Hey folks,

one of my younger relatives is turning 15 in two weeks time, and I thought I'd introduce him - and corrupt him - to the vast world of manga and comics.
He used to watch a few popular anime series when he was younger like Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Naruto, One Piece, Detective Conan and Blue Dragon, so he isn't completely unfamiliar with the medium's style.

Now on to the genres: Science-fiction or Mecha are his favourites. Action is a must, and comedic elements will be appreciated. As for romance, it's okay as long as it isn't the story's main focus. His favourite films include Star Wars, Star Trek and Back to the Future. Recently, he's also enjoyed most of the Marvel comic adaptions to the silver screen, the Transformers series, Pacific Rim and TV series like Big Bang Theory, Sherlock and Doctor Who. However, other Science-fiction productions like Andrew Niccol's In Time and Planet of Apes: Prevolution were met with distaste. Plus, he isn't too fond of archaic Fantasy settings (i.e. The Lord of the Rings) or of hard Science-fiction (i.e. 2001: Space Odyssey). More contemporary settings or a blend of Fantasy and Science-fiction are fine, though.

I have already conducted a genre search but there's another hurdle that puts me in a bind: He just can't stomach anything too dark, scary, tragic, graphic or gory, and he dislikes any overly realistic, serious or thought-provoking stories. So series like Until Death Do Us Part - one of my favourite action manga by the way - are out of question. I'm considering the Full Metal Panic! titles but I'm not sure if he'd like this sort of whacky Japanese humour or the sequel's darker storyline.

A more or less light-hearted Shounen series would probably suit him best. It needs to be licensed and possibly complete or actively published in English since he can't read any Japanese. English is his second language, and his language skills are decent for his age - thanks to all the non-localised games he's playing. Something along the lines of Ratman would be perfect - if only it were still licensed in English...

If you can't find any fitting manga, I'd be willing to take comic recommendations, too. Just as long as it isn't too light (i.e. The Smurfs or Asterix) or too bleak (i.e. Transmetropolitan or Sin City).

I know these criteria are a lot to ask for but thanks in advance, anyway.


1st choice:
- Tiger & Bunny (SAKAKIBARA Mizuki)
- Psyren

2nd choice:
- Full Metal Panic!
- Katekyo Hitman Reborn!
- Kekkaishi
- Rurouni Kenshin
- Accel World

Saved for the future:
- Hoshi no Samidare
- Fullmetal Alchemist
- World Trigger
- All You Need Is Kill


1st UPDATE:
Updated the list and added the part about hard Sf to the description.

2nd UPDATE:
Updated and modified the list.

3rd UPDATE:
Updated the list.


Last edited by Tripitaka at 1:08 pm, Aug 15 2014

________________
"Stories are what death thinks he puts an end to.
He can't understand that they end in him, but they don't end with him."
- Ursula K. Le Guin, Gifts

To be savoured:
- Blood Alone by TAKANO Masayuki
- Otoyomegatari by MORI Kaoru
- Gangsta. by Kohske
- Seishun Kouryakuhon by AKIZUKI Sorata

Psyren would, indeed, be a good choice.
I didn't read it, but World Trigger also seems like a good fit. Although, I don't know what is the licensing status, it may be available only digitally, so I don't know if it will work.

While he may not enjoy something overly serious, I don't see how anyone could not enjoy one of the best shounen mangas ever

Fullmetal Alchemist

O-Parts Hunter maybe, it isn`t overly dramatic, i just find the ending and one of the bad guys off putting, but all in all a light read.

Maybe Planetes? It might be too serious/thought provoking, it's seinen, but I don't think it's more serious/thought provoking than Doctor Who.

Full Metal Panic was one of my first manga and I enjoyed it. Eureka Seven seems like it would be dark but I haven't read the manga, only seen the anime. Haven't read Psyren or Accel World.

Anyway, good luck, I hope he likes whatever you choose.

Thanks for the recommendations so far.

@Oniluap and @Smillo
World Trigger and O-Parts Hunter sound promising; I'll definitely check the first 5-10 chapters.

@_D_
I have thought of Fullmetal Alchemist myself but I'd rather have him read something closer to his comfort zone for the beginning. Maybe I should have mentioned that he hasn't watched any anime for years, so I don't know how much he'll be willing to engage into the new medium, let alone into something that may look like a historical Fantasy setting at first glance. Therefore, I'd rather recommend him FMA after he took the bait.

