Forum - View topicOfficial Manga Recommendation Thread (please read 1st post)
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Touma
 Posts: 2651 Location: Colorado, USA |
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Fortunately those are the kind of stories that I like. Unfortunately everything that I can think of right now is old and out of print. I have no idea how difficult it might be to find them. Dream Saga by Megumi Tachikawa: 5 volumes from Tokyopop. A young girl has the ability to travel between the real world and the dream world, a fairly common fantasy scenario. In the dream world she must find some magical stones that need to be gathered to save the sun of both worlds. The stories are about the adventures she has, and the people she meets, while trying to find the stones. I do not remember anything really "heavy" or "dark" in terms of drams. Definitely nothing tragic. The stories are relatively light with a lot of humor and some romance. I enjoyed the books a lot. Magical x Miracle by Yuzu Mizutani: 6 volumes from Tokyopop. The great magician of a kingdom goes missing. To avoid panic in the people, and prevent other kingdoms from knowing that they are without their wizard, the advisors decide to use a double to replace him. The only person who looks enough like the wizard is a girl named Merleawe. She agrees to do the job and is given lessons in magic, and cross dressing. The stories are about Merleawe learning to use magic, trying to find the real magician, and trying to avoid war with a neighboring kingdom, while attempting to pass as a man. There are some sad moments, but this is mostly light and happy. For me this is a "feel good" manga. Time Guardian by Daimuro Kishi and Tomao Ichinose: 2 volumes from CMX. A high school girl named Miu accidentally finds a shop where time is a commodity that can be bought and sold. The owner hires her to work there when he discovers that she has the ability to use a watch that controls time. These stories also have some sadness but nothing too serious. there is quite a bit of humor and some romance. Time Stranger Kyoko by Arina Tanemura: 3 volumes from Viz. Kyoko is a very reluctant princess who most definitely does not want to take the throne when her father retires. She has a twin sister named Ui who could do it, except that Ui has been asleep since birth. Kyoko is given the ability to travel through time and space so that she can try to find 12 magic stones that will allow her to revive her sister. Again, there is nothing too serious and there is a lot of humor and some romance. Last edited by Touma on Sun Jan 27, 2013 12:35 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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ZepysGirl
 Posts: 470 Location: NY, NY |
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There's a short series called One Fine Day that I think would be perfect. It's about a cat, a dog, and a mouse who are all pets of a wizard. Most of the time they're anthropomorphized as children, and it's a pretty slow-paced and calming series.
Kobato by CLAMP might also be a good one. I don't remember anything Very Serious happening (unless things significantly change by the last volume); it's basically just the story of Kobato going around granting people's wishes by being her nice, cheerful self. Spice and Wolf might work for you as well, but I haven't read it so I honestly can't say how "gritty" or "realistic" it is. It's about a merchant and a harvest-goddess wolf-god traveling around the country side. Edit: Oh, and the mention of Mushishi made me think of Natsume's Book of Friends. It's sort of the same concept (one human goes around interacting with gods), but I think it has a decidedly happier bent. It's still got melancholy (Natsume's been an outcast all his life, not all the spirits are nice), but it's got a positive view on things, I think. As someone who likes Miyazaki's work, I think you would enjoy it. Last edited by ZepysGirl on Sun Jan 27, 2013 3:09 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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zawa113
 Posts: 7358 |
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Man, not usually my forte, for whatever reason, what I read tend to have some sort of grittiness to it, but I'd still have things to rec
