Story Theme Search - Different themes. (Kids, abuse, lgbt themes, codependence)

[Claptrap]

Posting this thread here as well, because I think my chances to find themes that fit what I'm asking for is more likely in manga.

1. A story with multiple child main characters, especially if its an adventure, but it doesn't have to be. Just kids being developed characters, basically. Nothing wrong with SoL but I'd prefer if the plot had something more than 'kids hang around in a club' all day to it, regarding this one.
2. Cast is mostly adults and older and the focus of the show is not action.
3. Manga with heavy focus on abuse, bullying and its aftereffects. Any kind of abuse is okay, spousal, parental, a friend using their friend, etc. My one point is I'd prefer
4. Genuinely good gay fiction - can just be strong undercurrents, ex. Oniisama E is pretty gay but wouldn't qualify for 'LGBT themes' and yet it has a really satisfying amount of discussions around these kinds of relationships
5. Stories that focus on strong codependent relationships (especially if the story deconstructs and plays with these relationships, like the CA arc of HxH)
6. Getting specific with this one, so bear with me. A character has an awful past, has awful things happen to him and Things Get Better. However, I'd prefer if the awful past is something people can relate to. Now, it can be set in a fantasy world, I'd just prefer the MC's 'bad past' be something conceivable in our world.

 

[sothis]

guessing you've already looked at the tags, but a few tags you might peruse:

https://www.anime-planet.com/manga/tags/bullying - bullying is used as a theme tag on AP (primary focus, not as a trigger tag for one instance). honestly it's probably not populated as much as it could be, we don't get many submissions for it.

https://www.anime-planet.com/manga/tags/mature-romance - we added this one basically as a "romance between adults" sort of deal, because so many series focus on high school students. there's also adult couples: https://www.anime-planet.com/manga/tags/adult-couples but it's used on both mature romance AND as a "person"/setup tag (to help classify shorter series like yaois)

https://www.anime-planet.com/manga/tags/coming-of-age maybe (another that isn't tagged probably as much as it should be)

the codependent one is interesting, that would be a good featured custom list if you are willing to make one.

+ @Starra though as i suspect she might have some good ideas here for 4+combos

 

[Starra]

You've already read the two that came to mind instantly, which are Bokura no Hentai and Banana Fish, lol.

Let's see...

Abuse:
-Zankoku na Kami ga Shihai suru - This deals with the protagonist suffering from sexual and physical abuse at the hands of his newly acquired stepfather and being too scared to tell anybody. It's very much a story about overcoming trauma and learning to trust people again. It's a dark series with a lot of fucked up shit happening but there's a bit of hope if you squint. Also, Jeremy (the protagonist) is bisexual and has relationships with men (but not because of the abuse). It also overlaps with your terrible past one.
-King's Maker (manhwa). About a king who has child slaves and the protagonist trying to help his friend get out of the situation.

Good gay fiction:
-Here U Are (manhua). The main character is an openly gay university student and it deals with the effects of that.

Codependent relationships:
-Pandora Hearts, kinda. I mostly just wanted to recommend this to you. I know you've watched the anime but apparently it's a terrible adaptation that nobody really likes if they're familiar with the manga.

Awful past but things get better:
-Fruits Basket. If you can get past the typical shoujo aspects, everyone's had terrible things happen to them, including physical abuse, but it's mostly psychological. The message of the series is that love can overcome anything, and it's about Tooru teaching the Soumas to see the good things in life, rather than focusing on all the negativity around them. I see you've watched the original anime, but the manga's quite different. And a lot darker (and better).
-Raising a Bat (manhwa). Yes, it's a fantasy, but the trauma the protagonist goes through is mostly grounded in reality (discrimination etc).

Also, if you want something with LGBT+ themes that's done respectfully, there's After School Nightmare, but I'm not sure if it's the kind of thing you're looking for.

I have no idea if you're interested in manhwa/manhua, but I've read quite a few interesting BL/LGBT+ webcomics and web novels from Korea and China. Most of the Chinese web novels seem to be action-oriented, but I've found them pretty enjoyable so far. Maybe try Mo Dao Zu Shi? It features an adult couple (well, they're eventually a couple, lol). If the novel seems too daunting (it's looong), it does have an animated version that you could watch to dip your toes in. If it's not your thing at all, feel free to ignore this, lol. It's really good though I promise.

 

[Claptrap]

@sothis I really should look through those tags thoroughly. I do see a few things in the bullying tag that catch my eye.

With mature romance and adult couple, I suppose my one gripe is that it indicates the story will be focused around romance. I don't have a problem with romance persay, it's just that it tends to be limit options to specific kinds of stories. It's not a bad tag at all though, and it's still a good idea.

Coming of age is actually a tag that I missed - didn't know a-p had one, somehow! So thanks.

God, codependent list might be something I make. It's a focus of interest, but it can be hard to remember all the stories that vaguely hit on those themes. Definitely keeping it in mind as something I might make a list on though... The issues with it as a theme is it usually comes up as a minor part of a bigger story. Still... I can think of a few.

