The Other Side of Shounen

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Shonen Anime are known for their epic, earth-shattering fistfights, but those are just the tip of an unfathomable iceberg.
Chapters
00:00 Battling Shonen Stereotypes
03:53 I Can’t Believe It’s Not Battles
9:48 Gag Manga Supremacy
15:47 There’s More To Slice of Life than Cute Girls
23:20 Love a good Love Story
27:55 Sports! of a Sort
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In the depths of his Mother's Basement, Geoff Thew creates videos analyzing the storytelling techniques of anime and video games. He has been named the number one Worst KZbin Anime Reviewer by The Top Tens.

[@mothersbasement]

Use code MB50 to get 50% OFF your first Factor box plus 20% off your next month of orders at bit.ly/3R5NQWN

[@2cookedbred]

love the fact you used a model of a store

[@DrBunnyMedicinal]

Sorry Geoff, but Urusei Yatsura is, and always has been far and away Takahashi's WORST work, utter garbage AND not even vaguely funny. The fact that she went almost directly from UY to Maison Ikkoku, arguably her very best work, is a mystery for the ages.

[@holloify_tensa_zangetsu]

how can a 3 second clip of Soul eater look better then most!

[@TheSuzberry]

I’ve subscribed to Factor and if you wrestle looking for an easy, tasty, nutritious meal box, it’s the way to go.

[@kellychuang8373]

Really can say good video and also it's tough being an anime fan especially now really have to know your stuff and also some other parts dealing a rivalry just heard Toonami came back now is 1 and others not all anime are a slam dunk I can tell you along with having affairs is another blunder.

[@aichmalotizo9873]

Man, when you said the gag anime part was over and you hadn't mentioned Gintama, I nearly died inside until you made it the butt of the joke. That truly is where Gintama belongs so thank you.

[@joyc.e.7511]

I was about to say lol. Gintama is the first anime I watched that was like that and I found it hilarious. A great mix of comedy, down to earth philosophy, action, and drama. The show's got every damn genre lol.

[@ade1174]

Light taking a potato chip and eating it is unironically one of the most iconic moments not only in shonen but in all of anime.

[@kimbleangus7321]

I got one of my cousins to start watching death note because I wouldn't tell him the context to that scene lol

[@user-ku8yi5to4f]

more like the most cringe

[@dillonwolcott7655]

@@user-ku8yi5to4fthe butthurt is strong with this one

[@tyinyk]

Whether you think it's cringe or not, you can't deny that it's iconic.

[@thatonelucariofan503]

Finger point of Gurren Lagann and One Piece, Anthy Himemiya packs her stuff and leaves, Dirty Pair trans rights moment, Shinji Scream, Ending of Ashita no Joe, would all like a word and have all influenced decades of anime I’m serious

[@thomasffrench3639]

Next Video: Seinen is More Than Just Violent Historical Fiction/Dark Fantasy

[@SaltpeterTaffy]

Featuring, of course, Chii's Sweet Home and Aggretsuko.

[@jodrako4341]

Yes please! Dungeon Meshi is my favourite anime of the year probably and it really shows what seinen can be

[@kingsleycy3450]

Yeah, kind of sick of the dark=mature mindset that a lot of Seinen fans lives by

[@years-ti7xl]

Kaguya-sama is technically a seinen too so it's definitely not always about that dark stuff.

[@thomasffrench3639]

@@years-ti7xl That's the point I'm trying to make.

[@fangoram29]

"slightly warmer hands" could be such a curse in baking depending on what you're making

[@MadHermit95]

I can't believe Yakitate Japan has two whole mini arcs about that

[@pedrojofre8289]

​@@MadHermit95 I remember the pie, what was the other?

[@MadHermit95]

@@pedrojofre8289 The final arc in the manga reveals the bitchy older sister has the "cold hands" which apparently makes her amazing at making tarts.

[@digitaljanus]

I'm just glad I finally know the name of the baking anime my friend saw a fansub of years ago and never shut up about.

[@MetronaJ]

I find it funny how surprisingly well researched the anime is when it features ACTUAL TIME TRAVEL FROM EATING DELICIOUS BREAD as a plot point

[@thomasffrench3639]

I don't know if it still is that way, but in Japan there was at least a certain period of time when gag manga was more synonymous with Shonen than battle series.

[@Gloomdrake]

Dragon Ball was a gag manga, once

[@gentlemandemon]

they're not ubiquitous like they used to be, and varies between publishers, but gag manga at least always have a presence in shounen manga

[@TheZajicekfarber]

I would assume the modern shift towards more action can be attributed to The Big 3 (One Piece, Naruto, Bleach) global popularity.

[@thomasffrench3639]

@@TheZajicekfarber I think since it was manga based, it was probably Japanese popularity.

[@loft777]

@@TheZajicekfarber more probably to dragon ball especially z

[@shinygekkouga52]

I think every battle manga needs gags, but not every gag manga needs battles. This is the power of gag supremacy!

[@dontmisunderstand6041]

Drama needs comedy to survive. Comedy can stand on its own merits though. The comedy in a battle series is pulling double duty, both as a source of humor, and as a tool to juxtapose our very un-serious heroes with an entirely too serious scenario. When the clown stops joking, shit's about to go down.

