I’ve been selling some items on eBay recently and one of the items I was going to sell was the first volume of the manga Battle Angel Alita. When talking to a friend about it, I mentioned that the reason I was getting rid of it wasn’t because I didn’t like it, it was because Kodansha released hardcover deluxe releases sometime ago. While looking it up, I learned that Kodansha have now released a box set containing all of these deluxe editions. However, when I mentioned how much the box set was, about €100, my friend recoiled at the price. Even though it represented a saving compared to buying the manga volumes individually, this experience made me consider how manga box sets, while seemingly affordable, can be quite off-putting to some people.
I should probably begin by explaining what a manga box set is. On occasion, a manga publishing company may choose to release either an entire series or a part of that series in a box set with a card/plastic case and sometimes an extra or two whether it be a small artbook, an unreleased chapter, stickers etc. They also tend to be priced so that the box set is a little cheaper than purchasing the series individually. For someone looking to fill up their manga collection, these box sets prove to be quite an affordable method to do so although that is not to say that there aren’t some issues.
First off, it should be obvious that these box sets are developed with the intent to be sold to people who haven’t been collecting the series. With these box sets only representing a slight discount compared to collecting the series individually, it only represents a saving to those who have either yet to start the series or those who only own a volume or two. While this is completely logical to do, representing an easy way to catch up on your manga reading, I do understand the frustrations that some fans might have for not being able to get the extra content cheaply or owning just enough of the series already that buying the box set would be a little more expensive than buying the rest of the volumes individually.
It also doesn’t help that the upfront cost is quite high. While representing a saving overall, I can also understand that being asked to pay upwards of €100 can be quite intimidating to some people who may prefer to buy the volumes individually, spending more money overall but essentially paying in installments rather than one lump sum.
So far, it might seem that I’m being quite pessimistic about manga box sets in general and, to those that believe that is my ultimate point, I would say you are wrong. As I stated before, these box sets prove incredibly valuable to those who are starting their manga collections or are behind on certain series. I can distinctly remember buying numerous box sets in the early days of my manga collecting such as the Death Note box set, the Ouran High School Host Club box set, the Fullmetal Alchemist box set etc.
Manga box sets also proved to be quite helpful when I was looking to catch up on the Naruto manga as I was able to purchase the last box set, containing volumes 49-72, saving me a decent amount of money and allowing me to finish the series. I half-wish that more manga publishers would release box sets in chunks so that fans who have fallen behind in their collecting have a cheaper method to finish off their series. However, I understand that the more you divide the box sets, the less money the consumer will save overall and the more awkward it’ll be for publishers to sell them, keeping in mind that a large amount of manga sales continue to be in brick and mortar stores such as Barnes and Noble, Powells etc.
Ultimately, I still believe that purchasing manga through box sets is still one of the more affordable ways to collect manga. However, I realise now that even this seemingly affordable method has limitations that may cause people to prefer to buy manga individually instead. Let me know your thoughts on manga box sets, which have been your favourite, whether you find it easier to buy manga through a box set or individually and any additional information you might have on the topic.
Hopefully you have found this article interesting and informative and, if you wish to seek any of the works I mentioned, don’t hesitate to use amazon.co.uk or amazon.com for all of your needs!