Plot armor, for those who have been on a break with the internet, is the invisible protection granted to a character in anime or any other media in which prevents them from dying because the plot demands it. As the character is so interwoven into the story, or sometimes because they are so popular with the fans, you can throw them into a wood chipper and they would come out with a handsome sheer of blood, but still ready to fight and win.

Some characters have no plot armor. In fact, they may have negative plot armor. Some character you can just look at and be like, “They are totally going to die for that emotional outburst from the main character.” However, those other characters, they couldn’t die if the world crumbled underneath their feet. So just who are they?

Erza from Fairy Tail

Actually, that title should say “Everyone from Fairy Tail,” if we are being honest. No one dies in Fairy Tail. Even the dead in Fairy Tail aren’t actually dead, but I suppose that is what you get when magic is a thing. Regardless, Erza might even rival the main character in terms of plot armor, and it is pretty visible, just bouncing right there on her chest.

It doesn’t matter if you are too fast or strong for Erza like Kyouka was. It doesn’t even if your claws can rip through her armor. None of it matters… Because she’s Erza.

Ichigo from Bleach

Remember way back when literally Ichigo’s only power was being able to see dead people? Simpler times, that. Fast forward to now, and he has every power in the book. Certainly Ichigo has lost in the past, but now they have made him essentially unbeatable. Throughout the series, Bleach has followed a formula. Just when things look dire for Ichigo, someone either swoops to his rescue or he gains a new secret power locked inside his inner vault, the combination to which only known by the plot gods.

Sasuke from Naruto

At least Naruto actually goes through training sessions to get his new powers, but unfortunately his rival Sasuke doesn’t get off as easily. Sure, he trained with Orochimaru, but as a villain in the series, you think Sasuke would take more of a beating. He has a rather nasty habit of picking fights with stronger opponents only to get beat down, but just at the last moment he either whips out a new power or someone comes to whisk him away. The plot rescues are strong, and pretty much just so Sakura can have someone to love in the end.

Eren Yeager from Attack on Titan

All his friends die around him, and then he does too. Oh well, show’s over! But nope! Comes back as a titan. What? Couldn’t it just be about humans fighting titans?  Couldn’t Mikasa have taken over the role as main character? Nope, it had to be about kids wearing flesh mechas.

Akame from Akame ga Kill

For a series that prides itself on having no plot armor, its titular character sure seems like she escapes death a whole lot. And she isn’t even really the main character, so why the plot armor? Regardless, one of her biggest plot armor examples comes when she fights Esdeath and cuts herself with Murasame. One cut and its lethal poison will kill its victims, she even states that it is the reason cleaning the weapon is so dangerous. She got the big power boost from it, but also should have died. Well, right up until her teigu decided that she shouldn’t, anyway.

Kirito from Sword Art Online

Kirito is lousy with plot armor. Want to be special? How about a dual wield ability just for you. Want to be powerful? As a beta tester, I guess you can just beat Guild leaders like they are flies. Unfortunately, the worst part is that while everyone else dies when their HP reaches zero, not him or Asuna. He just manages to beat the game’s death timer by killing Heathcliff. It is kind of some bullshit.

Gutts from Berserk

You can cut him, you can fill him full of arrows (unless his magical arrow-proof cloak is on), you can try to drown him in a dead sea monster in full armor, but this guy … This guy won’t ever die. Well, at least not until the time is right. There is no other character in any series, not even in the shounen sect, that can survive as much damage as Gutts has taken over the years. At this point, his bones should be dust and his organs should be a watery soup. However, in the manga he does have literal plot armor.

Literal plot armor.