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Never have liked it never will. I've tried to read the books, watch the movies or cartoons and it just isn't for me.
From: Utah | Registered: Jul 2003
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What is the big diffence between western comics and manga that makes some people like one and not the other? Is it the art style? The brusque dialogue? The subject matter?
-------------------- arachne3003.deviantart.com Current Obsession: Birds of Prey/Secret Six
From: Canada | Registered: Jul 2003
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Does anyone know if "CMX" is supposed to stand for something? (C... Manga... X...?) Or is it just supposed to evoke a "cool" shortening of the word "COMICS"?
I don't think it works that well as a brand name -- it doesn't really make me think of manga so much as dirt bikes...
Registered: Jul 2003
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The article in TIME didn't say whether DC's imprint would feature original or reprint material, or even what CMX stands for.
As to why manga appeals to some and not others, that's hard to say. My exposure to it has been limited, as I mentioned above. I pick up manga titles here and there and look through them (as I do with other comics); if something makes me want to read further, I'll buy it. Since that hasn't happened very often, I assume that the subject matter of most manga titles doesn't appeal to me.
-------------------- The Semi-Great Gildersleeve - writing, super-heroes, and this 'n' that
From: The Stasis Zone | Registered: Jul 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Arachne: Which raises the question of what sort of subject matter you do like.
Well, since you asked ... I don't have any set criteria for a comic. But I do go for books that seem to be have some depth to the stories, or at least offer a surprising twist of old themes (some recent examples: The Crossovers, Frankenstein Mobster, and perennial favorite, Strangers In Paradise).
I'm not saying manga titles don't have that, but I haven't seen many that, on first glance, do. I usually give a comic 2-3 pages to sell itself to me; if it can't do it in 2-3 pages, it probably can't in 20-plus.
Some of the manga I've seen does seem to be aimed at 13 to 16 year olds (the target audience of shojo manga, according to TIME). On the opposite side of that is "adult" manga titles with graphic sex and violence. Neither type appeals to me and I haven't found much in between (not that I've really been looking).
-------------------- The Semi-Great Gildersleeve - writing, super-heroes, and this 'n' that
From: The Stasis Zone | Registered: Jul 2003
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There does seem to be a lot of manga directed at teenagers, with stories about teens - it sounds contradictory coming from a Legion fan, but I find that subject matter gets repetitive - same reason I don't read a lot of superhero books. I have liked much of the "non-teenage" manga I've picked up, relying on reviews that grab my interest. So maybe it's a matter of finding the right content amid what seems to be masses of manga at the CBS.
Sometimes I get hung up on the art - the Death manga that came out this summer, "At Death's Door" for example - Death just didn't look right with big innocent eyes and a perky little smile - it put me right off, and I only started to read the story yesterday - but I'm enjoying it. (There's a nice little section in which Edgar Allan Poe falls in love with Despair.)
I tend to associate manga with the "big eyes" look, but there is a range of styles. Some of the books seems to mix the more cartoony look with a more realistic depiction (which I prefer), depending on the character (such as in Tezuka's Buddha).
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Currently reading Akira. Now that's a comic book. Six volumes of beautiful B&W art, a good story about lots of characters with really bad aim. Althought it wont appeal to the anti-decompression crowd (it takes 13 pages to show Tokyo's destruction) but I'm still loving it so far. The price? Twenty five to Twenty Seven dollars a book, at 300-400 pages each.
From: San Juan, Puerto Rico | Registered: Jul 2003
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The art style is what kept me away most. The big eyes didn't bother me as much as lack of detail and the roughness. I'll admit I much prefer color in my comics, too.
But I'm much more into story than art, and I'm glad to have found a few that I enjoy quite a bit (mentioned on the first page of this thread).
-------------------- Geek Watch
From: Standing beside you in Ferndale, MI | Registered: Aug 2003
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Just for refference, shoujo manga is not simply aimed at teenage girls. Shoujo manga literally means "girls comics" and shonnen manga literally means "boy's comics", but these days things aren't so limited.
Shoujo manga are usualy stories that are driven by character. Most horror and psychological thrillers are in this category, along with romantic dramas and stories revolving around gender issues. The art is usually more detailed than shonnen manga.
Shonnen manga involves action based plotlines such as war stories and romantic comedies. The art is simpler to suit the faster pace of the stories.
