anime genre personal dictionary...

The following terms are genres used by FUNIMATION to organize their collection of Animes. In my own words, I have gone through an defined each one to the extent that I felt necessary.



Action

These can fall anywhere between combat and warfare to sports like tennis. Action is a broader genre that is usually paired with other ones in order to categorize more specifically. EX: Devil May Cry, Pokemon, Dragonball Z

Adventure

Usually involving a main character trying to reach an ultimate goal, Adventure is yet another broad genre that usually doesn't stand by itself. Aventure Animes tend to have a "purposeful" vibe emitting from them, and the characters are usually a bit deeper. EX: Digimon, Fullmetal Alchemist, Negima!?

Bishonen

This literally translates to "beautiful boy" (bi- beautiful, -shonen boy). This concept shouldn't be confused with a handsom boy. Bishonen refers to younger males that are so "pretty" that their demeanor is comparable to a girl's. While the Anime itself may or may not focus on the attractiveness of the boys, it's the style of drawing that makes the Bishonen genre. The main character will almost always be a boy. EX: Big Windup!, Nabari no Ou, Hetalia

Bishoujo

If you haven't figured this one out, it translates to beautiful girl (bi- beautiful, -shoujo girl). Don't mistake this for the stereotypical big breasted skimpy clothed Anime women. Bishoujos have girls that are indeed pretty, but usually have some sort of personality beyond that. The main character will almost indefinitely be a girl. EX: Fruits Basket, Love Hina, Spice and Wolf  

Comedy

A wide spanning genre. Basically if the number one reason for the Anime's existence is to make you laugh, then it's classified as comedy. However, this genre can also be combined with others for clarification. EX: Baka and Test, Full Metal Panic!, Kenichi

Cyberpunk

This one's kind of hard to explain. It's almost like a subgenre of Science Fiction, only without aliens. Imagine a story based on a future gone wrong, or where humans and computers work together in ways currently unheard of. Its stuff like that. The protagonists are usualy "nobodies" that - through some unique means- become important? I guess I'll have to watch one to find out. EX: Xenosaga, Bubblegum Crisis, Afro Samurai  

Drama

A very broad genre. If the Anime tells a story that has character developement in it, then it can usually be categorized under Drama. EX: Darker than Black, Baccano!, Mushi-Shi

Fan Service

Bahaha. I think my mentor told me about this one already. Fan Service Animes are those that make girls squee and fanstasize about character relationships, or ones that have very suggestive material. And when I say suggestive, I mean like a girl's boobs breasts being "accidentally" shoved in a guy's face. In other words, add in things just for the sake of pleasing the audience. These are usually paired with comedy. EX: Goshusho Sama Ninomiya Kun, Girls Bravo, Kanokon

Fantasy

Anything from swords, magic and monsters, to Spirit Bombs, to anything unlikely (people with wings). Usually paired with other genres. EX: Digimon, Dragonball, Fairy Tail 

Harem

Almost like a suggestive dating game, Harem Animes feature a single male lead character, and a bunch a floofy girls as the rest of the cast. But he can only pick one! EX: Ah! My Goddess, Shuffle!, Gun X Sword

Historical

These are actually more of historical fiction. If the Anime takes place in a distinct time period of the past (colonial times, ancient Japan), and or makes references to real historical events (the Great Wall, the Great Fire of London) then it will be classified at least partly by the Historical genre. EX: Black Butler, Samurai 7, Shigurui

Horror

With the intent to scare, or with the use of intense violence or demonic practices. EX: Dead Space, Hell Girl, Deadman Wonderland

Live Action

If there are real people on your TV instead of cartoons, it's live action. EX: Goemon, Shinobi, The Treasure Hunter

Magical Girl

The main character is a girl and she has some specal ability she must put to use. Go figure. It's not uncommon to see this combined with Bishoujo. EX: Strike Witches, Sasami Magical Girls Club, UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie

Martial Arts

It's a battle with punches and kicks! Usually modeled after Karate, Judo, Aikido, Kung-Fu or Boxing, Martial Arts Animes also fall under action, and usually Shonen. EX: Dragon Ball Z, Naruto, Yu Yu Hakusho

Mecha

ROBOTS!!!

Moe
This is an interesting genre. Moe is litterally Japanese slang for being in fake love with a cute cartoon and thier features. In the case for Anime, moe usually refers to a show with a cute, prepubescent to pubescent ages girl. Moe is not a very large genre by any means, and it is often used to trim downt he bigger genres. EX: Air, MoonPhase, Bamboo Blade

Myster

If at any point in the Anime, if the antagonist is unknown or out of reach to the protagonist, than it has qualified to be part of this genre. Ex: Last Exile, Tokyo Majin, Speed Grapher

Reverse Harem

Only slightly better than Harem Animes, Reveres Harems feature a single girl lead character, and an array of boys as the cast. But she can only pick one! EX: Fruits Basket, Ouran High School Host Club, The Wallflower

Romance

The focus of this genre is love and relationships. Nuff said. EX: Eden of the East, Kaze no Stigma, Peach Girl

School

Either the plot takes place at a school, or the main characters are students. EX: Soul Eater, Slam Dunk, School Rumble 

Sci Fi

When the story's plot can't happen without the concept of computers, machines, science, technology, space, aliens or robots. Can (and usually is) paired with the Fantasy genre. EX: Desert Punk, Gad Guard, Summer Wars 

Shonen

Hopefully you remember the translation of Bishonen. However, unlike Bishonen, Shonen Animes don't focus on the look of the boys as much as how the boys contribute to the plot. In other words, the attractiveness of the characters is void. Besides the fact that the main characters are almost always going to be males, the Shonen genre targets a male audience. These shows are made to appeal to boys' inner caveman. EX: One Piece, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Dragon Ball Z

Slice of Life

The shows of this genre either have little plot OR are focused on generating a nostalgic or motiviational feel. A template would be following the life of a student that goes through something many other people may have gone through. In other words, these are usually clean Animes that exist for the sole purpose to simply entertain captivated audiences. EX: Big Windup!, Mongolian Chop Squad, Mushi-Shi

Space

Not just outer space, but anything "other worldly" in essence. EX: Origin, Robotech, Moonlight Mile

Sports

Baseball, Basketball, Volleyball, Tennis, Martial Arts, Racing, etc. EX: Air Gear, Inazuma Eleven, Prince of Tennis

Super Power

When the protagonist has some sort of special ablitily. EX: Trigun, X, D.Gray-man

Supernatural

This is the broad genre that covers anything that is out of the ordinary or not really possible. Magic, Super Powers, Demons and Incantations are all the norm here. However, unlike Fantasy and Sci Fi, there's no obligation to have a wierd creature in the show. EX: Black Blood Brothers, Black Cat, Blassreiter

Yuri

Homosexual interations between two women. It can be sexual, spiritual, emotional, or strongly implied. It offends me that FUNIMATION has these, but not it's twin Yaoi (which is the same thing only with men). Lord knows how bad these things can get. EX: RIN, Shattered Angels, Venus Versus Virus

Well this took a long time to write up. I'll just be glad that I can copy and paste this into my final essay at the end of the school year.