Anime is beloved for its unique, creative stories that are very different from other media. They sometimes involve complicated plotlines that can take mere episodes or years to resolve. Most of these story beats are great. Yet, some are just plain dumb.
Dumb anime plotlines tend to be tedious, nonsensical parts of the overarching story that bog down the rest of the show. They can be irrelevant to what’s going on around them or portray characters contrary to their personalities. Dumb anime plotlines only serve as time-consuming nuisances to otherwise great stories.
10 Dark Deku (My Hero Academia)
My Hero Academia has had many twists and turns recently. Yet, one of the more heartwrenching ones is Izuku Midoriya’s turn as Dark Deku. Knowing that he is Shiguraki’s ultimate prize, Dark Deku treks off on his own to save anyone he can — keeping his friends at bay. Deku assumes this will protect his friends from danger and that his friends are better off without him, but the opposite is true.
Deku’s friends love him so much that they all vow to bring him back home. They also worry more about him now that he is on his own than when he was a member of the team. Although Deku’s actions seem selfless, they are really hurting the ones he cares about the most. Deku is also hurting himself since he does not look after his personal care, only thinking about who he can save next.
9 Legoshi’s Library Proposal (Beastars)
Beastars is an interesting Netflix anime that centers around Legoshi and Haru’s tumultuous relationship. Though they are Predator and Prey, respectively, Legoshi and Haru can’t help but be drawn to each other. Despite this, they never really define their relationship. They have yet to even kiss when Legoshi — out of the blue — asks Haru to marry him.
Haru is rightfully shocked and upset at his declaration, especially since they were in the school library. Understandably, Legoshi’s emotions were running hot, but this outburst only fuels a prolonged delay in Haru and Legoshi becoming a couple. Haru may not be opposed to the idea in the long run, but many felt that Leogshi’s proposal was way too much too soon, with hardly any context beforehand.
8 Kouki Ichinose (My Love Story!!)
My Love Story!! is the endearing tale of Takeo Gouda and Rinko Yamato’s relationship. The two are so in love that no one could separate them. Despite this, the show tries to throw a romantic rival into the mix in the form of Kouki Ichinose. Not only is Ichinose an uninteresting villain, but he is also an adult longing to be in a relationship with the teenage Rinko.
Ichinose’s whole plan backfires when Takeo helps him win a competition, making this plotline even more useless. Rinko loves Takeo too much to ever break up with him, especially over someone who is only a fraction as caring as Takeo. The inappropriate age difference and Ichinose’s plan seem slapdash and unnecessary in an otherwise adorable show about first love.
7 Azami Nakiri’s Plan (Food Wars!)
Food Wars! is full of incredibly talented chefs, all of whom know how to make the most amazing dishes. Therefore, it seems counterintuitive to force everyone to create the same dishes when looking for the perfect bite. Yet, that is exactly Azami Nakiri’s plan. Using the might of the Elite Ten, Azami stamps out any imagination, ensuring that the food culture of Totsuki Academy would eventually stagnate.
By enacting this plan, not only did Azami ensure that everyone’s cooking would not elicit admiration — since everything would be the same — but it would also take all the passion away from the chefs. As stated many times in Food Wars!, passionless food tastes substandard to food made with emotion. Azami cemented his own downfall by trying to control everyone too much.
6 Hikaru and Haruhi’s Date (Ouran High School Host Club)
Nearly all the boys in Ouran High School Host Club have feelings for Haruhi Fujioka. However, President Tamaki Suoh and resident prankster Hikaru Hitachiin seem to have the deepest crushes, with Tamaki’s being the most obvious. Therefore, it seems even more manipulative and unfair when the other members convince Hikaru to go on a date with Haruhi to make Tamaki confront his feelings head-on.
Not only is it unfair to Haruhi to involve her in some scheme to get a boy to stop being a coward, but it is also patently unfair to Hikaru. Hikaru’s feelings are used as a tool for Tamaki to figure himself out. While many Hikaru fans enjoyed seeing him and Haruhi together, it was altogether a dirty manipulation where there were no winners.
