Despite looking like one, Death Note is not a seinen.
Some fans think Death Note wouldn’t be different if it wasn’t a shounen.
A certain seinen darkness would’ve fit Death Note well.
Death Note is written by Tsugumi Ohba and was serialized in Weekly Shounen Jump from 2003 to 2006, thus it’s a shounen series. And this fact surprises some fans.
Shounens Are Less Mature
Shounen manga are targeted at young boys, and it's a common conception that such series are usually meant to appeal to teenagers. They often focus on fights and action, have a reasonable amount of gore and even some drama when it fits the vibe.
Demon Slayer is a perfect example of a typical shounen. The main protagonist has a goal, and he has to achieve it through training and fighting, while dealing with demons and other obstacles on his way.
But Death Note is nothing like that. First of all, its main protagonist is a villain, and this is already something that few shounens have. The series explores a lot of mature topics and tests viewers’ morals with each chapter. And still, it’s a shounen.
Seinens Have More Freedom
Seinen series tend to be more mature because they target an audience of young adults and adults. They can get darker (like Tokyo Ghoul) and more philosophically-advanced (like Vinland Saga). And Death Note has some strong vibes of such series.
A number of fans think that Death Note is listed as a shounen only because this demographic brings in more money. Every other huge manga and anime series is a shounen.
However, you can feel the difference between shounens and seinens, and we have to admit that there are certain things that shounens can’t allow themselves to be. They’re less explicit, and sometimes it’s a good thing.
But in the case of Death Note, it’s not. This series would be different if it were a seinen. It could’ve been even darker and more mature. New themes could’ve been introduced, and Light’s atrocities could’ve been portrayed in such detail that they would have scared off a big part of his fanbase.
Death Note is a series that could afford being more sinister. Death, murders, shinigami ― all of that could be handled in a less childish and more terrifying manner. It would elevate the series and take it to another level, and it’s upsetting that the manga was limited by the magazine it was serialized in.
Would you like Death Note to be a seinen?
Don’t worry, we love it as a shounen, too.
Summary:
Despite looking like one, Death Note is not a seinen.
Some fans think Death Note wouldn’t be different if it wasn’t a shounen.
A certain seinen darkness would’ve fit Death Note well.
Death Note is written by Tsugumi Ohba and was serialized in Weekly Shounen Jump from 2003 to 2006, thus it’s a shounen series. And this fact surprises some fans.
Shounens Are Less Mature
Shounen manga are targeted at young boys, and it's a common conception that such series are usually meant to appeal to teenagers. They often focus on fights and action, have a reasonable amount of gore and even some drama when it fits the vibe.
Demon Slayer is a perfect example of a typical shounen. The main protagonist has a goal, and he has to achieve it through training and fighting, while dealing with demons and other obstacles on his way.
But Death Note is nothing like that. First of all, its main protagonist is a villain, and this is already something that few shounens have. The series explores a lot of mature topics and tests viewers’ morals with each chapter. And still, it’s a shounen.
Seinens Have More Freedom
Seinen series tend to be more mature because they target an audience of young adults and adults. They can get darker (like Tokyo Ghoul) and more philosophically-advanced (like Vinland Saga). And Death Note has some strong vibes of such series.
A number of fans think that Death Note is listed as a shounen only because this demographic brings in more money. Every other huge manga and anime series is a shounen.
However, you can feel the difference between shounens and seinens, and we have to admit that there are certain things that shounens can’t allow themselves to be. They’re less explicit, and sometimes it’s a good thing.
But in the case of Death Note, it’s not. This series would be different if it were a seinen. It could’ve been even darker and more mature. New themes could’ve been introduced, and Light’s atrocities could’ve been portrayed in such detail that they would have scared off a big part of his fanbase.
Death Note is a series that could afford being more sinister. Death, murders, shinigami ― all of that could be handled in a less childish and more terrifying manner. It would elevate the series and take it to another level, and it’s upsetting that the manga was limited by the magazine it was serialized in.
