Warning: Spoilers Ahead!

It’s not hard to see why romance is so common in anime. In a medium filled with often realistic characters and life problems, romance can be one of the best avenues studios have to touching their viewers’ hearts. Not all romantic rides are smooth, however, with some couples leaving the viewers questioning character motives right through to the final episode. Can this couple really last? Did they even have a good reason for getting together?

Not necessarily, and who’s to say they’ll really stay together without a little help later on? And now I, with my bare-minimum romantic experience and no degree in psychology to speak of, will come forward and take a look at some such couples. Here are just a few that I would expect to see having some issues:

1. Seiji Yagiri x Mika Harima (Durarara!!)

Image © Brain's Base

Come on, Seiji, if there’s one thing we’ve all been told, it’s not to go after someone just for the looks. Really, you should’ve known better. I don’t care how pretty she is; it pays to get to know someone.

What’s that? She got a new face for you, even after you almost killed her? Well, then...

2. Kirito x Asuna (Sword Art Online)

Image © A-1 Pictures

Kirito, get a grip. Are you dating Asuna, or aren’t you? Your relationship with Sinon is probably as confusing to Asuna as it is to the viewers. You jumped right back into a game that almost killed you in order to save her before, and now you’re just sidelining her? I think it’s time you sat down and took a long, hard look at your priorities there. Considering Kirito’s lacklustre attitude so far, I could definitely see Asuna sitting him down for a chat at some point. Sometimes we all like attention, or in Asuna’s case, not being reduced from heroine to side character for the sake of her boyfriend’s new game.

3. Shinichi Kudo x Ran Mori (Detective Conan)

Image © TMS Entertainment

If there’s one thing anime seems to put an inordinate amount of faith in, it’s the childhood friend. Waking you up for school every day, making lunch each time you’ve forgotten, and often the most devoted romantic interest around. These two are no exception.

It’s when Shinichi gets turned into a child and vanishes that things become tricky. He’s been living in Ran’s house for who knows how long under the guise of Conan Edogawa, and are we really sure Ran is going to wait around (probably)? Even if she does, when Conan comes back, who’s to say she’ll take it well once she knows she’s been bathing with him and sleeping with him throughout the past year. Well, whatever happens, keep your chin up, Ran!

4. Takao Akizuki x Yukari Yukino (Garden of Words)

Image © CoMix Wave Films

Certain relationships have larger roadblocks than others. One’s place in society, a family’s attitude towards a couple, and in this case, an age gap. A student and a teacher are rarely going to find it easy starting off, especially when they’re on opposite ends of Japan. Props to Akizuki for being determined to get his feelings to Yukino no matter what, but we’re thinking it might take a little more than that to get his dream relationship off the ground.

5. Satou Tatsuhiro x Misaki Nakahara (Welcome to the NHK)

Image © Gonzo

This couple deserves a little more credit than many on this list. Despite crippling depression, insomnia, schizophrenia, and an attempted suicide, the two somehow make it to the end of the series with only a few scratches. Even better, they decide to help each other out, with Satou tutoring Misaki for school, and her providing encouragement to him as he rebels against the NHK and finds a job.

Whether or not they’re properly a pair is up for debate, but they did seem to be moving down that road as the series came to a close. With all the issues both have with their happiness up to that point; however, it wouldn’t be surprising if either of them needed a little outside help from time to time. Do your best you two!

6. Ash x Misty (Pokemon)

Yes, it sucks that he destroyed your bike; I get it. But it was twelve years ago. Are we done?

7. Daikichi x Rin (Usagi Drop)

You'd never guess where this would lead...

I mentioned before that age can sometimes be a difficult hurdle to cross in a relationship, and nothing quite fits the bill like these two. Sure, they know each other very well, and they’ve both given a lot of thought to the relationship. At the end of the day, however, marrying someone who has been your caretaker and guardian for twelve years is no small thing. It can lead to an awkward power balance in a relationship, and beyond that it would have a hard time getting accepted by other people in your life. At the end of the day, it’s your life to live as you will, but I wouldn’t be surprised if these two found themselves under a lot more pressure than other couples their… age?

8. Yuuki Rito x All the Girls (To-Love-Ru)

Image © Xebec

A rare case of a harem series in which the main character actually seems to be building a harem. In large part thanks to heroines Lala and Momo, Yuuki Rito is in the unique position of possibly becoming King of the Universe. Thus, he also has the chance to establish his own concubine under their influence and end up with pretty much every girl we come across in the series. You have to wonder though: Would people living in this day and age really be okay sharing their lover with 700 other people? Well, I guess we can chalk it up to anime logic, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a few of these ladies (and Rito, for that matter) sometimes found themselves in need of a little counsel.