History YMMV / GreatTeacherOnizuka

** See Urumi's [[MagnificentBastard Magnificent Bastardry]]. After her setting up three classmates (no matter how huge bitches they were) to be [[spoiler:''gang-raped'' by several old perverts with strange fetishes]], it's hard to view her as a positive character. To a reader. In-universe she doesn't even get called out for this.

* Anvilicious: The Teshigawara arc reminds us multiple times that FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse and that you should always take responsibility for your actions. Though in all fairness, Teshigawara really wasn't getting the message through his head the first time.

*** Also from ''14 Days'', [[TooDumbToLive Seiya's mother]] abandoned him for her BastardBoyfriend who ''threatened to hit her if she didn't stop Seiya from hitting him and pinned the blame on her for Seiya trying to kill him over his abuse'' and did ''nothing'' to help her flesh and blood from being beat up by said boyfriend ''in front of her''. [[ParentalNeglect Riko and Miko's mother]] kept trying to get rid of them and committed suicide in the end because she didn't want to have the responsibility to look after them and their father didn't want it either. And [[WouldHurtAChild then]] [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil there's]] Sakurako's father. It all but makes Onizuka's message at the end of the Seiya arc the more powerful.

* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: GTO is loved in the US and in Europe, however Shonan Jun'ai Gumi sold better in Japan.

** Shonan's mayor from ''14 Days''. His debut moment? Making a policy that takes children from shelters such as White Swan, unwanted and[=/=]or abandoned children, mind you, and taking them back to their parents who either don't want them, as is the case with Miko and Riko, or abusive monsters like Sakurako's father described above. His reason for doing this? To rack up votes from housewives.
*** Also from ''14 Days'', [[TooDumbToLive Seiya's mother]] abandoned him for her BastardBoyfriend who ''threatened to hit her if she didn't stop Seiya from hitting him and pinned the blame on her for Seiya trying to kill him over his abuse'' and did ''nothing'' to help her flesh and blood from being beat up by said boyfriend ''in front of her''. [[ParentalNeglect Riko and Miko's mother]] kept trying to get rid of them and committed suicide in the end because she didn't want to have the responsiblity to look after them and their father didn't want the responsibility either, and [[WouldHurtAChild then]] [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil there's]] Sakurako's father. It all but makes Onizuka's message at the end of the Seiya arc the more powerful.

** Many people may not realize that GTO was an almost direct sequel to a lesser-known manga series, ''Manga/GTOTheEarlyYears.'' They most likely assumed that GTO started ''InMediasRes'', though it could just be the fault of [=TokyoPop=] for Americans.
** ''Shonan Junai Gumi'' was marketed as ''GTO: The Early Years'' in North America and UK, but it was marketed as ''Young GTO'' in France.

** Saejima and Ryuji also got their own spinoffs, ''Ino-Head Gargoyle'' (39 chapters) and ''GTR: Great Transporter Ryuji'' (10 chapters).
* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: The first opening theme, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWwwY4tNcsU Driver's High]] by L'arc en Ciel.

** Ayame and returning LoveInterest Shinomi from Shonan 14 days join the fray.
* FridgeLogic:
** Think about the last middle schooler you saw. Now picture them pregnant, living alone, and holding a job. How exactly would a disowned 13 year old rent an apartment without a credit history, raise a child by herself, and in the most expensive city in the world, all with no outside help or child services intervention? Either Japan has the world's greatest and most beneficial welfare system, she had the world's nicest landlord, or the writers are greatly exaggerating for dramatic purposes.

* LesYay: Tomoko with Miyabi and Urumi.

* ArchivePanic: ''GTO'' has 207 manga chapters, and if you want to read everything in order, there's also the 10-chapter OriginsEpisode ''Manga/BadCompany'' and '''267''' chapters of ''Manga/GTOTheEarlyYears'' to read first. Then there's the {{Interquel}} ''GTO: Shonan 14 Days'', which runs for 70 chapters, and the ongoing sequel ''GTO: Paradise Lost'', currently at 133 chapters. And the ''Shonan Junai Gumi'' spinoff ''Shonan Seven''[[note]]46 chapters; however, Onizuka doesn't appear in it, it's just set at the same school he attended[[/note]].

* ArchivePanic: ''GTO'' has 207 manga chapters, and if you want to read everything in order, there's also the 10-chapter OriginsEpisode ''Manga/BadCompany'' and '''267''' chapters of ''Manga/ShonanJunaiGumi'' to read first. Then there's the {{Interquel}} ''GTO: Shonan 14 Days'', which runs for 70 chapters, and the ongoing sequel ''GTO: Paradise Lost'', currently at 133 chapters. And the ''Shonan Junai Gumi'' spinoff ''Shonan Seven''[[note]]46 chapters; however, Onizuka doesn't appear in it, it's just set at the same school he attended[[/note]].

