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Most people watch anime so that they can escape the real world.
Well we’re bringing the real world to anime – the penal system, to be more exact.
So which anime characters would most likely end up in prison? That’s our topic for this ranking!
And in order to make it more fun – I’m going to limit myself to avoid simply listing off murderers (because that’s too obvious).
15. Katsuki Bakugo
Anime: My Hero Academia
If Bakugo came to the I-Island by plane (which I assume he did), I’m pretty sure that’s breaking some laws. Sure, since most people have Quirks, you could say that they wouldn’t be as strict about it.
However, Bakugo’s sweat is literally an explosive substance.
And since his actual Quirk is just to detonate it with sparks, he can’t really control that part.
In other words, he’s a walking bomb and a hazard to everyone around him. If even a single spark happened to reach him, the entire plane might just go down in flames.
He was probably aware of this and got on a plane anyway. So, it’s straight to the slammer for him! Because god knows people have been imprisoned for less.
14. Loid Forger
Anime: Spy x Family
If the taxpayers knew what Loid was doing with their money, there’d be a riot within a week.
In particular, I’m talking about the castle stunt that he pulled.
That must’ve cost a fortune – requiring lots of vehicles, manpower, and money. And there’s no way he could ever justify it as a necessary expense for his mission. After all, it was strictly for Anya’s benefit.
All of the murders he commits could probably be waved away given his position as a spy. But such reckless spending would certainly get him locked up or at least fined!
13. Yumeko Jabami
Anime: Kakegurui
As a whole, gambling is a very touchy subject in Japan – with most casinos treading the border of the law. However, underage gambling is definitely illegal.
And seeing how most of the characters in this show are about 16-17, they’d all get in trouble. After all, the legal gambling age in Japan is 20.
Plus some of the games straight up endanger your life – which I’m sure must be illegal to some extent.
And don’t even get me started on the whole “house pet” system!
Overall, I’m pretty sure every character in this show is breaking some law at every point. And I have a sneaking suspicion that their parents don’t even pay taxes.
12. Naruto Uzumaki
Anime: Naruto
It’s no secret that the Hokage Rock takes its inspiration from Mount Rushmore.
Well, did you know that defacing Mount Rushmore can hit you with a ten-year prison sentence?
And what do we see Naruto doing within the first episode? That’s right, defacing a historic monument (and this wasn’t even the first time he did it). On those charges alone, he could get the slammer.
But then you also have to think about how he stole sensitive government information (the Forbidden scroll). Having two such serious offenses back-to-back isn’t something that you can talk-no-jutsu your way out of!
11. Megumin
Anime: KonoSuba
You’d think that Aqua or Kazuma would find a way to get locked up at some point – but I think Megumin is far more likely to get hit with a penalty.
After all, her explosion ritual definitely falls under the destruction of property.
She literally nuked a castle.
And if that wasn’t bad enough, it was also inhabited!
Sure, the guy living there was evil – but I doubt the jury would be swayed so easily. And even when she was exploding random fields – I’m pretty sure that was illegal too!
10. Senku
Anime: Dr. Stone
Okay, this one’s a bit weird.
Initially, I was going to point out how he gained most of his allies by bribing them or somewhat skewing the system in his favor (like in the case of his 2-minute marriage). But then I found something more interesting.
Turns out, there’s an ONA for Dr. Stone where Senku reverses petrification by giving someone a Snickers. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure that’s false advertising.
Especially since this implies that Snickers can be eaten after 3,000 years. And on top of that, Senku never acknowledged the fact that this is an ad.
With Ryuko we could easily point out the countless examples of property damage and violent acts.
But that’s boring. Her acts of exhibitionism on the other hand are a different story all together.
We’ve already seen how other characters react to her transformations and we know that it borders on full nudity. Seeing how she does this in school and in the middle of the street, some indecency laws are definitely getting broken.
But you could say that about any character in this show.
However, Ryuko also destroys other people’s clothes (leaving them half-naked), which is definitely assault.
