Discussion Why do Girls Prefer Shounen to Shoujo?

[Ju-da-su]

...Well, I'm a girl, but I don't "read" Shoujo. I might watch them though...

A point is, I hate romantic stuff in general anyway. What the fuck? Love? Yuck! I never understand why romantic love is so important (just a note. I never intend to have boyfriend, never intend to have any romantic relationship and never intend to get married either...since I don't see why would anyone need those, unless you want to have children... .-. ) So, I prefer shounen by far. If the shoujo or josei have some cool action and something good, like themes or motifs, in them other than some girl chasing after some guy, then I might get interested (since some manga that I like, to my surprise, were classified as josei while I never seem to see why is that so, like 07-Ghost, Amatsuki, Saiyuki, etc. I bet there are some mangas that was classified as shoujo when it's somewhere in the midline rather than pure love and romances as well)

Don't know if it's just because of my judgment that shoujo means manga that's made up of 99% romantic love and 1% others that I prefer shounen by that definition though. Shounen is exciting. Many shounen manga have good themes and motifs in them, like Gintama (just have to say. I find Gintama as the silliest and most nonsense manga and at the same time, the most profound manga in the three big weekly mags. Yeah, it's so packed with dirty jokes, but it's probably the only weekly manga that I think is very philosophical).

But again, at the same time, I like to watch some josei, BL anime, mostly for seiyuu purposes. Don't know if it's just their trend, trademark or something, but on average, josei, especially anime with BL or otome type, always have the best seiyuus doing the voices. I'm a seiyuu frantic, so no way I'm missing out on those.

 

[Asarii]

When I was younger I read a lot of shoujo, but my taste slowly developed to shounen as I became older. Part of that was due to peer influence since a lot of people were into Yu-Gi-Oh or Inuyasha at the time; another part was because although shoujo and shounen have their own clichés (which I assume is so young readers would know what to expect), shounen tropes appealed to me more. It's like how I'd rather watch an action film instead of comedy or listen to rock instead of pop- all a matter of preference.

Superficially, it was also hard for me to get into artwork à la Tanemura Arina because the sparkly eyed characters and overuse of tones never really appealed to me that much. However, I've since encountered tamer styles like those found in flat and Kimi Ni Todoke which I assume is for older shoujo readers. I know artwork isn't everything, but it all comes down to personal preference.

 

[MisaoFan]

I prefer shounen over shoujo cause it contains a lot of interesting elements for me, such as battles, characters' variety and personnality and fanservice ! Shounen doesn't only contain action stuff, but there's a lot more (such as romantic comedies and sports) ! Elements that I like in shounen is the elements that I already mentionned previously, but elements that I don't like is there's some shounen action series that doesn't even have a bit of romance (my favorite genre) ! As for shoujo side, I don't watch much that stuff (it's not because that I don't like, I don't know why there's lot of titles that sounds...girly?), so I'll vote the shounen stuff !

When I was younger I read a lot of shoujo, but my taste slowly developed to shounen as I became older. Part of that was due to peer influence since a lot of people were into Yu-Gi-Oh or Inuyasha at the time; another part was because although shoujo and shounen have their own clichés (which I assume is so young readers would know what to expect), shounen tropes appealed to me more. It's like how I'd rather watch an action film instead of comedy or listen to rock instead of pop- all a matter of preference.

Like saladesu said, I will suggest you reading shoujo action stuff, such as X and this genre contain a lot of shounen action-like elements. If you want variety in shounen, I will suggest you Toradora! (a shounen romantic comedy when a kind boy meets a cold and somewhat-tomboy petite girl in highschool setting) and Cross Game (a shounen sporty slice-of-life about a young baseball player and his childhood friend).

 

[Asarii]

Like saladesu said, I will suggest you reading shoujo action stuff, such as X and this genre contain a lot of shounen action-like elements. If you want variety in shounen, I will suggest you Toradora! (a shounen romantic comedy when a kind boy meets a cold and somewhat-tomboy petite girl in highschool setting) and Cross Game (a shounen sporty slice-of-life about a young baseball player and his childhood friend).

