Took a Level In Kindness: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

A [[Jerkass]] softens over time, and becomes either a [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]] or not a jerk at all. Usually this can be due to [[Character Development]]. [[Badass Decay]] and [[Heel Face Turn]] may be involved as well. In some cases this may be a case of [[Characterisation Marches On]]; as the series progresses, the writers realised that a nicer character fit the changing tone better than the original idea.

 

{{examples}}

* Sakura Haruno from ''[[Naruto]]''. She goes from a [[Jerkass]] [[Tsundere]] who beats up Naruto and swoons over Sasuke, to a more vulnerable but quite more kind-hearted [[Combat Medic]]. To be fair, she showed signs of [[Character Development]] even ''before'' she got her iconic [[Important Haircut]]: a scene in the Haku and Zabuza arc has her giving candy to a [[Street Urchin]] and then cries [[Tender Tears]] when she learns how Tazuna's home is due to Gato and his group.

** After his [[Defeat Means Friendship|defeat]] by Naruto, Neji goes from an [[Jerkass]] [[Arrogant Kung Fu Guy]] who [[Kick the Dog|harshly beat his cousin Hinata]] to a generally nice guy who shows concern when she is injured and supports her crush on Naruto.

* ''[[Inuyasha]]'': Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru, Kouga, and Kagura all experience this at varying speeds and to varying degrees.

 

* In ''[[The Best Night Ever]]'', a core focus of the story is Prince Blueblood [[Character Development|taking several levels in kindness]].

 

* The film ''Son Of [[Godzilla]]'' is the start of showing the King Of The Monster's more loving fatherly side. Especially towards the end where he {{spoiler|embraces his new son to keep him from freezing to death.}}

* In ''[[Bad Santa (film)|Bad Santa]]'', the main character starts being a complete [[Jerkass]], but eventually becames a [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]].

 

* Ebeneezer Scrooge from ''[[A Christmas Carol]]''.

* [[Handsome Lech|Prince Garrid]] from Tales of the Frog Princess, a [[Ladykiller in Love]], became a genuinely better person [[Love Redeems|so he could be with Li'l.]]

* Matteo in ''[[Someone Else's War|Someone Elses War]]'', who goes from a snobby, condescending brat to a loving young man who will risk his life and compromise his ideals if it means saving his friends.

 

* Cordelia on [[Angel]] went through this.

** So did Faith. She becomes even kinder and more morally centered than before her [[Face Heel Turn]], to the point where some fans claim Faith is better, [[Buffy-Speak|gooder]] than the rest of the cast.

* The Doctor, from ''[[Doctor Who]]''. Yeah, you might know him now as a goofy fun-loving guy who likes to save innocents, but his first incarnation wasn't nearly as nice. His very first story featured him kidnapping two humans because he didn't want them exposing his secret, and he often showed no qualms about killing people they encountered. Part of the change was definitely deliberate, as the writers wrote him becoming softer and kinder over his run, but part of the change is due to the change of the show's premise. When the Doctor started out he was a mysterious presence to intrigue the viewers and the show's ''real'' protagonists, the companions Ian and Barbara, whereas now much of the Doctor's back-story is known, and he often functions as the main hero.

** Note that the Jerkass persona can be chalked up to [[Early Installment Weirdness]]: the Doctor is only downright malicious in his first three stories and softens up afterwards, and his negative traits almost entirely disappear by the end of his first series. William Hartnell spends most of Season 2 playing an eccentric loveable grandfather figure who is constantly giggling and calling people "my dear boy".

* Ziva David from ''[[NCIS]]'' has in the past couple of seasons evolved softer qualities including a [[Big Brother Instinct|big sister instinct]] for McGee. Though it may be those aspects of her personality were always there and she needed to feel at home on the team.

 

* Riku from [[Kingdom Hearts]] goes from [[Arrogant Kung Fu Guy]] to [[Rival Turned Evil]] in the first game, but at the end snaps out of it and spends [[Kingdom Hearts II]] as [[The Atoner]].

* Duncan from ''[[Dragon Age Origins]]'': In a universe as dark and depressing as Dragon Age can be, right from the start of the game Duncan is a beacon of hope before the player becomes one. {{spoiler|Unfortunately, he doesn't last very long.}}

** If he survived the first game, [[Hitman with a Heart|Zevran]] has been spending most of the time frame that [[Dragon Age II]] encompasses only killing the [[Murder, Inc.|Crows]] that try to track him down. Okay, nothing too new, and Zevran was always much more [[Hidden Heart of Gold|laid-back]] than one would expect from an ex-assassin, but {{spoiler|then when the Dalish offer him sanctuary in Act 3, he turns them down to hide out in the nearby caves so that none of them will get caught in the crossfire.}} Considering this is the man who casually admitted he [[Token Evil Teammate|enjoyed killing]] ([[Even Evil Has Standards|to an extent]]) and has killed innocents, or gotten them killed through his actions more than once, in the first game, this is quite the [[Character Development]].

