Category: Manga

A Spotlight On The Spectacular Clamp Collective

Published February 28, 2022

It’s been quite a while since I last decided to shine a spotlight on someone. Considering how much I enjoy the works of the Clamp collective as well as having a discussion with someone recently how about intermittingly they release manga these days, I thought it worth shining a spotlight on the spectacular Clamp collective.

Interestingly, the Clamp collective initially began as a doujinshi group in the mid-1980s, producing doujinshi versions of Captain Tsubasa and Saint Seiya. The group originally consisted of eleven women and they began to create an original doujinshi work called RG Veda. They were eventually approached by an editor for a manga magazine called Wings who wished for Clamp to work for them. After a rocky start to their professional career, RG Veda ultimately proved to be a successful series and allowed Clamp to break into the industry.

Leave a Comment

The Surprising Popularity Of Alice In Wonderland In Japan

Published February 21, 2022

I was recently listening to Dev Game Club, a podcast I’ve mentioned before, where they were discussing Kingdom Hearts, a game that I recall playing extensively during my childhood. While a lot of their discussion was quite fascinating to hear, I was particularly fascinated by their confusion over the first three Disney worlds you travel to. Considering the game came out in 2002, Tarzan (1999) and Hercules (1997) make sense but they were confused by the presence of Alice in Wonderland (1951) as one of the first worlds. One of them brought up the possibility that Disney’s Alice in Wonderland might be more popular in Japan than in the West. Thinking back, I do recall seeing numerous references to Alice in Wonderland in Japanese media. Therefore, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at the surprising popularity of Alice in Wonderland in Japan.

First off, let’s discuss the release of the original novel in Japan. I’ve found conflicting information on when the first Japanese edition of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was released with one source stating that it was first released in 1899 while another states that it was 1910. Regardless of when it was first released, it has continued to see numerous Japanese translations over the years.

A Japanese edition of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

Leave a Comment

What Are Spin-Off Manga And Some Interesting Examples

Published February 14, 2022

Spin-offs are increasingly prevalent in our modern culture. After all, it’s easier to sell something that’s related to a previous property than a completely new IP. While I would argue that Japanese media isn’t quite as fanatical about spin-offs as Western works, that doesn’t mean that they don’t exist. Therefore, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at what spin-off manga are as well as some interesting examples.

We should start off by defining what a spin-off manga is. A spin-off is a work that’s set in the same universe as the original media but may follow either a previous side-character or brand new characters while expanding on certain worldbuilding aspects. This is in contrast to a sequel that would be a direct continuation of the story of the original media.

Leave a Comment

Less Popular But Great Manga Recommendations

Published January 24, 2022

As manga has continued to grow in popularity, it seems like it’s easier than ever to get your hands on whatever type of manga you want. However, it’s easy to be swept up in the most popular releases, leaving some manga that are truly brilliant less successful. Knowing this, I thought it would be helpful to list some great manga series that I would consider to be less popular, perhaps even obscure, as recommendations.

The first manga series that I would like to recommend is not only one of my favourite romance manga of all time but also one of the best manga that I’ve ever read, “Girl Friends”. Written by Milk Morinaga and running from 2006 to 2010, the story follows a shy girl called Mariko Kumakura who ends up becoming friends with the outgoing Akiko Oohashi. As their friendship continues to build, Mariko realises that her feelings for Akiko are more than something friends would feel. The story is surprisingly well-written, examining the confusion that these two girls feel as their relationship develops and incorporating a brilliant cast of characters that both support and trouble our protagonists. Regardless of your thoughts on yuri manga, I fully encourage you to check out Girl Friends.

The cover of the manga series Girl Friends.

2 Comments

The Eisner Awards And Its History With Manga

Published January 10, 2022

I was recently perusing some manga news when I noticed an article which mentioned that Junji Ito had won two Eisner Awards at the 2021 Eisner Awards. If you tend to read news websites covering the topics of anime and manga, it’s quite likely that you’ve noticed the occasional news that a manga has received an Eisner Award and you might be wondering what the significance of this particular award is. Therefore, I thought I’d take a look at the Eisner Awards and its history with manga.

Let’s start by discussing the Eisner Awards themselves. The Eisner Awards were established in 1988 to celebrate American comic books and graphic novels and were named after legendary comic artist/writer Will Eisner. These awards are presented each year at San Diego Comic-Con and currently span an impressive 32 categories.

The two Junji Ito manga that won awards at the 2021 Eisner Awards.

