History Headscratchers / SoulEater

** While it doesn't justify why, IIRC, Kid never freaks out over Stein's appearance, his reaction in Stein's debut is interesting in hindsight. Later on in the series, we see that Kid is capable of ignoring the small details that previously would have left him a quivering wreck or sent him into an Unstoppable Rage. He's shown to do this when he recognises there are bigger things at stake. What does he do when he sees Stein's treatment of Maka and co.? Immediately decide to enrol in the school so he can intervene and help them. Of course, he then gets distracted by toilet-paper, but the thought was there.

** It actually makes sense; the episode was about introducing Kid and his quirks, and what better way to establish his relationship and reinforce his SuperOCD than show his reaction to walking in on them.

** I thought someone mentioned Sid dying after having an accident that involved the Statue of Liberty. My guess: Sid tried to take down a kishin egg guy on top of the statue with a crazy badass flying attack- and he lands head first on one of the spikes on Lady Liberty's crown. That ''would'' explain the great big friggin' '''HOLE''' in his forehead.
** In the anime during the scene they mentioned he was killed, he was shown with a small souvenir type Statue of Liberty sticking out of his forehead.

** Okubo has stated that Crona's sex is unknown. Male, female, intersex, it's a mystery. There is a popular theory that manga!Crona is a girl and anime!Crona is a boy. If you ever come across this, it's incorrect. The official English translations (Funimation for the anime and Yen Press for the manga) both use male pronouns, but they both state that they chose that because using 'he' or 'she' was more respectful in the English language than using 'it', which was the better technical equivalent. There are unofficial English translations for the manga that use 'she' or 'they'. The point is, the artist himself says it's unknown. Because of that, there is zero definitive proof for any argument, leaving fans to take away their own personal interpretations. So whenever someone says they for sure know Crona's sex, tell them that's literally impossible since even Okubo doesn't know.

** I rather thought it was because Okhubo started the first three chapters with a fanservice obsession. I mean, the Anime actually toned it down to something rather more tasteful. (in the manga the girl's shirts had ''[[CleavageWindow boob windows]] like Power Girl'') Of course, this got better as the series progressed, but remember that in ch 1 you had [[BathKick Bubble-Bath]]!Blair, in ch 2 you had FormFittingWardrobe!Tsukbaki, and in ch 3 you had Egyptian Tentacles!Liz-and-Patty.

** I don't know, I seen her wear the gloves without weapon!Soul many times...

* Liz's comment after girl!Black*Star starts rubbing her boobs all over male!Tsubaki: Am I the only one confused? So Maka is a solemn young man...Soul is a bossy little princess...Black*Star is a naive girl...and Tsubaki's getting pushed around by Black*Star, same as ever, huh?

** I guess I was more confused. I originally thought she meant that's how ''their'' love interests would behave (hence the ShipperOnDeck theory), but the way she phrased it confused me a lot. It wouldn't exactly be unlike Liz to suggest things like that... I'm also confused - they're supposed to change according to what attracts them in a member of the opposite sex. So like Black*Star has huge boobs, Tsubaki's all muscly, Maka's still skinny but has shorter hair, and Soul for some reason is flat. I just assumed that since their voices changed, their personalities did as well, since Soul was upset about Maka getting a nosebleed when he's normally all laidback and can't seem to really bother with anyone (I can't see him doing any different for a girl he likes) like Maka was in boy!form and...okay that's confusing enough but why didn't their hair or skin colours change? I guess it also leaves no room for [[NoBisexuals bisexuals]] or homosexuals...

* So, while the kids mire through the Book of Eibon, the {{Badass Teacher}}s are going to attack Noah head-on... and are utterly [[CurbStompBattle curb-stomped]]! Which is already absolutely horrifying, even before you start ranting at Ohkubo that they're just sitting there and ''taking it.'' They don't even try to resonate with their partners, so much as get knocked to the ground and have several moments of OhCrap. Marie in particular has to be shoved out of the way, tries to appeal to the guy who murdered BJ (and whom she herself previously attacked all-too-happily), and nearly gets pasted against a wall until Stein finally does something useful and catches her. Sid gets in one attack, after loosing an arm. Nygus and Tezca are OTK'd. If Noah's just this fast [[spoiler: and Justin's now hopped up on Madness!Steroids]], dear Shinigami-sama they're all doomed... And then the kids escape from the book just in time to save the day. I understand that the next generation getting strong enough to take over has been a major theme, but the "fight" beforehand looked more like a quick round of bowling. "Watch us, Sensei," indeed, but at least they prefaced it with a perfectly-understandable "What is this?!"

