Shonen series are undoubtedly the most popular demographic of anime and manga out there. These stories are mainly aimed at young boys and have lots of exciting battles and intense stories. That said, shonen series come in many different flavors today, and it's gotten to the point where many major shonen are actually mistaken for seinen by many. For some reason, some fans are under the impression that every “serious” anime series is actually a seinen, but that's not really the case. The classification for manga is based on the magazine in which it is serialized. In the abundance of shonen, many are often confused for seinen.
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Attack on Titan
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Producer: Hajime Isayama
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Magazine Serialized in: Besatsu Shonen Magazine
If there's one major recent series that many fans confuse with being Seinen, it's definitely Attack on Titan. Many fans are under this impression Attack on Titan seinen is, and for the most part, this is because of its more mature nature. Attack on Titan is a horror series that features man-eating titans. The creator, Hajime Isayama, doesn't hesitate to show people being eaten by these creatures.
Isayama isn't afraid to kill important characters in brutal ways. attack on Titan also explores more political elements than the average shonen. The Marley arc and everything that followed definitely made many feel like the series was aimed at an older audience. However, what happened in the story is secondary to which magazine it was published in, and when it comes to classification, Attack on Titan was published in a Bessu shonen magazine, making it a shonen.
The Promised Neverland
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Producers: Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu
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Sorted in Magazine: Weekly Shonen Jump
The Promised Neverland is a legendary shounen series that many believe is actually a shounen. As with other series, it mostly comes down to how brutal the story is. The Promised Neverland begins on a poignant note as it is soon revealed that the children raised in the orphanage were actually raised as livestock to feed the ghost-like creatures.
The story begins almost like a horror thriller, with the children trying to create an escape route for themselves to avoid their terrible fate of being turned into butcher meat. While the story is brutal, it's still shonen. The Promised Neverland was published in Weekly Shonen Jump and is one of the magazine's most iconic series.
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Claymore
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Producer: Norihiro Yagi
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Sorted in magazines: Monthly Shonen Jump, Jump Square
Claymore 2000's is a beloved series. With that being said, many compare Claymore to the likes of Berserk, the Seinen series. Because these two manga are similar, but each caters to a different demographic. In fact, this is one of the reasons why some fans have even started calling Claymore “Shonen Berserk”.
The vast majority of fans are still unaware of its shonen classification. Many other shonen series are similar to seinen, due to the theme and horror of its source material. Claymore follows the story of Claire, a half-yoma, half-human female warrior who must fight and kill man-eating and shape-shifting creatures. Battles in Claymore can be very intense, and the violence is definitely there to see. It definitely feels like a more mature series, but at the end of the day, it was published in two shonen magazines, Monthly Shonen Jump and Jump Square.
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Death note
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Producers: Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata
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Sorted in Magazine: Weekly Shonen Jump
In the 2000s, there weren't many anime series as iconic and beloved Death note. Death Note took the world by storm, and the dynamic between L and Light is undoubtedly legendary. That said, fans may be surprised to learn that Death Note is not a sennen manga or anime series. Rather, it is a shonen manga created by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata.
It is the dark theme of Death Note that leads many to believe that it is a sennen manga. The Death Note series features many tragic and gruesome deaths, and the series is extremely serious, with no time for jokes or light-hearted moments. With the death note, Prakash has killed many in a brutal way. It's surprising to see the series believed to be aimed at an older audience, especially considering the fans. That being said, Death Note was ranked in the most prestigious shonen magazine out there, that is, Weekly Shonen Jump, with one piece as a favorite.
The Chainsaw Man
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Producer: Tatsuki Fujimoto
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Sorted in magazines: Weekly Shonen Jump, Shonen Jump +
The Chainsaw Man Many fans are confused when it comes to its classification, but without a doubt, it is a shonen series, although some of its elements seem to lean more towards the sennen. Chainsaw Man follows Denji's story, and the story introduces demons and some psychological horror, especially with the main antagonist Makima in part 1. Chainsaw Man is definitely more serious than its other shonen counterparts. It is violent and also contains some extreme sexual content, which is not entirely common in shonen. Again, everything didn't matter as Chainsaw Man was sorted into Shuisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump. Later down the line, it was transferred to Shonen Jump+.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
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Producer: Hirohiko Araki
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Magazine serialized: Weekly Shonen Jump (Parts 1 to 6), Ulta Jump (Parts 7 to 9)
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure It's a bit odd when it comes to its manga classification. Many believe that all jojos fall into the more sennen category, which is not exactly true. To be clear, parts of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure fall into the shonen category, while the rest fall into seinen.
Currently, JoJo only has three seinen parts, including only 7 parts after the story reset. Meanwhile, parts 1 to 6 are all shonen. This discrepancy is due to JoJo's bizarre adventure switching magazines. From episodes 1 to 6, Jojo was serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump. Meanwhile, since debuting in Episode 7, Jojo has been serialized in Ultra Jump, a Sennen magazine. Jojo has always dealt with some mature themes, and the story hasn't changed that much since the switch to seinen magazine. There are funny moments too. After all, JoJo has always had fun moments, followed by brutal and serious events. Weather Report's backstory is one of many examples that show Jojo has always had dark stories, even before switching to seinen magazine.
D. The Gray Man
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Producer: Katsura Hoshino
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Sorted in Magazine: Weekly Shounen Jump, Jump Square, Jump SQ.Crown, Jump SQ. get up
D. The Gray Man is an iconic manga by creator Katsura Hoshino. The story started in 2004, and even now, it's technically still going, although the releases are slow. Many believe that this is a seinen,m series, and the confusion is obvious why. This story has always had a dark feel to it. It's set in the 19th century, so for the most part, the anime has taken a darker route with the series. The plot is also more serious than the average shonen, with a confrontation between the Exorcist and the Black Order.
With all that in mind, D. Gray Man is still a shonen series, and was serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump magazine for the most part. The series has changed magazines a few times, but all of them are shonen magazines for young boys to read.
