What Manga are you reading?

[mysngoeshere56]

Went through the first volume of Candidate for Goddess today. I read it because it was made by the same person behind D.N.Angel (a personal favorite of mine).

Overall, I thought the volume was good. It wasn't anything exceptional, but it wasn't something terrible either. I'll definitely get through another volume to see how things progress.

[Atria35]

Someday's Dreamers ~Spellbound~ v. 1-5 (all)- I had bought the first two volumes, but never bothered to track down the rest until I heard about Tokyopop going out of business. In a word: Finally! Not too shabby a story, but I definitely wouldn't recommend it to *many* people here because of one particular unrequited relationship here. Though I think I would have preferred more focus on the learning magic and less on the relationship- the latter overpowers the former. Overall, I prefer the original Someday's Dreamers.

[AnimeGirl]

I started and finished Shirahime-Syo: Snow Goddess Tales in one sitting. I was looking for something short, and I decided to give this a go since I've enjoyed most CLAMP titles. Overall, I thought it was pretty good. Nothing I'd put on my top 10 since it was a bit hard to follow at times, but it was also thought-provoking and the artwork was really pretty.

Ooh, I've been wanting to read that one!! It's on my to-buy list. *is a huge CLAMP fan*

I believe there are 4 stories in them, right?

[quote="Maokun (post: 1478060)"]
Anyhow, I read Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles vols 12-19 and XXXholic vols 14-20. TRC caught me by surprise]

Kamui appeared in Volume 11?? I thought the Acid Tokyo arc didn't start until the end of volume 14 O.O *has mostly followed the anime* But yeah....it sure was shocking, and xxxHOLiC got dark, too! But the storytelling is BRILLIANT! Just wait 'till you get to the final arc, which starts on volume 24 of TRC. You are in for a mind-boggling ride, my friend. Especially the final volume, number 28.

[mysngoeshere56]

Ooh, I've been wanting to read that one!! It's on my to-buy list. *is a huge CLAMP fan*

I believe there are 4 stories in them, right?

In the Shirahime-Syo: Snow Goddess Tales volume? Close. There are 5.

[GeneD]

Currently on volume 12 of 20th Century Boys, half way I believe.

[Maokun]

So I finished Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles and XXXholic. After the peak of quality that the middle point in the stories were, the last third of them were a bit disappointing. TRC got unnecessarily complex and made away with several of the interesting premises of the beginning, while Holic just got pointlessly depressing and its ending seemed rushed, sudden and unplanned.

[blkmage]

Been reading a bunch of Tetsunagi Kooni (now that someone's started translating it again) and some of Ume Aoki's doujin. Her Madoka doujin, RKGKMDK, has some pretty fantastic character art (ESPECIALLY HOMURA) and I wish I could buy it. Also it is nice to see that my taste in anime aligns with hers pretty well.

[Atria35]

Heh, now that it's finally arrived, I've started reading Solanin. Funny, sweet, true to life.... It's so wonderful!

[Ryn]

Kitchen Princess and Shugo Chara ^^
I got the first Kitchen Princess yesterday and finished it within a few hours of getting it, I loved it, it was so cute! Can't wait until I can get the next one.
Also can't wait to get the next Shugo Chara, every time I go to the bookstore they have the volume I'm looking for.

[Atria35]

Kitchen Princess and Shugo Chara ^^
Also can't wait to get the next Shugo Chara, every time I go to the bookstore they have the volume I'm looking for.

I hate to tell you this, but the ending really isn't that great. And I have no idea when they're bringing over the 'sequel' ending to the story- which was waaay to short and didn't end the story well.

Save your money for a different one.

[Mr. Hat'n'Clogs]

Soredemo Machi Wa Mawatteiru chapters one through thirteen.

This is a pretty fun series that is a nice way to relax. At first I saw it was about a maid cafe and was pretty skeptical, but the art won me over and I'm enjoying it.

Monster volume four.

Monster is a series that is pretty hyped. It's by one of the most celebrated mangaka there is, it's about a fairly dark plot with some various interesting stuff, and everyone seems to list it as one of the greatest works there is available. When I first checked out the anime, I was pretty disappointed but I was informed that the manga had much better pacing and less issues, so I remained positive. Four volumes in, I'm still unimpressed.