5 Kaede Kayano’s Revelation (Assassination Classroom)
Kaede Kayano is one of the many student-turned-assassins from Assassination Classroom. For most of the series, Kayano is a bubbly girl who uses her creativity to try to bring Korosensei down. Much later in the show, however, it’s revealed that Kayano was actually another tentacled experiment. Kayano’s goal was to destroy Korosensei since she blamed him for her sister’s death.
While this would have been a cool reveal normally, it instead comes off as a tired, overdone storyline since Itona was already revealed to be an experiment. Since Kayano’s reveal came second, her revelation is not as impactful. Though a long-awaited ship confirmation occurred in this plot point, it wasn’t enough to save the Kayano Experiment plotline from being redundant.
4 Armin or Erwin? (Attack On Titan)
Attack on Titan is known for its unforgiving plotlines and emotional character deaths. Therefore, it was no surprise that a tough decision would have to be made when both Commander Erwin Smith and Armin Arlert were on the brink of death. With the power of the Colossal Titan at hand, Levi, Mikasa, and Eren could only save one person.
They eventually choose to save Armin, giving him the power of the Colossal Titan. Yet, many viewers believe that Erwin would have been the better choice. Although he had assuredly committed more moral sins, Erwin was more experienced in combat situations and had a keen strategic eye. Plus, it was his dream to know the world beyond the walls. Choosing Armin felt like more of a cop-out to keep the main three characters together rather than who would actually benefit the Eldians’ cause.
3 Kushieda Gives Up On Ryuuji (Toradora!)
When Toradora! begins, Taiga Aisaka has a crush on Yusaku Kitamura while Ryuuji Takasu has a crush on Minori Kushieda. Throughout the first season, Ryuuji comes tantalizingly close to confessing his feelings and asking Kushieda out, but someone always stops him: Kushieda herself.
No matter what Ryuuji tries, Kushieda changes the subject or does something so random that it knocks Ryuuji off course. While many would think this is because she does not return his feelings, the opposite is true. Kushieda has deep feelings for Ryuuji, but she notices that her best friend, Taiga, does too. Therefore, Kushieda decides to back off and let Taiga be with Ryuuji instead. This plotline serves the story for a Ryuuji/Taiga romance but does not make much sense from Kushieda’s perspective. Kushieda gave up on her own happiness to let the guy who liked her back be with someone else.
2 Ema’s New Stepbrothers (Brothers Conflict)
The entire premise of Brothers Conflict is problematic. Ema Hinata is lusted after by all thirteen of her new stepbrothers, many of whom are adults, while Ema is still a teen. None of the boys even let her walk into the premises of their home before they clamor to start something romantic with her.
Had the show only focused on one of the brothers having a crush — such as Yusuke, who already had a crush on her beforehand — the show would be much more palatable. The relationships would not be so uncomfortable, and an exploration into Yusuke letting go of his feelings would have been a much more interesting story. As it stands, Brothers Conflict is another anime that puts scandalous storylines above well-written plots.
1 Chibiusa x Tuxedo Mask
Sailor Moon Crystal is a modern take on the beloved Sailor Moon franchise. Although it skips a lot of content from the original anime, it streamlines the story and sticks closer to the manga — making it easier to digest. Unfortunately, it kept one aspect from the original that still makes fans uncomfortable: Chibiusa’s feelings for Mamoru Chiba.
As Mamoru is Chibiusa’s father — just in the past — Chibiusa has a strong attachment to him. However, this attachment often delves into a more romantic relationship than a parent-child one, at least on Chibiusa’s side. This uncomfortable storyline is further emphasized when Chibiusa is possessed by The Wiseman to do his bidding. As Black Lady, Chibiusa claims Mamoru for herself and even kisses him. This is not only uncomfortable to watch but unnecessary within the storytelling. Dark Lady could have just as easily taken Mamoru hostage for real instead of trying to “steal his heart” from Usagi.
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