Who makes it into the top 10 characters of Steins;Gate?
The popular show Steins;Gate has one of the most complex plots you can find in anime, but even more interesting is the range of characters it brings together. In this emotionally-driven, time-travel-centric show, every character has something to love about them. I’ve brought together my picks for the top 10 best characters in Steins;Gate.
10. Moeka Kiryu
Depressed Moeka
Moeka is a socially awkward woman who is obsessed with her phone and with finding the elusive IBN 5100. It is later revealed that she works as a hitwoman for FB.
What makes Moeka awesome:
- After being bullied for much of her life, she strives only to be loved. Even though her murderous method of completing that goal is questionable (to say the least), her motivations as a villain are understandable and even relatable.
- She ultimately ends up on Okabe’s side and asks for his forgiveness for her role in his and the others’ suffering. He does forgive her, and so she finds redemption despite her ultimate death.
Moeka best scene:
Okabe breaks the truth to Moeka.
Moeka begins to help Okabe find the IBN 5100.
9. Amadeus
Amadeus calling Okabe.
Although not, strictly speaking, a person, Amadeus is an important character in Steins;Gate 0. Amadeus is an innovative kind of artificial intelligence developed by Hiyajo Maho, Alexis Leskinen, and Kurisu herself. Modelled after Kurisu’s personality from before the events of Steins;Gate, Amadeus has no memory of Okabe, but the two develop a close relationship as he converses with this artificial being.
Why Amadeus is awesome in its own right:
- Amadeus provides great emotional support to Okabe in his grief, as he speaks to it as he would have spoken to Kurisu. Although this isn’t the healthiest way of dealing with his grief, this connection contributed to Okabe’s decision to try again to save Kurisu from her death.
- Ultimately, at the end of Steins;Gate 0, Amadeus accompanies Okabe and helps him as he time travels to save Kurisu.
Amadeus best scene:
A not-quite reunion.
Amadeus calls Okabe and sounds so much like Kurisu he cries.
8. Itaru Hashida
Daru, the hacker creep.
Itaru, also known as “Daru” by the other characters, acts as the Lab’s resident hacker and computer expert. Additionally, he finds out during the course of the show that he will eventually become Suzuha’s father.
What makes Daru awesome:
- Through his part in the Lab’s experiments and his expertise in computers and hacking, he’s pivotal in helping to create a functioning time travel machine.
- He also provides a lot of the show’s comic relief through his obsession with Faris and all things otaku.
Daru best scene:
Daru being gross.
Daru is a pervert for a minute and a half straight.
7. Hiyajo Maho
Maho looks pretty uncomfortable.
An employee at Viktor Chrondria University, Maho is a big part of the college’s Amadeus program involving the creation of innovative artificial intelligence. She works with Okabe in Steins;Gate 0, sharing with him a deep respect and grief for their deceased friend, Kurisu.
What makes Maho awesome:
- Despite the fact that she is incredibly, almost ridiculously, short, and is often mistaken for a child, she has a great sense of self-confidence based on her intellectual abilities.
- These same intellectual abilities helped her in creating Amadeus, a program through which she explores the limits of artificial intelligence while also memorializing her (then) dead friend, Kurisu.
Maho best scene:
Maho's confused for a child by Okabe.
Maho is introduced as she yells at Okabe for mistaking her for a child.
6. Luka Urushibara
Ruka blushing
Luka, known to the other characters as “Ruka,” is one of the most fascinating characters in Steins;Gate. When he is first introduced, he’s presented in a highly feminine way—the realization that he is, in fact, male seems to be very jarring to the characters as well as to the audience. That sense of gender confusion lies at the core of his character.
What makes Ruka awesome:
- He’s a great friend to all of the members of the Lab, particularly Mayuri. He participates in her cosplay dress-up just to make her happy, even though he doesn’t particularly enjoy it himself.
- His inclusion in the series is a interesting representation of the transgender/gender-curious community.
- He sacrifices his one opportunity to physically become a girl to give Okabe another chance to alter their timeline and save Mayuri’s life.
Ruka best scene:
Ruka's introduction.
Ruka is introduced and revealed to be a guy, although he looks and acts like a girl.
5. Suzuha Amane
Suzuha's usual grave demeanor.
Suzuha time travels to the present of Steins;Gate from a bleak future, and she intends to work to change it by getting Okabe to save Kurisu’s life. She’s very serious and motivated, and she provides much of the information about the prospective future to the other characters.