@Starra
Oh man, you've given me some really good looking recommendations here. (and yes Banana Fish and Bokura no Hentai definitely serve some narrative cravings for sure. I really loved the cast of BnH)

I've definitely intended to give Zankoku a read, just due to the fact its touted as a classic. Honestly, the things you've said about it make it sound even more appealing.
Never heard of King's Maker (and it's always nice to hear about titles I haven't heard of), definitely gonna take a look.

Here U Are has an appealing premise, and it's always nice to see a character kind of address the social issues around being open.

Haha fair with Pandora Heart honestly. Even when watching it I definitely got the idea the anime wasn't living up to source material. Plus, I remember when watching that Gilbert was a really appealing character. I'm not sure if he's the one you mean (and I mean, there are other fun characters too), but yeah, I can understand this recommendation. I'll give it a read.

Hmmm, okay I should give Fruits Basket a read probably. It's a pretty big classic in general, and I know the original anime series had a non-ending really. There's a few characters I'm invested in from the series, so it covering darker material is enticing.

Raising a Bat honestly has a few things going on that look interesting. Curious how it fares on codependence too, since the premise seems inherently set up for it so I guess I'll see!

It's interesting you say that about Afterschool Nightmare. I was always a little worried it wouldn't handle that well, maybe because I'm never sure with titles tagged 'gender bender' on mangaupdates (because they really are a mix of good and bad) which is why I've avoided it in the past. But if it's respectfully done, that piques my interest.

Nothing against manhwa/manhua so I'm totally okay with getting recced it. I'll give it a try, it looks like a pretty beloved novel? I don't have anything against reading either, so it being long isn't really a problem.

 

[Starra]

I've definitely intended to give Zankoku a read, just due to the fact its touted as a classic. Honestly, the things you've said about it make it sound even more appealing.

It's very grim, so be warned. I know you probably don't care, but it was almost too much even for me, lol.

Never heard of King's Maker (and it's always nice to hear about titles I haven't heard of), definitely gonna take a look.

FWIW there's a second season currently being written, I have no idea how far along translations for it are.

Haha fair with Pandora Heart honestly. Even when watching it I definitely got the idea the anime wasn't living up to source material. Plus, I remember when watching that Gilbert was a really appealing character. I'm not sure if he's the one you mean (and I mean, there are other fun characters too), but yeah, I can understand this recommendation. I'll give it a read.

Yep, Gilbert is one of them lol. And a couple of others, too. All I've heard about the anime is that it sucks, and I really enjoyed the manga. I'm usually not one for the Alice in Wonderland-esque stories but this one won me over anyway.

Hmmm, okay I should give Fruits Basket a read probably. It's a pretty big classic in general, and I know the original anime series had a non-ending really. There's a few characters I'm invested in from the series, so it covering darker material is enticing.

If you're interested, the 2019 anime is super close to the manga and it might be a better bet to watch that instead if you'd rather do it that way.

It's interesting you say that about Afterschool Nightmare. I was always a little worried it wouldn't handle that well, maybe because I'm never sure with titles tagged 'gender bender' on mangaupdates (because they really are a mix of good and bad) which is why I've avoided it in the past. But if it's respectfully done, that piques my interest.

Completely understandable. It's not 'gender bender' in the sense of magical changing genders, I assume it's tagged that way because the main character is intersex. It also has a character who deals with trauma from being raped, and there are other issues present, too. The intersex character is done in an interesting way, and I'm not sure how plausible the series' interpretation of it is, but it's at least respectful.

Speaking of which, Nabari no Ou is another series I've come across with an intersex character done respectfully. Their gender isn't the focus of the character, but identity is an issue for them. If it means anything, it's written by the same author who did Shimanami Tasogare, and they identify as X-Gender (Japanese version of non-binary).

Nothing against manhwa/manhua so I'm totally okay with getting recced it. I'll give it a try, it looks like a pretty beloved novel? I don't have anything against reading either, so it being long isn't really a problem.

Awesome! I didn't notice any manhwa/manhua on your list so I wasn't sure how you felt about them, lol. Mo Dao Zu Shi is what got me hooked on Chinese BL series, and I really wasn't expecting to completely fall for them as much as I did. The one thing I will mention is that due to heavy censorship in China some things may seem very vanilla and recent series basically can't depict any gay sex scenes. MDZS has a couple of sex scenes at the end, but it was written before the censorship laws became harsh. The animated version is also less gay because of this, although there's still subtext.

If you get around to any of these recs I hope you enjoy them!

 

[daisicles]

Tossing in a couple of suggestions - some of them, it looks like you already know about, but I'll include them here anyway.

