Alexander Anderson (Hellsing)
Alexander Anderson is a male anime and manga character who features in Hellsing.
Contents |
Biography
Alexander Anderson (Japanese: アレクサンド・アンデルセン, Hepburn: Arekusando Anderusen)
The early history of Alexander Anderson is largely unknown, such as when he joined Iscariot or what his childhood life was like. He was convinced by Father Renaldo to travel to Northern Ireland to deal with Alucard and Seras Victoria who are hunting a vampire. Believing that Northern Ireland is Catholic land and Protestant England has no jurisdiction there, Anderson agrees and travels there. He confronts Alucard, cutting off his head and chasing Seras through the building they are in. He catches up to Seras and is stopped by Integra just as he is about to kill her. Anderson states that he will not back down against a "Protestant whore" and swiftly kills Integra's bodyguards. Before he can kill Integra herself, Alucard regenerates himself and engages Anderson. Anderson retreats when he realizes he can't defeat Alucard with his current weapons and teleports away, shouting: "We'll meet again, Hellsing! Next time, I'll butcher you all".
He next appeared alongside Enrico Maxwell who headed the Iscariot where he went to discuss with Integra about the instigator of the attack on the Hellsing manor led by Luke and Jan Valentine. Alucard appears after Maxwell insults Integra, and Maxwell responds by calling Anderson into play. Before they can start another duel, Alucard and Anderson are interrupted by Seras leading a group of elderly Japanese tourists. The two decide to postpone their fight. Anderson proceeds to leave, commenting on the quality of the museum and asking Maxwell if next time he could bring some of the orphans to visit. In an almost humorously agitated manner, he then swears that he will rip Alucard to pieces the next time they meet. Anderson was briefly seen watching the fight between Tubalcain Alhambra and Alucard on television. He was sent to deliver a message to Alucard and Seras to return to London and report on the Millennium Organization, a task which he fails to accomplish without first getting into a brief scuffle (specifically, a fistfight) with Alucard. Afterward, he engages in battle with some paramilitaries (possibly from a Neo-Nazi group) sympathetic to the Millennium cause.
After The Major declares war against England, Anderson brings the rest of Iscariot with him to England and saves Integra from a group of Nazi vampires. When Heinkel Wolfe attempts to apprehend her, Integra disagrees and asks Anderson if this is permissible, to which Anderson says it is not. He instructs Iscariot to follow Integra's instruction by escorting her back to the Hellsing manor. Maxwell arrives in England with the remnants of the armies used in the Holy Crusades and takes the opportunity to kill all English "heretics". Seeing this, Anderson believes Enrico has quit serving God and now only serves his own power. When Heinkel informs Anderson of Iscariot's new orders to take Integra prisoner, Anderson expresses his displeasure. Before he can act against the rest of Iscariot, Seras arrives with her new powers awakened and does it for him. Anderson acknowledges her newfound power, telling Heinkel that Seras was not something the ordinary members of Iscariot could hope to fight any longer.
Anderson engages in what he considers the final confrontation with Alucard. He is wounded severely by Alucard's Jackal, a weapon unfamiliar to Anderson. Trapped in a mesh of undead, Anderson is saved by the remnants of Section XIII. Anderson then reveals the weapon that Vatican Section III Matthew had provided him with: Helena's Nail. Alucard begs Anderson not to become a monster like himself. Anderson ignores this warning, impaling himself with the nail and transforming. They battle, with Anderson nearly destroying Alucard, before Seras intervenes. After healing, Alucard psychically dissolves the thorns surrounding him and by the same token shatters Anderson's blade. Alucard then charges Anderson and, plunging his hand into Anderson's chest, removes the nail along with Anderson's heart. This destroys most of Anderson's body in the process. As Anderson dies, he and Alucard exchange words as what remains of him decays and turns to ash.
Overview
Personality and attributes
In appearance, Alexander Anderson was a male human with short, spiky gold hair, blue eyes, brown/tanned skin, a defined squared jaw, and light facial hair.
Alexander Anderson normally appears as a calm and collected priest; he works at an orphanage in the manga and OVA and acts very kindly towards the children under his care. During battles, however, he reveals a darker side. Anderson carries an obsession for what appears to be his "crusade," and compulsively quotes passages of the Holy Bible as he speaks. He is extremely determined to achieve his end, however he abhors the methods chosen by Maxwell to put it in motion.
In battle, he was merciless and almost unstoppable due to his abilities. He has a habit of hissing during fights, and often loses all control of himself much like Alucard. Despite this, he can stop himself and focus on his mission. He has a measure of self-restraint when innocents are caught in the middle (like tourists) or when someone has caught his admiration (as Integra did).
Alexander Anderson is an ardent Catholic. His words and his constant quoting of scripture indicate a clear, almost fanatical obedience towards "the word of God". His behavior in the first volume was depicted as an intense Catholic priest, who went as far as calling Integra "Babylon", as a reference to Whore of Babylon, and displayed an immense hatred for Protestants (like Integra). Some of Anderson's statements heavily imply a fanatical hatred for all non-Catholics. Anderson tells a pair of young boys that they should only engage in violence against "monsters and non-believers," and comments to his superiors that it is fortunate that a large vampire population must be killing many English Protestants. Anderson resents the control of England over Northern Ireland, which he believes is Catholic territory, and states that it is his mission to kill unbelievers.
He shows a greater sense of morality both in his treatment of the orphans under his care and his eventual assistance to Integra and betrayal of Enrico Maxwell. His complexity in the manga is later demonstrated by his respect for Integra's conviction and for Seras's bravery. Specifically, he agrees to escort Integra to Hellsing HQ, because it would be impolite to leave a lady to walk there alone. Anderson tells the members of Iscariot to retreat from battle when Alucard releases his familiars, wanting them to live on and protect the Catholic religion; as he believed there already enough souls in limbo. He also appears to have a form of respect for Alucard, shouting "The black peril comes!" while laughing as Alucard enters the Thames. In his final moments, Anderson consoled his grieving rival in his own way, telling him that monsters do not cry. Alucard refers to Anderson as a "dog of the Church" and is neither human nor monster (and is therefore incapable of killing him, only a human can do that). Alucard shows great respect for Anderson and goes so far as to compare him to the men who were able to defeat Dracula, stating that although they were mere humans they possessed the will to destroy a monster such as Alucard. This changes, however, when Anderson chooses to use the Nail of Helena on himself in order to become a monster on an equal level to Alucard. At this point Alucard rules that Anderson, having sacrficed all of his humanity in exchange for power, is no longer worthy of destroying him and that Anderson must be killed. Alucard had previously stated that he would be proud to die in battle against Anderson, but clearly Anderson forfeited that right by turning himself into a monster rather than a regenerating human.
Powers and abilities
In battle, Alexander Anderson is often depicted using scores of blessed bayonets presumably made of silver as well as smaller blades which are held between his fingers like claws. He is shown to have extraordinary physical abilities, including strength, speed, and stamina.
He is shown using pages from bibles as barriers to ward off vampire movement, and also appears to be able to teleport himself amongst clouds of bible pages.
Anderson was a Regenerator which meant that he had a strong healing factor that he typically relied on in battle. This allowed him to restore lost body parts and heal himself of any injuries. He typically relied on this trait in battle where he was easily able to heal from damage from automatic gunfire and high-calibre rounds.
Notes
- Alexander Anderson was created by Kouta Hirano where he featured in the setting of Hellsing.
In other media
Television
Appearances
- Hellsing:
External Links
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