20 Anime Dubs That Censored Kisses But Kept The Bed Scenes

Anime censorship has historically resulted in some confusing localization choices for Western audiences. Television networks often mandated the removal of overt romance or sexual contact while inexplicably leaving the surrounding context intact. This frequently led to scenes where characters appeared to be sharing a bed or living together without any romantic explanation. Viewers were left with “cousins” or “roommates” who exhibited strangely intimate behaviors after the kisses were cut. The following series feature moments where the physical closeness remained despite the removal of the romantic payoff.

‘Sailor Moon’ (1992–1997)

The original English dub of this magical girl series is infamous for its handling of the relationship between Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune. Producers felt their romantic lesbian relationship was unsuitable for children and rewrote them as cousins. This decision backfired spectacularly when the animators left in scenes of the two characters gazing into each other’s eyes and holding hands. The dub kept sequences where they checked into hotels or stayed in bedrooms together while insisting they were related. The attempt to erase their romance only made their physical intimacy appear more taboo to the audience.

‘Mobile Suit Gundam SEED’ (2002–2003)

This mecha series features a controversial storyline involving the protagonist Kira Yamato and his friend’s fiancée Flay Allster. The original Japanese version implies a sexual relationship develops between them as a coping mechanism for the war. The English television broadcast heavily edited these encounters to remove overt suggestions of intercourse. However, the dub retained the scenes of them waking up in bed together under the sheets. The dialogue was altered to suggest they were simply talking or comforting each other while unclothed.

‘Blue Gender’ (1999–2000)

The Funimation dub of this sci-fi horror series faced significant challenges with its mature content. A pivotal moment involves the main characters Yuji and Marlene consummating their relationship in a desolate medical bay. The edited version removed the kissing and the explicit movements but kept the aftermath of them lying together. The script changed the context to imply they were merely huddled together for emotional support. Viewers could clearly see they were in a post-coital state despite the characters discussing platonic topics.

‘Cardcaptor Sakura’ (1998–2000)

The heavily edited Cardcaptors dub removed almost all romantic subplots to focus on the action. This created confusion regarding the relationship between Sakura’s brother Touya and his best friend Yukito. The localization team stripped away their confessions and romantic tension but could not edit out their constant physical proximity. Scenes of Yukito sleeping over at Touya’s house and sharing his personal space were left in the final cut. The result was a pair of “best friends” who acted remarkably like a devoted couple without the explicit labels.

‘Neon Genesis Evangelion’ (1995–1996)

The relationship between Shinji Ikari and Kaworu Nagisa underwent various changes depending on the translation. Early English adaptations softened Kaworu’s declaration of love to a simple liking or grace. Despite toning down the verbal affection, the dub retained the intimate bath scene where the two boys sit close together. The visual of Kaworu touching Shinji’s hand remained even as the dialogue attempted to keep things platonic. This mismatch between the visual intimacy and the localized script confused many first-time viewers.

‘Tenchi Muyo!’ (1992–1995)

This harem franchise established many tropes regarding alien girls living with a human boy. The Toonami broadcast edits removed mentions of polygamy and toned down the overt sexual advances of Ryoko the space pirate. While the kisses and confessions were often cut or interrupted, the scenes of the girls sneaking into Tenchi’s bed remained. The explanation for their presence was often changed to them being scared or just annoying him. The visuals of a teenage boy waking up covered in girls directly contradicted the sanitized “just friends” dialogue.

‘Revolutionary Girl Utena’ (1997)

The convoluted relationships in this surreal series were heavily modified for its initial English release. Utena and Anthy share a dorm room and a bed throughout the series as part of their engagement contract. The dub softened the romantic implications of their engagement by framing it as a strict friendship. However, the animators frequently framed them in intimate sleeping positions that the dub left untouched. The removal of the romantic context made their domestic sleeping arrangements feel unexplained and random.

‘Robotech’ (1985)

This foundational series combined three different anime into one sweeping space opera. The adaptation of Super Dimension Fortress Macross toned down the love triangle between Rick Hunter and Lisa Hayes. While direct kisses were sometimes obscured or shortened, scenes of them sharing living quarters or being trapped together remained. The famous scene of Minmay taking a shower was also retained in some broadcast versions despite the strict censorship of romance. The show often allowed visual suggestiveness while rewriting the script to be more innocent.

‘Ranma ½’ (1989)

The premise involves a boy who turns into a girl and is engaged to a martial artist named Akane. The English dub had to navigate the frequent nudity and sexual humor for television broadcasts. Romantic developments and accidental kisses were often edited out or glossed over to maintain a lower age rating. However, scenes where Akane and Ranma end up in the same bed or futon due to hijinks were frequently kept. The dub relied on the comedic context to excuse the fact that the two fiancés were physically sleeping next to each other.

‘Dragon Ball’ (1986–1989)

The original adventures of Goku featured significantly more adult humor than its successor series. Master Roshi’s lecherous behavior toward Bulma was often scrubbed from the dialogue in TV edits. Despite removing his requests for kisses or flashing, the scenes of the group sleeping in the same room or huddled together in a van remained. The dub often changed the dialogue to be about food or training while the characters were visually in compromising positions. This created a disconnect where characters acted shy about romance but slept in piles.

‘Love Hina’ (2000)

This series popularized the harem genre where a protagonist manages a dormitory full of girls. The English dub removed some of the more explicit accidental groping and kissing moments for broadcast. However, the premise requires the characters to live together and frequently enter each other’s rooms. Scenes of the main character Keitaro waking up with