Summary
While shonen anime target a male audience and feature male protagonists, there are a handful that feature a predominantly female cast. And guess what? They’re not always fanservice fuel or part of the harem genre. Some of these series are just as action-packed as their male-centric counterparts, while others are more laid-back entries into the ‘cute girls doing cute things’ genre.
Making the cast of a shonen anime mostly female allows for a more diverse representation of girls and women in a genre that’s long been criticized forportraying them as mere satellite characters. These series also tend to attract female fans for obvious reasons, bringing the world of shonen to a wider audience.
Negima! Magister Negi Magifollows a 10-year-old magician named Negi Springfield. Having just graduated from a magic academy, he becomes an English teacher at an all-girls school to obtain his full magic license. Throughout the series, Negi bonds with his students and helps them discover their own special abilities.
The large female cast is a given as the series takes place in an all-girls middle school. Negi’s class alonehas 31 female students, each with distinct personalities and abilities, all playing significant roles in the story.
6Galaxy Angel
MyAnimeList Score: 7.12
Galaxy Angelfollows an all-female galactic peacekeeping force called the Angel Brigade. Tasked with various missions from planetary exploration to combating threats to peace. Their primary mission is to search for ‘Lost Technology’, mysterious artifacts with unique powers scattered throughout the galaxy.
The core focus of the series revolves around the comedic interactions and adventures of the Angel Brigade members. The franchise started out as amore serious dating sim/strategy video gamewith a male protagonist named Takuto Meyers, who was adapted out of the anime.
Magical girl anime alwaysfeature predominantly female casts, andSymphogearis no exception. It revolves around a group of girls who use an advanced armor called ‘Symphogear’ to battle against alien creatures known as ‘Noise’ using the power of music.
While there are minor male characters in the series, the protagonists are all female, and there is a strong focus on their friendships. The anime showcases their strengths, struggles, and growth as they face formidable adversaries, all in a world that blends the magical girl, idol, and mecha genres.
4Gunslinger Girl
MyAnimeList Score: 7.40
Gunslinger Girlfollows the exploits of an Italian organization named the Social Welfare Agency, which claims to rescue young girls from trauma. In reality, it’s just a front, and the agency actually brainwashes and cyberizes these girls to carry out missions on behalf of the government.
The main cast ofGunslinger Girlare all young girls and the men in the series primarily serve as handlers and trainers for them. The anime explores the girls' relationships, experiences, and trauma, making it ashow with a strong female presence.
Lucky Staris a classic slice-of-life anime revolving around four high school girls - the geeky Konata Izumi, the studious Kagami Hiiragi, her sister Tsukasa, and the smart Miyuki Takara - and their interactions and conversations. The series doesn’t have an overarching plot but instead focuses on their daily lives,exploring otaku culture through their perspective.
There are a few male characters in the series; however, they mostly exist in supporting roles and do not receive as much screen time as the female characters. This is to be expected because Lucky Star is a well-known entry into the ‘cute girls doing cute things’ genre.
2Aria the Animation
MyAnimeList Score: 7.69
Set in the Venice-inspired city of Neo Venezia on the planet Aqua,Aria the Animationtells the story of a young woman named Akari Mizunashi, who leaves Earth to become an ‘Undine’ - a gondolier who guides tourists through Neo Venezia’s canals.
It may be easy to mistake Aria for a shojo series, given that all the main characters (including Akari and the Undines), their mentors, and other important figures are female, and the story has a relaxing and heartwarming atmosphere. After being retitled, the manga ran in a shonen magazine named Comic Blade.
Azumanga Daiohfollows the surreal, everyday life of six high-school girls,child prodigy Chiyo, airhead Osaka, introvert Sakaki, short-tempered Yomi, energetic Tomo, and sporty Kagura. As a slice-of-life series,Azumanga Daiohfocuses on the absurdly humorous interactions of the six girls and their teachers, Yukari and Minamo.
The two teachers are the only male characters to play any significant role in the series. The female characters drive most of the plot and comedic elements, while the male characters serve as additional humor sources.
