Forum - View topicAzumanga Daioh: Shoujo vs Shounen
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Diedrupo
Posts: 58 |
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A while back there was a thread on Azumanga Daioh's genre (or demographic) where it was argued whether the show was shoujo or shounen. When I first participated in that thread, I adamantly stated it was shounen because it came from Dengeki Comics, a manga anthology intended for a male audience.
However, since attending some anime conventions and doing some reading, I've realized that Azumanga Daioh has actually been marketed to girls in the United States. At Ushicon, it was one of the shows during the "Shoujo Slumber Party" (a marathon of shows for girls), and it was extremely popular there. On the Anime Network, it is part of the "Girl Power" segment. I've met more girls than boys who like Azumanga Daioh. So what does this mean? In the US anyway, the show appeals mostly to girls, not to guys. If anything this illustrates either clever marketing (more girls like manga/anime, therefore let's market it to girls!) or a case of cultural differences (the themes and comedy in Azumanga appeal to american girls more than american guys, even though the reverse is true in Japan). So I guess my point is, Azumanga is actually one of those rare shounen shows that can be considered shoujo... but only in the US. (Before you say "but Azumanga is just a guy's show that's popular among girls", the whole point of my post is that i'm stating that, in the US, Azumanga has been deliberately marketed to girls through various manners such as being listed among shoujo shows by TV networks and manga distributors) |
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one3rd
 Posts: 1818 Location: アメリカ |
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Didn't we just have this discussion?
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Pepperidge
 Posts: 1106 Location: British Columbia, Canada |
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It's neither. I'm pretty sure the publication is intended for older men.
But either way, I think we REALLY need to get rid of "shounen" and "shoujo" as genres. |
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quincyarcher
 Posts: 164 Location: Age of Paranoia |
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Oh, let's not have it again... |
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biliano
Posts: 956 Location: Cleveland, OH |
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For those of you who would like to read the original thread, click here.
Although it is stated in Rule #8 of Teh Rules that subjects that are locked may NOT be brought up again, I'm glad that Diedrupo had the courage to go against the rules and bring this subject back. There are some topics that are worth discussing again; tempest stated that the reason he locked the thread was because the author was taking some of the comments too personally, even though this subject is worth discussing. (Why the author took it too personally I have no idea; I thought the comments made in the original thread were excellent.) Plus, since Azumanga Daioh is one of my favorite series, I wanted to make some comments on it; however, I didn't get a chance to before the original thread was locked. Now I can, thanks to the kindness of Diedrupo! 
Before I begin my comments, I'm a 32-year-old male who happens to like watching this charming and educational series. My club, which has mostly male members, is watching Azumanga, and love every minute of it. (FYI: We're watching the series subtitled.  )
Personally, I don't use the shoujo/shounen labels to decide what anime series I want to watch. In fact, as it was mentioned a few times in the original thread, the shoujo/shounen labels should be do away with and the series should be classified for what it is: Comedy, Slice of Life. I believe that Azumanga is more slice of life than comedy because it revolves around the everyday lives of the girls not only in their school surroundings, but outside of school as well. I also feel that Azumanga is more of an educational series because I learned a lot about Japanese traditions and culture, both by watching the anime and reading the translator notes that ADV was so kind to supply. The series gave me a good idea what school life is like in Japan (in comparison to school life in the US), and it's great to view another country's culture and respect their customs and way of life. In my view, Azumanga is not a shoujo series. In my view, Azumanga is not a shounen series. In my view, Azumanga is a comedy. In my view, Azumanga is a slice of life series. In my view, Azumanga is one of the best series on the market. BTW: If you did read the original thread, dormcat mentioned that there's no need to dichotomize Azumanga Daioh, and I agree with him. If you don't know what the word "dichotomize" means, "dichotomize" means to divide into two mutually or contradictory groups. Azumanga Daioh should not be divided into two mutually different groups. Azumanga Daioh is not merely just "for girls" or just "for boys" - it's for those that like to watch a nice, enjoyable series with no fan service, not bloody violence, no giant robots, and no angst-riddled characters, no matter what gender you are. 