Mushishi 10 vols, DelRey (anime out by Funimation, adapts all of vols 1-5, first chapter of 6) Stories vary from happy to sad to neutral, just like the mushi. Mushi represent the element of life and are neither good nor evil, their side effects can vary from mushi to mushi though. Definitely a beautiful series, I like the anime a lot, it adds to the atmosphere. I think it adds a nice element of thought to the viewer without providing any answers or demanding it in the first place, which is quite nice. Kazan 7 vols, Comic One Nice fantasy series, plain and simple. Just really well done fantasy. Read it recently, I liked the fantasy world and the characters. I didn't detect any social commentary, and sure there were fights and action (very well drawn might I add), but it never got really gritty. Monster Collection 6 vols, CMX I think this was based on a trading card game. Things based on TCGs are weird, they tend to be awful, or awesome, and this was awesome. It's another fantasy adventure series, one where the main is a monster summoner, but also fights. It's certainly a shame it wasn't longer, but it's another straightforward fun adventure fantasy escape. Cowa! and Sandland 1 vol each, Viz Akira Toriyama can make good kids fantasy series. If you're not against Akira Toriyama stuff (yes, DBZ is way too longer and often repetitive), his short stuff is actually really good. +Anima 10 vols, Tokyopop Glad they put this all out. Another one I read recently. First half is mostly episodic, second half starts to explore the characters. Takes place in a fantasy world where some people can transform into humans with animal traits (and back to normal humans). Suikoden III 11 vols, Tokyopop Yes, it's based on the RPG, but I didn't play it, still haven't, so I don't think it's necessary. More awesome fantasy, though this might have more fantasy politics than you might want (bound to happen, based on the source material being an RPG where you play around with 3 factions that are at war with each other) Some things that are relaxing, but not fantasy Thermae Romae ongoing, Yen Press A new release, and one that's partly educational. It's about a guy in ancient Rome who inexplicably time travels to modern day Japan and learns about baths, and bring back ideas with him. Any political or historical events are all things you could read on Wikipedia, so it rather glances over them. They're not too important anyway, it more explains why he's in another city and year, not the main focus, but it's historial, so it's hard to ignore the fact that history happened. Hotel Africa 5 vols, 2 published, Tokyopop Shame more wasn't published, it's just a series about people, mostly taking place at a hotel in the middle of absolutely nowhere in Utah called "Africa". I really liked it, I wish Yen would rescue it. At least the two vols that came out didn't end on a cliffhanger. What's Michael 11 vols, Dark Horse (some also published by Eclipse) You can read these in any order, which is good because some are hard to come by. It's a manga for cat people. If you're a cat person, it's the exact type of humor that cat people will get. Short 6-8 page chapters about how an old woman 2 feet from the phone can't get it because the cat is on her lap, so she asks her husband to get it, stuff like that. My favorite manga for cat people, and I love Makoto Kobyashi's exaggerated artwork, but he makes such good cat movements, even when they look so cartoony! I know Chi's Sweet Home is more popular, but this one just so spoke to me as a cat person! |
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Ensof
 Posts: 70 Location: Meifumadō |
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I recommend Gon. It’s a dialogue free, “all ages” series about the world’s last (and smallest) dinosaur as he gets up to various antics in the wilderness. In the first volume he’s admittedly a bit of a meanie, but in subsequent volumes he’s plucky and likeable. I don’t think any other series made me feel warmer inside. The artwork is superb, too. Kodansha recently re-released all seven volumes (it was originally released by CMX), and as there’s no dialogue you could pick up a release in any language and not be put out at all, so it’s easy to get hold of.
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vashna
Posts: 1313 |
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I am really shocked and quite grateful that I got such an explosive response to my question. I never realized that people actually had tastes even close to mine in that respect. I'll definitely check out Shoulder-a-Coffin Kuro. I had a quick look, and the art is definitely quite nice. I've never read anything by Satoko Kiyuduki before.