I'll give the manga you recommended in mind. Speaking of action, I remember liking Suga Suga Rune because it stood out from other shoujo I was reading at the time.

 

[MisaoFan]

Another thing about shounen... [...] and of course romance. Although romance isn't the focus of the series usually, it's there.

Saladesu, I'm saying that not every shounen have the same action plot with little to no romance. There's also a bunch of romantic comedies (like Love Hina, Toradora!), romance-driven action series (Negima!, Qwaser of Stigmata), sport series (Slam Dunk) and slice-of-life-driven shounen series (Bakuman) to name a few. Because I read/watch plenty of shounen series, I learn everything, not just with action-driven series but also other genres I mentionned above. Personally, I watched a lot of shounen series in which romance is the main genre alongside action/adventure genre. I personally thought that shounen has more realistic, less sparkly romance compared to the more girly, sparkly-heavy shoujo romance.

---------- Post added January 24, 2012 at 07:21 AM ---------- Previous post was January 13, 2012 at 09:43 AM ----------

And it's really interesting to read shounen because I like to read a story from male's perspective.

There's plenty of shounen manga with female leads instead of male leads. Look at Claymore, Medaka Box and Double Arts !

 

[faintsmile1992]

This could be largely a generalization, but here's an article that quotes a Japanese news show that talked about how girls prefer shounen manga to shoujo manga.

As you can see from the pictures there, all the girls who were asked, answered that they prefer shounen manga to shoujo manga.

As a girl myself, I'll admit that I read a lot more shounen manga than I do shoujo manga (and for that matter I read a number of seinen but zero josei). But that doesn't mean that I dislike shoujo manga, or necessarily prefer shounen to shoujo. Then again, a lot of people call me a tomboy, so I'm not so sure using myself as an example is that valid here

One of the girls on the show mentioned that most shoujo manga tell rather cliched romance stories. I do agree. There is greater variety in shounen series, though of course beneath it all many of them are largely the same (main character trying to reach a goal, defeat stronger and stronger enemies and make new nakama along the way).

What do you think? Why do girls prefer shounen manga to shoujo manga? If you are a girl, do you prefer shounen manga to shoujo manga? Why do you even read shounen? Is it a change in the mindset of us girls nowadays, or a change in the shounen genre itself, that attracts so many girls to read what is supposedly meant for "young boys"?

Well here in the UK where most fans are females, most of the manga tankobon that are available commercially are shounen not shoujo titles, so shounen manga top the sales charts here with the exception of Fruits Basket. When more shoujo manga became available here the sales of shoujo manga went up though.

And girls do like the female characters in shounen manga... not to mention the hot boys...

Mangaka like Ken Akamatsu have tried on purpose to expand the fan base of shounen manga beyond young boys, but the appeal of shounen manga has always extended beyond their official target audience across gender and age boundaries. I read most sales of SJ are to salarymen and disposable copies of that manga litter Japan's trains.

And the only boyish thing I do is play danmaku games!

 

[Erimia]

pff is there even a need to compare??? there's nothing like good looking (or even plain looking) sweaty guys after an epic battle, esp. if they give each other bro love, not in a perverted sense. Oh and when they lose it's actually 100 times hotter, because you wanna rush over and comfort XD

Take for example Yamamoto from KHR. He has 2 swords which is a major turn-on, he plays with water and occasionally gets wet (=hot), and also his casual clothes get torn sometimes. What else a girl has to ask for? That series was definitely drawn by a woman and I don't complain Oh yeah and there's also that super sexy spread of all the bishies drawn by the author for the popularity results *drools a river*

Take Kazehaya from Kimi ni Todoke (a popular shoujo). Like vast majority of shoujo males he rarely takes his shirt off, and NEVER gets it torn to shreds with blood all over it. All he does is smile, get sad, get nervous, get happy, and sometimes serious. THAT'S IT!!! Well, there are sex scenes in shoujo, much more than in shounen I should say unless it's "mature" shounen, definitely not Jump type. So sometimes it gets heated. But still, if you want to please a girl's eye, give her blood covered hunks fighting with swords or big guns.

