NO ECCHI!
NO YAOI!
NO MANHWA! (manga / manhua / anime / jdrama / novels are all good)

Basically, a personality with a reason. shounen and shoujo especially, they tend to have extreme personalities with absolutely no specialties. I'm looking for any genres though, except the above mentioned. Shounen-ai that does not show naked bottom-half are fine.

For example, a hero with an absolute sense of justice. "Killing is wrong", "Accept friends but deny foes", "Revenge is not good", etc. Do you actually think this kind of personality would exist and the world would accept it? On the other hand, I don't mind heroes that have another side of him. Just think, even if someone holds justice, there is a reason for them to, conscious of it or not. That can be an evil side, a calculating, or anything. Someone that can not be defined by one word only.

Or, in shoujos, there's only a few patterns. For guys: tsundere, perfect, cold but soft inside, hurt cause his parents don't love him, wild, cute, player, etc. The human race is complicated, just like shounen mangas, there is no way a single trait can define a person.

With that said, I'm not looking for everyday citizens. They are real, however... they're boring. What I'm looking for are protagonists that has something that stands out in them, separating them from the crowd. That does not mean they can't be normal people satisfied with normal life though, I just want their potential in their personality. So, lighthearted romance stories with damn boring personality but cute stories are out!

Hmm... some examples:
Zetsuen no Tempest
Hunter x Hunter

There's a lot more, but yea, you get my point. They can have an extreme character, but must be logical or in a logical world like Fuwa Mahiro and Gon. Or, they can be like Takigawa Yoshino and have a simple character with various sides, as a real human would. I dunno how to explain it better... >.<

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Webcomics are fine, right?
Noblesse

Not to be rude, but I am actually surprised that you included Hunter x Hunter in your example. Its one of those mangas where I can't stand the idealistic and idiotic protagonist I don't know about Zetsuen no Tempest

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Nope, webcomics are out, those are manhwa. And really, Noblesse doesn't fit manhwa or not. Rai's personality... well, all of the characters really, are way too simple and straightforward. They're different ones from manga, but manhwa characters still reek of the same smell = =.

Gon is certainly idealistic and idiotic, but it's not cause of "justice" or it's "wrong". Hunter x Hunter is one of those rare shounen mangas that's most certainly mainstream and has a idiotic hero but still goes through with logic. Anyone realize he had no problem socializing with villains? I don't mind a bit hot-headed or innocent protagonists, just that they don't think of themselves as god and not admit it, yet the manga makes us think they actually are god...

I kinda phrased it like I only wanted anti-heros and stuff, but that's not the case. Which is why I included Hunter x Hunter. Mangas with dark heroes generally fits better as they already are non-mainstream, but those aren't the only ones. Let's put it like this, I could see Gon and the Hunter x Hunter world actually existing and wouldn't want to smash something cause it doesn't make sense. Realistic does not equal to dark, it just means that the world and the chars fit, and wouldn't make me think the mangaka renamed apple to orange. I can't think of an example on the top of my head though >.<.

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Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei (Novel)
reasonable and kind of realistic personalities are to be found there.

Eden: It's an Endless World!

It's kinda hard to come up with manga you are looking for when there is really no specific genre's...

Karneval- The main character is very innocent, and it makes him softer than the rest but that's only because... well he really is young and that fits the childlike persona. A few of the character could fit into the character clichés, but they are handled very well. Instead of it seeing forced and contrived, the characters seem real and their characters are part of them and they are more complex than the clichés.

Donten ni Warau- The main characters may suffer a bit from the whole 'protect all' soft of mentality, but that doesn't mean they aren't afraid to fight. There is also a reason they have such a strong sense of honor though, they are meant to protect the people. Many of the secondary characters hold none of their ideals and consider them a bit foolish.

Shounen Oujo- The main character is actually very interesting. In the beginning he had a strong sense of pride and was very energetic and outspoken. But through the events of the story that pride is being smothered and he has to try and adapt to a life he had not wanted. It's pretty interesting, the characters have many sides and it's definitely different.

Fullmetal Alchemist- The main character has a few righteous points, but everyone has ulterior motives and aren't what they seem and show not so pretty sides of them.

