I have decided I'm bored with Shoujo Romances. But I figure there's some other chunk of girly stuff I could enjoy. (Like how when I got bored of shounen fighting I moved to shounen sports.) So, what other sorts of shoujo series are there? All that comes to mind immediately are Magical Girls.
EDIT: I actively deny that this topic is "I'm Looking For." I'm not looking for manga suggestions. I wanted to talk about sub-sections of Shoujo besides Romance.
Last edited by kaloo at 7:05 pm, Oct 7 2010
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Bored with Romance
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Member
6:27 pm, Oct 7 2010
Posts: 485
6:27 pm, Oct 7 2010
Posts: 485
Member
6:39 am, Oct 11 2010
Posts: 104
6:39 am, Oct 11 2010
Posts: 104
I don't think there are a lot non-romance shoujo, but what come to my mind:
- Kokoro ni Hana wo!!
- Monochrome Factor
- Miriam
and there are these shoujo manga less romance centered like:
- Ludwig Kakumei
- Penguin Brothers
- Yume no Tsuzuki
....ect.
- Kokoro ni Hana wo!!
- Monochrome Factor
- Miriam
and there are these shoujo manga less romance centered like:
- Ludwig Kakumei
- Penguin Brothers
- Yume no Tsuzuki
....ect.
Member
6:35 am, Oct 13 2010
Posts: 1354
I strongly suggest reading josei, since it's more difficult to find shoujo without romance in it. There are more josei mangas that concentrate on things other than romance than there are shoujo mangas.
However, if you want shoujo that might have less romance than most shoujo, consider Science Fiction as as genre subset. At least there, the science is as big if not bigger in terms of plot-importance than romance... Like, say, Himitsu (SO BRILLIANT IT WILL *BLOW YOUR MIND*), Trinity Blood, Safe Again Today, Kugutsu, Chicago and others. Same goes for Action/Adventure or Mystery as viable non-romantic subsets.
In these shoujo genres, you're less likely to find romance, or, at least, romance in as significant a role as it plays in most shoujo manga. The examples I listed above don't have any romance at all, as far as I can shake 'em.
You might also want to try shounen-ai or mildly shounen-ai mangas that are still categorized under shoujo, such as Banana Fish, because there's hardly any visible romance (even of the gay variety), and it can still be read as 'buddy manga' if that's what you want. Subtexty shoujo makes for great reading! Check out the shoujo titles in the Slash category or the Shounen Ai genre! You'll find some GREAT non-romantic shoujo there. For example, Tokaido Hisame, 12 Tender Killers in a Mixed Up World - Leo Murder Case, Ilegenes (BEST NON-ROMANTIC SHOUJO EVER, DO NOT MISS THIS EVEN IF YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT), Golden Days, Antique Bakery, Glory Age, RH Plus, Family!, A, A Prime, Jewels and many others...!
'Family'-themed manga also does quite well without romance in shoujo, although it's still tricky to find. There are real masterpieces in the family-themed shoujo realm, though, like FLAT (again, DO NOT MISS THIS EVEN IF YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!), Forever Honey and Kodomo no Taion! You can find them and others like them here: Non-Romantic Shoujo about Families.
However, if you want shoujo that might have less romance than most shoujo, consider Science Fiction as as genre subset. At least there, the science is as big if not bigger in terms of plot-importance than romance... Like, say, Himitsu (SO BRILLIANT IT WILL *BLOW YOUR MIND*), Trinity Blood, Safe Again Today, Kugutsu, Chicago and others. Same goes for Action/Adventure or Mystery as viable non-romantic subsets.
In these shoujo genres, you're less likely to find romance, or, at least, romance in as significant a role as it plays in most shoujo manga. The examples I listed above don't have any romance at all, as far as I can shake 'em.You might also want to try shounen-ai or mildly shounen-ai mangas that are still categorized under shoujo, such as Banana Fish, because there's hardly any visible romance (even of the gay variety), and it can still be read as 'buddy manga' if that's what you want. Subtexty shoujo makes for great reading! Check out the shoujo titles in the Slash category or the Shounen Ai genre! You'll find some GREAT non-romantic shoujo there. For example, Tokaido Hisame, 12 Tender Killers in a Mixed Up World - Leo Murder Case, Ilegenes (BEST NON-ROMANTIC SHOUJO EVER, DO NOT MISS THIS EVEN IF YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT), Golden Days, Antique Bakery, Glory Age, RH Plus, Family!, A, A Prime, Jewels and many others...!
'Family'-themed manga also does quite well without romance in shoujo, although it's still tricky to find. There are real masterpieces in the family-themed shoujo realm, though, like FLAT (again, DO NOT MISS THIS EVEN IF YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!), Forever Honey and Kodomo no Taion! You can find them and others like them here: Non-Romantic Shoujo about Families.