Another reason is just the same as for the guys: shounen is simply interesting and engaging. I, for example, like strategy-led fights like some fights in Naruto to tickle my brains (or was it naked Naruto covered in frog oil...?). Most other shounen show strategy, I liked Psyren for that especially in the beginning. Also, the set is usually somewhere in an alternate universe with engaging plots. You enjoy seeing how that world is unraveled in front of the eyes (Toriko for example or One Piece), hasn't adventure been attracting readers/watchers since long ago? All the different and unique characters with cool designs, I mean who wouldn't like that? Beautiful art is another good aspect which is usually lacking in shoujo. Ah, and the women! The women are attractive and many of them have great personalities that you either identify with or idolize. Shounen can also bring forth an atmosphere, like in Battle Angel Alita. I also like shounen series about romance, though it's often ecchi, but sometimes it's not annoying and in your face. Many shounen also include romance into their plot which is nice.

Shoujo manga usually are infested by plot bunnies. Example: the protagonist runs around a corner and bumps into her love interest, falls on him and their lips in some impossible way HAVE to connect, after which she gets embarrassed and runs away leaving the equally embarrassed guy with lingering feelings of guilt and memories of her soft lips (or pain from the fall). Most shoujo employ the "fall trick + accidental kiss" and the "head on collision with your love interest in the most embarrassing way" sometimes even multiple times throughout the series, which is beyond me. It's like the authors can't think creatively at all -_- I think 95% of shoujo have been guilty of using the accidental kiss and 99.99% use the happy coincidence trick which is SUPER annoying. Most of shoujo is usually very predictable. You already know the end, it's usually how the story gets to that end is how mangaka show their skill or lack of it. The end is also always the same in shoujo: everyone gets laid. Oh yeah and the world usually revolves around the protagonist, she's sometimes very self-centered and doesn't realize that there are people around her. These are some of the annoying issues in a lot of shoujo, and only some of them are truly gems. I mostly like Josei or some mature or unique shoujo for this reason. Most shoujo is incredibly cheesy and the protagonist is an incapable, unattractive, stupid, flat chested insecure girl who ruins everything and can't make a step without a guy. Not often you see a pretty girl with a nice body and strong personality being a protagonist.

 

[MisaoFan]

Shoujo manga usually are infested by plot bunnies. Example: the protagonist runs around a corner and bumps into her love interest, falls on him and their lips in some impossible way HAVE to connect, after which she gets embarrassed and runs away leaving the equally embarrassed guy with lingering feelings of guilt and memories of her soft lips (or pain from the fall). Most shoujo employ the "fall trick + accidental kiss" and the "head on collision with your love interest in the most embarrassing way" sometimes even multiple times throughout the series, which is beyond me. It's like the authors can't think creatively at all -_- I think 95% of shoujo have been guilty of using the accidental kiss and 99.99% use the happy coincidence trick which is SUPER annoying. Most of shoujo is usually very predictable. You already know the end, it's usually how the story gets to that end is how mangaka show their skill or lack of it. The end is also always the same in shoujo: everyone gets laid. Oh yeah and the world usually revolves around the protagonist, she's sometimes very self-centered and doesn't realize that there are people around her. These are some of the annoying issues in a lot of shoujo, and only some of them are truly gems. I mostly like Josei or some mature or unique shoujo for this reason. Most shoujo is incredibly cheesy and the protagonist is an incapable, unattractive, stupid, flat chested insecure girl who ruins everything and can't make a step without a guy. Not often you see a pretty girl with a nice body and strong personality being a protagonist.

