While many shows this year that were not Shonen made their debut this year, It is fair to say that Shonen has been this year’s center of attention. Today, let’s look back at this year’s Shonen offerings and the birth of the newest generation of shows about beating the crap out of each other.

My Hero Academia Season 2

While it is true that My Hero Academia’s first season aired in 2016, It’s rise in popularity, as well as its quality, was really cemented in its second season this year. With these latest 25 episodes, the show went from an above average shonen show about hero’s to arguably being one of the best pieces of Hero fiction in recent decades, and there are a few reasons for this.

One is the large, but well-developed cast. Unlike other Shonen that tend to streamline the focus solely on the main character, My Hero Academia makes a concerted effort to make its entire cast feel like people that you might meet in real life. Another is its thematic questioning of what it really means to be a hero. Stain, while reaching a terrible conclusion, has solid reasoning when it comes to the nature of being a hero. When he posits that profit ruins the purity of a hero, that is an idea that resonates because that’s what most people think a hero should be, and it is an aspect of heroism that we often take for granted in the classic hero story.

Either way, My Hero Academia will remain a topic of discussion for a long time to come.

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations

Quite literally the next generation, Boruto follows the Hidden Leaf Village 10 years after the events of Naruto, where the everything has become much more advanced, and the role of Ninja in society has become much less pronounced. Boruto, being Naruto and Hinata’s son, is the new main character, and the show follows him through his adventures through Ninja training.

It goes without saying that there was, and still is, a lot of comparisons to it and Naruto, because it is a direct sequel. Without Naruto, Boruto would not exist. Thankfully though, it seems as though Boruto has been shaping up to be above average overall. The show differentiates itself, while also keeping the nostalgic feeling of the original.

The Next Generation of Naruto is one that looks fairly bright.

Black Clover

Well, they can’t all be winners. It’s fair to say that Black Clover will live in Infamy, more than anything. The new Soul Eater this is not.

As I’ve explained before in a previous post about Black Clover, the show had a lot of hype behind it and even despite looking somewhat generic, seemed like it could be good. Unfortunately, what we have so far has not delivered on the hype. In Fact, it almost seems like Black Clover has been reveling in its mediocrity.

Hopefully, it gets better, and we have something a bit more enjoyable to watch.

It seems a though Shonen’s newest generation is a bit of a mixed bag(mostly because of Black Clover though). What do you guys think? What Shonen were you watching in 2017? Let me know in the comments below. Thanks for reading and bye for now, Friendos!