One of the most interesting tropes that pop up in anime are half-human anime characters. What that means exactly can vary from show to show, but here's the basic run-down: hybrid anime characters possess both human DNA and DNA from another species. In most cases, the non-human species is a mythical one, like demons, elves or angels. Half-human hybrids are typically born to one human parent and one non-human parent, but some are fused with another species later in life, often violently. Half-human characters are typically found in demon anime and shounen anime. Being a hybrid can mean enhanced magical and physical abilities, like it does for Tokyo Ghoul's Kaneki Ken and Gohan from DBZ. In some cases, like with Gojyo from Saiyuki, it means facing discrimination. In other cases, like with Eina Tulle in Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, the character's hybrid nature has basically no impact on anything. Take a look at some of the best half-human hybrid characters and vote up your favorite.
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Inuyasha is one of the most famous examples of a half-human, half-something else hybrid. Inuyasha was born to a human mother and a dog yokai father. This results in some serious problems with his full yokai older brother, Sesshoumaru. Sesshoumaru looks down on Inuyasha for his "tainted" heritage and resents him because their father gives Inuyasha a more powerful sword.
Rin Okumura, the protagonist of Blue Exorcist, is the son of a human woman named Yuri Egin, and the lord of all demons, Satan. Yuri died while giving birth to Rin and his fraternal twin brother, Yukio. Shiro Fujimoto, who had been ordered by Yuri's father to kill her and her devil babies, ends up taking pity on the newborn babies and letting them live. Instead of killing them, he seals their demonic powers and raises them as normal humans. Despite his alleged "full humanity," Rin's headstrong behavior still gets him labeled "a demon child" in school. Eventually, Rin is unable to continue living a "normal" life, and has to start using his powers. While there are plenty of stories about the so-called anti-Christ, few of such characters exist in anime, and even fewer are as complex a character as Rin Okumura.
After swallowing the cursed finger of the powerful Cursed Spirit Sukuna, Yuji Itadori takes the curse into his own soul and becomes a vessel for Sukuna. This makes him a hybrid now that he is fused with the "King of Curses." Itadori is able to use Sukuna's powers and abilities for the greater good as a Sorcerer, but it proves to be difficult as Sukuna is a bloodthirsty spirit who wishes to harm others.
Tokyo Ghoul's Ken Kaneki started out entirely human, but that changed after ghoul organs were non-consensually transplanted into his body. He became a "one-eyed ghoul," or a half-human, half-ghoul. This grants him extraordinary powers and an almost mythical status within the ghoul community. However, it also means he has to get used to the physical and moral implications of his newfound hunger for human flesh.
Ichigo is considered to be a Half-Human, Half-Quincy since his late mother was an Echt Quincy. Yet in the end, it really doesn't matter what species he is since he holds Quincy, Hollow and Shinigami powers. Ichigo is truly an unstoppable force with overwhelming powers, especially in his Full Hollow Form.
It's difficult to chose just one half-human hybrid from Dragon Ball Z. There's Trunks, Bulla, Gohan, Marron - the list goes on. Gohan, a half-human, half-Saiyan, deserves special mention for a few reasons. First of all, he's the only half-human, half-Saiyan to display significantly greater power than his full-Saiyan equivalents. That's just cool. Second, we get to see how him navigate completely different expectations from his human mother and Saiyan father. Chichi, his mother, really just wants him to do well in school and get a good night's sleep. Goku, his father, wants him to use his strength to help defend the Earth from its enemies.
Towards the end of the series, it is revealed that Natsu's original identity is one of the demons of the Books of Zeref. This demonic Etherious known as E.N.D. is considered one of the strongest demons in existence. Therefore, Natsu has the powers of both his Fire Dragon Slayer Magic and E.N.D., making him a force to be reckoned with.
