Deunan Knute is one of the two protagonists of both the Appleseed manga and anime franchises. Along with her partner Briareos Hecatonchires, she is one of ES.W.A.T.'s most important members. Known for a fiery personality, and a tendency to sometimes break rank, Deunan is still widely appreciated by her partners for her professionalism and acumen. Outside of the job she enjoys socializing with her colleagues and Bioroid relatives, is a wearer of Prada clothing, and is also a Moto-GP enthusiast, her personal mode of transport a high-end Coscom motorbike.
Appearance
In the original manga, Deunan is drawn as a blonde with bronze skin. She explains to Hitomi at one point that her mother was Sudanese, stating her skin tone is something she inherited. Hitomi herself even comments before hand that she felt that Deunan's skin was darker compared to most Caucasians. Her skin color is invariably lightened in the various adaptations, though her mother being African is mentioned by Briareos in XIII (she was murdered by a soldier for violating a racial segregation law).
Abilities
While Deunan is not defined by victimhood but by agency and competence, owns extensive combat knowledge and is perfectly capable of taking decisions on her own she still needs Briareos from time to time to reassure her and may sometimes throw a hissy fit if things get too out of hand, especially at the beginning of the series.