However, I think this is kind of an issue among fans. Monster is a mature series that involves a lot of dark stuff happening with some interesting philosophy. I think the problem is that a lot of older fans tend to just see this on the surface and ignore any of the problems the series has. For starters, Urasawa has some pretty big pacing issues with this, with a lot of events happening with too few pages. Another problem is his characters. Urasawa tries to make a lot of one shot characters memorable but fails pretty hard a lot of the time. For instance, there's this one reporter who overcomes all of his life issues before dying. It feels like a cheap move to garner sympathy for him, but it's done too quickly and too unconvincingly(Tenma just has to talk to this guy for him to sort out all his problems? Really?) for me to feel any worse than if some random dude had been killed.

It's not that Monster is a bad series, it's just I find that a lot of older fans wish more series were like it so they tend to ignore its flaws.

Library Wars: Love and War volume three.

More Library War is more awesomeness. It's definitely interesting to see events not covered in the anime and it is nice to see more of the effects of the Media Betterment Act on society, which from what little of the novel I've read is much more in depth than the anime would show. I still like the anime better but this will fill the hole in my heart left by no second season.

Death Note volume eight.

Similarly to Vampire Knight(lolololol) I decided to bite the bullet on this and just finish it, so it's pretty much more of the same. A lot of people told me the anime was worse than the manga's latter half but if anything the anime had better pacing. Still as mediocre as ever.

[Maokun]

Monster is a series that is pretty hyped. It's by one of the most celebrated mangaka there is, it's about a fairly dark plot with some various interesting stuff, and everyone seems to list it as one of the greatest works there is available. When I first checked out the anime, I was pretty disappointed but I was informed that the manga had much better pacing and less issues, so I remained positive. Four volumes in, I'm still unimpressed.

However, I think this is kind of an issue among fans. Monster is a mature series that involves a lot of dark stuff happening with some interesting philosophy. I think the problem is that a lot of older fans tend to just see this on the surface and ignore any of the problems the series has. For starters, Urasawa has some pretty big pacing issues with this, with a lot of events happening with too few pages. Another problem is his characters. Urasawa tries to make a lot of one shot characters memorable but fails pretty hard a lot of the time. For instance, there's this one reporter who overcomes all of his life issues before dying. It feels like a cheap move to garner sympathy for him, but it's done too quickly and too unconvincingly(Tenma just has to talk to this guy for him to sort out all his problems? Really?) for me to feel any worse than if some random dude had been killed.

It's not that Monster is a bad series, it's just I find that a lot of older fans wish more series were like it so they tend to ignore its flaws.

You are mostly on the spot in your criticism, but you may not even be understanding the full weight of your finishing paragraph.

Yes, Monster definitely is not a story without flaws. Those flaws are characteristic of the author and are much more outrageous, say, in Pluto, maybe because it's a much shorter affair. And that's where Monster's value shines: it slowly builds a foundation of solid character development, and while separated chapters or even whole arcs might lack in credibility or coherence, it slowly adds up to make of the main recurrent characters very believable and realistic people.

After the long trip, the memories of the bumps on the road blend together and fade away, irrelevant. But dear to your heart are left the memories of all the beautiful sights and the cool places you've been to and the awe of how far away are you from the parting point and the excitement of reaching the promised destination, which remains unpredictable until the very end. And I have to say this may be the work of Urusawa with the most satisfactory ending.

On a slightly related piece of trivia, I had earlier complained that Urusawa had recycled too many character designs for Pluto from his earlier works. However, recently I learned about Osamu Tezuka's "Star System" and understood that Urusawa was appropriately doing his own Star System since he was working with a Tezuka's story.

[ich1990]

After the long trip, the memories of the bumps on the road blend together and fade away, irrelevant. But dear to your heart are left the memories of all the beautiful sights and the cool places you've been to and the awe of how far away are you from the parting point and the excitement of reaching the promised destination, which remains unpredictable until the very end. And I have to say this may the work of Urusawa with the most satisfactory ending.

That is pretty fair. It is not that Monster is without flaws, it is that Monster attempts something so bombastic and grand and for all its pretense manages to pull it off. While most manga has small aims and generally achieves its mark (sometimes perfectly), Urasawa's works are big to the point that one overlooks their minor imperfections.

Like Maokun said, when you get to the end the weight of the series is so great that you don't even remember the little slip ups. You are too profoundly affected to care that there are occasional throwaway characters. You may even start to enjoy those little "one shots" he writes about random side characters and inserts into the main story --once you resign yourself to the fact that they are invariably going to die.

[mysngoeshere56]

On the last chapter of Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE volume 6.

[MangaRocks!]