** Many people may not realize that GTO was an almost direct sequel to a lesser-known manga series, ''Manga/ShonanJunaiGumi.'' They most likely assumed that GTO started ''InMediasRes'', though it could just be the fault of [=TokyoPop=] for Americans.

* SequelDisplacement[=/=]SurprisinglyImprovedSequel:

** All the talk of wanting to, ahem, go with high school girls. Especially coming from the minds of [[DirtyOldMan Dirty Old Men]].

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac3uBNn_Y_Y#t=6m39s "In a world where we can't ever say what's in our heart, POISON..."]]

** Many people may not realize that GTO was an almost direct sequel to a lesser-known manga series, ''Shonan Junai Gumi.'' They most likely assumed that GTO started ''InMediasRes'', though it could just be the fault of [=TokyoPop=] for Americans.

** Onizuka's response to Tokiwa's plight of having been gang-raped is along the lines of "you are a girl, you are weak, you are always going to be a victim, roll with it". He also does nothing to punish the guys who raped her in the first place. In the West, Onizuka's response would be considered hideously sexist, but in Japan, it's just seen as a harsh reality and people who have a problem with it need to suck it up.

* ValuesDissonance: Onizuka's response to Tokiwa's plight of having been gang-raped is along the lines of "you are a girl, you are weak, you are always going to be a victim, roll with it". He also does nothing to punish the guys who raped her in the first place. In the West, Onizuka's response would be considered hideously sexist, but in Japan, it's just seen as harsh reality and people who have a problem with it need to suck it up.

* CrazyAwesome: Onizuka.

** See Urumi's [[MagnificentBastard Magnificent Bastardry]]. After her setting up three classmates (no matter how huge bitches they were) to be ''gang-raped'' by several old perverts with strange fetishes, it's hard to view her as a positive character. To a reader. In-universe she doesn't even get called out for this.

** Many people may not realize that GTO was an almost direct sequel to a lesser-known manga series, ''Shonan Junai Gumi.'' They most likely assumed that GTO started ''in media res'', though it could just be the fault of [=TokyoPop=] for Americans.

** Shonan's mayor from ''14 Days''. His debut moment? Making a policy that takes children from shelters such as White Swan, unwanted and[[=/=]or abandoned children, mind you, and taking them back to their parents who either don't want them, as is the case with Miko and Riko, or abusive monsters like Sakurako's father described above. His reason for doing this? To rack up votes from housewives.

* FamilyUnfriendlyAesop:
** If violence doesn't do the trick, more violence will. It's perfectly okay to put your colleagues' and students' life in danger when you're a teacher if there is a moral lesson behind the action. Also, some examples of Onizuka "resolving" problems of his students fall into this.
** BeYourself, [[spoiler:Tokiwa]]. When you've been gang-raped, lost your trust in the men and humanity as a whole, when you feel insecure and seen mainly as a sexual object by the opposite sex... remember that you're a girl. You can always cry. Admittedly, her own "solution" included antagonizing and beating up random men which almost made her gang-raped the second time, but still, Onizuka's response is along the lines of "you are a girl, you are weak, you are always going to be a victim, roll with it" and he does nothing to, say, bring punishment to the guys who raped her in the first place.

* MagnificentBastard:
** Kikuchi has his moments, being one of the geniuses of Class 3-4.
** He pales in comparison to Urumi though. Selling the virginity of the girls who tried to frame 'her' Onizuka to a bunch of perverts scores fairly high on the bastardry scale.

* KickTheSonOfABitch: The teacher Miyabi framed. Even after the reveal that she made up everything about being abused by him because he had a fiancee and she felt betrayed, Onizuka revels that he ''was'', in fact, messing around with her.
** To be fair, the teacher's fault was not heading Miyabi off even after he came to realize that she had developed a serious crush on him. Did he deserve punishment for this? Sure. Did he deserve to be framed as a child rapist, to have his entire teaching career ruined, to lose his fiancee and to get severely beaten up(twice) as a result of this? Probably not. This whole incident makes it hard to feel sorry for Miyabi.

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:The final two episodes of the anime involve the school going up against the school board for their attempts to cover up a teacher's affair with a student and their cover up of that same student's suicide to prevent the possibility that she was pregnant with the teacher's child from leaking and try to pin an attempted murder charge on Miyabi for stabbing the teacher when it is confirmed that, after hearing about his student love's suicide, the teacher tried to commit suicide as well. While the school faces being shut down as they refuse to turn over Onizuka for an (obviously fake) assault charge and Miyabi, Onizuka steps in and gets the media involved to cause a storm around the events to expose the school board's cover up. Then Onizuka takes the blame for the attempted murder despite his students having evidence that it was an attempted suicide and Miyabi finally coming around and trying to rescue him. Onizuka is nearly taken into custody but, as per the norm, he manages to escape as the teacher wakes up from his injuries. It's all but confirmed that the School Board will be unable to deny the charges of covering up the suicide and suicide attempt and all the students in class 3-4 are able to trust teachers. Onizuka goes on the run and ends up in The United States of America at a California Junior High in charge of a class full of delinquents. Sadly it's implied that Onizuka will be unable to return to Japan after this despite his role in exposing the coverup and his students and Azusa will never see him again.]]