Actually, for what I see on Animesuki's post, 43% of shoujo sets in school, while 83% are romantic. There's plenty of unique shoujo with shounen-like plot, male protagonist and sometimes a very attractive, capable, cool and big-breasted heroine in unique school romance (like Maid-Sama!, Special A, Skip Beat!...). However, it's harder to find a shoujo without romance than a shounen with romance (which is pretty easy to find one).

THAT'S IT!!! Well, there are sex scenes in shoujo, much more than in shounen I should say unless it's "mature" shounen, definitely not Jump type. So sometimes it gets heated.

Actually, male-oriented stories (like shounen or seinen) have more sex than shoujo, and also more graphic than shoujo. Some shounen like Seikon no Qwaser have some rape in it, while many seinen (Berserk, Holy Knight) have loads of rape. But I can't say seinen is all about mature themes, there's plenty of seinen without mature themes in it (Chi's Sweet Home, K-ON!...)

 

[matzik1212]

Oh nice thread .
Yeah i also like Shounen more than Shoujo that's for sure . My reasons are quite simple .
A Shounen manga has a good devised story , is more exciting and has it all :adventure , comedy , romance while Shoujo mangas are usually kinda stupid to watch (not all Shoujo mangas of course , i for example like Dengeki Daisy very much , Kimi ni Todoke, Love so Life and there are others as well). I don't like those types of Shoujo mangas where the girls are practically pitiful to watch and the guy in question treats girls like crap
Plus i can say that i'm more attracted to mangas that involve martial arts , supernatural and also slice of life

 

[scav]

pff is there even a need to compare??? there's nothing like good looking (or even plain looking) sweaty guys after an epic battle, esp. if they give each other bro love, not in a perverted sense. Oh and when they lose it's actually 100 times hotter, because you wanna rush over and comfort XD

But still, if you want to please a girl's eye, give her blood covered hunks fighting with swords or big guns.

WTF did i just read?

anyways i'm not a girl but i'll give my opinion. I think it's the "plot". Shounen plot are way deeper than shoujo plot.Most of Shoujo are always the same ( one girl, one guy, a school, and Romance). I like romance, but a good story need something else in addition to the romance.
The other point is the art, there is no originality: always sparkling eyes ( well nowadays we even see sparkling Vampires )

 

[Asarii]

anyways i'm not a girl but i'll give my opinion. I think it's the "plot". Shounen plot are way deeper than shoujo plot.Most of Shoujo are always the same ( one girl, one guy, a school, and Romance). I like romance, but a good story need something else in addition to the romance.
The other point is the art, there is no originality: always sparkling eyes ( well nowadays we even see sparkling Vampires )

I'm just curious, what is your definition of "deep"? The tone of the story doesn't always determine the quality of the manga: a story could try to be thought provoking but falls flat, while a fun and light-hearted tale could be executed wonderfully. I also want to point out that there are a lot of derivative shounen just as there are a lot of derivative shoujo- you just have to dig deep to find the gems.

I do agree with you about the art though. I wish there was more variety to the character designs.

 

[MisaoFan]

I do agree with you about the art though. I wish there was more variety to the character designs.

The shoujo artstyles are almost invariable. There's only 4-5 types of shoujo artstyle and the guys always look the same because of their bishounen appearance.

 

[scav]

I'm just curious, what is your definition of "deep"? The tone of the story doesn't always determine the quality of the manga: a story could try to be thought provoking but falls flat, while a fun and light-hearted tale could be executed wonderfully. I also want to point out that there are a lot of derivative shounen just as there are a lot of derivative shoujo- you just have to dig deep to find the gems.

I do agree with you about the art though. I wish there was more variety to the character designs.

well when i say deep, i mean when the plot ain't just stuff like : "how will i put a love letter in his locker". It's true that a "fun and light hearted" manga can be enjoyable but those kind of manga rarely make it to the top of your favorite manga list. Also try to pick randomly 10 shoujo, u'll find that the majority of them have similar plot ( A meet B the romance begin or A love B, B don't know yet and here we go) and similar background ( school girls). the shoujo gender itself doesn't offer much possibility for a plot completely original and astounding so at the end it's just a repetition, when you open a shoujo you already know what you'll find in it.