Record Of A Fallen Vampire (complete): Wow... okay, to comment on this, I think I'm going to have to compare it to the author's previous English-published series, Spiral: The Bonds Of Reasoning. While Spiral certainly has the distinct advantage of its intricate battles-of-logic (an element which I did quite enjoy, despite its story's inherent {and actually fairly annoying } downside described in the first spoiler box of this post), I also have a soft spot for any type of (good ) sci-fi, and Record Of A Fallen Vampire is based in one of that genre's forms. Plus, while it did take a volume or two for it to really get going, I liked the general story of ROAFV a lot better overall, and (IMHO) its protagonist was also way more likeable (and heroic, for that matter). And, even though Record's ending SPOILER: Highlight text to read: was far more heartbreaking than the bittersweetness of Spiral's, it seemed to have more closure-- and it FELT better, too (though that sounds kinda strange to say, considering... )-- than Spiral's did. Indeed, for a tragedy, Record is really quite good. So, in short, I ended up liking ROAFV better.


Also, Rurouni Kenshin VizBIG editions (complete): Well, I can see why this one (hahaha, see what I did there?! ......*crickets*...... Er, nevermind ) is a classic. Aside from it simply being quite good overall, I guess the two things about it that I have specific comments on are: #1, for a story with a fairly serious overall plot, I was pleased to see the amount of humor in it (and at the appropriate times, too). And #2, all of the historical info that they give in the back of each book (though I only read the VizBIG ones, so I don't know if that was in the original separate vol.'s or not) was actually quite interesting, as well.

...Oh, and one more thing: "Oro!"

[ich1990]

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind vol. 4-7 [complete]

This is the poster child for "the manga is better than the anime". Having watched the movie and considered it mediocre, I wasn't inclined to read the manga. I changed my mind when I saw it was in the MAL top ten, indicating that perhaps the abridged movie hadn't done the story justice. Since it was short I gave it a shot.

After reading the first two volumes, (which recapped the movie), I wasn't too impressed. Everything after that was incredible, however. The characters seem realistic and cool and even if seven volumes doesn't leave enough time for them to really grow I found them surprisingly likable. The story was so, so much more than the movie's straight up environmental message. In fact, by the end of the story it becomes apparent that environmentalism isn't even a factor. Human nature is the focus, and the outlook is impressively cynical and nihilistic.

This brings me to my last point. Nausicaa is not for kids. Despite what the movie might lead you to believe this story is Dark Fantasy. For comparison's sake it is close kin to Claymore and Berserk, although with a distinct flavor of its own.

While looking back the story isn't really that complicated, it is played up with such a range of emotion, grit, horror, and scope that it is hard to see it as anything but an epic. Truly a great series. 10/10

[Maokun]

Following a hint by Blkmage I read Dororo vol 1. I knew that the antiquated and cartoonish art style wouldn't bother me as one of the first anime series I ever watched as a kid was the old Astroboy. Much harder to digest was, in my opinion, Tezuka's particular brand of humor. Facetious and unabashedly silly, he has no trouble having miserable Edo era characters describe things with the language of a modern time kid: "oh that was like a mutant!" or "that's more scary than space aliens" etc.

All that, however, pales next to the story. Unique and daring and like most of his works, unlike anything else done before. What I find more intriguing is that the series doesn't get its title from the apparent main character but rather from his brat sidekick. I wish that I could say that I look forward to the next volume but knowing that the story was never finished, makes me wary of getting more invested in it and increase my chagrin when I finish the existing volumes.

[Kaori]

Memories of Emanon. This is a one-shot seinen manga version of a sci-fi novel, written by Kajio Shinji and drawn by Tsuruta Kenji. As a warning, it does contain a significant amount of graphic female nudity; a lot (but not all of it) can be avoided by skipping the art images at the beginning and end, which are not essential to the story.

The story revolves around the narrator, a very ingenuous student who really loves sci-fi stories, and a woman with a 3-billion-year-old memory, named Emanon. They meet each other on a ferry ride, and Emanon tells him the story of how her memories have been passed down from mother to child since life first appeared on the earth. Then the two characters very earnestly attempt to hash out the scientific reasons behind the “whyâ€

[Atria35]

King of Thorn v. 1-6 (all)- Decided that one of my days should be dedicated to this, esp. since I'm getting headaches from being in front of the computer. Worth my time! Mind-bending, rather scary, and overall a great ride. My type of manga!

EDIT: Also read the first two volumes of Serenity. Yeah, that Christian manga. I think my berserk button was hit at least twice wach volume, and I had to put it down to either headdesk or chill out for a bit.