[[folder:Maka is a Sue]]

* Maka is a MarySue. I like her too guys, but it's time to be honest with ourselves! She's got a special soul, she's got soul perception, she's half weapon, she has an exorcism wavelength, she's the top of her class, she's the child of a Death Scythe and she can do wildly advanced techniques! I get that it's hard to keep up with fan-favorites like Stein and Death the Kid, but I feel like Okubo is trying to give her all this shiny stuff to make us like her more, when honestly, I just can't relate to her at all. But NO ONE is willing to acknowledge this! Yes, she's funny, she's badass, but she's also a SUE.
** Half of that is from the GeckoEnding anime only. In the much better manga, she's not half weapon. She is not the only one with soul perception, Death the Kid also had it, and Bj had soul perception that was even stronger than Maka's. The main wildly advanced technique was Kishin hunter, again from the GeckoEnding anime. Demon hunter is the other one and I can't argue with that other than it's a shonen manga run by RuleOfCool.
** Let's be fair. The anime doesn't have the Grigori thing. Note that the anime ending has Maka defeating Asura by a method, that, as she points out, anyone could have used in theory. It's also only fair to note that in both versions, Kid is more "special" than she is.
** Maka's presentation is perhaps par the course for the 'main' character of a shounen series, but it's understandable some find it grating. Even taking into account which traits fit the manga, she ''still'' has a glaring number of advantages over her human peers, ones which arguably are being setup to make the method of Asura's defeat a foregone conclusion - never mind the centuries of history, the friggin' ''Eldritch Abominations'' involved, he'll be killed by a plucky girl who's won the super-power lottery in her generation. It'd be unfair to suggest she's in Boring Invincible Hero territory - her very human concerns are appealing even if Okubo's tendency for flamboyance over her achievements is not, but I'd say he needs to watch it. There's a limit on how far entertaining Rule of Cool can compensate for an overly predictable ending/character.
** Just because Maka has special advantages and powers that other characters don't have is not enough to make her a true Mary Sue. You know who else has super special powers? ''Everyone else in this series''. Looking at characters such as Black*Star and Kid, Maka is actually below average powers-wise, only being able to complete the original series goal because she is determined, intelligent and hardworking. Personality-wise she isn't a Mary Sue either. She's a fairly well-balanced character, with flaws that actually hinder her and lead other characters to react adversely to her. Storyline-wise she has faced numerous defeats and her one big win (against Arachne) was only possible because of Arachne's weakened sake. Having special powers + being a girl =/= Mary Sue, contrary to popular belief.
** Going off of the person above and the person below: Black*Star is the only one of them who can fight without a weapon, gets away with his obnoxious behavior with little to no reprimanding by adults or his own partner, and in the anime, really is the reason why their group Soul Resonance isn't working - but it gets blamed on Maka anyway; although he gets called a ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' parody, no one calls him a GaryStu. Tsubaki is easily the sweetest character in the cast, has been stated that, because of her agreeable personality, could work with anybody, never has a bad moment, and absorbed the demon soul of her brother; no one calls her a MarySue. Death the Kid is a ''future Shinigami'', gets kidnapped and ''several chapters'' are spent going after and saving him, he gets to fight with ''two weapons'', and has a huge fanbase; no one calls him a GaryStu. Maka is simply the "Good Girl" of the group (think Hermione from Literature/HarryPotter; she plays dirty if absolutely necessary but places a lot of emphasis on practice/studying and is naturally a very talented witch), she doesn't think better of herself, but she does have issues with trust, wrath, and envy that keep her from being perceived as perfect. And outside of her father, not one character treats her like she is. [[VitriolicBestBuds Soul]] even frequently reminds her of her faults, which is part of his own faulty personality (again, no one calls him a GaryStu). Not to mention that Maka ''isn't'' the only person who can fly, use soul perception, or has a griori soul.
** Also, just mentioning that the whole special Grigori soul arc seems more to me like a parody of tropes associated with overpowered Mary Sues. I mean, Maka discovers that she has this special soul, becomes incredibly obsessed with becoming an angel and her skills actually suffer because of it. Then someone else appears with the exact same soul type as her and instead of it being a major Big Bad or an incredibly powerful ally, it turns out to be the lackey of the current Big Bad who mainly exists for comic relief! The only way she is able to defeat Gopher is because she stops trying to create pretty but ultimately useless wings and accepts that a more practical approach is needed.
** Nice way of putting the Sue/Magical Girl aspects, but the advantages Maka has (only confirmed by the grigori soul explanation) over magic and insanity-driven enemies, are still there. But bearing a possibly parody in mind, it'd be interesting to see where it goes. Especially when apparently she's won through her latest fight with Giriko not with 'grigori soul-ness' but...courage. Which, granted, arguably replaces one issue with [[{{Determinator}} another....]].
** It's not as though she's the only one with advantages over insanity - Black*Star was able to withstand Arachne's insanity just by standing up and grinning goofily, but no one accuses him of being a Gary Stu. A character can have ridiculous powers and not be a Sue. In the context of the series, Maka doesn't even have ridiculous powers. She is allowed to have powers that other characters don't, that does not make her a Sue.
** Even if she ''IS'' a Sue, does actually it matter? You said it yourself that [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools you like her anyway.]]
** Sorry to sound harsh here, but would you still say Maka was a MarySue if she were a ''guy?'' [[DoubleStandard People are much quicker to slap this label on a female character than a male]], which isn't to say that the [[MarySue Sue tag]] isn't legit, but really, let's look at the facts; 1) She's [[TheHero the main character]], 2) She has [[RuleOfCool insane powers]] ([[WorldOfBadass not unlike the rest of the cast]]), 3) [[BigDamnHeroes She saves the day]], 4) Her parents are a Death Sythe and a damn good meister. One person mentioned that they couldn't relate to her, but really, we can't ''all'' relate to ''every'' protagonist in a given story. Let's be real, how many of us have befriended an androgynous child of a [[strike:b]]witch, kicked a [[BigDamnedVillain kishin's]] ass, and had the ability to sense souls? It's a shonen for God's sakes!
** I don't think Maka is a Sue; I see Maka as a inspiration to Shonen heroes of all genders and types; this is a young girl who is not only willing and able to go to hell and back through sheer determination and those incredibly-large titanium balls she has (or breasts, as the case may be), but also do it with a real sense of compassion and understanding when dealing with her friends and enemies-such as Crona. She works incredibly hard, and pushes herself farther than any other person in the series. Which is exactly why the Soul Resonance Linking training bugs me so much; the basic idea requires Maka to essentially deal with the fact that Black*Star is stronger than her and therefore be receptive to his power overwhelming hers. This strikes me as a number of UnfortunateImplications which boil down to Maka being weak spiritually and being forced to acknowledge it; The very idea of her character is that she makes up for it in strength, and is an inspiration because of it. That she can push through and overwhelm the notion of power with her great strength of will. If we're supposed to accept that Maka is supposed to be the weaker in power, than people would compare her fights and, upon replacing her with any other Meister and Weapon duo, they might be a far greater fit. It feels like we're dialing back the strides she made to keep her in the back and out of harm's way; that's not what I want from Maka. She's a good person and a strong Determinator who is very loyal and so much more; she shouldn't have to admit that she's weaker.
** I agree with the above assertion that being female certainly makes it easier for a character to be labeled a Mary Sue. However, Maka has been given flaws that aren't meant to be endearing, unlike your typical Mary Sue. She lets the things that Black Star says get to her, loses her cool and reacts in an immature way. This is something that makes sense for someone her age, and her reacting the way she did actually set them back in training. If she were a Mary Sue, then her losing her temper with Black Star would either be played for laughs, rationalized, or simply ignored, with Maka coming out smelling like a rose. The fact that her reaction was adressed as being a bad thing completely debunks the notion that she's a Mary Sue.

