Kuwabara is just dead weight

He doesn't have any real purpose in the series ,all his fights are boring and he's just down right annoying >_<

He's there to make Yusuke look smart. At first, anyway. He was the big dumb lug to Yusuke's little punk. Once he started studying later in the series he lost his purpose - my reason he was left home during the Makai arc. In the beginning, though, he's all for Yusuke - because no main character can go without a best friend. Without him, who would the bad guys beat up on to make Yusuke mad enough to fight seriously? Kurama doesn't get pounded on till the tournament and Hiei's never been used as anyone's weak point. Without Kuwabara we'd see a lot more of Botan and Keiko in danger to provoke Yusuke. I like the girls, but I prefer an all male fighting team. At least Kuwa wins a few fights now and then, and he's the only one big enough to carry Yusuke around when he's snoring his head off.

He's just the for comic relief. Plus Hiei has to hate someone for crushing on his sister right? Might as well be the dead weight, right?

I like Kuwabara. Yusuke really needs a friend/rival like him.

Heeeey...I like Kuwabara! He's not JUST for the comic relief. He serves a pretty awesome purpose as a best friend. I don't think he's dead weight at all. And being Yukina's love interest really makes it hard for Hiei to NOT kill him ^^ Or else I'm more than certain he would've been dead a long time ago x3;

Kuwabara is, in most cases, comedic relief but I will agree that he lost his purpose as part of the spirit detectives a while later. So depressing. I absolutely adored his character when they introduced his beloved little Eikichi (sp?). You have to admit that any man who acts tough but still loves kittens is someone who deserves some admiration . At least in my mind.

No, Kuwabara serves an important purpose, beyond just being comic relief. Of the Spirit Detectives, he's the most (haha) human (and as it turns out later on...yeah). But Yusuke being Yusuke, he doesn't really listen to anyone that holds a position of authority over him (Koenma, Botan, Genkai, his mother, his teachers, Keiko...) and his moral compass is rather...skewed. From the start of the first season it's shown that, even though Kuwabara is a bit of a thug who revels in picking fights with rival gangs, he also has an incredibly big heart that guides his decisions (such as when he resisted fighting for an entire week so his friend could keep his job) and has a lot of people he cares about. Because Kuwabara is on his same level, I think Yusuke pays more attention to what Kuwabara does and says. If Kurama is the brains and Yusuke is the brawn, Kuwabara is the heart of the group.

Okay and I believe I rambled a lot there orz

They played him up for laughs in the animanga, especially the dub, but that doesn't negate the fact that he's one of the few truly nice guys on the show. And in terms of the fact that Yu Yu Hakusho revolves around main character Yusuke, and Kuwabara is very, very important to Yusuke, and important to his growth as a character and as a human being, I'd say he has a lot of point - more so than Hiei and Kurama, who were, after all, supposed to be meaningless side characters in the onset of the show. Kuwabara was one of the most powerful human psychics in the world by the end of Chapter Black - that's got to count for something, doesn't it?

I have to agree with Sekah. The show/manga/whatever is about YUSUKE! So of course his best friend will be involved, right? I also agree with Zero11, Yusuke's moral compass is some what broken, and and i doubt Hiei's or Kurama's are any better, probably worse. Kuwabara is the only one that is one Yusuke's level, that has a working moral compass. Sure Kuwa is there for comic relief but he's also the one to help Yusuke keep some of his humanity. I know someone of you are saying will Kieko does that, will Kieko is his love interest and someone he sees as an authority figure, he barely listens to her when it comes to school work, what makes you think he'll listen to her about anything else? Kuwa is the one that keeps things from getting to serious. Also my theory for Kuwa not being involved Makai arc is them growing up. They're all going off and growing up.Yusuke learning about his heritage, Hiei being Hiei, Kurama doing his things and Kuwa is off learning, he is human and unlike the others who are close of immoral and can do what ever the hell they want, he needs to get a job and earn a living. Also it's the MAKAI arc, every one there were demons, I don't remember seeing any humans involved.

But that's just my opinion. ^_^

I cant stand Kuwabarra! He isn't even good for a yaoi couple, Makes me just plain annoyed is all