I've been reading manga for about a half a year now and I read all genres. But I've been wondering why are there so many manga where the lead male character is your typical male loser, idiot, or wimp. I really dont know much about Japanese or Korean culture but does the reason have anything to do with the culture? Or is it just the same as how fanservice (female characters with big boobs, ecchi scenes) would attract male audience, idiotic, wimpy, loser male leads attracts female audience, meaning does it attract female audience, do girls like this type of male leads?

The wimpy male leads are almost always in shounen or seinen manga. In the case of harem manga they're more or less necessary in order to maintain the status quo, otherwise the guy would go for one (or more) of the girls and the series would go in a completely different direction...

Actually, I think it's to more easily appeal to its target audience.

Generally speaking, if you have something that's aimed at (and this is merely a broad generalization based on stereotypes) indecisive guys with little to no experience with women, it's only natural that a large number of them will have similar leads placed in favorable situations.

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It's called a stock character. It's a tried and true literary device, and isn't exclusive to manga.

Quote from dragonman4

The wimpy male leads are almost always in shounen or seinen manga. In the case of harem manga they're more or less necessary in order to maintain the status quo, otherwise the guy would go for one (or more) of the girls and the series would go in a completely different direction...

Since when are there an excess of wimpy male leads in Seinen manga?

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Quote from ahoaho

Since when are there an excess of wimpy male leads in Seinen manga?

My point, which I didn't express clearly, was that these characters are mostly found in male-oriented manga and aren't there to attract a female audience.

Well, it's because said females don't want a wimpy male lead. They rather seek confidence, and in the case of Shoujo-readers bishie-ness most of the time.

It's only logical as a human being to expect/want the best for yourself. We're selfish in that aspect.

That being said, you should stop reading those Harem/Ecchi manga so much, since there is where you usually find them.

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Quote from ahoaho

Since when are there an excess of wimpy male leads in Seinen manga?

co-sign.......but with that aside, shounens tend to have wimpy guy main characters.....shoujo's tend to have weak female main characters as well.....i'd say if you dont want too read about them, read Seinen or Josei's....because they tend not to have them too much

but to answer your question, i'd say it's because most average people are that way in japan......our atleast a good enough portion of they're manga audience, so they find it enjoyable because it's easy to relate to

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Maybe it boost self-esteem.
So those plain, wimpy guys who read these types of manga don't lose all hope for a good social life.

I dunno.

You should try reading shoujo, it's like a complete opposite. The guys are popular and charming, and what? ... they sparkle... @_@

Well since I read WSJs mainly, I can classify the main male characters in WSJ into a couple of groups. First you got the "I can do it" attitude people with the "I fight for my friends" complex like Naruto, Ichigo, Luffy, Ageha (kinda lol), Yusuke, Allen (sorta?) and Gon. Kenshin and Gintoki could go into this category but their kinda different. Then you got the "wimpy but still determined" characters like Tsuna, Tsukune, Sena and Rito. And then finally you got the characters that just don't belong anywhere like Neuro and Gintoki <3. and Allen too, but he's more in the first group. BTW, these are my opinions, don't eat me plz.

Maybe it boost self-esteem.
So those plain, wimpy guys who read these types of manga don't lose all hope for a good social life.

I dunno.

You should try reading shoujo, it's like a complete opposite. The guys are popular and charming, and what? ... they sparkle... @_@

ROFL SPARKLING GUYS XD. I luv your reasoning.

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Personally, I can't read a series if the lead is too much of a typical average guy loser wimpy harem lead type character (though there are some exceptions, if there's something else that grabs me; usually a really incredibly attractive or compelling female lead).

I don't mind the less loser-ish type of generic leads like Ichigo from Bleach as much, though they do become tiresome after awhile.

I think it's almost always a better series when a shounen series has a female main character.

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Quote from dragonman4

Quote from ahoaho

Since when are there an excess of wimpy male leads in Seinen manga?

My point, which I didn't express clearly, was that these characters are mostly found in male-oriented manga and aren't there to attract a female audience.

Giving manga readers a character with whom to connect?

Seems young men don't understand the concepts of fealty, chivalry, or hubris.

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Because the goal of stories is to make you feel satisfied/amused or let you dream about a similar situation.
So, if you read about a spineless guy getting a fair amount of beautiful chicks, you have the impression that also you can do it. That's the logic about harem shounen.

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