How Anime's Fail Their Power Systems

[00:00] Every power system needs a leash. No

[00:04] matter how creative or innovative your

[00:06] abilities are, without some kind of

[00:08] limiter, your battles will lose their

[00:10] most essential ingredient. That is their

[00:13] tension. To solve this, almost nearly

[00:16] every shownen relies on the same trope,

[00:19] an energy system. Think of chakra, mana,

[00:23] key, cursed energy. The name changes,

[00:25] but the idea is always the same. an

[00:28] invisible battery that keeps battles in

[00:30] check. I like to use a bucket and tap

[00:34] analogy. Let me cook here. Every

[00:36] character is carrying around an

[00:38] invisible bucket that is filled with

[00:40] their respective energy system. Some

[00:42] characters buckets are huge while some

[00:44] are tiny, which is usually down to

[00:46] genetics, training, or both. Meanwhile,

[00:50] the tap controls how much of that energy

[00:52] a character can release at once. So,

[00:55] someone with a small bucket but large

[00:57] top might be able to unleash one massive

[00:59] attack before being drained dry, while

[01:01] someone with a large bucket but with a

[01:03] narrow top can keep pumping out weaker

[01:05] moves almost endlessly. Of course, many

[01:08] power systems don't stop there,

[01:10] rightfully so. Some go deeper,

[01:13] introducing other variables like

[01:15] replenishment speed, which is how

[01:16] quickly your bucket fills back up.

[01:19] efficiency, how much energy actually

[01:21] translates into power versus how much is

[01:24] wasted, or control, how precisely a

[01:26] character can manage the flow of their

[01:28] energy. These are all ideas that I

[01:30] encourage any writer to blend into their

[01:33] power system. Together, these reveal the

[01:35] true purpose and strength of an energy

[01:38] system. That is to blend fights with an

[01:41] essential element of strategy.

[01:43] Characters can't just recklessly spam

[01:45] their strongest moves forever. They have

[01:47] to conserve, to gamble, and sometimes to

[01:50] risk running out at the worst possible

[01:52] moment. At their best, these systems

[01:55] don't just make fights more intense.

[01:57] They dictate the outcome of the fights

[01:58] themselves. But at their worst, these

[02:02] systems blend into background noise,

[02:04] often revealing plot convenience or

[02:06] outright contradictions. So, how do you

[02:09] make a good energy system? What are some

[02:12] examples of the best energy systems in

[02:14] anime? And where do authors often go

[02:17] wrong? Well, in this video, that's

[02:19] exactly what we're going to find out.

[02:21] So, stick around. You might just learn

[02:24] something important. Chakra is the

[02:26] energy system of Naruto. And in all

[02:29] fairness, one of the most

[02:31] well-thoughtout energy systems in all of

[02:33] shownen. While it does get a bit weird

[02:36] towards the end, what with the aliens

[02:38] and all, Kishimoto still managed to

[02:40] create an energy system that far

[02:42] surpassed its contemporaries. Chakra is

[02:45] defined as a combination of a person's

[02:48] physical energy and spiritual energy

[02:51] which can be refined and molded to

[02:53] produce techniques called jutsu. It is

[02:56] the battery behind every technique in

[02:58] the series from the most basic cloning

[03:00] jutsu to the most destructive forbidden

[03:03] arts. Every ninja has a limited pool and

[03:07] the size of that is massively influenced

[03:09] by genetics and natural talent and maybe

[03:14] a bit of training because Kishimoto

[03:16] couldn't decide if he wanted to make a

[03:18] Nepo baby fanfiction or a hard work

[03:21] beats talents narrative. Regardless of

[03:23] that, in the early series, this system

[03:26] truly shines. Chakra is a lot more

[03:29] involved, actively serving character

[03:31] conflicts and strategy. One of the

[03:33] earliest examples of this happens within

[03:36] the land of the waves arc. Chakra is a

[03:39] very active element of that fight.

