Shonen in Anime: Fast Paced and Lots of Action

At it’s most basic level, shonen anime is intended for boys, though the truth is that it can be enjoyed by everyone with a taste for dramatic story arcs and great action.  There are a lot of terrific shonen anime out there, and whether you are looking for something with intense movement or you want something that you and your friends can get together and view, there are plenty of options in front of you.   Take a look at what makes shonen anime so unique and why so many people are completely in love with this genre of anime.

Broadly speaking, shonen anime is aimed at young boys, with a target demographic that ranges from the ages of thirteen to eighteen.  However, even in Japan that demographic is far wider than that group of boys. Lots of people end up watching shonen anime for the fascinating plot lines and great animation.  You’ll find that if you have watched other types of anime that shonen anime is typically very fast paced with lots of action sequences.  Of course, just remember that a series that is listed as being a shonen series doesn’t have to be about long battles or fighting robots, though there are certainly ones that fall into that category.

When you are looking at shonen anime, you’ll find that there are quite a few that follow a young male protagonist who needs to fight and become stronger.  Along the way, he meets with people who help him, has adventures and each character grows closer and closer as the show reaches its climax which is usually a confrontation with the villain of the series.  Remember that this is just a broad outline, and that many shonen anime is by no means so formulaic.  When you are looking for examples of more psychologically complex shonen anime, consider Hellsing, a story of vampires and redemption, or think about shonen anime that are more comedic, like Ranma ½.

One great and increasingly famous example of shonen anime is Bleach, which is being released in both Japan and America.  It features a young man named Ichigo Kurosaki who can see ghosts.  Against his will, he is drawn into a battle between death gods and monsters.   At first, Ichigo is a reluctant hero, but when his friends and even his rivals are pulled into the fight, he can’t stay away.  Ichigo needs to battle the monsters that he has been confronted with, as well as realizing truths about himself that he would rather not have known.

Shonen anime is action storytelling at its finest, so make sure that you at least try out a series from this genre. Maybe you’ll love the action of the story arcs of Bleach, or the more episodic humor of Gintama, or even the old school charm of the grandfather of the genre, Dragonball Z.  Have some fun and pick out a shonen series to watch tonight.