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NeoSam
Posts: 41 |
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First of all I apologize if I offended anyone in my previous posts.
Hmm you are right some japanese sites classify Dengeki Daioh as a seinen(young men's) manga magazine, but there are also other sites that classify it as a shounen(boy's) manga magazine, like this site: http://www.amazon.co.jp/exec/obidos/tg/browse/-/467238/ref=br_bx_1_c_1_0/249-3400205-3393927 (japanese site that lists Dengeki Daioh magazine as a shounen manga magazine). Dengeki Daioh magazine is shounen or seinen but nothing else.
I second that. |
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Pepperidge
Posts: 1106 Location: British Columbia, Canada |
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Simple way to settle that: does the original Japanese version have furigana over the kanji? |
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NeoSam
Posts: 41 |
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I have no idea about the magazine, but I know that the tankoubon of the titles from this magazine are without furigana. Tsukihime(one of my favourite manga from this magazine) tankoubon is without furigana: http://www.jupiterstar.com/moscribbles/archives/2005_03_28.html What does it matter if its with or without furigana? |
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Pepperidge
Posts: 1106 Location: British Columbia, Canada |
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Furigana = for younger audiences
No furigana = for older audiences That's always the biggest giveaway. |
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Terrabull
Posts: 3 Location: Illinois |
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Girl Power also contains shows that are very VERY obviously Shonen (I'm English, so I'll use proper Romanji spelling instead of improper Japanese spelling). Examples of this are Puni Puni Poemi, and Chobits. I've also seen Divergence Eve in that category.
In short, Anime Network sucks. Don't listen to them about anything. The whole channel is so devoid of Japanese culture outside of the actual products. I often feel like I'm watching Sci-fi channel when I get in between shows. Girl Power is the classification they use when a girl is the main character. That's the only quality needed to fall into that. As for the way girls like Azumana Daioh, I think it's simple. It is seen as a kids show in America. Most anime fans who are guys are still uptight about liking "cartoons" aka kids shows. Many more girls are more accepting of a show to be kiddy, but still more mature. Thus I think it simply comes down to how the two demographics interpret things. Also, many American fans consider a show that has no violence or fanservice to be a girls show. Or just if it has no violence (thus Maison Ikkoku being classified as a Shojo). |
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NeoSam
Posts: 41 |
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Then its a seinen(young men's) manga magazines. I have found a very reliable english site that lists it as seinen: http://completelyfutile.blogspot.com/2004_09_01_completelyfutile_archive.html
It doesn't really matter how its conceived to be in the US, Maison Ikkoku and Azumanga Daioh are still male oriented anime/manga just because they were serialized in magazines targeted at male audience. |
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Diedrupo
Posts: 58 |
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I'm fully aware of what Azumanga actually is in Japan, the point of my original post is what it is in the USA. ADV Vision has taken great strides towards marketing the show to girls mainly (by putting it on Girl Power, or by advertising it in manga publications for girls), and sure enough the majority of Azumanga fans in the US are girls.
And really, there are hardly any female fans of Azumanga in Japan, and when we look at how it is in the US, there are tons and tons of them. Most guys I meet think that Azumanga is "too girly" or "doesn't have enough action" for their tastes. Now of course i'm a guy and I love Azumanga, but that's because slice of life is my favorite genre and very few guys enjoy the slice of life genre over here. This isn't even a matter of dichtomizing. There are simply not enough male fans of Azumanga in the US for it to be a question. And as far as other shows, like Love Hina or Maison Ikkoku that have been mistaken as shoujo in the US, they were mistaken because idiots thought that romance = shoujo, which is the farthest thing from the truth. It's all about marketing and cultural preferences, and that's what i've observed with Azumanga Daioh. I'm also not trying to change what ANN currently views Azumanga as. I'm just trying to stir some interesting debate. :) |
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