The problem with antiheroes switching sides

I. Love. Antiheroes!

YAAAAAAAASSSS

Antiheroes are my favorite kind of character. They're unpredictable, more often than not they're sarcastic and witty, and they're definitely the most interesting of all the character archetypes. But people are ruining them left and right. How?

They're making them become good guys.

The allure of the antihero is that they're not really good or bad. They look out for number one as their top priority in life, and making them necessarily good or evil ruins the allure unless done correctly. Tell me if this process sounds familiar: 1) Something that shouldn't really be earth-shattering happens to the antihero, such as the hero saving them or something, 2) The antihero realizes that this means they've been wrong all along, 3) They dedicate their lives to doing good in this world, acting like their past of wrongdoing never happened.

It's annoying. To me. I'm sorry if I'm coming off as really angry about this, but it frustrates me to no end. Especially since it can be done correctly.

So enough dilly-dally. Let's get into it.

Some Poorly-Done Switches

Example #1: Heckyl.

tbh I thought it was spelled Heckle until I googled this image

This guy is the best anti-hero to ever set foot in Power Rangers: Dino Charge (sounds like a cheesy show and is a cheesy show, I know. But I like it, okay?) Heckyl was a stylish, trouble-making, genius monster from space, and he was fabulous. He and his other half, Snyde, had to switch back and forth periodically, and since they had different ideas of how to get the job done, they often messed up one another's plans, which caused epic arguments. I think it was the last season in which one of the rangers spared Heckyl from a terrible fate, therefore making him spiral off into the really-bad-side-switching arc. He was a beautiful character before that, and I feel like it kind of ruined him henceforth. But I will still look back fondly on the days where he really was antiheroic.

Example #2: Sharpay

Queen of all evil right here.

If you've ever watched the High School Musical trilogy, you know who this is. If you haven't, just google Sharpay Evans, and you'll get all the information you need. So. Did anyone ever notice this arc in, I don't know, every movie she was in??? She would be a complete brat through the whole movie, granted, a funny brat, but a brat, and then at the end of the movie she would just act like she was part of the group the whole time. But once the next movie began, bam! She would be a brat all over again. Sharpay, c'mere, lemme strangle you.

See what these two have in common? For no real reason, they just switched sides and acted like it had always been that way. For me, this is just as irritating as the time travel/amnesia thing.

How to Do it Right

• Have them keep their original values. They're still morally grey, so keep them that way. Their place on the moral scale is the same; it's part of them. More often than not, everyone, readers included, should be wondering if they've switched sides at all.
  

• Keep their personality the same. Their whole personality will not be rewritten just because of this decision. Example: Gru from Despicable Me, especially in number 3. He's made his decision to be a good guy and stay that way, but in the very last scene of the movie, after letting his brother get away, he tells Lucy he's not letting him go, just giving him a few minutes' head start. Gru is a mischief-loving, satirical character, and that's not gonna change just because he's good now.
  

• Don't have the heroes trust them on their decision right away. Think Sam from the Lord of the Rings. Gollum claims he just wants to serve Frodo, but Sam's not so sure. Some of the heroes might choose to believe the antihero when he says he's with them, but not everyone should. This keeps the readers guessing and keeps the tension high.
  

• Give them plenty of time to change. An 'I'm sorry' once the fight is over isn't going to cut it. Readers and heroes alike still won't like them, and it won't have the effect you're going for. And under no circumstances change them at the last minute just to have someone to kill in the climax. I guess it works sometimes, but more than anything it's just a cheap cop-out. Plus, it doesn't give us enough time to come to like them. We won't mourn them later the way we should, even if they deserve to be mourned.
  

• Make changing hard. Really hard. Give them moments where they want to quit. Give them long nights where lie awake contemplating if the moral discomfort is even worth it. Good is a hard road to tread, and it's difficult to stay on. Some antiheroes(like Long John Silver) don't stick with it forever, just long enough to see their task through. Does your antihero have the stomach to stay changed?
  

• Bonus tip: if you really want the audience to believe that this character can really be good, give them a hero who believes in them. Really believes in them. Like the Doctor and Missy (Doctor Who). Missy wants to do good, and the Doctor believes she can. Despite the skeptics and even Missy's doubt in herself, the Doctor is there beside her, cheering her on. That is how you truly get them to come to the light. And the readers will believe in the antihero, just as a byproduct.
  

Now, I'm not saying that all of them even want to be good. Some antiheroes switch sides just because they want to get back at the bad guys, and they and the heroes go their separate ways later. But a really good redemptive arc is something I love love love, and if you really put the slammer on their little souls, I will be your bff forever!!!

Conclusion

What you need to take away from this is that just wanting to be good is not enough. Even if they want to be good, they might wake up the next day wondering what the heck they're doing, cut holes in the toes of all the heroes' socks, and skip off for the nearest pub. Backsliding is easier than sticking to it. Doing whatever you want is easier than doing good. If your antihero is going to change, something extreme will have to happen, and they'll need to want to change more than anything in the world.

Who's your favorite antihero? What are some you liked that I didn't mention? Let me know down in the comments!

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