Heroes and villains, story arcs, love triangles, damsels in distress, amnesia, MacGuffins, quests, chosen ones — the list of tropes is nearly endless. Some may mistake tropes as inherently bad, but that assumption couldn’t be further from the truth. Tropes are merely tools to express certain ideas to an audience, a device for describing recognizable situations within storytelling. While some can indeed come off as cliché and others can subvert expectations, tropes themselves are pretty common, if not mostly inescapable.
While tropes within anime can become pretty predictable given certain types of characters, genres, or situations within stories to the point of beating a dead CGI horse like having a bland isekai protagonist or a love polygon that may as well escape its 2D plane with its many interwoven, unfathomable connections, they’re not all bad. In fact, some of the best series ever made had some of the most predictable tropes, some even beginning certain tropes that became popular devices to use.
1) Azumanga Daioh Is the Foremother of CGDCT
When 10-year-old academic prodigy Chiyo Mihama begins high school, it turns out she isn’t the only misfit in a whole class of oddball girls. Headed by the strange homeroom teacher Yukari Tanizaki, or Yukari-sensei, Chiyo meets the other equally strange students: Tomo Takino, an energetic tomboy who’s not exactly the sharpest crayon in the box; Koyomi Mizuhara, Tomo’s temperamental best friend; Sakaki, a tall, gentle, athletic beauty who loves cats; and Ayumu Kasuga, a daydreamer who enjoys theorizing about Chiyo’s pigtails. Together, the eccentric girls experience a weird and wonderful high school life.
Distinctive for being the anime that arguably began the “Cute Girls Doing Cute Things” (CGDCT) trope, Azumanga Daioh follows a cast of cute high school girls getting into absurd high school mischief together.
Azumanga Daioh can be streamed on HIDIVE where available.
2) The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Sets the Scene for Collecting Deres
Like Kyon, an average high school student, most people don’t tend to believe in things like aliens, time travelers, and espers. But a girl in his class named Haruhi Suzumiya does. Bored with “normal” people and endeavoring to meet supernatural beings, with a stark lack of paranormal oriented clubs at school, Kyon inadvertently inspired Haruhi to start her own: the Spreading Fun all Over the World with Haruhi Suzumiya Brigade, aka the SOS Brigade. With Kyon as her first recruit, Haruhi manages to also rope in three other members who, unbeknownst to her, were precisely the kind of beings she wanted to meet — albeit specifically sent to prevent a certain disaster: Haruhi herself. With the club mainly serving as a form of entertainment to Haruhi’s whims, it becomes clear that Haruhi becoming bored would be a very bad idea.
While The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya may not have the most types of dere (character archetypes) in a single series, the ones featured depict some of the most distinctive such as Haruhi herself as a “kamidere” (deity), Kyon as a “darudere” (listless), and Yuki Nagato as a “kuudere” or “dandere” (cool, expressionless).
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya can be streamed on Crunchyroll.
3) Yu-Gi-Oh! Is the Quintessential Odd-One-Out Protagonist
Although Yugi Muto has friends like Anzu Mazaki/Téa Gardner, his beautiful childhood friend, and Katsuya Jonouchi/Joey Wheeler, who is often accompanied by Hiroto Honda/Tristan Taylor and means well despite always bringing Yugi trouble, Yugi despairs in feeling fragile and weak, and wishes for a true friend who understands him. When a strange ancient Egyptian artifact was brought into his grandfather’s game shop, the Millennium Puzzle, Yugi completes the puzzle believing it will grant his wish. Instead, it unleashes a strong, reliable, dark, and twisted soul within him, dubbed Yami Yugi, the King of Games. From then on, whenever Yugi endures injustices toward him, Yami Yugi, taking over Yugi’s body, challenges the opponent to a Shadow Game where whoever loses shall have to face the darkness within their own heart.
While many anime can take their protagonist character designs a bit far into being OC-from-DeviantArt territory, this series is notorious for its main character, Yugi, having such a distinct design, he’s been the butt of the “Spot the Main Character” meme. The wildest experience is easily watching the original Toei anime before Duel Monsters defined its identity going forward, with Yugi’s alter ego creating especially elaborate and diabolical games to punish evildoers.
4) Sword Art Online Is Probably the Most Stereotypical Isekai
When the innovative gaming system, NerveGear, makes virtual reality become the most immersive, lifelike gaming experience ever, gamers worldwide flock to experience for themselves the wondrous medieval world of Aincrad in the new MMORPG, Sword Art Online (SAO). But when players begin noticing that the logout function is suddenly inaccessible, they soon learn that it isn’t a glitch, but intentional — the creator trapped the players inside the game. The only escape? To beat Aincrad’s 100 floors of increasingly difficult dungeons. The catch? Death in the game means dying in the real world. Even though rising to the challenge and having previously been a beta tester for SAO, the challenges that lie ahead for one player, Kazuto “Kirito” Kirigaya, won’t be easy. Teaming up with Asuna Yuuki, the two set off to face the world of Aincrad head-on.
A video game world where the blandly designed self-insert main character becomes overpowered and attracts a harem — Sword Art Online often comes to mind when anime fans think of what the most stereotypical isekai might be. But even though it now gets a ton of flak, there’s a reason why it became super popular upon debut.
Sword Art Online can be streamed on Crunchyroll or Hulu where available.
5) FLCL Is the Anime Where Every Episode Is Oversexualized to the Point of Parody
Naota Nandaba is an average, ordinary junior high schooler who feels as though nothing exciting ever happens in his city. After his brother Tasuku has left to play baseball in America, Naota takes it upon himself to look after things while he’s gone, like his bunk bed and ex-girlfriend Mamimi Samejima, who constantly clings to him as a sort of placeholder for his brother. But when Vespa-riding, bass guitar-wielding, pink-haired psychopath Haruko Haruhara comes into his life, it’s anything but mundane. After whacking him in the head with her bass and kissing him, Naota ends up growing a horn on his head that he struggles to hide. Deciding to take up residence at his house, Haruko drags Naota into a battle he’d rather not fight.
