A character trait is later recontextualized into something bad/tragic, it's always been there, we just never paid attention

[u/RedNUGGETLORD]

Deku's self sacrifice - My Hero Academia

Initially portrayed as purely heroic, it's later shown to be extremely detrimental when he refuses any aid from his friends, abandoning them to "protect them"(of course, leaving them also puts them in danger since he can no longer be there to save them if something goes wrong

The same quality that makes him a great hero, also leads him to nearly lose everything and get EVERYONE killed(since if this tired, weakened Deku did encounter AFO/Shigaraki, he would almost certainly die and have his powers taken)

Seiya Ryuuguuin's cautiousness - Overly Cautious Hero

The whole series is about how the main character is prepared for any circumstance to an insane degree(being the highest level half-way through, perfectly predicting that an ally would betray them through ridiculous jumps in logic, etc)

It turns out that the reason for this was that in a past life(unknown to him) he was extremely easy-going and unprepared for everything, always winning due to luck and skill, however, one day he ends up losing due to not finding out about a bosses weakness, this leads to the demon king murdering his friend, eating his Goddess, and then devouring his girlfriend and the child inside of her right in front of him. The Demon King then takes over the world and basically turns it into Berserk on steroids

Erens entire character - Attack on Titan

He hates the titans not because of what they've done(though that's a part of it), but because they've stolen his freedom, so when he learns that in reality, the Marleyans are the true enemies, the ones who have taken his and everyone elses freedom away, he does exactly what he said he was going to do, just to a different enemy

Erens philosophy is that anyone that tries to take his freedom deserves to have theirs taken away, Zeke becomes a slave because he tried to take away the Eldians ability to breed, the Marleyans lose the freedom of living because they tried to take his, it's always been a core character trait, but when he becomes to antagonist of the story in the last parts, this character trait of his is front and center

[u/Possible-Reason-2896]

One Piece loves doing this with its characters.
Nami is greedy and obsessed with money? A gag for 3 arcs and then you find out it's because she grew up in poverty, then was effectively was forced into slavery with an empty promise that she can buy her village's freedom back.
Sanji is a massive simp? Because of horrific childhood abuse from is sociopathic eugenicist father and superhuman brothers, where only his ailing mother and sister were nice to him.
That frog that keeps trying to wrestle trains? That one random guy that dresses up like a baby? The maid that's constantly falling in love with everyone she meets? The sillier the concept the more likely there's going to be a traumatic reason for it.

[u/Benxall_ → u/Possible-Reason-2896]

I know you didnt try to skeak señor bum as a tragic character

[u/Federal_Hold5711 → u/Benxall_]

Boo this man

[u/november900 → u/Benxall_]

He is a tragic character. The tragedy is that it was his fault. Someone's wife having a freak accident is sad but I wouldn't describe it as a tragedy in the context of a story. He's a tragic character because it's his fault

[u/Possible-Reason-2896 → u/Benxall_]

Even if someone is a piece of shit, I'm probably going to feel a little bad for them when their infant dies.

[u/GXNext → u/Possible-Reason-2896]

I've been working on a theory that Zoro has a massive case of Arrested Development stemming from Kuina's accidental death. The suddenness of it left him singularly focused on his goal of being the world's best swordsman to the point that he is a barely functional adult otherwise who drinks heavily because he thinks that that's what adults do...