Shonen Hero Traits
Basic Traits
A character must at least meet 6 of the basic traits to be classified as a Shonen Hero:
- Heroic/Honorable: A Shonen Hero accomplishes a noble and extraordinary deed and/or display a high sense of honor.
- Courageous/Reckless: A Shonen Hero has to demonstrate a great amount of bravery, sometimes to the point of recklessness.
- Energetic: A Shonen Hero is very energetic to the point of being hyperactive and/or hot-blooded.
- Stubborn: A Shonen Hero wants to do something regardless of what people say otherwise.
- Pursues a Big-End Goal: A Shonen Hero has a significant goal that they want to achieve.
- Hard-Working: A Shonen Hero works hard in order to get what they need/want.
- Unintelligent: A Shonen Hero isn't very smart, intelligent and/or lacks common sense.
- Optimistic: A Shonen Hero maintains a positive attitude regardless of their circumstances.
- Idealistic: A Shonen Hero believes that good things can be achieved, even when it seems impossible to others.
- Determined: A Shonen Hero refuses to give up, no matter how challenging the obstacles are to overcome.
- Confident/Cocky: A Shonen Hero highly believes in their ability to accomplish anything, even to the point of having a enormous ego.
- Unpredictable: A Shonen Hero behaves in a way that other people cannot figure out what they will do next.
- Self-Sacrificing: A Shonen Hero is often willing to put itself in harm's way or make personal sacrifices for the greater good or to protect others.
- Resilient: A Shonen Hero is able to rise up from their failures and setbacks.
- Youthful: A Shonen Hero has a personality that resembles that of a kid/teenager.
Bonus Traits
- Believes in the Power of Friendship: A Shonen Hero gains strength from how much they value their friends and would do anything to protect them.
- Oblivious to Love: A Shonen Hero is unaware of one's romantic interests towards them.
- Possesses Plot Armor: A Shonen Hero survives through dangerous situations in their respective stories because they are essential to the plot.
- Spiky Hair/Pompadour/Unnatural Hairstyle: A Shonen Hero has an unusual hairstyle that makes them stand out from the other characters.
- Unnatural Hair Color: A Shonen Hero's hair has an uncommon color.
- Short-Tempered: A Shonen Hero is quick to anger.
- Has Rivals/Mentors: A Shonen Hero has a rival to compete with and/or a mentor to learn from.
- Big Eater/Drinker: A Shonen Hero has been shown to be eating/drinking large amounts of food/beverages.
- Has an Idol: A Shonen Hero has another character to look up to and aspire to.
- Mischievous: A Shonen Hero likes to have fun by playing harmless pranks on others and generally cause silly trouble.
- Rebellious: A Shonen Hero refuses to conform to social standards and instead follow their own rules and stay true to themselves.
- Tragic Past: A Shonen Hero has experienced traumatic events before the beginning of their respective stories.
- Is a Blood Knight: A Shonen Hero enjoys the thrill of combat.
- Forgiving: A Shonen Hero chooses to forgive someone for the harm they have done to them.
- Is a Primary-Color Champion: A Shonen Hero's appearance/outfit is composed of at least one of the three primary colors: Red, Blue and Yellow (and sometimes White).
- Is a Challenge Seeker: A Shonen Hero wants to seek opportunities to learn something new and/or push past their limits.
- Is a Neglectful Parent: A Shonen Hero has terrible parenting skills due to being consistently unable to give their children the support they need.
- Is a Delinquent: A Shonen Hero has a reputation of breaking rules of all regards on a regular basis, mostly for fun and/or out of petty reasons.
- Is a Chick/Dude Magnet: A Shonen Hero can naturally attract multiple men/women with ease.
- Is an Underdog: A Shonen Hero faces significant obstacles or is expected to lose, yet fights against the odds with determination and resilience.
- Is a True Hero: A Shonen Hero not only lives to help others, but also sacrifices their personal interests for the greater good.