I know that some of those suggestions are indeed out of print, but a quick search let me find some of the CMX volumes without too much trouble. It doesn't seem like they should really be that hard to find to be honest. Interestingly enough, I've actually read Spice and Wolf and loved it. You don't often see a medieval-style fantasy that focuses on economics as opposed to an adventure. As for What's Michael, ironically enough I have some Dark Horse volumes that I bought on Free Comic Book Day. I went down to the only comic book shop we have in town here, and they had a huge sale of all their older and secondhand merchandise. Unfortunately, I learned that while it coincided with the festivities, they were actually phasing out manga and downsizing. Edit: Gah, it seems that some of what I wrote the first time around didn't actually copy and paste over here. I hope that my comments never look brusque though. It always seems like everyone else tends to have so much more to say than I do! As for cat humor, I used to work on a farm that had no less than seven cats on it, so I know all about being on the punch line end of those sorts of jokes. I'm going to have to finally get around to reading those volumes that I bought once and for all. Though I had previously said that it wasn't too hard for me to find CMX volumes, I'm glad to hear that Gon was re-released. I'll have to check out that series. I'm always glad to help support a manga publishing business that is actually still actively putting things out as opposed to talking about these extinct companies. At the risk of sounding like I wanted to answer my own question, fans of electronic manga should check out Mizuki by Nao Yazawa. It's available from Digital Manga Publishing, and I bought it for the Nook. It's basically the author of Wedding Peach trying her hand at an oni-fighting series, and it comes off as more of a fantastical series than a gritty one. |
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TJ-Scorpio88
 Posts: 1 Location: Australia |
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It took me awhile to finally get an account on here. As for manga, I have to admit, I hadn't read much lately, shame.
But the manga that I have to say shame on them for not making it into an anime is Liar Game Great manga if you like Death Note. Now-a-days, there are barely any manga that had not been made into anime. Also, there are another group of Japanese media that are hard to come by. They are light novels. Probably due to the immense amount of words to translate. Anyway, will come back when I meet by any manga that I like! |
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midnighteve
Posts: 114 Location: Chula Vista |
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So, I'm kinda looking for something where the main characters are an established couple, or maybe get together relatively quickly and stay together for the run of the series.
I've already read and adored Kare Kano, as well as Lovely Complex (though Risa and Otani do get together rather late...). I guess Kimi ni Todoke counts as well, but their development moved at a snail's pace and I wound up dropping it at volume 10 or 11, I think. Anyway, I'm pretty open to whatever genre you can recommend, so I hope I get at least a few responses for this! |
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st_owly
 Posts: 5234 Location: Edinburgh, Scotland |
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If you're not averse to reading scans, I recently posted about a couple of series in the "what are you reading now?" thread. ( on this page )
If you'd prefer licensed stuff, there's Sand Chronicles, which doesn't quite fit your criteria, but Ann and Diago do get together at the beginning. |
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midnighteve
Posts: 114 Location: Chula Vista |
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Oh, I do remember San Chronicles! I read that full though and was kinda saddened by the ending (wound up selling the manga in tight financial straights! LoL). I guess I should've been more specific and said I would prefer fluffier fare  I think this is just my reaction to having read way to many shoujo manga where the potential couple's main problem is the lack of communication. >_> Kind of a "just admit you like each other and go out already!!!" reaction ^^;
Anyway, I'll also go and check out what you linked to Thanks!
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Touma
Posts: 2651 Location: Colorado, USA |
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I strongly recommend Love Roma as a light, fun romantic comedy involving high school students. The very first panel has Hoshino confessing his love for Negishi, who does not even know his name. He does this in front of her whole class, which makes it very embarrassing for her and hilariously funny for everybody else. That sets the tone for the story. Hoshino is honest and direct, to the point of being blunt, or even rude. He is a nice guy who does not want to hurt anybody, but he does not understand the concept of being tactful. Negishi is not the shy, retiring type, but she is constantly being embarrassed by Hoshino. The story is mostly about them figuring out how to be a couple, and what it is that couples do. It is only 5 volumes and was published by Del Rey. Have you tried Ai Yori Aoshi? It is mostly a romantic comedy, but it can also be serious and dramatic at times. The relationship of the main characters might not be quite what you want. Aoi And Kaoru become a couple very quickly, and there is never much doubt about them wanting to stay together. But Aoi's family will