Manga Does Shoujo appeal to male audiences?

[Okita]

I'm not talking about mass market drive such as love hina or chobit etc (and the later clamp admits to be a shounen anime), but rather those shoujo that uses romance as its backbone rather than compliment.

Series such as Hana Yori Dango have almost as much drama as a soup, yet many people find them quite appealing (as compare to the soup). But how many male honestlly find these pure romance series a blast to read?

I am a very ethused fan of most shoujo romance, which i consider my second favourite genre. (oddly enough my favourite happens to be samurai epic, a great contrast) But then I also have an asian background and perhaps that is an influence (or not).

So how many poeple here read romance manga and like the majority of them? who likes the genre? Is this type of genre a female dominant one or is the fans more equally split?

please share your thoughts...

[densuke]

[quote name='Okita']I'm not talking about mass market drive such as love hina or chobit etc (and the later clamp admits to be a shounen anime), but rather those shoujo that uses romance as its backbone rather than compliment.[/quote]Perhaps it's unfair to use the term "mass market drive(l)" to denigrate anime or manga you don't like. It's all up for sale, after all.

When you mention Chobits or Love Hina though ([i]neither[/i] of which are shoujo titles), you could be pointing to "comedy/romance" or what is known (at least to American fans) as "harem anime." Certainly these are very popular and not necessarily very good.[quote name='Okita']Series such as Hana Yori Dango have almost as much drama as a soup, yet many people find them quite appealing (as compare to the soup). But how many male honestlly find these pure romance series a blast to read?[/quote]HYD definitely verges on soap operatics. The characters mindlessly and unerringly find ways to get into trouble. But there are other old shoujo romance titles which are less frantic, like Marmalade Boy and Here is Greenwood. I know that all three titles had some sort of following among male fans at some point.
[quote name='Okita']I am a very ethused fan of most shoujo romance, which i consider my second favourite genre...[/quote]I like romance and watch or read plenty of it. But there is an awful lot of shoujo romance around lately, due to licensing and the efforts of fan translation groups. It's nice that it's available but it was easier to say I liked most of it when there was less of it. As it is, I don't even [i]read[/i] most of it, and there are some mangaka like Shinjo Mayu whose work I can't stand.
[quote name='Okita']So how many poeple here read romance manga and like the majority of them? who likes the genre? Is this type of genre a female dominant one or is the fans more equally split?[/quote]This question is possibly misleading as to what you are looking for. Did you mean who likes [i]shoujo[/i] romance manga?

[Okita]

[QUOTE=densuke]Perhaps it's unfair to use the term "mass market drive(l)" to denigrate anime or manga you don't like. It's all up for sale, after all.

When you mention Chobits or Love Hina though ([i]neither[/i] of which are shoujo titles), you could be pointing to "comedy/romance" or what is known (at least to American fans) as "harem anime." Certainly these are very popular and not necessarily very good.
[/QUOTE]

nice dissection ~_^

Considering you're first comment, I am not against the anime i did mention, I would go so far to say that I like Chobit alot, despite it's fairly unoriginal plot... also while they are not classify as shoujo, they are fairly often clumped together (yes purest might disagree but I am not so steep in anime folkslore that I don't make plenty of mistake myself.

[QUOTE=densuke]
HYD definitely verges on soap operatics. The characters mindlessly and unerringly find ways to get into trouble. But there are other old shoujo romance titles which are less frantic, like Marmalade Boy and Here is Greenwood. I know that all three titles had some sort of following among male fans at some point.
[/QUOTE]

I've read all three series you've mentioned and I agree, there are many mellow series out there that are quite popular, and the conversion to anime does ensure it has a larger male audience...

[QUOTE=densuke]
I like romance and watch or read plenty of it. But there is an awful lot of shoujo romance around lately, due to licensing and the efforts of fan translation groups. It's nice that it's available but it was easier to say I liked most of it when there was less of it. As it is, I don't even [i]read[/i] most of it, and there are some mangaka like Shinjo Mayu whose work I can't stand.
[/QUOTE]

Again nice point, I should say that the majority of shoujo that [I]I [/I] read I've liked (discounting the virtually plotless steam-fest that seems to have the singular purpose of getting to the hot and heavy by the third page)

[QUOTE=densuke]
This question is possibly misleading as to what you are looking for. Did you mean who likes [i]shoujo[/i] romance manga?[/QUOTE]

To clarify, this is regarding shoujo romance as a genre, I an not typifying, merely asking wether an individual would give the manga the time of day AFTER they've heard that it's a shoujo? Or would simply say "oh one of THEM" and disregard?

This sorta reaction is slightly extreme but we all have our favourite/least favourite genre, for example I don't particularly like Mecha anime, if a show is all giant robot and I've being given the load down, I would skip over it for lets say a samurai epic, there is of course always exceptions but that's simply a habit i developed from past expirience with the genre's core theme.

Sorry if my post sounded a tad retarded, i'm writting this at 5am in the morning...

