Basically looking for a manga with a male protagonist who has just had a really horrible past or is living like that at the present time. It can include anything, child abuse, betrayal by friends,illness,excessive bullying, abandoned by parents maybe even rape. Think of something like maybe Bitter Virgin but instead of the girl its a guy this time. There is also Watashitachi no Shiawase na Jikan but there the conclusion was quite obvious. A male character who feels life is hopeless but he doesn't necessarily have to show, rather i would prefer that he keeps up a facade or somthing. Like he is laughing but its just for the sake of it, inside he is just hollow. and so then through meeting good people, good friends, finding love WITH A GIRL, he is able to recover and finally able to find happiness.

What i don't want is just a thoroughly depressing manga like the "deep love series", there must be happiness in the manga, I just want this type of male character Also no mangas on ASSASINS, GANGSTERS because I have probably read them and all these tend to have tragic pasts and so nothing new for me. Preferably from "guy's perspective" because I have read many shoujos from girl's perspective with male leads who have tragic pasts like Mars,Kare Kano,Savage Garden. PLEASE NO HINTS OR ANY "PRESENCE" OF YAOI or SHOUNEN AI.

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Angel Beats--best anime of the 2010 spring season

Threads of Time

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"Officially, this machine doesn't exist, you didn't get it from me,
and I don't know you. Make sure it doesn't leave the building."

ai yori aoshi

Himizu is awesome.

Gekka no kimi

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I love vampires.

Please save my earth-Must read

Until Death Do Us Part (his past is still a mystery but I get the feeling something bad happened. He doesn't keep up a facade though...)
Id (the main protagonist feels kinda empty at first, but I havent red through the whole series yet - It's definately something related to the past)
Kurohime (in the later volumes it focuses on the main male protagonists past)
NHK ni Youkoso! (it's about a neet though ...)


Last edited by 0sirt at 1:20 pm, May 1 2010

What about Dogs: Bullets & Carnage?

Hoshi no Samidare
The m.c had a terrible experience in his childhood and now wants the world to be destroyed.

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im shocked just shocked....no one mentioned Hayate the combat butler!!!! he has parents who sold him and ran away -.-

"Bungaku Shoujo" to Shi ni Tagari no Douke has what you're looking for. The main character has some secrets but it's not excessively emo and the series is actually a rather nice mix between light-hearted and serious. It's actually got a rather complex and interesting mystery plot and doesn't focus on romance at all, despite the shoujo-y art. This one is actually from the guy's perspective!

17 (SAKURAI Machiko) is shoujo, though it possibly has what you're looking for as well. I felt that in the latest chapter we moved into pointlessly emo and cliche territor, however, the manga started very strong, so maybe it won't be as cliche as what I think. The main heroine actually has a boyfriend! -gaspshock-

Eastcoast maybe, I haven't read it in ages so I can't really recall if the guy has a tragic past or anything... I think the POV switches around a lot, though.

Kieli has it as well, since the main guy is some sort of zombie warrior thing. Its a short, but pretty interesting manga. I rather enjoyed it.

Alive of course has it, though I'll assume you've already read this? I feel like it's on every recc list ever XD If you haven't, it takes a while to learn about Taisuke's tragic past, but it's there. And the series is predominantly from his prespective. And it's only one of the most awesome series ever. (Though I don't think I'll like the ending, judging by the raws)

something to add up:

gunslinger girl: why on earth that i couldn't think of that b4.. almost every male character on this manga have a sad past.. make that almost all character there has the worst kind of past/life.. and they're not assasin.. they are government anti-terrorist agents

I also just remembered The Other Side of the Mirror, which has a wonderfully tragic protagonists