Foreshadowing is the process of scattering clues about future events to keep viewers hooked on the main story. Some of the best foreshadowing in anime leads to well-deserved plot twists, satisfying revelations, and perfectly revealed secrets that some characters hid from others.
However, there are plenty of anime that attempt to use foreshadowing to create tension in the main plotlines but fail in the execution. Some series attempt to foreshadow potential consequences of the characters’ actions, such as Bonjour Sweet Love Patisserie. Others do too much foreshadowing and spoil key aspects of the main story, such as My Next Life As A Villainess‘ second season and the Demon King’s visit to the pharmacy in Drugstore In Another World.
8 Bonjour Sweet Love Patisserie Never Delivered On Its Foreshadowing Consequences Of Student-Teacher Relationships
Bonjour Sweet Love Patisserie foreshadowed the consequences of having student-teacher relationships, but no actual consequences occurred in the main story. Sayuri Haruno often had opportunities to get close and personal with her love interests, all of whom were instructors at the patisserie academy. One of the headteachers, Nadeshiko, constantly warned the students and the instructors not to get too close to each other, but she never openly punished anyone for their actions. The other staff members also never dissuaded the students and instructors from getting too close.
7 The Opening Sequence For My Next Life As A Villainess X Spoiled Much Of Its Main Story
The opening sequence for My Next Life As A Villainess’ second season, My Next Life As A Villainess X, gave away many spoilers for its main story. The opening introduced many new characters, including Sora, Ian, and Selena. Geordo, Keith, and Sora all kiss Catarina in the intro, giving awaay the fact that both all three of them eventually kiss Catarina in the season. The opening’s antics, though fun to watch, were over-foreshadowed and gave away too many events in the main storylines.
6 Drugstore In Another World’s Constant Foreshadowing Ruined The Demon King’s Eventual Visit
Over half of Drugstore In Another World’s episodes showed the Demon King slowly growing addicted to energy drink potions. The Demon King finally visited the drugstore personally several episodes later, aiming to get more potions for himself. Viewers were unsurprised when he became one of the drugstore’s permanent employees.
What was surprising, however, was that the Demon King did not visit the drugstore any sooner than he did. Considering how many episodes showed him being increasingly addicted to the energy drink potions, his eventual appearance took far too long to pay off.
5 Riko Being Confronted By Minor Characters About Lying About Her Love Life Ruined Love Lab’s Main Story
During Love Lab, many minor characters confront Riko about her not having dated anyone before. However, Riko previously told Natsuo and the other members of the titular Love Lab that she did have experience with dating. This clear, constant contradiction spoiled the main conflict of the story. Riko refused to come clean about her lies until Love Lab’s finale, where she finally broke down and confessed out of guilt. The others’ willingness to forgive Riko, despite how long it took her to tell the truth, made this storyline all the worse.
4 Princess Connect! Re: Dive Revealing Pecorine As The Real Princess Eustiana Was Over-Foreshadowed
Some were suspicious of Pecorine’s real identity from the first episode of Princess Connect! Re: Dive. Each episode had unique foreshadowing pointing to Pecorine not being a regular adventurer compared to Kokoro and Yuuki. The first season’s final episodes revealed that Pecorine was the real Princess Eustiana, which did not surprise some viewers. However, what surprised many was that the main villain, Mana, took over Eustiana’s identity and made everyone in the kingdom think that Mana was Eustiana. This forced Pecorine to flee the kingdom and find some way to reclaim her title, something that fans hope will happen during the currently-airing second season.
3 DRAMAtical Murder’s Too-Early Foreshadowing Led To Ruining Koujaku’s Eventual Backstory
DRAMAtical Murder’s anime adaptation suffered from rushed plot pacing thanks to mashing every single route of the visual novel together. This led to cutting out or rushing key aspects of the love interests’ stories to fit into the adaptation’s twelve episodes and OVA, including Koujaku’s backstory.
The anime’s early episodes revealed too early that Koujaku hid something deeply personal from Aoba, despite both of them being childhood friends. This led to viewers being unsurprised when later episodes revealed Koujaku’s tragic backstory and the reasons behind his large but hidden tattoos.
2 Yakitate!! Japan Revealed Yukino’s True Colors Too Early
Yakitate!! Japan foreshadowed Yukino Azusagawa’s true colors too early. Despite her kind and beautiful appearance in public, Matsushiro informed Azuma and Kawachi beforehand that Yukino threw Tsukino’s mother’s ashes onto a dead tree. This story contrasted with Yukino’s first in-person appearance and gave away her being a horrible person too soon. Yukino later sabotaged the semi-finals, preventing Kawachi from battling Azuma in the finals of the Pantasia Newcomers Tournament. Though other characters tried exposing Yukino for her crimes, including general manager Meister Kirisaki, they did not succeed because she successfully covered up her tracks.
1 Kaolinite’s Sudden Reappearance Sailor Moon As Kaori Immediately Undercut Her Previous Defeat
When Kaolinite first reappeared as Dr. Tomoe’s secretary Kaori, it too easily foreshadowed that Kaolinite was somehow now alive and working for Tomoe again. Since Sailor Moon‘s cast first defeated and killed her several episodes before, viewers guessed that Tomoe somehow resurrected Kaolinite. Later episodes confirmed that Kaori was Kaolinite all along and Tomoe did bring her back to continue stealing pure hearts, to no one’s surprise. She then successfully kidnapped Chibiusa and stole her pure heart to revive Mistress 9, who resided in Hotaru’s body at the time. However, Mistress 9 promptly killed Kaolinite after her revival and this second death was permanent.
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