Both kinds of manga are aimed at all ages, but unfortunately, most of what's been translated is aimed at teenagers. (Part of this may be because the more adult oriented stories get written without the extra phonetic spelling, which makes it harder to read and translate.)
-------------------- arachne3003.deviantart.com Current Obsession: Birds of Prey/Secret Six
From: Canada | Registered: Jul 2003
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A question about Akira. Doesn't the manga in it differ from mainstream? It seems what I've seen of it looks to be different. And what exactly is the story?
From: Utah | Registered: Jul 2003
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quote:Originally posted by He Who Wanders: ...and perennial favorite, Strangers In Paradise
I've heard you talk about Strangers in Paradise before Greg. Exactly what is it about? And how long has it been running?
From: Utah | Registered: Jul 2003
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Now there are a few manga series I'm following, mainly because I found some that aren't based on teenage/high school characters. I really liked President of Japan and am following Death Note regularly. The food manga is fun, too - Iron Wok Jan, Yakitate - although I doubt I'll be picking up all 19 (so far?) volumes of Iron Wok Jan, just because of the cost.
Ode to Kirihito is sitting on the shelf, waiting for the next snowstorm - a real brick at 822 pages. I've become a huge Tezuka fan.
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I've been a fan of Japanese material since 1966. 8TH MAN, ASTRO BOY, PRINCE PLANET, GIGANTOR, KIMBA THE WHITE LION, MARINE BOY... It kinda dried up in the 70's (there seemed a general prejudice against all "foreign" tv shows for the most part) until I found STAR BLAZERS. Wow.
There's such a crossover between cartoons, comics, etc., in Japan-- and usually much more respect when it comes to translations. While the stories may change, usually if something goes from comics to cartoons or vice-versa, it LOOKS exactly the same. If you've got a style of drawing characters, doesn't it make sense to MAINTAIN that style in different media?
I've seen a LOT of different style used in Japanese comics... over the last 20-25 years of so, my favorites have included 2001 NIGHTS, LONE WOLF AND CUB, GUNSMITH CATS, CANNON GOD EXAXXION... when Dark Horse stopped doing the monthlies I felt "forced" to buy SUPER MANGA BLAST to keep up with EXAXXION. A few things in there I did like-- CLUB 9 and WHAT'S MICHAEL? in particular. But the other series, despite months on end of intense effort on my part, I just COULD NOT get into!! I have to put it down to the "storytelling" skills involved, not the subject matter of drawing styles. WHY can Kenicha Sonada (GUNSMITH CATS, EXAXXION) tell such RIVETTING stories that pull you in and not let go, while some of these guys you can't follow from page to page, or even panel to panel, no matter how nice it looks? (And the SAME goes for too many American comics "illustrators"-- stunning pictures, NO storytelling skills!!!)
Now that SMB has been cancelled, I fear I'll be "forced" to buy "digest" size books in order to read the rest of EXAXXION. My comics-shop guy repeatedly told me these reprint volumes are EXACTLY like they are in Japan. He's MISSING a big point, though. The "digest" books in Japan are ALSO reprints! The stories tend to be originally printed BIGGER-- the size of US comics. One look at Sonada's art and you KNOW it was designed for the bigger size. ANY shrinkage reduces the clarity of the art, and makes it harder to appreciate what you're looking at. Is "convenience" (a book you can slip into your coat pocket) the ONLY important factor in marketing? And an editor at Dark Horse told me the DISTRIBUTORS who manage the book store market pretty much FORCES them to print those books at that size, because those guys won't BUY anything else for the books stores they're involved with! (I just hate-- in anything-- the idea of a very few people making decisions for EVERYONE ELSE on the planet...)
Oh yeah... and does Stan Sakai's USAGI YOJIMBO fit into this category? It's just about the MOST "Japanese" thing I read-- but Stan live in the US! (The reprint collections of his series are also the smaller format-- and like everything else, I PREFER the "regular" US-size comics. So I try never to miss an issue as they come out.)
Registered: Aug 2003
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I don't know if Usagi Yojimbo is considered manga, but I'd certainly recommend it.
With the proliferation of non-Japanese creators, I'm not sure what the current definition of manga is.
There's an interesting-sounding anthology of new manga, edited by Ilya, The Mammoth Book of Best New Manga, representing creators from many different nations. Interview at Forbidden Planet blog.
Hyperpath: Email this page to someone!
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