One of the most refreshing aspects of anime is that there are no barriers against using ecchi imagery, including nudity, to entertain fans. Most of us probably stared in disbelief the first time we encountered an anime nude scene, not knowing what to think about the unexpected new direction we were going in. Let’s look back at the first time we encountered anime nudity and ask J-List customers what their first anime nude scene was!
Happy New Year from your Friend in Japan, J-List! We hope 2026 is a year of happiness and peace for you. To get things off right, we’re having a huge site-wide New Year’s Sale through Jan. 6, giving you $15 off all in-stock products. Start browsing now!
Why Is Anime Nudity So Common?
Japan is a unique country, refreshingly free of the cultural baggage the Judeo-Christian tradition can bring with it. While America grew up as a country with a dual identity — shaped by both the Puritan movement and the Enlightenment — Japan followed an entirely different path. Though social conservatism exists here, it manifests itself in ways different from the West.
Some ways anime breaks through cultural taboos include:
- Vulgar potty humor, like Crayon Shin-chan’s constant butt-related jokes.
- Stories that use incest as a source of ironic humor…or boldly explore it without hesitation.
- Age-gap stories that would not always be viewed as appropriate in the West.
- Taking wholesome, cute characters and bringing them into the darkest places imaginable (Madoka Magica, Made in Abyss).
- Over-the-top sexy fan service, like the “boob bullet time” scene from HOTD.
Then there’s anime nudity, which runs the gamut from casual shower scenes to mild ecchi moments to more serious eroticism. Without a doubt, the thing that sets anime as a genre aside from all other forms of animation is how often anime uses nudity as casually as cars suddenly explode in American action movies.
One useful way to understand Japan is through the phrase shikata ga nai (or sho ga nai). Both mean “it can’t be helped” and reflect the Japanese cultural mindset of accepting things as they are, rather than resisting them. This attitude applies to many aspects of life, including anime. If boys watching anime get excited when Nobita uses Doraemon’s latest gadget to sneak a peek at Shizuka in the bath, well… shikata ga nai.
Do You Remember Your First Anime Nude Scene? J-List Customers Respond!
I asked J-List’s awesome customers-of-culture to tell us what their experience with anime nudity was, and I got a ton of great responses. Read them below!
Note: all the movie clips in this post should automatically animate, but some browsers, such as the embedded browser inside X, seem to show only still frames. If you aren’t seeing animated clips in this post, please reach out on X or open a ticket!
It may not be my first, but it is my most memorable. Anime is Please Teacher!
Definitely Chun-Li from the Street Fighter II movie from 1994.
This scene from Inuyasha left a deep impression on me.
Ranma 1/2. God bless that it aired uncensored here in Chile during the early 2000s.
Outlaw Star, the Hot Spring episode that was unaired in the US for obvious reasons.
Even More First Anime Nude Scenes to Enjoy!
This legendary scene from Dragon Ball changed my life forever. It was my first scene of anime nudity.
Elfen Lied was my first nakey anime.
My first anime nude scene was Fatal Fury The Motion Picture.
It’s been so long ago that I’m not 100% certain, but I’m pretty sure it was when B-Ko takes her luxurious bath in Project A-Ko and gently caresses herself while daydreaming of C-Ko. Early exposure to yuri, too!
This short nude scene in Akira really got my attention.
It was Mahoromatic. My first anime nudies were androids! 😀
My first anime nude scene was High School DxD. My dorm senior showed it to me, and that’s how I went down the rabbit hole of hentai.
It was probably Steel Angel Kurumi.
My first experience with anime nudity was Aim for the Top: Gunbuster.
Why is Gunbuster the best sci-fi anime ever made? Read my love letter to the show here!
Wicked City. I dare you to put it in your post.
Probably Plastic Little. I don’t know why my father would watch that with me.
Nude anime and me go way back.
What Were Peter’s First Anime Nude Scenes?
How about me? What early anime nude scene left an impression on me? It was my beloved Macross 1984: Do You Remember Love film, which we have in stock in Ultra 4K Blu-ray right now. My friends and I found a video shop we could rent it from in Little Tokyo in Los Angeles. It was such a rare and valuable videotape that we had to pay a $75 deposit just to rent it.
Enjoy the full “0-G Love” clip from the film above!
Then there was the shower scene that was cut out of episode 4 of Robotech, “The Long Wait.” Hikaru and Minmei get trapped inside an unused section of the SDF-1. They find some pipes they can break open to get water, and Minmei decides she’s going to take a shower. This was extremely hard to view in the pre-internet days of 1985, though fans will always find a way.
Thanks for reading this blog post about the first anime nudity we all encountered. What was your first anime nude scene? Tell us in the comments below!
Let’s Chat
You made it to the end of this post! Thank you! As a token of our appreciation, enjoy an extra 5% off your next order when you use the code BLOG at checkout. Also, don’t forget to follow J-List on all our platforms!
- Twitter / X, where Peter posts anime booba for you
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Happy New Year from your Friend in Japan, J-List! We hope 2026 is a year of happiness and peace for you. To get things off right, we’re having a huge site-wide New Year’s Sale through Jan. 6, giving you $15 off all in-stock products. Start browsing now!
