Top 10 Most Overused Superpowers in Anime
Script written by Garret Alden
#10: Immortality & Invincibility
Durability is pretty OP, and anime characters have it in spades. The ability to just tank damage is incredibly common in the medium. Some characters are just unaffected by whatever their opponents dish out because their bodies are so innately powerful that they can’t be hurt. Others are able to condition their bodies to become as hard as steel. There are also those who can regrow limbs and recover from any damage they take. We don’t blame anime for overusing this power, since it’s a great way to show how strong a character is and create a threatening antagonist or an invincible protagonist.
#9: Time Manipulation
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Time is not on the side of anime characters – otherwise they wouldn’t be constantly messing with it! Many of them have the ability to freeze time for everyone around them while they move about freely. Others are able to rewind it or accelerate it for themselves or others. This can have a variety of offensive and defensive effects, including ways to cheat death or heal injuries. Time conquers all, and those who can conquer it are some of the most powerful in The World.
#8: Super Speed
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The Flash better watch out, because a ton of anime characters can lay claim to being the fastest people alive! Although some of them explicitly have speed as a special power they have, through magic, mutation, or enhancement, in a lot of series characters can move fast as a result of training. Superhuman speed is often the result of extraordinary training, and there are a lot of shows or movies that feature everyone at a certain level being able to move faster than the normal eye can see. Maybe it’s just the rule of cool at work, but nothing beats seeing someone move so fast they might as well have teleported behind their foe!
#7: Regeneration & Healing Powers
Healing isn’t just something immortals can do in anime. Even more common than self-repair is the ability to heal injuries in others. Every party needs a healer and anime’s casts have no shortage of them. Everything from magically healing cuts and scrapes, to completely regenerating someone’s severed limb is on the table. Anime characters have it pretty easy when it comes to healthcare a lot of the time, because there’s a good chance that someone in their world is able to patch them up in no time at all. It’s very convenient…sometimes too much so, since it can lower the stakes, but we definitely get why it’s so popular.
#6: Copying & Stealing Abilities
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and plenty of anime and anime characters have taken this to an extreme. With so many superpowers in anime, one of its most frequently seen is ironically the ability to use someone else’s power. While this is sometimes simply an imitation of the person’s powers, in many cases the ability is straight up stolen, meaning that the person who originally used it, no longer can anymore. As fun or intimidating as this ability can be, it’s gotten so ubiquitous that it’s gotten a bit copy and paste…so to speak.
#5: Darkness
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Emitting darkness is often the provenance of villains regardless of medium, but anime doesn’t restrict it to only the bad guys – everybody has it! Although you do get the typical antagonists with control over shadows and evil energy, heroes also utilize the same powers to defeat their foes too. The darkness or shadows usually takes on a physical form and can often absorb or control other things or even take on a life of their own. Given that darkness is a common fear, it can make for a haunting power base, but it becomes less scary when everyone uses it.
#4: Transformations
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Transformations are an absolute hallmark of anime. Characters gain some kind of huge power boost, along with a change in their physical appearance, such as their hair or physique, or even a change of clothes. Maybe there’s a protracted sequence in which they attain their new look. Regardless, it’s basically become a kind of visual shorthand to indicate that a character has attained a new level of strength. Is it used too frequently? Probably. But it’s rarely not cool, and it gives animators a new challenge, so we’re not really complaining too much.
#3: Elemental Manipulation
Earth, wind, and fire! And water…and ice…electricity…basically any fundamental aspect of the world! Anime sure loves its elements! Superpowers based on the classical and not-so classical element are nearly the most overused superpowers in all of anime. Entire franchises have been based around the concept of characters generating or manipulating the elements – just look at “Pokémon!” It’s not exactly a cliché limited to the medium either, as stories in cultures the world over and throughout history have featured elemental superpowers. But it’s become a hallmark of superpowers for good reason – it’s awesome.
#2: Super Strength
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Super strength is pretty much the original superpower, and it’s all over anime too. Anime characters are often able to accomplish absurd feats of strength and power as a matter of course. A lot of the time it’s not even their main power, it’s just something that a ridiculous amount of training can give someone. But even the most die-hard muscle heads in the real world can’t bench press a building! At this point, it’s honestly refreshing when a superpowered anime character can’t accomplish everything with their fists, because it means they have to be more creative and strategic. Still, there is a certain “wow factor” involved with super strength…
#1: Anti-Power & Nullification
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Oddly, one of the most frequently seen superpowers in anime is the power to halt other people from using their own powers. Power or magic nullifier abilities are a popular and somewhat overpowered superpower because they’re a great way of bringing other powerful characters down to size. With one touch, look, or hit, a previously unstoppable power becomes void, giving the hero or villain a chance to capitalize on their foe’s weakened state. This ability may be the great leveler, but it’s become a bit overused. Instead of discovering a clever workaround to others’ powers, this one just cancels them out entirely, which is a little too easy.
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