A Lesson in Genres, Part 2

Another bonus picture. This one is of Marc. We were out at the bars one night, and I took a photo of him, so here it is! In manga style, of course!

PartÂ 2, coming right up! I’m happy to get back to work on this! I’veÂ been outside doing aÂ ton of yard work lately! Blah! Actually, to be honest, I like it. I have a nice herbÂ garden inÂ theÂ front, with different little cheap statues and dragons, and then in the backÂ I haveÂ aÂ great big garden that I’ve been working the ground so I can plant some seeds. I’ve got the tomatoes andÂ Swiss shard already planted! Yay!

Time to get down to business! We wrap the the rest of the genres I’ve picked out here. If I’m missing one, or there’s a term you’d like defined, but isn’t here, please drop me a line and let me know. Enjoy!

Kodomo

Pronounced: koe*doe*moe

This is manga angled at little kids. It’sÂ extremelyÂ cuteÂ and doesn’t tackle difficult concepts. It’s pretty much self explanatory, but just as there are children’s books in our culture, kodomo manga is manga for kids. They often times have little morals to the story, kinda like Aesop’s fables does, and teaches children to be kind and considerate.

Example of kodomo:

Lolicon

Pronounced: loe*lee*kon

I edited this out, because I’m not comfortable promoting this type of comic. If you read manga, you know what it is. If you don’t, then all the better.

Moe

Pronounced:Â mo*a

Just like bishoujo and bishounen, this is actually not a genre at all. It’s a type of female character: specifically young girls just beginning to enter their teens (“blossoming” or “budding” is the term I found on wikipedia.) It’s kinda popular right now, so I hear. A typical moe character would be Sasami from the Tenchi Muyo! series, especially in the anime spin off Sasami: Magical Girls Club. Moe’s kind of a broad term, because it can encompass any specific characteristics that a person likes in their favorite characters. For example, I might say I tend to like…uh…girl characters who are quiet and shy. Or…youÂ might say, you like bubbly out going characters. Moe is different from lolicon, because it lacks sexual connotation. These characters are just young and cute.

Example of manga with moe characters:

Lucky Star
Evangelion (Rei is said the be the ultimate “moe”)
Gunslinger Girl (borderline lolicon? I apologize if it is D: I haven’t read it)

Seinen

Pronounced: sayee*nay*n

This is a genre aimed at older teens and college students. It’s a little more serious and down to earth than some shounen (for younger teens. We’ll get there, I promise!) So seinen, targeted at an older audience, will often times have more “adult” situations, and is characterized often with a lot of violence. Topics tend to be more serious, and less comedic (not to say it never uses comedy.) Actually, I listed Gunslinger Girl as a having moe characters, but the series is itself is considered to be seinen.

Example of seinen:

Shotacon

Pronounced: shyo*ta*cone

I edited this out, because I’m not comfortable promoting this type of comic. If you read manga, you know what it is. If you don’t, then all the better.

Shoujo

Pronounced: shyo*jyo

Yay! We finally made it to shoujo! I love shoujo. This is a genre that’s aimed at girls. Like, teen girls. And yeah, I know, I’m out of my teens, but I still like romance and stuff like that! So here we are, this is probably one of the most popular genres there is…that and shounen. This genre covers a lot of different subjects, like fantasy, or sports, or music, or the like, but they almost all have some kind of love interest.

Example of shoujo:

Sailor Moon
Fruits Basket
Ceres
- Shoujo Ai
  
  “Ai” means “love” in Japanese. Like “aishiteru” is the verb, “to love.” So this translates into “girls love” and can be considered similar to yuri (girl on girl action,) but far less explicit. Like crushes.
  - Example of shoujo ai:
    1. Iono-sama Fanatics (yes, listing it twice! I’m not cheating)
    2. Little Little
    3. Kashimashi

Shounen

Pronounced: shyo*nay*n

I like shounen a lot, too. Actually, when it comes to genres, I’m not too picky. Shounen manga is aimed at boys, usually in early to late teens (manga targeted at older males is again, seinen.) The genre is characterized by large amounts of action, comedy, and a camaraderie between various male characters. The characters tend to grow through a shounen series, learning about life, friendship, andÂ sometimes love (though not in the same way you find in shoujo.)

Example of shounen:

Full Metal Alchemist
Bleach
One Piece
- Shounen Ai
  
  Same as with “shoujo ai,” shounen ai translates into “boys love,” and can be considered similiar to yaoi (boy meets boy,) but once more, far less explicit.
  - Example of shounen ai:
    1. Loveless
    2. Kyo Kara Maoh

Yaoi

Pronounced: yow*ee

Yaoi is manga who’s theme in guy love. The focus is on the love relationship between two, or more guys (sometimes there are love triangles.) Often times, you’ll find a more experienced male wooing a younger guy to fall in love with him.Â Yaoi can get explicit at times, and is usually most popular amongst girls: though certainly there are many guys out there who like yaoi, as well. I’m picky about my yaoi, but I’m starting to open up to and read more.

Example of yaoi:

Yuri

Pronounced: yew*ree

Yuri is the same as yaoi, only it’s girls, kinda like Michiko and Haruka in Sailor Moon. It also romantic in nature, sometimes. But it varies (as with any genre.) I don’t think I’ve actually read any yuri yet–but I am certainly going to find some so I can become an better authority on this genre.

Example of yuri:

I’m really glad I got this one done! I’ve been wanting to write my own notes on different manga genres anyway, so this has been a lesson for me, too! I can’t take credit for all this information: I mean, some of this stuff I new off the top of my head, but wikipedia.org was a great help! So that’s my “citation.”

By next Saturday I’ll have my next post up. I’d like to to have a new post more often than that, but I’ve been a bit busy lately. However, if I get done sooner, all the better! It’s always a good idea to stop by often! I’ll see you guys next time!