Anime tends to be mistaken as oversexualized in general, as though no one should be caught dead watching the medium at all. But, like anything, there’s a wide range: some that’s absolutely innocent (ex. Studio Ghibli), many typical series just pulling comedic shenanigans, some a bit more risqué (ex. Panty & Stocking, Kill la Kill), or the minority, sure, being full-on hentai. The metaphorical commentary on puberty in FLCL, however, plays the bit up to satirical levels.
FLCL is available for streaming on either Max or Crunchyroll where available.
6) Sailor Moon Has Perhaps the Most Iconic Transformation Sequences
One day, when Usagi Tsukino, a klutzy, crybaby below-average student, saves a cat from danger, her world is turned on its head. As it turns out, the crescent-marked cat Luna actually appeared in order to inform Usagi that she has a certain destiny: to become Sailor Moon, one of the planetary guardians of Earth. Transforming with her magical brooch to transform, she must protect the earth by defeating the evil monsters sent by the Dark Kingdom’s Queen Beryl and find the lost princess of the Moon Kingdom, the other Sailor Guardians, and the Legendary Silver Crystal.
Sailor Moon, or Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon / Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, is arguably the most iconic magical girl anime. With its girl power group, monsters-of-the-week, and dreamy (accidental) pink hue, the transformation sequences of Sailor Moon have become a timeless staple.
Sailor Moon is available for streaming on Hulu, Tubi, and Pluto TV.
7) Bleach Is Infamous for Its Filler
Besides his ability to see spirits, Ichigo Kurosaki is otherwise an ordinary high schooler. But when his family is attacked by a Hollow, a corrupt spirit that devours human souls, Ichigo has his life turned upside down. When a Soul Reaper named Rukia Kuchiki gets injured protecting Ichigo’s family, it’s up to Ichigo to gain her powers and become a Soul Reaper himself. With Rukia unable to regain her abilities, Ichigo, later accompanied by classmates Orihime Inoue, Yasutora Sado, and Uryuu Ishida with their own abilities, is not only tasked with hunting down Hollows, but also other mysterious threats.
Bleach may be a beloved classic series, but with the anime constantly catching up to its manga counterpart during production, filler became intensely commonplace. Not only did the series contain canon scenes based on a few panels being expanded to entire filler episodes, but entire season-long filler arcs.
Bleach can be streamed on Disney+ or Hulu where available.
8) Dragon Ball Z Is Known for Its Ridiculous Power-Up Screams
Following the adventures of Son Goku, an alien of the Saiyan race, he travels the world in search of both new friends to make and new enemies to defeat, sometimes the latter becoming the former. Though Goku faces escalating threats and increasingly powerful foes, he also has no shortage of good times to be had in doing so. No matter the situation, Goku, with his strong sense of justice, protects the world from those with malicious intent who search for the Dragon Balls, seven magical orbs that grant a wish when collected.
The entire Dragon Ball series is notorious for the way that characters power up into Super Saiyan, which often involves a lot of screaming. The trope itself, called a “kiai”, is known for characters using certain techniques that involve shouting/screaming/grunting/etc to audibly depict just how powerful they’re becoming. In fact, some power-ups in the series can last several minutes.
Dragon Ball Z can be streamed on Crunchyroll.
9) Naruto Is THE Underdog Who Never Gives Up
In the Hidden Leaf Village, Konohagakure, Naruto Uzumaki, a young, aspiring ninja, is shunned by the wary community. The leader, the Fourth Hokage, had sacrificed his life and sealed the Nine-Tailed Fox demon within the newborn Naruto to prevent it from wreaking havoc on the village. But Naruto doesn’t let his circumstances and rejection from others deter him — with a rambunctious, mischievous nature, he’s determined to become the next Hokage and gain the village’s recognition and respect. Though he makes friends along the way, training to become a strong and capable ninja makes Naruto face many new foes and the demon inside himself.
Naruto, though he faces challenge after challenge in ninja training, also faces emotional challenges that hit close to home. But he doesn’t let that stop him. Naruto’s drive to accomplish his dreams in the face of adversity is the epitome of “never give up” and is a widely beloved inspiration to otaku everywhere. Believe it!
Naruto can be streamed on Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, Peacock, Crunchyroll, and more.
10) Pokémon Has Numerous Tropes Fans Absolutely Adore
The world is full of Pocket Monsters, or more colloquially known as Pokémon, creatures with a wide range of appearances and abilities. Those known as Pokémon trainers endeavor to capture said Pokémon, train them, and battle them. And Ash Ketchum dreams of becoming the most renowned Pokémon trainer ever, a Pokémon Master. That is, if he can overcome obstacles like earning the eight Pokémon Gym Badges, avoiding the notorious Pokémon-thieving criminal organization known as Team Rocket, and challenging the Pokémon League. Being paired with the last Pokémon available from Professor Oak, the titular Electric-type Pokémon Pikachu, and accompanied by their friends Misty and Brock, Ash and Pikachu set off on their journey to become the very best!
On top of collecting notable tropes like Pokémon themselves, such as being a long-running series, having free-range children protagonists, and uncreative pet names, the franchise had even created several of its own. These include “Gotta Catch Them All” (collecting a series of MacGuffins), “Pokémon Speak” (repeating a singular word for all speech needs), and “To Be a Master” (the protagonist endeavoring to be the best *insert chosen title*).
Pokémon can be streamed on Netflix, Prime, Hulu, or Tubi where available.
What is your favorite anime that plays up the best tropes? Let us know in the comments!
