History Manga / TwentiethCenturyBoys

** Nonetheless, his creation (an AwesomeButImpractical [[RealRobot Real Robot)]] plays a huge role throughout the story.

* BlandNameProduct: [[Creator/TheBBC BBV]] News.

* CardCarryingVillain: Moroboshi's killer. There's even a scene of him comparing himself to various old anime villains. He looks like [[Manga/{{Monster}} Johann]] and [[spoiler:as a high schooler wanted to have a WorthyOpponent in Kenji, who was "a good guy". It turns out that he felt hollow for everything else except killing Moroboshi]].

* ApocalypseHow: Deconstructed and Reconstructed. At first, [[TheHero the heroes]] want to stop the BigBad from doing a Planetary Total Extinction. [[spoiler: Turns out it was only a Local Area Societal Disruption, designed to frame the heroes for it and make the Big Bad more powerful. 15 years later, the Big Bad pulls a real Planetary Societal Collapse, kills about 45% of humanity, and conquers the world. And 3 more years later, he tries to do a Planetary Physical Annihilation, only to be finally stopped by the main character. But it doesn't end here: after the Big Bad's death, one of his followers tries complete his master's plan, and do the Planetary Physical Annihilation, but is also stopped by the heroes.]]

* ApocalypseHow: Deconstructed and Reconstructed. At first, [[TheHero the heroes]] want to stop the BigBad from doing a class 3. [[spoiler: Turns out it was only a class 0, designed to frame the heroes for it and make the Big Bad more powerful. 15 years later, the Big Bad pulls out a real class 1, kills about 45% of humanity, and conquers the world. And 3 more years later, he tries to do a class X, only to be finally stopped by the main character. But it doesn't end here: after the Big Bad's death, one of his followers tries complete his master's plan, and do the class X, but is also stopped by the heroes.]]

** There's countless direct references to other classic manga: ''Manga/AstroBoy'', ''{{Phoenix}}'', ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'', ''[[Anime/{{Gigantor}} Tetsujin 28]]'', and ''Super Jetter''.

*** When [[spoiler:Kenji comes back]], he temporarily uses the nickname of [[AshitaNoJoe Yabuki Joe.]]

** There's countless direct references to other classic manga: ''Manga/AstroBoy'', ''{{Phoenix}}'', ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'', ''[[{{Gigantor}} Tetsujin 28]]'', and ''Super Jetter''.

* [[spoiler:OurHeroIsDead]]: [[spoiler:Throughout the entire middle part of the series]].

* [[spoiler:VillainWorld]]: After the first arc. [[FromBadToWorse Gets much worse]] after the second.

** When Chouno and [[spoiler:Kenji]] meet Ichi The Spade, Ichi gives Chouno a disguise so he won't be recognizable: [[GalaxyExpress999 a ankle-length poncho]] [[CaptainHarlock and a wide-rimmed hat.]] [[spoiler:Kenji]] even lampshades it, saying "It's Three Nines."

* BlandNameProduct: [[{{BBC}} BBV]] News.

* XMeetsY: ''Literature/TheStand'' meets ''Literature/{{It}}'' with a dash of ''LeftBehind'', minus the religious/spiritual elements.
** Or the twisty-turny, flashback focused MythArc nature of ''Series/{{Lost}}'' meets the child-hood reminiscence of ''Film/StandByMe''.

* CardCarryingVillain: Moroboshi's killer. There's even a scene of him comparing himself to various old anime villains. He looks like [[Anime/{{Monster}} Johann]] and [[spoiler:as a high schooler wanted to have a WorthyOpponent in Kenji, who was "a good guy". It turns out that he felt hollow for everything else except killing Moroboshi]].

* CardCarryingVillain: Moroboshi's killer. There's even a scene of him comparing himself to various old anime villains. He looks like [[Anime/Monster Johann]] and [[spoiler:as a high schooler wanted to have a WorthyOpponent in Kenji, who was "a good guy". It turns out that he felt hollow for everything else except killing Moroboshi]].

* DeathIsCheap: Friend "dies" numerous times throughout the story, but keeps coming back. However, [[spoiler:one of those times was real.]]

[[spoiler:* TakingYouWithMe: Maruo comes very, very close to doing this with Friend and a bomb. But remembering Kenji's words about not hurting innocents convinces him not go through at the very last minute.]]

* CardCarryingVillain: Moroboshi's killer. There's even a scene of him comparing himself to various old anime villains.

** The Pope supports an entire bridge by himself, barehanded.

* BigDamnHeroes: Several, but a notable one has Otcho [[spoiler: breaking through an overhead glass window at a church to protect Kanna from the policeman with a mole.]]

* BokeAndTsukkomiRoutine: Two of Friend's followers are a manzai comedy duo [[spoiler: who spread Friend's blood-hemorrhaging biological weapon to Osaka.]]

* ApocalypseHow: Deconstructed and Reconstructed. At first, [[TheHero the heroes]] want to stop the BigBad from doing a class 3. [[spoiler: Turns out it was only a class 0, designed to frame the heroes for it and make the Big Bad more powerful. 15 years later, the Big Bad pulls out a real class 1, kills about 90% of the humanity, and conquers the world. And 3 more years later, he tries to do a class X, only to be finally stopped by the main character. But it doesn't end here: after the Big Bad's death, one of his followers tries complete his master's plan, and do the class X, but is also stopped by the heroes.]]

* TheUnreveal: About a dozen characters get to see Friend's real face before the readers ever do.
** [[spoiler: Neither the readers nor the characters ever see the second Friend's real face at all. They find out his name, though.]]

''20th Century Boys'' (or, for the final 16 chapters, ''21st Century Boys'') is a manga series created by NaokiUrasawa, the mastermind behind ''{{Anime/Monster}}''. The plot of the manga spans several decades, from the 1960s to the 21st century, and involves a large cast of characters and several plot twists along the way.

* CallBack: ''Loads'' of them throughout the series. For one thing the sheer amount of characters who're shown early in the series and make appearances in the last arc is staggering: it's clear NaokiUrasawa is not the kind of guy who simply forgets about even the smallest of characters and events.

** The crossdressing prostitutes comment that Chouno's dancing looks more like judo, a reference to Urasawa's previous work ''{{Yawara}}'', where the protagonist's judo was said to look more like dancing.

* TakingYouWithMe: Comes very, very close to doing this with [[spoiler:Friend and a bomb. But remembering Kenji's words about not hurting innocents convinces him not go through at the very last minute.]]

* HeroicSelfDeprecation: At first it's just regular Self-Deprecation for Yoshitsune, [[spoiler:but as time goes by and he reluctantly becomes leader of the heroes it turns into this.]]

* HeroicSelfDepreciation: At first it's just regular Self-Deprecation for Yoshitsune, [[spoiler:but as time goes by and he reluctantly becomes leader of the heroes it turns into this.]]