Throughout anime history, weapons have always been part of a series' identity. But there are some unusual anime weapons that defy explanation.
Kamehemehas in Dragon Ball Z, Saint Seiya's armor, giant robots like Gundams and Evangelions, and automail from Full Metal Alchemist are all iconic weapons. But then there are unsual weapons that range from the odd (roses, card games) to the mind-boggling (nose hair).
While not as flashy as Rasengans or Kamehamehas, do unusual weapons still make an impact? Here are the 10 most unusual anime weapons that are indeed feasible and do make a splash.
Some of these may be disturbing and contain spoilers for Naruto, Kill la Kill, Code Geass, and other anime on this list.
The 10 most unusual anime weapons
10) Eye-based powers
Eyes are said to be the windows to the soul, and these weaponized ones serve as windows into other people’s souls. They are also some of the most bland in the category of unusual anime weapons, due to how popularized the concept has become.
The first entry is the three eye powers (known as the Three Great Dōjutsu) from Naruto: The Sharingan, Byakugan, and Rinnegan.
The Sharingan, literally named Copy Wheel Eye, allows the user to copy virtually any technique they see performed.
The Byakugan, the All Seeing White Eye, can see through virtually any obstacle, track down enemies even from 50 meters away, and see an opponent’s chakra. The Rinnegan, the Eye of Six Paths, is an especially powerful Dōjutsu, granting access to a state called The Six Paths.
This state can control various things from animals to attractive and repulsive forces, to one's very soul.
Geass from Code Geass has various uses. Lelouch vi Britannia, the main character, used it to force people to do whatever he wanted. The main villain Charles Zi Britiannia could alter memories. Rolo Lamperouge had the ability to alter the perception of time, stopping it for a brief period.
9) Flowers
Ah, flowers! They smell good, they get pollinated by bees, and they usually suggest beauty and class. For these users, however, these normally pretty plants serve as unusual anime weapons.
Tuxedo Mask in Sailor Moon used roses to attack monsters and save Sailor Senshi on more than one occasion. One of them broke through an illusion to awaken the Senshi in the movie Super Sailor S, while the other stopped a plane in the original 90s anime.
Yuko Kurama in Yu Yu Hakusho has a rosewhip he can create from a seed, among other techniques involving demonic energy fused with plants. He can create razor sharp hail with the thorns and petals of flowers, and even carnivorous plants.
8) Books
Books are usually meant for reading, enjoying, and studying. However, this unusual anime weapons entry must have not gotten the memo.
The titular Death Note has the ability to kill anyone provided their name is written down, and the user has to write their cause of death as well. If no cause of death is written down, the victim is stricken with a fatal heart attack.
7) Kids' toys
Yes, even kids' toys are not immune from being unusual anime weapons, especially when card games are enhanced by Kaibacorp brand holograms like Yu-Gi-Oh! Players can feel the damage and often the mind and soul are on the line.
Duel Masters is the same, where the cards come to life and the monsters are real. In both cases, losing a game can have lasting consequences (usually the loss of a soul).
Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Battle Tendency has Joseph Joestar using clackers. Joseph Joestar enhances them with Hamon (an energy technique involving breathing and heat) to fight the vampiric Pillar Men. They can be thrown at the enemy or looped pillars to return like a boomerang, with enough speed and heat to cut skin.
6) Puppets
Puppets are supposed to be enjoyable and entertaining. These are definitely fitting in the category of unusual anime weapons, especially Kankuro and Sasori’s puppets from Naruto.
Whereas, Kankuro's puppets were simply mechanical and wood creations brought to life thanks to chakra strings, Sasori’s were made from living humans.
Sasori was estimated to have well over 298 human puppets by the time of Naruto Shippuden and they all possessed a unique and deadly affinity for bladework, fire, and other lethal armaments. It's poetic justice that Sasori was made into a puppet following his death at the hands of Sakura and lady Chiyo.
5) Giant scissors
Scissors are normally used to cut things, but aren’t normally considered weapons. However, Kill la Kill’s version is deadlier than the average pair and certainly one of the more unusual weapon choices on this list.
Though they function like swords, what makes the scissor blades from Kill la Kill unusual is their design and fusion ability. They are two halves of a whole pair of scissors, and have been sharp enough to not just slice clothing but entire buildings.
When they fuse into one, they are able to pierce even the most stubborn of life fiber-based defenses.
4) Jars
Jars tend to hold things, or otherwise are used for mundane purposes like containing or collecting water and plants. A jar that contains evil, however, is most definitely one of the more unusual anime weapons. The Mafuba, aka the Evil Containment Wave from Dragon Ball, Z, and Super is a sealing technique that seals evil in a jar.
It’s about as basic as it sounds, but is difficult to pull off and requires immense physical and mental strain to contain whatever evil is being sealed. It also requires a seal, as Goku got the wrong tag in the manga version of the Dragon Ball Super Future Trunks arc, thereby allowing Zamasu to escape.
3) People transforming into weapons
Transformation sequences tend to be commonplace in anime these days. Super forms, enraged forms, secondary states, all manner of transformations are commonplace. But what about when people change into weapons?
That is pretty rare. even in the field of unusual anime weapons. That’s where Soul Eater, particularly Death the Kid’s DeGuns,Twin Guns come in.
The guns are the weapon forms of Elizabeth and Patricia Thompson, twin girls abandoned at an early age and forced to commit crimes on the streets of New York to survive. They transform into twin guns and can fire energy.
2) Sweat
Sweat is not usually something that is associated with weapons, it’s usually associated with hot days, a distinct smell, and it's hard to get out of laundry! It's not even seen in most anime either.
But for My Hero Academia’s Katsuki Bakugo, sweat forms the backbone of his Explosion Quirk.
Bakugo’s sweat is akin to nitroglycerin. It creates explosions anywhere between a small grenade blast and a fiery tornado. The more sweat he produces, the bigger the explosion.
1) Nose Hair
Hairpower is a favorite of anime superheroes, from yandere Yukako Yamagishi’s Love Deluxe stand in Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable to Bayonetta in Bayonetta: Bloody Fate, and the antagonist Kumadori in One Piece.
But that’s hair as in growing from the scalp (or in Bayonetta’s case, clothing). What about nose hair?
Bo-bobo in Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo is one of the weirdest weapon users. He uses a style called "Fist of the Nose Hair," which involves using his nose hair to fight. He uses nose hair to protect himself (it’s ineffective), use as whips, and even paralyze opponents - the versatility is utterly bizarre. It’s easy to see that this is one of the most unusual anime weapons.
Note: This article reflects the opinion of the writer.