Manga Questions

[bk_forever]

We have a small bookshop in town that sells seconds - books that have been damaged in transit, have torn or marked c overs etc. Basically, anything that isn't good enough to be sold as new.

Recently, they've had a rather random selection of Manga, so I've been buying some. I'm not really knowledgeable on the subject, I haven't read much, though I do recognise some titles from reviews I've read in S.F. and cult TV type magazines. I don't know whether what I'm buying is even any good, I'm mostly buying titles that I recognise and I'm restricted to what's available, which means odd volumes and getting Volume 1 of anything is rare, though I have managed in a couple of cases.

Here's what I've got so far:

Kenichi Sonoda Presents Gunsmith Cats - Volume 1 - Burst (Dark Horse Manga)
Yasuhiro Nightow's Trigun 1: The $$60,000,000,000 Man & 2: Wolfwood
Vampire Hunter D Volume 4: Tale of the Dead Town by Hideyuki Kikuchi
Kouta Hirano's Hellsing Volume 1
Blade of the Immortal Volumes 12-17 by Hiroaki Samura (This is what I'm reading at the moment and I absolutely love it!)

So, Manga fans out there - how am I doing? Anything I shouldn't have wated my money on? Anything I should avoid at all cost?

Also, any recommendations of what I should look out for? I'm flying blind here, so a bit of advice would be most welcome. Manga is difficult to come by (and to afford) for those of us who don't have access to specialist shops. As I don't get out much and can't travel far, I'm limited to what shows up in our little cheap shop (or occasionally ebay).

Please, help a Manga novice out!

Comments

[iantojjackh.livejournal.com]

I'd recommend Death Note. It's super awesome and I think you can probably find it online somewhere.

[bk_forever]

I'll make a note of that (no pun intended).

Is it multi-volume or just a single volume?

As with everything, it will depend a lot on price, so I'll keep my eyes open. (Just managed to get volumes 1 and 3 of Blade of the Immortal off ebay cheap =D Less than £3 each, including postage! I love it)

[iantojjackh.livejournal.com]

It's multi-volume. 12 I think. I

They also have an anime adaption, which is around 30 half-hour episodes. Eps can prolly be found on you tube.

[bk_forever]

Hmmm... 12 volumes... Guess I'd better start at the beginning!

Thanks for the rec, I'll see if I can track down a reasonably priced copy of vol. 1

[too-beauty.livejournal.com]

You can also read The Fullmetal Alchemist, I really like that and another one i enjoyed reading was Loveless, you find pieces of both of them and videos on youtube so you can see if that interests you

[bk_forever]

I'll add those to my list. I've heard of Fullmetal Alchemist, but I know I haven't seen that in my shop. I'll have to keep a lookout online. I'll take a look on youtube when I have time, thanks =)

*hugs*

[analineblue.livejournal.com]

What sorts of genres do you prefer? I tend to watch more anime than manga, but some of my favorites that I really enjoyed would be - Fruits Basket, Kare Kano, Death Note (which I saw someone else mentioned) and Loveless. ^_^ And if there's a particular genre you're interested in, I could probably rec some other stuff too.

I generally tend to read manga online, and this site is a good resource: http://www.mangahere.com Just search for the series up at the top there - I think they will pretty much have any of the major series you're looking for. (And if you have any problems finding stuff, let me know. ^_~) Happy reading!

(Another idea would be to check the local library - a lot of places are really increasing their manga collections as it becomes more popular, so you might be able to find some things that way.)

[bk_forever]

Our library is only small, so it's unlikely they'll stock manga at all - at least they never used to. They simply don't havev enough space. Plus, here in England, manga is really a special interest genre. The bigger libraries may have a manga section, but since I can't travel, that doesn't help, lol!

Thanks for the link though, that'll be useful!

I don't really know what genres I'm interested in as I'm just starting out. I've seen a bit of anime, but again that's hard to get hold of for me. I can't remember the title of the series my boyfriend was collecting. Brain like a seive, I have! I know he's got Akira - but that's one of the problems - he's got it, I haven't and he lives miles away =( (kicking myself for not buying the copy I saw at a fair a few weeks ago!)

I know I like samurai and ronin stuff - I must do because did I say I'm loving Blade of the Immortal? It's brilliant! Beyond that, I get a bit lost - I'm not sure what genres the books I've bought would be classed as. I'm a slow reader so it'll be a while before I get to those anyway. I'll probably intersperse them with the volumes of Blade, to make them last a bit longer (I managed to get Vols 1 & 3 on ebay earlier today!) I'll try the site you gave a link to, then I can take a look at a variety and see what I like, that might give me some ideas about genres. Definitely a novice, but eager to learn! Also, thanks for the recs, I'll add them to my list for next time I'm in town. The shop probably won't have any of them, but then again, you never know! =D

[analineblue.livejournal.com]

Ah, okay, that makes sense. Here in the US at least, a lot of even the smaller libraries have started carrying them, but I know it's different in different markets. *nod*

And okay, for samurai stuff: Rurouni Kenshin is great, and also Samurai Deeper Kyo, and maybe... Inuyasha (which is more fantasy, but also takes place in the samurai period, and has sword fighting and all that stuff, so you'd probably like it) :D

And I actually haven't heard of most of the stuff you listed, but they look like mostly "action" series/stuff with a lot of battles, etc. *nod* Most of the stuff I rec'd at first is more character -driven/romance stuff, but I still think you might find them enjoyable? Let us know what you end up finding - I'm curious! :D (I just came back from an anime convention over the weekend so I'm totally in the mood to read and watch a lot of things. ^_~)

[bk_forever]

I noticed you talking about the anime convention - it's what reminded me about the Manga I'd bought. The novel I'm reading is going nowhere very slowly, I wanted some action so I started Blade of the Immortal. I've only read part of Volume 12, so I don't know the backstory, but I'd still recommend it.

