BACK I GOT THIS."

*** His saga as a villain proves this beyond a shadow of a doubt. No matter what any of the z-fighters throw at him, he simply refuses to stay down. He gets knocked around by Goku's Kaio-ken, knocked into the sky with the Kamehameha-- overwhelming his own attack-- and the most powerful move in the anime, the Spirit Bomb. He had his tail cut off, reverting himself from his Oozaru form after expending the energy needed to create the power ball letting him turn into it. And then he fought Gohan in HIS Oozaru form and ''beat it''. No matter what happened, he just kept going. Even when he was finally defeated, he didn't stop moving. He crawled to his spaceship to flee so he could heal up and fight another day.

** Son Gohan inherited the Determinator trait from his father.

** Every last Z Senshi during the [[Kamehame Hadoken|Kamehameha]] [[Beam-O-War|struggle]] between Gohan and Cell, in the anime. By this point, even Piccolo is completely outclassed in terms of power, but he and the by-this-point-barely-relevant human warriors just keep blasting Cell from the sidelines, not caring what happens to them if they can do something to help Gohan.

** Tenshinhan deserves special mention for ''coming out of freaking nowhere'' with a long string of Kikohos - just to keep Cell on the ground temporarily. (The Kikoho saps huge amounts of energy, to the point that it's quite possible to die from exhaustion when using it - Tenshinhan keeps it up for several minutes before he passes out.)

** Krillin has shades of this, too - the little guy gets flattened on a regular basis, but is just as regularly seen dragging his bleeding self off the ground to keep fighting, even when he knows that the best he can do is buy time.

** Gloriously subverted with Android 19. He seems like this at first, but...

 

 

 

** [[But Wait! There's More!|But that's not the end.]] His ''friend'', after the fight, takes him to his daughter's (aka The Main Heroine's) apartment ([[What an Idiot!|Said daughter is mentioned love interest.]]). Before leaving he renders him unconscious with a [[Choke Holds|choke hold]]. But the moment Sakamoto hears her voice he gets on his feet. Poor girl attacks him repeatedly (and she is a fighter herself), but he goes down only after a [[Groin Attack|precise kick]].

* [[Akagi]] pursues outrageous, life-threatening gambles with absolute determination. Part of it is due to completely trusting in his abilities (which would already qualify him for this trope), but his total disregard for the possible consequences of failures even when large amounts of luck are needed has forced every single character, including a batshit insane serial-killer, to call him "a devil" and "a lunatic with a deathwish".

* ''[[Bakemonogatari]]'': Koyomi Araragi, helped in no small part by his vampirically-gained [[Healing Factor]]. Notably, whilst fighting the {{spoiler|demonically-possessed Kanbaru}}, he ignores {{spoiler|having several of his limbs broken, having his teeth knocked out, and having a ''[[No-Holds-Barred Beatdown|hole punched through his abdomen]]''. He only stops fighting- presumably due to being physically incapable of it- when he is '''''swung around the room by his intestines.'''''}}

** Shujin and Saiko as well; they've perpetually been in Eiji's shadow for 8 years, and yet never given up on firmly taking the number-one spot.

** Nizuma, too. Whenever it looks like Shujin and Saiko will FINALLY take the commanding lead, that's when he REALLY starts getting interested, and cranks the awesome meter [[Up to Eleven]]. The worse the situation, the more determined he is to retain his position.

** There are numerous examples of that in the manga. Just to make two examples, Guts ''chisels off his own arm with a broken sword'' to free himself from a demon's jaws during the Eclipse where he is made a sacrifice. Later on, he gets both his legs and his arms (the remaining one and the artificial one) broken with ease by the ''God Hand'', a group of 5 major demons that are actual gods of evil, and he, despite the obvious difference of strength that makes him look like an ant confronting an atomic bomb, rises back to his feet and uses HIS TEETH to swing his [[BFS|humongous sword, the Dragonslayer]].

