Is a girl liking Shonen Harem manga like Negima! and Love Hina, and especially He Is My Master bad?

writerm

I went online a long time ago to this essay-type thing that talked about manga and anime. It gave this great criticism of shojo manga. It said how the girl's in Japan are supposed to be afraid of the hero. And I find that's very true. Granted, my friend loves Chobits (and so do I) but I'm not sure if it's shojo or shonen. Anyway, I'm totally addicted to Negima!, and I like Love Hina, and I also like He Is My Master since the comedy is so much better. Granted He Is My Master's pretty pervy, and so was Negima!, but once you see about a dozen pairs of underwear, the shock value for the rest of the series (any series, in fact) is gone. I like shojo even if they're kinda generic, but I value the shonen for the comedic value. Is this weird?

One Sin

It's bad if anyone likes Love Hina . . .

Erwin

Is pretty bad if you like He is my Master.

Neito

It's fine if it remains a guilty pleasure. If it advances beyond that you're in trouble.

Apreche

You're allowed to like whatever you want. Just be prepared to deal with people thinking you are weird.

One thing I've noticed with anime though, is that certain shows are very likely to be different things to different people. Many US fans thought Project A-Ko was serious, when it is actually a comedy. Many people watching Love Hina think it is a romantic comedy when it is really basically a harem show. It's because of the culture divide and sexist stereotypes that people in the US see the cuteness of Love Hina, and think it is a show for girls when the intended audience in Japan is horny male teenagers.

Watch whatever you like, and don't be ashamed of it. Just also be sure to learn about what you are watching so you can view it from the proper perspective.

kage_rod

I love harem manga because it always has a comedic value to it and, I admit, I kinda like the erotic overtones.

It's not a bad thing. Just don't expect it to happen in real life.

jcc

Does liking Chobits make me a romantic or a misogynist?

Victor Frost

Id like to say romantic. You know, the whole love surpassing all thing.

It's bad if anyone likes Love Hina . . .

I like that show out of the nostalgia of that being one of my first anime's. Its a guilty pleasure.

Viga

I don't like harem at all. I do have a nostaglia for Tenchi and Happy Lesson but that's it. I think Chobits is romantic. I love Chobits.

Anyway, yeah a lot of people will rag on your tastes but who cares. Just enjoy your anime. Keep your eyes open to different types of anime as well. It's not all fanservice and girl beatings you know!

Paulathon

I know most of the words, but the thread title makes no sense to me.

Rym

I can say one thing. Episode one of Love Hina was mildly amusing. Every other episode was in fact the exact same episode. I found it completely devoid of humor...

Nuri

Tch...it shouldn't have anything to do with whether you're a girl or not. Many girls like harem shows, just as many guys do. Frankly, I see nothing wrong with girls liking pervy stuff either...just because it's more "socially acceptable" for guys to talk about porn doesn't mean that there's something wrong with a girl talking about it.

And yes, I realize your question was not about porn. I'm just making a point; it doesn't matter what the subject matter is. As long as you're not hurting anybody else by your consumption of it, it's up to you to decide if you're okay with it. Don't rely on what someone else thinks is acceptable to define what you like.

writerm

I just find the shonen harem hilarious and that's about it. I do NOT - in any way - like seeing girls in their underwear. When you put the same fan service in sooooo many shonen manga (though what other kind of fan service can you put?), it kinda "numbs" you. I had no idea from my first manga that you could put that - I was taken aback. But after a while, I was like "Underwear, ok...", not, "Oh, God! What the hell?!" It lost it's shock value. Yeah, I do have to say I like Negima! much more than Love Hina, and I think it's just because I like the storyline better (currently, I'm up to vol.9) Each student has their own personality. Negima!'s the only manga I've gotten to vol. 9 - not to say I don't really like a lot of other manga, but it just has me really hooked. I really hope he finds his dad; and I guess guys wouldn't care being that it's a harem manga. And I just realized (though I'm really not sure if there's a definite word), since Haruka has come out by Shojo Beat, it's pretty much harem manga reversed and in a shojo style - a.k.a: there are 8 gorgeous dudes and one girl.

kage_rod

harem manga reversed and in a shojo style

Literally: Reverse harem. =3 Ouran Host High School club (or is it Ouran High School Host club? I just call it Ouran or Host Club) is also a reverse harem. I'm still figuring out what a yaoi or yuri version of harems would be (Yaoi example: Kyo Kara Maoh. =3)

Conan-San

Hum, I have no basis on He Is my Master the manga, but the anime is made of win and Gainax (and other anime) references.

