History Main / ALighterShadeOfGrey

* Marvel's ''ComicBook/CivilWar2006'' was intended to feature [[GreyAndGrayMorality ambiguous morals]] and sides that were not really more right than the other. In practice, the authors seemed to have missed the memo and increasingly portrayed the Pro-Registration side as the bad guys, made especially bad by the fact that [[ComicBook/IronMan Tony Stark]] (the figurehead and commander of the Pro-Registration forces) [[MoralEventHorizon commissioned the manufacture of an extradimensional KZ]] in a dimension referred to as ''worse than {{Hell}}'' and employed largely unrepentant supervillains to hunt down Anti-Registration heroes, in addition to the fact that the Anti-Registration side got almost no ShootTheDog moments (and had ComicBook/CaptainAmerica, the BigGood of the Marvel Universe, as their own figurehead).And it really did not help that ComicBook/SpiderMan decide to quit the Pro-reg side to join Captain America. Let me repeat: one of the most unambiguous superhero of the marvel universe, who was on the Pro-reg side(meaning you could argue the SHRL was not as bad as it seems), decide to join Cap because of how awful the pro-reg side was. Any kind of pretention the story Had GreyAndGreyMorality disapears at this moment

* Mentioned by Catman when the ComicBook/SecretSix fought the Comicbook/DoomPatrol. His reasoning was that, though the Doom Patrol were heroes, both teams operated in a grey area of the superhuman community, so they should let the Six go. It does not work, since though Robotman concedes that he and the rest of the Doom Patrol are close to the line, they are still on ''this'' side of the line and the Six are on the ''wrong'' side of the line.
* ''ComicBook/VForVendetta'' is something like this. On one hand, it's a struggle between a repressive fascist government which may nevertheless be humanity's last hope in a nuclear-holocaust blighted world, and a fanatical anarchist terrorist who has absolutely no qualms about blowing up buildings and killing people to get his way, and whose efforts may ultimately doom humanity. On the other, however, the government is genocidal (having wiped out racial minorities and the LGBT population, amongst others) and composed pretty much entirely of hateful, dysfunctional and irredeemable bastards, while V is an incredibly charismatic guy who only lost his sanity after said regime used him for experimentation fodder, and who we first see rescuing a young girl from government hired rapists, and who comes to happily admit that [[NoPlaceForMeThere he's got no place in the better world he's trying to create]]. It's certainly not a black and white situation, but it's hard to argue that V doesn't come across as a hell of a lot more sympathetic than the Norsefire government.

* The Five in ''{{ComicBook/Birthright}}'' are a ragtag group of mages from another dimension that are sworn to defend Earth from an extremely powerful entity that has taken control of their home. With that said, their members range from being selfish that are OnlyInItForTheMoney to [[KnightTemplar Knight Templars]] that have no problem murdering innocents, and as a whole, the group is largely indifferent to collateral damage so long its to stop their enemy from invading Earth although, in order for him to do this, he has to kill each of the Five who serve as [[BarrierMaiden living barriers]]. It speaks volumes that the nicest member of the group is treated as a deadbeat parent to their family.
* ''Franchise/TheFlash'': The Rogues, [[TookALevelInJerkAss at least until]] ''ComicBook/DCRebirth'', anyway, were typically this next to other villains. They've outright been described in these terms, and frequently writers would have either Wally West or Barry Allen discuss with them and/or others where the Rogues stand exactly. Captain Cold once helped fight Blacksmith and also took on the Keystone City mob by himself, and both times he was portrayed as more-or-less an AntiHero who happened to be a career thief and a colossal JerkAss. However, the people he was opposing were serious organised crime types who were more or less serious monsters, or at least employing monsters.

* House Atreides in ''Franchise/{{Dune}}'' is a good example of this trope, although ''Literature/{{Dune}}'' is only GreyAndGreyMorality if you consider the 'other side' to ultimately include the Corrino Emperor rather than just being the AlwaysChaoticEvil Harkonnens.

* ''Anime/CodeGeass'': Lelouch turns out to be this near the end when compared to Schneizel near the end. Schneizel, like Lelouch and Suzaku, seeks to create world peace. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, his plan to do so involves [[MoralEventHorizon nuking major cities from orbit]]]].