** There is also a lot of emotional drive behind Guts' determination. Perhaps the saddest example came during the Eclipse, when {{spoiler|Guts sees Casca, his lover, about to get the, ah, ''tentacle treatment'' by a mess of demons, starts to go into a [[Foe-Tossing Charge]] to get to her, gets his arm nommed by a demon with a set of impressive choppers, then hacks off that arm we were talking about when Femto starts raping her, and then continues his rampage to try and save her... [[Hope Spot|But it was all in vain.]] But even after he gets dogpiled, ''Guts is still trying to get to her'' '''by trying to force himself up from beneath the demons on his bloody stump of an arm''' which evidently causes one of the demon's talons to claw out his eye.}} After all of that occurred, Guts not only remains a determinator to ensure his own survival, but also Casca's survival, since if he dies, [[I Will Protect Her|she also dies.]]

* ''[[Blame]]!'': Killy. Broken arm? Use the other one. Three-fourths of your body incinerated? Grow a new one. Half of your skull blown off? Just shoot back. Seriously, there is nothing that can stop this killing machine. Now add in the fact that his quest takes 3,000 years to complete, during which he does not complain or quit ''once''. Furthermore, he ''walks'' through the majority of [[The City]]. The City is roughly a light-year across.

* ''[[Bleach]]'': Ichigo definitely qualifies for this. "Do you want to kill or die?" "[[Take a Third Option|I want to win!]]" He sometimes seems to ''need'' to [[Blood From the Mouth|get beaten to within an inch of his life]] before he can call on his true power. Later, he {{spoiler|just got a hole blown in his chest, and it was stated to be unhealable. He. Got. Better.}}

** Also, [[Blood Knight|Kenpachi]]. So extreme that he doesn't even think death is an excuse. He lives by the code that anyone who wants to give up with an "honorable death," instead of fighting on to MAKE what you want happen, is just a whiny little bitch.

** [[Almighty Janitor|Yumichika]] also doesn't use his zanpakutou's power in battle. He would rather die than have his division [[Cover-Blowing Superpower|find out]] what he's [[Vampiric Draining|capable of]]. As a result, he ''pretends'' to activate his power and then simply fights on [[Determinator|sheer willpower alone]].

* ''[[Busou Renkin]]'' not only [[Justified Trope|justifies]] this behavior in its protagonist Kazuki, it uses it as a major plot point. {{spoiler|The kakugane serving as Kazuki's heart is a highly dangerous, modified version, which has given Kazuki energy-draining abilities and is slowly turning him into a monster.}}

* ''[[Claymore]]'': Clare is a positively epic Determinator. She can get filled with holes, lose her limbs, knocked down over and over again, and it [[Blood Knight|just.]] [[Unstoppable Rage|Doesn't.]] [[Badass|Matter.]] While considered a [[Gecko Ending]], her climactic battle with [[Berserk Button|Pris]][[God Mode Sue|cilla]] in the anime is the best example of this.

** Though, her fight with Priscilla in the manga might be an even better example. {{spoiler|When Clare is assumed to have been killed by the Destroyer, she ends up taking control of it and attacking Priscilla.}} There's a ''reason'' quite a few people consider her the [[Distaff Counterpart]] of [[Berserk|Guts]].

** This makes it fitting that the first R2 opening shows Jeremiah while screaming: "I CONTINUE TO FIGHT/FLY!! I CONTINUE TO FIGHT/FLY!!!!"

* ''[[Crest of the Stars]]'': Almost every Abh embodies this trope, but for Captain Lexshue it becomes a [[Crowning Moment of Awesome]]. When her ship discovers a fleet of warships trying to launch a surprise attack, she orders Lafiel to escape with Jinto and warn their allies. Then to buy them time, she turns and fights despite being outnumbered ten to one, {{spoiler|and keeps fighting even as the ship is being destroyed sector-by-sector and finally crippled. As she's ordering her beloved crew to ram the last ship, a beam pierces the hull in slow motion and the scene [[Fade to White|fades to white]].}}

** The Fourteenth is arguably this too seeing how {{spoiler|he devised a way to come back to life ''just'' so he could kill the Earl with his "own" hands.}}

* Played brutally straight by several characters in [[Elfen Lied]]. Nana in particular is on the receiving end of several [[Curb Stomp Battle|Curb Stomp Battles]], but still gets up for the next one. Bandou doesn't let the loss of his eyes stop him from being one of the biggest [[Badass|BadAsses]] in the story. Lucy is this and especially in the manga finale.