[@AlexT7916]

​@@dontmisunderstand6041there's a reason why the best selling manga ever One Piece spends just as much, if not more time, on comedy as it does action

[@mimszanadunstedt441]

if you played jump ultimate stars there is a rock paper scissors between Laugh > Power > Knowledge

[@PredictableEnigma]

Coleen's Manga Reccs is the shoujo version of this video. Shonen isn't just battle. Shoujo isn't just romance.

[@beeaggro2593]

hell most romance anime are shounen now

[@PredictableEnigma]

@@beeaggro2593 exactly! I adore Kaguya-sama and think Komi is pretty cute too but they aren't shoujo and don't feel like shoujo either.

[@Syco07-pm3iz]

Isn't Kaguya a Seinen manga tho?​@@PredictableEnigma

[@kingsleycy3450]

Hikaru no Go is one of the greatest stories to ever grace Shonen Jump. I used to clown on it for being so tropey and over-the-top, but its readability was its greatest strength. It was my Ping Pong the animation

[@ReaveIdono]

I just rewatched the anime a few months ago. Fantastic series. Got me into Go.

[@mmelanoma]

It's so good. The manga is still top for me, I kinda went from hating the end to loving it as I get older

[@Chaosmancer7]

I watched a little of it years ago, got into go a little bit... and have been meaning to get back into it for years.

[@Pajali]

Completely agree. The story really uses its premise to its full potential, and the ART. The visuals alone made me want to learn how to play go.

[@DrFerno727]

It was my first manga and anime series, and it even became part of my Internet identity

[@ambrosia777]

Fun fact about AlphaGo, the Go computer Jeff mentions. It did take 2 decades after Deep Blue to beat the world's best Go player. But within the last few years, humans have started to beat it again. It's actually to a point where a switched on amateur, with the right instructual guide, can beat the super computer. Soooo still can't beat us!

[@poputchik4910]

Words can't express how happy I am to see ruri dragon on the thumbnail

[@kathycoleman4648]

Many people mistakenly think that shonen means 'fight' and shojo means 'romance'. But in actuality, shonen means young / teen boy, and shojo young / teen girl. They're categories, like YA, middle grade, fiction, non-fiction, adult. Not genres like romance, fantasy, sci-fi, or thriller.

[@Aerafuz]

They're demographics specifically. One Piece is a Shonen because it's published in Shonen Jump. Rent A Girlfriend is a Shonen because it's published in Weekly Shonen Magazine.

[@tomraineofmagigor3499]

Exactly. This is why it's annoying when I see people say "Shonen should appeal more to girls sensibilities" no. You should instead be asking for more shoujo. If you notice a romance shonen will show curves on female characters but shoujo will make the female characters all have the same curves that is none. The men in shonen romances look plain and average while in shoujo they're chiseled and full of sparkles That's just looking at romance comparing the two and every genre can show up in either

[@donotreply8979]

Explain jojo then​@@tomraineofmagigor3499

[@elGonho]

@@tomraineofmagigor3499 Yeah, if they say that complaint specifically it might be uninformed, but I could totally agree with wanting to portray the opposite gender of the target audience in a less one dimensional way.

[@tomraineofmagigor3499]

@elGonho what I see people say is that shonen should be made for women. It completely throws out the meaning of the word. What you're talking about is just the ability to write

[@Getwright-]

On of my favorite current battle manga started out as a gag manga. Sakamoto Days Started out beimg all, look at this fat schluby convenient store clerk who’s actually really a competent former hitman, to being about all the most powerful human on the planet fighting each other

[@mRboylls]

It’s so good and I hope it gets an anime!

[@sarahrawlinson6271]

@@mRboyllsit is getting an anime! This year iirc!

[@RoronoaZoroSensei]

Ruri Dragon, a manga by a newcomer, still being hot after a year of hiatus, after just 6 chapters, sounds completely unbelievable. Except I was part of that from day 1 and I'm so happy it's finally back on!

[@clearspira]

I actually cried when Jiraiya died. I didn't wail or anything, but I shed a tear. I came close when I saw Naruto alone on his swing the first time too due to my own personal experiences. Do not ever dare to tell me that Shonen is just big guys screaming and fighting each other because it is so much more.

[@saltyk9869]

The best Shonen have a degree of emotional storytelling. Naruto, Demon Slayer, and even Dragon Ball.

[@gesi7072]

Naruto's growth as a person is possibky my all time favorite protag story in the mainstream shonen anime sphere

[@dontmisunderstand6041]

The things I think about when I hear "shonen anime" are the heavy emotions.

[@BewareTheLilyOfTheValley]

It was Naruto's depression over Jiraiya dying that made me cry. We'd seen him sad and lonely but watching him really go through full-blown depression was not something I ever expected to see. Him listlessly buying a popsicle, sitting down to supposedly eat it and then just breaking into tears when it finally hits that Jiraiya is really gone...damnit, I'm wiping away tears now remembering it 😂. Very, very well done scene.

[@HurricaneDDragon]

I don’t think he was necessarily saying that battle shonen is all hype and no heart, he was just highlighting other types of shonen series. By the way, Jiraiya vs. Pain is my favorite fight in Naruto. I think it’s quite underrated.

[@Necroskull388]

Ever since I found out Ancient Magus Bride technically runs in a Shounen magazine (to my great surprise), any time I hear "shounen manga" my brain immediately and faultlessly goes straight to Ancient Magus Bride.

[@robertfaulkkner5508]

This is Geoff’s own take to “Non-Battle Battle Anime” by Super Eyepatch Wolf from like five years ago. I’m all for it.