For stories with adults where the focus isn't action:
- Ooku - there is some action, but it's mostly political machinations
- Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju - bc I'm obligated to recommend it, even if everybody's heard of it about 15 times over. Haruko Kumota draws such great facial expressions
- Ristorante Paradiso and Gente - most of Natsume Ono's work is good on the non-action front, really. You've read not simple, yeah?
- Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen - this one might actually fit as a bad past title too, it's about a woman working in a brothel in early 20th century Paris. Sakuran is similar but set in Japan. They might not end happily enough for what you're looking for, esp Sakuran, but they aren't sad endings?

For stories about characters with awful pasts that get better, I'm going to suggest House of Five Leaves, though I will admit that it might be a bit of a stretch in some regards. I still recommend it regardless, though, so... ;)

And for stories with codependent relationships, I'm gonna go a bit off the wall and recommend The Night Beyond the Tricornered Window. It's light supernatural horror where a fair amount of the horror comes from the (generally platonic, despite the summary) relationship between the two leads - one man clinging to the first person who understood the scary things he's been seeing his whole life and one man who's decided that they're fated to be together no matter what. There's a lot of humor (and a lot of playing around with bl tropes, esp in the first volume), but definitely scary too. This might not actually be what you were thinking of theme-wise? But it's doing an interesting job thus far digging into their relationship.

 

[Claptrap]

@Starra
Afterschool Nightmare is actually sounding pretty good overall then. I'm surprised to hear such good remarks about it, it's definitely of interest to me now.

Ah, I remember the mangaka for Shimanami Tasogare. I've been meaning to look at more of their works. I know the original anime for Nabari no Ou apparently had a non ending (I watched it with the intention of eventually reading the series...) but I've heard other works of theirs like Shounen Note have been good as well, just need to get around to it.

The lack of manwha/manhua is probably more because old databases I used to use to find manga were reluctant to add them. Really nothing against them personally, I like fiction from all over. MDZS seems like it might be becoming a big classic across all BL fans so it really does seem like something that should be watched... I can understand the censorship the writer and showrunners are working within there, it's just such a pity for them, but I find it brave to try to work with those parameters regardless. I've even heard news MDZS got a pretty good drama recently.

@daisicles
I have a fondness for Fumi Yoshinaga, so I should read Ooku.

I saw the anime version of SGRS. Do you think the manga version is better? Then again, there's a beauty to certain manga...

I love Natsume Ono's style too. I should read more of it. not simple is one of my favourite stories! Though it's very bitter haha. Might be a good idea to read it all you're right, especially since I genuinely love the artwork. True of House of Five Leaves too...

Haven't heard of Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen or Sakuran, but they both seem to be exactly the kind of thing I'm looking for. Although I'm looking a little for happier endings, I really don't mind downer endings persay. So I'll see

Oh, honestly, The Night Beyond the Tricolored Window sounds fascinating. Never heard of it, but that summary is so enticing. I feel with codependent relationship stuff you have to 'go a bit off the wall' to find stories that fit because a lot of those kinds of relationships aren't stated to be so directly. I'm really interested in it from what you've described, sounds great, so thanks

 

[daisicles]

I saw the anime version of SGRS. Do you think the manga version is better? Then again, there's a beauty to certain manga...

The anime is really faithful to the manga, but the manga has a couple of things that are left out, particularly about Konatsu's relationship with her mother. It's not that it's better, bc they're both so good and it's actually hard for me to separate my experience of the manga from the anime, but that it's worth a read. Haruko Kumota's talent is clear from a lot of her work that I've read, but Rakugo is definitely her best.

I love Natsume Ono's style too. I should read more of it. not simple is one of my favourite stories! Though it's very bitter haha. Might be a good idea to read it all you're right, especially since I genuinely love the artwork. True of House of Five Leaves too...

I am an avid Natsume Ono fan and much as I understand why people wouldn't like her art (I went into Five Leaves going "ehhh, I dunno"), I think it's a damn shame that more people don't. I have one vol of Gente left to read and I'm holding off on it as long as I can bc I don't think we'll get anything else by her licensed in English any time soon and that's the only book of hers I haven't read in English yet.

Oh, honestly, The Night Beyond the Tricolored Window sounds fascinating. Never heard of it, but that summary is so enticing. I feel with codependent relationship stuff you have to 'go a bit off the wall' to find stories that fit because a lot of those kinds of relationships aren't stated to be so directly. I'm really interested in it from what you've described, sounds great, so thanks

It's my mission to convince more people to pick it up! Bc it's very good and yet nobody knows about it. (The most recent vol got a drama cd and a pop-up cafe in Japan and I'm still going "there's enough readers to get all that, woooowwww") A lot of Tomoko Yamashita's broader body of work might appeal to you since you're into Natsume Ono's stuff, really. I feel like they come at stories from a similar heavily character-driven angle even in more ostensibly action-oriented stories. Dining Bar Akira suffers a bit from the "but I'm not gay" thing that I find annoying, but I think it has some interesting stuff to say about being over 30 and finding yourself in a situation where you're having to re-evaluate what you know about yourself.