Nero (Devil May Cry)
| Character | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Nero (Japanese: ネロ) |
| Occupation: | Devil Hunter |
| Relationships: | Kyrie (canon girlfriend); Vergil (father); Dante (uncle, friend); Nico Goldstein (friend); Trish (friend); Lady (friend); Credo (adopted brother) |
| Fandom: | Devil May Cry |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Nero (Japanese: ネロ) is a primary character in the Devil May Cry series and the main series protagonist from Devil May Cry 4 onwards. He is the grandson of the Demon-King Sparda, the son of Vergil and the nephew of Dante.
Nero is known for his spunky, somewhat hot-headed personality and his strong care for his loved ones. He is 1/4 demon, and uses demonic powers similar to the other Sparda descendants in the series.
Canon Background
Nero is first introduced in Devil May Cry 4, where he is established as the series' first new protagonist besides Dante.
Nero operates as a Devil Hunter under his personal branch of the Devil May Cry business. He was raised by foster parents after being abandoned as a baby, and had no memory of his parents until Vergil was revealed as his father in Devil May Cry 5, an event that shocked both parties. Nero is in a canon relationship with Kyrie, the daughter of his adoptive parents.
Fandom
Reception and Popularity
Fan reaction to Nero upon the reveal of Devil May Cry 4 was initially mixed, partially due to the popularity of Dante and resistance towards the series switching to a new protagonist. Reflecting the popular sentiment of the time, users of the Devil May Cry forum in September of 2006 commented:
To be honest I'm not liking the sound of the storyline so far....unless Nero ends up being Dante somehow. I wouldn't mind if this Nero was another playable character. But I don't want to play a DMC game that isn't in Dante's point of view. It'd be kind of straying away from the storyline.
Frankly, I wasn't very happy about it at first either. To me, Dante IS DMC!! And I believe many people out there besides me hold the same opinion too. Capcom's taken a pretty risky step in replacing him with a new character, but they seemed confident enough about it and that why I decided to give them a chance, just to see how they'd pull it off. If things don't turn out to our satisfactory, we can always get Dante back with enough ranting and railing...
Nero's reception eventually warmed upon release of the game, but a certain amount of dislike remained with some fans of the earlier titles.
However, after the release of DMC5, Nero became a much more well-liked character due to his role and characterization in the story of 5, with many fans praising his character growth and memorable story moments, and looking forward to his involvement as the new series protagonist.
...I really like Nero as a character and so far his story really has just been his introduction. The torch has been passed. He’s the proprietor of Devil May Cry now. I can’t wait to see what his future holds.
Fanon and Tropes
Shipping
Most popular ships involving Nero are somewhat controversial due to almost all of them including incest in some way; the only exception to this is Kyrie/Nero, a canon ship. Ships including Nero and other ancestors of Sparda are often called Spardacest. This can also refer to Vergil/Dante specifically, but is also a catch-all term for any kind of Sparda-related incest ships.
Notable Ships
- Kyrie/Nero
- Nero/Vergil
- Dante/Nero
- Nero/V
Example Fanworks
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |