Sometimes anime can show exactly what a father shouldn't be. Other times, the heartwarming bonds between father and child might just make you want to pick up the phone and call your dad to tell him how much he is appreciated. Either way, the emotion and character development in anime can often remind fans of the important relationships in their own life.
Whether it's by shedding light on what they do or don't have, anime can make fans appreciative of their fathers. While fathers should always warrant that level of appreciation, there are a few anime that certainly expedite the process.
10 Minato Trapped A Demon Inside His Son's Body (Naruto Shippuden)
Throughout most of Naruto's young life, he doesn't even know who his father is. It isn't until Shippuden when Naruto finally meets his father Minato and learns that he was the fourth Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village.
Being that Naruto's ultimate goal has been to become the Hokage, the fact that his father was a Hokage who gave his life to protect the village shatters all that he thought he knew. Unfortunately, he also saved the village by sealing the nine tail fox within Naruto's body. It's safe to say having the Hokage for a father isn't all it's cracked up to be.
9 Dai's Father Begins As His Bitter Enemy (Dragon Quest: The Adventures of Dai)
The dynamic between Dai and his father Baran in Dragon Quest: The Adventures of Dai is just about as complex as one can get. Baran is initially the Commander of the Dragon Legion, a group of Dragon Knights within King Vearn's Dark Army. Dai and his father get into incredible battles that end in their near-death, butthis also gradually causes Dai to earn Baran's respect.
This is clearly a toxic relationship in which Dai's father is going through his own trauma and taking it out on his son. In the end, Baran gives his life to protect Dai, and with his dying breath passes his power onto him.
8 Ichigo's Father Hid The Truth From Him For His Entire Life (Bleach)
Ichigo's relationship with his father, Isshin, appears from the start of Bleach as rather strange. They are constantly seen getting into physical fights of truly intense proportions. Isshin is a single father throughout the show, and it isn't revealed until later that Isshin himself was once a powerful Soul Reaper.
It soon becomes clear that all their seemingly senseless fighting was really a way of Isshin training his son to fight with knowledge of the fate he would inevitably face. Isshin is a selfless father, and one who shows fans how a father can uplift their child to become the best version of themselves.
7 Tohru's Father Would Be Proud of Her (Fruits Basket)
In Fruits Basket, fathers play an important, often painful role in the development of the characters. There's the main character, Tohru, whose father died when she was still young. Then there's Tohru's friend Arisa, who was neglected by her own father and acts almost as a father figure to Tohru.
Finally, there's Shigure, the dog spirit, who acts in a fatherly role to both Kyo and Yuki, the cat and rat respectively. A reoccurring theme throughout the show is that a father can come in all shapes, sizes, and species.
6 Ash Never Talks About His Father (Pokémon)
Pokémon is often thought to be a cute, heartwarming story of a boy and his cuddly creature friends. Ash's journey is not about the destination, but rather the friends he meets along the way. The one person he never meets along the way however, is his father.
The absence of Ash's father has long been a talking point for fans of the anime who wonder just where he could have gone and why Ash rarely acknowledges him. Regardless of the reason, Ash's non-relationship with his father can make anyone appreciative of having a dad in their life.
5 Goku Is The Most Terrifying Fighter/Father In The Universe (Dragon Ball)
If there's any father who's both super cool and super terrifying, it's undoubtedly Dragon Ball's Goku. It's very clear that he loves his children and will put his life on the line for them, but at the same time, he has his less-than-fatherly moments.
For example, there's the time he gave Perfect Cell a Senzu Bean to heal him before his fight with Gohan to the death. Not to mention that he often leaves his family for months or even years on end to train. Still, Gohan is both one of the strongest fighters in the universe and a college graduate, so his father must have done something right.
4 All Fathers Should Treat Their Daughter Like Dale Treats Latina (If It's For My Daughter, I'd Even Defeat A Demon Lord)
In If It's for My Daughter, I'd Even Defeat a Demon Lord, an experienced adventurer named Dale takes in a young girl who was left out all alone. Her name is Latina, and it turns out she's a demon who was outcast by her tribe. As far as the rest of the show goes, the title pretty much says it all.
One of the reoccurring themes in anime seems to be that a parent is more than just genetics. They are someone who loves and cares for you, even if you're a demon. Though not all fathers are quite as powerful as Dale in being able to take on a full-fledged Demon Lord, it's the thought that counts.
3 Eren Is A Father's Worst Nightmare (Attack On Titan)
In Attack On Titan, the relationship between main character Eren and his father grows more and more complicated as the show goes on. It appears at first to be a loving father-son bond, only later to unveil Eren's father was not who he thought he was.
Even later in the show, viewers learn it was actually Eren who was the dishonest one, proving that the truth may be all about perspective. One thing is certain: Dad is often there to tell a person what they're doing wrong just as much as what they're doing right. In Eren's case, maybe he should've listened.
2 Any Guardian Can Be Like A Father, Even A Golem (Somali & The Forest Spirit)
Somali and the Forest Spirit is the heart-wrenching tale of a little girl who finds herself all alone in the world and the golem that sets out to protect her. This show demonstrates in the clearest possible way that love is deeper than blood.
The golem shows the selflessness of a father in its willingness to spend the brief remainder of its life in service of this helpless human child. Sometimes, a father figure doesn't have to be the one with your DNA; it can just be a person (or golem) who's got your back through thick and thin.
1 All Ed & Al Needed Was Their Dad (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)
The death of a parent is never easy. In Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, when Edward and Alphonse lose their mother, they obsess over finding a way of bringing her back — even at the cost their own bodies. The parent who is still alive (their father) left their family long before the incident that caused them to lose everything to alchemy.
The one who taught them about alchemy (also their father) was not there to guide them down a path that could have prevented their future hardship. Such stories can help fans better appreciate the parents and loved ones who are there to guide them through life.