 

[MisaoFan]

well when i say deep, i mean when the plot ain't just stuff like : "how will i put a love letter in his locker". It's true that a "fun and light hearted" manga can be enjoyable but those kind of manga rarely make it to the top of your favorite manga list. Also try to pick randomly 10 shoujo, u'll find that the majority of them have similar plot ( A meet B the romance begin or A love B, B don't know yet and here we go) and similar background ( school girls). the shoujo gender itself doesn't offer much possibility for a plot completely original and astounding so at the end it's just a repetition, when you open a shoujo you already know what you'll find in it.

There's some shoujo who aren't school romances, but I noticed that many shoujo have the same plot over and over, which is the reason why it's targeted to a very niche audience (aka teenage girls) while shounen has more variety and expands the horizon to a wider target audience.

 

[Asarii]

well when i say deep, i mean when the plot ain't just stuff like : "how will i put a love letter in his locker". It's true that a "fun and light hearted" manga can be enjoyable but those kind of manga rarely make it to the top of your favorite manga list. Also try to pick randomly 10 shoujo, u'll find that the majority of them have similar plot ( A meet B the romance begin or A love B, B don't know yet and here we go) and similar background ( school girls). the shoujo gender itself doesn't offer much possibility for a plot completely original and astounding so at the end it's just a repetition, when you open a shoujo you already know what you'll find in it.

Now that you mention it, I wonder if there's any shoujo that doesn't revolve around romance. Kimi ni Todoke is one of the rare gems I was thinking of, but it's still based on relationships. Having a love story as a sub-plot isn't a bad thing though too much love-centered manga can be overwhelming.

In my opinion, old school shoujo (e.g. Candy Candy) had much more to offer than the series in publication today.

There's some shoujo who aren't school romances, but I noticed that many shoujo have the same plot over and over, which is the reason why it's targeted to a very niche audience (aka teenage girls) while shounen has more variety and expands the horizon to a wider target audience.

Yeah, shonen tends to be more varied in their motif: there's anything from Good Ending to Death Note.

 

[Teeba]

I think the reason why it's harder to find a shoujo that doesn't have a major romance is because shonen is just more popular. There isn't a shoujo equivalent to Weekly Jump, or any of the weekly manga magazines for that matter, and those magazines have a weekly circulation of millions. Shonen has long been the most popular manga demographic (of course, if someone wants to correct me, be my guest), so its going to have the most variety as well. There is just that much more competition, so having an unusual topic is preferred.

At the same time, I don't think the prominence of romance in shoujo manga is a bad thing. Shonen manga often have a lot of bond-building between characters, and many times shonen manga will focus on the bromances of those characters. They aren't entirely dissimilar from the romance, in my opinion.

 

[jamesem92]

Well here in the UK where most fans are females, most of the manga tankobon that are available commercially are shounen not shoujo titles, so shounen manga top the sales charts here with the exception of Fruits Basket. When more shoujo manga became available here the sales of shoujo manga went up though.

I think this really depends where you go.
If you get it from a book retailer like WHSMith or Waterstones, you are completely right, as apart from Vampire Knight, all I tend to see is Bleach, Death note and Naruto in those places.

However if you go to a specialist "Otaku" (for want of a better word) shop, like Forbidden Planet, they seem to stock more shoujo to me.

Although I have no idea if this is the case with other countries, I think in England it's more to do with the type of girls that read manga in the first place.

I tend to find that the girls interested in romance stories (films etc...) tend to be interested in other things aimed at girls, and don't tend to read manga at all (infact looking back at high school most of the ones I knew wouldn't have dared enter a shop that specialises in that type of thing!).
However, I tend to find the few girls I do know that read manga, not that I know many boys that do either, tend to have more varied taste in general and are happy to read manga/ play games/ watch films that are aimed at a male audience.

