Things in manga/anime you're sick of seeing

pyromonki

I always see comments online about people saying the manga and anime industry is losing its creativity, and I'm beginning to agree. So I was rather curious as to what things you guys were sick of seeing in manga, in other words… cliche things in stories that need to die.

I suppose the most boring thing to me now is a highschooler with an average life meeting a strange tranfer student, or high school in general. I know high school is a "big part" of people's lives, but most stories always seem to begin there... even in the seinen category.

How many times do I have to read about a kid having to balance out his new supernatural life with his school life?

Or even worse, a story with a boring and generic male lead in a harem situation choosing his childhood friend?

I mean.. because life obviously ends after high school am I right? :getlost:

IgorGB

Experienced rival losing to pure beginner protagonist's talent. I can't take this anymore.

Crossword

The whole ''cute, precocious little sister who takes care of the house and watches over the bumbling protagonist'' thing annoys me to no end because it's so obviously pandering, and unlike most of the people this is being targetted to, I actually have a younger sister, so my life experience thoroughly disproves that notion.

When such a set-up gets incestuous undertones thrown in, that is when tables are flipped.

pyromonki

@IgorGB:

Experienced rival losing to pure beginner protagonist's talent. I can't take this anymore.

This one usually makes me roll my eyes pretty hard.

@Crossword:

The whole ''cute, precocious little sister who takes care of the house and watches over the bumbling protagonist'' thing annoys me to no end because it's so obviously pandering, and unlike most of the people this is being targetted to, I actually have a younger sister, so my life experience thoroughly disproves that notion.

When such a set-up gets incestuous undertones thrown in, that is when tables are flipped.

I'm not even sure when this cliche started… but it's a really creepy one.

Isn't there a specific anime completely all about this?

I think it's "my little sister can't be this cute".... yeah....

Gliblord

Strange new transfer student, omg

Gekko135

God, where do I start…?

Chicken

Whiny, pathetic protagonists everywhere! God I wish more of them would man the fuck up and adopt a Stoic outlook or something. Fanservice. Not a cliché per se, but I am sick of it. What I want from manga/anime is an engaging story rather than sexual gratification/arousal. I stay away from overtly ecchi series on principle, but more and more series that don't really belong to that genre seem to have fanservice thrown in needlessly. It feels like that shit is thrown in to distract me from shoddy writing.

Gliblord

Oh, you know what I really despise

BREAST COMPARISON SCENES

pyromonki

@Gliblord:

Oh, you know what I really despise

BREAST COMPARISON SCENES

Let's not forget chicks feeling each other up in the hot springs…

and the cultural festival...

protagonist: "You look beautiful in your kimono"

love interest blushes or calls him an idiot or both

Edit: Fanservice doesn't really bore me as much as just feel like wasted time and space for something else. But there have been manga/anime where I got a good laugh out of it. Highschool of the Dead was so overexaggerated, I couldn't not laugh.

Gliblord

While I compare our breast sizes FOR SOME REASON I must blithely feel you up even though you're not okay with it FOR SOME REASON

lelandlancaster

Random fanservice that doesn't fit with the atmosphere with the rest of the story. HIGHSCHOOL STORIES OMG. I don't know why so many people think that highschool was THE MOST INTERESTING TIME OF THEIR LIFE EVER but I'm sick of it. On that note, I want more older protagonists (both male and female), like in their mid-twenties or thirties.

I also hate the neverending sea of light-skinned characters. Also I want more m/m and f/f relationships that are treated and written like actual relationships and not just fanservice bait (especially along the lines of HAHAHAH AREN'T THEY CUTE TOGETHER, JUST JOKING EVERYONE'S STRAIGHT).

Nia

@Crossword:

I actually have a younger sister, so my life experience thoroughly disproves that notion.

Yes.
My 17 year old sister can't even open a regular bottle on her own, let alone take care of herself, the house or … anything.

... my sister might be a special case.

Gliblord

Female characters who exist to have the hots for an oblivious oftentimes even asexual protagonist, and then the relationship never goes anywhere

Cyclone_Baroness

-The character that always thinks people are calling him handsome.
-The unemotional girl that has that super bland look on her face.
-The poor glutton.
-The dad that takes his love of his children way too far.
-The cute/annoying mascot.

Most of the other ones were I can't stand were mentioned lol.

Crossword

Admittedly, I do look back on my high school days with some degree of wistfulness, as I haven't seen many of my high school friends for a while. Absence mankes the heart grow fonder and all.

The main character not being Mr. Stoic Manlyman isn't in itself a problem, but when there's excessive whining/stupidity and the supporting cast is much more interesting, it becomes one.

