Manga published in Shonen Jump Magazine and the subsequent anime that spawn from the more successful stories are full of uber-powerful characters that fans can root for. From the ever-strengthening Goku and Vegeta in Dragon Ball, to the captain of the Straw Hats and seventh Hokage in One Piece and Naruto respectively, Shonen Jump knows how to introduce a powerhouse.

RELATED: 10 Reasons Why Shonen Is The Best Genre Of Anime

Of course, there's the flip side to this. For every hero who's the best of the best, there are those who are just the worst of the worst. From plushie lions to a detective who isn't great at his job and more, here are the weakest characters from Shonen Jump.

Updated on March 9th, 2022 by Sarah Martin: Some anime characters are truly the weakest links in Shonen Jump anime. Often to the detriment of the plot, these characters are hilariously weak. It almost makes fans feel sorry for these characters because no matter what, they just can't seem to get any stronger. With recent releases, there are even more characters who have proven to be the weakest links in their respective series'. 

21 Takemichi Hanagaki Was Disappointing

Takemichi watching TV

As far as protagonists go, Takemichi Hanagaki from Tokyo Revengers is pretty lackluster. He certainly doesn't act the way a main character is expected to – and he doesn't break the norm in a good way. Takemichi is a major crybaby and just takes punches from the rest of the characters.

Takemichi is the one who ends up getting saved by everybody else, even though that's supposed to be his role as the protagonist. Takemichi is disappointing because he doesn't have the mental fortitude to compensate for his lack of physical strength.

20 Tsezguerra Is The Weakest Hunter

Tsezguerra Preparing a Jump - Hunter X Hunter

Tsezguerra from Hunter X Hunter is called the Single-Star Jackpot Hunter and appeared during the Greed Island arc. Though his appearance made him look strong upon his introduction, things went downhill for him quickly as fans learned more about him.

RELATED: Hunter X Hunter: 10 Likable Characters Fans Grew To Hate

During the dodgeball game, he was the weakest one playing. His Nen abilities aren't the most impressive, either. Tsezguerra didn't prove himself to be a formidable opponent, and would certainly lose if he were up against any member of the main cast.

19 Mitsuri Kanroji Is The Weakest Hashira

Mitsuri turns away shyly

Aside from her cute appearance, Mitsuri Kanroji is undoubtedly the weakest Hashira in Demon Slayer. Her limbs are oddly thin, but her muscle mass is eight times denser than an average person. She has immense endurance, but speed is not Mitsuri's strong suit.

She is the slowest of all the Hashira. Mitsuri was barely able to keep up with the others during the fight against Muzan, so she ended up dodging most of the attacks. She essentially serves well as a human shield, but it's fatal if she can't get out of a dire situation soon enough.

18 Despite His Name, Muscle Devil Is Quite Weak

Denji defeats the Muscle Devil.

Muscle Devil from Chainsaw Man is the weakest fiend in the series. Despite his ability to manipulate the muscles of whoever he touches, he's surprisingly frail. Even though he can manipulate the size and strength output of his muscles, this fiend isn't too impressive.

When Denji fought against him, Muscle Devil was defeated in an instant. Denji killed him as soon as the battle began, essentially. The battle was pretty much decided before it began. Denji didn't even have to exert much effort against this devil.

17 La Brava's Quirk Isn't Too Impressive

La Brava Videotapes Gentle Criminal In My Hero Academia

La Brava, or Manami Aiba, from My Hero Academia is the sidekick of Gentle Criminal. She films his devious acts so he can garner online popularity. Her quirk allows her to give her loved one a massive power boost by saying that she loves them.

RELATED: My Hero Academia: 5 Reasons Why Gentle Criminal & La Brava Are The Perfect Duo (& 5 Why They're The Worst)

Well, the audience remembers how well that worked out for the duo. Though they put up a good fight, not even the boost given to Gentle Criminal from La Brava's adoration was enough to defeat Izuku.

