Graphic Novel Reading Group discussion

It's time I started reading some manga, I think, and I don't know where to start. I was thinking Gunslinger Girl, Volume 1 and maybe Claymore, Vol. 1: Silver-Eyed Slayer. The latter is one of the few animes I have seen, and I really enjoyed the premise.

It's a big scary world, even just wandering into the manga aisle at Barnes & Noble. What do you suggest? I like Action Girls, and I am not scared of a little romance.

Do you like sci-fi? ES: Eternal Sabbath, #1 is a pretty good series.

I'm definitely down with SF. Cowboy Bebop was amazing!

Can I second this. I would love to read more manga but there is so much of it that it hard to get started. I love sci-fi, horror or urban fantasy so anything in that vein would be great but not mecha. I would also prefer to read something with an end so not something that drags on for 20+ volumes (unless it is exceptional).

Stuff I've read to date includes Akira, Grey, Deathnote and Old Boy.

My all-time favorite: Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind 1. Your local B&N may not have it on the shelf, but it's well worth ordering. It pretty much defines "classic manga" for me.

Thanks, Gang. That's three titles I will look into.

• Bride’s Story, A - Set in 19th century Caspian region, about brides and the region's culture (fantastic)

• Buddha - a fantasy-tinged and mythologized retelling of the Buddha's life (good)

• Children of the Sea - wildly imaginative contemplation on the ocean and its life (fantastic series that stalled with vol 4)

• Cross Game, Vols. 1 and 2 - completely adorable mix of baseball and romance—and I dont' enjoy baseball (fantastic)

• Death Note - supernatural thriller, cat and mouse (first half fanastic, flags in the midway, then picks up for the finale)

• Drunken Dream and Other Stories, A - classic manga by a female creator (not a fan, but it has its boosters)

• Eagle: The Making of an Asian-American President - political melodrama (engaging and thrillery)

• Emma - Pride & Prejudice-like story of maids, class-difference, and romance (good)

• Gogo Monster - bizarre fantasy based around an elementary school (good)

• Ice Wanderer, The - naturalistic short stories set in the vein of Jack London, penned by a master (good)

• Kingyo Used Books - short stories based on how different manga have a place in people's lives (not great for those who aren't avid mangaphiles)

• Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind - vintage Miyazaki, epic sci-fi fantasy in post-apocalyptic earth (amazing)

• Not Love but Delicious Foods Make Me So Happy - amusing restaurant reviews (okay)

• Ooku: The Inner Chambers - alt-history of the Japanese shogunate after a plague wipes out most men Y The Last Man-style (really much better than I'd imagined)

• Red Snow - classic manga treating village life in '50s Japan (didn't do it for me, but interesting look at another culture)

• Saturn Apartments - slice of life drama revoling around a window washer on a space station (one of my favourite current books)

• Town of Evening Calm, Country of Cherry Blossoms - one of my all-time favourites, an exploration of Hiroshima in the generations after the Bomb (awesome)

• Twin Spica - a fifteen year old girl dreams of going to space, heartfelt. may make you cry in public if you read it in public (lovely)

• Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror - bizarre horror (not a horror fan, but it had some fun ideas)

• Walking Man, The - a man walks around town, that's it (contemplative and quietly wonderful)

• What a Wonderful World! - interwoven short stories about young adults in Japan (good)

• Yotsuba&! - comedy about an eccentric 4/5 year old (completely adorable, very funny)

• Yukiko’s Spinach - French erotic manga (better than it sounds, hyper realistic illustration)

Other books I haven't reviewed:
Pluto by Urusawa - wonderful revisitation of an Astro Boy story
20th Century Boys by Urusawa - ranging thriller about the end of the society and the friends who can maybe save the earth
Wandering Son - book about junior high kids with gender discrepancy issues, thoughtful and provoking
Full Metal Alchemist - I'm reading this now, 16 vols in, and enjoying it more than I expected (shonen from a female author)
A Distant Neighbourhood by Taniguchi - A man goes back in time into his fifteen year-old body while retaining his memories, well done
Solanin - a twenty-something girl and her musician boyfriend struggle with meaning and desperation in contemporary Japan

That's all I got off the top of my head.

Oh, and from the author of Akira:

Domu is a fantastic supernatural horror book. Just a single volume.

Oh, and one more: Oishinbo is a series that follows a food critic around and deals with pairings, preparations, and histories of different foods. My favourite volume is Oishinbo: Sake, which deals with sake, shochu, and even Beaujolais. Entertaining and informative.

Really, in manga, there's pretty much something for everybody.

I'll second The Walking Man and Domu and also mention Vagabond and Lone Wolf and Cub, two awesome samurai series.

Seth wrote: "Really, in manga, there's pretty much something for everybody. "

You're right, there's so much different types of manga. It's weird when people think that it's all pretty much like Naruto.

Lone wolf and cub is awesome, besides that have read only a handful. But I think post Seth's recommends I will check out more manga. Have ordered for Drunken dreams already.

NYKen wrote: "I agree Pranay. Seth had some great recommendations. I read Death Note, and it was an interesting premise. Also, I didn't even know they made an anime based on the book, with the same title."

Deathnote is a 37 episode anime series which I was following and the initial episodes were damn interesting but loses steam midway. Will be watching it later.

Highschool of the Dead and Battle Angel Alita.