But I think that's because manga is not a well known thing where I live, and I imagine this is quite different in somewhere where it is considered normal to read it.

 

[faintsmile1992]

I think this really depends where you go.
If you get it from a book retailer like WHSMith or Waterstones, you are completely right, as apart from Vampire Knight, all I tend to see is Bleach, Death note and Naruto in those places.

However if you go to a specialist "Otaku" (for want of a better word) shop, like Forbidden Planet, they seem to stock more shoujo to me.

I'm sure most people get their first taste of printed manga from WHSmiths, Waterstones or formerly Borders than anywhere else. Many people who don't live in cities don't get to visit Forbidden Planet very often (I've never been so I can't comment on them) but I'm sure it isn't most people's gateway to otakuness.

Although I have no idea if this is the case with other countries, I think in England it's more to do with the type of girls that read manga in the first place.

If peoples first experience with manga is the Holy Shounen Trinity and Death Note, they won't be aware of other manga that might appeal to them.

I tend to find that the girls interested in romance stories (films etc...) tend to be interested in other things aimed at girls, and don't tend to read manga at all (infact looking back at high school most of the ones I knew wouldn't have dared enter a shop that specialises in that type of thing!).

Well I've heard on forums that people stand too long in Forbidden Planet and feel their virginity coming back.

However, I tend to find the few girls I do know that read manga, not that I know many boys that do either, tend to have more varied taste in general and are happy to read manga/ play games/ watch films that are aimed at a male audience.

But I think that's because manga is not a well known thing where I live, and I imagine this is quite different in somewhere where it is considered normal to read it.

Like Japan.

 

[jamesem92]

Many people who don't live in cities don't get to visit Forbidden Planet very often (I've never been so I can't comment on them)

You should visit (Since you'd be on the wrong forum if you didn't like manga), there are quite a few around the country, and there's always Travelling Man, which is a very similar chain.
I live in Huddersfield, and have to go to Leeds to get to either, but it's a 15 minute train and about £3 fare. I'm sure most people wouldn't have much further to go to get to either of these.

If peoples first experience with manga is the Holy Shounen Trinity and Death Note, they won't be aware of other manga that might appeal to them.

I've think you've hit the nail on the head there
Shoujo just doesn't get as much coverage as Shounen, and I think a large portion of manga readers (especially the younger ones) get their interest from seeing an anime on Cartoon Network (or whichever channel shows anime these days) and they only ever have Shounen.
... Apart from the odd seinen on late at night, but I doubt they still do that.
So it's more likely girls interested in shounen will pick up any manga at all.

Well I've heard on forums that people stand too long in Forbidden Planet and feel their virginity coming back.

Luckily there was nobody around to see me smirk at my computer during my lunch break.
And I have to stand right next to my girlfriend at all times, while she picks Vampire Knight or DN Angel, for protection!

 

[Emir]

It's interesting to note how most of the shounen (and even seinen) series that are well-liked by women tend to be written by women On the lists from the link you posted, Kuroshitsuji, D.Gray-Man, Fullmetal Alchemist, Sei Onii-chan, xxxHoliC and Reborn are all written by women. One thing I like about shounen series written by women is that the damsel isn't always in distress. It's not always the men coming to save the women, and the women are strong and can fight alongside the men. I don't know about other girls, but that's something I like to see in my manga. It annoys me when the girls are helpless and always need saving. I think women mangaka are also, in general, able to add a different, more sensitive touch to manga, to make it more realistic and touching.

I guess it's true, what you said about manly and cool aspects impressing girls. I can't deny being impressed when a cool character fights in a cool way I guess that, to me, holds more appeal than a cool guy just standing there and looking cool, while all the girls in school swoon over him (as so often happens in shoujo manga).

