Shonen Anime Starter Pack

This is something of a guide for the Shojo fan wanting to break into the large but intimidating genre of Shonen.

It’s easier for some people than others, but if you have trouble making the jump, or are just looking for some shows to teach your the basics, then look no further.

These are my top 5 recommendations for the budding Shonen fan in no particular order.

(If I haven’t gotten around to seeing a series, I will not be discussing it)

Brand New Animal

Brand New Animal, or BNA, is a brand spanking new anime fresh off the table of Studio Trigger in collaboration with Netflix. It premiered on April 8 of 2020 and holds a lot of promise.

BNA is a fantasy anime about a world in which humans have segregated a group known as “beastmen” in their own personal zone called Animacity. Beastmen can (as the name suggests) transform into anthropomorphic animals and are in great danger from many anti-beastmen groups that wish them harm.

Beastmen and Humans are not interchangeable. They are almost two completely different species, and have lived apart from each other for as long as possible. Due to the growth of humanity, and the removal of beastmen habitat, they have been forced to reveal themselves. Tensions run incredibly high and life is very dangerous for the beastmen, who have to rely on a few (shifty) human politicians to get what they need.

Which is where the anime begins.

Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas

Please note that this review is for the manga.

Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas is a wonderful read for fans of action/drama.

Saint Seiya: The Lost Canvas has a lot going for it as a series. It has the stable fan-base inherent in older series, and the perks of both good art and strong characters. The downfall of The Lost Canvas (TLC) is that most readers won’t be interested in it until after they’ve found the original series….

Saint Seiya: Saintia Sho

I find myself wandering back to my old haunts more often than I care admit. So here we are with another installment of Saint Seiya, this time the new anime, Saintia Sho.

Most Saint Seiya fans were ecstatic that the Saintia Sho was getting its own anime. What better way to bring Saint Seiya back than through it’s newest (and arguably most attractive) manga?

Rurouni Kenshin aka Samurai X

Here we go, let’s talk about Rurouni Kenshin.

Rurouni Kenshin is a widely beloved shounen series from the 90s. It tells the story of the wandering swordsman Kenshin Himura and his struggle to overcome his past as the man-slayer Battousai, while simultaneously protecting the innocent. 

The series is set ten years into the Meji era, in a Japan that is still coming to terms with the new Westernization movement. Most of the action in the plot occurs due to people who aren’t coping well with the new Japan they find themselves in. The villain of the week is usually a survivor of the Revolution with a grudge against Kenshin, or a former warrior who can’t stand living in the overly peaceful Meji era. 

 

Saint Seiya: Saintia Sho

This is a review for the manga, if you’re looking for the anime review, that will be a later post.

Let me just say:

  WOW 

Saintia Sho was everything Saint Seiya needed to bring it back into the mainstream. After The Lost Canvas was cancelled in favor of the disaster that was Omega, I really thought that Saint Seiya was finished for good.

Zettai Karen Children: The Unlimited

Zettai Karen Children: The Unlimited, is a new take on the classic series, Zettai Karen Children.

ZKC takes place in a world where espers and regular people are at odds with each other at every turn. Espers are being repressed and life is almost impossible for them. Enter Hyoubu Kyousuke, super-powered esper mastermind at the head of an all-esper gang. Hyoubu’s gang is hell-bent on making a world for espers to exist in peace, and in the process, drag an unwitting character named Andy Hinomiya into their midst.

Fate: Last Encore

Fate: Last Encore, is one of the most recent incarnations of the formidable Fate franchise. It was received with mixed reviews, and viewers either loved it or hated it. Here’s my spin on what did and did not work in Fate: Last Encore.

Fate: Last Encore follows the male protagonist from the video-game Fate: Extella, and the saber class servant, Nero. The basic synopsis is that Hakuno (the protagonist) and Nero must battle their way through a multi-layered dungeon to reach the top of the “Moon Cell” and avert the total destruction of humanity. Unlike most Grail Wars, there are new rules and each time you defeat the reigning master of a floor you are immediately transported to the next level. Essentially, Fate: Last Encore retained the video-game feel from Extella and rolled with it.

Rokka no Yuusha: Braves of the Six Flowers

Rokka no Yuusha is a series of light novels by Ishio Yamagata and illustrated by Miyagi. first published in 2011. It was adapted into a twelve episode anime in 2015.

Rokka no Yuusha is hard to put a label on. It’s one of those odd shows that doesn’t quite fit in wherever you put it. It has a Saint system, similar to Saint Seiya, but it’s also a fight driven anime, like a less-bloody Juuni Taisen. There’s a touch of mystery, a lot of fantasy, and enough drama to float the USS North Carolina.

From Far Away

From Far Away is a manga that was first published in 1993 by mangaka Kyoko Hikawa.

Despite being over twenty years old, From Far Away is a surprisingly good manga. It shows its age with the older art-style, but I consider it a plus rather an a minus. The softer, beautified style enhances the magic and attraction of the story where cleaner, more realistic art wouldn’t have served.

When I try to decide who I would recommend From Far Away to, I wind up sounding like an infomercial:

“If you like pretty artwork then From Far Away is the manga for you!”

“If you like epic romances then From Far Away is the manga for you!”

“If you like demons and apocalyptic monsters then From Far Away is the manga for you!”