[Mr. Hat'n'Clogs]

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part Two: Battle Tendency vol. 1-7 [complete]

I read Phantom Blood a few months ago and while I liked it, it wasn't enough to make me instantly jump into Battle Tendency despite it apparently being better. Then, the Manga of the Month thread reminded me that I hadn't read past Phantom Blood and that I should at least read Battle Tendency before jumping onto Steel Ball Run.

So, what do I think of what is apparently one of the best parts of JoJo's? Well, the first few volumes really just feel like more of Phantom Blood. JoJo beats up some vampires, makes some friends, Speedwagon is a bro, and nothing really seems all that different.

Then, once the triumvirate of villains arrives, things start to pick up. ACDC, Cars, and Wham are all interesting villains for all being megaevil and Araki really gets to show off how awesome his fights are. Heroic(at least compared to the villains) Nazis, Italian exorcists, the Interfering Speedwagon, and hordes of crappy vampires all mesh together into one awesome story.

The turning point for me was[spoiler]when Caesar died, which is when I realized that I thought he was awesome and he had one of my favorite death scenes[/spoiler]That was when I realized how much I liked this series. Definitely recommended after you read Phantom Blood 9/10.

As a final note, I was pleasantly surprised to realize the sun actually kills vampires.

[Atria35]

Serenity 3-5- an improvement over the first two volumes, but the storytelling was disjointed until the fifth volume. The characters are overall more likeable (except for anyone who isn't Christian- I'm about to scream at how these people are depicted). But her conversion is still what I find in most Christian manga- shallow and unbelievable. Her worst question/issue is how to pray properly. If that were the case, then conversion would be super-easy for everyone. This is a fairytale for Christian children on how anyone could become Christian.

[Fish and Chips]

As a final note, I was pleasantly surprised to realize the sun actually kills vampires.

Always consider the rotation of the Earth before jumping into a well.

[Sapphire225]

Just finished the first volume of Puella Magi Oriko Magica, a spinoff manga from the anime. This should definately become an OVA for the anime. Definately deserves to be.

[Darth_Kirby]

I'm currently reading Fruits Basket. Gotta love Shigure! lol :3

[alma]

Hello I am new here.
I am reading right now: Angel Denstsu and Mei-chan no Shitsuji.
I just finished like two days ago: Rosario+Vampire, which it became a little too repetitive, but it had a nice twist on the last 2 volumes. I am planning to read the continuation. The part I do not like about Rosario Vampire is the "panty shots", it is terrible. But Besides that I think is an intersting story.

[Atria35]

^ Hi, evamom! Why don't you make a thread introducing yourself in the Welcome section? We'd all like a chance to say hi!

What I'm reading:
Hellsing v. 1-2- Can't wait for Ultimate to come out. Literally. So I started reading the manga.
Manga Bible- I like how this gets some details right, don't like how it modernizes other things, and I get some unexpected laughs here and there.
Ghost in the Shell- SOOO different from the anime! I wasn't expecting that! The downside? It's a flipped version ><"
A Bride's Story (aka Otoyomegatari) v. 1- oooh WOW! xD This is a super-awesome manga! It's so low-key and sweet, and I am in love with it. A worthy investment!

[AnimeGirl]

Re-read "Mistress Fortune". I think I like it even more than the first time I read it, but it's still annoying how Giniro is a pervert XD!! But the second time around, I also noticed how sweet he is. <3

So I finished Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles and XXXholic. After the peak of quality that the middle point in the stories were, the last third of them were a bit disappointing. TRC got unnecessarily complex and made away with several of the interesting premises of the beginning, while Holic just got pointlessly depressing and its ending seemed rushed, sudden and unplanned.

xxxHOLiC's finished? O.O

[Atria35]

xxxHOLiC's finished? O.O

Finished publishing this February. 19 volumes total!

[Mr. Hat'n'Clogs]

Death Note vol. 9-12 Complete

I think I've already made my feelings on Death Note pretty clear, so I'll spare you why I don't think it is a good work. I did decide to bite the bullet and finish the manga, and my verdict is that while I dislike both, the anime has much better pacing. This is either a testament to Madhouse or a really big flaw of the creators, as any anime that is just people talking a lot should never have better pacing than the manga. 5/10

Battle Angel Alita vol. 1-2

This is a pretty cool work, I guess. While the plot feels kind of standard, the amount of detail that goes into the setting is pretty nifty and it has this gritty atmosphere that is conveyed well by the art. Not much else to say, really. 7/10

[GeneD]

Finished 20th Century Boys volume 14 today.