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Buying manga
(Unfortunately, this uses money.)
If you're interested in manga, it might be a good idea to sample some. There are 3 main ways you can do this - borrow some from a friend who isn't too fussy about the condition of their manga, stand in a shop and read some or buy some. (Of course, there are other options, such as stealing some, or getting someone else to buy some for you, but that's not the real issue. So let's carry on…)
If you are actually going to take the
plunge and buy some manga, then there are 4 ways you can do this - buy a single
issue; buy a graphic novel; buy an 'offered again pack' (I don't know what
their proper name is); or buy an anthology magazine.
Single issues are normally between 24 and 48 pages and cost between £1.70
and £3. These cost the least amount of money, but are also the worst
value for money. Unlike 'normal' comics, single issues of manga don't really
become specially 'collectible'. Also, they generally cost more per page than
their graphic novel counterparts (apart from some stuff by Tokyopop). Also,
a single issue doesn't really have enough material (in my opinion) to give
you a good idea of whether or not you like the series.
Obviously, they come out later than single issues, but graphic novels do, at least give you a good idea of what the manga's all about and whether you actually like it or not. A graphic novel is basically a 'comic book'. Normally a collection of single issues, a graphic novel costs between £2.99 and £15 for 88 - 400 pages. Some manga are only ever released as a graphic novel. For example, Lone Wolf and Cub (from Dark Horse) and Harlem Beat (from Tokyopop). I live near a comic shop with a tolerant manager, and to decide what to buy, I read the graphic novel in the shop, then if I want to read it again, I buy it. I buy most of my manga as graphic novels since they are both cheaper and 'tidier'. Also, graphic novels remain in print for years, meaning that you can easily get access to a whole series. However, when spending £12 (the normal cost), you need to be sure you like the manga.
The most economical way to simply sample a series is to buy an 'offered again' pack. These generally cost £4 - £11 and contain 3 - 6 single issues. The basic premise of these is that the publisher is offloading some single issues, which it couldn't the first time around. Although the issues may not be consecutive, an 'offered-again pack' should give you an idea of whether or not you like that particular manga. As these are relatively rare, I recommend buying any you find to people seriously interested in manga, as they represent good value for a taster. Remember though, that sometimes the series is no longer available to buy easily.
Overall, the best way - in my opinion - to sample manga is to buy an anthology magazine. These generally contain about 5 stories, cost £3 - £6 and are generally 128 pages long. 3 different ones are available which come out on a monthly basis. These are Pulp - an adult anthology from Viz, Animerica Extra - another anthology from Viz and Super Manga Blast from Dark Horse. Viz's offerings have articles as well as manga. Although Pulp is the only one with an age rating ('mature readers only'), all 3 titles feature a fair bit of violence and at least mild nudity. If I had to give the anthologies an age rating, they would be 12, 15 and 18 for Super Manga Blast, Animerica Extra and Pulp respectively, but everyone matures differently.
I have had a standing order to Super Manga Blast since issue 1, and although I haven't read the other 2 anthologies all that much, from what I've seen Super Manga Blast offers the best selection of stories. (Although the other 2 have their merits too...)
Okay, you've read this far. That means either you're reasonably interested in manga, or you're a boring old fart with nothing better to do than read random stuff on the net. Either way, if you want to read more on the subject of manga, click on a link, either above or below.
3x3 Eyes
Animerica Extra
Banana Fish
Baoh
buying manga
Cartoon Network
Dark Horse
Dragonball
Dragonball Z
Inu-Yasha
Kia Asamiya
Lone Wolf and Cub
Lone Wolf and Cub Glossary (unready)
Maison Ikkoku
Pulp
Ranma ½
Rumiko Takahashi
Super Manga Blast
Usagi Yojimbo
Viz
What's Michael?
And if you think that my reviews are shit (perhaps because they are) and want to have a go yourself, just write a review up in Microsoft Word and e-mail it to me. It should be up on the site within a week.