Nabari no Ou- This manga has my favorite character relationships in it! This is one of my favorite, and for a good reason. The main character is apathetic, and at first it seems like for no reason. As the story goes on he slowly grows more attached and begins to want to act, and you find out that there's actually a good reason why he's so... different. The other characters are all so wonderful... I just love 'em all! :3

Tomodachi no Hanashi- The main females are definitely different, and I've enjoyed them because of it. I'm not sure how much you'll like it though, the two males are a little cliché and the one girl is a little spineless without having much of a reason...

Six Half- The main female is complex. She was mean in the past, and now she's trying to change. The characters around her are just as complex; this story is very nice and very interesting.

Orange (TAKANO Ichigo)- All of the characters are pretty... normal. There's no personality that's out there and their interactions are pretty... normal. Yeah, expect for the supernatural element of the story, everything’s normal.

Horimiya- The main female is just... normal, as in a normal shoujo character (but not too bad.) It's the guy that's great. The main male is... strange/different, and the way he acts at school ends up in him being ostracized. His personality is a little messed up, and others treat him differently because of that. It's partly because of how he dresses too.

All right...

I hope that you find at least one that first what you want in here! I tried to find ones that fit pretty well, but our view of reasonable/realistic might be different XD Anyway, I hope that helped!

The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor (Novel) (Korean Novel): The main character can be described as a miser, selfish, cunning and even despicable at times when he continuously rips off strangers. But at the same time he also has a softer side to those he considers family and close friends.

Gokusen (Manga/Anime/J-drama): The main character is a teacher who only wants to help her students. But she does hit stumbling blocks, and eventually, she learns how to overcome them, either by herself or with the help of the students that she's trying to help.

I wouldn't recommend you to watch the j-drama if you aren't looking for cheesy lines and half-hearted character development that repeats with each new season.

Vinland Saga (Manga): Somewhat dark. The main character for this is a kid hell-bent on revenge. It may seem kind of repetitive at first, but eventually the authors reveals the different faucets of personalities that various characters have as the circumstances forces them to re-evaluate how they thought things work and puts things in a different perspective for them.

Natsume Yuujinchou: Light and heartwarming. Explores how being different and loneliness would affect a person, and how different ways of dealing with it would affect the person in question. (Somewhat.)

I would also second Orange (TAKANO Ichigo) It's a really good manga.

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7 Seeds a group of kids and young adults stranded in the post apocalypse future.

Dorohedoro magical mayhem in this violent world is the order of the day

Kimi no Knife an ordinary guy with the extraordinary job as a hitman.

Nana to Kaoru two teenagers exploring their sexuality and this is their BDSM adventure.

Zankoku na Kami ga Shihaisuru the turmoil of a sexually abused teenage boy and how his step brother try to help him.

Jisatsutou a suicidal guy regain his thirst of life when all give up on him and he only have himself and other suiciders to survive on an abandoned island.

Beck a kid and his guitar, with his friends, creating rock history.

Homunculus a crazy homeless guy - that's common. a crazy homeless guy with a hole on his skull? that's a story.

Holyland an emo kid with an emo background. after being punched so much, he decided to punch back. hard.

G Senjou Heaven's Door two kids dreaming in making it big in the manga industry. but at what price?

Hoshi no Samidare you wake up one day with a lizard telling you have been chosen as a knight for the princess' quest in saving the world from being destroyed by a mage. do you accept the lizard's plea, or do you accept the princess' command to help her destroy the world with her own hands?

Watashi ga Motenai no wa Dou Kangaete mo Omaera ga Warui! about an awkward high school shut-in girl
Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun
Again!!

Last edited by Sherryl at 11:11 am, Jan 26 2013

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Cheese in the Trap You said no webtoons, but Sul is a great example of a good female protagonist. She's smart but not unrealistically so. She's mature, hard-working and most of all, she's not a caricature. She reads like a human being with different layers and aspects to her personality. I think it's worth a try.

Also:
Bitou Lollipop
Six Half
Ore Monogatari!!
Akatsuki no Yona
Oboreru Knife

Seigi no Mikata
Jiraishin
Necromancer