*Contains spoilers

The colour white is often associated with purity and innocence. While there are anime characters that fit that symbolic meaning splendidly, it’s not the case for everyone.

I find that situation funny because usually white-haired characters are surrounded by an enigmatic aura or are portrayed as heartless psychopaths… These characters generally hide their emotions and carry a tragic past while keeping many secrets.

One way or another, all the anime characters with white hair tend to leave a big impression due to their unique personalities. Whether they’re kind and innocent or cold and complex, these characters always stand out.

Here I bring twelve anime characters with white hair that don’t fail in catching one’s attention!

1. Nagito Komaeda – Danganronpa

Nagito, in simple words, is portrayed as the dark side of hope in the Danganronpa franchise. Although he’s not actually evil, he isn’t good either. But he’s such a complex character to read and you’ll always keep wondering what the real side of him is.

Nagito’s lack of empathy is mainly due to his tragic past, linked to his luck. He’s introduced as one of the “luckiest” characters, but he’s trapped in a strange cycle in which if something bad happens to him, something good will happen as well. The cycle of luck made him afraid of everything but also gave him a reason to continue living. He wanted to find “the great hope” to make everyone happy.

Sadly, Nagito’s actions and words were usually misunderstood and hence, people thought he was crazy. Still, he’s one of my favourite Danganronpa characters in the anime series because of how complex and well-written he was (plus he has white hair, so of course I’d love him).

2. Altair – Re:Creators

Since I watched Re:Creators, Altair caught my attention due to her amazing design and imposing presence. In my opinion, she was the one who carried the entire anime and made it extremely interesting.

Altair was a fictional character created by a girl and became extremely popular among the crowd. For certain reasons linked to her author, she hated the world and swore to destroy it. Due to her popularity, she could step into the real world.

Altair was literally invincible and no one could win against her in close combat. She was intelligent and confident in her abilities, she’d always outplay her enemies. For that reason, the other characters needed to use a dirty trick against her to avoid the world’s destruction.

Related: 6 best underrated anime series to check out!

3. Juuzou Suzuya – Tokyo Ghoul

Since his first appearance, Juuzou Suzuya was introduced as a character with a twisted personality. He had a childish attitude, but he was also extremely violent. Juuzou was deranged, hence, couldn’t feel fear or pain. The word “morality” didn’t belong to his dictionary due to the traumatic events he experienced as a kid.

Juuzou lacked awareness when it comes to the meaning of death, whether his opponents were humans or ghouls, it never mattered to him. Still, he had a splendid development throughout the series and it made me feel like a proud mother watching her kid growing up. He started to understand other people’s emotions, albeit he still showed a ruthless side towards ghouls.

4. Shiro – Deadman Wonderland

If I had to describe Shiro in just two words, I’d choose cute and dangerous because, in my opinion, she represents the two sides of the same coin.

Shiro was used as a test subject for experiments that made her undergo unbearable painful experiences. Due to that, she developed another personality, the Wretched Egg, to cope with her suffering. While Shiro was a lovely and energetic girl, the Wretched Egg was totally the opposite because she had a sadistic nature.

5. Cutthroat – Akudama Drive

The Cutthroat is far from matching the meaning of “innocence and purity”. But I learned that, in some cultures, the colour white is often associated with death, so I think that suits better with this character. Well, he showed childish behaviour from time to time in Akudama Drive, but I don’t think we can say he was innocent because of that…

Cutthroat wore white from head to toe and was obsessed with the red colour, I guess he liked the contrast between these colours. As a psychopath, he never considered the weight of his actions. He went to the point of giving horrific gifts or saying terrifying words to the Swindler without realising how gruesome they were.

6. Gintoki Sakata – Gintama

From the first time I saw Gintoki, I knew he would be an enigmatic character that’s almost impossible to read. On the outside, Gintoki is portrayed as a lazy guy who loves sweets and doesn’t care about anything. Well, that’s on the surface because this character cares about those who surround him and would go to the greatest extent to protect them.

The contrast of Gintoki’s personality is what makes this white-haired character likeable. But well, he went from being a kid who didn’t have anything to get attached to, to one who really valued those who were dear to him. That was the result of meeting the correct people at the right time. Although he appears apathetic, in reality, he’s afraid of losing someone again.

