- Types of anime according to the public
- Kodomo
- Shônen
- Shôjo
- Seinen
- Josei
- According to the theme
- Gore
- Ecchi
- Hentai
- Yuri
- Yaoi
- Harem
- Magical shôjo
- Cyberpunk
- Kemono
- Wick
- Gekiga
- Spokon
- Meitantei
- Loli
- Comedy with parody
- References
The types or genres of anime can be classified according to the public and according to the theme. In this article we will explain the most viewed and followed. The kotomo, seinen, gore, yuri, magical, kemono, among others, stand out.
Anime is the name given to the Japanese animation style, specifically to cartoons that come from Japan. This type of animation is characterized by characters with bright and striking colors.
Their bodies are stylized and they have faces with a pentagonal shape. A peculiarity of these drawings is that they have large eyes and a small mouth and nose. Your hair can be very varied from colors to shapes.
Its origins date back to before 1907. But it was not until 1932 that the style of anime that we know today was born. Currently there are various formats. There are movies, series, Ova (episodes of additional series or parallel to a story), Ona (series for the Internet) and television specials.
In the case of films, these are feature films that are made to end a series or to give continuity to an anime already finished. The series last approximately 20 minutes and are organized by weekly chapters. And television specials usually take place at special times like Valentine's, Halloween, or Christmas.
Anime are usually divided into several types or genres. It is possible to classify them into two large groups: according to the target audience or according to theme or style. In the first case there are 5 types and in the second 15.
Types of anime according to the public
Kodomo
In Japanese, Kodomo means child. This is why this is the type of anime that is aimed at children. These are simple stories about customs and traditions in which simple language is used and in which some learning function is even introduced. It does not require a great understanding on the part of the viewer.
The plot is usually family or friends stories, with children and / or animals. They are short-lived, as well as funny in style. An example of this type of anime is Pokémon, Doraemon, Hamtaro, Sergeant Keroro and Shin Chan, among others.
Shônen
This is the type of anime that is geared towards male teenagers. It is the genre of which more productions are made per year. These types of stories are usually carried out by a teenage boy and the plots can involve action and fights of all kinds. Magical elements, romance and even erotic content are also included.
Some of the most representative series of this genre is Naruto, but also One piece, Bleach, The melancholy of Suzumiya Haruki or Code Geass.
Shôjo
This is the equivalent of the shônen for the female audience. It is aimed at women between 15 and 20 years old. Her stories deal with entanglements, love conflicts, and comedy. In them, they also talk about topics such as friendship and dating, that is, about common problems of daily life. Also, their characters are usually teenagers.
Among the most representative series of this type of anime is Sailor Moon, Candy Candy, Sakura Card Captor, Shugo Chara and Pretty Cure, among others.
Seinen
It is anime that is focused on an adult audience, specifically on men. It is characterized by having a deeper and more explicit content, related to politics and with a high level of violence. They can be bloody and even with sexual scenes.
This genre of anime has a great variety of artistic styles and there are series such as Speed Grapher, Gantz, Black Lagon, Hellsing, Ghost in the Shell, Monster, etc.
Josei
In this type of anime the target audience is also adult, but in this case they are women. This is a more realistic version, both in terms of the characters and the story. It does not usually contain explicit material. And they are usually based on the daily life of a main character, which is a woman.
Narrative plots similar to shôjo are transmitted in the Josei genre. But the difference is focused on the theme, which is usually more realistic and adult.
It can be about high school or college experiences and even the daily lives of adult women. An example of this type of series is Paradise Kiss, Nana or Nodame Cantanbile, among others.
According to the theme
Gore
Gore anime is one of the most attractive and controversial. It is the type of animation that is characterized by extremely violent and bloody content.
It is directly related to disembowelment and lacerations. And they become even more interesting when the plots convey various feelings of romance, intrigue, black comedy, among others.
Its origin dates back to the 1940s, since they were born as an inspiration for the North American films that began to venture into this genre of graphic violence. Among the anime of this genre are Another, Elfen Lied, Genocyber, Gantz, Deadman, Wonderland, Mirai Nikki, among others.
Ecchi
Ecchi is practically a subgenre of shônen. But only for the fact that it is within this category that most of the works occur, at least the most representative ones. This type of anime can be defined as erotic. But these are erotic situations that are not explicit and have a comic style.
Ecchi anime usually stars male characters, who generally have little experience in love. This is what makes the plot interesting. This type of anime can also be defined as stories with touches of humor and sexual moments.
Which means that the eroticism that characterizes it is not always presented in a homogeneous way. Some examples of ecchi are, Golden Boy, Kissxsis, High School DxD, Vandread, among others.
Hentai
In Japan they are known as ero-anime. It's about the genre where pornographic works come in.
That is, unlike ecchi, in hentai the stories have a high sexual content with explicit images. His audience is heterosexual, mostly men. Within this category are well known, Aki Sora, Bible Black or La Blue Girl.
