Manga with GREAT art and plot
12 years ago
Posts: 9
Ares
HunterxHunter (anime probably better)
Claymore
Black Cat
Law of Ueki (I've only seen the anime though)
Full Metal Alchemist
Alive: Saishuu Shinkateki Shounen <-- The art gets better later
Bloody Monday
Kuroshitsuji
Lost+brain
Hikaru no go
Death Note (anime)
Dawn - tsumetai te <--though art may be more up to preferance
Eternal Sabbath
12 years ago
Posts: 537
How strange, no one has mentioned any of my (matching) favourites yet. Well, that leaves more manga for me to recommend:
Series
Kosuke's Gangsta.
A craggy masterpiece. The description doesn't do it justice. The bleak setting, the characters' light-hearted approach and their dire past, the slowly interweaving lines of action - they all merge beautifully due to Kosuke-sensei's smooth art.
Blood Alone by TAKANO Masayuki
If you have some patience this work will provide you with one of the best storylines in disguise. Plus, innovative paneling sets a unique atmosphere.
Usotsuki Mi-kun to Kowareta Ma-chan: Totteoki no Uso by IRUMA Hitoma/ SATOU Atsuki
Short suspenseful read. Ambiguous chracters and multi-layered narration.
Orange (BENJAMIN)
A vivid portrayal of youths in Asia. Bold, urban, rich in contrast - yet, this graphic novel leaves you with a sense of emptiness. It is the same, empty hollowness that drives the protagonists unto the skyscaper's rooftops.
YAZAWA Ai's Kagen no Tsuki
While the art may be good in a common way, skilful narration will make you remember this story.
Kieli by KABEI Yukako/ TESHIROGI Shiori
Atypical shoujo with a dark ambience. Short but worthwhile.
"Bungaku Shoujo" to Shi ni Tagari no Douke by NOMURA Mizuki/ KOUSAKA Rito
Intriguing murder mystery. More based on the characters' past and psyche insted of action-based plot points. Unpredictable.
Made in Heaven by SAKURAI Ami and YASHIKI Yukari
Alternating narrative about the struggle of two individuals in a future setting. A full circle.
OZAKI Kaori's Touhou Shinigami: Meteor Methuselah Gaiden
The short-series prequel to Immortal Rain swept me off my feet.
One-shots:
Boichi's Hotel
Peculiar in narration and art. Boichi-sensei knows his craft when he explores a genre using such a distinctively different tones for each story.
Koe no Katachi by Ooima Yoshitoki
One of the rare cases where a mangaka doesn't shy away from throwing the truth right into your face. Unpleasant as it may be.
Hozumi's Shiki no Zenjitsu
If you don't mind short stories, give this collection a try. It illuminates moments during people's lives like snapshots by a photo journalist: contextual, yet over-arching.
[color=#8A795D]"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[/color]
To be savoured:
- Blood Alone by TAKANO Masayuki
- Otoyomegatari by MORI Kaoru
- Gangsta. by Kohske
- Seishun Kouryakuhon by AKIZUKI Sorata
12 years ago
Posts: 102
Sorry, I can't link names, but
W Juliet
Is a cute romance somewhat drama gender bender. The mangaka has a unique style that no other I have read is the same, and the plot has many small and large story arcs. The style of art us not abnormal, nor does it blend in with others, and it is not shoujo with large eyes. 😀
"'The lives I've taken will be paid for with my own life.' That's one way to look at it...but it doesn't mean they come back once you die. Lives can also be paid for by the sword; by redeeming yet other lives. That is why 'Hitokiri Battousai' is still alive in the Meiji Era."
12 years ago
Posts: 50
Thanks to everyone who helped me out by replying to this thread. 😀
It's just so hard to find decent manga after you have read a lot already, though I can't really compare to the REAL manga fans out there...