Mad With a Hat
Member
6:49 am, Oct 13 2010
Posts: 4764
Yeah, shoujo romances are often quite boring.
That's why I don't read them.
Especially since most of them take place in high schools,
with girls so dumb and helpless it's scary.
Romance is nice as long as it's not the main subject,
hidden well, or between minor characters.
Then there are shoujo manga like Banana Bread Pudding.
You'd think it's about romance, but it's completely crazy - which makes it so much more enjoyable.
There's also josei, that's targeted towards women and deals with romance better,
or has no romance at all.
Not that I haven't enjoyed some shoujo romances, like Mars.
But Souryo Fuyumi is an exception~
It's all about finding those really good ones you can enjoy.
________________
Hrodulf and Bjornolfr, you will not be forgotten.
And if the world were black and white,
you would be my rainbow in shades of grey.
Click 'n Play!
If I had a fantasy self, it'd be a tentacle monster.
That's why I don't read them.
Especially since most of them take place in high schools,
with girls so dumb and helpless it's scary.
Romance is nice as long as it's not the main subject,
hidden well, or between minor characters.
Then there are shoujo manga like Banana Bread Pudding.
You'd think it's about romance, but it's completely crazy - which makes it so much more enjoyable.
There's also josei, that's targeted towards women and deals with romance better,
or has no romance at all.
Not that I haven't enjoyed some shoujo romances, like Mars.
But Souryo Fuyumi is an exception~
It's all about finding those really good ones you can enjoy.
________________
Hrodulf and Bjornolfr, you will not be forgotten.
And if the world were black and white,
you would be my rainbow in shades of grey.
Click 'n Play!
If I had a fantasy self, it'd be a tentacle monster.
Member
6:52 am, Oct 13 2010
Posts: 140
I believe you have graduated from shounens and shoujos lame violence and sparkling romances and is ready to start reading some mature and intriguing romance and violence in seinen and josei! 
________________
________________
Member7:47 am, Oct 13 2010
Posts: 773
i too like shoujo with some substance like
kimi ga uso o tsuita or [m]dengeki daisy[m]
where there actually is a plot apart from " aaahhh ...kyaah...XXXXX - kun looked this way"
"xxxx-kun is shining" "whenever i am with xxxx kun...my heart beats so fast"
________________
best shonen manga couples :
shinichi X ran
natsu X erza
ippo X kumi
naruto X gaara
kimi ga uso o tsuita or [m]dengeki daisy[m]
where there actually is a plot apart from " aaahhh ...kyaah...XXXXX - kun looked this way"
"xxxx-kun is shining" "whenever i am with xxxx kun...my heart beats so fast"
________________
best shonen manga couples :
shinichi X ran
natsu X erza
ippo X kumi
naruto X gaara
Member
9:58 pm, Feb 17 2011
Posts: 991
There's the slice of life, human drama kind of shoujo I really like.
Flat (AOGIRI Natsu)
Flower of Life
Natsume Yuujinchou
Nemuranai Machi Kara
Safe Again Today
________________
Avatar by tassyn.livejournal.com
Reading: Kingdom, Sangokushi, Historie
Flat (AOGIRI Natsu)
Flower of Life
Natsume Yuujinchou
Nemuranai Machi Kara
Safe Again Today
________________
Avatar by tassyn.livejournal.com
Reading: Kingdom, Sangokushi, Historie
Member
10:58 pm, Feb 17 2011
Posts: 38
This is EXACTLY what happened to me- i got tired of shoujos. So I moved onto other genres one of which you said (shounen) and I also moved from shounen fighting to shounen sports as well XD We're similair o.o
Hmm tartufo had good suggestions; actually i see this person's posts like.. everywhere and always read the manga he/she suggests (not all but most) and I'd say you should follow the suggestions, best bet to getting out of boredom of genres (I HATE boredom, which is why i constantly search for manga.)
I would definitly suggest:
Ilegenes.
Komatta toki ni wa hoshi ni kike if you don't mind slash shounen ai.
Natsume Yuujinchou
Jio to Ougon to Kinjirareta Mahou
Karneval
Noblesse
The shoujos that I still read and can handle are:
Skip Beat!
Otomen.
Hope you find something you like from everyone's suggestions!!
________________
"The are some things you can never get back,
no matter how much effort you put in.
And there are some feelings of despair,
that you can never shake off."
-Ciel, Kuroshitsuji
Hmm tartufo had good suggestions; actually i see this person's posts like.. everywhere and always read the manga he/she suggests (not all but most) and I'd say you should follow the suggestions, best bet to getting out of boredom of genres (I HATE boredom, which is why i constantly search for manga.)
I would definitly suggest:
Ilegenes.
Komatta toki ni wa hoshi ni kike if you don't mind slash shounen ai.
