| Read some | Rating | Comment |
| +Anima (manga) | Decent | |
| 20th Century Boys (manga) | Excellent | One of the best thrillers manga has ever seen. Urasawa's ability to tell a gripping story and give the reader just enough information to to understand the complex plot (which usually has an insane twist every volume or so) is certainly impressive. Well writen and often humorous, this is clearly on of the better things being published today. |
| A.I. Love You (manga) | Weak | |
| Abara (manga) | | |
| Absolute Boyfriend (manga) | Not really good | |
| Ai Yori Aoshi (manga) | Decent | Ai Yori Aoshi very often borders a fine line between endearing and obnoxious. While the first volume was a very strong debut, it quickly fell into the harem formula, only instead of comedy we're given life leasons that will have some rolling their eyes. Like that perfect couple that can't keep away from each other, Karou and Aoi will often drive you nuts with their picture perfect romance, as will the excessive fanservice and annoying side characters. Why the decent rating then? Because it's well written and occasionally a sub-plot will come up that captures the charm of the first volume. |
| Air Gear (manga) | Weak | |
| Alichino (manga) | Not really good | Alichino is like a doll (which, coincidentally, is what many of it's characters look like): beautiful on the outside but without a soul. Beyond the striking art is a story that's been told many times before, with carbon-copy characters and every dark-shojo chiche you can think of. I'm sure that the artist wanted to create a story to fit her artwork, and while it may have been a good idea on paper, in reality great artists often don't make great writers. |
| Angel Sanctuary (manga) | | |
| Aoi Hana (manga) | Good | |
| Appleseed (manga) | Very good | |
| Aqua (manga) | Good | |
| Ashita no Joe (manga) | | |
| Astro Boy (manga) | Good | |
| Baby & Me (manga) | Weak | |
| Baka to Gogh (manga) | | |
| Baki The Grappler (manga) | | |
| Bakune Young (manga) | Good | Many people will read Bakune Young and have no idea what to think. Once you understand that it's a satire of the ultra violent sotries that Japan is so famous for, you'll enjoy this much more. The whole story is insane, and definitally not for anyone looking for a heartwarming read. Not for everyone, but it's worth a look. |
| Banana Fish (manga) | Good | |
| Barefoot Gen (manga) | Very good | |
| Basilisk (manga) | Not really good | |
| Battle Royale (manga) | Not really good | |
| Beck (manga) | Very good | |
| Berserk (manga) | Very good | |
| Biomega (manga) | Decent | Nihei makes no attempt to create a diffrent story from his prievious manga, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Think BLAME! with zombies, a talking bear and the bike from Akira and you've got Biomega in a nutshell. The art is great, as expected, and the story is actually developing faster than BLAME!, so it looks like it will be a worthwhile read, even with the lack of originality. |
| Black Cat (manga by K. Yabuki) | | |
| Black Jack (manga) | Excellent | |
| Black Lagoon (manga) | | |
| Blade of the Immortal (manga) | Excellent | One of the first mangas I ever read, and still one of my favorites. It evolves from a gore-feast to an epic tale of passion and human conflict. Samura's ability to create compelling characters and to continually evolve as a storyteller is nothing short of astounding. Perhapse it isn't the best thing I've ever read, and lately it has been getting bogged down, but BotI will always have a special place in my heart. |
| Blame! (manga) | Good | |
| Bleach (manga) | So-so | Sorry, I just couldn't get into this one. I really wanted to like it, with the cool art style and appealing main character, but the cliches and the whole tournament/training ark took away my enthusiasm. I've heard it does get better and actually manages to use cliches to it's advantage, so maybe I'll try it again one day. |
| Boku to Issho (manga) | Very good | |
| Bokurano (manga) | Good | |
| Buddha (manga) | Excellent | |
| Buso Renkin (manga) | Weak | Watsuki uses every shonen cliche in the book for this lame attempt at a successor to Rurouni Kenshin. Likable hero without a worry? Check. Mysterious girl who gives hero supernatural powers? Check. Evil forces controlled by an unseen power? Check. Then what kept BR from the success attained by everyother shonen manga that uses this formula? Perhapse it had to do with comparison with another manga featuring an achiemist? Watsuki has never been an innovative storyteller, but great characters and solid themes made Kenshin one of the best shonen mangas of the 1990's. Buso Renkin has none of this. |
