A staple of a successful anime battle involves a character snatching victory from the jaws of a seemingly guaranteed loss, usually by surpassing their limit and reaching new heights. Anime fights thrive because of this unpredictability, the viewer never knowing who truly holds the advantage.

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However, there are some characters who, for some reason or another, find themselves continuously on the losing side. They're disregarded by the winning anime formula, destined to lose no matter how strong they are. Of course, there aren't many characters who lose every fight, but there are those whose rare wins are buried beneath a sea of losses.

9 Genos' Upgrades Are Never Enough (One-Punch man)

Genos Prepares To Incinerate Someone

Throughout One-Punch Man, Genos has established himself as a bit of a punching bag. It's not that Genos isn't strong—his strength is actually monstrous—it's just that he picks fights with villains who thoroughly outclass him. The demon cyborg's terrible record derives from his strong moral compass; he must always be true to his hero status and help those in need.

He will therefore take on anyone and is willing to die for that cause. The S-Class hero does have a few victories to his name and is constantly receiving upgrades from his creator. Hopefully one day, Genos gets to turn someone into his punching bag.

8 Vegeta's Overwhelming Pride Means He Never Backs Down (Dragon Ball)

Vegeta frowns

True to the Saiyan blood that courses through his body, Vegeta cannot turn down a battle. And, more often than not, he doesn't fight for the greater good. Instead, he is determined to test his own strength against the very best in the universe.

The Saiyan's overwhelming pride has resulted in many defeats throughout the long-running anime, with notable losses to Frieza, Cell, Beerus and Goku. But what makes Vegeta so endearing is his unwillingness to let those losses define him, coming back stronger every time, resulting in his monstrous power increase over the years. Vegeta's losses usually lead to growth, so why not keep losing?

7 Megumi Is In The Wrong Place At The Wrong Time (Jujutsu Kaisen)

megumi using his cursed energy against sukuna in jujutsu kaisen

Megumi Fushiguro is a talented second-year jujutsu sorcerer who inherited the Zenin's clan legendary Ten Shadows Technique. Caught up in the middle of an unprecedented era where special grade curses are more powerful and prominent than ever, Megumi is forced to take on opponents that someone of his level traditionally wouldn't.

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He experienced tough losses to Sukuna and Hanami but learned a lot about his power and himself in the process. Gojo theorized that Megumi could one day surpass him, but for now, the Zenin prodigy must learn how to contend with the monsters that appear before him.

6 The Beast Titan Cannot Overcome Captain Levi (Attack on Titan)

levi beast titan

Upon introduction, the Beast Titan was painted as an overwhelming force, possessing unrivaled strength, intelligence, and villainy. His credentials were immediately established with his decimation of Mike, humanity's second strongest soldier. Finally, fans thought, Levi had a true rival and their battle was highly anticipated. But it wasn't much of a battle at all, instead, it was a domination.

Levi moved too fast for the beast, blinding him and slicing his Achilles before removing Zeke Yaeger from the nape. It was an iconic anime battle that proved Levi was in a completely different league. Since then, the Beast Titan has tasted further defeat to Levi. For someone so intelligent, Zeke can't seem to leave Levi alone.

5 Kakashi Only Deals With The Strongest Ninja (Naruto)

Kakashi looks worried and ponders

It should first be noted that Kakashi has a lot of victories to his name. He is arguably the most famous ninja in the world, a reputation established by skill and experience as a shinobi. However, the copycat ninja does lose quite often throughout Naruto. He is easily disabled by Itachi and loses his life at the hands of Pain.

Additionally, Naruto saves his sensei on several occasions, dispatching those who are just a notch above Kakashi. This shouldn't discredit Kakashi's place amongst the greats. But his willingness to take on anyone who threatens his village results in a significant amount of losses.

4 Eren Yeager Was Always Being Rescued (Attack on Titan)

Levi Squad Surrounds Eren In Attack On Titan

Attack On Titan's popularity is partly due to its reluctance to shy away from the brutality of its world and the frailty of the humans who occupy it. This makes Eren a fitting protagonist. Aside from his willpower, there is nothing superhuman about him and he experiences loss time and time again.

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Early in the series, Eren is limited by his humanity and watches his mother die at the hands of the monstrous Titans. Later, with access to his Titan power, Eren loses due to a lack of experience and skill. Helplessness and inferiority are both human experiences. It isn't until later that Eren hones his skill and tastes the sweetness of victory. But during the first few seasons, the complex hero is nothing more than a punching bag.

3 Fighting Is Not One Of Takemichi's Strengths (Tokyo Revengers)

Takemichi crying

Living in a world where one's standing is decided by their fighting ability, Takemichi defies the orthodox. The lovable protagonist gets his butt kicked practically every episode and it's not unusual to see his face awash with blood and tears. What sets him apart is his unbreakable will and his compassionate view within an unforgiving world.

Takemichi puts his body on the line to protect his friends, and his actions inspire those around him. He is a leader, not a fighter. But let's not discredit his toughness for Takemichi always gets back up no matter how bad the beating.

2 Garou Underestimates The Strength Of Heroes (One-Punch Man)

Garou from One-Punch Man

Garou calls himself the hero hunter and, true to his name, targets those who protect the world from monsters. Taught by the legendary Silver Fang, Garou possesses nearly unprecedented martial arts skills on top of his immense physical prowess. But he also sports an arrogant attitude, believing himself to always be stronger than his opponent.

When targeting S-Class heroes, Garou is handily defeated by Watchdog Man's inhuman movements and Saitama's immeasurable strength. His "victory" against Metal Bat was won on a technicality because of the appearance of Bat's sister. Garou is a monster but loses to his fair share of heroes.

1 Rock Lee's Hard Work Almost Never Pays Off (Naruto)

Rock lee protecting Naruto

Rock Lee won the hearts of fans with his 'hard work beats talent' philosophy. Possessing no talent for genjutsu or ninjutsu, Lee focused all of his efforts on taijutsu, reaching a level that only a select few ninja can claim to have reached. His battle with Gaara was a clash of differing ninja ways; Gaara's prodigious ability against Lee's inhuman perseverance.

The epic fight ended in a loss for Lee, representing the beginning of a common script for the Taijutsu expert. Lee remained a difficult opponent but rarely went home with the win. His limitations were more and more obvious as the series went on, and hard work can only cover so much. Despite his popularity, Lee has rarely been a winner.

 NEXT: Naruto: 10 Things That Make No Sense About The Uchiha Clan