Anime is full of too many tropes, lazy writing, spin-off plots, and predictable or formulaic stories. Although some anime do not have these problems, many anime no longer impress fans. Part of that is because fans have watched most of the anime available.
Therefore, finding innovative ways to make anime stand out is important for writers. That said, there are plenty of ways for writers to make anime fresh and exciting, and they could learn a lot of those tricks by listening to fans.
8 Well-written female characters and protagonists are a must
Some shows have already made the necessary adjustments to create better-written female characters. However, even when some shows try, they struggle to distinguish between a strong female character and a well-written character, because there is a difference. A prime example would be Sakura Haruno in Naruto Shippuden. She’s bright, physically stronger than most people, and is a great shinobi out of context, but the show doesn’t do anything to give her a proper characterization.
On the other hand, Jujutsu Kaisen gives fans strong yet compelling Maki Zenin, who overcame her inability to use cursed energy and has a complex backstory that gives her depth and on-screen character development.
7 Characters talking about more realistic experiences are refreshing
There’s only a small subset of people who can truly see themselves in the mainstream anime protagonist. These characters are usually driven to get stronger or better, are diligent and hardworking, and focused on lofty goals. No real person is trying to get stronger than everyone else and become the best in the world.
However, shows such as Jujutsu Kaisen gave fans more realistic characters, even in a supernatural fantasy setting. Characters like Kento Nanami are at the core of life’s boredom. He shows people the folly of being someone who works so hard as to sacrifice himself, and he’s still a hero.
6 Bonuses that make more sense are more enjoyable
One of the most tired anime tropes is the practical super-powerup or breakthroughs in the middle of a crisis or the last second of a life-or-death battle. While this is a common trope because it’s important for suspense, it’s a trope that takes fans out of the moment and breaks immersion in the show. Demon Slayer An example of this are Nezuko and Tanjiro Kamado discovering the Blood Demon Art and Hinokami Kagura respectively.
Establishing a character’s strength early on, empowering them early on, or having them try multiple times and fail, can circumvent this.
5 Relevant humor versus uncomfortable humor
Anime has always relied on crude jokes to get cheap laughs. A common way to do this was to have an annoying class pervert relentlessly harassing other characters, like Minoru Mineta from my hero academia. It’s just not funny, and it’s time it was put aside for more relevant and less lazy humor.
Jujutsu Kaisen did this by poking fun at everything from Nanami’s wage labor and down-to-earth work ethic to bantering about Jennifer Lawrence, who manages to discuss romantic preferences without being overly offensive.
4 Cool animation aided by current and future technology is welcome
Fans love to see new or unique art styles. Thanks to the advent of new technologies and anime and manga authors looking for more artistic inspiration, there is a plethora of new styles that add flavor to the world of anime and help them to stand out.
A mix of CGI and traditional animation was one method, while looking to woodcuts and ink paintings for styling and form inspiration was another mode to achieve these looks.
3 Seasons based on entire arcs were a nice change
There’s nothing worse than a cliffhanger that cuts through an otherwise contiguous arc. It breaks immersion, angers fans, and may never tell the end of the story if the anime isn’t picked up for another season. So many great anime have ended their first season on a frustrating cliffhanger.
demon slayer fought this by making some of its seasons entire arcs. Both the “Mugen Train” arc and the “Entertainment District” arc have well-paced storylines that reach resolution.
2 More anime movies appearing in theaters allow for interesting ways to watch
While it’s frustrating when an anime is hidden behind a paywall, there’s something exhilarating about watching an episode of a favorite anime on the big screen surrounded by like-minded fans and popcorn at the butter, which is why the advent of anime movies released to theaters is so exciting.
Both Jujutsu Kaisen and demon slayer have done so, with the release of Jujutsu Kaisen 0, a prequel to the current series, and Train Mugen. Some of them are divided into multi-episode seasons which are more readily available than a theatrical experience.
1 The subversion of common character tropes is always thrilling
Shounen and Shoujo anime have been bogged down by relying on specific tropes. For Shounen, he’s the overly optimistic protagonist who wants to grow stronger through hard work and a little help from his friends, much like Naruto Uzumaki thinks. For Shoujo, he is the gentle and kind protagonist who is not confrontational, and therefore sometimes misunderstood, like Sawako.
These tropes don’t reflect the average person, and while it does reflect some of them to some degree, it doesn’t encourage the emotional attachment of fans, which makes the characters painfully two-dimensional.
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