Gintoki may seem like one of the funniest guys, but he’s far more than that. He’s a very complex character due to his past experiences. But for that reason, I appreciate him a lot and in my top list of anime characters with white hair, he ranks at the top.

Related: Correct way to watch: Gintama anime order

7. Decim – Death Parade

Decim is an arbiter at Quindecim bar, a judge who has the right to decide the fate of the souls of those who passed away. He’s not human but belongs to a race of beings whose duty is to judge the souls. Yet, unlike others of his race, he can feel emotions, even though he shows an emotionless side while judging others.

Decim in Death Parade is quite mysterious but does a splendid job while deciphering the true nature of someone else’s soul. He’s sure that people can and need to be judged to decide their fate. Although sometimes he’s easy to read, he still has an enigmatic aura surrounding him, which I find intriguing.

Related: 5 anime to binge on a weekend

8. Koko Hekmatyar – Jormungand

Koko is another white-haired enigmatic character who can act childish and cheerful one moment but can change her attitude in the blink of an eye to a ruthless girl. This calculative girl is pure madness and enjoys seeing her enemies getting killed in front of her eyes. What I find amusing is how she knows how to hide her true nature behind that immature façade at times, so the duality of this character is perfectly balanced.

Koko is the embodiment of danger and one can never predict how things will turn when she’s around. She’s merciless and would never hesitate to use whatever means necessary to obtain what she wants. Perhaps she’s kind of a maniac, but I love her charisma and thanks to that, we get many memorable scenes in Jormungand.

9. Allen Walker – D.Gray-man

In reality, Allen had brown hair, but after facing a traumatic experience where his adoptive father turned into an Akuma, his hair turned white.

At first, Allen is pictured as a polite and somewhat clueless guy. But it was easy to figure out that Allen had a side that he didn’t let out easily. During some episodes, we could see that Allen, in fact, had a dark side and would show no mercy to those he considered his enemies. Still, he was willing to give the benefit of the doubt at times, showing that he was morally flexible.

10. Xerxes Break – Pandora Hearts

Xerxes was one of the most well-written characters in Pandora Hearts and even if he wasn’t the main character, he stole the show many times.

Consumed by regrets, Xerxes couldn’t move forward and kept thinking about changing the past. Everything he ever wanted was stuck in the past and it was as if time stopped for him. I guess that’s why he was the Mad Hatter in PH and if you know Alice in Wonderland, you’d remember that this character was also stuck in time (6:00 o’clock).

Although Xerxes’ body didn’t age because time stopped for him, he had a limited lifespan due to the clock seal on his chest. He desperately sought atonement and thus thought it was better to sacrifice himself for others. Xerxes was a contradictory character because he said he didn’t want to live, but it’s almost obvious that he kept finding reasons to continue living. He had people who treasured him and he was happy next to them, yet he realised that too late.

11. Nanachi – Made in Abyss

I still cry whenever I remember what kind of past experiences Nanachi went through in Made in Abyss… Nanachi was still young when they faced the worst side of humans who cruelly used others to achieve their goals. Despite that, they had a good heart. Nanachi was willing to help and protect those they considered their friends.

At some point, I noticed that Nanachi felt guilty. Nanachi was the only one who emerged unscathed from the experiments. So they tried their best to live while taking care of the friend whose humanity was lost. It was heartbreaking, so excuse me, I’ll need to find some tissues…

12. Noé Archiviste – Vanitas no Carte

The last but not least special in this list of anime characters with white hair is my best boy Noé from Vanitas no Carte. He may seem like a ray of sunshine (well, he is), but behind that warm demeanour, he also carries a traumatic past that still haunts him.

At first, Noé is portrayed as a nobleman who’s attentive and friendly. As the story progresses, we can notice that Noé’s past is full of tragedies and regrets, but this doesn’t keep him stuck in the past. He always reflects on his past actions to avoid repeating the same mistakes.

Noé always tries his best to understand others and knows that sometimes people’s actions or words don’t usually represent their true feelings or desires.

As a member of the Archiviste Clan, Noé has the title of “Fangs That Lay Bare Blood”, which allows him to read people’s memories through blood. But in my opinion, this title goes beyond that ability because he can understand humans and vampires’ hearts without the need to drink their blood.

What’s your favourite anime character with white hair?

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