The shojo genre has existed almost as long as its shonen counterpart, and the genre's popularity continues to rise long after its inception. Throughout the decades, shojo has remained consistent in its depiction of grounded characters and their struggles.
With so many main amazing shojo characters out there, some garnered more fame and fans than others. MyAnimeList is one of the leading sources of data when it comes to ascertaining the prestige of all things anime as decided by the anime community.
10 Sakura Kinomoto Is The Quintissential Magical Girl (5.2K Favorites)
Cardcaptor Sakura
A pioneer in the magical girl genre, the titular character of Cardcaptor Sakura captured the hearts of anime fans during the late '90s. The show was one of the first anime officially to brought to a younger Western audience with the advent of cartoon networks acquiring the rights to air anime on television.
After she accidentally releases a set of magical cards out into the world, her regular life is turned upside down as she becomes the "Cardcaptor". Tasked with retrieving the cards, Sakura must balance her double life as an elementary school student by day and a clandestine card-capturing heroine by night.
9 Misaki Ayuzawa Is The Definition Of Gap Moe (6.7K Favorites)
Maid-Sama!
In Kaichou Wa Maid-Sama!, Misaki Ayuzawa is the "Demon President" of the now co-ed Seika High School. Infamous for her iron fist and steel trap, she's recently confronted local heartthrob Takumi Usui about his devil-may-care attitude. Their dynamic is turned on its head when Takumi discovers the student council president at her secret job: working as a maid at the maid café.
Misaki's determination is her charm point, whether it's to "protect" the girls at school, to keep her secret safe, or to pay off her father's debt with the part-time job. These strong qualities are what make her a "gap moe" character and won over audiences as well as the most popular boy in her school.
8 Fujioka Haruhi Is A Shojo Icon For Both Guys & Girls (6.7K Favorites)
Ouran High School Host Club
As the only student not from a wealthy family, Haruhi Fujioka feels like a fish out of water among the rich kids at Ouran High School. After breaking an absurdly expensive vase belonging to a certain club, the only option she has to pay it back is to become one of the members of the titular Ouran High School Host Club.
Haruhi is an icon for anime fans, as she effortlessly pulls off the boyish girl look with her short hair and can-do attitude. Just like in her series, she quickly became a darling for both male and female fans alike.
7 Kuronuma Sawako Reminds Fans Not To Judge A Book By Its Cover (6.9K Favorites)
Kimi Ni Todoke
In Kimi ni Todoke, Sawako Kuronuma wants friendship and relationships more than anything in the world, but the stigma surrounding her name and gloomy disposition keeps her away from those things. A single chance encounter changes her life for the better, and the rest is history.
At her core, Sawako's a kind and sincere girl who is incredibly hard to dislike, assuming her looks don't warm someone's heart first. In a sense, one can almost consider Sawako to be the spiritual predecessor to Komi from Komi Can't Communicate.
6 Yona Becomes A Warrior Princess To Save Her Kingdom (7.3K Favorites)
Yona Of The Dawn
The "disgraced noble" trope is rare but often welcome to the general audience because it portrays the struggle of someone who used to have everything crawl their way back up and earn their title. That's exactly what happens in Yona of the Dawn.
As the sole heir to the Kouka Kingdom, Princess Yona has more lives than her own to protect and the fate of an entire civilization on her shoulders. Unfortunately, it took the destruction of her homeland for her to realize this, catalyzing her journey of growth from the emperor's spoiled daughter to a righteous warrior princess.
5 Natsume Takashi Just Wants To Make Things Right With The Spirits (9.5K Favorites)
Natsume's Book Of Friends
Young and lonely Natsume has an unnatural gift: he can see and interact with yokai, an ability he inherited from his grandmother. With her passing, she also bequeathed to him the Book of Friends, a bestiary filled with the contracts of various yokai, both docile and dangerous. One particular creature, Madara, tasks himself with protecting his new master from the more threatening yokai confined in the book.
Even though he's a soft-spoken and somewhat reclusive lad, Natsume is a kind soul, resolving himself to return the names of all the yokai his grandmother imprisoned in the book. Despite the potential danger and the cost to himself, he refuses to give up on this goal.
4 Honda Tooru Is Kind To Everyone Around Her (9.7K Favorites)
Fruits Basket
Bonds can be forged in the most unseemingly places, as shown by Tooru Honda and the Souma family in Fruits Basket. The Souma's transformation ability forced them into social isolation long ago. However, not only is Tooru not bothered by them, but she also wants to help them.
Tooru is adept at doing chores, which happens to come in handy in a house occupied by only men. She is a rare breed of person, the kind who's ready to thanklessly go out of their way to help others, even complete strangers.
3 Osaki Nana Is One Of The Most Relatable Shojo Protagonists (10.7K Favorites)
Nana
Sometimes, all anyone needs to keep moving forward in life is a friend. Nana follows the story of two young adults emerging into the world with little to depend on except for each other. The bubbly Nana Komatsu has her share of fans, but the moody Nana Osaki stole the show with her cold and dark exterior contrasting her complex and caring interior.
At a young age, she was abandoned by her parents and raised by her grandmother after a rumor spiraled out of control, meaning her life had a rough start. On top of that, she's also shouldering all the other worries of adulthood, making her one of the most relatable shojo protagonists out there.
2 Tomoe Is The Ultimate Gentlemen Fox Spirit Familiar (10.8K Favorites)
Kamisama Kiss
Nanami Momozono may be the heroine of Kamisama Kiss, but MyAnimeList decided that Tomoe, her fox spirit familiar, is the real star with his pretty boy demeanor and turbulent past. The show's main draw and the crux of his character arc is his and Nanami's servant-and-master relationship.
Given that he's essentially Nanami's servant, he dedicates his waking hours to providing for her every need and protecting her when necessary. In a sense, he's the ultimate gentleman, waiting on his lady hand and foot, purely out of a sense of affection and respect.
1 Aslan Jade Callenreese Is A Noble Gangster (13K Favorites)
Banana Fish
In Banana Fish, the 1980s Manhattan underground is a dog-eat-dog world, rife with the blood and bullets of gangsters and criminals. Raised under the name "Ash Lynx" in the city's biggest gang, young Aslan Callenreese begrudgingly spent his adolescent years learning the tricks of the trade.
He may be in a shifty line of business, but that doesn't make him reprehensible as a person, as evidenced by the fact that he's taken up the task of cleaning the streets after the "Banana Fish" killer starts running amok. Handsome, strong, somewhat noble, and gifted, it is no wonder he became so popular so quickly.