Shonen Demographic: Difference between revisions

'''ShōnenShonen manga''' is [[manga]] published in Japanese magazines aimed primarily at tween and teenaged boys. ShōnenShonen anime is [[anime]] based on Shōnenshonen manga. It is ''not'' a genre.

ShōnenShonen series were the first to be brought over ''en masse'' to the Western world, because it was the closest match to what was being aired by Western networks at the time (nearly all popular Western animation either is geared towards males or has [[Multiple Demographic Appeal]]). Thus, it makes up much of the popular American perception of anime.

In Japan, "Shōnenshonen" is a designation of the stories that were published in a particular class of magazines,{{verify}} not a label that describes the genres of the stories in those magazines.{{verify}} That leads to series that are different from the typical Shōnenshonen style but still count as examples, and series that follow all the typical Shōnenshonen tropes but aren't Shōnenshonen because they didn't originate from a Shōnenshonen magazine.

* Sometimes, adaptations of stories with [[Multiple Demographic Appeal]] will create two versions of the story, one Shōnenshonen and one [[Shojoshojo]].

** The [[Cut and Paste Translation|attempted localization]] of ''[[Cardcaptor Sakura]]'' in the U.S. could be ''very'' generously described as an attempt to create a Shōnenshonen version of the series (i.e., increase appeal in the proven male market), despite the show being entrenched like a rock in [[Shojoshojo]] tropes.

** This practice also occurs in Japan. ''[[The Vision of Escaflowne]]'' had a Shōnenshonen-version manga produced of its story, while ''[[Magic Knight Rayearth]]''{{'}}s [[OAV]]s have a similar bent as compared to the original series.

* Nearly all the titles featured in the ''[[w:Weekly Shōnen Jump|Weekly Shōnen Jump]]'' (or simply ''Weekly Jump'') magazine have a kind of legacy with each other, enough that a [[Crossover]] [[Jump Super Stars|video game]] was highly received.

** The ''[[Dragon Ball]]'' series is by far the quintessential Shōnenshonen, and due to its age, length and influence provides examples of most of the classic tropes.

** Of all the ongoing Shōnenshonen series, ''[[One Piece]]'' is by far the most massively popular. It has drawn a great deal of inspiration from ''[[Dragon Ball]]'', but developed a ''very'' unique and compelling flavor of its own.

** ''[[JoJo's Bizarre Adventure]]'', released in 1987, is one of ''Weekly Shōnen Jump''{{'}}s longest running Shōnenshonen series, having reached over ''90'' volumes in Japan. It was only very recently that it got an official English release, and even then it jumped the gun a little, starting with the more-famous Series 3. With its 7th part, "Steel Ball Run", it has switched magazines and became [[Seinen]].

* General rule of thumb on the [[Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism|scale of idealism vs. cynicism]], most Shōnenshonen works (particularly the action fighter types), tend to fall in the [[The Idealist|idealist side]]. [[Deconstruction]]s, [[Darker and Edgier]], and/or, those that fall in the opposite side of the scale can easily be mistaken as a [[Seinen]] series and give a [[What Do You Mean It's for Kids?]] reaction (''[[Death Note]]'' and ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'' are some of the notable examples).

* ''[[Death Note]]'' — although even plenty of anime fans still mistake it for Seinen, mostly because Light is an adult for most of the series and there's the [[What Do You Mean It's for Kids?]] factor. Played with in the ''[[Bakuman｡]]'' series (by the same creators), in which several characters support Seinen-type stories running in Shōnenshonen magazines.

* ''[[Yu Yu Hakusho]]'' — another paradigmarchetype of Shōnenshonen.

== Non-''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' Examples ==

* ''[[Black Butler]]'' — even though it resembles a mix of Seinenseinen and Shojoshojo much more than actual Shōnenshonen.

* ''[[Eureka Seven]]'' — the anime can go into many genres, but both the manga adaptations were published in Shōnenshonen magazines.

* ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]''- often mistaken as pure Seinen, but most of its manga adaptions as well as the anime are either Shōnenshonen or Shōjoshojo.

* ''[[Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle]]''—yes, despite the genre of the various series it's a crossover from it runs in ''[[w:Weekly Shōnen Magazine|Weekly Shōnen magazineMagazine]]''.

* ''[[Yomeiro Choice]]''—the majority of the series, the first few chapters were published in a [[Seinen]] magazine, then it got transferred to a Shōnenshonen magazine and it stayed till the very end. The strong content from its [[Seinen]] day still remains through the whole run, making it ''very'' hard to label as suitable for the younger audiences outside the Japanese demographic rating of Shōnenshonen.

[[Category:Anime Genres{{PAGENAME}}]]