* ''[[Eyeshield 21]]'': [[Subverted Trope|Subverted]]. In one early match against the Oujou White Knights, Hiruma stops playing because he realizes Deimon's chances for victory have reached 0%, although he is willing to keep playing in any other match as long as his team's chances for winning are even marginally greater than nil. In recent chapters, he's gone from being a subversion to almost an embodiment of [[The Determinator|sheer determinatorism]]: {{spoiler|He plays half a game with a broken arm and apparently heals it in less than a month by willpower alone. Well, willpower and his oxygen tank/segway. Hahahaha.}}

*** And she wasn't fully healed, so it doesn't really count, anyways.

* ''[[Freezing]]'': Satellizer L. Bridget is a true female pinnacle of this trope. Because of her late mother's dying wish, she refuses to give up in any situation and refuses to be bossed around by anyone. Even with her body paralyzed or brutally maimed, or even after [[No One Should Survive That|having her throat slit]], [[Normally I Would Be Dead Now|she will not give up]]. She has pushed her will so high that she defeated a superior opponent ''while unconscious'' (she has "dead eyes" during the latter stage of the fight).

'''Courtney''': No, ''fucking'' guts. }}

** ChoRyuJin = Determinator Incarnate, even out-"never give up"-ing '''''Guy.''''' Even {{spoiler|'''''THE END OF THE''''' (prehistoric) '''''WORLD'''''}} cannot and '''will''' not stop him.

* ''[[Great Teacher Onizuka]]'' embodies this trope. The best example is when Onizuka has to substain a student national examination to avoid forced resignation, and he manages to {{spoiler|rescue a girl in danger from a dozen yakuzas, armed with guns, just with bare fists, then he arrives to the 5-hours exam 4 hours late and he does it in 1 hour. After completing it, he passes out and the other characters realize that he took the exam WITH 4 BULLETS IN HIS STOMACH.}}

* ''[[Gundam]]'' has a bunch of 'em.

* [[Guyver]]: Sho Fukamachi, unlike many of these heroes listed, does not seem to be very strong willed, that is until his friends and family are threatened. He frequently suffers from some of the most horrible injuries, including limbs being torn off, getting impaled, his skull smashed open, and even melting and dying (thankfully the Guyver can regenerate), but he always keeps fighting. In his rematch with Aptom, he manages to get over the trauma {{spoiler|of killing his father}} to bio-boost again and save Mizuki, and he wills his megasmasher to open and fire when his arms are disabled. Much later, Sho fights for control of the Gigantic from Agito, [[The Ace]], and wins through his sheer will power. This is notable because Agito himself is also quite the determinator who will do anything to win.

* ''Gyakkyou Nine'': Fukutsu Toshi's name literally translates to "Indomitable Determination." Being a Kazuhiko Shimamoto character, he is a walking inferno of [[Hot-Blooded|hot blood]] and believes that with determination, his baseball team can achieve anything.

* ''[[Inuyasha]]'': The entire InuYasha-tachi team. InuYasha himself, Sango, Miroku, Kirara/Kilala, even gentle Kagome and Shippo, who usually plays comic relief. The only time any of them could be said to give up {{spoiler|is when Sango thinks Miroku is about to die from his curse. "Take me with you."}}

** Not to mention Kagura, who persisted through the most relentless circumstances, and didn't even let dying bring her down.

* ''[[Jubei-chan]]'': Koinosuke survives 300 years by force of will alone to keep searching until he finds the true successor for the Lovely Eyepatch. (He also {{spoiler|abandons his wife and daughter}} to do so, but you don't find that out until later.) It's nearly {{spoiler|the last [[Despair Event Horizon]]}} for Jubei when she realizes what he went through to get her something she's done nothing but reject.

* ''[[Karas]]'': Otoha definitely falls into this category. He was "killed" twice in the series that we saw--and both times just pissed him off. And yes, he ''was'' in human form both of those times.

* ''[[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]]!'': Hibari Kyouya. Even when half of the bones on the his body are broken {{spoiler|by Mukuro}}, he continues fighting so hard he was said to be moving too fast to be seen. And don't forget the time he has been poisoned by the Cervello during the Varia arc and iss supposed to take his ring that was held up above him twenty feet high. The poison is said to stop a rampaging elephant into a standstill, but not for Hibari!