Shinichi Izumi, the main character of the terrifying Parasyte, wasn't always a half-human hybrid. His completely human nature changed when an alien parasite ate his arm and merged with his body. At first, Shinichi is understandably horrified, but he soon learns to work with the parasite, who he calls Migi, to defend humans against the rest of the parasites who are ravaging humanity. The ability to do anything other than shriek in horror and just straight up chop off your own arm is impressive enough in this situation. (To be fair, he does try to chop off his own arm.) Shinichi manages to actually collaborate with the parasite and becomes a true human-parasite hybrid, which is flat-out amazing.
Ryuko Matoi of Kill la Kill is a half-human, half-life-fiber hybrid. Life fibers are basically sentient fabric from space, and no, they don't typically breed with humans. Ryuko was born to Ragyo Kiryuin, a megalomaniac who scientifically engineered multiple babies, infusing their bodies with the aforementioned life fibers. Initially believed to be a failed experiment, Ryuko was discarded at birth and grew up not knowing that she wasn't entirely human. When she finds out, she first has an existential crisis, then realizes that she can use her unusual body to stop her mother from letting life fibers take over the world.
When we first meet Denji, he's a human teenager trying desperately to come up with the money to pay off his father's yakuza debts. To speed the process, he starts hunting Devils with help from a friendly doglike Devil named Pochita. When the yakuza makes a deal with another Devil to increase their power in exchange for ending Denji, he ends up literally losing his life. Pochita could have taken over his body, but instead he revives him by literally becoming his heart. This turns him into a Human-Devil hybrid - one who can sprout chainsaws from his body. He soon gets recruited for a more official Devil Hunting job.
Emilia Justina, the main female protagonist of The Devil is a Part-Timer!, is half-human and half-angel. She defeated Satan and banished him to Earth, then followed him there in order to be rid of him completely. Unfortunately for Emilia, the move to earth eliminates her angelic powers and she's reduced to working as a call center agent. Despite her angelic origins, Emilia is basically entirely human, and has to try and figure out how to function as such.
In the beginning, Yusuke is simply a human descended from a demon. But when he awakens his demon blood, he transforms into a demon-human hybrid. Yusuke is special in the sense that he already learned how to use spirit energy before awakening his Mazoku heritage.
After having Titan serum injected into his body, Eren became a Titan shifter - that is, a person who can transform into one of the Nine Titans. He starts off with the Attack Titan, but ends up acquiring the Founding Titan and the War Hammer Titan as well, increasing his range of abilities. He hopes to use these abilities to destroy those who persecute the Eldian people. In his mind, that means the entire world.
Bound The Boundary's Akihito Kanbara is a half-human, half-youmu. Youmu are mysterious creatures who roam the human world causing chaos and destruction. Because of his youmu side, Akihito can heal rapidly from injuries. On its face, this sounds like a positive thing, but it causes people to fear and despise him. Because he can lose control of his youmu abilities when he's seriously injured, he's a potential hazard to those around him. When he receives a fatal injury, he unleashes something called Beyond the Boundary, which can take over his body and attack others even when he's in a coma. Akihito's youmu side stresses him out to the point where he's actually willing to help a seemingly incompetent youmu-slayer named Mirai get rid of it. In the process, the two become close friends.
In the Claymore universe, Claymores are half-human, half-Yoma hybrid warriors of the Organization. While Clare is a Claymore, her situation is unique. Instead of taking the blood of a Yoma, she agreed to an experiment where they infused her with the blood of a Claymore. This experiment was supposed to make her stronger but it failed. But she still manages to become a powerful warrior and one of the first partially Awakened Beings.
Is It Wrong to Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon?'s Eina Tulle is half-human, half-elf, and all adorable. Eina is a receptionist at the Guild, an organization that provides services for adventurers, including lengthy "lessons" that go on for so long that hardly anyone sticks around to listen to them. What's unique about Eina is that her half-elf status actually doesn't give her any magical abilities or really change anything for her. This might not seem like something to celebrate, but when you consider how many other hybrid characters are unnaturally powerful, Eina's averageness is like a breath of fresh air.
