==================== Anime & Manga I like ==================== :CreationDate: 2015-11-27 16:19:14 :Id: anime/anime-manga-list :tags: - anime - personal Manga ===== These are grouped by author. `TORIYAMA Akira `_ Mostly known as the author of Dragon Ball, the work of his that I most like is `Dr Slump `_: humorous and surreal story of an inventor who builds sentient robots with the most absurd issues. Toriyama's humour still echoes in recent Japanese works. `TAKAHASHI Rumiko `_ You probably know her for Inu Yasha and Ranma½, I would suggest instead reading her short stories (`Mermaid Saga `_, `One-pound Gospel `_, `Rumic Theater `_) and her first long series, `Urusei Yatsura `_: probably the first example of harem story / sudden girlfriend appearance, funny and sweet. `YUKINOBU Hoshino `_ Read everything he's written. `2001 Nights `_ and the sort-of sequel, 2001+5, are great examples of golden-age hard SF seen from a different perspective. `TEZUKA Osamu `_ The god of manga. Japanese popular culture would be very different without him. Favourites of mine: - the `Phoenix `_ saga, an exploration of life, death, rebirth, across time and space. - `Message to Adolph `_, story of three men named Adolph through WW2 - `Princess Knight `_, adventures of the two-hearted princess who lives as a man (more or less, it's complicated) - `MW `_: chemical weapons, serial killers, gay relationships - `Ode to Kirihito `_ But seriously, read as much Tezuka as you can get your hands on. Warning: some characters are depicted in a way that looks quite racist today, but was "common" at the time. Make of that what you will. `OTOMO Katsuhiro `_ Writer and director, justly famous for `Akira `_. The movie is good, but the manga has much more depth and breadth. `SHIROW Masamune `_ - `Ghost in the Shell `_, obviously: the manga has similar themes to the movie, but it's filled with jokes - `Appleseed `_, slow and complicated story of political manoeuvres and discrimination - `Dominion `_, not-very-competent militarised police - `Orion `_ fantasy / science fiction inspired by the Japanese myths of creation In general, Shirow puts plenty of jokes in his works, and his obsession with guns and tanks &c may be off-putting, but there's serious thoughts underneath it all. `MIYAZAKI Hayao `_ Yes, one of the founders of Studio Ghibli also wrote manga. His masterwork is `Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind `_, a story of epic proportions about war, friendship, environmentalism, and the future of humanity. The movie of the same name is a pale shadow of the manga. `KEI Toume `_ Her manga are dark and melancholy. `Kurogane `_, `Hitsuji no Uta (Lament of the Lamb) `_, Hatsukanezumi no Jikan (Time of the Mice). `KITOU Mohiro `_ Raw and bloody. `Narutaro `_, `Bokura No `_, `Wings of Vendemiaire `_ `HAGIO Moto `_ One of the founders of shoujo manga. Only work of hers I've read so far is `They Were Eleven `_, '70 SF at its best. `TSUDA Masami `_ `His and Her Circumstances `_ is a very nice romance story: the characters talk to each other! And when the obvious couple get together, they stay together and work through their problems! `TAKAHASHI Shin `_ Author of one of the saddest stories I've ever read, `Saishou Heiki Kanojo `_ (a.k.a. "she, the ultimate weapon"). `YAMAGUCHI Takayuki `_ `Kakugo no Susume `_ half-serious, half-parody post-apocalyptic fighting story: cursed power armours built by Imperial Japan, mutated insects and monstrous plants used to frame shoujo-style panels, Buddhist precepts, and a tremendously queer antagonist. `IWAAKI Hitoshi `_ `Kiseiju `_: the aliens have invaded, and they look just like us. Is pacific co-existence possible? Also `Historie `_, but I haven't read it yet. CHOUYA Koyama `Space Brothers `_, a love letter to space exploration and the people who make it possible. UEO Hisamitsu `The Qualia of Purple `_ mind-bending story of a girl who sees people as robots, and of her friend who wants to protect her. Puyo, inspired by `TANIGAWA Nagaru `_ Tanigawa wrote the `Haruhi Suzumiya `_ series of light novels, later adapted to manga and anime. I think that the best manga set in that universe is `The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan `_ (warning: spoilers for `The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya `_) `URASAWA Naoki `_ - `Pluto `_ a re-interpretation of Tezuka's Mighty Atom (Astro Boy) with a more modern, realistic look - `Monster `_ killer psychopaths - `20th Century Boys `_ can childhood make-believe spell out the end of the world? can they help prevent it? MURAYAMA Kei `A Centaur's Worries `_ starts as a school comedy with centaurs, angels, sheep-people, mermaids. It then mixes in SF elements, conspiracy theories, international politics, and I'm still not sure where it's going. `Chiho Saito `_ and `Kunihiko Ikuhara `_ `Revolutionary Girl Utena `_ the manga has a different story than the anime; I still have to watch the anime. `ASHINANO Hitoshi `_ `Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou `_ slice of life of an android running a country café in a world after a global flood, very slow and poetic, beautifully drawn. Anime ===== Series ------ `Haibane Renmei `_ `Top wo Nerae - Gunbuster `_ + `Daibuster `_ `Cowboy Bebop `_ (`my review `_) `FLCL `_ `The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya `_ `Future Boy Conan `_ `Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt `_ (`my review `_) `Durarara!! `_ (`my review `_) `Madoka Magica `_ (`my review `_) `Gatchaman Crowds `_ (`my review `_) `Lupin III: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine `_ (`my review `_) `Nadia - Secret of Blue Water `_ (`my review `_) `Princess Tutu `_ `Sora no Woto `_ `Dai Mahou Touge `_ `Dennou Coil `_ `Eve no Jikan `_ + `movie `_ + `Mizu no Kotoba `_ `Macross `_ (the first one!) `Hibike! Euphonium `_ `Shin Seiki Evangelion `_ Movies ------ `Ghibli `_ (more or less all of them) `Avalon `_ (live action) `Ghost in the Shell `_ (the first one) `Wolf Children `_ `Garden of Words `_ (`my review `_) `009 re:Cyborg `_ (`my review `_) `The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya `_ (`my review `_) `Pale Cocoon `_ `Hoshi no Koe `_ `Urusei Yatsura: Beautiful Dreamer `_ `Puni Puni Poemi `_