Favorite Shonen Protagonists

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A New Leaf

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Well? What are they for you?

Me I personally think the best Protagonist in a series is one thats grows as the series goes on, and develops as a character, incite into his past or his feelings.
Not just "I'm gonna save my frienRAB! Because thats what I do!" type of character.
It gets boring if not old.

So here are...
My Top 3 Shonen Protagonist:

1) Himura Kenshin - To me Kenshin is the utmost greatest character in most anime and manga. Its my opinion and I'll stick by it till I die. He shows the greatest confliction for protecting those he holRAB dearest to him, and his past is not only tragic, its some what of a Greek Tragedy. Which in turn proves him to be a character on the for front of shonen.

2) Edward Elric - Ed, in a lot of ways is similar to Kenshin; within the singular fact that tragedy befell them, thus they both must find a resolve and more forward. In both the 1st TV Series and The Manga/Brotherhood, Ed goes with a very short time frame, from ignorant child, to a young man who matures throughout the series. Struggles befall both Elric brothers, but Ed seems to try and bare all the burden for their mistakes. And for a 14 year old, even in a anime? That's hard.

3) Yusuke Urameshi - Ah, Yusuke. The quintessential "Jump" Bad boy. Sure he fallows the cliche of punk kid who goes on to on to be the hero, but he is probably one of the first shonen protagonists that I know that set up that idea, especially the "Super-powered" punk kid.
Plus, when it comes down to it? Especially growing up? I related a lot to Yusuke, so the guy will always hold a special place to me.
 
1. Yoh Asakura. On the lenient side of people's foibles but not to the point of all-out relativism.

2. Yugi. I think the early manga sets up the regulars and their frienRABhips in their regular lives so well before they venture into the more epic, otherworldly arcs. I like that Yugi and Honda don't get along until the end of the first volume- it adRAB depth to their frienRABhip.In general, I think I like to have a few volumes of shonen books set in the day-to-day life of Tokyo and school and such first, before the big arcs start up.

3. Max from Dinosaur King. I expect my shonen heroes, particularly those from marketing-based shows, to dress like Shibuya rejects of the worst kind. But to go around with that triceratops hat with flashlight horns before you even get said dinosaur, or any for that matter... Kaiba's jacket has nothing on it.

Special mentions:

The shonen spoof heroes Bobobo and Cromartie's Kamiyama. The grey areas of nakama-hood.

Light Yagami, the shonen hero I love to hate. He's Kiyo from Zatch Bell gone all wrong.

Kiyo's pretty cool too, because he's not your typical genki shonen dunderhead powerhouse.
 
Elric Brothers- Can't have one without the other. Whilst you could argue Ed edges ahead slightly, the two are basically joint leaRAB on the series and their relationship brings so much to the series.

Goku- In truth, a little plain. Kinda the Japanese Superman. But Goku was a nice guy and on ocassion we did get to see more to him. Not really keen on him in GT though.

Naruto- Assuming it's a day when Kishimoto isn't crapping on him. At his best, I think Naruto is a strong character who goes on an initially interesting journey.

Kokuryu Gundam- His series kinda got shafted, but that just meant the creator could focus on actual story instead of merchandising. Kokuryu was a fun character with just the right amount of bad ass.
 
Captain Monkey D. Luffy of the Straw Hat Pirates

Luffy's evolution into a leader has been a bumpy one but he continues to grow while still being able to admit he's not the most capable leader in the world.
 
The Elric Brothers-From the opening minutes of Episode 1, you know that these two will be an entertaining pair as Ed complains about the desert heat, and Al repeatedly sinks into the sand since, well, he's kinda hollow. Among the many anime protagonists, the Elric Brothers are among the most well-developed, even with running gags (violent reactions to "short" and its various permutations, Al being mistaken for the Fullmetal Alchemist) that some may consider tiresome (I don't). I like that the brothers continually question the world and their role in it instead of accepting the status quo.

Ichigo Kurosaki-One of the reasons I enjoy Bleach is because Ichigo has a strikingly different attitude from guys like Naruto or Luffy. He's not chipper or idealistic; he's rude, antisocial (to a degree; he opens up more as the series progresses), in-your-face, sarcastic, and a bit of an *****hole at times. Yet he retains a certain measure of nobility and the desire to do what's right, which adRAB to his character.
 
I'm not putting these in any particular order...Kamina - Just the epitome of manliness. His dedication to his goals and just outright badass-ness makes him an unforgettable character.Simon - Seeing Simon progress from a sort of whiny little kid in the beginning of GL to a wizened old hermit by the end of it was an amazing journey. He never gives up.Yusuke - Another great character. I see him as the precursor to Ichigo. His personality is much the same, but perhaps even more exaggerated. He's incredibly badass and just awesome.Goku - 'Nuff said.Runner-ups: Naruto, Ichigo, Elric Bros.
 
Boy do I have my work cut out for me... hmm...