| Cain Saga (manga) | Decent | |
| Cannon God Exaxxion (manga) | Good | Yeah, yeah...I'll admit it: I've enjoyed just about everything I've read by Kenichi Sonada. His works are usually moronic, he uses every cliche in existance and in real life he's probobly a lunatic with enough firepower to overthrow the Japanese government, but he writes a mean action manga. Exaxxion follows those guidelines without fail, and the story is so uninspired it isn't even funny, but there's something there that makes you love it. It's simply good, campy fun, even with some emotional resonance along the way. So you snobs can stick your noses up and prattle on about the banality of anything written by Sonada all you want, because it won't change the fact that he creates good, stupid fun, and even snobs need that on occasion. |
| Case Closed (manga) | Decent | |
| Chrono Crusade (manga) | Good | |
| Ciguatera (manga) | Very good | |
| City Hunter (manga) | Decent | |
| Claymore (manga) | | |
| Count Cain (manga) | | |
| Cowboy Bebop (manga) | Weak | |
| Cowboy Bebop Shooting Star (manga) | Bad | |
| Crayon Shin-chan (manga) | Decent | |
| Crimson Hero (manga) | Decent | |
| Cromartie High School (manga) | | |
| Crying Freeman (manga) | Very good | |
| D.N.Angel (manga) | So-so | |
| Dainippon Tengutou Ekotoba (manga) | Excellent | |
| Dead End (manga) | So-so | |
| DearS (manga) | Weak | |
| Death Note (manga) | Good | |
| (The) Demon Ororon (manga) | Weak | |
| Descendants of Darkness (manga) | | |
| Deus Vitae (manga) | Awful | Just sucks. That's all there is to it. |
| Dorohedoro (manga) | Not really good | |
| Dororo (manga) | Very good | |
| Eagle (manga) | Very good | |
| Eden - It's an Endless World! (manga) | Very good | While it doesn't quite reach the level of epics like Akira or Nausicaa, Eden is still damn good SciFi that's getting better the more I read it. |
| Elfen Lied (manga) | | |
| Emma (manga) | Very good | |
| ES (manga) | Good | |
| Even A Monkey Can Draw Manga | Very good | |
| Eyeshield 21 (manga) | Good | |
| Fairy Tail (manga) | | |
| Fist of the Blue Sky (manga) | Weak | |
| Fist of the North Star (manga) | So-so | |
| Flame of Recca (manga) | Not really good | |
| Flowers and Bees (manga) | | |
| Freesia (manga) | Very good | |
| Fruits Basket (manga) | Decent | |
| Full Metal Panic! (manga) | Decent | |
| Fullmetal Alchemist (manga) | Very good | |
| G Senjou Heaven's Door (manga) | Very good | |
| Gantz (manga) | Good | |
| Genshiken (manga) | Very good | |
| Genzo Hitogata Kiwa (manga) | | |
| GetBackers (manga) | Decent | |
| Ghost in the Shell 2 (manga) | | |
| Girls Bravo (manga) | Weak | |
| Godchild (manga) | Decent | |
| Gon (manga) | Very good | What's there to say about Gon? Without any dialouge this is still a blast to read. It can be hilarious, it can be sad, it can be inspirational; Gon is a truely remarkable feat of storytelling. The art is easily some of the best in manga as well. |
| GTO (manga) | Good | |
| Gunsmith Cats (manga) | Decent | |
| Hajime no Ippo (manga) | | |
| Hallucination from the Womb (manga) | Very good | |
| Hanashippanashi (manga) | Good | |
| Happy Lesson (manga) | Not really good | |
| Hataraki Man (manga) | Very good | |
| Hatsukanezumi no Jikan (manga) | Decent | |
| Hellsing (manga) | Good | |
| High School Debut (manga) | Very good | |
| Historie (manga) | Excellent | |
| Homunculus (manga) | Excellent | |
| Honey and Clover (manga) | | |
| Hōrō Musuko (manga) | Excellent | |
| Hot Gimmick (manga) | Good | It's a soap opera, but it's a well written one with quite unique art. Still, it requires quite a bit of sadism to read this, and despite her likeability I've found myself wishing Hatsumi would just grow a backbone. The fact that almost every male character is an obnoxious sleazebag makes it somewhat difficult to read as well. But like I said, the author can write, so I'm slowly making progress... |
| Hunter X Hunter (manga) | Weak | |
| I''s (manga) | Decent | |
| Jigoro! (manga) | | |
| JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (manga) | | |
| K no Souretsu (manga) | | |
| Kabocha to Mayonnaise (manga) | | |
| Kare Kano (manga) | Very good | |
| Kiichi!! (manga) | | |
| Kiiroi Hon (manga) | Very good | |
| King of Thorn (manga) | | |
| Koikaze (manga) | Very good | |
