Ask John: Is it Okay for Guys to Like Shoujo?

Question:
Recently, a very close friend of mine got me interested in several shoujo series including Fushigi Yuugi, Kodomo no Omocha, and even Sailor Moon. The problem is…I’m a guy. Is it wrong for male anime fans to be interested in shoujo anime?

Answer:
There are some people who would immediately dismiss this question as having too obvious an answer, either yea or nea, but I’d like to address this concern in a bit more detail. There are actually several points worth considering all contained within this question. To begin, the genre classification “shoujo” is not intended to compartmentalize and cordon off a style of manga or anime exclusive for female fans. Terms like “shoujo” and “shonen” are no different than genre classifications like “sci-fi,” “horror,” and “action.” It may be only because Western entertainment mediums don’t have as distinct a separation between stuff for girls and stuff for guys as manga and anime do. (That’s not to say that every manga or anime is or should be classified as purely “for boys” or “for girls.”) The terms “shoujo” and “shonen” exist only for analytical reasons. Stories like Utena and Rurouni Kenshin can both be called dramas that se a lot of sword fights, but there’s obviously a vast difference in theme and style between them. While I have heard Rurouni Kenshin referred to as shoujo, the action and tone of Rurouni Kenshin resonates closer to an anime for boys while Utena seems to focus more heavily on the elements associated with shoujo. The terms “shoujo” and “shonen” don’t suggest that boys shouldn’t be watching Utena or girls shouldn’t be watching Rurouni Kenshin; the terms simply make describing the series more convenient.

Keep in mind that at the most fundmental level, to Westerners, anime is foreign film. To watch especially untranslated or subtitled anime both requires and engenders an open-minded attitude and willingness to experience a foreign language and culture. As a form of informal multicultural education, you shouldn’t limit yourself. Shonen anime offers an exhilaration and excitement of a sort that’s not normally available in Western media. Likewise, shoujo offers a type of affecting, thought inducing reaction exclusive to anime. Simply as an anime fan, you’re already broadening your horizons. Why limit yourself with stereotypes once you’ve already taken the plunge into watching foreign film?

There’s also precedent for particular types of anime having cross gender appeal. Sailormoon began as a story for young girls but, by the end of its television run, became very popular among both male and female fans in their late teens. Japanese television sponsors were actually upset about that fact that Akihabara Cyber Team was created as a program to appeal to pre- and young adolescent girls, but by the end of its TV series broadcast, its majority audience was teenage boys. My personal recommendation to all anime fans, both neophytes and veterans, is to watch as much anime as possible. Watch every genre possible, from children’s programs to hentai, shoujo to yaoi to ultra-violent shonen. Experience everything anime has to offer and develop your own individual taste and preferences regardless of what anyone else thinks or tells you. As anime fans, we watch anime because we like it. That alone should be all the justification necessary to watch or not watch particular programs. When especially Western culture is so filled with crime, drugs and violence, there are certainly worse things to be into than anime. There’s no reason to be embarrassed or ashamed about anime fandom. Superficially, to the uninitiated, you may be watching “girls’ cartoons,” but what you’re actually doing is entertaining yourself by expanding your awareness of a foreign culture by watching contemporary Japanese art.