Top 10 Cliches in Anime

To save time on character development, many anime have characters that fall into certain archetypes, making it easy for the viewer to understand them quickly. One of these common types is the Tsundere, or a character who is initially cold in any relationship but then warms up to the other characters. Tsundere is not a strictly female trope, as Germany from Hetalia can be considered a male tsundere.

Now our next entry has been around for a very long time. Transformations are often used to essentially “level up” their abilities and become more powerful, or change outfits on the fly when it’s time for a fight. A highly recognizable example of this is Serena Tsukino transforming into Sailor Moon. We also see villains transform into a monstrous final form in a desperate attempt to thwart the heroes. Unsurprisingly, transformations in anime come in a variety of different forms, so you never know what to expect.

Anime can be complex and complicated; we get it. Exposition is a useful tool that gets us up to speed on a character’s backstory, past events or frame the setting. Many anime use this in excess via flashbacks, endless voice-overs and unnecessary descriptions. An example of this is Saya Takagi from High School of the Dead, who due to her outstanding intellect, will often analyze the group's condition and sum it up for the audience.

Lets face it; anime and romance go hand-in-hand. This cliché finds a young man, ignorant of his own good fortune, living in a house with several attractive young women. These women are often a rainbow of archetypes from naïve exhibonist to short-tempered hot-head. Sometimes multiple women fall in love with the male character at the same time, making for some amusing rowdiness. Reverse harems, multiple men falling in love with a single women do exist, but it’s not as common.

If anime has taught us anything, it’s that that everything can be accomplished as long as you have your friends by your side. Appearing in mainly shonen anime during battles or struggles when all hope is lost; our heroes will become stronger through teamwork and friendship. When integral to character’s motivation, this cliche can actually be necessary in many action/shonen anime, yet remains way too overused to this day. B-F-Fs assemble!

Taking its name from the William F. Nonan’s novel, ‘Logan’s Run’, this unwritten rule applies to many of our younger protagonists. The character will be any combination of professional, adept, wise, bad-ass, aaaaand still be at the tail end of puberty? Done to make the main character relatable to the audience, it makes it hard to believe that someone so competent can still be in middle-school. Time to stop adventuring and get to bed kid.

The best part of being the main character in any anime is you get to have the sweetest hair. This cliche dictates that the protagonist needs to have outrageous, gravity defying hair, as though his or her strength is directly proportionate to the mass of their hair. Hitting its peak in the late 80s, this distinctive style remains a nightmare for cosplayers everywhere. Seriously Goku, what is your hair made out? Not hair.

High school can be hell, literally. One of, if not the most common setting in some of our favorite anime is middle-school. Where else does drama and teen angst come from? And what better way is there to appeal to your target audience than by having shit hit the fan in the middle of geography class? These kids need to focus on their studies. Also where are all the teachers?

Bring on the fan service! Usually found in comedy-anime; short skirts, busty women and gravity defying, errr, physics, are the staples of this trope. We know hot baths, or “onsen”, are common enough in Japan, but come-on, some of these scenes are definitely not safe for work as the line between humorous situations and soft-core pornography get blurred. Oh god, that better be milk.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Protagonist Sits Next to a Window

Protagonist Always Eats a Whole Lot

Single Parent

Nose Bleeds When Excited

Over the Top Costumes

Taking our number one spot are these distinctly anime expressions. An easy way to show a character’s emotion, things like large sweat-drops show embarrassment or exasperation, while bead-eyes show confusion and helplessness. Used in almost every anime under the rising sun; these gestures serve as a sort of short hand for the animators. This cliché is so iconic in anime, that actors in live action adaptations do their best to duplicate them in real life.

Do you agree with our list? What are your favorite anime cliches? For more not so cliche top tens published every day, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.