Anime and Manga Stack Exchange
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Questions tagged [tropes]

A recurring element across anime, manga or works in other media. Tropes cover clichés, genre conventions and other recurring plot points, character types, narration styles, …

A trope, in the general sense used here, is a feature that is found in many creative works (anime, manga, or any other media), for example a plot point, a character type, a setting, a narration style, etc. It is expected that at least some readers or viewers will recognize the trope. Some tropes have a well-identified source that other works have imitated, departed from or alluded to; others are so old that their origin has long been lost.

The website TV Tropes collects tropes (in all media, including anime and manga, despite the name). If you're looking for a list of works using a certain trope, TV Tropes is the place to look. You'll also find lists of tropes seen in a particular work.

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Where did the anime trope of "clothing damage"/"clothes being torn" originate?

I noticed that commonly now in anime that mostly female characters' clothes are being torn especially in fight scenes. I googled and found this to be called Clothing Damage, and here are a list of examples from anime and manga from which I remember…
Kym NT
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How did the angry symbol originate?

We've all seen it many times... When someone gets angry or annoyed, the angry symbol (shown below) shows up one or more times in and around the person's head. Where did it come from? How did it get popularized? Is there a proper term for it?
Mysticial
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Why is there so much reluctant sex in hentai?

Multiple authors on the net have pointed out that a lot of the sex in hentai is, or appears to be, non-consensual. From here: http://magicalgirlproject.tumblr.com/post/91661244454/porno-month-reflections-why-so-much-rape-in I watched 20 hentai over…
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What's the origin of spiral glasses as a Japanese stereotype?

I've noticed - and indubitably, others have, too, as noted on this TV Tropes page - that often, whenever a "nerdy" character wears glasses in anime, they have a spiral shape on them. Examples are easy to find, with popular examples including Saori…
kayay78
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Why do people wearing a headband with two flashlights or candles when acting crazy or out of place?

So sometimes in Anime and Manga when someone is acting crazy or out of character when on a rant they wear a headband with two flashlights or lit candles pointing up. I am wondering what the reason for this is or if it symbolizes something.
Kurt
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Is there a term for "two-faced" or "reverse-tsundere" characters?

Is there a (Japanese) cultural term for reverse-tsundere-type or two-faced characters who are sweet on the outside, but mean people on the inside. Like Kanako from Oreimo and Akira from Lucky Star?
кяαzєя
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Why do many anime OPs and EDs have onscreen lyrics?

I have noticed that much, but by no means all, of the anime that I've seen has had lyrics onscreen during either its OPs, EDs, or both. Why is this so? I know karaoke is fairly popular in Japan, so do people actually sing along while they wait for…
Miguel
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What was the first anime that uses different ending/opening songs in every episode?

After watching a few series I realised that some of them use different opening/ending songs in each episode (e.g. Oreimo). I noticed that it must've been quite expensive to do this, and some other animes like Love Live use the same song sang by…
Enrico Susatyo
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Why there are many scenes in anime that take place on the roof?

Why there are many scenes in anime that take place on roofs, particularly the roof of schools? School roof seem to be a popular place for students who want to be alone with no one else there. Sometimes they come in for lunch, or just relax…
Darjeeling
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Name of hair style with one strand sticking upwards

I always forget what this special hairstyle is called, which is shared by some characters. I'll give some examples, I think it should be clear what I mean. Edward Elric also has this wisp(?), but I can't find a good image of it. What is it called?…
looper
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What does the "S" stand for in s-rank or s-class?

I know that S rank/class is above the standard A-F ranks/classes. A-F are used because they're the first letters of the alphabet. Is there a reason S is used, and/or does it stand for something? Maybe super or superior?
David Hobs
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Why do anime girls have huge chests?

Today while reading "Mushoku Tensei" I once again got confronted with a character with (in my opinion) an insanely large chest. It even got mentioned that it could easily be a J size chest. I understand that there will off course be some difference…
Dimitri mx
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What is that accessory featured around Japanese gods' necks?

It's like a...fluffy...thingy. It floats around their head and past their shoulders and down to their waist. I see it a lot. The two characters with it who come to mind are Guren from Shounen Onmyouji and Elsie from The World God Only Knows, but…
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Why do anime characters stand on telephone poles all the time?

In a lot of anime and anime-styled fan work, anime characters are shown standing on the tops of telephone poles. I understand this angle makes it easy to show the character against nice scenery, but it's not something that should be as regular as…
Toshinou Kyouko
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Where did the Skinship Grope trope come from?

We have all seen it often before, that when girls are among themselves, they tend to playfully grope their friend's breasts and it all seems to be okay and accepted behaviour. This trope is thus appropriately called Skinship Grope. I am aware this…
Peter Raeves
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