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@irishcelticredflowercrown

It’s just my opinion, but I believe a morally gray character should have a reason for his/her actions. These actions should also be in character and not simply there for the sake of having a morally gray character. And in the end, said character should not be the same person they were in the beginning of the story. They have to change and become better people. There should be meaning in what they do and who they are.

Examples: potential spoiler alert. You have been warned.

Batman: Arkham Origins: The game is a prequel to the other games, going over the origins of the Batman and the villains. Immediately, the player can see that this Batman is aggressive and far more violent than his future self, with his only moral being no killing. This is for various reasons. A) he has only been Batman for a little less than a year and is inexperienced, B) he is still grieving over the death of his parents, and C) he has OCD and is constantly tempted to physically harm criminals. When the Joker and Bane are introduced, he immediately lashes out and even starts to beat a defenseless Joker. It is only a little later in the story that he starts changing, coming to the uncomfortable realization that he and the Joker are not that different. He tries to calm down and hold back in order to not become like the Joker and serve as an example to others, even putting his own life on the line to avoid killing Bane. He attempts to become a genuinely good person and tries to be better than his base urges.

In this example, the protagonist starts as a flawed individual, like all people are. But in the course of the story, they start to change into better people. They act as inspirations, IF they are interpreted correctly. If you cannot see the meaning in a morally gray character, then you may want to avoid that archetype.

Other times, if you bring up a character who starts to resort to debatable actions without changing (anti-heroes mostly), there is a very high chance you will kill them off at the end of their arc.

Examples: Spoilers. You have been warned.

Death Note: the protagonist, Light, discovers a mysterious notebook that allows him to kill anyone he pleases by simply writing their name in it. An entity (quite possibly a demon in my opinion) explains the rules of death note to him, adding that when the time is right, he will write Light’s name in the death note. After many adventures, where the viewer can see Light’s mental stability start to descend, he is pursued by the police for all the murders he’s committed. All of his allies are either dead or arrested and he is the last one standing. He retreats to a warehouse, where he begs the entity (possible demonic entity) for help. But said entity says that Light’s life is over, before writing his name in the death note. In the manga, Light begs for his life, exclaiming he doesn’t want to die. However, he dies shortly afterward, in the same manner his victims did.

In the second example, the protagonist became so saturated in his sins that he was not likely to get a redemption arc. Even after being warned that he would die if he continued on his path, he continued to descend. This sends the message that you are not supposed to remain the same person, but are meant to grow. Unlike Light, who deteriorated and fell because of his choices.