16 Orihime Inoue Is The Definition Of Wasted Potential

orihime happy

Orihime Inoue perhaps had the most potential out of all the characters in Bleach. She could use the Shun Shun Rikka in different ways, namely creating shields, healing allies, and cutting enemies into pieces. However, she rarely used this ability and was reduced down to a character who just needed to be saved all the time. Orihime is another example of a fate that many shonen characters fall into. They start out with lots of potential, but they end up being more of a supporter than they were initially introduced as.

15 Yamcha Was Cool In Dragon Ball, But Rather Useless In DBZ

Yamcha, during the Android Saga, Dragon Ball Z

Yamcha seemed like a promising character in the original Dragon Ball series, coming off as a worthy opponent for Son Goku and later an ally. He was a bandit who wielded a great scimitar. Unfortunately for Yamcha, his allies far outpaced him in terms of power by Dragon Ball Z. While human characters in Dragon Ball tend to be left in the dust by the likes of Goku, Piccolo, and Vegeta, Yamcha was left in the dust by his peers, Krillin and Tien Shinhan.

14 Konohamaru Is Possibly The Weakest Jonin In The Series

Konohamaru and Boruto

Konohamaru was another character who showed a lot of promise in his earlier appearances in Boruto. He was Naruto's biggest fan and even learned the Rasengan by Naruto Shippuden. He wanted to become the Seventh Hokage after Naruto was the Sixth.

As it turned out, Kakashi was destined to become the Sixth Hokage, with Naruto becoming the Seventh. Konohamaru becomes a Jonin and trains Boruto, Sarada, and Mitsuke. Unlike the Jonin in Naruto— Kakashi, Might Guy, Kurenai, and Asuma— Konohamaru doesn't seem like an impressive and influential teacher. Instead, he often seems outpaced by his students.

13 Minoru Mineta Is Held Back By His Fixations

Minoru Mineta resting his cheek against his hand from My Hero Academia

Mineta from My Hero Academia is a member of Class 1-A at UA, and he has a unique quirk. He can produce very sticky orbs from his body and use them to adhere an item to any surface. Unfortunately, Mineta is more interested in staring at and hitting on his female peers. Mineta could be a promising hero if he focused more on it, but he has spent more time watching classmates like Momo and Mina rather than training.

12 Shigekiyo Yangu Basically Just Inconveniences The Main Character

Shigekiyo Yangu from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

Shigekiyo Yangu is a minor character from JoJo's Bizarre AdventureDiamond Is Unbreakable. He becomes a minor antagonist for Josuke and Okuyasu because of his scheming nature. However, despite his negative qualities, he's become rather likable as the story goes on.

Unfortunately, Shigekiyo Yangu's life was cut short when he ran into none other than Yoshikage Kira and gets himself killed. For Kira, Shigekiyo was more of an annoying little pest to swat away than a major threat of any sort.

11 Tenten (Naruto) Is The Weapon-Ninja Who Never Gets Far

tenten swinging weapon and scroll in hand

Tenten should have gone places, seeing how her fighting style is entirely unique among other shinobi in Naruto. Unlike most other ninjas, her preferred fighting method requires predominantly using weapons, and she is probably the most proficient at wielding the many sharp objects that show up during Naruto and Boruto.

The only problem is that she becomes completely outclassed by literally any other ninja that uses Ninjutsu. Even Rock Lee, who chose not to use anything other than fisticuffs and his legs, would mop the floor with her if they ever fought one on one.

10 Kon (Bleach), The Mod-Soul That Just Doesn't Measure Up

Kon from Bleach

This mod-soul showed huge promise when he was first introduced, being able to run inhumanly fast and leap over tall buildings like it was nothing while he occupied Ichigo's body. The problem is that his powers are severely weakened while in his more common form: The lion plushie that he is forced to live inside so that Ichigo can torture him.

RELATED: 10 Reckless Anime Characters Who Take Big Risks

Even during the Bount arc, when three more mod-souls are introduced, Kon's powers seem base level compared to Ririn, Kuroda, and Noba, who all have way cooler and way more powerful abilities at their disposal.

9 Tristan (Yu-Gi-Oh!), A Duelist Who Fell Flat Compared To Joey

Tristan and Monkey Tristan

During the Duelist Kingdom arc, it seemed like Tristan might get a power boost in the future like his best buddy, Joey. Unfortunately he, like Téa, was sidelined for the majority of the series. Whenever he did actually get to duel, his deck and card strategies were exposed to be pretty lackluster, even compared to Joey's starter deck.