not allow them to let any of their friends know that they are a couple. This is because of the relationship between Kaoru and Aoi's family, which is also the reason for most of the serious elements in the story. Because they have to hide their relationship they are not able to act like a couple. The only other main character who knows about them is Miyabi. she is an older woman who has been Aoi's guardian and companion, and then becomes the manager of the boarding house where Aoi's family insists that they live. In order to make it seem like a regular boarding house other tenants are allowed to move in. Of course the other tenants are attractive young girls, just to make things interesting. Some people say that this is a harem story, but I do not agree. There are other girls who are interested in Kaoru and some of them are very open about it, but he is interested only in Aoi. The problem is that he cannot tell the other girls that he likes Aoi, and he really does not know how to turn them down without hurting them. This results in Kaoru leading them on even though he does not want to. That does make this seem like a harem story. Ai Yori Aoshi is 17 volumes, which makes it a relatively large investment in time and money. And it was published by Tokyopop. so it has been out of print for quite a while. The anime gives you a reasonably good idea of what the manga is like, at least in the beginning. but there is a lot of nudity in the manga that was not in the anime. By the end of the series I think that every female character has been shown naked at least once. Personally I like the nudity, but I know that some people will want to avoid it. |
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ZepysGirl
Posts: 470 Location: NY, NY |
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A Bride's Story goes one step further and shows married life. It's really great! The artwork is very detailed and you can tell the author researched the time period a ton before sitting down to write.
Butterflies, Flowers also establishes its main couple early on. A lot of the issues in that series revolve around the heroine's insecurities about her relationship, though. I wouldn't call it fluff, but it is a highly entertaining series. (Can I call it a sex comedy?) Cipher is an oldie but goodie. It's one of CMX's titles. Anise starts dating one of the two boys pretty early on, if I remember correctly? She's also refreshingly no-nonsense for a shojo heroine. Mixed Vegetables also makes it into the "happily dating" phase, I think. It's been awhile, though, so I don't remember how long it took them. >_> Last edited by ZepysGirl on Mon Feb 04, 2013 3:57 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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st_owly
Posts: 5234 Location: Edinburgh, Scotland |
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Butterflies, Flowers is definitely a sex comedy. I love it.
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zawa113
Posts: 7358 |
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Land of the Blindfolded, despite introducing enough characters for a love triangle and having them both like the girl, establishes just the two as a couple pretty quickly (the third has to give up and just be friends). Even more awesomely, they don't just pare the spares!
The main couple in Basara is established very quickly. Not to say that there aren't other major problems going on, but I don't recall either half dating anyone else. Emma, I recall Emma and William being a couple pretty much the whole time. Well as much of a couple as a housemaid and a proper Victorian era English gent promised to marry off someone else without his permission can be at times. See, while they do consider themselves to be a couple by the end of the first arc at volume 2, they're also very aware of how Victorian era romance is conducted and how far outside the norm they are, which is the main obstacle to actually being officially considered 'together' by society, if that makes sense. @ZepysGirl I don't recall if Anise picks either one in Cipher, I seem to recall her just being platonic with both. It seemed to me like both guys rather got a male heterosexual life partner by the end. I'd still recommend it for sure. |
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ZepysGirl
Posts: 470 Location: NY, NY |
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I seem to remember her getting with one of them pretty quickly... The other brother finds a girl spoiler[but then THAT girl dies and they all angst about it. Then he moves away or something and is roommates with another guy?] I don't know, it's been a really long time since I last read it, but I feel like I would have remembered a "We're both gay!" ending? ._. |
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zawa113
Posts: 7358 |
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Well, by heterosexual life partners, I meant more like two guy best friends. It's a common trope.
Yeah, now I recall spoiler[one of them gets a dead girl], yet I still can't seem to recall Anise dating anyone. I've been meaning to re-read it as is. Oh, just a random aside, but have you seen the 30 minute OVA? It's on youtube, and it's damn hilarious and just freakin' awful. It's a unique sort of awful because it's like someone Japanese looked at 80s America and shoved all the stuff they thought was cool in there. And then voiced everyone in English by non-native speakers. If anyone happens to see this before reading the manga, don't let this pile of awesome garbage turn you off to it, it's a good manga. |
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