Finally, we're here to talk about the shonen elephant in the shojo room: Horimiya. Look at almost any list of "best shojo anime," and you're bound to see Horimiya near the top of it. But, just so we're all clear: Horimiya isn't a shojo series. It is, however, a very good shonen romance series.

Shojo & Tell host Ashley and Anime News Network and Anime Feminist writer Caitlin dig into why people often mistake Horimiya for a shojo series and how the series lovingly subverts a lot of stereotypical romance tropes through the main couple, Hori and Miyamura, and many of the B couples, especially Remi and Sengoku. There's a lot of gushing over how relatable Hori is (seriously, so relatable). But most importantly (regrettably?): Ashley and Caitlin delve into what makes the sex scene so touching and how nice it is to see an authentic teenage exploration of kink.

REFERENCES

• Buy Horimiya from MangaMart, a family-run manga store offering some of the most competitive prices around (affiliate link)
• Horimiya is published by Yen Press
• Other manga/anime mentioned
  • Fushigi Yuugi: Genbu Kaiden
  • Millennium Snow
  • Attack on Titan
  • Sword Art Online
  • Black Bird
  • Hot Gimmick
  • Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun
  • Fushigi Yuugi
  • Boys Over Flowers
  • Kodocha
  • Marmalade Boy
  • Full Moon
• Outro: "Tokimeki no Doukasen" (Fushigi Yuugi ending theme) + Fruits Basket (2019) episode 3 dialogue

CONTACT US

• Shojo & Tell on Bluesky, Tumblr, Instagram, and Twitter
• Caitlin's writings at Anime Feminist and Anime News Network
• Caitlin on Bluesky
• Ashley on Bluesky