* ''[[The Law of Ueki]]'': Ueki just ''will not'' go down until he succeeds, no manner how much damage he takes. His absolute determination is so great that many characters have incredulously asked: "Is this guy immortal?" It helps that he ''is'' a cosmic being, albeit still killable, who was raised as a human, but even other cosmic beings are awed at his refusal to go down.

* In ''[[Kinnikuman]]'': almost all of the character's qualify. Buffaloman fought Akuma Shogun (The god of evil choujin) for a FUCKING MONTH while Kinnikuman (A determinater in his own right) trained to fight Akuma Shogun. Terryman fought Ashuraman after having literally lost both of his arms, he didn't win, but he still fought Ashuraman hard. He also went up against The Mountain (The heaviest choujin in the series by that point), who not only body splashed him, but also damaged Terryman's already injured leg. Terry come back and beats the Mountain by lifting him over his head and giving him a brainbuster down a casm they were fighting over. When Kinnikuman and Brocken Jr. couldn't find Terryman, they though him dead. Lo and behold, Terry survived the staggering fall. Near the end in the Scramble for the Throne Arc, Robin has to face Mammothman in death match. After Mammothman freezes Robin in an iceberg, Robin bursts out, steals Mamothman's own move, the procedes to give the Rope-work Special, all the while Robin is fading out of existence. Geronimo probably deserves this more title the most. Way back in his first fight with Sunshine, Geronimo's heart stops. Given that he's a regular human being, you'd think that would kill him, but hell no! Geronimo shoves his hand into his own chest and FUCKING MASSAGES HIS OWN HEART UNTIL IT STARTS BEATING AGAIN!

* The titular character of ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'' is one hell of a determinator. She doesn't give up, even in the face of a [[Person of Mass Destruction]] that is clearly more powerful than her. Quite possibly deconstructed in that her constant pushing beyond limits bites her back ''hard'' at one point. She later teaches her students not to go down that path.

** Exemplified in the beginning of the second season. She fights a stronger opponent, gets knocked through a wall and nearly killed outright, is told by her [[True Companions]] to stay put, heal up and let them handle the rest, and instead pulls out the biggest spell in her arsenal to end the fight - and manages to cast it despite an enemy mage ''shoving a teleporting hand through her chest'' to try and neutralize her.

* ''[[Magic Knight Rayearth]]'': "Cephiro, the world that is shaped by the strength of the believing heart." And no one, absolutely ''no one'', has a stronger heart than little pint-sized Hikaru Shidou, even when she's torn apart with injuries that would have killed a grown man. It's actually a plot point in the [[Anime]]'s second season, when {{spoiler|her loss of will is downright catastrophic for the entire ''world'', and her subsequent recovery makes her virtually [[A God Am I|omnipotent]]}}.

* ''[[Mahou Sensei Negima]]'': Parodied when Negi is accidentally turned into one of these after Nodoka asks him for a kiss, unaware that the nearby [[The World Tree]] forces him to accept. He's going to kiss somebody, dang it, or die trying. He eventually {{spoiler|kisses Asuna so intensely that she does an incredibly suggestive [[Eye Take]] just before the scene is jokingly censored. Something of a [[Funny Aneurysm]], since it's later revealed that she's his aunt.}} More traditional Determinator moments:

** Negi's tendencies along this line showed as early as vol. 7. When he first asked Evangeline to train him she refused unless he could use the kung fu he started learning from Ku Fei ''a couple of days earlier'' to land a hit on expert fighter [[Robot Girl|Chachamaru]]. At the appointed hour he came, got sent sprawling halfway across the courtyard, and was told to go away. He simply picked himself up and pointed out to Eva that no time limit was set. The resulting [[Curb Stomp Battle|beating]] lasted for over an hour before Chachamaru got distracted and Negi landed a feeble blow before collapsing.