[03:41] Without the strain of chakra, Kakashi

[03:43] would easily be able to handle Zabuza

[03:46] and Haku by himself. But due to the

[03:48] massive amount of chakra his shang gun

[03:50] requires and his otherwise average

[03:53] reserves, the longer the fight drags

[03:55] out, the more dangerous it becomes for

[03:57] him due to exhaustion. His chakra

[04:00] limitations are the key reason his

[04:02] students, the protagonists, even matter

[04:05] in this fight. Or take Naruto versus

[04:08] Nei, which happens a couple arcs later.

[04:11] One element of chakra that makes it more

[04:13] interesting is its biological

[04:15] connection. Your chakra flows out of

[04:17] tenetsu points, and someone like Nei

[04:20] gentle fist is capable of closing off

[04:23] those points, which essentially seals

[04:25] away your chakra. So when Nei does this

[04:28] to Naruto, it should essentially finish

[04:30] the fight. But Naruto manages to

[04:33] somewhat plan ahead using his secondary

[04:36] external source of chakra, the

[04:38] Ninetailed fox, to completely catch Nei

[04:41] by surprise, which alongside the smart

[04:43] use of clone jutsu is a turning point

[04:46] that allows him to win the fight. In

[04:48] both of these moments, Chakra works

[04:51] perfectly. It is a clear limiter that

[04:54] separates characters in unique ways and

[04:56] creates tensions whenever those reserves

[04:58] start to run dry. You truly feel the

[05:01] weight of every move because Chakra is a

[05:04] finite meaningful resource. But as the

[05:07] series scales up, Chakra begins to lose

[05:10] that meaning. What started as a clever

[05:12] limiter becomes more of a background

[05:15] detail conveniently mentioned or ignored

[05:18] depending on the moment. The series does

[05:20] all right through Shipuan, but the

[05:23] illusion of Chakra's importance really

[05:26] begins to fall apart completely during

[05:28] the war arc. Take Susano, a literal

[05:32] massive suit of pure chakra that serves

[05:35] as both the perfect offense and the

[05:38] perfect defense. Rightfully, it is an

[05:40] incredibly taxing ability described as

[05:43] your every cell being on fire and

[05:46] requiring an absurd amount of chakra to

[05:49] use. Maybe not. Saskuke used it for

[05:52] hours at a time, but it still has the

[05:55] weakness of slowly blinding the user,

[05:58] returning that essential element of T.

[06:01] No, never mind. He got past that. Well,

[06:04] at the very least, you still need the

[06:05] showering gun to use it, right? It'd be

[06:08] ridiculous if a character who had say

[06:10] lost both of their eyes was still

[06:12] somehow capable of using a technique

[06:15] that literally requires special eyes to

[06:18] be used. Nah, that would never happen.

[06:21] At a point, the war arc essentially

[06:23] becomes a display of long- range nuclear

[06:26] warfare. Because by the end of the

[06:28] series, Chakra is such a non-issue that

[06:31] characters can literally spam mountain

[06:33] range obliterating attacks without so

[06:36] much as breaking a sweat. Their taps

[06:39] become as wide as the Grand Canyon, and

[06:42] their buckets become, well, infinite. At

[06:46] the very least, Kishimoto did seem to

[06:49] remember his energy system at the very

[06:52] final portion of the series at Sasuke

[06:54] and Naruto's final battle. And it's that

[06:58] very last sequence that made me remember

[07:00] what I loved about this series. Not the

[07:03] country shattering explosion that

[07:05] happened an episode prior, but the

[07:07] strategies, desperation, and tactical

[07:10] depth applied by both characters at the

[07:13] very end. And that's the tragedy of

[07:16] Naruto's chakra system. What once began

[07:19] as one of the most balanced and

[07:20] narratively rich limiters in shownen

[07:23] ended up collapsing under the weight of

[07:25] escalating power creep.

[07:28] Of course, we can't forget the most

[07:30] important energy system of all. The one

[07:33] we deal with every single day, stamina.

[07:37] Forget chakra and forget cursed energy.

