Shonen anime is one of the most popular genres around, with the more notable anime originating within this genre itself. The power fantasies enabled by this genre allow viewers to witness some truly special moments as heroic characters break through their limits and reach new heights of power.RELATED: The Smartest Female Characters In Shonen Anime, RankedThat being said, shonen anime is also notorious for pitting their characters against the odds over and over again, only for them to come out victorious. For the most part, the explanations for these moments are pretty concise, but there are moments when characters survive such unbelievable circumstances that it’s hard to buy into the narrative that these shonen anime try to peddle. Keeping this in mind, there are several examples of shonen anime blatantly using plot armor to let their heroes save the day.
10 Reiner Being Able To Transfer His Consciousness To His Spine (Attack On Titan)
While it’s hard to call Reiner a villain right now, given the circumstances, there’s no denying the fact that he was a bona fide bad guy till the end of Season 3. In fact, Levi was extremely close to stabbing his neck and taking his life once and for all.
However, this turned out to be insufficient, and Reiner managed to stay alive by… transferring his consciousness to his spine? It’s a move that comes out of nowhere and feels like a cheap way to extend the conflict between the residents of Paradis Island and the Marleyan Warriors.
9 The Incessant Power Of Friendship (Fairy Tail)
Fairy Tail is one of the most popular shonen anime of all time. It’s also one of the most frustrating ones, since it seems that the main character are downright invulnerable at moments.
People have lost count of the number of times Natsu and his buddies have managed to survive and win against extremely powerful foes over and over again. The fact that these victories are achieved through the power of friendship makes the show even more annoying to watch.
8 Naruto And Sasuke Being Reincarnations Of Ashura And Indra (Naruto)
The Fourth Shinobi World War arc is a mixed bag, and made even worse since it runs for an unnecessarily long time. During this arc, both Naruto and Sasuke are fatally injured and almost pass away.
RELATED: Shonen Anime Villains With The Coolest Last Lines
However, Hagoromo Otsutsuki comes out of nowhere and tells both ninjas that they’re the reincarnations of his two sons, before reviving them with incredible powers of their own. This plot point comes out of nowhere and feels horribly misplaced, especially since one of the core messages of Naruto during its early run was fighting against one’s destiny to carve their own fate.
7 Ichigo Randomly Gaining Incredible Power Before Fighting Aizen (Bleach)
Bleach was a series with a lot of potential, before a ton of problems behind the scenes led to the manga slowly dropping in qualit, and then ultimately fizzling out. The anime suffered as a result, with a great villain being sacrificed for a ‘cool moment’.
The fact that Ichigo managed to sneak in so much training before his battle against Aizen that he completely trivialized the fight is hard to believe. He uses one move to defeat Aizen and loses his Shinigami powers for good, only to regain them after one of the worst shonen storylines of all time in the form of the Fullbring arc.
6 Touma Coming Back From The Brink Of Death Every Single Time (A Certain Magical Index)
A Certain Magical Index is a pretty engaging shonen anime with great moments of its own. However, there are times when viewers genuinely question just how lucky the main characters can get at times.
Kamijou Touma, the main protagonist, gets way too much plot armor in this series at times. Even after getting beaten time and time again, he somehow comes back and is better than ever almost every single time, which can get frustrating after a point due to how lazy it feels.
5 The Legacy Of Jesus Yamato (Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny)
It would be impossible to talk about plot armor in shonen anime without mentioning the ridiculousness of Kira Yamato. While his survivability is present in Mobile Suit Gundam SEED as well, it’s the sequel to this show that is borderline absurd at times.
related: Best Shonen Anime Series On Funimation
The fact that Yamato can carry out extremely complicated programming and survive point-blank explosions was so hard to believe that people just lost interest in the show after a point. The fact that Jesus Yamato has become a popular phrase among fans shows how poor the plot armor in this anime really is.
4 Midoriya Managing To Beat Muscular Somehow (My Hero Academia)
There are various times throughout the series when Midoriya has been put against the ropes only to come out victorious. While this wasn’t a problem for most encounters, the fight against Muscular felt especially lazy given its poor conclusion.
After being hammered to a pulp by a villain who had clearly surpassed him in terms of sheer power, only a fool would assume that Midoriya could come out of this tight spot. However, after witnessing a child in danger, he somehow reaches deep within himself and unleashes a solitary attack that takes down Muscular. It’s a rather ham-fisted ending to an otherwise great fight.
3 Kirito Being Nigh Indestructible (Sword Art Online)
Plot armor and Sword Art Online are two terms that go hand-in-hand. Most people absolutely hate the show with a passion, mainly due to how uninteresting Kirito is given his OP status.
RELATED: Shonen Arcs That Are Just Too Long
The fact that he can fight the maker of the game he’s trapped in and still come out victorious is simply unbelievable. It’s just one of the many instances where Kirito should’ve rightfully tasted defeat, yet managed to persevere and win anyway.
2 Luffy Surviving Some Extremely One-Sided Affairs (One Piece)
For the most part, the plot armor in One Piece isn’t all that egregious. Luffy might be a goofball at times, but his combat aptitude is pretty great, and it’s generally accepted that his luck plays a major role during fights.
That being said, there are times when even he pushes this luck a bit too much for someone to fathom. His fights against Crocodile in Arabasta and against Magellan in Impel Down are great examples of this.
1 The Convenient Manner In Which Eren Was Eaten (Attack On Titan)
It’s been specified time and time again in Attack on Titan that Pure Titans who eat Eldians with Titan powers end up reverting to human form with powers of their own. However, it seems that this idea went for a toss when Eren was eaten by a Titan for the first time.
He was conveniently left alive in the Titan’s stomach, letting him transform from within and become the Attack Titan for the first time. It’s a moment that most people don’t have a problem with, although it’s still pretty fishy regardless.
MORE: Underrated Female Characters In Battle Shonen Anime That Need More Love