Deviant_Mugen

This will grow to be a long thread, I'm sure of it…

-High school stories.
-Childhood friends.
-The little sister who secretly (or not so secretly) loves her "onii-chan."
-Crushes who are oblivious (to the point of retardation) to their crushee's feelings.
-The Shojo genre (girl falls for mysterious bad/popular boy, girl only loves said boy, despite the fact that any sensible girl would've dumped his ass for the nice guy, couple can't simply talk shit out, instead opting to have many internal monologues and seek shoddy advice elsewhere, etc.).
-Human characters in Shonen series surviving injuries that would've killed them at least twice over.
-Overly-gratuitous fanservice.
-Side characters with cool/cute designs being underdeveloped (or not developed at all) and/or constantly jobbing to whatever new threat shows up.
-"I'll defeat you even if I die!" and other similar battle cries.

I'll leave it at that for now, but I'll be back at a later time to post more...

Hisoga

base on the posts, isn't this is just like a "what i don't like in the manga/anime" rather than cliche thing that ruin new generation manga/anime?

Shandian

The whole Good vs Evil in pure Black and White standards. There are no gray in any charecters or sides. Heros are saints with angelic wings without any negative charecter trait and villains are overly evil just to for the heck of it, of course good guys have to win because it would give wrong message to fragile masses.

Also I agree that coward heroes without a shred of ambition than ''I WANT TO PROTECT MY FRIENDS'' makes me headpalm, specially when those heroes just as weak and afraid as start of the series unless their FRIENDS are in danger.

Perhaps I am just too fed up with Shounen series since there appear to be new directives for series how they should appear.

Nia

@Deviant_Mugen:

-"I'll defeat you even if I die!" and other similar battle cries.

I'm gonna expand that to battle cries in general. It makes sense in some rare cases (like when casting a spell), but in every other situation it's just silly.

Gliblord

Generic elemental powers

Hisoga

@Nia:

I'm gonna expand that to battle cries in general. It makes sense in some rare cases (like when casting a spell), but in every other situation it's just silly.

it is silly when you are not a soldier or warrior..

Gokuyuske

It's humorous how much of what you guys post applies to Fairy Tail.

Herodadotus

@Gliblord:

Generic elemental powers

I don't have a problem with this if it's used in an imaginative way, but yeah, the 'I throw fire, that's my power' thing is kinda sucky.

Crossword

With elemental powers it depends on how they're applied. Like in Darker than Black the main character has electricity powers, and another guy has ice, but they actually follow real life physics, meaning no conjuring ice out of thin air, no shooting lightning bolts unless there's a conductor, etc.

Deviant_Mugen

Does anyone know what series started the "calling out the names of your attacks in battle" trend? That's another one that irks me a bit when it comes to shonen (though it comes with the territory)…

Also...

-Protagonists that pull power-ups out of their ass whenever the situation calls for it, without any sort of explanation.
-Boobs being drawn way too large.
-Nosebleeds (especially excessive ones).
-Women in Shonen being generally useless and/or inferior to men in a fight.
-Blatantly perverted teachers in high school series (like Kimura from Azumanga Daioh).

Crossword

@Deviant_Mugen:

Does anyone know what series started the "calling out the names of your attacks in battle" trend? That's another one that irks me a bit when it comes to shonen (though it comes with the territory)…

I think that actually has its roots in the martial arts concept of kiai.

TLC

Strong females that are actually strong and independent and aren't actually fragile flowers inside that need a man to warm their heart.

pyromonki

@Hisoga:

base on the posts, isn't this is just like a "what i don't like in the manga/anime" rather than cliche thing that ruin new generation manga/anime?

Well, yes, but a lot of these things have been occuring enough to make the industry boring…

but yes, I was talking about things that are ruining the new generation.

It seems that the newer series are following the principle "If it ain't broke, don't fix it.", but that's what is leaving the industry so stale.

There is no reason for Pajama no Kanojo or Nisekoi to exist since they merely follow the cliche's set in stone for the past decade.

It really bothers me.

MetaMario

@Gliblord:

Female characters who exist to have the hots for an oblivious oftentimes even asexual protagonist, and then the relationship never goes anywhere

Ichigo and Orihime from Bleach…...?

-Weak, useless females (worst when they're the main characters)
-A villain with broken powers with NO weaknesses

Lot of you mentioned some others.

Deviant_Mugen

@Crossword:

I think that actually has its roots in the martial arts concept of kiai.

There's a big difference between shouting to pump yourself up and shouting "SUPER DEATH PUNCH!" before slugging a guy (who's also shouting out his own attack name), though…

Another one to add, though it's more of a fanbase peeve...

-Pretty boy characters who have a huge following, despite being weak and unimportant to the plot. Also, they love to boast, despite being unable to back up their words.

sabret00the

The whole ''cute, precocious little sister who takes care of the house and watches over the bumbling protagonist'' thing annoys me to no end because it's so obviously pandering, and unlike most of the people this is being targetted to, I actually have a younger sister, so my life experience thoroughly disproves that notion.

I thought it was a cultural difference. In the West sisters are far more self-centred

Sent from my Incredible S using Tapatalk 2

Crossword

There's a big difference between shouting to pump yourself up and shouting "SUPER DEATH PUNCH!" before slugging a guy (who's also shouting out his own attack name), though…

Well, I did say ''roots'', didn't I?