VentureJ

I kinda hate to admit that I really like Ouran High-School Host Club.

kage_rod

I kinda hate to admit that I really like Ouran High-School Host Club.

But it's hilarious. Even I like it, and I hate guys.

Eryn

Ouran High is more of a parody of those types of manga than anything else (though it does still have its more serious moments). When I suggested it be shown at my uni's anime club, all the guy members groaned because none of them wanted to watch a pink, flowery show with yaoi implications (none of them knew that Haruhi was a girl). I reassured them that it was great, though, so they tried the first episode. By the end, everyone in the room (guys included) was in hysterics and they were more than glad to have seen it.

writerm

The only reason why I really don't like OHSHC is that, even though the main character's a girl, they do too good of a job making her look like a boy - so good that she looks like a guy in drag in the scene where she's supposed to be seen as a good.

What really caught me by surprise was when I read somewhere that one of my new favorite manga of all time, Inubaka: Crazy for Dogs was first published in a men's magazine. All along, I thought it was shojo with the cute dogs and the storyline(though Siguri is kind of odd). I didn't get what would make it fit into a men's mag. She wears shorts, but that's all. I wonder how long it was published in the mag. Hell, maybe it is shojo as I suspected, but at first was in the mag - or was edited? I don't know...all I know is that I don't cry easily like other girls, but every volume of Inubaka, I cry at least twice.

Li_Akahi

Finally! There are other people out there who like Inubaka! I love that manga, it is so unbearably cute that it has warmed my cold black heart.

writerm

Even though in my giant book of manga reviews, this manga got about a 2.5 out of 4 stars, I think this manga is sorely taken for granted. Yukiya Sakuragi does a great job with these sad scenes. They may take a page or two to read, but that's what's so genius about the series! I can't really describe it, but the way they drew it, you're able to understand what's going on, and you just start to cry. Don't take this manga for granted - it may look like the happy, puffy shojo like we're all used to (that's why I first bought it), but you will find it's deeper than that, and it's not all happy (maybe a tiny bit 'dark' if you really, really wanted to stretch it). You even learn some helpful tips when you bring home a dog. Sakaguri makes it like the dogs themselves have souls and an awareness of their own mortality, which makes you wonder if animals DO know their own mortality; and who exactly said they didn't to begin with?

Omnutia

While we're on the subject of guilty pleasures. Does anyone think, with a bit of editing (mostly cutting out the retardedness and keeping the depression.) Kanon could be greatly improved?

One Sin

Editing out the amnesia would make it three times as fast!- I mean three times better.

writerm

I liked Kanon, too. Yeah, I do think things could've gone faster, and some characters could've been left out, but at the same time, she's supposed to be a fox - though I don't lnow why she's a human now (which I have to admit is a little cool).

kage_rod

Finally! There are other people out there who like Inubaka! I love that manga, it is so unbearably cute that it has warmed my cold black heart.

I love Inubaka. I only have volumes 1 & 2 (but volume 1 went somewhere...). =3 I'll be buying number 3 and so on once I has the monies and see it. It is really cute, but at first read I can't see any darkness. Can't really read it again without number 1.. >>

writerm

I saw Oprah and the story about the puppy mills. It was so sad! I cried a little toward the end, but I changed the channel when they were going to show what happens when they put a dog down.
You will not be disappointed with the other Inubaka volumes. I've read the first 5 and they've been touching every time.

kage_rod

I can't wait then! Next time I leave town or a friend leaves town, I'm gettin' 'em!

writerm

That reminds me...does SHOJO mean virgin, young girl or both? I did this report on manga (well, mostly manga, but I put some references to anime in) and did four main types (or demographics) - shojo, shone, yaoi, and yuri. For shojo, I did a Wiki search and found both meanings for shojo. Are they used interchangeably?

...

That reminds me...does SHOJO meanvirgin,young girlor both? I did this report on manga (well, mostly manga, but I put some references to anime in) and did four main types (or demographics) - shojo, shone, yaoi, and yuri. For shojo, I did a Wiki search and found both meanings for shojo. Are they used interchangeably?

Shōjo or shoujo (少女, Shōjo or shoujo?) is a term used in English to refer to manga and anime aimed at a female audience between the ages of 10 and 18. The term is a transliteration of the Japanese 少女, literally Young girl.

Now what I want to ask of you is, why did you talk about porn instead of the mature demographics? I.e. seinen and josei instead of yaoi and yuri. I mean, yaoi and yuri aren't even the main demographics as far as I know.

kage_rod

*tilts head* I have to admit, yaoi and yuri are not main graphics.. They're only romance genres, as far as I know...

One Sin

What could possibly have given you the impression that Yuri and Yaoi were main demographics?