[densuke]

[quote name='Okita']...I am not against the anime i did mention, I would go so far to say that I like Chobit alot, despite it's fairly unoriginal plot... also while they are not classify as shoujo, they are fairly often clumped together (yes purest might disagree but I am not so steep in anime folkslore that I don't make plenty of mistake myself.[/quote]The thing about mixing up shounen and shoujo is that they really are quite different. It's true that lots of people can't always tell them apart, but I don't think that's any virtue in itself. And purposely mashing them together kind of kills off the topic of this thread.

There are plenty of shounen titles out there with female lead characters. But those characters often don't seem to be very easy for females to identify or even sympathize with - they tend to be much too pliable and pneumatic.

Shoujo manga at least tries to present female characters which female readers can deal with, and while they tend to lack self-indulgent and generally creepy male characters, I for one don't find this to be any great loss...

Also, shoujo manga encompasses more than romance (and the thread title at least does speak to shoujo in a broader way). The more I read shoujo manga the more I appreciate titles which include elements of action, fantasy etc. CLAMP made its name on this sort of thing.

And of course yaoi and yuri are two subsets of shoujo romance which even male romance fans tend to shy away from. I can enjoy reading yaoi or yuri but I can't really get into the mad fangirl thing centering around them.
[quote name='Okita]I've read all three series you've mentioned and I agree, there are many mellow series out there that are quite popular, and the conversion to anime does ensure it has a larger male audience...[/QUOTE]Few shounen romances are as good as any of these. Only Kimagure Orange Road can come close to Marmalade Boy, and it only features one love triangle...[QUOTE=Okita]...the majority of shoujo that [I]I [/I] read I've liked (discounting the virtually plotless steam-fest that seems to have the singular purpose of getting to the hot and heavy by the third page)[/QUOTE]The thing about Shinjo Mayu I object to is not the sex but the plotting, which is frantic and repetitious. Even the sex doesn't seem to be any fun - it's so obsessive and desperate...[QUOTE=Okita']To clarify, this is regarding shoujo romance as a genre, I an not typifying, merely asking wether an individual would give the manga the time of day AFTER they've heard that it's a shoujo? Or would simply say "oh one of THEM" and disregard?...[/quote]This is the main reason why I think it's important for people to distinguish shounen from shoujo. Kare Kano for example is a great title and lots of males have seen and enjoyed the anime. A lot of them also don't recognize it as shoujo either because they just don't know or because it's more convenient to pretend it's just romance. But that just prevents them from realizing that they have been exposed to something different from what they are used to.

It's true that anime in particular tends to blur genre distinctions at times to try to attract a wider audience. And there are plenty of female fans who enjoy shounen or seinen titles. But there is little enough shoujo anime as it is, and I would really hate to see the day when its unique qualities are completely eclipsed.

[Guest dark_itachi814]

[QUOTE=Okita]I'm not talking about mass market drive such as love hina or chobit etc (and the later clamp admits to be a shounen anime), but rather those shoujo that uses romance as its backbone rather than compliment.

Series such as Hana Yori Dango have almost as much drama as a soup, yet many people find them quite appealing (as compare to the soup). But how many male honestlly find these pure romance series a blast to read?

I am a very ethused fan of most shoujo romance, which i consider my second favourite genre. (oddly enough my favourite happens to be samurai epic, a great contrast) But then I also have an asian background and perhaps that is an influence (or not).

So how many poeple here read romance manga and like the majority of them? who likes the genre? Is this type of genre a female dominant one or is the fans more equally split?

please share your thoughts...[/QUOTE]

Well, personally, I love shoujo, cuz I'm a girl. :D However, my bro LOVES shonen series. Like, for instance, ragnarok,or gundam wing. Not to say that I don't like 'em it's just that I prefer shoujo anime and manga.

[youta moteuchi]

Even though I'm a man (or young man, boy -whtever - I'm not a girl that's for sure) I love to read shoujo like INVU or Peach girl - And I specially like Mars. Even though Mars and Peach girl can be a little too psycho sometimes, I like to read them to relax, have some laughts think a little or get inspired. Unlike the occasions when I go and read (or watch) stuff liken Evangelion, Raxephon or Ghost in the Shell (wich can be very tiring due to it's detailed information on computers). I almost forgot to mention that I LOVE Karekano, even though the art isn't thaaaaaat great...

So, what I'm trying to say is that I like shoujo a lot - but I also wanna say: isn't i much better when the story almost doen't belong to an especific genre, almos belonging to them all? I'm working on a story that has lots of romance, cute looking guys and girls and at the same time has swords, treson and death envolved. Shonen, yeah I know, but there are going to be episodes almost like in a shoujo - due the great influence they have on me.

Well, I think that's it for now hehe.

[Okita]

There are series that are considered shoujo (oh boy are they considered shoujo) and still have swordsplay, death and other such. Take Legend of Basara, RG Veda, or most of Yu Watase's manga, all of them of actions along with romance and most have elements of fantasy that might be conisder 'shounen'. However, they are shoujo, their very nature screams this and no matter how much hack & slash or magical puff you throw into the mix, they'll still be shoujo.

