It’s true, I haven’t actually used my kanji dictionary for looking up kanji since we got the internet at our house… I just take it out with me for browsing when I’m riding the bus sometimes.
When discussing Kanji in English, radical can also mean an indivisible semiotic unit. They are also useful in writing the Kanji by hand, discussing them with native speakers and Japanese linguists and yes, Kanji Kentei. As I am working towards a dissertation in Japanese linguistics they are super helpful for me, in acquisition as well as professional discourse.
Did I though?
That’s what the mnemonics do. So even if you’re not using WK’s, you’re using something.
It does sound like you’re an advanced Japanese learner though, so presumably you’re not going to encounter much on WK that you don’t already know.
Having minored in Japanese years ago but never having received focused instruction on radicals, Wanikani’s foregrounding them is hugely appreciated. I’m much more capable of both guessing and remembering meanings now than I ever have been before.
Sometimes it winds up being easier to go to the official meaning rather than Wanikani’s site-specific mnemonics, but between the two of them, I’ve found being able to attach meanings to radicals has been a huge help.
Radicals also help in writing. Much easier to remember 勝 as an arrangement of “train, moon, and power,” for example, then to go to write it with only the overall visual as a base.
As far as having to remember the site-specific mnemonics for review, it’s whatever. I don’t stress about burning them, and it isn’t the worst to have the mnemonic pop up as a reminder for future kanji every once in a while. If you’re remembering the radical through its non-Wanikani meaning, though, I highly suggest adding that as a synonym.
I hate true 本 radical. All i remember is that it is not book or origin. It’s on my critical list. Now i wasted even more time because of that one. Overall radical system is ofcourse good but some radicals are just too radical.
The thing you want is called Anki. It’s free and no one stops you from going at breakneck speeds.
I would love if the radicals on wanikani were the real ones, lol.
反 Devil. This just came up and I’m like this kind of reminds me of kanji 反 Anti. Nooo it’s same. Why teach me kanji first and afterwards radical with different meaning?(╬⓪益⓪)
Well God works in mysterious ways or maybe this is way to make Devil look bad. Well lets move on and see how this unfolds.
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Sounds like it’s time for a synonym… 
I like them since they make the mneumonics stick. Sometimes I make my own more memorable ones. I’ve only had to do that a few times though. 
I like them. I find them super useful when I’m learning new stuff and remembering the actual reading or meanings of kanji are. Then later on, I also still appreciate them because they’re a quick breeze to get through. Sort of like a reprieve from the work.
The radicals here are the only thing I don’t like about WaniKani. 
Radical is a way of life.
Love them
They are way easier than kanji and vocabulary.
Like everyone says: add a synonym. I didn’t fail that burn, but I cheated. While you are at it, you might wanna add “mother” to the drawer-radical.“drawer” is not something you’re going to remember if you haven’t seen it in 4 months. I failed that one (because I did the review on my Mac and couldn’t cheat). I don’t ever wanna see that radical again.
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I’ve been waiting for someone to say, “I’m a radical lover.” And I would just for kicks, but I’m not sure I can really claim that 
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I was going to make a Jeff Bridge’s joke, but I couldn’t find a good gif.
Sometimes certain radicals also have a certain meaning in kanjis. For example the sun radical (日） often indicates that the meaning has something to do with “time”, such as in 時 (time)、暇 (free time)、曜 (weekday). The nailbat radical often has something to do with “hand”, such as 持 (hold)、拾う (pick up)、投 (throw)、捕 (catch).
Before I learned this, I got confused with certain kanjis, but now the meanings of these kanjis are very easy to differentiate:
時 (time, using the sun radical)
待 (wait, uses the loiter/step?? radical)
詩 (poem, using the speak/say radical)
持 (hold, uses the nailbat/hand radical)
侍 (samurai, uses the leader/person radical)
Of course, this may not always apply, but it’s been very helpful for me
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There are things I don’t love about Wanikani’s radical system: like the mnemonics occasionally being more obtuse than the actual meaning, kanji and corresponding radicals not always coming together, occasionally sticking a radical with a mnemonic different from its standalone kanji version, but …
Two of the above are easily dealt with by adding synonyms and creating your own mnemonics alongside Wanikani’s, and the third isn’t that big a deal.
I love the site’s focus on radical-learning, even with its sometimes off-kilter mnemonics (they work!), and genuinely wish I’d gotten the same type of system during my classroom study. It’s made a huge difference in my ability to guess at kanji meaning on the fly, and my retention in general.
IMO the way Wanikani paces its radical and kanji lessons is the biggest difference between it and other tools, and it’s why after searching I found it to be the best.
I say love the Wanikani radical, but don’t be afraid to do your own research too.
This site’s radicals? Hate them.
Actual radicals? Interested in learning more about them.