A Defense of Anomen

Anomen, an aspiring Helmite Paladin, is probably the most hated party member in Baldur's Gate II for several reasons, from his arrogance and hypocrisy to being the only love interest for a female player character(aka "Charname") in the original version of the game. There are understandable reasons why people dislike him, but 

To begin with, Anomen's alignment, class and statistics indicate that he is still far from meeting the ideals of a Paladin. His initial alignment is Lawful Neutral- in short, someone who cares more about the law than moral concerns- whereas Paladins can only be Lawful Good, showing that while he has the sense of duty to become a paladin, his morality isn't there yet. As a result, he is a Fighter-Cleric hybrid, the closest equivalent to being a Paladin, to show that he isn't one yet. Lastly, his Wisdom is a lackluster 12 (on a scale of 3-18), signifying that he's rather immature.

Anomen's banters with party members frequently show his naïve and judgmental attitude, which generally results in his companions lecturing him and/or subtly mocking him depending on their alignment and personality. The following companions are especially notable.

• Keldorn, as an older Paladin, tries to mentor Anomen and disabuse him of his naivete. Whether or not he succeeds is up to the player.
  
  
• Mazzy, as a halfling, cannot become a Paladin, but as a Lawful Good Fighter, is clearly closer to the Paladin ideal than Anomen is. As such, she resents it when he talks down to her and says he will not have to put up with her once the Order sees his worth.
  
  
• Jan, being neither Good nor Lawful, has no intention of lecturing Anomen, but has a great deal of fun at his expense, from making up a story about "Ano" the brain-damaged orc to giving backhanded apologies.

As you can see, the game makes no pretense about how, despite Anomen's aspirations toward being a hero, he is deeply flawed, and in many cases, does not live up to the Paladin's ideal as much as those he looks down upon.

Nevertheless, Anomen has sympathetic qualities that are shown if you romance him. He was born into wealth but had an abusive father, thus forcing him to work hard to become a Paladin where most young nobles would benefit from their father's sponsorships. He feels a desire to fight evil, but is also aware of his own anger issues and feels himself unworthy to be a Paladin, and while he occasionally concludes conversations by snapping at his lover, he will apologize for it once he has calmed down. As such, this proves that Anomen is fully aware of his flaws and desires to become a better person.

Eventually, Anomen hears about his sister Moira's murder and reunites with his father, Cor, who has fallen on hard times since Anomen last saw him. Cor then claims that his long-time nemesis Saerk not only ruined his business but murdered Moira and demands that Anomen bring the killer to justice. Anomen is torn- should he obey the law and his vows as a Paladin, or seek justice for the sake of his sister and his honor? It's a difficult question for anyone with his personality, since he aspires to be a good person but feels compelled to battle against evil. While murder for the sake of revenge is obviously wrong, Anomen has understandable reasons to want to take the law into his own hands, so deciding between the law and vengeance is less clear-cut than most of Baldur's Gate II's decisions.

If you advise Anomen to trust in the courts, Anomen's father will disown him, and Anomen will begin to doubt himself after learning that there is no evidence Saerk was responsible. If he stands by his decision, he will pass his trial and become a Paladin of the order, becoming known as Sir Anomen, changing his alignment to Lawful Good, gaining a point of Wisdom, and earning a large amount of experience points, symbolizing his growth and making him a more useful party member. Anomen becomes significantly more humble, and gets along better with Keldorn, who has come to respect Anomen as a fellow Paladin.

If, however, you convince Anomen to seek revenge, the Order will expel him and he will become Chaotic Neutral. On his romance path, he will learn that Saerk was not actually guilty of Anomen's sister's murder and then confront his father. His personality will become darker and more volatile, eventually leading him to come to blows with Keldorn. Interestingly enough, he doesn't become Evil- an Anomen who has failed to become a Paladin does not become as cruel or selfish as the Evil-aligned party members, but is consumed by anger and bitterness, losing even the sense of discipline and honor he had as an aspiring Paladin and beecoming directionless.

While most party members in Baldur's Gate are good, evil or morally gray, Anomen stands at a crossroads, and can be changed for the better or worse depending on the player's actions, making him a relative rarity in the cast, and one of the characters who can undergo significant development that alters the course of their life.

In short, Anomen is not a good person in terms of alignment or morality, but can become one with the right guidance. Good characters do not necessarily have to be good people, and often, a deeply flawed person like Anomen has the most potential for growth that leads to character development, whether positive or negative. That potential can be used to its fullest extent in an interactive medium like a role-playing game, which is why Anomen is a better character than many give him credit for.