| Kokuhaku -CONFESSION- (manga) | | |
| Kurogane (manga by Kei Toume) | | |
| (The) Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (manga) | Good | |
| Last Quarter (manga) | | |
| Legal Drug (manga) | Decent | |
| (The) Legend of Kamui (manga) | Good | |
| (The) Legend of Mother Sarah (manga) | | |
| Love Hina (manga) | So-so | While I think this is very overated, I will say that I can see its appeal. For the first couple of volumes it was actually pretty funny, and while not what you'd call deep, the characters were amusing. But the one punchline was used to death and Akamatsu's storytelling leaves much to be desired. There are points where it seems like it's going to go somewhere, but ultimatally I felt little emotional attachment with Naru and Keitaro. |
| Love Roma (manga) | Very good | |
| Love Song (manga) | | |
| Loveless (manga) | Not really good | |
| Lovely Complex (manga) | Good | |
| Mail (manga) | Good | |
| Maison Ikkoku (manga) | Very good | |
| Maka-Maka (manga) | | |
| Marie no Kanaderu Ongaku (manga) | Masterpiece | |
| Me and the Devil Blues (manga) | Excellent | |
| Megatokyo (online comic / manga) | So-so | |
| Midori's Days (manga) | Good | |
| Mikai no Hoshi (manga) | | |
| Monkey King (manga) | Decent | |
| Monster (manga) | Very good | |
| MPD-Psycho (manga) | Decent | |
| Mushishi (manga) | Excellent | |
| NANA (manga) | Very good | |
| Naruto (manga) | Decent | While certainly over-hyped, for the most part Naruto manages to rise above standard shonen manga thanks to strong writing and a good main character. The only problem is it DRAGS. I'll probobly force myself to read the rest of it one day (I got bored around volume 18) as despite the raving fanboys, it is pretty entertaining. |
| Nazo no Kanojo X (manga) | Very good | |
| Negima! Magister Negi Magi (manga) | Not really good | |
| Neji (manga) | So-so | |
| Neon Genesis Evangelion (manga) | Good | |
| No. 5 (manga) | Very good | |
| Nodame Cantabile (manga) | Very good | This may be the most accesable shojo title to adult males I've come across. The quirky and often silly humor will provide many a laugh, but it's the characters that sets this appart. Like Honey and Clover, it offers a melodrama-free look into the lives of college kids as they grow up and mature through music. |
| Noramimi (manga) | | |
| Ode to Kirihito (manga) | Very good | |
| Oh My Goddess! (manga) | Very good | |
| One Piece (manga) | Very good | |
| Ouran High School Host Club (manga) | | |
| Oyasumi Punpun (manga) | | |
| Palepoli (manga) | Very good | |
| Parasyte (manga) | Very good | |
| Partner (manga) | | |
| Peace Maker Kurogane (manga) | So-so | |
| Phoenix (manga) | Masterpiece | Tezuka choosing to write Phoenix over the course of his lifetime was genius and problematic. On one hand, we get an incredibly diverse range of stories that explore a variety of themes, all tied together by Tezuka's exploration of life. On the other hand, it's somewhat inconsistant. The volumes range from some of the greatest manga ever written (volumes 2 and 4) to solid yet fairly typical Tezuka (volume 1) to even somewhat mediocre matterial by his standards (volume 3). Despite the inconsitancies, the strong volumes are amoung the greatest pieces of manga I've ever read. Phoenix is a tour-de-force, with tales ranging from cautionary SciFi to historical epics, all held together by Osamu Tezuka's passionate exploration of what it means to be alive. |
| Ping Pong (manga) | Excellent | |
| Pluto (manga) | Very good | |
| Pretty Face (manga) | Decent | |
| Priest (manhwa) | Not really good | |
| (The) Prince of Tennis (manga) | So-so | |
| Ragnarok (manhwa) | Not really good | |
| RahXephon (manga) | Not really good | |
| Ranma 1/2 (manga) | Good | |
| REAL (manga) | Very good | |
| Ressentiment (manga) | | |
| Revenge Of The Mouflon (manga) | Good | |
| Rurouni Kenshin (manga) | Decent | |
| SaiKano (manga) | Good | |
| Saiyuki (manga by K. Minekura) | So-so | |
| Sakuran (manga) | | |
| Samurai Deeper Kyo (manga) | Not really good | |
| Samurai Executioner (manga) | Good | |
| Sanctuary (manga) | Very good | |
| Say Hello to Black Jack (manga) | Good | |
| Seraphic Feather (manga) | Not really good | |
| Shadow Star (manga) | Very good | |
| Shaman King (manga) | Weak | |
| Shamo (manga) | Good | |
| Slam Dunk (manga) | | |
| SOIL (manga) | Very good | |
| Solanin (manga) | | |
| A Spirit of The Sun (manga) | | |
| Spriggan (manga) | Good | |
| STONe (manga) | Decent | |
