Oh, great question!
Yeah, man. A well written and compelling character sometimes is enough to carry the whole story.
One of my favourites is Wolverine for being the reluctant hero. A berserker with a heart.
And another one that comes to mind is Artemis Entreri, specifically from the Sellswords series written by R.A Salvatore.
The man is a cold hard killer. Skilled assassin. A total badass.
Yes, I get you about Wolverine. I think the Logan film encapsulated that in its style. Artemis Entreri is new to me, so thanks for sharing. Will have to discover some more about him. He sounds like someone worth getting to know (from a distance, if you get my drift).