So yeah you're right, there are cases where the story will mingle with other genre, but they are still distinctively shoujo. (And yes I enjoy them too, Basara happens to be one of my favourite actually!)

[sakura18]

I don't think Shoujo manga would be read a lot by boys thatn the girls do. If for any reason, a boy WOULD read a shoujo manga, it would be only to either giggle and tease at the nudity, or to laugh in the faces of the dramatic and heart-breaking situations os the shoujo's main character....at least that's what i believe.

[densuke]

[quote name='sakura18']I don't think Shoujo manga would be read a lot by boys thatn the girls do. If for any reason, a boy WOULD read a shoujo manga, it would be only to either giggle and tease at the nudity, or to laugh in the faces of the dramatic and heart-breaking situations os the shoujo's main character....at least that's what i believe.[/quote]I am not sure what your first sentence is trying to say or what your definition of a boy is. It's possible that adolescent males might have a tough time with dramatic romance stories whether they be shoujo or shounen.

But I'm not an adolescent and this topic is about males but not limited by age group. Plenty of male anime fans can enjoy dramatic romance - or just enjoy stories with believable female characters, as shoujo is not always about "heartbreak."

[quote name='Okita']...there are cases where the story will mingle with other genre, but they are still distinctively shoujo...[/quote]Shoujo is not limited to romance. There are many different types of stories. And I agree that a shoujo title will feel a certain way no matter what kind of story is being told.

[color=blue]edit[/color]:[quote name='DeathBug']... I myself am a huge fan of Tenchi muyo!...[/quote]Tenchi Muyo is a shounen series; the manga was adapted from the anime and ran in Kadokawa Dragon Comics Jr., a well-known shounen imprint.

[DeathBug]

[color=indigo][size=1][font=comic sans ms]Well, I think whether or not shoujo appeals to males depends on the males and the shoujo. I myself am a huge fan of Tenchi muyo!, and have recently started reading Fushigi Yuugi. (SP?) And I'm male (Last time I checked, anyway.)

However, I'll have to admit, the romance did not draw me into those series; the humor did.[/color][/size][/font]

[Okita]

Firstly Tenchi isn't a shoujo, though the amount of female character might make it seem like it, a key to recognising shoujo would be the protagonist, which is almost certainly female. Fushigi Yuugi has it's share of humour, though in true Watase fashion, it's primary focus is the fantasitical heartache of the manga's heroine, the humour is certainly present but I rarely find myself openly laughing at theme, the funniest shoujo i've seen to date is actually karekano, thoroughly enjoyable and with comedy to spare.

[Dagger]

[quote name='Okita']Firstly Tenchi isn't a shoujo, though the amount of female character might make it seem like it, a key to recognising shoujo would be the protagonist, which is almost certainly female.[/quote]
Plenty of shoujo anime and manga lack a female lead, and some have casts which are almost entirely dominated by males. The opposite is often true of shounen shows. It's usually pretty easy to judge these things by other elements; the Tenchi franchise's fanservice, for example, is rather obviously not aimed at heterosexual women. The presence of a female protagonist may be indicative of [I]something[/I], but it really can go either way.

~Dagger~

[densuke]

Shoujo/josei and shounen/seinen are not that hard to distinguish from each other.

In manga there's really no question at all, because all the magazines and tankubons are gender-specific. It hardly ever takes more than a couple of minutes of googling to find out which magazine or tankubon series a manga title ran in. Some common shoujo mags are Ribon and Nakayoshi (for the younger set), ShoComi and BetsuComi for teens. There are a couple of lists on the web.

Most anime are adapted from or are adapted into manga, and the above would be applied to that manga. Anime not based on or adapted into manga can be sorted out fairly easily; it just takes a bit of experience.

For something like Tenchi Muyo, assuming there was no manga, the dead giveaway is the fact that one male is surrounded by romantically interested females (the "harem" cliche of many shounen/seinen comedies). A shoujo romance might involve a rivalry between two girls, but one of them will almost always be the lone female protagonist. A more common situation in shoujo romance is for the main female character to be interested in or pursued by two males.

[SilverCyclone]

Truth be told, I do enjoy reading romance mangas. Pathetic really, as I guess it kind of lets me get out of my life and imagine what it would be like...
Yeah, yeah. Go ahead and laugh. I would. :o
...incredibly pathetic...*sob*

[Okita]

[QUOTE=Dagger IX1]Plenty of shoujo anime and manga lack a female lead, and some have casts which are almost entirely dominated by males.
~Dagger~[/QUOTE]

Sorry for the misunderstanding, It would have been better worded to say that shoujo will likely have a strong female lead (and this is the case for the vast majoritive of shoujo) also the female lead doesn't neccessarily means the supporting caste is majoritively female, many shoujo have the reverse of the 'harem' syndrome such as the case with series like fruit basket or fushigi yuugi etc.

Anyways, I have trouble liking series like Gravitation, the amount of Yaoi warded me from fully enjoying it, though I admit that it is also it's defining point, and the story has great merit (judging from purely a critical perspective...)