** Then there's Rakan, who takes this to absurd levels. Nothing short of {{spoiler|''[[Reality Warper|erasing him from existance]]'' will stop him, and even then, he puts up one ''hell'' of a fight.}} Even after that, he {{spoiler|''willed himself back'' just to give his student one important information that he must absolutly must know, and also gives some parting words to everyone}}

* ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'': Rei has her determinator moments, most notably in the climactic fight of Rebuild 01 where she blocks a particle accelerator beam that ''melts half a mountain'' behind her.

** Somewhat subverted in that the reason for Rei's seemingly extraordinary courage and willpower is her complete and utter disregard for her own safety and wellbeing, as [[Expendable Clone|she can be replaced]].

** Asuka is another Determinator downright refuses quitting. She shot a [[Macross Missile Massacre]] on Zeruel -that it shrugged off-, and when it cut her mecha's arms off, she tried lunging at it. She stated she preffered dying rather returning in defeat when Arael was {{spoiler|mindraping her}}. She fought the nine {{spoiler|Mass-Production models}} and she nearly won. And when they {{spoiler|plucked her right eye out, pinned her on the ground with their spears and her [[Humongous Mecha]] was out of power}} she still was trying goading her EVA into a Berserker rage. She tried to battle until the very end.

* ''[[Noein]]'': Karasu is the series' Determinator. If you threaten Haruka, he will smack you down. It is that simple. In the last episodes he took this to the extreme, by taking on an entire universe just to get to her.

** [[All There in the Manual]] states that [[Eldritch Abomination|Charlotte's]] nature is tenacity. Inverted with {{spoiler|Walpurgis Night}}, who's nature is stated to be helplessness.

* ''[[Super Dimension Century Orguss|Orguss02]]'': Verifer Decimator shrugs off absolutely ''everything'' the Rivellian army throws at it, from artillery to bombs aimed directly at its head. Even when it's finally damaged (by having ''nuclear weapons'' detonated right against its body) it only loses both legs, continuing to drag itself forward with its hands until it's destroyed by an even ''bigger'' Decimator.

* ''[[Pumpkin Scissors]]'': Alice L. Malvin can't stand injustice or inequality - so much so that she will literally jump into any fight and won't back down, no matter what the odds are. This usually means her troops have to end up dragging her out of situations. There is an upside to this though - she's definitely not just the [[Idiot Hero]] when she gets serious.

*** However, this waters down a bit in ''Best Wishes'', where the trio leaves Ash alone in favor of getting a special mission from their boss. They still come around to bother Ash from time to time when Giovanni leaves them to their own devices, though.

** Some Pokémon could also qualify, such as Scraggy, and to a lesser extent, Tepig. More "classic" examples include Squirtle and Charizard (though the latter only applies after he stops being a [[Jerkass]]).

* Ashitaka from ''[[Princess Mononoke]]'' fits this trope to a T. Remember - {{spoiler|he was ''shot through the chest'' and yet still had the strength to open a gate that it normally takes 10 men to open.}}

* [[Rave Master]]: Ret insists on fighting the [[Big Bad]] even if he's [[Normally I Would Be Dead Now|broken every bone in his body.]]

* ''[[Rurouni Kenshin]]'': More in the manga than in the anime, Kenshin Himura defeats enemies seemingly by pure willpower alone, such as his determination not to kill. He survives several seemingly insurmountable fights in quick series, sustaining massive injuries each time and still managing to win every single time.

** The young man who gave Kenshin the first slash of his X-shaped scar, Akira, did so despite being nowhere near Kenshin's level as a swordsman. Kenshin told witnesses, "His skill was nothing. But his desperation to live ... was terrible." It didn't save him.

* ''[[Saiyuki]]'': the Sanzo-ikkou. Throw anything at these guys, ''anything'', and they will get up, kick your ass, and continue West. Godlike powers, weapons that neutralize existence, whole armies of demons, or just filling them fulla lead...whatever. And it's not because they're heroic or have ideals to live up to, it's just because they're adamant about setting their own path and too damn stubborn to quit. Ever.

* ''[[Samurai Champloo]]'': Mugen. In the series' final episode, he fights three all-out brawls, loses the use of an arm ''and'' is nearly blown to bits with dynamite, and is still [[The Only One Allowed to Defeat You|determined to finish his duel with Jin]].

