Attraction :: Shoujo
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008This one, is late, as I had a project due this morning; not cool. So in my recent declaration of weekly habit posting, I listed Tuesdays as attraction, a clearer word would have been “like”. Basically, on Tuesdays, I will post a small nibble about an attraction.
A shoujo cover is a shoujo cover…
Today’s attraction is Shoujo (少女) (this sentence rings Sesame Street). I hardly doubt anyone doesn’t know what shoujo is, but what’s the attraction?
I am not an expert or anything, nor a connoisseur of shoujo, but I think it sets a decent example of “a girls’ appeal”, which being a guy, I am naturally interested in seeing what appeals (WHY NOT). Also, most good shoujo, regardless of being shoujo, comes with engrossing stories, romance, and fantastic humor. So it is girly, girls like it, but boys like it too [and not just otomen]. Putting it that way, shoujo is a lot like Audrey Hepburn, appealing to both sexes.
Yes, shoujo appeals to me, though possibly not for reasons intended by a mangaka. I enjoy it anyway, and this is partially why I think strongly of Spring 2008, (5-6 shoujo series? quite a bit for a single season)… the shoujo runs strong, especially on Tuesdays ^^.
Stimulating Interest
A couple sites I that likely have more information on shoujo (objective and subjective):
- Matt Thorn’s papers on shoujo
- Iwa ni Hana, high probability of posts on shoujo titles
Ryan A
note: Notice how a lot of original shoujo covers look similar? I still don’t know why
