While there are plenty of absolutely wonderful dads in anime, from Maes Hughes in Fullmetal Alchemist to Loid Forger in Spy x Family, there are also, unfortunately, plenty of fathers who are… less than adequate, shall we say. Ranging from simply being absent to committing horrendous atrocities, these men may have fathered or adopted children of their own, but don’t exactly live up to any typically expected fatherly duties. Heck, even Ryouji “Ranka” Fujioka from Ouran High School Host Club choosing to take on a more motherly role still way surpasses any of the fathers on this list in terms of actually taking parenting seriously.
While some of these dads like Goku could be given some slack, others could even be regarded as the scum of the earth when it comes to parenting. Though not all dads in anime may be the greatest, just as can unfortunately be the case in real life sometimes, a good portion of these fathers should really have no right to call themselves dads. Whether it’s using their own children as just a means to an end or actively participating in making their lives a living hell, there’s plenty of reason they’re on this list of the worst anime dads.
1) Goku from Dragon Ball Z
After Kakarot is sent from Planet Vegeta of the nearly-extinct Saiyan race to Earth, he becomes adopted by Grandpa Gohan and renamed to Goku. As Goku grows up, instead of destroying Earth as originally intended, he instead travels and defends the world from other powerful enemies who search for the legendary wish-granting Dragon Balls. Endeavoring to become as strong as possible to fend off increasingly powerful foes, the only thing that truly rises to match the strength of Goku’s powers is his heart. Just because Goku eventually even creates a family for himself doesn’t mean he settles down. In fact, having sons of his own only means more allies to power up.
Goku may have a pure heart and be a worthy fighter, but as a father… Well, he’s pretty absent for most of his sons’ childhoods, much to the disapproval of his wife Chi-Chi who takes the brunt of raising Gohan and Goten herself. After all, raising a Saiyan family can’t be easy. And when Goku is around to parent, Chi-Chi doesn’t seem too happy that he keeps trying to pull their sons away from their academic studies to learn martial arts and how to fight.