* ''[[Shaman King]]'': [[Subverted Trope|Subverted]]. Yoh Asakura, {{spoiler|after ten or so volumes of trying to become the Shaman King, gives up without a fight. Granted, it was to bring Ren back to life, but he didn't even think twice about it.}}

* ''[[Slam Dunk]]'': Most (if not all) of the teams, but in particular the main protagonist Sakuragi Hanamichi, who helps will his team to victory against all odds and a nigh-invincible opponent, {{spoiler|despite crippling pain from a potentially career-ending back injury}}.

* Maka and Black*Star from ''[[Soul Eater]]''

* ''[[Special A]]'': [[Disproportionate Retribution|Because Hikari lost a wrestling match against Kei as a kid]], she's attempting to beat Kei at ''anything'', and will stop at nothing to achieve that.

* ''[[Tiger and Bunny]]'''s Kotetsu/Wild Tiger will fulfill his duties to protect the people in all circumstances and at all cost. {{spoiler|This is the case even when his powers start to decline. Rather than find new work, he decides he may as well become Sternbild's first [[Costumed Nonsuper Hero]].}} Barnaby also proves to have a mile-streak of stubbornness, albeit a far more self destructive one. Most of his life was spent on a single-minded, twenty-year quest to find his parent's killer at the expense of [[Sacrificed Basic Skill for Awesome Training|anything resembling a well-adjusted life.]]

** Also this villain-to-villain counter- [[Hannibal Lecture]] {{spoiler|he gave to [[Big Bad|Galvatron]] before their final battle}}:

''' {{spoiler|Galvatron}}''': Oh?<br />

'''Starscream''': Do you know what real power is?<br />

''' {{spoiler|Galvatron}}''': Get to the point.<br />

'''Starscream''': ''True'' power is simple ''determination'', making the impossible possible through sheer force of will. I have risked everything in pursuit of this power! I have given myself over to it, body and spark! Now witness...the power of one who has sacrificed everything! *[[Battle Aura]] flares up* }}

* ''[[Trigun]]'': Vash the Stampede. There's even a section where he explains he chose his [[Badass Longcoat|red coat]] because Rem told him that in the language of flowers a red geranium meant 'determination.'

* ''[[Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle]]'': Syaoran will get Sakura's feathers back without fail. No matter what. This becomes quite [[Squick|creepy]] in the Acid Tokyo Arc.

* ''[[Vandread]]'': Hibiki pulls through by sheer stubbornness, Meia is [[The Stoic]], Jura pulled a [[Big Damn Heroes]] moment after being wounded in battle and on painkillers and Dita... Well, you'll [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|know it when you see it]]. Considering her [[The Ditz|usual]] [[Cloudcuckoolander|behavior]], she is also a good example of a [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass]].

* ''[[Vinland Saga]]'': Thorfinn will do ''whatever'' is required to earn a duel with Askeladd, even if it's down right suicidal.

** Like a total Badass with a smile on her face. Basically, Rihoko was the one motivation that kept Masane from refusing to give up. Period.

* ''[[Xabungle]]'': Jiron Amos is possibly the most hot-blooded Real Robot pilot ''ever''. The guy has the guts to take on, ''catch'', and ''throw back'' an ICBM, isn't scared to take on the entire military force of the Innocent, and ignores the statute of limitations on his parents' murder so that [[Justice Will Prevail|their murderer is killed.]]

** Don't forget in the Four Saint Beasts arc. If you do, you might have to [[Glory Days|sit through a ten-minute recounting]] of all the many hardships Kuwabara overcomes.

** The hero, of course. Or at least his [[Super-Powered Evil Side]].

** And his [[The Rival|rival]], Seto Kaiba.

** Katsuya Jounouchi, proven when he got all the way to the semi-final of Battle City without holding an [[Game Breaker|Egyptian God]] card. He was almost about to defeat the [[Big Bad]] in that duel, but he collapsed after withstanding an attack that [[It Makes Sense in Context|could've killed him]]. He lost by default. This was only one of two times said [[Big Bad]] actually showed FEAR, the other being his eventual defeat. That's right, Jounouchi, the normal guy with no magic powers or God Cards SCARED Yami freaking Malik.