| Strawberry 100% (manga) | Weak | |
| Sugar Sugar Rune (manga) | | |
| Suppli (manga) | Good | |
| Suzuka (manga) | Good | |
| SWWEEET (manga) | | |
| Telepathic Wanderers (manga) | Good | |
| Tenjho Tenge (manga) | So-so | |
| Tetsuwan Girl (manga) | | |
| (The) Times of Botchan (manga) | | |
| To Terra (manga) | Good | |
| Touch (manga) | | |
| Train Man: Densha Otoko (manga) | Good | |
| Trigun (manga) | Not really good | |
| Tsubasa, RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE (manga) | Not really good | |
| Tuxedo Gin (manga) | Weak | |
| Ultra Maniac (manga) | Good | This is a bit of a guilty pleasure, but it's written so damn well. Has all the makings of any "magical girl" story, but instead of boring fights we get addictive and well-written romance and school drama. |
| Vagabond (manga) | Excellent | This is how you write a historical epic, PERIOD. Strikingly intense battles, both physical and spiritual, propel this modern classic. I think it can be argued that this is the best manga about martial arts and what they mean to people ever. |
| Vampire Knight (manga) | | |
| Vinland Saga (manga) | Good | |
| Water. (manga) | | |
| What a wonderful world! (manga) | Very good | |
| What's Michael? (manga) | Not really good | What can I say? Maybe it's because I'm a dog person, but I just can't see the appeal of WM?. It's well written and drawn, and I like the author's Club 9, but I just couldn't get into it. |
| Wild Adapter (manga) | Not really good | |
| (The) World is Mine (manga) | Excellent | |
| Wounded Man (manga) | | |
| XxxHOLiC (manga) | Good | |
| Yakitate!! Japan (manga) | Good | |
| Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl (manga) | Good | |
| Yotsuba&! (manga) | Excellent | If this manga doesn't charm the hell out of you, then your either a sociopath or a complete idiot. Slice-of-life at its best, and funnier than most comedy series out there. |
| Yu-Gi-Oh! (manga) | Not really good | I actually liked this quite a bit in the beginning, as the "battles" were quite fun and the humor was pretty good. And then the cards came into the picture. Massive global enterprise or not, watching people play a card game is BORING. |
| Read all | Rating | Comment |
| A,A' (manga) | Very good | |
| Abandon the Old in Tokyo (manga) | Excellent | |
| Adolf (manga) | Excellent | |
| Akira (manga) | Excellent | |
| Alice 19th (manga) | Very good | |
| Alive (manga by T Takahashi) | So-so | Not one of Takahashi's better stories, but it still is very entertaining, with great art and a wonderful atmosphere. As usual, he has a problem with making a coherent story towards the end, but while it may make little sense it's well told. |
| Apollo's Song (manga) | | |
| Arigatou (manga) | Excellent | |
| Azumanga Daioh (manga) | Very good | |
| Believers (manga) | Masterpiece | A stunning and intense look at the clash between ideology and human nature. The gratuitous sex is not without purpose and the rare depictions of violence are shocking, but it's the fascinating characters that really make this a mature read, as over the course of the story we see their deepest and most primal desires. Smart and gripping with a breathtaking ending, Beleivers is one of the finest examples of modern seinen manga. |
| Benkei in New York (manga) | Good | Filled with grit and style, this is a superb example of manga noir. Dark tales of lust and revenge, with stunning artwork by the amazing Jiro Tanaguchi. Some of the shorts are better than others, which is unavoidable, but all are diabolical fun. |
| Blood: The Last Vampire, 2002 (manga) | Bad | |
| Blue (manga) | Excellent | |
| Blue Heaven (manga) | Very good | |
| Blue Spring (manga) | Very good | |
| Boy's Next Door (manga) | Good | |
| Chikyu Misaki (manga) | Very good | |
| Chobits (manga) | Good | |
| Cinderalla (manga) | Good | |
| Dance Till Tomorrow (manga) | Very good | Definitally one of the best seinen romances ever created. While it may be filled with sex, it's really a very smart and sophisticated read. |
| Digimortal (manga) | Decent | |
| Distant Neighbourhood (manga) | Excellent | |
| Doing Time (manga) | | |
| Dolis (manga) | Decent | |
| Domu (manga) | Masterpiece | |
| Dragon Head (manga) | Good | |
| Drifting Classroom (manga) | Excellent | |
| Editor Woman (manga) | | |
| Emerald (manga) | Good | |
| Fuguruma-kan Raihōki (manga) | Decent | |
| Ghost in the Shell (manga) | Decent | |
| Gyo (manga) | Decent | |
| Hanaotoko (manga) | Masterpiece | |