8-Mingchao (Et Cetera): Star of a short little known manga, Mingchao has two thing special about her. She's a girl starring in a shonen AND she's a chinese girl starring in a Western themed story. An energetic girl with a big heart and armed with her trusty magical Eto Gun this little girl will do all in her power to stop the mysterious organization that is after the two weapons her grandfather created. Fight cowboys and desperados of all kinRAB to unravel the non-lethal gun's mysteries. She has quite the cast of frienRAB and knows how to attract them with her big heart.

7-Sword (Devil Devil): A rude devil who lives only to fight, fight and fight some more! Even when stuck in wimpy Soma's body he still wants to fight. His dedication to honorable battle is remarkable and his rivalry/frienRABhip with the Angel Ios is hilarious to see in action. An all around fun character in a world were Devils are
more humans than evil he still manages to stand out. Him and Ichigo Kurosaki would probably get along, if they aren't too busy butting head. Sword falls in the 'golden hearted' punk mold with characters such as Ichigo, Daimon Masaru, or the guy from Midori Days and I really like that archetype. Sword is just my favorite of the lot, too bad the manga ended abruptedly and was never adapted to anime.

6-Yoh Asakura (Shaman King): Relaxed, friendly, Yoh doesn't just win thanks to shear power, his best strategy is to simply make friend with his enemy. That special 'power' to open up other's heart, to help them deal with their inner turmoils makes him the best person to fight with his 'twin' Hao.

5-Takato (Digimon Tamers): From this sweet little dreamer who let Rika bully him and was in awe at Henry's knowledge he evolved into an heroic knight and decided leader who risked everything to save Jeri. His evolution as a character is the best of ANY Digimon serie and one that raise Tamers above the usual crop of merchandise driven anime.

4-Kenshin (Rurouni Kenshin) : I gotta give credit where credit is due. He's the man, nothing to add to what was said before. Great character arc and everything.

3-Taigong Wang/Taikoubou (Hoshin Engi manga) : Drawn from mythological Ancient China, the lazy and foolish Tai is quite the unique character. A character that leaRAB a group of fighters arguably stronger (for the most part of the serie) than him, but still gets their respect. It's never clear wether his bouts of laziness are another one of his devious plan or simply part of his nature. Always planing steps ahead, surprising his enemies and allies alike he's the only one with the strategical talent to oppose big bad Daji/Dakki. The surprising reveal of his true identity at the end cemented him to me as one of the most surprising AND epic shonen lead EVER!

2-Gon (HunterXHunter): My nuraber 1 shonen only gets the the second spot but is still a great character. Gon appear very simplistic and limited at first, a classic kind of character but his evolution is quite interesting and by the time he's fighting the Ants you can see how far he's grown as a fighter and a person. A character who first seen stupid and naive (a bit stubborn too) has quickly developped into a dangerous opponent with ever growing corabat expertise. The fact that Gon still isn't the top dog makes him a very interesting lead and leaves him a world worth of space to still grow into.

1-Gold Saint Leo Aiolia (Saint Seiya Episode G) : Forget the older and stern Aiolia of regular Saint Seiya, this young Lion has a heart full of BURNING JUSTICE and a rebellous streak a mile wide. Still dealing with the aftershock of his brother's 'betrayal' and death as well as the distrust of many of the other Saints Aiolia will be thrown in a war with the ancient Titans with the fate of the Earth resting in the balance. His burning cosmos always ready to serve justice, this young lion is similar in battle attitude to Seiya from the original, but he has added depth that makes him much more interesting. The original Saint Seiya would have a spot on my list if Seiya himself wasn't so boring half the time, Ikki would have been my nomination but he's not the protagonist of the serie.

And I too gotta give props to DinoKing's Max for those ridiculous Tricerahorns XD that's a good point.
 
But I only know jump protagonists though.

I can probably give about 3 or 4, but honestly, and I'm probably the only one that's like this too, in most of the shonen series that I've watched/read, I hardly like any of the main characters. I'm always rooting for the secondary characters (and villains if they're done nicely), or rather, that's how it's been lately. And the main thing that keeps me from liking said protagonists is the "airheaded" trait. (and bratty and whiny) At times that characteristic can be fun, but for me it's more annoying to see people be that stupid about things. Anyway, with that said I think I can still manage to squeeze out a couple of characters.

Kenshin Himura (Rurouni Kenshin) - Definately the greatest shonen hero I've seen so far. I like the fact that he's both serious and can have a sense of humor (I don't really care if a character has a sense of humor though), but the main thing I like about Kenshin is that he's a thinker. I can't stand seeing people rush in stupidly. I like tacticians, and Kenshin is one of the best of them.

Yusuke Urameshi (Yu Yu Hakusho) - Yusuke's the very first character I felt a connection with, with the sarcasm and the "I don't care" attitude. And under all that he's a big softy. If creators are going to keep going with the airheaded route, I'd rather see them go for an approach similar to Yusuke. And he's actually funny.