[07:40] The one thing that actually has an

[07:41] effect on your life is how long you can

[07:44] stay awake and functioning. Like, I've

[07:46] been hitting the gym early and earlier,

[07:48] and by the time I come back home to make

[07:50] these videos, I feel like my stamina bar

[07:52] is flashing red. But luckily, that's

[07:54] where the partner of today's video comes

[07:56] in. Gamer subs. Gamer subs is I I can

[08:01] say whatever I want. Oh, cool. Well

[08:05] then, for a basic explanation, Gamer

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[08:11] formula designed to give you better

[08:13] focus and endurance without a crash.

[08:16] Imagine popping a stamina potion

[08:19] midfight. Kind of feels like that. So

[08:22] whether I'm editing videos into the late

[08:23] night like right now, or just trying not

[08:26] to collapse after leg day, Gamers is

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[08:53] video. Jiu-Jitsu Kaisen gets a lot of

[08:56] criticism. Some of it is welld deserved,

[08:59] but most of it, the vast majority, is

[09:03] completely baseless given by people who

[09:06] consume the series off of Tik Tok.

[09:08] Because if there's one thing Jiutsu

[09:10] Kaisen absolutely nailed from start to

[09:12] finish, it would be its power system.

[09:15] More specifically, its consistency with

[09:18] the series energy system. In jiu-jitsu

[09:20] kaizen, humans naturally produce cursed

[09:23] energy, which is an internal energy born

[09:25] from negative emotions. Most people just

[09:28] leak it unconsciously, which in turn

[09:30] gives birth to cursed spirits. But

[09:32] sorcerers, the main profession of this

[09:34] verse, are capable of harnessing this

[09:36] energy, using it to fuel their cursed

[09:39] techniques. It's a simple yet effective

[09:42] setup. What makes Cursed Energy stand

[09:44] out is its versatility because in

[09:47] practice it is far more than just an

[09:49] invisible stamina bar. Cursed energy is

[09:52] the very reason a lot of the main

[09:54] antagonist exists. I mean, they're made

[09:56] out of the thing and is capable of being

[09:58] weaponized to such an extent that

[10:00] Yujiadidori for the vast majority of the

[10:03] series was capable of relying purely on

[10:05] raw cris energy to keep up with the

[10:07] scale of the plot. Even beyond that, the

[10:10] system constantly expands in innovative,

[10:13] consistent ways. What happens when you

[10:16] flip cursed energy? Well, you get

[10:18] positive energy, which is capable of

[10:20] being used for healing or reversing the

[10:22] effects of your techniques. If you

[10:24] manage to time your cursed energy

[10:26] application just right, well, you can

[10:28] land a black flash, which is essentially

[10:30] a critical strike with devastating

[10:33] multipliers. Some characters forego

[10:35] cursed energy entirely, gaining heavenly

[10:38] restrictions, which massively boost

[10:40] their physicality instead. Every

[10:43] addition feels like a natural extension

[10:46] of the same core rules, not a

[10:48] contradiction. But what I truly love and

[10:51] appreciate about Chris Energy is how

[10:53] much it actually decides fights. One of

[10:56] the most prevalent cases of this

[10:58] actually comes about from domain

[11:00] expansions. They're almost always

[11:02] instant win conditions, an ability that

[11:05] guarantees your every attack will land.

[11:08] But here's the catch. They massively

[11:10] drain the user of their cursed energy,

[11:12] leaving them vulnerable once they

[11:13] collapse. So look at Mito versus Yugji

[11:17] and Toto. Mahito's final loss to Yugji

[11:20] isn't just because Yugji overpowered

[11:22] him. It's because Mso spent his energy

[11:25] recklessly during the fight, stacking

[11:27] highc cost move after high cost move

[11:30] until he had nothing left. The fight's

[11:32] outcome was dictated as much by resource

[11:35] management as it was by raw strength.

[11:38] So, from output to efficiency to control

[11:41] and reinforcement to reverse techniques

[11:43] and to heavenly restrictions, curse

[11:46] energy is one of the most consistent and

[11:48] well-developed energy systems in modern

[11:50] shownen. It's not just a limiter. It's

[11:53] the foundation of every battle in the

[11:55] story itself. And honestly, I encourage

[11:58] any author to use it as a blueprint when

[12:01] designing their own.

