History Main / SympatheticSue

* LastOfYourKind

* ParentalAbandonment

* DoomedHometown,

*** This isn't a consistent thing, however. There are several occasions where he's [[CallingTheOldManOut called]] [[WhatTheHellHero out]] on his screw ups. He's been described by one cast member as "the biggest monster of all" after ordering said character to either [[SadisticChoice kill his cyberized girlfriend or else he'd come down and kill both of them]], and nobody was happy with him after that incident when he let the little girl go off with evil fairies. And then there's Children of Earth where everybody and anybody's idealisations of Jack are quite blatantly thrown out of the window when we find out he once [[MoralEventHorizon sent a bunch of kids]] [[YourMileageMayVary to be used as drugs by an alien race]] "as a gift" (said very casually, almost with a shrug), gets his boyfriend killed by being a [[IdiotBall cocky ass in front of a villain who's blatantly more powerful than them]] and then kills his ''grandson'' in front of his daughter leaving her udnerstandably hating him for the rest of her life. It's been implied right from the start that Jack wasn't always a very nice guy, it just took this long for it to actually ''show up''.

* You could be forgiven, perhaps even justified, for considering Lelouch of CodeGeass one of these, though be off the mark by quite a bit, because he actually does have [[DeusAngstMachina a lot to grief over]], whether [[ByronicHero deserved]] or [[CosmicPlaything otherwise]]. The show's true prime case would be Villetta Nu, who starts out as a proud member of a racist faction in hopes of attaining nobility (though she hoped to become a noble to help her family), yet in the final episode, she says that she wanted somewhere to belong. This is following, and in addition to, her [[AmnesiacDissonance amnesiac]] stint and her resulting relationship with Ohgi.
** Rather arguable, as unlike a true SympatheticSue, Viletta [[SpotlightStealingSquad doesn't steal the spotlight to herself every time she's in the screen]].
*** True as that is, she also [[SpannerInTheWorks makes things way more complicated than they would be otherwise for Lelouch]], especially given that she is partly responsible for [[spoiler:the Black Knights' betrayal of him, which eventually gives way to Lelouch, [[DespairEventHorizon in a final act of despair]], enacting the [[ThanatosGambit Zero Requiem]]]]. Not to mention that she was also partly responsible for Shirley's FreakOut. By the end of the series, both of those characters [[spoiler:are dead, while Villetta is the bride of the HappilyMarried photo.]] So while she doesn't steal the show, [[spoiler:[[KarmaHoudini she does steal the HappyEnding from more sympathetic characters who instead meet bad ends, which is egregrious enough.]]]]

* You cannot think ''{{Yu-Gi-Oh}}'' and this trope without thinking of Seto Kaiba and how he pours on the industrial strength {{Wangst}} over putting behind his childhood during the Battle City semifinal match vs. Yami Yugi, even though he already long surpassed the man responsible for said miserable childhood, Gozaburo Kaiba. He reacted even worse after losing, to the effect of wanting to blow up the tower immediately. Especially considering that Jou, Mai, and Rishid were brought to the brink of death because to the tournament, the former two due to Yami Malik's penalty game, and he didn't care about those more presently tragic cases, let alone lift much of a finger.
** Hardly, considering the entire point of keeping that unnecessary pointless hatred is why he's considered a loser. You're not really a SympatheticSue if it's not meant to invoke sympathy as much as it's meant to show what ''not'' to do.
*** Except that that moment was still somewhat invoked for sympathy towards Kaiba as his dreams of obliterating his stepfather's memory on his own terms were dashed. The fandom in particular ran with it, making Yugi and company out to be monsters simply for trying to correct him. And that includes Joey, who had been [[IShallTauntYou endlessly insulted by Kaiba]], not to mention [[IronWoobie nearly killed by Ra after a near-victory and still getting back up]], and trying to [[WarriorTherapist tell him to have fun through a friendly duel]]. (Of course, [[StopHavingFunGuys Kaiba didn't buy it]].) When a character who is {{Wangst}}ing about losing in what was a deserved BreakTheHaughty event gains more sympathy than other characters who walked the TraumaCongaLine at that same time, you know you have problems.