[[/folder]]

** Most likely not, considering he is noticeably tanner than many of the Soul Eater characters, which is definitely not a trait of albinism. He is more likely a case of {{You Gotta Have Blue Hair}}, and the red eyes just happen to go with it. He's not the only character with odd colored hair (e.g. Black Star, Crona) or odd colored eyes (e.g. Death the Kid, Angela).

* Why aren't we allowed to know Crona's gender? I need to know if [[{{memeticmutation}} it's a trap]] or not.

** That would explain the fact that [[http://www.onemanga.com/Soul_Eater/60/32/ you still can't tell here]].

** [[http://www.mangareader.net/157-10168-12/soul-eater/chapter-23.html It was mentioned.]]

Why do Black*Star's biceps look bigger in Soul Eater NOT! which is a prequel?

** This troper would kindly like to point out that there are [[TruthInTelevision real-life people]], including this troper, who don't fit neatly into the categories of "boy"/"girl" or "male"/"female," so it's possible Crona could be {{Transgender}} and/or [[http://www.isna.org/faq/what_is_intersex intersex]] (some transgender people are neither boys nor girls, and intersex people often don't think of themselves as male or female). Saying that a character is "neither male nor female" or "genderless" is, sometimes, actually the most accurate thing to say.

** That was a CrazyAwesome scene.

** There's a similar situation during the final battle in the manga (on the moon!). While the main/secondary characters are leading the assault, there are many 'regular' soldiers also involved. We see Spirit working with several of them in turn to generate a simplified-but-effective version of [[SwordBeams Scythe Beams]]. And if they can do that, they are most likely meisters, if not elite ones like Spartoi or even the NOT group (two of which are also there - Akane and Clay).

** Even if she ''IS'' a Sue, does actually it matter? You said it yourself that [[TropesAreNotBad you like her anyway.]]

* People give the GeckoEnding all the bad names in the book just because [[SeriousBusiness it's different from the manga]]. Yes it's different but that doesn't automatically make it bad. It provides a new experience. TropesAreNotBad and neither are different storylines.