Favorite shonen and why?

[Kameruka]

Rurouni Kenshin and I believe that no other shounen followed it. Instead we have DBZ clones like One Piece, Naruto, Fairy Tail and Bleach. It is safe to say RK is a shounen with seinen-style plot, especially its manga(first few arcs of anime is much like your villain-of-the-week theme).

Samurai Deeper Kyo at least try to be like RK but too bad it relies too much on bishounen fanservice, considered being authored by a woman. Katekyo Hitman Reborn is a shounen too but ironically about 80% of its readership are teenage girls.

[MisaoFan]

Originally Posted by Kameruka

Rurouni Kenshin and I believe that no other shounen followed it. Instead we have DBZ clones like One Piece, Naruto, Fairy Tail and Bleach. It is safe to say RK is a shounen with seinen-style plot, especially its manga(first few arcs of anime is much like your villain-of-the-week theme).

Samurai Deeper Kyo at least try to be like RK but too bad it relies too much on bishounen fanservice, considered being authored by a woman. Katekyo Hitman Reborn is a shounen too but ironically about 80% of its readership are teenage girls.

There's not only DBZ clones, considering that the shounen demographic has a variety of genres (not just action in it !).

[Vexx]

I'll mutter some more about people trying to use the word "shounen" as a content definition word instead of a publishing source.... but meh. "action adventure for young boys" is the sub-genre apparently meant.

[MisaoFan]

Originally Posted by Vexx

I'll mutter some more about people trying to use the word "shounen" as a content definition word instead of a publishing source.... but meh. "action adventure for young boys" is the sub-genre apparently meant.

The latter is also commonly called "nekketsu" (hot blood). As I stated before, the shounen has various sub-genres in it, but I only cites the main ones :

- nekketsu (action/adventure)
- spocon (sports)
- pantsu (romantic comedy)
- suiri (mystery)

However, too many shounen animes are aired these days, especially on late night slots. Many of them are either based on romantic comedy mangas or light novels.

[tag1981]

Right now, Naruto is at the top of my list. Just started watching One Piece so that may or may not change.

[Ichuki]

Konjiki no Gash bell it has a good mix of comedy and action

[Kizoku Keenan]

I'm not going to answer this because the answer should already be obvious =)

[Ermes Marana]

Manga: One Piece

I've read through various arcs over and over and over and over and... it doesn't get old for me. Favorite manga of any genre.

Anime: Kenshin

The best main character. He's not just "killing is bad", he is a flawed but awesome guy whose past explains how he ended up like that. Lots of other great characters too.

[GreyZone]

Favorite Shounen Manga: One Piece

Favorite Shounen Anime: Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

[Guardian Enzo]

Originally Posted by GreyZone

Favorite Shounen Manga: One Piece

Favorite Shounen Anime: Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

It's a bit of a sidetrack, but I think TTGL should properly be considered seinen.

[Vexx]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

It's a bit of a sidetrack, but I think TTGL should properly be considered seinen.

According to the wiki, its been produced as both a shounen and a seinen manga -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gurren_Lagann

Just another example of why using the labels as somehow enlightening about what the content is - can be misleading

[GreyZone]

I guess these labels don't even really 'exist' for animes...

[SeijiSensei]

Usually the categorizations for anime reflect the audience of the adapted work. Original anime works aren't usually put into a demographic category, though they often have manga spinoffs which can be so classified. Shirow Masamune's Ghost Hound is one example; the derivative manga was published in a shounen magazine. (I actually find this a rather surprising categorization; the original anime seems more oriented toward adult viewers despite having 13-year-old protagonists.) Shirow's Real Drive was later adapted to a seinen manga.

[Acerbatus]

One Piece definitely my favorite. No two characters are the same, and the same goes for the locations they visit. The greatest part about the show is the adventure, one moment they'll be in the sky fighting angels, or at the bottom of the sea in a mermaid kingdom.

[Sheba]

Manga: JoJo's Bizarre Adventures

About EIGHT parts, each of them being a different generation of JoJo, related to the Joestar family, close or far. What to say about it? It's crazy, and absolutely fabulous. And those two adjectives can't even begin to describe it. It started as a drama in the first generation betfore going into gothic horror. Then the second part is part shounen and part pulp adventure a la Indiana Jones. The third part, the most popular and the more well known thanks to the OAVs, is a straight adventure shounen with a twist, the Stands, one of the best ideas in shounen ever. The Stands have influenced, at least, Persona and Shaman King. Then we get part 4, a thriller with a serial killer as the main antagonist; Part 4 is my personal favorite of all JoJos. Then Part 5 have an unexpected protagonist and is centered around the mafia. Part 6 takes place in a prison in the USA, in 2012. Part 7 and part 8, I'll let you discover it.

Anime: Saint Seiya (I mean the original series)

It don't have awesome plot twists, its character types may be nothing to write home about, but as a "shounen" meant in the "action adventure targetted at teenagers and kids", it remains my favorite because it feels the most shounen-y of all shounen. Like "if it fails, keep trying until you succeed", "even if the foe bitchslap you and gloat over how weak you are, never give up", and know what? It's one of the few shounen that did not have a power creep like those that plagued Dragon Ball. Maybe nostalgia is clouding me, but now that I am watching Omega alongside the original series to see if the original stand the test of time, I can understand what Marcel Proust meant with the taste of the madeleine.

[lml99]

Probably One Piece. The themes were a very powerful influence on me when I was younger. The idea that the world was wide open and you were free to make your own mark on it however you wanted was a powerful influence on me, as well as the recurring shounen theme that as long as you have the willpower and determination, you can achieve anything. In elementary school, when we were asked who our role model was, I never really had an answer. But now, I realize that they were probably Naruto, Luffy, and Ichigo. I think that many shounen works have similar qualities like these, but I don't think any of them really integrate the theme of freedom as much as One Piece does. Also, maybe it's just me, but I think One Piece has quite a few more happy endings as well. The worst part of this anime is probably the unbelievably repetitive plot structure, but I guess that happens with other shounen too, and I think it's forgivable .

[Flawfinder]

In terms of manga, it would be Negima. Love how big it got, love the comedy, love the action, love the characters, sad when it ended...it was great.

In terms of anime, it would have to be the first FMA series (and it is shonen; I checked). It was just awesome, from beginning to end. And I don't care what people say. I liked the ending.