* A lot of people also accuse [[ALittlePrincess Sarah Crewe]] of being this...however, over half of those people that do will admit that her angst is [[JustifiedTrope justified]], and you just can't ''help'' but [[TheWoobie feel sorry for her and want things to be better!]]

* A lot of people also accuse [[ALittlePrincess Sarah Crewe]] of being this...however, over half of those people that do will admit that her angst is [[JustifiedTrope justified]], and you just can't ''help'' but [[TheWoobie feel sorry for her and wantthings to be better!]]

----

** Does this have anything to do with the occasional instances of Emasculated!Max in ''AcrossTheUniverse'' fanfic? No matter that he's a drug-addled, emotionally crippled veteran already, as well as distinctly averse to being emo and womany. Throw some {{Wangst}} at him and see what sticks. It opens the door for a ''lot'' of potential hurt/comfort.

ParentalAbandonment
AbusiveParents
DoomedHometown,
AllOfTheOtherReindeer
RapeAsBackstory

The MarySue who [[TheWoobie wants your sympathy]]. Like most other subtypes, they can be male or female, but generally tends towards the latter since women are perceived to be more sensitive and vulnerable. She'll usually be mopey and depressed while constantly {{Wangst}}ing all the time. She may go through DeusAngstMachina either in her backstory or in the actual stories she is in. ParentalAbandonment, AbusiveParents, DoomedHometown, AllOfTheOtherReindeer and RapeAsBackstory is a good reason for any character to angst. Sympathetic Sue will have suffered them. Probably more than one of them. Sometimes all of them.

Please note that you can create an angsty character who isn't a MarySue. An unhappy past and a gloomy personality aren't the only things that make a Sympathetic Sue.

She'll talk about it constantly and as soon as possible, often blatantly ignoring all the positives in her life. Self-blame is often irrational, but Sympathetic Sue takes it to the extreme by blaming herself for her parents dying in a plane crash. The other characters will never get tired of trying to cheer her up, even if it's totally out of character for their personality. If they're not near her, they'll probably be discussing how sorry they feel for her.

A good angsty character will be portrayed with their pain being debilitating and not stylish. When bugged repeatedly by somebody they trust deeply, and they do talk about it, it will probably be reluctantly and infrequently. They often only have one core reason for their depression, although other bad experiences may stem from it. Their feeling of guilt will make sense, usually because of psychological scarring. Perhaps, just perhaps though, they ''were'' responsible for something that happened to someone else and are dead on with their remorse. They might have tried to do something to relieve the pain in the past, even if it failed. And canon characters do other things as well as comfort the angsty character. Even after the angst is gone there's still a story to be told.

* On {{Everybody Loves Raymond}}, Debra Barone embodies this trope.