It depends on where you want to start... If you are looking into a classic, look into Lone Wolf and Cub or Samurai executioner, two great series.
OldBoy is a Great series, as well as one of the new ones I am into is Parasite. Recommend any of those 4

If you're starting out, i would suggest Deathnote and maybe cowboy bebop, if you've read Yotsuba&!, you can't not read kill me baby . after a while i would suggest more of the popular mangas if you seem like you might like any of them

There is so many epic manga I read lets see to list a few
Inuyasha
Code geass
Naruto
Bleach
Tegami bachi(letter bee)
Sword art online
Attack on Titan
Rosario vampire
Blue exorcist
Yu gi oh


I read so many I can't list them all xp hope this helps

I would suggest Eternal Sabbath, but M0rningstar has already done it.

A bit more mainstream, but also very good is 20th Century Boys.

And for something very easy and quick to read (and even more mainstream), GantZ.

Enjoy ;)

I was actually going to post this same question. I know this topic is old but I won't waste space by posting another one. I have recently started watching animated movies and shows again and there are next to no adult shows that are not Anime. So, after finishing Trigun on Netflix I've decided to finally try Manga.

I have finished Full Metal Alchemist, Trigun, and Berserk. I'm currently watching Soul Eater and Attack on Titan. Soul Eater is pretty good but it has too much comedy for me. Anime comedy isn't usually funny to me.

As far as Manga, I'm currently reading Death Note. I love it so far.

My birthday is in nine days and I have a limited about of money to spend and I wanted to spend it on Manga since it's a lot better bang for my buck than American comics. Although I love American comics and I've been reading then for a long time.

I prefer serious and more adult themed stories. I don't like any sexual nudity though. Any suggestions?

The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service 1 has a cool, creepy premise, and endearing characters, straddling the line between light horror + slice of life. There's a little bit of humour, but not over the top (I don't like anime/manga humour either.) The stories are episodic, so it's easy to try one volume to see if you like it.

Since you mentioned anime, have you seen Mononoke, Code Geass, LOGH, or Mushishi? For non-anime/non-Japanese animated fare that is enjoyable for adults, there are some films: Batman: Mask of Phantasm (noir); McDull, Prince de la Bun (has a hefty dose of local colour that might go over people's heads); Justice League: The New Frontier (political undertones); and When the Wind Blows (Cold War trauma.)

Thanks Morningstar. I'll check it out. That actually fits what I wanted since I didn't want to spend too much money.
The Soul Eater Anime is okay but it isn't anywhere near as good as Fullmetal Alchemist or Berserk. Fullmetal Alchemist is probably my favorite Anime so far, although I really enjoyed Trigun as well.

I love DC animated movies. They generally seem more mature than other animated movies. Batman Under the Red Hood is probably my favorite Batman animated movie.

I forgot to add, the only one I've seen out of the ones mentioned was Mushishi. I really liked it but didn't get very far before they took it off Netflix. I don't have cable so the only stuff I watch is what's on Netflix.

I recommend sampling different types of stories. Some of which you can just read the first manga in a series but know if you want to continue or not.

Great suggestions! I've read some, but not many overall!

Is Miyasaki really manga? I just see him as a wonderful Japanese storyteller...

Some really good ones I don't think I saw suggested so far is Sword Art online, Black Butler and Attack on Titan. Or if your looking for some really long ones definitely Fairy Tail and One piece.

Monster, Higurashi(pretty creepy), Deadman Wonderland, Domu(classic,older, creepy manga), Black Butler, Pandora Hearts, xxxHolic, Hellsimg Ultimate, Ao No Exorcist(Blue Exorcist),
Eureka 7,
Ghost in the Shell 1st
and 2nd Gig, Ergo Proxy
, so many others but I really need to stop while I'm ahead.

Black Butler, Vol. 1
Death Note, Vol. 1: Boredom
D.Gray-man, Vol. 1: Opening

If you can read Japanese:
暁のヨナ 1 Akatsuki no Yona 1
曇天に笑う 1 Donten ni Warau 1

D. Gray Man is without a doubt one of the best manga series I have ever read.

Seth wrote: "• Bride’s Story, A - Set in 19th century Caspian region, about brides and the region's culture (fantastic)

• Buddha - a fantasy-tinged and mythologized retelling of the Buddha's life (good)

• Chi..."

these are such great suggestions! The ones I have already read I agree with you on, so now I guess I have to read the rest :D

Assassination Classroom!!!

I am hero, death note, uzumaki

The English edition of Tokyo Ghoul was just released by Viz media last month.
It's the first manga I've ever read and I liked it a lot, but it had very strong horror elements and a lot of gore, so I guess ignore this if that's not your thing.

I second . Best manga ever created in my opinion.

The story is original, involving and intricate. The characters are well flesh out and individualistic. The art is amazing. It must be said that it is also VERY mature. There is extreme violence, along with horrific, nightmare inducing elements and sexual situations (some of such situations being violent as well). Stay away if you are sensitive to this. Embrace if you aren't.

Check this one out - Police scifi Drama -

Berserk, Vol. 1 is great for medieval fantasy.

One-Punch Man : Volume 1 is great for silly action

If you like Disney , Disney Manga: Magical Dance Volume 1 is pretty good. It's a two volume Duology .

I Am A Hero Vol. 1

Tokyo Ghoul Vol. 1

MPD, Psycho Vol. 1

High Score Girl #1

Uzumaki: Spiral Into Horror

Always start with the Big 3 of the early 90's:

Naruto, Vol. 01: Uzumaki Naruto
Bleach, Volume 01
One Piece: Romance Dawn

If you dig the sci-fi:

Gantz/1

Trigun: Deep Space Planet Future Gun Action!! Vol. 1

Blood Blockade Battlefront Volume 1

Yet another vote for Berserk, Vol. 1
and also a vote for: Akira, Vol. 1

Also, some other random suggestions:

Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 1

Psycho-Pass! Inspector Shinya Kogami Vol. 1

Death Note, Vol. 1: Boredom