| Happiness (manga) | Very good | |
| Heartless Bitch (manga) | | |
| Helter Skelter (manga) | Masterpiece | |
| Hotel Harbour View (manga) | Excellent | |
| Icaro (manga) | Decent | |
| Ice Blade (manga) | Very good | Tsutomu Takahashi's longest series, and also one of his best. His stories are often rushed and conveluted, but even these are good reads thanks to his gripping storytelling. And when they do come together Jiraishin is one of the best crime mangas out there. Some may find Ida an odd lead, as he's the personification of an antihero and has little dialogue, but it's what he doesn't say that makes him facinating; we're constantly wondering whether he's a cold sociopath or a good man plagued by a destructive obsession with justice. The only thing I'll hold against it (in addition to the uneven quality) is the well-intentioned but underdeveloped ending. |
| Ichi the Killer (manga) | Very good | |
| Imadoki (manga) | Good | A great mix of humor and melodrama, Imadoki is another shojo gem from Watase. Though the translation leaves much to be desired and it's somewhat sappy and predictable, the story is well above the average shojo romance. Some may find the ending rushed, but I thought it was fitting to the characters. |
| Itaitashii Love (manga) | | |
| Japan (manga by 17 authors) | Excellent | |
| Jisatsu Circle (manga) | Good | It's hard to judge this one because I'm pretty sure Furyama was confined to a single volume. At times it starts to go into his trademark weirdness, but ultimately it is a tale about lost youth and the isolation of growing up. While it might not be as strong as some of his other works (let's face it, few moderd manga are as good as The Music of Marie) it's a rare film adaptation that actually manages to stand up on its own. |
| Jr (manga) | | |
| Keep on Vibrating (manga) | Excellent | |
| (The) Legend of Chun Hyang (manga) | So-so | Clamp's attempt at a one shot boasts grea artwork but a somewhat bare story. It's a mistake many manga-ka make, trying to write a short story in the massivly deconstructed manner. While it doesn't nessisarily have any major flaws, it really doesn't give anything to the reader either. |
| Lone Wolf and Cub (manga) | Excellent | |
| Misaki de basu wo orita hito (manga) | Masterpiece | Anyone who doubts the power and potential of the short story in manga needs only to read this. |
| Monokuro Kinderbook (manga) | Excellent | |
| Mutant Hanako (manga) | Not really good | |
| MW (manga) | | |
| Nasu (manga) | Very good | |
| Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (manga) | Masterpiece | |
| Nijigahara Holograph (manga) | Excellent | |
| Offered (manga) | | |
| Ohikkoshi (manga) | Excellent | |
| Planetes (manga) | Excellent | |
| PositioN (manga) | | |
| Princess Mermaid (manga) | Good | |
| Punctures (manga) | | |
| (The) Push Man and Other Stories (manga) | Very good | |
| River's Edge (manga) | Excellent | |
| Route 20 (manga) | | |
| Sand Land (manga) | So-so | |
| Sexy Voice and Robo (manga) | Excellent | |
| Short Cuts (manga) | Very good | |
| Tanpenshu (manga) | Excellent | |
| Tekkonkinkreet (manga) | Masterpiece | Taiyo Matsumoto has dove into his near limitless imagination and has given us a psychedelic pop-culture fable that celebrates the possibilities of what graphic fiction can do. While the surreal nature of the art and kinetic storytelling are sure to blow people away in the beginning, it's the ideas and characters behind the style that make this a masterpiece. The themes range from urban gentrification to the personal growth brought on by fatherhood, but at the core of "Black and White" is a story of friendship, told without any conventions and cliches that make it all the more touching. Violent, bizarre, horrifying, wild, surreal, kick-ass and beautiful, this is unlike anything you ever seen. |
| Town of Evening Calm, Country of Cherry Blossoms (manga) | Excellent | |
| (The) Walking Man (manga) | Decent | I was tempted to give this a higher rating because of the amazing artwork, but it's really a pretty indistinguishable slice-of-life manga. While the lack of narrative lets you soak in the beauty of Taniguchi's drawings, it also makes for a speedy read. After Yokohama Kaidashi Kiko's wonderous depictions of everyday life, this just made me want more than great art. |
| Witches (manga) | Masterpiece | |
| Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou (manga) | Masterpiece | |
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