The only thing Tristan ever really managed to do was gift Joey the Lava Battleguard card, which didn't even really help him win the duel against Mai. Really, Tristan should have left the children's card games to the adults and spectated like Mokuba.

8 Father Cornello (Fullmetal Alchemist), The Man Unworthy Of His Philosopher's Stone

father cornello

Introduced as the manipulative religious leader of Liore, Fr. Cornello could have been so much more than he ended up being, especially since he possessed an incomplete Philosopher's Stone. As later seen in the series, Philosopher's Stones are immensely powerful, so long as the person using it is a halfway decent alchemist... which Cornello is not.

His terrifying chimera was defeated by Edward in a single shot and his attempt to take down the Fullmetal Alchemist himself resulted in a rebound, before growing to giant size and being taken down just as easily as his lion-hybrid had. As far as alchemists go, Cornello is easily the weakest.

7 Buggy (One Piece) Is Pirate Captain Who Just Can't Compare

Buggy the Clown getting scared at Marineford in the One Piece anime

One of the first major villains in One Piece was the clown pirate Buggy, who was also one of the first characters other than Luffy to have the powers of a Devil Fruit. Unfortunately for Buggy, his powers never really grew in strength unlike Luffy's, and his subsequent appearances have been underwhelming compared to how intimidating he was in his first showing.

To make matters worse, his Devil Fruit power— which allows him to split his body into multiple, sentient pieces all under his control— has great potential to be amazing, but he can't seem to use it intelligently enough to elevate his status above "minor annoyance."

6 Sekke Bronzazza (Black Clover) Lost In A Single Blow

Sekke Bronzanzza from Black Clover

Sekke is like one of those bullies everyone hated in high school and pitied after they finally graduated. He constantly tries to make himself seem like a bigger man than he actually is, and actively seeks out people he thinks are weak to make himself look better by comparison. That attitude is what cements him as the weakest character in all of Black Clover.

RELATED: 10 Quiet Anime Characters Who Almost Never Talk

This is particularly evident during Magic Knight entrance exams, where he picked Asta to be his opponent because he seemed weaker. As fate would have it, Sekke was quickly and rightfully annihilated by the supposedly powerless Asta in a single blow.

5 Kitz (Attack On Titan) The Leader Who Is Too Afraid To Deserve His Station

Kitz

Even though he's not as prevalent or famous a side character as others, Kitz's weakness stands out. His first appearance is as the twitchy captain who, naturally, wants to kill Eren for being a Titan. While his motive is entirely understandable, the fact that he is clearly acting out of fear rather than as the leader he is supposed to be is what makes his character so nauseating to watch. Kitz's not only weak in body but weak-minded and weak-willed on top of that.

4 Matsuda, The Detective Who Became A Babysitter (Death Note)

Matsuda holding photos of Misa in Death Note

As a rookie detective working to bring down the supernatural serial killer Kira, one would think Matsuda would have some degree of intelligence or skill to bring to the table, but he ends up just being relegated to babysitting Misa or getting himself into more trouble than he's worth. Although he was instrumental in bringing down Second Kira, his role up until that point was fairly pointless.

RELATED: 10 Perks Of Anime Dubs

To give him some credit, he did end up being the one to finally kill Kira by impulsively shooting Light after learning that the man he had been working under for so many years was the same man he was trying to bring down.

3 Mumen Rider (One-Punch Man) Shows How Dedication Can Only Go So Far

Mumen Rider from One-Punch Man

The number one C-Rank hero may have the most heart of the many, many heroes in One Punch Man, but heart can only get one so far. Granted, he has shown courage, the strength of character and a duty to the citizens of his city that no other hero has shown— even Saitama and Genos could learn a thing or two from him— but his strength level is laughable compared even to other C-Rank heroes.

His only real strength in battle is that he somehow didn't immediately die when he faced up against the Deep Sea King. Still, he gets points for determination.

2 Mr. Satan (Dragon Ball Z) Taking Credit For The Actions Of Goku & Gohan