[@cloudbloom]

4:42 well well well

[@Ramsey276one]

Gonna watch that one again after this!

[@kitsong]

Are there any non-battle battle series about healing? Think One Piece if Chopper was the main character.

[@Ramsey276one]

@@kitsong please tell me there's one at least!

[@akaliislifeakaliislove5968]

@@kitsong I only know a bunch of korean manhwas about doctors who returned in time and stuff like that(e.g. Medical Return), and I guess Apothecary Diaries could count as one?

[@evanb.529]

The "shikanoko nokonoko koshitantan" gag went on longer than I could have ever imagined and I love it

[@garrettvinson3376]

I have the old and the disconnection from popular stuff. What show is this dance from? Google is only returning variations of the meme and I don't know what is real any more T_T

[@evanb.529]

@@garrettvinson3376 it's from an upcoming show literally called "shikanoko nokonoko koshitantan" which idk the English for right now. It comes out in just a few weeks for the Summer 2024 anime season but the OP song and associated dance used in one of the PVs became quite popular lol

[@garrettvinson3376]

@@evanb.529 gracias senor

[@bovanshi6564]

🎵🦌shikanoko nokonoko koshitantan 🦌🎵 🎵🦌shikanoko nokonoko koshitantan 🦌🎵 🎵🦌shikanoko nokonoko koshitantan 🦌🎵 🎵🦌shikanoko nokonoko koshitantan 🦌🎵 🎵🦌shikanoko nokonoko koshitantan 🦌🎵

[@josueroberto7356]

Shikanoko nokonoko koshitantan

[@javelinmaster2]

Oh deer

[@theepicricemaker6611]

Ugh y e s this but on all day with no breaks and it gets louder as you become more mischievous

[@DavyEddyBenny]

Know in the Latin American community as 🎵El Venao, El Venao🎵 🦌🇲🇽

[@itsaBoomer]

shikanoko nokonoko koshitantan

[@Ash_Wen-li]

I peeped the footage of Hikaru no Go at the end. Crazy someone else talked about it cause the only other person I've heard mention it was a friend. It's gonna be the next anime I watch

[@samlewis6487]

It's very good actually

[@dennpearldeloso6295]

I'm happy it was mentioned because it's my favorite and first anime I got addicted to.

[@Seergun]

I remember watching it on the cartoon network/adult swim? forget which, website back in the... mid to late 2000's? Never did finish it...

[@ladysorka]

It's genuinely one of my all time favorite series

[@ReaveIdono]

Wonderful series. Hikaru No Go and Chihayafuru are so rarely brought up.

[@FanTalks1]

Am I the only one who loves these videos where Geoff talks about different anime that are connected by a single aspect, which is the focus of the video?

[@Champiness]

I agree - it really gets at how he attempts to be, like, a _student_ of the media he covers rather than just someone who watches a lot of it & then blabs to us about his takes

[@digitaljanus]

The virgin fan of the medium: Here are my 20 favourite shounen anime! A chad scholar of the medium: Allow me to take you on a journey of the half-century history of this demographic category and highlight some of its more interesting offerings.

[@izaakamesta1919]

I actually love this videos, I wish he was explicit about the names of the animes he reference (he mostly does tho)

[@dwmlue9299]

Just saw the video title change on me in real time as I was watching the video. Didn't even know that was possible.

[@mothersbasement]

Yeah that’s kinda crazy I figured the title was set when you load the video session

[@plushdragonteddy]

the bits in this video are so good. the gag anime gag. the deadpan commitment to naruto running despite refusing to get up from your office chair at the end. impeccable

[@melissavice9967]

the hikaru no go section hit me with a wave of nostalgia. my best friend and i were inexplicably obsessed with it in middle school to the point of playing go online

[@HexagonPankake]

Roboco’s covers are iconic

[@ImaPandaFox]

I feel like I’m gonna cry because finally you’ve mentioned Hikaru no Go in one of your videos. It is so good, but there’s not enough people that have watched it. It is my favorite anime by far. We need more people to watch it so we have more people to discuss it with.😭😭😭 I love all of the characters, even the side characters I think that the rivalry between Akira and Hikaru is wonderful and I never get tired of it. I have re-watched this show. I don’t know how many times. I am forever saddened that the intros are not on Spotify. And I’m even more sad because they never finished the anime.😭😭😭😭 we need a reboot, please. Also Ogata is the best husbando in all of anime😂😂

[@HUNT3RdotME]

To answer your introductory question, the first thing I thought of was actually that deleted James Somerton bit featured in Hbomberguy's plaigarism video where he mispells it to "Shonan" because of course.

[@MVNA_]

I just came for the Ruri Dragon segment. I saw the Ruri Dragon segment. I liked the Ruri Dragon segment. I going now. Thank you Mr. Jeff. Love your videos.

[@BotSrsly]

u just like me fr

[@Sinaeb]

@@BotSrsly fr

[@skywardsword2804]

For the life of me I can’t understand the hype behind that series

[@MVNA_]

@@skywardsword2804 cute dragon girl do cute dragon girl thing. what more do you want? it aint that complicated my brother

[@cyan_oxy6734]

I thought it's on hiatus because the author got sick but apparently more is out. Gotta catch up!

[@OtterSeaborne8901]

Male romance protagonists? Female romance protagonists? How about a bit of both? Running in Bessatsu Shonen Magazine, Boyfriend Sometimes Girlfriend is a romance story less about finding a relationship and more about being in one: meeting the parents, making time for dates, disapproving friends, and how much harder that all gets when a hereditary genderbending curse gets involved. There's only a handful of chapters out yet, but if you're interested in the ways love changes people (in more than just the way mentioned in the title), and in potentially hazardous doses of sincerity and earnestness, maybe give it a look? I, ah, don't think there's an official way to read it in English yet, but you're learning Japanese now, right?

[@RuiTsuki]

Thank you for this comment, just checked it out and ended up really liking what's there so far! =D

[@col8488]

Came for ruri, stayed for shikanoko

[@DurianKing]

Akane-Banashi's Rakugo stories reminds me of the many tropes of manga stories I've read throughout my childhood. A lot of them aren't original creations, but rehashes of tried and true Rakugo tropes. It's Japanese traditional storytelling culture in a nutshell.

[@mrbanks456]

This is why I prefer the term "battle manga" instead of "shonen." It literally just means "boy."

[@Aerafuz]

That's because Battle Manga is the term for the genre, many mangaka literally point it out. But because people online tend to associate the term as a genre, that's why we get this disparity, that to be quite frank people are too bullheaded to want to acknowledge. It's like how the plural of amiibo is just amiibo, but everyone just says "amiibos" because, why not? "Who cares if the genre is "Battle Manga" and Shonen is a demographic, I'm still going to call them all "Shonens" because I think it fits better."

[@thomasffrench3639]

@@Aerafuz This is so true. The main issue is that people use it to discredit certain series and prop up series they like as not fitting whatever genre they don't like.

[@12thLevelSithLord]

​@@thomasffrench3639Yeah, so many people go "thing X isn't shonen, it's good" Like FMA or AoT

[@ausgod538]

It's what I use and its the actual term used in japan. Either battle manga or battle anime.

[@joyc.e.7511]

​@@12thLevelSithLordYeah, I was stuck in that mindset for a bit, though mostly because I thought it had to due with how dark the themes of the series are, with darker stuff leaning more shounen, but my sister set me straight lol.

[@JimmyRei1000]

Let's be real. Geoff made this entirely so he could boogie to Nokonokotantan on camera.

[@NunyaBiznessss]

I think I may need to rewatch the Gag Manga Supremacy section without looking because I'm so transfixed by Geoff and Yazy dancing that I'm only catching half the words

[@wolfscrescent7216]

Akane-Banashi mentioned, let's go! Seriously, its such a beautiful story that's both well written and incredibly well drawn, with the blend between the more traditional manga art blending into the more traditional paint-stroke looking portions of the rakugo stories themselves. Plus, one of the most fantastic pieces of art capturing the pressure to perform and the weight of expectation that I've ever seen in one of the most recent chapters. If you want a good non-combat shonen, I can wholeheartedly say its one of the best I've ever read. Please give it a chance, I don't think you'd regret it.

[@ReleaseZeKrakken]

Ruri Dragon is criminally underrated, I remember reading the one-shot before it got serialized and loved it.

[@retrohanska4441]

I have to disagree. I constantly see it being hyped, every time I see anything about it, it's almost nothing but positive, it maintained insane levels of hype even despite going to long hiatus before it really even started properly and last chapter pulled really solid views in Manga Plus. It's not criminally underrated, hardly even underrated. It's just popular, plain and simple

[@sagia4645]

Thanks for Hikaru no Go's mention. One of my favorite anime and manga of all time. Got me into the game as a kid, and while I have and still sucked at it, that story has a special place in my heart.

[@BurneraccountXD69]

It's kinda unfortunate that just using the term "shonen" in regards to anime in causal conversation, almost always refers to a "shonen battle" anime specifically, but that just my opinion.

[@LoopyChew]

Geoff and Yazzy dancing on a loop for an hour please

[@imaginarylivingbody7154]

I am tired of people calling Shounen romance animanga ‘shoujo’ just because it contains romance.

[@PredictableEnigma]

Agreed! And they do the opposite and pretend non-romance shoujo are actually shonen. Even in this very comment section

[@dwainsimmons3447]

Can you do one on shoujo isn’t just magical girl shows?

[@Ash_Wen-li]

or romance

[@gota7738]

I mean a magical girl one would be cool too.

[@PredictableEnigma]

Check out Colleen's Manga Reccs! Great KZbin channel for shoujo and josei talk. Colleen has indeed made a few vids about how shoujo isn't just romance

[@Demonsta]

​@@PredictableEnigmagreat rec, but would be great to see this channel do one too. Much like shojo, Colleen has a pretty straightforward demographic and gets a lot of negativity and pushback from the types of people who watch Shonen and handwave anything shojo as yucky girl stuff. Colleen can't educate an audience that's not watching, meanwhile Geoff jokes about not covering shojo stuff because of the comments it gets, would be great to see him branch out and actually talk about some shojosei anime because he clearly watches them unlike a lot of the insecure harem only anituber bros he shares his viewership with.

[@PredictableEnigma]

@@Demonsta Agreed! I'd love to hear anouther perspective on the topic. Shoujo anime do often make at least a mention in Geoff's Ones To Watch vids when they come out, so he likes those stories well enough and obviously isn't insecure about gender stuff. But frankly shoujo just gets fewer anime adaptations and you mostly find it through manga. So Geoff and many others are just exposed to it less and might not know what they are missing. The Shonen Jump app is such an amazing deal, but non-Jump stuff often has to be sought out and paid for per-volume rather than it being part of a low cost subscription. I don't think most people browse pirate sites to discover new manga series, they just search for series on them that they have already heard of elsewhere. The word has to get out there!

[@Flasa]

Oh my! I used to LOVE Patlabor when I was younger but I haven’t heard anyone address it in years! Thanks for unlocking these memories!

[@zebrother]

another SoL Manga worth mentioning that is technically Shounen is Aria. Happens to be my favorite Manga. More people should really check it out (or the Anime which is equally fantastic)

[@Ash_Wen-li]

I love the anime

[@EmpireAnts42]

You should check out my friend's cover of Undine under the name Ponpoko in the Distance!

[@pbjmochi8400]

!!! Aria mention! Congrats on officially being cultured™!🎉

[@animusswtor4822]

this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this this . Are these enough to get my point across? probably not, but yes. yes so much. also if you haven't (for any Aria fans out there), check out Tamayura's anime, too, it's written and directed by the same person that directed Aria and it's an absolutely amazing series with very similar vibes

[@lhumanoideerrantdesinterne8598]

At some point during the gag manga section, I unconsciously started doing the dance thing and kept going until the end. You win this one, Geoff.

[@gragon7082]

Loved being reminded of Hikaru no Go, it’s kinda wild to think about reading shonen jump and finding out how excited I was to see teenagers practice a game I didn’t remotely understand right alongside naruto, bleach, one piece, and shaman king

[@agogobell28]

Thanks for shouting out Bloom Into You. It’s amazing.

[@Pixel_Fox]

Blue box mentioned!!!

[@ben-san9677]

24:26 This bit, especially the inflection on "I'm _definitely_ gonna do it again," really got me 😂

[@Ramsey276one]

Xd

[@greenapple9477]

**Starts dancing with Geoff and Yazy** 12:07

[@neverendingribbon]

What's the name of the anime that's from? I couldn't quite catch it

[@kettei5408]

List of most of the anime recommendations made in the video:(mostly in chrono order) Yakitate Japan Show-ha Shoten Dr. Slump Azumungadaiyo Nichijo Saiki-k Me and roboco Doraemon Cromardie High school Great Teache Onizuka Akane-banashi RuriDragon YuYu Hakusho Mob psycho 100 Kaiju No.8 Planetes Drifting Dragons Plastic memories Patlabor Quintessential Quintuplets 100 girlfriends who really love you Toradora Horimiya(my personal recommendation go watch it you heathens) Nagatoro Your lie in April Bloom into you(peak yuri) Smile down the run way Baby steps Beat and Motion Blue box Kagura bachi(go read it you fiends) Haikyuu Rimnikakero? Frieren(go watch it you degenerates) Hikaru no go Tenmaku cinema Urusei yatsura

[@kettei5408]

No time stamps cu I'm lazy

[@hellowendy1029]

Thank you!!!! 😊

[@Hazardius]

Thank you so much!

[@kjarakravik4837]

Gintama too

[@yerpedy]

Homie rely thought he snuck the gintama foreshadowing past us

[@zgamer200]

I see praise for Hikaru no Go and I'm a happy camper.

[@saltyk9869]

Ruri Dragon is a series about cute girls being cute and also the main character is a dragon girl. When it went on hiatus, I was convinced that the series was gone. And yet it came back and seems to be successful so far. I guess that's just the power of cute girls and dragons.

[@mangarotti]

Just mentioning gintama is enough to light up my hope of someone making a video about it

[@KingCasual1986]

Since Geoff didn’t mention it I will: listen to the second opening of the Patlabor TV series. That might be one of the most beautiful mecha anime openings I’ve ever heard!

[@tobiasl830]

Patlabor! Super under-rated

[@Patty-Q]

My god, the rakugo mention made me remember something that happened last year. I followed a couple friends to a con in Montreal and on the second day, I think, I went to a presentation on rakugo, but it turns out I was the only one in the small group that didn't speak French. I nodded along when the presenter was explaining things in French, but understood so much more when they switch to rakugo stories, which they told in Japanese. The funny thing is I took a semester in French back in high-school, but all the Japanese I've learned was from all the anime.

[@Ramsey276one]

Congraturations!

[@timothymclean]

RuriDragon mentioned!

[@samfisher6606]

The Yazzy cameo was excellent

[@lrgogo1517]

...Which one

[@samfisher6606]

@@lrgogo1517 Both but the dancing one was more unexpected

[@m14980]

We need a video like this for seinen and Shojo too. Fantastic video👏👏

[@PredictableEnigma]

Agreed! Colleen's Manga Reccs is a youtube channel that made a few videos like this for shoujo and josei. I reccomend the channel for sure. But I'd love hearing Geoff's and others perspective on it too.

[@Rainears129]

Hikaru no Go was actually my first manga. I myself had just started reading comics that weren't in the newspaper funnies (somehow I never read superhero comics by Marvel or DC as a child) and just finished my first comic series when my friend introduced me to manga and Hikaru no Go. I had no idea what I was getting myself in to. Nearly 18 years later (...dear god, 18? I feel my back starting to ache), and I still enjoy the medium. Never checked out the anime though, because by the time I learned about it, I had gotten interested in other series.

[@failasaurusrawr1423]

Woah! Never been so early, KEEP IT UP MOTHER'S BASEMENT YOURR VIDEOS ARE AWESOME!

[@kickflipindi]

Got so many recs from this video i'm excited to check out! I know it's not your bag, but Shojo is just as deep, vast, and varied and with your popularity it would be so cool to see a shojo video one of these days. be not afraid

[@PredictableEnigma]

I'd LOVE it if Geoff entered a shoujo appreciation arc. He definately doesn't avoid it and often shoujo anime will make it on the Ones To Watch videos when they come out. I think it's that he watches more anime than he does read manga, and most shoujo manga don't get as many anime adaptations as shonen and seinen. So I think he just isn't aware of what he's missing out on. I think a LOT of people are in that situation actually.

[@kickflipindi]

@@PredictableEnigma For sure, I've gotten shojo recs from ones to watch before! And we've been in a shojo drought for sure but there's tons of old shojo from the 90s, aughts, and even 10s just like there was a ton of older shonen in this vid. We need a revival and we need GOOD production and marketing for these big shojo titles.

[@MarslArts]

I enjoyed this video and it brought me back to your channel. What I most enjoyed about your channel in the past were your detailed analytics to anime intros. I actually used them to explain my art direction students how much thought should go into doing their art. Hope you'll do some more in the future. Much love.

[@PureDragoonEyes]

When I was young and still learning about anime and manga, and learning how there are usually differences between the 2 like either they change scenes or take out bits here and there or just go in different directions, my local library had the yu yu Hakusho manga which is still one of my favorites. I will never forget how much I cried when I read about the tanuki and old man, and how much I teared up immediately now because you mentioned it. I love that story so much.

[@pipedream2556]

0:47 oh hey, Soul Eater mention in 2024? Heck yeah!!

[@jamesmcclure6191]

Thank you, Jeff, for mentioning Hikaru no Go. It pulled Me in from the very start and was one of the best anime experiences of My life.

[@dreamerme36]

Yazzy coming in at 25:20 to cut you off was almost as thrilling as a battle anime scene lol

[@ravenpotter3]

Ruri dragon is my current favorite Shounen jump manga. The summer it was canceled I was heartbroken. I read every week since the first chapter came out. So happy it’s back.

[@donovanmarks1865]

My favorite moment in a battle is probably "Trigger off!"

[@nathanaelhavlik4293]

It was super hype

[@Imjstbeinmajor23]

Looks like Geoff hasnt forgettin his shonen rival and since he aint makin a sequel to his video hes gonna do it

[@zex1332]

I first watched GTO on DVD almost 20 years ago, but even now I still strongly remember the incredible humor in that series and the way it could be so emotionally rich at the same time. It will always hold a place in my anime heart so it makes me happy to hear someone give it a shoutout like this. Cheers!

[@ainrstt7013]

This channel is definitely top 10 for me. The broad range of topics and the delivery are really a new standard❤❤

[@ktvindicare]

Jeez I'm subbed and this video didnt even show up on my feed I had to visit the channel to see it. KZbin be hating.

[@Alacaelum]

When I read Hikaru no Go years ago, I was just a teenager, I was new to the manga scene and didn't know how things worked with the releases and popularity pools, and when I read the final chapters... even today I remember that the thing that crossed my mind, even though had no idea how the game itself worked was... I want more, I need more. I can't say with certainty but I think it was the first time I had to contend with the "cancelation sickness", fortunately, I had other manga that kept my young mind happy to take me off it, but I did constantly check weekly to see if the manga had any update, until I accepted that there wouldn't be more. This memory, and many others of that time, have a bittersweet taste, i really didn't understand many things then that now I have... but at the same time, even when I am having fun with a new series... I remember what I felt during those times, that feeling of discovery, of pure unbridled happiness and anxiety to see something new. And Geoff... your taste is immaculate, GTO is a masterpiece that should be read by anyone who wants a taste of a life-altering story.

[@Floyd-94]

Was not ready for Yazzy in the background. Almost choked on my breakfast at work.

[@HexagonPankake]

Ooh I’m early! Neat! Hoping to see some Lesser-known properties.

[@milov3154]

Those shots from Patlabor looked gorgeous

[@snorpenbass4196]

It's a fun show. The TV show is basically Hill Street Mecha Blues, with a mix of serious drama, action and comedy - like a more refined Dominion Tank Police, if you will. The movies tend towards the serious drama and setting politics and are a bit...not bad, as such, but...not really the same as the show. Also some amazing mecha designs.

[@Rycluse]

Glad to know Geoff has also pegged Nokotan as a future masterpiece

[@pierrotnasse]

"huh, weird, i never heard of great teacher onizuka, lets see if is that good" >almost cry in ep1

[@LeeviWinter]

Oh god I SWEAR I was just about to write a comment about how you forgot to mention Gintama and then you mentioned Ginatama 😂Thank you for being so spot on as usual😭

[@Ichibushido]

Love the shout-out for Saiki K. I need the original team to pick up season 2.

[@himanbam]

Saiki K is the best anime I've ever watched on netflix

[@hellowendy1029]

It's one of my favorites ever!

[@ryushindai]

the whole gag supremacy segment was impossible to understand with that song lol

[@Solanaar]

I must commend you on excellently illustrating hikaru no gos writing. I don't know the manga and just by your description I immediately got why the writing is incredible. To put that into words that deliver such a complex aspect so brilliantly is indeed a sign of great writing, as well. Nicely done!

[@sinceritynature202]

Oh my GOD, Hikaru no Go!!!! One of my favorite manga EVER, and I never hear anyone talk about it. So happy to hear you give it a spotlight!!

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

Death note is awesome! Gonna watch this video.... AND LOVE IT! 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@pedro15305]

I saw the title of the video and thought "Oh no, there goes another anitubter talking about the 'genre' shounen". I'm glad to say I was wrong! He still does other silly things like talking about manga and all of a sudden mentioning a scene from the anime like they're the same thing, but that's a battle for another day, I'm just glad he got the demographics part right.

[@Aerafuz]

And he calls the genre "Battle Shonen" - even many mangaka call it "Battle Manga"

[@pedro15305]

@@Aerafuz yeah, I think it would be better to have a more clear distinction when you're talking about two different media, but to be honest mother's basement is already better than 90% of anitubers, even with those shortcomings.

[@j.b.5422]

the title gleacry specified it was not going in that obvuisu dumrb route

[@pedro15305]

@@j.b.5422 no it didn't, he could've easily said it was a genre but not only about fighting

[@xeraphinalaurentia]

Thanks for highlighting the other great aspects of shounen, Geoff!

[@CaptSicnastee]

I love that ruri is center stage of the thumbnail. That series is so cute.

[@ilikethis3203]

Even though it was cancelled, Tenmaku cinema is such a good read. I highly recommend it.

[@IchigoEucliffe]

Akane-Banashi, Blue Box, Ruri Dragon, AND Beat & Motion mentioned? The like button isn't enough for this one.

[@MegaCocoa125]

Great video Jeff! I am loving Blue Box. It's so good and the characters all behave in ways that make sense. Anytime there could be a misunderstanding they actually tackle it reasonably!

[@Ninjacatmuffin]

Thanks for shouting out Smile Down the Runway again at the 6:00 mark. My sister and I watched the anime adaptation of it; the show has such shounen energy that it's unreal. We had a really good time with it. I have a soft spot for non-battle battle series, some gag manga*, and some mellow manga and romances. Thanks again for highlighting some non-fighting shounen series ps. For those who haven't watched or read Nichijou yet, you should get on that *Actually, a lot of gag manga. Bobobobo's English dub is peak and I will not accept otherwise

[@tonywalker3541]

While I admittedly haven't delved into a whole lot of comedy anime, there is one that I would gladly recommend to anyone, anime fan or otherwise: Sgt Frog. In summary, Sgt Frog is about a squad of goofy frog-like alien invaders and the human family they live with. The series as a whole is very similar to Loony Tunes in terms of plot structure and presentation, with each episode more or less being its own self contained story. Though they make plenty of references to past episodes along the way. Beyond that, the show is absolutely brimming with slapstick comedy, pop culture references (both eastern and western), and hilarious twists on classic anime tropes. It's a series that knows exactly how ridiculous and frankly absurd it is, and it absolutely revels in it. 10/10 would recommend.

[@kevintrjohnson]

I love to see more love given to anime and manga outside the dominant shonen battle genre. As someone who is slightly older than the so-called "elder otaku" (those who apparently got their start during the shonenification of the otakudom, which is what I call the late 1990s and early 2000s, when the fandom moved away from the more explicitly violent and sexually provacative OAV market to a more teen and preteen market with Dragon Ball Z, Toonami, and Pokemon), I have a few suggestions for anyone who, like me, view battle shonen as the DC/Marvel of Japanese culture and would prefer an alternative. Ranma 1/2 was the OG shonen hit in the US (Urusei Yatsura came before it, but it came out in bits and pieces as it was cancelled and restarted multiple times throughout the 1980s and 1990s, only for it to finally be fully translated within the last couple of years). The first season was my introduction to unedited anime, after having seen some episodes of Dragon Ball on US television in 1995. It was still being marketed towards adults, with the original tagline calling it a "martial arts sex comedy," despite only featuring some brief fan-service, mostly for comedic effect (in case you don't know, Ranma 1/2 centers around a young martial artist who is cursed to become a girl when splashed with cold water and can return to being a boy when splashed with warm or hot water, so a lot of the fanservice revolves around these transformations). The manga actually started out mostly as a slice of life comedy (and was frankly better when it was--Akane's unrequited love for an older character was legitimately the best arc in the series) before pivoting for a while into sports manga parody (martial arts figure skating, martial arts gymnastics, etc.); for a while, it became something of a harem parody with Ranma having been promised to numerous girls, either through his father's machinations or dumb luck, resulting in a love dodecahedron; there were attempts to add lore and extended plot threads through Cologne and Happosai, but after a while it started to feel like a gag comic (the low point of the series) before finally adding in shonen battle elements (I had long since abandoned the series by then, though). The anime, directed by Tomomi Mochizuki for the first (and best) season, played up the slice of life segments even more, adding in some filler scenes that give Ranma's otherwise zany world an amount of verisimilitude that would be missing otherwise. Episode six mostly consists of these filler scenes. It's kind of the opposite of the potato chip scene in Death Note, which grants the most mundane event imaginable (biting a potato chip) a grandiose, if tongue-in-cheek, importance; Ranma instead lets you sit with the mundanity, especially in the scene where Ranma and Akane are mucking about, eating burgers and talking about Akane's unrequited love. When they start throwing the wrappers like basketballs at the trashcan, the animation doesn't intensify, there's no swelling music, but the character animation is detailed and realistic (well, as realistic as the limited budget could afford)--at one point, Akane turns to Ranma with a satisfied grin after making her shot, looking for some affirmation or accolades, only for Ranma to dispassionately reject her as he chewed on another bite of his burger--it was kind of a revelation for me back when I first saw it, as none of the cartoons I saw in my childhood in the 1980s (I barely remember watching Robotech, just that my friend's dad watched it) had that kind of patience, they were too worried about dangling the proverbial keys in front of our faces to keep us from changing the channel. (Speaking of Takahashi, Maison Ikkoku was a seinen manga, not shonen). Mermaid Saga is actually my favorite of Takahashi's series, and out of all of her series, it deserves more attention than it gets. I would love to see her continue it somehow, as the last chapter was released around thirty years ago, and with the characters being immortal and nigh unkillable, there's no reason, storywise, that it couldn't continue. Also, her Rumik World short stories are worth a look. Mitsuru Adachi is the king of slice of life sports manga (specifically baseball). I need to get caught up on his latest series Mix (I stopped reading it because after thirty of so chapters, it hadn't yet settled on anything resembling an actual plot), but Touch, H2, and Cross Game are fantastic (the latter is the only one to have been released officially in English; the anime was streamed through Viz's website but has since been taken down; the anime adaptation of Mix is available on Crunchroll, but the manga is unavailable). Johji Manabe's Caravan Kidd and Outlanders are both excellent sci-fi/fantasy series with varying amounts of comedy. Anedoki by Mizuki Kawashita (Strawberry 100%) had a lot of potential before it was cancelled, with the series obviously ending prematurely with a tacked-on finale (a short epilogue was added later). For me, the main characters are overshadowed by the secondary characters, one of which goes through more growth in the three volumes than most battle shonen battle characters go through in ten, and it's her growth from antagonist/bully/tsundere to heartbroken fifth wheel that makes the series still worth a read. It just feels like Kawashita had intended for there to be more to the story, that the main female character, who is seventeen (the main character and his classmates are thirteen) was never meant to be the actual love interest of the main character, that she was meant to be, for lack of a better term, a manic pixie dream girl, but more of a big sister than a girlfriend; that thew would help each other grow (her teaching him how to have fun and him teaching her how to be more responsible). I'm not going to fault the series for ending the way it does, but it does feel like a squandered opportunity that it wasn't allowed to continue at least a little longer. Mai the Psychic Girl is a forgotten classic from artist Ryoichi Ikegami and writer Kazuya Kudo, another early release in the States (serialization started in the late 1980s here), as is Area 88 by Kaoru Shintani. Nausicaa was published in a trade magazine as opposed to a manga anthology magazine, so I'm not sure it qualifies as shonen, but for those who have only seen the movie, it'll come as a shock just how little of the manga made it into the movie. Detective Conan, aka Case Closed, is pretty awesome in small doses (I wouldn't recommend reading the entire series). A Silent Voice is great...for the most part. It gets melodramatic at times and doesn't always nail the tone--and some of the characters act insufferably at times, but the good outweighs the bad. Kimagure Orange Road Masakazu Katsura has some good series--I's, Video Girl Ai, DNA2 Pastel was pretty good Barefoot Gen, surprisingly, was a shonen manga (I always thought it was gekiga). Salad Days by Shinobu Inokuma was a really good anthology series (each story lasted just a few chapters Cross Manage, a manga about lacrosse, was pretty good if I remember right. Hellhounds: Panzer Corps (aka Kerebos Panzer Corps) was as short manga by Mamoru Oshii set in the same universe as Jin-Roh and two of Oshii's live action movies, the Red Spectacles and StrayDog: Kererbos Panzer Corps. Dominion Tank Police by Masamune Shirow. A weirdly comical series that comes off as a parody of Patlabor (I'm not sure which came first, to be honest). Tuxedo Gin, which ran alongside Inu-Yasha in Shonen Sunday, was just batshit insane--the main character is struck by the Isekai Truck of Good Fortune (aka Truck-kun) and...becomes a penguin. NieA under 7 (and pretty much anything by Yoshitoshi Abe). Birdy the Mighty Boys Be Route 225 by Takako Shimura

[@charlieverdin101]

Glad you mentioned Blue Box and Beat & Motion. I'm always excited when new chapters of those drop on Jump. Blue Box especially has some powerful moments that have stuck with me. Moments when you know someone is going to get hurt, and it sucks because they don't deserve it, but there's also no way around it. Heartbreaking, but so well done.

[@moellerchen93]

This just made me add Blue Box to my tbr! The manga panels you showed look great and the story seems interesting! Thansk for the recommendation!

[@-Teague-]

While we're talking about Shonen series without action, I would like to call everyone's attention to PPPPPP, the greatest cancelled manga of all time. That series was a masterpiece and I miss it so much. Please go check it out if you haven't before.

[@murderman8578]

It was decent not a masterpiece

[@-Teague-]

@@murderman8578🎶 everyone's entitled to their own opinion 🎶

[@wanogodly292]

A blue box mention? I approve this video 🫡

[@detaineepyramid]

Your delivery and enthusiasm could make a reciting of a phone book entertaining. Well done, sir. Goodwill your way. 23:10 oh Patlabor, that brings me back... I think you mentioned Macross in a video I watched recently too that brought me back to better times as well. Good stuff.

[@whyjnot420]

Cromartie is one of the most underappreciated shows out there. Man, I was not prepared for how insane it could get back when I first saw it.