Recommend a manga
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I do love how this has basically devolved into everyone gushing over Berserk : DFappy said:I actually like the lighter shift in tone (I really like Schierke, who no doubt contributes to that), but like you pointed out, the random hyper-grotesque shit that gets thrown in at this stage is... very jarring. Really wasn't sure why the pregnant women/demon sludge thing even happened outside of the narrative reminding us "this story is dark". And the troll thing just was there to remind you that if you have vagina in this setting it will get raped eventually, I guess >.> (one of the main things that irks me about the series as a whole, really)Casual Shinji said:
I am not entirely convinced it will be a 100% happy ending. They've built up the berserker armor so much that I will be honestly surprised if Guts doesn't either accidentally kill or mortally wound one of his friends. I think some kind of bittersweet ending would fit the best. An ending where the good guys find peace and poetic justice in achieved... and by that I mean Griffith gets skull-fucked by the rape Horse and/or Baphomet in hell for the rest of eternity
I expect the ending to be semi tragic. Even if guts survives, his body is basically destroyed at this point. Given the stories philosophical nature, I think Miura could still deliver a powerhouse ending if he wanted. It's true that his edges have been sanded off, but the man can still write like nobodies business. As for the tone, it's meandered somewhat over the years, but I think schierke saves it almost on her own.
Also, thanks to everyone for the reccomendations so far.
Neon Genesis Evangelion, even if you've never watched the series, is infinitely better than anything else that has come from the franchise. It took something like 18 years to finish though, so there's bound to be some fluctuation in quality. But it has far more likable characters, much better taste (THAT scene from End of Evangelion cough) and a more coherent plot without skimping on the stuff that's good about Eva.
A manga I see rarely mentioned is Sprite. It's a very strange time travel/ horror/ drama that's difficult to predict where it's going. It's been on hiatus for the past 1,5 years and I don't know if it's coming back, but it's very intriguing. It's also extremely brutal at times.
Also there's this horror anthology manga named The End of the World as We Know It, and it's one of the most messed up things I've read in a while. There's not much more to it than shock value (the stories area usually only 5-7 pages long), but somehow it kept me reading with its incredibly twisted sense of humor and imagery that managed to disturb again and again.
And speaking of shock value, there's Koroshiya 1, upon which Takashi Miike's Ichi the Killer is based on. If you know that film, then you know what you're in for. If you have the stomach, it's a thrill ride, only if to see what fucked-up thing it comes up with next.
Continuing along those lines, though not quite on the same level, we have Shigurui. It's a historical samurai manga about two rivaling friends. It's not a happy thing to read, it's incredibly dark and violent (I'd actually say more than Berserk, and that's really saying something), but it is definitely mature in tone, and the artwork is absolutely phenomenal. I haven't seen such exquisite depiction of human anatomy in any other manga I've read.
A manga I see rarely mentioned is Sprite. It's a very strange time travel/ horror/ drama that's difficult to predict where it's going. It's been on hiatus for the past 1,5 years and I don't know if it's coming back, but it's very intriguing. It's also extremely brutal at times.
Also there's this horror anthology manga named The End of the World as We Know It, and it's one of the most messed up things I've read in a while. There's not much more to it than shock value (the stories area usually only 5-7 pages long), but somehow it kept me reading with its incredibly twisted sense of humor and imagery that managed to disturb again and again.
And speaking of shock value, there's Koroshiya 1, upon which Takashi Miike's Ichi the Killer is based on. If you know that film, then you know what you're in for. If you have the stomach, it's a thrill ride, only if to see what fucked-up thing it comes up with next.
Continuing along those lines, though not quite on the same level, we have Shigurui. It's a historical samurai manga about two rivaling friends. It's not a happy thing to read, it's incredibly dark and violent (I'd actually say more than Berserk, and that's really saying something), but it is definitely mature in tone, and the artwork is absolutely phenomenal. I haven't seen such exquisite depiction of human anatomy in any other manga I've read.
One of these things is not like the other. If you read the OP he/she asked for mature sophisticated stories. I haven't read Death Note, but assume it's good, and Berserk is just as brilliant as everyone says it is. But Gantz? It's one of the stupidest, schlockiest, most juvenile things I've ever read and as time passes it just becomes worse and worse in my eyes.Starbird said:
I'd recommend Übel Blatt, it's a story that takes place in a medieval fantasy world. The main character is an elf-looking kid named Koinzell who is out to kill seven "heroes." It's a story in the vein of Berserk and Claymore.