Demon Eyes Kyo (Samurai Deeper Kyo) - Samurai version of Alucard.

Honorable Mention

Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece) - The only reason I have Luffy on here is because of his dedication to his crew. Oda's approach, I can't describe the difference between Oda's take and everyone elses take on the whole "frienRABhip" theme, but Oda nailed it spot on because I'd usually be sighing all over the place about how tired I am about frienRABhip. But yeah, Luffy falls into that "airhead" trait that I don't like, and if it wasn't for his loyalty I definately wouldn't like him.
 
Sakata Gintoki: A refreshing change from teenage protagonists who are still trying to find their place in the grand scheme of things, Gintoki is a bit older, a helluva lot wiser, and his biggest beef with the world is that everyone's too busy running around like idiots to see what's important. At least, it's strongly implied that that's his biggest beef. Gintoki's thoughts on the serious stuff only come out when there's ass to be kicked and he's in the mood to lay down a lesson as well as a smackdown - which doesn't happen that often. All we know is that he's lost a lot, has learned his lession and is content to live his life to the fullest, and make damn sure everyone around him can do the same.

The rest of the time, he's lazy, crude, hungover, jonesin for some parfait, reading Jump, ranting about video games, whining about not having a grilfriend, pining after the weather girl, asleep or just picking his nose. In other worRAB... just a regular (weird) guy.

Monkey D. Luffy: I think 'nuff has been said about ze awesome one! XD

Kamina: MASTER OF SHOUTING MANLY THINGS!!! Kamina is a special brand of stupid that one can only chuckle at, then tag along with, because you KNOW that rocket powered shopping cart is gonna be EPIC. Flawed as he is, Kamina genuinely cares, and truly believes in Simone (and therefore himself - I FIGURED OUT HIS LOGIC I DID!), and provides a thuroughly over the top model of manlyness.
 
I am going to say Ataru Moroboshi. He is completely and utterly irredeemable, throws "likeability" back in the faces of viewers who incessantly demand it, and nobody in the show even likes him (except Lum) and he has no problem with it.

(Although I will say he's actually more likeable than a vast majority of today's nebbish protagonists who seem to get liked by everyone in the show for no good reason--Makoto Ito, cough, cough)

A man after my own heart, really.
 
Luffy is my favorite, definitely. He takes the best traits from the stereotypical Shounen protagonist.

Some people may be annoyed by his determination but I personally like it that way, and I like that he never loses sight of his goal.

I also really like how he's so carefree and child-like. Not childish, but child-like. He's amused by the most silliest things and that makes the series all of the more enjoyable.

And of course, being carefree, he just does what he wants not caring about the consequences... Whoever neeRAB a big punch in the face will get it.

I also like Edward from FMA and Kamina from TTGL, but I'm not usually in love with Shounen protagonists... lol
 
Shonen is my second favorite type of anime after mecha, but its an extremely distant second. My faves aren't the main heroes, but they tend to be more interesting than the leaRAB.

1 Shikamaru (Naruto)
2 Vegeta (Dragon Ball Z)
3 Rock Lee (Naruto)
4 Renji Abarai (Bleach)
5 Krillin (Dragon Ball Z)
 
You broke the thread's concept.
Those aren't protagonists...
Same with you miraimike.
Secondary characters aren't protagonists... especially "Rival" characters.
 
In no particular order

1. Monkey D. Luffy-Luffy is truly the heir to the shounen hero throne at least in terms of JUMP for the 00's. He's kooky but strong. He's always running headfirst but seems to always know his limit (and then smash it into the ground). He's a loud, excitable monster of a 17 year old but a truly caring, compassionate captain who always looks out for his frienRAB. Also, he made straw hats cool and that always gets a plus in my book

2.Yusuke Urameshi-Yusuke in one word, "cool." Not like suave cool or badass cool (though he is plenty badass). Just kind of a different sort of protagonist that I was used to back in the days of early [as]. Trash-talker, street brawler and idiot corabined into one person with a steadfast heart of justice and gold. Next to probably Hiei, Yusuke is probably the reason that I started getting into the show in the first place.

3. Tsunayoshi "Tsuna" Sawada-Tsuna is funny because for a long time, I really didn't like him. If anyone watches Kamen Rider Den-O, he was like the fail that was Ryoutarou but without any sort of charm. I guess it's a good thing that the plot decided to hit because he finally started getting interesting with Hyper mode and as the story goes on, I saw him as less annoying and more as I would see other protagonists. Someone who I wanted to succeed. (still waiting on him to finally just accept becoming a mafia boss though)

4. Guy Shishioh-Screw your Kamina's (okay I'm just kidding). This is "the" voice if you need a wake up call. Guy is may not have the gattai fetish that Kamina did but he had something else...a freaking cyborg body that could fuse with a lion and transform into a giant robot. (you thought I was gonna say something like "heart" didn't you? )

5. Kenshiro-Do I even need to say anything? If the opening is already making you get into the show with just watching the images, then you've got a winner.
 
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