- Calls Out Attacks: A Shonen Hero calls out their attacking moves before using them against their opponents.
- (NOTE: Bold and italicize the attacks the characters shout out.)
- Is a Mascot with Attitude: A Shonen Hero possesses characteristics that makes them come off as cool, especially to young boys.
- Is a Shotoclone: A Shonen Hero has a fighting style that involves possessing a projectile, rising physical attack, plus a rushing-forward and/or spin attack.
- Street-Smart: A Shonen Hero is capable of navigating difficult situations with practical knowledge and creativity.
- Has a Battle Cry: A Shonen Hero tends to yell out words or scream during a fight.
- Is a Kid/Teen Hero: A Shonen Hero start their journey under the age of 18.
Categories
Special Categories That Can Fit
- Light-Novel Heroes: If a Shonen Hero has several qualities associated with the Light-Novel Hero archetype, they may qualify.
- Seinen Heroes: Same as Light-Novel Heroes.
- Shojo Heroes: Same with Seinen Heroes.
- Shonen Rivals: Same with Shojo Heroes.
- Wrestlers (applies to real ones only): Given that WWE matches are scripted to the point the antics of all the wrestlers are portrayed as hero vs. villain fights, allowing them to have pages on the Heroes/Villains Wikis, they thus may fit here.
Caution Categories:
- Entertainingly Detestable: While this category is rare for Shonen Heroes to be in, they can qualify if the character is on & off/redeemed and meets the criteria.
- Equally Hostile: While most villainous Shonen Heroes retain their affability, it doesn't mean that they can't be hostile to everyone.
- Fake Tragic: Unless they have ultimately redeemed themselves from their villainous ways, heroes who have genuine tragedies but have severe corrupting factors that go far past it (e.g. heinousness, criminal acts, sociopathy, grey-zoned acts) can never count as a Shonen Hero.
- Fallen: Fallen heroes may meet the criteria if they keep much of their heroic traits and still meets the criteria and/or they have redeemed themselves.
- Faux Affably Evil: Same as Equally Hostile.
- Game Changers: While this type of character is usually too dark, brooding, and stoic to qualify as a Shonen Hero, they may fit if they only slightly darken the plot, have comedic or any distracting moments, or become more lighthearted as they continue.
- Inconsistently Heinous: As long as a Shonen Hero isn't categorized as Fake Tragic, they may qualify.
- On & Off: A Shonen Hero can be an On & Off character as long as their heroics are more consistent than their bad deeds.
- Shonen Heroes by Proxy: It is rather rare for a Shonen Hero to have no intention to do good, but they can still qualify as long they meet the criteria.
Categories That Never Fit:
List of categories and traits that contrasts with Shonen Hero.
- Fake Tragic: Heroes who have genuine tragedies but have severe corrupting factors that go far past it (e.g. heinousness, criminal acts, sociopathy, grey-zoned acts) can never count as a Shonen Hero.
- Faux Redemption/Irredeemable: If a Shonen Hero becomes a villain, they must always redeem themselves.
- Heroic Species: Two members of the same species can actually turn out to be completely different people, so they never fit.
- Neutral Characters: Characters from Neutral Characters Wiki are not allowed on any of the Archetype Wikis due to their lack of heroics.
- Non-Heroes: Given that shonen heroes are much more traditionally heroic than their seinen counterparts, non-heroes cannot qualify.
- Near Pure Evil: Too much of full-scale villains to count.
- Psychopaths: Given how empathetic many Shonen Heroes are, psychopaths cannot qualify.
- Pure Evil: Same reasons as NPE's
- Rapists: Unless they show remorse which is extremely rare and unlikely, they are too repulsive, cruel, dark and vile to fit.
- Totalitarians: Due to it being based on tyranny and oppression. totalitarianism is considered the opposite of what a Shonen Hero stands for, in fact, many shonen heroes are known for toppling oppressive dictatorships in their stories.