@hkanz
I have the same concern for Eureka Seven. I've looked into it once before, and I've also been told by friends that it might be too serious, so I'm re-considering my choice. I'll leave it on the list for now but once I find some more fitting titles, I'll kick it out.
Actually, I've got Planetes on my wish list, and it may be too deep for him from what I gathered from the tags and reviews. He seems to watch Doctor Who mainly for its weird style and odd situations, which is why I doubt that he thinks much about its real life references.

Keep them coming!


Last edited by Tripitaka at 4:48 am, Aug 9 2014

________________
"Stories are what death thinks he puts an end to.
He can't understand that they end in him, but they don't end with him."
- Ursula K. Le Guin, Gifts

To be savoured:
- Blood Alone by TAKANO Masayuki
- Otoyomegatari by MORI Kaoru
- Gangsta. by Kohske
- Seishun Kouryakuhon by AKIZUKI Sorata

At that age, bleach and deathnote was enough to get me hooked. Code Geass would probably be a better option though. Maybe Air Gear. I doubt FMA would be an issue.

Chances are if you gave him attack on titan, you'll probably have to pick his brain out of the ceiling.

Try Break Blade or a Gundam anime

How about Ultimo? It's got some mecha, I think, but it's also co-authored by Stan Lee. That might be a good bridge.

All You Need Is Kill - edge of tomorrow is based on the novel too, so he can watch and read it.
2001 Ya Monogatari - for hard science

Last edited by whitespade at 10:14 pm, Aug 8 2014

Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon (Novel) maybe? I think the anime is licensed, at least.
Edit:...but you can ignore o-o

Last edited by MaskingTape at 1:14 am, Aug 9 2014

To be honest, this



really narrows down what we can recommend, since all the really great mangas include several of those.

Akumetsu if he is a white North American.
Trigun Maximum if he is a native North American.
Air Gear if he is a black North American.
Until Death Do Us Part if he is an Asian related North American.
Aiki if he is a normal person .

Thanks again for putting up with my complicated request. I could've never come up with so many suggestions on my own.

@RockoDyne
I ruled out Bleach because it's one of those never-ending series that are bound to decline in quality sooner or later. I'm keeping tabs on Air Gear already, and I'll think about Death Note and Code Geass. I'll also keep FMA in mind.
And yeah, Shingeki no Kyojin would surely be too much for him. Some of the drawings alone would freak him out.

@_D_
Break Blade was on my list until I saw that its license had become defunct. I'm not too familiar with the Gundam franchise; could you recommend me a specific manga to start with?
I realise how hard his aversion makes it to find anything decent. But he shies away at the slightest mention of body fluids, and don't get me started on psychological stuff... Maybe he could compromise on the serious and thought-provoking part if there's enough action and comedy to balance it out.
Still, thanks for your effort.

@Snakering
A mix of American comic and manga would be great. I'll definitely look Ultimo up.

@whitespade
I totally forgot about All You Need Is Kill; thanks for the reminder. Though the ending might turn him off.
As for 2001 Nights, I left any (classic) hard Sf (e.g. 2001: Space Odyssey) out of my consideration because it bores him. Maybe he's just too young to understand and appreciate all those references that make the genre so intriguing.

@MaskingTape
Too bad Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon (Novel) doesn't have a licensed manga version. But thanks anyway.

@aagcnet
Akumetsu and Aiki aren't licensed. Besides, the former would blow his mind in a way I wouldn't want to be held responsible for.
I've considered Trigun and UDDUP before and decided against them because the former's a western setting and the latter would probably be too serious for him in the long run.
I'm still in the process of checking Air Gear.

Any other suggestions?


Last edited by Tripitaka at 10:00 am, Aug 12 2014

________________
"Stories are what death thinks he puts an end to.
He can't understand that they end in him, but they don't end with him."
- Ursula K. Le Guin, Gifts

To be savoured:
- Blood Alone by TAKANO Masayuki
- Otoyomegatari by MORI Kaoru
- Gangsta. by Kohske
- Seishun Kouryakuhon by AKIZUKI Sorata

Kekkaishi and The Law of Ueki are two of my favorite (relatively) light-hearted shounen action series.

And the Tiger & Bunny series (Tiger & Bunny (SAKAKIBARA Mizuki)) could also work, since it's basically Japan's take on the American superhero genre and Viz loves licensing all its spinoff manga in English.