Animal Kingdom is a thrilling blend of crime, family, and drama, and the mysterious and infatuating characters it has to offer makes it all the more entertaining. With Joshua Cody at the forefront, fans get to follow his slightly unsettling journey through familial loss and acquisition of power.
There are some pretty impressive and redeemable traits that this character has to offer, but fans can also agree that this ambitious and cunning young man can be a bit terrifying and certainly a bit unlikable. It's time to consider everything fans love about J, and everything that scares them about him.
Terrifying: Power Hungry
Joshua enters the series being a young teenager with a pretty difficult life. However, when he's taking in by his grandmother and uncles, he immediately becomes infatuated with the life of wealth and crime. As every day passes, J wants to earn more and more power.
He becomes obsessed with being the 'head' of the family, even surpassing his uncles in the eyes of Smurf, but also eventually taking her down as well. J's drive for power is terrifying and unsettling, and also makes him one of the most dangerous characters, because fans know he's willing to do anything to achieve the position he wants.
Redeeming: Clever & Intelligent
Every character has their strengths and weaknesses, but it's no secret that J is probably the smartest of them all. He is a whiz at school, but he's also extremely analytical, practical, and clever. He understands business and how to get ahead in the most efficient way possible.
Beyond that, J has a plan for everything. He's calculative and methodical, making him extremely clever and able to accomplish just about any plan or idea he intends to pursue. In fact, it's hard for fans not to be impressed by the loopholes he finds and the steps he takes to reach his goals.
Terrifying: Manipulative
Smurf might be the queen of manipulating her sons and her grandson, but J is the king. So much so that he's actually capable of even pulling the rug out from under Smurf herself. J plays the innocent grandson that will be loyal to her until his last breath.
Of course, fans know that this isn't actually true, and his plan is to get ahead of her and crush her once and for all. He's also able to spin his uncles' minds to do what he asks, and fans will never forget the way he outsmarted and manipulated his high school female friend.
Redeeming: Courageous
For a young man that never lived a life of violence or crime, he is extremely brave in doing so. He is new to holding a gun or doing reckless and dangerous things, but he does so with conviction and with courage that's as redeeming as it is surprising.
From giving Mia her just desserts to outshining Deran in one of their first-ever heists together, J proves that he is as brave as they come. When he sets his mind to something, he's willing to do anything to achieve it or get it done - and that's some real courage.
Terrifying: Cruel
There may be more violent or brutal characters than J, but there is no doubt that his character is one of the cruelest. While he is pretty morbid in killing Morgan and Mia, he also is the only one in the group willing to pull the trigger on Smurf.
Joshua may shock himself, but he doesn't hesitate before doing something permanent, even if it is immensely cruel. J does whatever is best for his ambitions and his future, even if it means feeding people to sharks or getting someone hooked back on their addiction.
Redeeming: Ambitious
J is not willing to settle, and that's the end of the story. He is determined as much as he is ambitious, and his drive is certainly unmatched by all of the other characters. J wants to be the leader of his crime family, and even have his own crew on his own time.
He wants to be the richest, the smartest, and the best. His ambition is a bit wild, but it's pretty impressive. Despite that his intentions aren't always made of gold, his ambition is admirable, and J's ability to dig in his heels and keep trying is totally redeemable.
Terrifying: Relentless
J may have ambition coming in waves, but there's also the darker side of being relentless. Simply put, J is willing to do anything and everything, and he is not in the business of giving up - regardless of the danger or obstacles that are thrown his way.
This character is guilty of having tunnel vision, and all fans have seen him push and push until it's almost unfathomable to keep moving forwards. From trying to get Angela out of the way to overcoming Smurf, J is one character that fans definitely don't want to get in the way of.
Redeeming: Pragmatic
This trait may go hand-in-hand with J's intelligence, but his ability to be methodical and pragmatic deserves its own recognition. J is able to look at things completely from a practical and realistic angle, without letting his emotions or the opinions of others muddle it.
When Nicky shoots herself, he knows that the sensible thing is to leave her outside the emergency room, unattended and alone. It seems cruel, but it's the smartest thing to do for his family. J's ability to be pragmatic is a huge reason why he is as successful as he is.
Terrifying: Apathetic
If there's one quality that really stops J from being one of the most likable characters in the series, it's his apathy. J starts the series seeming to have some kind of care for the people around him, but it becomes more and more clear that he really only cares about himself.
He doesn't feel any sympathy or guilt for leading Morgan to her death in the middle of the water, and he probably felt even less when he betrayed Smurf or when he pulled the trigger on Mia. J's ability to separate his emotions from his ambitions is deeply unsettling.
Redeeming: Resilient
There is no denying that Joshua Cody was dealt a bad hand in life. From his mother dying of an overdose to being thrown into a family of crime with relatives he barely knows, J isn't unfamiliar with adversity, danger, and obstacles.
However, there is also no character that is as resilient as J. They all have their pasts, but J is really the only one that uses it for fuel to live a better life than the one he has been given. J might be greedy or overzealous, but no one can deny that his resilience is truly admirable.