Not only the writing is juvenile at best... The pacing of the entire thing is wrong. Either they spend way too much time on the games and the action becames meanless, arguably intruducing throw away characters to "raise the stakes" for the reader don't realize how boring everything has become or they spend way too much time with "whatshisface" in his personal life which is also boring. There's nothing to break one another, except one another and becames steagnent quickly.Fappy said:I've read the first few volumes of Gantz and hated it. The art was good, but I found the story way too juvenile for my taste >.>Starbird said:Yeah that's Berserk's thing. It gets dark...then gradually lightens up and then sucker punches you with something pitch black and horrible. Very curious to see where the story is going now.I actually like the lighter shift in tone (I really like Schierke, who no doubt contributes to that), but like you pointed out, the random hyper-grotesque shit that gets thrown in at this stage is... very jarring. Really wasn't sure why the pregnant women/demon sludge thing even happened outside of the narrative reminding us "this story is dark". And the troll thing just was there to remind you that if you have vagina in this setting it will get raped eventually, I guess >.> (one of the main things that irks me about the series as a whole, really)
I am not entirely convinced it will be a 100% happy ending. They've built up the berserker armor so much that I will be honestly surprised if Guts doesn't either accidentally kill or mortally wound one of his friends. I think some kind of bittersweet ending would fit the best. An ending where the good guys find peace and poetic justice in achieved... and by that I mean Griffith gets skull-fucked by the rape Horse and/or Baphomet in hell for the rest of eternity
If you like Berserk I cannot recommend Gantz strongly enough. *Not* for the faint of heart though.
They eventually introduce story to the new characters in order try have the reader care, the main problem with that is that they already have killed two of three main characters and most of side characters and it takes either very relatable characters or some very good writing in order to make the reader care again... Gantz had none.
I stopped reading in a middle of a massive fight that had been going on for 5 volumes, more or less after they introduce the concept of ressurecting dead people through a reward. I don't plan on finishing it...
Keep it that way, you're not missing out on anything. I'll just spoil this because fuck you: the last arc of the manga is a war with aliens that goes on for like 100 chapters and it's a total goddamn mess. There are a couple of significant character deaths, but they cannot redeem the endless fighting, pointless gore, meaningless meandering with the aliens and the ending that might just be the new king of anticlimactiland. The main characters beat up some random mook, fall out of a spaceship, float in the sea for a whole 2-page spread, was up on the shore and yay happy ending for everyone!Diablo2000 said:
... This actually kinda surprinsing. I had figure out was going to end with everyone dying and Earth being destroyed in a attempt to be "edgy". Wasn't expecting a happy ending.bartholen said:
So at least have that going for it... Which is nice. Still not gonna finish it.
What's Vgagbond about?DarkhoIlow said:
DeadTube: I'm tempted to make a YouTube joke here, but I won't.
Tokyo Ghoul: I've heard of this from a friend of mine, but I don't really know what it's about.
Tower OF God: A religious themed comic, eh? What's it about?
Ever heard of a series called Zero Joker?
Well,i haven't read many mangas myself, but i can recommend some of them:
-Deadman Wonderland.I liked the story a lot, although the ending was a little too convenient.
-Mirai Nikki.Same here.
-One Punch Man. For the same reason everyone else recommended it.
-Gintama. This manga isn't taking any prices for storytelling or controversial themes, but i really like it because how goofy it is.
-Tower of God. The universe in which the story takes place its really interesting from my point of view, and i like how its shown that the central cast its composed of very skilled people, but even with their strength they still occupy a low level on the food chain.
-Zetman. I don't really know why i like this one, maybe because the start of the manga made me feel very depressed .
-Hunter X Hunter. Its a classic that i at first didn't get a lot of my attention, but eventually kept getting better and better. A moment comes to my mind in the Chimera Ant arc, when its shown that even the main baddie, a creature that doesn't see any value in human life, and that believes that he is superior to everyone else; its shown having a change of heart, coming across as sympathetic.
-Deadman Wonderland.I liked the story a lot, although the ending was a little too convenient.
-Mirai Nikki.Same here.
-One Punch Man. For the same reason everyone else recommended it.
-Gintama. This manga isn't taking any prices for storytelling or controversial themes, but i really like it because how goofy it is.
-Tower of God. The universe in which the story takes place its really interesting from my point of view, and i like how its shown that the central cast its composed of very skilled people, but even with their strength they still occupy a low level on the food chain.
-Zetman. I don't really know why i like this one, maybe because the start of the manga made me feel very depressed
.-Hunter X Hunter. Its a classic that i at first didn't get a lot of my attention, but eventually kept getting better and better. A moment comes to my mind in the Chimera Ant arc, when its shown that even the main baddie, a creature that doesn't see any value in human life, and that believes that he is superior to everyone else; its shown having a change of heart, coming across as sympathetic.