Natsume Yuujinchou
Jio to Ougon to Kinjirareta Mahou
Karneval
Noblesse
The shoujos that I still read and can handle are:
Skip Beat!
Otomen.
Hope you find something you like from everyone's suggestions!!
________________
"The are some things you can never get back,
no matter how much effort you put in.
And there are some feelings of despair,
that you can never shake off."
-Ciel, Kuroshitsuji
Member11:02 pm, Feb 17 2011
Posts: 221
I totally agree with tsuto! Especially the part about Ilegenes. You must read it because it's utterly awesome! You won't regret it, I promise. =D
For those who are sick of romance might wanna try some shoujos with male leads (as tsuto mentioned). They generally have romance toned down or next to nothing such as: Ilegenes (=D) or Kamui. Generally shoujos with male leads have a bit of slashy content or mild shounen-ai to keep us entertained.
Shoujos with action, adventure, scifi, mystery, psychological etc generally don't have as much romance content. I do understand you entirely by what you mean by those retarded shoujo leads that go 'KYAA!!~ doki doki" every second page or so. Who doesn't get sick of it?
Josei is also a good one to look out for some titles.
Or if all else fails, those still hungry for more, go to Seinen. I can guarantee you, no more sick "he makes my heart flutter...!~" kind of nonsense (most of the time). There's also some really good shounen stuff (not those pointless plots where they always encounter conflict). One might as well read shounen shoujos (shoujos that are very much alike the shounen genre).
A few shoujos that I enjoy with no romance (or just mild slash content):
Akusaga
Ilegenes- I seriously can't get enough of that!~
C-Blossom - Case 729
Sugiru Juunana no Haru- Josei but still good.
Game x Rush
Kugutsu
Togainu no Chi
For those who are sick of romance might wanna try some shoujos with male leads (as tsuto mentioned). They generally have romance toned down or next to nothing such as: Ilegenes (=D) or Kamui. Generally shoujos with male leads have a bit of slashy content or mild shounen-ai to keep us entertained.
Shoujos with action, adventure, scifi, mystery, psychological etc generally don't have as much romance content. I do understand you entirely by what you mean by those retarded shoujo leads that go 'KYAA!!~ doki doki" every second page or so. Who doesn't get sick of it?
Josei is also a good one to look out for some titles.
Or if all else fails, those still hungry for more, go to Seinen. I can guarantee you, no more sick "he makes my heart flutter...!~" kind of nonsense (most of the time). There's also some really good shounen stuff (not those pointless plots where they always encounter conflict). One might as well read shounen shoujos (shoujos that are very much alike the shounen genre).
A few shoujos that I enjoy with no romance (or just mild slash content):
Akusaga
Ilegenes- I seriously can't get enough of that!~
C-Blossom - Case 729
Sugiru Juunana no Haru- Josei but still good.
Game x Rush
Kugutsu
Togainu no Chi
Lone Wanderer
Member
11:38 pm, Feb 17 2011
Posts: 2127
I'm bored with romance, too. And it's only understandable, since practically every song you hear on the radio, every movie / cartoon / anime you watch, and every novel / manga you read has a character going "Oh darling, I love you!" every few minutes... 
My advice is the same as that of the others; expand to other genres like mystery, action (they're some good ones other than the dumb shounen power-up types), adventure, fantasy, sci-fi, supernatural, psychological and even horror (not all horror manga are silly, not-at-all-scary ghost stories ^^); and the other two demographics - seinen and josei. But you have to keep in mind that those genres / demographics have their own cliches, and that some of them are even worse (more explicit, offensive, annoying or disgusting) than those in shoujo / shounen.
The trick is to never read too much of the same genre / demographic - no matter what it may be. It pays to be fairly open-minded when reading manga, or else you'll be following the same over-used plot-lines over and over again.
As for shoujo I enjoyed (none of them have any noticeable romance content);
Doubutsu no Oishasan (utterly hilarious!) , Yakumo Tatsu , A*D , Adekan (but you have to get past the perverted jokes in this one) , Golden Days (there are some implications of BL, but believe me - you won't notice them; this is a manga about friendship and family) , Himitsu , Ilegenes , Himitsu no Kaidan (very lovely!) , Miyori no Mori , Shounen Maid (it's kind of cute) , Family Complex...
Actually, there are lots more. You just need to put your heart into it and look for them! That's what I did anyway
My advice is the same as that of the others; expand to other genres like mystery, action (they're some good ones other than the dumb shounen power-up types), adventure, fantasy, sci-fi, supernatural, psychological and even horror (not all horror manga are silly, not-at-all-scary ghost stories ^^); and the other two demographics - seinen and josei. But you have to keep in mind that those genres / demographics have their own cliches, and that some of them are even worse (more explicit, offensive, annoying or disgusting) than those in shoujo / shounen.
