These little books born in Japan are adored by children, teenagers and even some adults, who, in general, are passionate about Japanese culture. Finding interesting manga is not always an easy task, especially when you don’t know anything about it yourself! What is a manga? How to choose it for a girl or for a boy? What are the best sales of 2022? We will explain everything to you ! Immerse yourself in the fascinating world of manga and their mangakas (authors)!
The manga, a gift of choice for Christmas!
If the manga can be the ideal gift for Christmas, it is also because it is not very excessive. It is therefore possible to buy several or even a whole series, provided that it does not contain 102 volumes like One Piece.
A manga is a japanese comic which developed in the Land of the Rising Sun at the end of the 19th century. In Japan, the term manga refers to comics in general. This is not the case in Europe where this same term designates the small manga book, which moreover reads the opposite of a French book.
Most series are printed in black and white, a way to limit printing costs as many volumes can be released each year. In Japan, most manga first appear in specialized magazines in the form of serials to follow over the issues before becoming series in their own right. They are then often adapted into animated series or films. To propose a manga for Christmas is to allow a connoisseur to enlarge his collection, and a neophyte to discover thefascinating world of Japanese manga !
What are the different types of existing manga?
There are several types of manga that cater to different audiences, although most are read regardless of the gender or personality of the reader. In general, when we like manga, we like them all!
The Shonen-like manga:
It is the best known of all manga, and it is generally intended for a male audience. Let’s mention Bleach, Naruto or One Piece among the best known Shonen. Shonen audiences tend to be teenagers and generally tell the story of a character who is born weak or idle and becomes a superhero through training.
The Shojo-like manga:
Unlike the shonen, the shoujo manga is aimed more at a female and essentially young audience. In shojo stories, it is common to find young teenage girls dealing with the problems of their ages: love, betrayal, friendship, society. Perhaps the best known shojo manga is Fruit Basket, but other titles are starting to overtake the master!
The Seinen-like manga:
This third type of manga is intended in particular for a adult audience, masculine and mature. Few supernatural powers in these manga, but often dark mystery stories. Death Note is probably the benchmark for seinen manga.
The Josei-like manga:
It is the opposite of seinen and therefore targets women between the ages of 15 and 30. It’s a mix of shojo and seinenwhere emotional relationships are addressed in a more mature context.
The Yuri-like manga:
This type of manga is to be reserved exclusively for adults, as it frequently speaks and features women in homosexual relationships, and may include images of erotic scenes.
The Yaoi-like manga:
As you will have understood, Yaoi is the opposite of Yuri, and features boys in the context of homosexual relations. Like its counterpart the Yuri, it often offers erotic scenes and is therefore reserved exclusively for adults ! Other types of manga exist, but these are the main ones to know in order to aim as accurately as possible if you wish to offer them.
How to choose a manga according to the person who receives it?
First of all, find out about the tastes of the person who will receive the manga. Also try to find out which titles you already own. Manga fans can indeed have mind-blowing collections, and you have every chance of making a duplicate.
Also find out about the story of the chosen manga. Some talk about social relationships, others about superheroes, and still others about romance. Do not rely only on the cover, the drawings can be attractive and hide a Yuri or a Yaoi not to put in all hands therefore.
best for find interesting manga is probably to take advice from a store merchant. The specialists of these particular departments are often real specialists passionate about manga, Japan, Cosplay and would not miss Japan Expo for anything in the world every year!
What are the most popular manga titles?
As we explained to you just before, there are Shojos mangas and Shonens mangas, the former are therefore more intended for girls and the latter for boys. There really is no age for read manga and enthusiasts sometimes display impressive collections.
The three best Shojo manga in 2022:
- 12 by Nao Maita, which tells the story of Hanabi, a 12-year-old girl who is no longer really a child, but not yet a teenager. Like all young girls in the world, she asks herself thousands of questions such as kissing a boy, having her period, etc.
- Orange of Ichigo Takano who is the manga reference Shojos… A pop and modern graphic design, a hint of poetry and a handful of science fiction were enough for this social romance to conquer the world. Follow the funny letters from the future!
- Nana from Yazawa Aï who is one of the most big success current events in Japan with an anime series in the works. The story tells of two young girls, both named Nana, in love with the same boy, but with radically different characters. A social romance, set in one of Tokyo’s most shojo districts, Shibuya.
Offering one of these mangas will certainly please!
The three best Shonen manga in 2022:
- Spy x Family by Tatsuya Endo recounts thestory of a spy who must “found a family” to carry out a mission. When he finds a wife and daughter willing to start his family, he is unaware that one is an ESPer, and therefore reads minds and the other is a murderer. A film adapted from the series was released in 2022, the sequel is planned for 2023…
- ONE-PUNCH MAN by One and Yusuke Murata immerses us in the life of Saitama. He is an idle young man, without a specific goal, but who corresponds to the search of a crab man who seeks to recruit a boy ” with a chin split like an ass. One day, he meets the one the crab-man is looking for and decides to save him. For this, he will become a modern-day superhero.
- Demon Slayer by Koyoharu Gotouge was launched in 2016, in the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump magazine and since then its success has only grown. It tells the life of T. Kamado, the child of a family of coal sellers whose father dies. He will then have to face the difficulties of life to manage to give a little happiness around him.
In the ranking of Shonen best sellers, there are also the unbeatable Pokémon, Naruto, Dragon Ball or One Piece to name a few, but they are so well known that there is hardly any need to present them.
They are equally popular with boys and girls. With these mangas, you will delight both neophytes than connoisseursbut inquire discreetly before, because the real enthusiasts buy the volumes of a series as soon as it is officially released.