Heroes by Proxy

Heroes by Proxy are a subset of heroes who have no desire to be good or heroic in the slightest, but were forced into it by circumstance. This can be due to things like betrayal from the villain, brainwashing, or having no option in the matter. Whatever the reason, these heroes do the right thing but not based on their morals or initiative. They are the opposite of Villains by Proxy.

There are several different models this can manifest in:

• The Nominal Hero: Heroes who do good, not because they feel their actions are right but rather because they can directly benefit from the actions being taken. Heroes like The Bride from Kill Bill or Varrick from Avatar: The Legend of Korra are perfect examples of this.
• The Unwitting Hero: Neutral parties who are tricked into doing the right thing by others. Grim from The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy is one of the better examples of this.
  • The Assigned Protagonist: Characters who become protagonists based purely on responsibility being thrust upon them and not because they actually want to. Heroes like Doctor Venture of The Venture Brothers and Shinji Ikari epitomize this. Though some of characters of this type, such as John Constantine, may eventually start doing the right thing of their own accord.
  • The Best of the Worst: Heroes who are heroes only because they live in Crapsack Worlds where, as bad as they are, they're still the best of a bad situation, such as The Boss from the Saint's Row games.
  • The Token Evil Teammate: Heroes who in any other scenario would be doing evil but do good, purely as a favor to another hero. Characters such as Hiei from Yu Yu Hakusho embody this concept