** No, that was near the end of the first game where he realized he was being a jerk after finding out that {{spoiler|Drek was targeting his home planet.}}

* The rival Silver from [[Pokémon]] could count as this. He goes from a cruel, harsh person, but eventually becomes friendlier towards the player and his own Pokemon- to the point where his Golbat evolves into a Crobat after reaching high happiness.

* Miles Edgeworth from the [[Ace Attorney]] series goes from being the ruthless Demon Prosecutor, concerned only with maintaining his perfect prosecution record even through shady means, to pursuing the truth for truth's sake and being a genuine friend and ally to Phoenix, Maya, and others (most notably, {{spoiler|making an impromptu international flight and taking on the role of defense attorney - something he could get into trouble for if caught - simply because Phoenix needed him}}). By the time we see him in [[Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth|his most recent appearance]], he's willing to risk loss of career and arrest in order to help Kay Faraday.

 

* Karkat in ''[[Homestuck]]'' becomes less of a [[Troll]] and more interested in the success of his prior antagonists. And if he's not a [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]], at least he's a shrewd enough leader to know when to play [[Team Mom]] for the other trolls.

 

* Stan Smith from ''[[American Dad]]''. He still has his Jerkass moments, but the show's [[Character Development]] did him a lot of good.

** The large majority of the Smith family have gone in a similar direction to a lesser extent (par Roger who [[Took a Level in Jerkass|swerved several times in the opposite direction]], likely to balance the more sympathetic characters by acting as a [[Token Evil Teammate]].

* Stewie Griffin from ''[[Family Guy]]'', combined with some [[Badass Decay]]. Still, it's interesting to watch how the original [[Token Evil Teammate|"evil" character]] become much kinder while his family [[Took a Level in Jerkass]].

** Meg similarly is far less [[Bratty Teenage Daughter|bratty and self centered]] in recent seasons, if perhaps only because [[Butt Monkey|she's so desperate for affection]].

** Arguably this evolution had begun since the show's beginning. Even Season One Homer is a far more sentimental and devoted father in comparison to his counterpart in ''The Tracey Ullman Show'' shorts.

** And then there's "Alone Again, Natrua-Diddily", where Homer promises to treat Ned Flanders less like a [[Sitcom Arch Nemesis]], complete with a [[Single Tear]].

* Agent Six in ''[[Generator Rex]]'', in the episode "String Theory" where the seemingly mindlessly loyal agent actually defused the nuclear bomb rather than allow millions of innocents to die.

** Cemented later in "Promises promises" when we see how much he had to do with Rex being accepted by the group.

* Buford from ''[[Phineas and Ferb]],'' who was a bully in his first appearance, a [[Punch Clock Villain]] in his second, and afterward only makes token attempts to pretend he doesn't like everybody else.

* Film historian Leonard Maltin notes that when [[Mickey Mouse]] first arrived on the screens, he was hardly a model of good behaviour. Mickey soon evolved into [[The Everyman]], with the [[Jerkass]] torch being passed to [[Donald Duck]].

* [[Alpha Bitch|Heather]] from [[Total Drama Island]] used to be a mean [[Jerkass]], but due to all the [[Laser-Guided Karma|hell that]] people put her through, she suddenly changes to be nicer, starting with the [[Unpopular Popular Character|unlucky Cody]].

* In ''[[Regular Show]]'', [[Fat Idiot|Muscle Man]] has undergone this. Formerly a [[Jerkass]], he's become a [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]] who views Mordecai and Rigby as friends.

** [[Running Gag|You know who else views Mordecai and Rigby as friends?]]

* [[Looney Tunes|Yosemite Sam]] goes from mean in the original shorts to nice in ''[[The Looney Tunes Show]]''.

** Two possible sources of this: The aforementioned episode featuring an especially nasty Angel was also the one in which Fluttershy {{spoiler|learned to put her hoof down. We see her using a controlled version of her stare on Angel at the end of that episode, which softens him up significantly and instantly.}} Additionally, it has been hinted at before that Angel, despite his jerky nature, genuinely cares for Fluttershy, almost as if he feels that he is the only one who should be allowed to be cruel to her.

 

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[[Category:Characterization Tropes]]