The trick is to never read too much of the same genre / demographic - no matter what it may be. It pays to be fairly open-minded when reading manga, or else you'll be following the same over-used plot-lines over and over again.
As for shoujo I enjoyed (none of them have any noticeable romance content);
Doubutsu no Oishasan (utterly hilarious!) , Yakumo Tatsu , A*D , Adekan (but you have to get past the perverted jokes in this one) , Golden Days (there are some implications of BL, but believe me - you won't notice them; this is a manga about friendship and family) , Himitsu , Ilegenes , Himitsu no Kaidan (very lovely!) , Miyori no Mori , Shounen Maid (it's kind of cute) , Family Complex...
Actually, there are lots more. You just need to put your heart into it and look for them! That's what I did anyway
Member
8:36 pm, Mar 20 2011
Posts: 95
Quote from ajcoolim107
i too like shoujo with some substance like
kimi ga uso o tsuita or [m]dengeki daisy[m]
where there actually is a plot apart from " aaahhh ...kyaah...XXXXX - kun looked this way"
"xxxx-kun is shining" "whenever i am with xxxx kun...my heart beats so fast"
kimi ga uso o tsuita or [m]dengeki daisy[m]
where there actually is a plot apart from " aaahhh ...kyaah...XXXXX - kun looked this way"
"xxxx-kun is shining" "whenever i am with xxxx kun...my heart beats so fast"
lmao this made me lol so much
Member
12:57 am, Mar 31 2011
Posts: 1439
Yeah... there is quite a bit of shoujo that involves romance... but whenever I'm tired of reading things like that, I start reading subsections like childcare (absolutely love Usagi Drop... at least the first 4 volumes... have yet to read post-time-skip) and mystery (i.e. Ghost Hunt)... or more slice-of-life stuff... (like Natsume Yuujinchou -- it's like bromance... sorta...)
Actually... some horror and psychological that I've encountered are not that horrific (lucky me)... so giving those a try was definitely worth it!!
As some others mentioned on the thread, I'll start reading josei like Gokusen which doesn't focus on romance all that much...
Some seinen is worth mentioning too... I still haven't read much... but there are some seinen with satisfying endings!! Like Not Simple.
I don't know what to classify her... but I find myself reading NAKAMURA Asumiko's works for that slightly chilling factor but wonderful story-telling like I am a Piano and Till Dawn... and The Bedroom Girl, The Sculpture Room Girl (creepy good).
Actually... some horror and psychological that I've encountered are not that horrific (lucky me)... so giving those a try was definitely worth it!!
As some others mentioned on the thread, I'll start reading josei like Gokusen which doesn't focus on romance all that much...
Some seinen is worth mentioning too... I still haven't read much... but there are some seinen with satisfying endings!! Like Not Simple.
I don't know what to classify her... but I find myself reading NAKAMURA Asumiko's works for that slightly chilling factor but wonderful story-telling like I am a Piano and Till Dawn... and The Bedroom Girl, The Sculpture Room Girl (creepy good).
Member
12:54 pm, Mar 31 2011
Posts:
12:54 pm, Mar 31 2011
Posts:
If you avoid shoujo with only "school life", "drama" and such in its Categories and focus more on the stuff which contains fantasy, action, mystery, you'll get shoujo with much less romance... not always but often.
I can recommend Yuki Kaori's stuff, she created different types of manga but almost none of them is pure romance.
I can recommend Yuki Kaori's stuff, she created different types of manga but almost none of them is pure romance.
Pew pew
Member
7:41 pm, Mar 31 2011
Posts: 883
I hate it when the girls fall for the guys so easily and for no reason at all.
He can pick something up for her and she'd go into a shark frenzy.
The girls are too simple minded. ):
MORE COMPLEX CHARACTERS.
-Sigh- I've been bored with shoujo... nothing is original anymore.
He can pick something up for her and she'd go into a shark frenzy.
The girls are too simple minded. ):
MORE COMPLEX CHARACTERS.
-Sigh- I've been bored with shoujo... nothing is original anymore.
Member
2:54 am, Apr 3 2011
Posts: 71
True, it's really hard to find interesting shoujos anymore. It's kind of like either you've grown out of that phase where any romance is acceptable or you've read enough shoujo to understand that they are all doing the same thing.
If you're really that bored with shoujo, you could always look into other categories that you're interested and see which ones match up with romance as well. And actually, a favorite author of mine that does a bunch of "interesting" shoujo is YUMEKA Sumomo. She's really lovely. You'll probably find a lot of other genres under her works as well though.
If you're really that bored with shoujo, you could always look into other categories that you're interested and see which ones match up with romance as well. And actually, a favorite author of mine that does a bunch of "interesting" shoujo is YUMEKA Sumomo. She's really lovely. You'll probably find a lot of other genres under her works as well though.
