Highlights
- Battle shonen anime can have romance, but many fans prefer pure, action-packed excitement over love stories.
-
Zatch Bell!
focuses on friendship and battles, with subtle hints of romance that are never explored deeply. - Romance takes a backseat to action and comedy in
Mob Psycho 100,
highlighting the protagonist’s psychic powers instead.
There’s no rule stating that battle shonen anime can’t have any romance. Part of the power fantasy aspect in these shows is saving the damsel in distress, or managing to land the woman of one’s dreams in other ways. However, many shonen fans prefer shows with pure, unadulterated, adrenaline-pumping action, full-stop.
This certainly doesn’t mean these series are devoid of any emotional moments. In fact, most of these shows emphasize friendships over romantic relationships. Other series feature characters that are too young to even think about romance, and then there are instances where the creator simply wasn’t interested in writing romantic subplots. Regardless, these action shonen anime are a great time, and manage to be so without including an ounce of romance.
6 Zatch Bell!
MyAnimeList Score: 7.55
Zatch Bell! is about mystical super-powered creatures known as Mamodo, which are sent to Earth every 1000 years to participate in a tournament to determine the king of the Mamodo world. The series follows a Mamodo named Zatch Bell, who teams up with a 14-year-old genius named Kiyo Takamine to win the title of the Mamodo King.
The series is almost devoid of romance, focusing on the power of friendship, the Mamodo battles, and overcoming tough challenges. While there are some subtle hints of romance between Kiyo and his classmate Megumi, it’s never explored, and not at all central to the plot.
5 Dr. Stone
MyAnimeList Score: 8.28
After a mysterious event petrified every human on Earth, a scientific genius named Senku Ishigawa awakens 3,700 years later to a world devoid of any civilization. Using the power of science, Senku sets out to rebuild society and uncover the mystery of the petrification event.
The core of Dr. Stone is its action and Senku’s love of science and desire to restore civilization. It captures this all while providing an unconventional learning experience for the audience. Romantic elements are extremely sparse, and Senku himself never ends up in a relationship with anyone.
4 Mob Psycho 100
MyAnimeList Score: 8.49
Mob Psycho 100 follows a middle-school boy named Mob who possesses incredible psychic powers. Unfortunately, his powers are tied to his emotions, so he is forced to suppress them to keep his powers in control.
Despite the fact that Mob’s crush on his childhood friend Tsubomi is what motivates him, it is emphasized several times in the series that he doesn’t have a chance with her, and she doesn’t play that big of a role in the series. Romance takes a backseat to the action and comedy in Mob Psycho 100.
3 Fullmetal Alchemist (2003)
MyAnimeList Score: 8.11
- Release Date: October 4, 2003
- Studio: Bones
- Creator: Hiromu Arakawa
- Number of Episodes: 51
- Genre(s): Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Unlike the manga, and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, the first Fullmetal Alchemist anime significantly changes the direction of many character relationships from romantic to platonic, most glaringly with Edward and Winry. This was most likely because the anime aired when the manga was still running, so it ended up completely deviating from the original storyline.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, on the other hand, does have more obvious and fully fleshed-out romantic subplots, so the anti-romantics in the audience may want to stick to the first anime series if they want to avoid any mushy scenes.
2 One Piece
MyAnimeList Score: 8.72
The creator of One Piece, Eichiiro Oda, has stated in interviews that his characters are “in love with adventure.” When asked by fans about the lack of romance in his series, he simply stated that One Piece is a shonen manga, and those wanting romance should read shojo.
While many characters, like Sanji and Boa Hancock, do express romantic attraction, their feelings are yet to be reciprocated. Given that One Piece is famous for placing great importance on friendships, it’s likely that adding romantic subplots would distract from this message. Well over 1,000 episodes later, that has remained the case.
1 Hunter x Hunter
MyAnimeList Score: 9.04
Hunter x Hunter follows a young boy named Gon Freecss who has only one goal: to become a Hunter like his father and reunite with him. To achieve that, however, he has to pass the notoriously difficult Hunter exam.
Like many battle shonen anime, Hunter x Hunter focuses on friendships, getting stronger, and tournament arcs. It should also be noted that two of the main characters, Gon and Killua, were just 12 years old when they were first introduced. It is highly likely that introducing a romantic subplot would distract from the series’ themes of personal growth and the importance of non-romantic relationships, and considering the series’ focus on children and teenagers, that’s for the best.
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