9 anime situations that Westerners don’t always understand

An article by Univisión Geek lists nine anime clichés that Western audiences find curious or confusing. These include gestures and customs typical of Japanese anime culture, explained humorously in the list.

For example, the akanbe gesture (sticking out the tongue and lowering the eyelid with a finger) is a typical “provocative” sign in anime, which is puzzling until its origin is explained. Another cliché is the famous “anime glasses thing”: when a character becomes serious and the lenses of their glasses reflect an intense glow. The article explains these devices as mere accidents of Japanese reality—electric antennas in the landscape, old flip phones, an abundance of ramen instead of sushi—which are recurrent in anime but are understood through local culture.

This article is not an official announcement but a piece of cultural entertainment. It does not involve specific production or technical data, but rather curious observations.
The piece plays with the idea that many anime tropes seem “meaningless” outside of Japan. By revealing the meaning behind the scenes, we can better appreciate why animators resort to them: sometimes it’s cultural realism, other times it’s simply style. This note is useful for novice fans: it makes what may seem absurd at first glance fun. Which anime cliché surprises you the most when explained? (invites reader reflection).