Troublemaker Hero

A troublemaker hero is a protagonist who is either mischievous, rebellious, or unruly. This type of hero may not believe in following rules declared by society, but still commits acts of heroism, albeit by following their own moral codes.

Why This Trope Rocks

 * 1) Similar to tricksters, they seek opportunities to extend their curiosity about the world around them and gain new knowledge and wisdom in the process.
 * 2) *In fact, many fictional heroes and heroines are rule-breakers. This is not a coincidence, as many of them go into the unknown and explore. They take risks, not least the risk of social disapproval.
 * 3) This trope adds both comedy and badassery to the characters' personalities with their mischievousness, rebelliousness, inquisitiveness as well as hilarious schemes and shenanigans, with a fair amount of bravery.
 * 4) *Their antics can be entertaining to watch, as they are often the source of conflict, which is what the hero uses to drive the story.
 * 5) They reflect on the fact that we all make make mistakes. What matters is that we learn from them.  As a result, they teach the audience valuable lessons to take to heart.
 * 6) They inspire the audience to stand out, think for themselves, be independent, question the ways of society, take risks and have the courage to stand up for what they believe in, even when it is not expected of them.
 * 7) Like anti-heroes and idiot heroes, troublemaker heroes can be easy to relate to, as there are people who don't enjoy conforming to the norm or following rules outside of their own, so they identify with the protagonist's desire to live a life without doing what is expected of them.

The Only Bad Quality

 * 1) Sometimes, the troublemaker hero's antics can be annoying and unfunny.

Examples of well-written troublemaker heroes

 * Aladdin (Aladdin) [A former thief who gets by through trickery]
 * Alvin Seville (Alvin & the Chipmunks) [Being the leader who comes up with mischievous schemes]
 * Andy Larkin (What's With Andy?)
 * Bart Simpson (The Simpsons)
 * Bloo (Season 1) (Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends) [He was a jerk with a heart of gold during the first season]
 * Bugs Bunny (Looney Tunes)
 * The Cat in the Hat (The Cat in the Hat franchise except the 2003 live action film) [A fun cat who likes to have fun and cause trouble, but has a good heart for his friends and does clean up his messes and learn from his mistakes]
 * Cuphead (Cuphead/The Cuphead Show!)
 * Curious George (Curious George) [A monkey who extends his curiousity through mischievous means, albeit unintentionally]
 * Felix O'Neill (Expelled) [Being the school's resident prankster]
 * Ferris Bueller (Ferris Bueller) [A popular teen rebel who skips school to have adventures]
 * Gumball Watterson (The Amazing World of Gumball) [mostly in Season 1]
 * Gelatin (BFDIA 1-IDFB 1; BFB 17-present) [He is known for being a troublesome yet lovable scamp]
 * Gintoki Sakata (Gintama)
 * Huckleberry Finn (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn)
 * Jack Skellington (The Nightmare Before Christmas)
 * Jimmy Hopkins (Bully)
 * Johnny Test (Johnny Test) [grew from a bland and generic spoiled brat into a more mature and likable kid who tries to be a hero, and while he still likes to cause trouble sometimes, it’s toned down from unacceptable to passable]
 * Kenan Rockmore and Kel Kimble (Kenan and Kel)
 * Kevin McCallister (Home Alone)
 * Louis Stevens (Even Stevens)
 * Malcolm Wilkerson (Malcolm in the Middle) [A teen genius who, like his brothers, has a mischievous and rebellious streak.]
 * Max Keeble (Max Keeble's Big Move)
 * Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece) [A pirate]
 * Naruto Uzumaki (Naruto) [Formerly a prankster]
 * Nate Wright (Big Nate)
 * Peter Pan (Peter Pan)
 * Pingu (Pingu)
 * Horrid Henry (Horrid Henry)
 * Pippi Longstocking (Pippi Longstocking)
 * Rafe Khatchadorian (Middle School)
 * Scamp (Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure) [Lady and Tramp's mischievous and rebellious son who wants to be wild and free.]
 * Sonic the Hedgehog (Sonic the Hedgehog) [A hedgehog who is also a smart-alecky, thrill-seeking trickster]
 * SpongeBob SquarePants (SpongeBob SquarePants)
 * T.J. Dettweiler (Recess)
 * Taiga Aisaka (Toradora!)
 * Tom Sawyer (Tom Sawyer)
 * Will Smith (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air)
 * Yakko, Wakko and Dot Warner (Animaniacs)
 * Yusuke Urameshi (Yu Yu Hakusho) [Being a juvenile delinquent]
 * Gary Goodspeed (Final Space) [mostly in season 1]

Examples of poorly-written troublemaker heroes

 * Bloo (Seasons 2-6) (Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends)
 * The Cat in the Hat (2003 version) (The Cat in the Hat (2003))
 * Gelatin (BFB 1-16) [he was flanderized into an absolute troublemaker and hellion who causes even more trouble than he already did)
 * Herman (Herman & Katnip)
 * Junior Healy (Problem Child)
 * Davey Stone (Eight Crazy Nights)