Yuri
This is a genre that is directly related to hentai. It is a type of animation that focuses on the existence of lesbian love relationships.
But unlike hentai, where this type of relationship can also occur, yuri is focused on a female audience. In this case, explicit sexual relations can occur. As an example of this category is He is my master, Kashimashi, Kuttsukiboshi, among others.
Yaoi
This is another genre related to hentai and yuri. It is a type of anime where homosexual relationships between men are presented. But, despite this, this genre is not only focused on a homosexual male audience but also on the female one.
Many of these series show love stories but with explicit sexual relationships. Within this category are series such as Gravitation, Hybrid Child, Mirage of Blaze, Okane Ga Nai, Kire papa, among others.
Harem
This is one of the most generic varieties in anime. Basically it is a gender where many women are attracted to the same man. Generally, there is a main character, who is male, who is surrounded by several women.
The point is that it is an anime that can be produced in multiple ways and even for different audiences. Among this type of anime are Rosario + Vampire, Love Hina, To Love-Ru, etc.
But there is also the reverse harem, which is when many men are attracted to only one woman. Some examples of this type of series are Fruits Basket, Ouran High School Host Club, Brothers Conflict, among others.
Magical shôjo
It is one of the ways in which the shôjo is presented. Series that combine elements of shôjo such as romantic stories with elements of shônen such as fights and action.
These elements must follow two principles: magic and the female protagonist. The audience in this type of anime is mostly female. Within this category are Corrector Yui, Sailor Moon, Slayers, etc.
Cyberpunk
It is also called as the futuristic anime. It is a type of series where the stories take place in a world marked by technology. In this case, the different technological advances are a fundamental part of the plot. Usually there is some kind of disintegration or change in the social order of the characters' lives.
The cyberpunk anime storyline tends to focus on conflicts between hackers, megacorporations, and even artificial intelligence. All the plots are framed in the planet Earth but they happen in a future time.
In other words, the visions in this type of series tend to be post-industrial dystopias. Some examples of this type of anime are series like Megazone 23, Cyber City, Ergo Proxy, etc.
Kemono
This is a type of anime that is aimed at a mostly children audience. This because it is usually accompanied by comedy.
But what really characterizes the kemono anime is the fact that some human characters can have animal traits or vice versa. Some examples are Inuyasha, Sonic X, and Black Cat, among others.
Wick
It is a genre that is located in science fiction. The name mecha comes from 'mechanical' and it is nothing more than a robot with different characteristics. They are usually large and have powerful weapons, including biological ones.
The story of this anime focuses on the battles where these robots are used. Among this type of animation are Gunbuster, Full Metal Panic, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Mobile Suit Gundam, among many others.
Gekiga
This type of anime is aimed at an adult audience. However, it is not a pornographic animation like hentai. Gekiga means 'dramatic images' and it is precisely on this that the content of these series focuses.
They usually have a complicated plot and also, situations that occur in people's daily lives are shown. Some examples of this category of anime are Wicked City, Hotaru no Haka, Golgo 13, School Days, among others.
Spokon
The term Spokon refers to the word sport, sport in English, and kondo, which means spirit in Japanese. The genre is based on sports content, which is why it is one of the most popular in Japan.
This type of anime highlights values such as companionship, friendship, physical and mental effort, as well as rivalry and competition. For this reason, it usually produces different emotions in viewers, all related to the fact of belonging to a team with which they feel identified.
Its majority audience is teenagers. And within this category we find other subgenres such as spokon drama or spokon action. Some examples of series in this category are Kuroko no Basuke, Diamond no Ace, Free, Haikyuu, among others.
Meitantei
This is the kind of anime that is about detective stories. The meitantei is about detectives, so the goal is to solve cases.
For this, the protagonist, who can be a policeman or a detective, manages to solve the case after investigating and observing details or even using his intuition. An example of this type of series is Detective Conan, Death Note, among others.
Loli
In this type of anime both heterosexual and homosexual romances usually occur between underage girls. In fact, loli means little girls who are over 14 years old.
These romances can also occur between a girl and an adult. Some series in this category are No game no life, Gochuumon wa Usagi Desu ka, Toradora, Bakemonogatari, among others.
Comedy with parody
It is a genre that has elements of comedy. In this scene similar to those of other animations are represented.
Some examples of anime that are based on comedy are Sket Dance, Gintama, Seitokai no Ichizon, among others.
References
- Pace, A. (undated). Identification processes based on local appropriations of manga and anime. 1st Edition. National University of Tucumán. Argentina. Web: issuu.com.
- Balderrama, L; Pérez, C. (2009). The elaboration of being Otaku from its cultural practices, the interaction with the other and its environment. Andres Bello Catholic University. Venezuela. Web: library2.ucab.edu.ve.
- Rodríguez, I. (2014). Realism in anime: a western perspective through her popular works. Complutense University of Madrid. Spain. Web: eprints.ucm.es.