Michiru Kagemori was once a human being, but after getting into a car accident and recieving a blood transfusion, she transformed into a human-turned-beastman with a tanuki form. Along with her friend Nazuna, she was one of the only examples of a human-turned-beastman - most beastmen come by their forms naturally. After Nazuna is abducted, Michiru flees to Anima City, a place where most beastmen live due to the rest of society refusing to accept them. There, she teams up with wolf beastman Shirou Ogami to figure out why she transformed, and to deal with rising unrest in Anima City.
Sha Gojyo of Saiyuki is a hanyou, or a half-human, half-yokai. Hanyou routinely experience rejection and discrimination from people who deem them "unclean." His stepmother also severely abuses him for reasons that include his half-human status. Years of being treated like he's inferior have turned him into a sarcastic person who does and says whatever he wants, because he doesn't expect to get along with people anyway.
In Kaiju No. 8, Japan has been overrun with monsters referred to as “Kaiju” (the Japanese word for “monster"). Kaiju continue to threaten humanity, and it was once Kafka Hibino's dream to help stop them. When a freak accident and kaiju attack leaves him the ability to shift to a kaiju humanoid, he takes it upon himself to become the hero he's always wanted to be. Utilizing his kaiju form he joins the military as ”Kaiju No. 8" and fights against the creatures that plague his community.
My Deer Friend Nokotan is as hilarious as it is ridiculous. Nokotan is a new student who is also…. half-deer? She has strong deer antlers and even possesses an acute sense of smell. That heightened sniffing ability, though, allows her to sniff out other people's secrets. This is a huge problem for the popular Torako who is hiding the fact that she used to be a delinquent. With Nokotan's eccentric character and Torako's fear of her secret being revealed, the two create a weird but entertaining dynamic.
Caiman wasn't always a human with a crocodile head - he used to be fully human. The problem is, he doesn't remember any of the specifics. He knows that a magic user cursed him, which is why he's dedicated his life to figuring it out. With Nikaidou at his side, he hunts down any magic user who might be able to reverse the curse - or know how it happened in the first place.
Ai Astin of Sunday Without God is half-human, half-gravekeeper. While the name "gravekeeper" might sound morbid, they're actually heavenly beings who were sent to Earth by God to help bury the dead and make life easier for the living after God abandons the world. Gravekeepers do not experience emotions, but as a half-human, half-gravekeeper, Ai has a lot of feelings. This makes it much harder for her to fulfill her duties. This is an interesting contrast to the common belief that appears in other anime, that a hybrid nature makes you stronger.
Zelgadis Greywords, AKA that character from Slayers whose name no one ever spelled right in their 1995 fanfiction, is one of the oldest examples of the partially-human hybrid trope. Zelgadis was born a human, but his great-grandfather Rezo turned him into a chimera who was 1/3 golem, 1/3 blow demon (a type of magical goblin), and 1/3 human. Rezo didn't do this for Zelgadis' benefit - he did it because he wanted to test out his ability to create chimeras and basically tricked his great-grandson into it. Zelgadis has mixed feelings about his new body - he simultaneously sees it as a disfigurement and as a powerful form.
As you may have surmised from her name, Nina Drango from Rage of Bahamut: Virgin Soul is half-human, half-dragon. While she usually appears completely human, this changes when she sees a handsome man. Upon such sightings, she gets flustered and red-faced, and ends up transforming into a dragon. It's later revealed that she loses control of her abilities like this because handsome men remind her of her father, who was killed by Bahamut. Turning into a dragon and going on a rampage helps her avoid painful memories.
Setsu is a minor character from Mushi-shi. What makes her so interesting isn't so much who she is as an individual - it's more about what she reveals regarding the strange and beautiful world of the anime. Setsu is half mushi, half human. Mushi are the building blocks of life, and they can be anything from virus-like vectors of disease to rainbows that control people's minds. In Setsu's case, a treelike mushi impregnated her mother. To survive, Setsu has to drink the water produced by the mushi. Unfortunately, drinking the water makes her totally unable to leave the forest where she lives. This reveals humanity's dependence on, and vulnerability to, a supposedly "lower" form of life.