I'm not a HUGE romance fan (M/M excepted), but I like character-driven stuff. I'll look into the samurai titles you mention. I've heard of Inuyasha - my boyfriend downloaded tons of manga artwork and I got the job of sorting and labelling it all for him, which was quite fun but time consuming. There were quite a lot of Inuyasha pics amongst it. I love fantasy (as well as science fiction, some horror and vampires!), so I'll probably enjoy it! I do like plenty of action though, it's true.

I just wish there were more hours in the day to read and do everything I want to. I've discovered it's impossible to read while cross stitching unfortunately - I'd need another pair of eyes, and maybe extra hands =(

[analineblue.livejournal.com]

Ah, okay~ :D And yeah, I'm the same way, lots of times I just want some light reading and manga works great for that.

I'm actually not a huge romance fan either, but somehow some of the first manga series I got into ended up being in that genre, so I think that's why I always end up reccing them. ;) Inuyasha is great, too though, I'm sure you'd like it - it's pretty addictive once you get started.

I just wish there were more hours in the day to read and do everything I want to. - I definitely hear you there. :( Especially after I get back from a convention, I realize that there's SO much out there that I want to read and watch, I totally want to do it all at once! I always come back with a list of series I want to start on. ;)

<3

[bk_forever]

I think in this case it's my novel that's the light reading =S I dunno, I think I spoiled myself, I read a John Connolly novel (always brilliant) then started to read a very run-of-the-mill Police thriller set in London and it's just not thrilling me. I kinda like some of the characters, but why am I reading it? In fact why did I even buy it? I read Science Fiction, for crying out loud (and I may have been watching too much Stargate SG-1, I'm starting to sound like O'Neill). I have S.F. novels I want to read, I think I'll quit what I'm reading and start one of them. It's not unusual for me to have two or three novels on the go.

*sigh* Must be amazing to go to conventions. Wish I'd had the chance back when I could go places. Of course, way back then I didn't know conventions existed - I led a very sheltered life, lol!

[analineblue.livejournal.com]

Gah, yeah, I hate it when I'm in the middle of something and then realize that I know I'm wasting my time/not enjoying it as much as I could, but usually... I end up finishing things anyway because I feel this weird obligation once I've started? XD;;

I'm usually reading a few things (very slowly @_@) at the same time, too. Right now, I'm reading this young adult fantasy novel called Inkheart, and then some manga/comics. And 1Q84, by Murakami, which is about a million pages long and I'll probably never finish? XD;

Conventions are definitely a lot of fun, but when I was younger, I didn't really know about them either! I see these people there who are 14-15 years old and ... Yeah, when I was that age, I didn't know ANY of this stuff existed. *_*

<3

[bk_forever]

I used to make up stories in my head about my favourite TV shows(well, I still do), buit it wasn't until I discovered fanfiction that I realised, Hey, I'm not weird... other people do it too! Thousands of people do it too! That was when I finally realised there are people who understand me and who I fit in with. It's so liberating! I don't have to hide anymore, I can share what's inside my head with other people. I.m just sad I didn't find out until I was in my mid Forties.

[analineblue.livejournal.com]

it wasn't until I discovered fanfiction that I realised, Hey, I'm not weird... other people do it too! - OMG, YES. This is exactly what happened to me too. I can't even imagine how different my teenage/college years would have been if I'd discovered fanfic about my obsessions back then. *_* ...Then again, maybe it's a good thing - I'm not sure I would have found time to do those more important things like studying/practicing (I was a music major) if I'd been reading fic all the time! ;)

But yes, it's been incredibly liberating for me too. I discovered fandom when I was in my mid-twenties, and I haven't looked back since, lol XD Sometimes I wish I'd discovered it sooner too, but most of the time I'm just happy that I found it when I did. *_*

<3

[bk_forever]

The most important thing for me is that I now have friends I can chat to about things that interest me. Because I don't get out much, often the only person I see for days or even weeks is my 81 year old mother, and she's not interested in scifi, manga, anime, American comic books etc, and certainly not slash fiction! o_O

Before I had internet, I was lonely most of the time - now I'm not. It's saved my sanity! =D

[analineblue.livejournal.com]

Fandom has most certainly saved my sanity too. I've met some of my best friends online, and I know a lot of people have had similar experiences. It's something I think I would never have predicted either, from the time when I first started participating in fandom, posting my first fic online, until now, with everything it's given me. *waves happy fandom flag* LOL <3

[bk_forever]

We should be able to get internet access on prescription - I'm sure it saves people a fortune on therapy and mood-altering drugs etc!