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Read all Rating Comment
A,A' (manga) Very good
Abandon the Old in Tokyo (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 by K. Nananan) 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
A Distant Neighborhood (manga) Excellent
Doing Time (manga)
Dolis (manga) Decent
Domu (manga) Masterpiece
Dragon Head (manga) Good
(The) 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 by Furuya) 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! Nowadays (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 as Viewed by 17 Creators (manga) 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)
Junko Mizuno's Princess Mermaid (manga) Good
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, Kazuo Koike) Excellent
Message to Adolf (manga) Excellent
Misaki de Bus o 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)
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