I also wonder if it's because the shoujo demographic is just so saturated with overly-similar stories. Romance stories almost always take place in schools, and there really are only so many ways to tell a story about girl-meet-boy and them falling in love and the problems their romance faces. Perhaps that's also why it's the shoujo series that have something special and different about them like Ouran (comedy? Reverse harem?), NANA (music, I suppose you could say), Nodame Cantabile (music again!) and Skip Beat (fashion), that have a lot more fans. The only generic shoujo with a cliched plotline on those lists is Kimi ni Todoke (not that it's a bad series though! It's excellent. It's an extremely well done cliched story, that stands out from the rest).

Another thing about shounen... I think good shounen is usually a good blend of a lot of things, including the elements of shoujo that a girl might want to read that demo for. There's not only action, but also human drama, and of course romance. Although romance isn't the focus of the series usually, it's there.

You say "One thing I like about shounen series written by women is that the damsel isn't always in distress. It's not always the men coming to save the women, and the women are strong and can fight alongside the men."

And then you mention the popular manga written by women. I mean, those manga are great man, don't get me wrong, that's why they are the ones that always appear in the lists of popular manga written by women. As a matter of fact, they're quite more popular among males than females (which is kinda normal as the main characters are men), and I myself love them.

But... the girls that fight are incredibly low in number and they're not top-tier fighters. For example, Hitman Reborn is way worse than Naruto. The "job" of the girls when we're close to finishing the anime is literally to cook, do the laundry... for the guys. Among all the fighters there's just one girl, who's quite weak, and way inferior to its male counterpart.
Even Naruto, which focuses on male fighters, is better than that. Sakura and Tsunade are the best healers in the world and incredibly strong. They're simply irreplaceable. And there are quite a few more female characters quite strong.

Fullmetal Alchemist is the same, barely any fighting girls and not top-tier.

Kurotsuki appeals to women because the main character is very cute and girls fall in love with him (at least that's what I've seen girls say). But yet again, the most powerful people are male.

Etc. Etc.

Seriously, women tend to make the strongest beings males.

However, many men write females as incredibly strong. Akame Ga Kill, Fate Stay Night, High School DXD, Overlord... Women are way more powerful than the power female mangaka actually give women. My favourite manga may very well be Akame Ga Kill, where the girls are super powerful and in love with the main character. Same goes for Fate Stay Night, HS DXD, Mirai Niki, Overlord... Very poweful women, most of them in love with the male main character. There are also feelings of love from the girl to the MC in series such as Hitman Reborn, but the girl is... weak...
There are also series that focus more on friendship, such as Fairy Tail. There are some romantic moments (Erza-Jellal), but that's not the focus.

Personally, I love girls with top tier strenth way more than a useless one. Most times, these strong girls are so madly in love with a male they'd do anything to protect him, and that's a great change from the male protecting the damsel in distress.

Also, I hate Shoujo, I can't even bear to read one. Basically, it doesn't make me happy inside at all, like it does to these girls: https://myanimelist.net/forum/?topicid=48165

Anyways, answering the question of this thread. The people in the thread I just linked are all women (despite the male pics of some), and they like Shoujo. Do they like Shonen and seinen and drama as well? Yes, just mentioning a few of the ones they voted: Code Geass, free, Death Note, higurashi (one of the scariest horror anime ever and devoid of romance, and yet one of the girls give it a score of 10), elfen lied, ao no exorcist... They watch a lot of shonen, which is pretty obvious because Shoujo is just one genre, and Shonen includes +100 genres, and even all sorts of romance, so it would be normal if girls watch more shonen. Shounen/seinen are often written for a general audience and are much more varied. Also, the shonen stories are much more honed most of the time. Unfortunately, most Shoujo use a template. It still astounds me that many girls read such predictable manga where the girl is useless beyond belief. The amount of shoujo manga created every year is tremendous and while compared to men there are very few girls that write popular shonen, the amount of girls that write shoujo is endless, it's mostly females who write shoujo, though sometimes with male pen names. Why so many girls would decide to write manga where the main character is a useless girl who's just interested in romancing a guy is beyond me. I mean, they get money because many women buy it, but they can get money if they write other stuff as well.