* {{Expy}}: Retroactive example. [[http://static.mangatraders.com/view17/175711/d68c9e7a1980808aaa6cc7684874655e.jpg There is this girl]], and then there's [[http://static.mangatraders.com/view2/26775/174cb6f874412e26dcb11b3825bc1a35.jpg Tokiwa]]. Notice any differences?

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:The final two episodes of the anime involve the school going up against the school board for their attempts to cover up a teacher's affair with a student and their cover up of that same student's suicide to prevent the possibility that she was pregnant with the teacher's child from leaking and try to pin an attempted murder charge on Anko (I think) for stabbing the teacher when it is confirmed that, after hearing about his student love's suicide, the teacher tried to commit suicide as well. While the school faces being shut down as they refuse to turn over Onizuka for an (obviously fake) assault charge and Anko, Onizuka steps in and gets the media involved to cause a storm around the events to expose the school board's cover up. Then Onizuka takes the blame for the attempted murder despite his students having evidence that it was an attempted suicide and Anko finally coming around and trying to rescue him. Onizuka is nearly taken into custody but, as per the norm, he manages to escape as the teacher wakes up from his injuries. It's all but confirmed that the School Board will be unable to deny the charges of covering up the suicide and suicide attempt and all the students in class 3-4 are able to trust teachers. Onizuka goes on the run and ends up in The United States of America at a California Junior High in charge of a class full of delinquents. Sadly it's implied that Onizuka will be unable to return to Japan after this despite his role in exposing the coverup and his student and Aizawa will never see him again.]]

** Why didn't the school just let Urumi skip a few grades? They knew she was a prodigy. It's not like the Japanese school system doesn't allow that, as they did it in ''Manga/AzumangaDaioh''. Or send her on a foreign exchange program to give her a challenge of learning in a different country, like they usually do with advanced students? But then we wouldn't have a plot, now would we?
*** Actually, the Japanese school system doesn't let students skip years. Chiyo being allowed to skip those years she skipped is full-on RuleOfFunny.
* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: GTO is loved in the US and in Europe, however Shonan Jun'ai Gumi sold better in Japan. Subverted in Europe, after SJG got serialized.

** BeYourself, [[spoiler:Tokiwa]]. When you've been gang-raped, lost your trust in the men and humanity as a whole, when you feel insecure and seen mainly as a sexual object by the opposite sex... remember that you're a girl. You can always cry. Admittedly, when put in context his suggestion is actually better than her solution. Baiting guys and beating them up. It nearly got her gang-raped a second time.

* MoralEventHorizon: See Urumi's [[MagnificentBastard Magnificent Bastardry]]. Among the other things.

* MartyStu / GodModeSue / AntiSue: Onizuka, big time. Superhuman strength and endurance? Check. Never lose a fight or an argument? Check. Able to seduce countless girls despite his disgusting habits and hobbies? Check. Is so cool a class normally full of hate for teachers start to love him in several weeks? Check. Every person who dislike him or go against him is humiliated repeatedly? Check. Can humiliate them and get away with it? Check. Do they all admit he was right in the end? Check. Succeed in exams despite being depicted as an idiot? Check. Center of attention at any time? Check. People starting to imitate his way of living? Check. [[spoiler: Survive 4 bullets in the guts before unleashing a HumiliationConga against the shooter? '''Check!''']] Either way, it didn't stop people to consider him an awesome and likable character.
** Well, he's a virgin, while he thinks AManIsNotAVirgin, though. But that's it.
** On the test, it is outright stated that Sakurai fixed it so that he would get top score (though we never get to see Kikuchi's calculation of his real score). On getting away with things, it's also implied that Sakurai is covering him (and it is shown that her connections allowed arson and attempted murder to be swept under the rug). Beyond that, RefugeInAudacity and RuleOfCool are attempted to cover up his rather advanced abilities to tie up the plot.
** Strangely enough, it is not the case in Early Years. He does lose fights, he does lose arguments. In GTO, Onizuka is supposed to be OlderAndWiser but as much as {{Badass}} as before.
** Kikuchi could qualify as a Sue-ish character as well. Intellectual genius, near perfect scores on national tests, computer whiz, talented martial artist, very popular among both boys & girls, plenty of street smarts and all around cool guy at the ripe old age of 14.
** Possibly Mayu as well, though to a lesser extent.

* CrazyAwesome: Onizuka.