This is all just speculating that Berserk will one day end, I've got my money on Miura dying before finishing the story, or at least making the ending really half-assed. 20 pages per 4-6 months is really slow, and consider how far off from the ending it is, and it started in the late 80's. The god damn main character has not been on paper for over a year.Fox12 said:I do love how this has basically devolved into everyone gushing over Berserk : DFappy said:I actually like the lighter shift in tone (I really like Schierke, who no doubt contributes to that), but like you pointed out, the random hyper-grotesque shit that gets thrown in at this stage is... very jarring. Really wasn't sure why the pregnant women/demon sludge thing even happened outside of the narrative reminding us "this story is dark". And the troll thing just was there to remind you that if you have vagina in this setting it will get raped eventually, I guess >.> (one of the main things that irks me about the series as a whole, really)Casual Shinji said:
I am not entirely convinced it will be a 100% happy ending. They've built up the berserker armor so much that I will be honestly surprised if Guts doesn't either accidentally kill or mortally wound one of his friends. I think some kind of bittersweet ending would fit the best. An ending where the good guys find peace and poetic justice in achieved... and by that I mean Griffith gets skull-fucked by the rape Horse and/or Baphomet in hell for the rest of eternity
I expect the ending to be semi tragic. Even if guts survives, his body is basically destroyed at this point. Given the stories philosophical nature, I think Miura could still deliver a powerhouse ending if he wanted. It's true that his edges have been sanded off, but the man can still write like nobodies business. As for the tone, it's meandered somewhat over the years, but I think schierke saves it almost on her own.
Also, thanks to everyone for the reccomendations so far.
If you want to read a dumb horror manga check out Kamisama no Iutoori, think of it as a mix between Saw and Battle Royale. It does have somewhat of a good mystery and some of the games are pretty entertaining. If you are looking for good you'll be disappointed it just blood but with no organs or bones
Vagabond - It kinda has everything: action, suspense, excitment, drama and even a little romance - everything that is packed into a great story. (Action, Adventure, Drama, Historical, Samurai, Seinen if you want more specific tags).ArcaneGamer said:
Dead Tube - I can't say more than just..if you are not squeamish to blood and nudity it's worth reading.
Tokyo Ghoul - Seinen, Psychological, Action and quite dark at times. Without spoiling anything (since it ramps up from the first chapters) all I can give you a non spoilery synopsis: ~Strange murders are happening in Tokyo. Due to liquid evidence at the scene, the police conclude the attacks are the results of "eater" type ghouls. College buddies Kaneki and Hide come up with the idea that ghouls are imitating humans so that's why they haven't ever seen one. Little did they know that their theory may very well become reality.~
Tower of God - It's about a boy named Baam who spent all his life trapped beneath a tower. He is trying to chase after his friend who manages to open the door into the tower and thus challenges await him while he tries to find him. (Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Mystery tags)
Hope it helped!
PS: No I haven't
PPS: If you want one of the best manga I have ever read and are into Dark, Seinen and psychological manga then go ahead and read Berserk..it's one of the best in my opinion.
I recently finish the anime of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure and I already wait for Stardust Crusaders to finish, but I do skip it and read all of the parts, and it's really good. Already made me a fan of the series and I can't wait for the new chapters. It maybe weird for some people to get into, but I guess there's a good reason why it is one of the most influential manga for Japan. Shame it's not that famous outside Japan, though.
Also, recommend One Punch Man, Vinland Saga, Kingdom, Vagabond, REAL and I could recommend One Piece, but I wouldn't bother that much if you ain't into shonen manga.
Also, recommend One Punch Man, Vinland Saga, Kingdom, Vagabond, REAL and I could recommend One Piece, but I wouldn't bother that much if you ain't into shonen manga.
I absolutely love Biomega. Not a big fan of manga but this is my favorite. So disappointed they turned Knights of Sidonia into an anime and not this one. Thematically it's kind of a continuation of Blame! but with a more coherent narrative. I'm a big fan of cyberpunk and I rank Biomega among the absolute best of the genre. Atleast the first half, during the second half the story takes a turn for the weird (you can see where the series was originally meant to end) and infuses a heavy dose of fantasy into the story but none the less remains very entertaining.
But espescially the first half is soooo awesome. I've read it like 5 times now. Also panel for panel it almost reads like a design document for one kick-ass game.
But espescially the first half is soooo awesome. I've read it like 5 times now. Also panel for panel it almost reads like a design document for one kick-ass game.