Official Genres List
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Genre | Description | Includes | See Also... | Examples |
---|---|---|---|---|
Adventure | Works characterized by an emphasis on physical and often violent action, exotic locales and danger | Action | Animal, Aviation, Car, Crime, Detective-Mystery, Fantasy, Horror-Suspense, Jungle, Martial Arts, Science Fiction, Sports, Spy, Superhero, Sword and Sorcery, War, Western-Frontier | Bob Morane, Indiana Jones, Tintin, Captain Easy, Terry and the Pirates |
Drama | Works containing events having vivid, emotional, conflicting, or striking interest or results on a human level | Melodrama, Soap Opera, Joho, Ryori | Erotica, Fashion, Medical, Romance | Box Office Poison, Love & Rockets, Mary Worth, A Tale of Two Cities |
Humor | Works that are primarily comical or amusing | Pantomime, Demenziole | Anthropomorphic-Funny Animals, Children, Domestic, Military, Satire-Parody, Teen | Mutt and Jeff |
Non-Fiction | Works purporting to present factual information | Fact, Real Life | Biography, History, Math & Science, Nature | Ripley's Believe It or Not |
Genre | Description | Example Keywords | Examples |
---|---|---|---|
Animal | Works featuring animals essentially acting like real animals | dog, horse, cat | Lassie, Rex the Wonder Dog, Inubaka |
Anthropomorphic-Funny Animals | Works featuring characters acting like humans which are not human | Disney, funny animals | Donald Duck, Corky the Cat, Cerebus, Milk and Cheese |
Aviation | Works centered on flying planes or other flying machines | jets | Airboy, Steve Canyon |
Biography | Non-fictional works depicting the actual events and experiences of a real person’s life or real persons’ lives | memoir, autobiography | American Splendor, Political Power, Wonder Women of History |
Car | Works featuring automobiles, race cars, trucks, etc. | hot rod, NASCAR, trucks | Hot Wheels, Speed Racer, Michel Vaillant |
Children | Works featuring children (approximately age 12 or younger) as the primary protagonists, often having to act more reasonably and resourcefully than their age, in the absence of adult figures | kid gang. | Little Lulu, Peanuts, Dennis the Menace |
Crime | Works featuring realistic stories centering on the commission of a crime or crimes and those who commit the crime or crimes | gangsters, prohibition | Stray Bullets, A True Crime Story, Torpedo |
Detective-Mystery | Works featuring realistic stories centering on the solving of a crime or mystery and those who solve the crime or mystery | private investigator, whodunnit? | Charlie Chan, Roy Raymond, P.C. 49 |
Domestic | Works centered on life in and around the home | family, sitcom | Blondie, The Simpsons |
Erotica | Works with sexually explicit content whose primary purpose is to elicit sexual arousal | hardcore, softcore, gay, hentai | Tijuana Bibles, Little Annie Fannie, Sally Forth, Dragon Pink |
Fantasy | Works set in worlds where magic or the supernatural predominate over the material, scientific world | mythological, fairy-tale | Pixies, Fables, Kelly’s Eye |
Fashion | Works centered on fashion and the fashion industry | models | Katy Keene, Barbie, Cloth Road |
History | Works relating actual events from history | American history, World War II | Hop Harrigan’s History of Aviation, Picture Stories from American History |
Horror-Suspense | Works intended to terrify, frighten, shock, mystify, or otherwise hold the reader in tension or dread. Stories in this genre are often concluded with an ironic plot twist | monsters, supernatural | The Walking Dead, Jack O’Justice, non-Feature stories from Tales of the Crypt |
Jungle | Works featuring stories primarily set in the world’s jungles, rainforests, or other equatorial wildernesses | Africa | Tarzan, Nyoka, Saber - King of the Jungle |
Martial Arts | Works featuring stories centered on characters who use the fighting styles developed in East Asia and similar fighting styles | kung fu, karate, judo | Master of Kung Fu, Street Fighter, Jimmy Chang |
Math & Science | Works relating information about the mathematical disciplines or the hard sciences | astronomy, algebra | Science Says You’re Wrong If…, The TRS-80 Computer Whiz-Kids |
Medical | Works centered on medicine and the medical profession | nurses, doctors | Rex Morgan, MD; Linda Carter, Student Nurse; Black Jack |
Military | Works featuring armed forces outside of combat, or related, situations | army, coast guard | Sad Sack, Steve Canyon |
Nature | Works relating information about the environment and the natural world | ecology | Nature’s Notebook, Ma Nature’s Curiosity Shop |
Religious | Works centered on a particular religious tradition or reflecting a particular religious point of view | mythology, propaganda | Picture Stories from the Bible, The Crusaders, Amar Chitra Katha |
Romance | Works centered on love and related personal relationships | soap opera, dating, wedding | Johnny Love, Dance ‘Til Tomorrow, non-Feature stories in Sweethearts |
Satire-Parody | Works using irony, sarcasm, ridicule and the like to comment on, denounce, or deride social conventions, human relationships, or other literary works (including other comics) | pastiche, social commentary | Mad’s Spy Vs. Spy, Cerebus, Sid the Sexist, Fighting American, normalman |
Science Fiction | Works featuring advanced scientific, futuristic, or extra-terrestrial elements | cyberpunk, dystopian, post-apocalyptic, mecha | Star Wars, Dr. Who, non-Feature stories from Metal Hurlant |
Sports | Works featuring athletic activities | baseball, Olympics, tennis | Joe Palooka, Strange Sports Stories, Roy of the Rovers |
Spy | Works featuring spies, secret agents, and secret service agencies | espionage, thriller, political | Man from U.N.C.L.E., Modesty Blaise, Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D |
Superhero | Works featuring the adventures of costumed crime fighters, who may also battle alien or supernatural menaces, similarly costumed and/or powered criminals, or other antagonists bent on conquest, often with the aid of specialized and/or superhuman abilities or unique weapons and gadgetry. Also include stories of non-costumed characters who otherwise fit the definition, particularly if they are often referred to in story as super-heroes, and also to stories featuring super-villains | team, pulp | Superman, The Phantom, Marvelman |
Sword and Sorcery | Works featuring stories of epic or heroic fantasy, violent conflicts, often with elements of romance, and usually elements of the supernatural | enchanted swords, post-apocalyptic | Conan, Axa, Elric |
Teen | Works featuring teenagers (approximately 13-19 years of age) as the primary protagonists, particularly in stories that deal with their coming of age or maturing into the beginnings of adulthood | pop music, high school, school life | Dick Cole, Archie, Kare Kano |
War | Works featuring armed forces in combat, or related, activities during wartime | Revolutionary War, World War II, navy, army, frogmen | Willie and Joe, Charley’s War, non-Feature stories from G.I. Combat |
Western-Frontier | Works primarily set in the American frontier during the 19th or early 20th century and often featuring cowboys, Indians, ranchers, etc., and other period stories in a similar style, set in other times and places | Native Americans | Red Ryder, Lucky Luke, Jonah Hex |