I thought it was a cultural difference. In the West sisters are far more self-centred

shrug Perhaps. All I know is that my sister's displays of laziness and surliness are the antithesis of the ''imouto'' archetype.

IceBorg

Male protagonist best friend existing only to be the male friend and have no focus at all in the story.

Deviant_Mugen

@IceBorg:

Male protagonist best friend existing only to be the male friend and have no focus at all in the story.

Poor Chad…

Then again, it's Kubo, so...

zachri

@Cyclone_Baroness:

-The character that always thinks people are calling him handsome.
-The unemotional girl that has that super bland look on her face.
-The poor glutton.
-The dad that takes his love of his children way too far.
-The cute/annoying mascot.

Most of the other ones were I can't stand were mentioned lol.

Duval
Basically Kristen Stewart in Twilight
DON'T LOOK OVER HERE > A < [/huggles Rowan]
HUGHES.
HURRHURRHURR I can think of so many and yet so few…

city_lights31

Rubber Pirates. That shit is getting out of hand.
Fo real.

~ “erm. My opponent is attacking me and I have no recourse and I can’t avoid it, yet I have time to describe the attack he is using.”

Cyan D. Funk

"It's perfectly okay for that girl to abuse that boy horribly because she luvs him and is just a little tsuntsun!!1"

Gliblord

Yeah, girls can beat the shit out of guys all they like and it's comic relief

Deviant_Mugen

-Tsunderes who are 99.9% tsuntsun and .1% deredere.
-Characters who are in love with someone so much that they fail to notice the person next to them loves them and is a much better match for them.
-Emotionally-driven power-ups that vanish as soon as everything is cool.
-Plot devices that make serious consequences non-existent (dragon balls/boobs).
-Gratuitous violence just for the hell of it (gallons of blood, severed arms, massive holes in bodies).

city_lights31

"Silly old man, he is such a pervert!"

zachri

Armadillo penors for 'comic-relief'

Cyclone_Baroness

Taking a attack head on to protect someone even though there would be more than enough time to pick up the person and DODGE!!

zachri

@Cyclone_Baroness:

Taking a attack head on to protect someone even though there would be more than enough time to pick up the person and DODGE!!

I see what you did there.

Teen bishies created for the sole purpose of dragging in fangirls.
When someone other than the main character ranks 1st place in the official popularity poles (justsaying)

Deviant_Mugen

-Characters having to die just so the protagonist can improve him/herself and/or step out of their shadow.
-Over the top jerks.
-Protagonists who stick to an ideal or code no matter how stupid/suicidal it is.

pyromonki

All those little quirks aside, I'm rather disturbed at the use of rape as a plot device for characters. Rape is a serious event, but it's become the "twist" so much that the impact of finding out a character is a victim has become completely watered down almost an "expected feeling." Something that shouldn't ever happen.Sometimes I think authors compete to see who can write the same archetype the best… which is just silly.

Silence

Gliblord

@zachri:

Armadillo penors for 'comic-relief'

I didn't know comic relief armadillo penors had reached the epidemic stage

–- Update From New Post Merge ---

@Silence:

http://i.imgur.com/qUX9i.gif

Hey now, my man Oda don't create nobody as fangirl bait. Plus he's getting a serious character arc.

Pochipochi

@Deviant_Mugen:

-Characters having to die just so the protagonist can improve him/herself and/or step out of their shadow.
-Over the top jerks.
-Protagonists who stick to an ideal or code no matter how stupid/suicidal it is.

Urubochi works incredibly well with this subject matter and angling it into an interesting take on heroics (Fate/Zero, Madoka)

His works have featured structures of characterization where one is so singlemindedly obsessed with the idea of being a hero or saving someone (Emiya Kiritsugu, Akemi Homura respectively), that they become wrapped up in their ideals and blind to the wrongs they are doing. In the end, despite trying to make positive changes, they do nothing but harming other people and in the case of Fate/Zero, becoming just as bad as the people they consider evil.

But they inspire positive things to happen by the hand of someone close to them. What is very interesting about this is that unlike martyr characters like Gurren Lagann's Kamina, who inspire by example or by being mentor characters…. People like Kiritsugu or Homura unintentionally cause the good changes by simply failing at their heroics. Everything they were doing by their own hand brought poor consequences and it took someone else to take up the mantle and change it and it's a really interesting narrative because of it.

"Failed heroes" is what my friend calls this relatively unique style of character and I want to see more of these happening in anime

zachri

Ditzy school girl characters.

Oh, and THIS
[hide]
LETS PLAY SPOT THE MAIN CHARACTERS[/hide]

Gliblord

A lot of these cliches don't really have very many available alternatives, though. What's the alternative to "character dying so main character steps out of shadow"? That's like Gilgamesh-level ancient. What would you rather have in place of battle cries? The characters have to display their resolve somehow.