So my girl should be landing some jail time.
8. Sadao Maou
Anime: The Devil is a Part-Timer!
Although Sadao becomes a law-abiding citizen pretty quickly – we mustn’t forget the first episode.
In it, he both hypnotizes police officers and fakes his documents.
So, by all accounts, both he and Shirou (and the rest of the otherworld cast) are illegal immigrants. We can chalk up the brainwashing to obstruction of justice and the fake documents as a forgery. So, three criminal charges in total.
That combined with some property damage we see later on in the series would definitely get him in trouble. And seeing how he makes minimum wage – I don’t think he can really book a decent lawyer.
Identity theft is not a joke dear reader. Millions of families suffer every year.
And Oingo is basically doing it constantly. If that wasn’t bad enough, he also brought an explosive into a civilian car, with the goal of blowing everyone up.
So no matter how you spin it, Oingo is definitely getting some jail time.
His brother is a bit more difficult to pin down though – as telling the future is somewhat of a legal gray area.
Then again, if the two ever invested in stocks – some lawyer would have a field day.
6. Legoshi
Anime: Beastars
The obvious route for this one is the murder spree Legoshi went on when facing the lion mafia.
But, as stated in the intro, that’s too easy.
So let’s focus on Legoshi’s assault on Haru.
Not only did she fear for her life, but it also happened on school property – meaning that they can’t just squash it between themselves.
I’m not a lawyer or anything, but that would probably land him in some hot water.
And then there’s also the moral gray area of all those underground meat markets. Regardless, I’m pretty sure he should’ve at least notified the authorities after what he saw down there.
5. Saiki Kusuo
Anime: The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.
In many regards, Saiki is just a national threat.
For one, he’s constantly reading everyone’s mind. So who knows how much sensitive information he has acquired over the years?
Plus he has teleported to different countries on multiple occasions – which temporarily made him an illegal immigrant (as I doubt he made a stop at the border first).
There’s also the case of him manipulating all of human consciousness – but that’s a rather difficult case to prove in court, isn’t it?
4. Haruhi Suzumiya
Anime: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – Haruhi must’ve broken several sexual assault laws.
She basically just fondles and grabs whomever she wants without a care in the world!
She even scammed people out of their computers by blackmailing them with assault allegations that she herself has committed.
Seeing how she’s literally god – you’d think that she’d have a better moral compass than this.
3. Shizuo Heiwajima
Anime: Durarara!!
Basically, everyone in this show should be in prison.
From the gang wars to the underground doctor shenanigans – way too many laws are being broken!
But Shizuo is the easiest to pin down (not literally), as his vandalism knows no bounds.
Do you have any idea how much a vending machine costs? Or road repairs for where the road landed?
And that’s not even mentioning the fact that he’s endangering lives by cucking those bad boys around! Even this one crime alone would certainly land him some jail time.
But that’s not even his only offense. Nor is it an isolated incident!
I have to imagine that he owes the government millions considering all the shenanigans he has pulled.
2. Koro-Sensei
Anime: Assassination Classroom
It’s made clear very early on that Koro-Sensei is public enemy number one.
And that’s a pretty valid plot point given how he threatened to blow up the moon and played with fighter jets.
We also later learn that he was an assassin himself. So there’s plenty of blood on his hands.
But that’s not what I want to focus on here.
My dude was working as a teacher even though he never got his official license. As someone who studied to be a teacher, I find this unacceptable! Off to prison with him!
1. Kaguya Shinomiya
Anime: Kaguya-sama: Love is War
The show should’ve been called Love is War Crimes because Kaguya is definitely guilty of some foul play.
For example, how all of the contestants running against her beloved dropped out under mysterious circumstances. Given how influential her family is – that smells like type A blackmail.
And Kaguya generally abuses her influence quite a bit.
Spying on people, manipulation, maybe a few wrongful terminations… The show doesn’t give us too much to go off of, but I know that she’s pulled some criminal acts under our noses.