What makes Suzuha awesome:
- The revelation that she is the true identity behind the mysterious John Titor means that she was one of the major spurs behind Okabe’s obsession with the possibility of time travel. Without her influence as Titor, the events of the show may never have happened.
- Her commitment to saving her future, and the future of the rest of humanity, makes her one of the strongest characters in the show. Despite the hardships she has endured in the future (her past), she fights for her cause with a tenacity rivaled by few others.
Suzuha best scene:
Suzuha's interview.
Suzuha has a brief interview to work at the CRT shop, and the audience gets to see her cultural unawareness for the first time.
4. Faris NyanNyan
Faris's maid persona.
Faris’s real name is Rumiho Akiha, though her role as owner and worker at a maid cafe means the viewer, and the characters, know her best as her playful, cat-like persona of Faris. Though no one would guess it from her exuberant attitude, she grieves the death of her father deeply.
What makes Faris awesome:
- She owns and works at a maid cafe, fulfilling a dream she has had since childhood.
- Despite her family’s immense wealth, she does not flaunt it or look down on others. She remains humble despite her background.
- Beneath her brash persona as Faris, she is actually very intelligent and keen, proving herself a valuable member of the Lab.
Faris best scene:
The battle for the Faris Cup
Faris challenges Okabe to her Faris Cup competition.
3. Mayuri Shiina
Mayuri's bright smile
Mayuri is Okabe’s childhood best friend. She’s generally very childish and happy-go-lucky. Though she may seem less intellectually brilliant compared to many of the other characters in Steins;Gate, she has great importance in the series.
What makes Mayuri awesome:
- She unapologetically enjoys her favorite interests, including cosplay. She even sews costumes for herself and her friends, something she is clearly good at doing.
- Her presence in the Lab, and especially as Okabe’s closest friend, brings a bright happiness to others no matter how difficult their situation might be. She also has great emotional intuition, making her an indispensable Lab member.
Mayuri best scene:
Remembering herself and Okabe
Mayuri tells the audience some of her most important memories of her and Okabe.
2. Kurisu Makise
Kurisu, probably confused by how weird Okabe is being.
Kurisu is a genius who works at Viktor Chrondria University. Her practical personality makes her skeptical of time travel at first, but also marks her as one of the most level-headed characters in Steins;Gate. Her murder, one of the initial plot points in the show, is what much of Okabe’s time traveling revolves around, but her character in itself is of massive importance to Steins;Gate as well.
What makes Kurisu awesome:
- Her genius-level intellect not only made her a stand-out scientist at an early age, but later also enables her to help the Lab achieve their time-traveling goals.
- When Okabe believes that he can’t save both Mayuri and Kurisu, Kurisu recognizes Mayuri’s importance to Okabe and accepts her own death in order to make sure Mayuri can survive.
- Her deep love for Okabe, despite her initial annoyance towards him, makes her one half of an engaging and complex romance that amplifies the emotional power of the series.
Kurisu best scene:
The kiss
Kurisu offers to sacrifice her life so Okabe can keep Mayuri alive, and then Kurisu and Okabe kiss.
1. Rintaro Okabe
Okabe, the mad scientist.
As the series protagonist, Okabe has what is possibly the most dramatic and important character arc in Steins;Gate. He goes from pretending to be an egoistic mad scientist, dreaming of time travel, to a man desperately trying to save his friends, even though that means incurring a great emotional toll on himself.
What makes Okabe awesome:
- He brings almost all of the characters together. He is Lab member 001, and almost every other Lab member that enters the series does so because he brought them there. Despite his initially bizarre “mad scientist” persona, he seems to make friends with surprising ease. And like calls to like--his strange personality draws in other fascinating characters, creating the varied cast we get the pleasure of meeting throughout the show.
- He, more than anyone else in the show, saves the future. Not only that, he also manages to save everyone that is important to him. He never gives up hope; even in Steins;Gate 0, which depicts the timeline in which he failed to save Kurisu, he ends up trying again and successfully preventing her death. This kind of perseverance under intense stress and emotional agony marks him as unique among the other characters. He truly grew to be the best character this great show has to offer.
Okabe best scene:
A bizarre message
Okabe receives a message from himself in the future, telling him to save Kurisu and reach Stein’s Gate.
You may also be interested in:
