Does Shoujo anime also have its overused cliches?

[sageoftruth]

As someone cleverly said on this forum recently, "Shonen... Shonen never changes." Among anime watchers, overused shonen anime cliches seems to be a complaint I've both hear and give myself a number of times. However, I haven't gotten much exposure to its female counterpart, Shoujo. Are there any overused cliches that plague Shoujo anime?

 

[Elfgore]

Oh hell yeah they do. Pretty much 90% of shoujo involve a painfully average girl being wanted by the hottest guy in school. If it's a harem she'll have the two hottest in school wanting her. So just a genderbent harem pretty much. Not to mention the art style rarely changes between series.

Of course like all other anime, there are some that break from the norm. I remember one that was actually pretty funny that had the girl fall in love with a giant ape of a man. The hottest guy in school was his best friend and only helped push them together.

 

[Pirate Of PC Master race]

Yes. I can also attest to that. You should try it, perhaps only to experience what it *is*.

 

[Queen Michael]

I've read volume after volume after volume after repetitive volume of shoujo, and I can assure you that the answer is:

There are tons of them. One of these things is bound to happen:

* The hottest guy in the protagonist's high school is in love with her.

* Said guy has no personality apart from his interest in the girl.

* Or he has a dark and tormented past.

* The two take forever to get together. "I love you! You love me! Let's not say it 'till book 3!"

* A rival for the protagonist's love appears.

* Some other girl is also in love with the hottest guy in school, and is determined to steal him away...

* ...so she kisses him against his will in front of the protagonist, who thinks the guy is doing it voluntarily. She runs away before he gets a chance to explain.

* A teacher says the girl and the guy aren't allowed to be together, since it's against school rules.

* The guy is hanging out with his sister, and the protagonist assumes it's a date and he's cheating on her.

* When the protagonist is out on the street, a couple of guys she's never met before try to pick her up. When she tries to politely decline their advances, they won't take no for an answer. Things get rapey, but before it gets worse than PG-13 the hottest guy in school beats them up and chases them away.

EDIT: Oh, and there's usually some university entrance exam that the protagonist wants to pass.

 

[bartholen_v1legacy]

Spoiler: HA! Got here before anyone else of you fuckers

OT: Well duh, no genre of fiction is without clich

 

[Asita]

Naturally. Heck, these parody some of them:

Spoiler

 

[Pirate Of PC Master race]

* Some other girl is also in love with the hottest guy in school, and is determined to steal him away...

You are forgetting the part where she uses lies and manipulations on both sides, if not more.
And successfully do so - at least momentarily.

 

[chadachada123]

snip

Sweet, a chance for me to recommend to the OP a shoujo anime that breaks almost all of those cliches. "Akagami no Shirayukihime", or "Snow White with the Red Hair" has only the barest relation to the Western Snow White, but is a pretty damn good romance. Though clearly being from a more female perspective, it is by no means something that only females can enjoy.

Highly recommended.

 

[Captain Marvelous_v1legacy]

Naturally. A few not listed here so far are:

*Working to take care of sibling. One or both parents dead

*Poor or average girl/rich guy

*Hands touch while reaching for something

*Cold and aloof protagonist (Ice Queen)

*God like male protagonist (Good grades, good at sports, socially adept)

*One girl in school full of boys

 

[BX3]

Heh, heh, Yeah. In fact, Shoujou is probably the #1 place you'll find anime cliches, IMO. The shounen meme is not without merit, but if there are any non-anime watchers that avoid Shounen because of its repetitive nature, reading Shoujou would probably kill them. And this is from someone that watches/reads and enjoys a pretty hefty number of them.

Also a good one that parodies genre conventions is Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki Kun, and Gugure! Kokkuri-san also jokes a bit on the subject.

Nozaki-kun is my jam! I lost my grip when I found out that Sentai were making a dub and Special Edition. Definitely getting that, no matter how broke it makes me. I haven't watched Kokkuri yet, but I've heard good things and love the artstyle.

 

[The Bucket]

I came in here to post Nozaki-kun, glad to see I was repeatedly beaten to it, so many great jokes about the differences in how girls fiction and guys fiction traditionally depict relationship stuff. The dating sim episode kills me everytime
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEmxgdEloiU

 

[NPC009]

No mention of toast? Running to school with a piece of toast in your mouth, then bumping into an infuriating boy who turns out to be your new classmate and future boyfriend - that is the shojo cliche to end all shojo cliches.

Anyway, about half of the shojo series I read are set in a historical/fantasy setting and probably involve the heroine dressing as a boy, and even that most badass segment of shojo manga has its cliches. Like star-crossed lovers. I love stories with star-crossed lovers!

 

[lionsprey]

every other shoujo manga i see tends to go with the "two hot guys get interested in one average girl, one bad boy and one nice guy" bonus points if the guys are friends or used to be friends

 

[Dizchu]

I've come to the conclusion that 99% of anime is a cesspit of unoriginality.

 

[WindKnight]

I've come to the conclusion that 99% of anime is a cesspit of unoriginality.

well, to quote Sturgeon's Law '90% of everything is crap.'

Also going to throw in the heroine being pointlessly bullied by mean girls for no reason, or their the fanclub of one of the dudes and are punishing her for taking too much of his attention/not being good enough for him/leading him astray.

 

[Dizchu]

well, to quote Sturgeon's Law '90% of everything is crap.'

I don't know, there's something about anime cliches that really grinds my gears. There are certain series that I absolutely adore but for the most part I just find anime insulting. With western cartoons I personally find a more generous ratio of good shows.

This coming from a person who uses anime as a primary influence on their art style.

 

[Captain Marvelous_v1legacy]

well, to quote Sturgeon's Law '90% of everything is crap.'

I don't know, there's something about anime cliches that really grinds my gears. There are certain series that I absolutely adore but for the most part I just find anime insulting. With western cartoons I personally find a more generous ratio of good shows.

This coming from a person who uses anime as a primary influence on their art style.

Well, Japan does release, like, 40 different anime series a year. I assume all originality has been sucked out of the medium and now all they have is a list of cliches to check off. There are only a few exceptions, like Ore Monogatari.

 

[circularlogic88]

well, to quote Sturgeon's Law '90% of everything is crap.'

I don't know, there's something about anime cliches that really grinds my gears. There are certain series that I absolutely adore but for the most part I just find anime insulting. With western cartoons I personally find a more generous ratio of good shows.

This coming from a person who uses anime as a primary influence on their art style.

Well, Japan does release, like, 40 different anime series a year. I assume all originality has been sucked out of the medium and now all the have is a list of cliches to check off. There are only a few exceptions, like Ore Monogatari.

The simple nature of the anime industry's business model in Japan pretty much actively discourages breaking free of the mold or deviating from tried and true tropes. Gotta sell those blurays and figures!