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How long does a manga have to be for you to call it "epic"? For me, 10 volumes is a reasonable measure, because it's enough for some really detailed world-building. Then again, I'm sure that there are those of you who would only call a twenty-volume manga an epic, or maybe something even longer than that! I'd really like to hear your thoughts about what you define as an epic length, and why that length is epic for you. (Cripes, this is starting to sound dirty... Sorry, sorry. My brain is that of a twelve-year-old's.)
Here's a list of my favorite manga epics, as an example.
Between 10 and 20 volumes:
Claymore
Crimson Hero
Death Note
Full Metal Alchemist
Gokusen
Goong
Ichi the Killer
Leviathan
Mars
Monster
MPD Psycho
Nana
Nodame Cantabile
Ouran High School Host Club
Perfect Girl Evolution
Pet Shop of Horrors
Sanctuary
Skip Beat
Tokyo Crazy Paradise
Tramps Like Us
XXXHolic
Between 20 and 30 volumes:
20th Century Boys
Basara
Bleach
Hikaru no Go
His and Her Circumstances
Lone Wolf and Cub
The Ravages of Time
Vagabond
Yawara
Zipang
Over 30 volumes, heavens help us all!
Berserk
From Eroica With Love
Prince of Tennis
Slam Dunk
Series that almost made it onto my favorites' list include Dangu, which I love, but sadly ended at 9 volumes; Naruto, which is certainly long enough at 40 volumes, but failed to hold my interest; Inuyasha, which also failed to keep me involved for 52 volumes; Ranma, which was charming, but ultimately ran out of steam long before its 38th volume; Homunuculus, which is my personal GOD of manga, but alas, is only up to its 8th volume; Rurouni Kenshin, which had everything going for it at 28 volumes, but mysteriously managed to bore me; Samurai Deeper Kyo, because I haven't read enough of its 38 volumes to judge it yet; Blade of the Immortal, which I have also not read enough of to judge; Boys Over Flowers, which was 36 volumes long but made me want to KILL SOMEONE long before I reached the end; Animal X, which is awesome from an ecological and emotional point of view, but becomes tiresome because of the protagonist being repeatedly raped; Koukou Debut, which is lovely if rather typical shoujo fare at 9 volumes; Fruits Basket, which is sweet but unconvincing at 23 volumes; Lovely Complex, which inspired rather unlovely thoughts about castrating the main male character; Eternal Sabbath, which is fabulous but unfortunately just 8 volumes long; and, finally, Beauty Pop, which is also enjoyable but sadly only 8 volumes long.
... Wow. Almost forgot to breathe, there.
There are plenty of epics that I haven't read yet (happily enough!), so there's a lot out there for me to explore. Feel free to offer up your own favorite epics, and if you liked something I disliked (or vice versa), feel free to discuss that, too.
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I'm also curious as to what kind of epics you like, and why. Is there a particular kind of theme that appeals to you in a long manga series? Or a particular kind of main character? What makes an epic addictive and worth investing in? What are the manga epics that have kept you up at night, flipping pages until your fingers cramped, or hunching over your computer until your eyes dried up into bloodshot little prunes?
You've already seen my favorite epics mentioned above, and theyr'e the ones I've found most addictive, although of course there are uber-addictive ones even among those. (Claymore, for example, or Berserk, or Monster. I seriously thought I'd die if someone pulled me away from those stories!)
Maybe it's a personality thing, but I find shounen/seinen epics generally more addictive than shoujo/josei ones. Not that I don't enjoy stuff like Nana or Ouran High School Host Club, but I didn't think I'd suffer from heart failure if I had to stop reading them. Well, the one josei series that hooked me ruthlessly was Mars. It was right up there with Claymore, insofar as addiction was concerned. Nodame Cantabile is pretty damn awesome, too... But it's like fine chocolate; I can't have too much of it at once. I feel weirdly like I'm wasting it, or that I should be taking my time to appreciate its deeper undercurrents. With action-packed or suspense-driven epics like Death Note, it feels great to just flip pages and get engrossed in the narrative. But with gentler and subtler epics (like Nodame Cantabile), I feel the need to pause and take a deep breath, the way I would during a scenic walk.
Gosh, it's tough being an otaku!
It's a tragedy that there are so few yaoi/yuri epics out there. I mean, can you imagine a lesbian take on Claymore, or a gay take on Berserk? (Or even on Monster. Holy hell, Johann and Tenma would make the most amazing star-crossed lovers ever!) Haha. Okay, so I sound like just another queer fangirl, but I really wish there was more -- uh -- variety to the romantic aspects of epic series. On the one hand, I understand that it's a financial limitation; yaoi and yuri usually sell less than shoujo or shounen, so naturally there would be fewer publishers willing to invest in a full-length epic series featuring LGBT characters. But on the other hand, I still wish that there were beautifully fleshed-out epics featuring queer protagonists.
Well, a dyke can dream. Until then, do talk about epics with me! And suggest stuff, or argue about stuff, or... stuff. Yeah. Sorry, I just ran out of vocabulary. (It's -- what -- dawn? Nearly. Time for me to sleep.)
G'bye!
Last edited by pearlesque at 5:54 am, Aug 25 2007
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"They sicken of the calm, who knew the storm." - Dorothy Parker.