Leave a Comment

Some Of The Most Significant Samurai Manga

Published December 27, 2021

If you were to ask most people what they think of when they hear the word “Japan”, it’s likely that the word Samurai will pop up pretty quickly. Unsurprisingly, there are plenty of manga that centre around these warriors and I thought I might take a look at some of the more important and significant samurai manga.

Easily one of the most important and significant samurai manga of all time, and the first one that I think of when I think of samurai manga, is the legendary Lone Wolf and Cub. Running from 1970 to 1976, the story follows Ogami Ittō, a former executioner for the Shogun who has been falsely accused and disgraced by the Yagyu clan, as he travels Japan with his three year old son to prepare for his vengeance. The series has been critically acclaimed with the manga often considered to be one of the greatest manga of all time for its storytelling, characters, worldbuilding and incredible artwork and has been adapted into several live-action adaptations.

The cover of the Dark Horse Omnibus edition of Lone Wolf and Cub.

Leave a Comment

Interesting Non-Japanese/American Adaptations of Manga

Published December 13, 2021

Being a Japanese product, it’s pretty obvious that manga will be adapted into a wide variety of Japanese media such as anime series, live-action films, etc. It’s also clear that America, with the largest film industry in the world, would also adapt various manga series. However, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at some non-Japanese/American adaptations of manga since it feels like these are less well known.

While Japan had worked with other countries to coproduce film adaptations of manga, such as the Golgo 13 films and Lady Oscar, the first film that I’m aware of that adapted a manga without any involvement of the Japanese film industry was the 1990 Hong Kong film “Killer’s Romance” which was a loose adaptation of Crying Freeman. Amusingly, another Hong Kong film called “The Dragon from Russia”, which was also released in 1990, also adapted Crying Freeman!

2 Comments

Why Are Some Manga Cancelled In English?

Published November 29, 2021

When I’m researching manga series to pick up and collect, one of the first things I check is to see if the entirety of the series has been released in English. More often than not, the series completed its English release and I’m able to continue looking into the manga to see if I want to collect it. However, there are times where I find that the English release was cut short and, in those situations, I am immediately put off from collecting the series since I won’t be able to finish the story. Knowing all this, the question becomes why are some manga cancelled in English?

The first and most obvious answer is simple, money. Even with the notoriously low pay in the manga translation industry, releasing manga in English is not cheap. Beyond translation costs, there is touch up to the artwork costs, editing costs, printing and distribution costs etc. This all adds up and can result in a series being unprofitable. Understandably, businesses don’t like to lose money and, rather than continuing to haemorrhage money, they might decide to just cancel the manga’s English release.

Leave a Comment

Manga Remakes: Examples And Why They’re Rare

Published November 15, 2021

It is a fact that remakes are becoming increasingly common across numerous entertainment industries. From films to gaming to anime, it feels like remakes are becoming more and more prevalent, perhaps overwhelmingly so. However, it occurred to me the other day that there aren’t that many manga remakes. Therefore, I thought it might be worth looking at a few examples of manga remakes and why they’re so rare compared to other media.

Let’s start off by looking at a few examples. A notable example of a manga remake would be Captain Harlock: Dimensional Voyage. Written by the legendary Leiji Matsumoto, author of the original 1978 Space Pirate Captain Harlock, with the art handled by Kōichi Shimahoshi, Captain Harlock: Dimensional Voyage retells the story of the original manga while expanding on certain story elements and connecting more strongly with Leiji Matsumoto’s other series.

The volume 2 English language cover for Captain Harlock: Dimensional Voyage.

2 Comments

The Fascinating History Of Horror Manga

Published October 25, 2021

It’s coming to that time of year again that I love so much, Halloween, when those who are unreceptive to the wonders of the horror genre suddenly become tolerant, perhaps even intrigued with horror media. Manga, as a storytelling medium, has a long and fascinating history with the horror genre and I thought it would be worth taking a look at how horror manga began and its place in the modern manga industry.

Horror manga began in the postwar period of Japan, first with the rise of lending libraries and then the popularity of the gekiga movement. In 1960, the legendary mangaka Shigeru Mizuki began releasing what would become his most famous series, GeGeGe no Kitarō, as a rental manga before later running in Weekly Shonen Magazine from 1965 until 1970. This series focused on yokai, spirits who appear in Japanese folklore and appear in a wide variety of forms and included many elements of horror, both genuine and comedic. GeGeGe no Kitarō proved to be very successful and has been adapted into numerous media such as anime, live-action films, video games etc.

Leave a Comment