* You cannot think ''{{Yu-Gi-Oh}}'' and this trope without thinking of Seto Kaiba and how he pours on the industrial strength {{Wangst}} over putting behind his childhood during the Battle City semifinal match vs. Yami Yugi, even though he already long surpassed the man responsible for said miserable childhood, Gozaburo Kaiba. He reacted even worse after losing, to the effect of wanting to blow up the tower immediately. Especially considering that Jou, Mai, and Rishid were brought to the brink of death because to the tournament, the former two due to Yami Malik's penalty game, and he didn't care about those more presently tragic cases, let alone lift much of a finger.
** Hardly, considering the entire point of keeping that unnecessary pointless hatred is why he's considered a loser. You're not really a SympatheticSue if it's not meant to invoke sympathy as much as it's meant to show what ''not'' to do.
* You could be forgiven, perhaps even justified, for considering Lelouch of CodeGeass one of these, though be off the mark by quite a bit, because he actually does have [[DeusAngstMachina a lot to grief over]], whether [[ByronicHero deserved]] or [[CosmicPlaything otherwise]]. The show's true prime case would be Villetta Nu, who starts out as a proud member of a racist faction in hopes of attaining nobility (though she hoped to become a noble to help her family), yet in the final episode, she says that she wanted somewhere to belong. This is following, and in addition to, her [[AmnesiacDissonance amnesiac]] stint and her resulting relationship with Ohgi.
** Rather arguable, as unlike a true SympatheticSue, Viletta [[SpotlightStealingSquad doesn't steal the spotlight to herself every time she's in the screen]].
*** True as that is, she also [[SpannerInTheWorks makes things way more complicated than they would be otherwise for Lelouch]], especially given that she is partly responsible for [[spoiler:the Black Knights' betrayal of him, which eventually gives way to Lelouch, [[DespairEventHorizon in a final act of despair]], enacting the [[ThanatosGambit Zero Requiem]]]]. Not to mention that she was also partly responsible for Shirley's FreakOut. By the end of the series, both of those characters [[spoiler:are dead, while Villetta is the bride of the HappilyMarried photo.]] So while she doesn't steal the show, [[spoiler:[[KarmaHoudini she does steal the HappyEnding from more sympathetic characters who instead meet bad ends, which is egregrious enough.]]]]

* Although in ''{{Yu-Gi-Oh 5Ds}}'' there are many characters who could be interpreted as {{Canon Sue}}s, Aki Izayoi is something of a personification of the SympatheticSue, constantly whining and {{wangst}}ing over an arguably tragic past throughout the whole first two seasons.

*** Except that that moment was still somewhat invoked for sympathy towards Kaiba as his dreams of obliterating his stepfather's memory on his own terms were dashed. The fandom in particular ran with it, making Yugi and company out to be monsters simply for trying to correct him. And that includes Joey, who had been [[IShallTauntYou endlessly insulted by Kaiba]], not to mention [[IronWoobie nearly killed by Ra after a near-victory and still getting back up]], and trying to [[WarriorTherapist tell him to have fun through a friendly duel]]. (Of course, [[StopHavingFunGuys Kaiba didn't buy it]].) When a character who is {{Wangst}}ing about losing in what was a deserved BreakTheHaughty event gains more sympathy than other characters who walked the TraumaCongaLine at that same time, you know you have problems.

* Although in ''{{Yu-Gi-Oh 5ds}}'' there are many characters who could be interpreted as [[CanonSue Canon Sues]], Aki Izayoi is something of a personification of the SympatheticSue, constantly whining and [[{{Wangst}} wangsting]] over an arguably tragic past throughout the whole first two seasons.
* You cannot think {{Yu-Gi-Oh}} and this trope without thinking of Seto Kaiba and how he pours on the industrial strength {{Wangst}} over putting behind his childhood during the Battle City semifinal match vs. Yami Yugi, even though he already long surpassed the man responsible for said miserable childhood, Gozaburo Kaiba. He reacted even worse after losing, to the effect of wanting to blow up the tower immediately. Especially considering that Jou, Mai, and Rishid were brought to the brink of death because to the tournament, the former two due to Yami Malik's penalty game, and he didn't care about those more presently tragic cases, let alone lift much of a finger.

* In ''Hetalia'' fanfic, Lithuania is the character most prone to this treatment by people who forget that there's more to his history and personality than being TheWoobie victim of Russia's abuse. Canada also gets this kind of portrayal at times (when he's not being [[JerkSue taken to the other extreme]], that is), with America becoming the Evil Token Abuser.

* Brian from FamilyGuy becomes this in the episode 'Not All Dogs Go To Heaven.' Of course if that were the episode's ''only'' [[DethroningMomentOfSuck problem...]]

** Danny thinking his parents will never accept him seems justified by there constant (and advertised) desire to catch all ghosts and rip them apart "Molecule by molecule!"