[12:03] So far, we've looked at an energy system

[12:05] with a strong foundation that eventually

[12:08] lost its way, and another that stayed

[12:11] consistent from start to finish. But

[12:13] now, let's look at an energy system that

[12:16] was weak almost from the ground up. mana

[12:19] from solo leveling. And to be clear, I'm

[12:23] not talking about the mana used by other

[12:25] characters in the verse. I mean

[12:27] specifically Sunjing Wu's mana, which is

[12:29] connected to the system. His abilities

[12:32] are modeled after video game mechanics.

[12:35] And so his mana bar functions exactly

[12:38] like you'd expect, a generic stamina bar

[12:41] that drains whenever he casts a skill or

[12:43] summons his army. And that's where the

[12:46] problem begins. In other series like

[12:49] Naruto or Jiu Kaizen, the energy system

[12:52] manages to evolve beyond just being a

[12:55] limiter. They branch into their series

[12:57] respective world building and are

[12:59] capable of being used for countless

[13:01] other forms of utility from sticking to

[13:04] walls or being timed right to land

[13:06] critical hits. These being additional

[13:08] uses that create tension and creativity

[13:11] in battle. Jinmu's mana system is

[13:14] entirely just a number on a stat screen.

[13:17] There are no clever interactions, no

[13:20] secondary uses, nothing. It exists

[13:23] purely as a meter. But the meter at

[13:26] least does its job, right? Like that's

[13:28] the point of the video. Surely, it

[13:31] realistically and fairly limits Jinu's

[13:34] use of his abilities. No, not really.

[13:37] The cycle is the same each time. Jinu

[13:40] fights a boss that conveniently has an

[13:42] army of minions that his shadows can

[13:44] aura farm on. The boss wipes out the

[13:46] rest of the shadows. Jinu's manner runs

[13:49] low and he turns to the camera and says

[13:51] some like, "Guess I'm going solo on

[13:53] this one." And then he solos it. Name of

[13:56] the series appears. Roll credits.

[13:58] Absolute cinema. Just give anime of the

[14:00] year. Just give anime of the year. This

[14:02] gets even worse when you realize this

[14:04] fake tension doesn't even matter half

[14:07] the time. Jin Wu can literally buy an

[14:10] infinite stockpile of mana potions that

[14:13] instantly refill a portion of his mana

[14:16] bar. So, the system fails at its only

[14:18] job of being a limiter. And while that

[14:21] works for hype, it makes for one of the

[14:23] weakest energy systems in modern anime

[14:26] storytelling. It feels much more like an

[14:29] afterthought than a system actually

[14:31] crafted to enhance the story. At the

[14:33] very least, there seems to be another

[14:36] version of Mana present in the story

[14:38] that is much more intertwined with the

[14:40] series lore. But because none of the

[14:42] other characters actually matter, it's

[14:45] not even that relevant in the first

[14:47] place. At the end of the day, energy

[14:50] systems are somehow one of the simplest

[14:52] tropes in battle storytelling, yet also

[14:55] one of the most important. They are the

[14:58] primary leash that keeps abilities

[15:00] grounded, adding an essential element

[15:02] that adds weight to every decision in

[15:04] battle. So, the lesson here is simple.

[15:08] The best energy systems are far more

[15:10] than just fuel tanks. They're

[15:12] storytelling tools. They create

[15:14] vulnerability and force strategy. And

[15:17] sometimes, like Jiu Kaizen's relation to

[15:20] negative emotions, can even reflect the

[15:22] themes of the story itself. So, the next

[15:25] time you're watching an anime with an

[15:27] energy system present, ask yourself, is

[15:30] it actually consistently adding stakes,

[15:33] or is it just background noise? Because

[15:36] that one detail might be the difference

[15:38] between a fight you forget tomorrow and

[15:40] one that actually sticks with you for a

[15:42] while.

[15:44] Thank you for watching. Got any energy

[15:46] systems that you love? Well, leave them

[15:48] in the comment section down below. Don't

[15:51] forget to check out gamers subs and use

[15:53] my code pines here to get 10% off any of

[15:56] your purchases. Anyway, if you like the

[15:58] video, don't forget to drop a like and

[16:01] subscribe. I'll see you in the next one.

[16:03] Peace.