MangaManga (漫画) is the Japanese word for comics and/or cartoons it usually refers specifically to Japanese comics. Manga developed from a mixture of ukiyo-e and Western styles of drawing, and took its current form shortly after World War II. It comes mainly in black and white, except for the covers and maybe the first few pages. A small amount of the total Manga output of Japan is adapted into anime, which is usually created afterwards, once a market interest has been established. Stories are often modified to appeal to a more mainstream market. Origins2nd English edition of InuYasha Vol. 1 graphic novel.Literally translated, manga means "random (or whimsical) pictures". The word first came into common usage after the publication of the 19th century Hokusai manga, containing assorted drawings from the sketchbook of the famous ukiyo-e artist Hokusai. However, gi-ga (literally "funny pictures") drawn in the 12th century by various artists contain many manga-like qualities such as emphasis on story and simple, artistic lines. Manga developed from a mixture of ukiyo-e and Western art movements. When the United States began trading with Japan, Japan tried to modernise itself and catch up with the rest of the world. Thus, they imported Western artists to teach their students things such as line, form and colour (things which were never concentrated on in ukiyo-e as the idea behind the picture was normally considered more important). Manga at this period was known as Ponchi-e (Punch-picture) and, like its British counterpart Punch magazine, mainly depicted humour and political satire in short 1 or 4 picture format. Manga as people know it in the 20th and 21st centuries only really came into being after Dr. Osamu Tezuka, widely acknowledged to be the father of story-based manga, became popular. In 1945, Tezuka who was studying medicine, saw a war propaganda animation film called "Momotarou Uminokaihei" whose style was largely copied from Disney's Fantasia. Though a war propaganda film, it was also a children's film, so the main theme of the film was peace and hope in the time of darkness. Tezuka was greatly inspired by the film and later decided to become a comic artist, which at the time (and somewhat even now) was an unthinkable choice for someone who qualified as a medical doctor and Ph.D in medicine. He later commented that a part of reason he went to medical school was to avoid conscription and he actually didn't like seeing blood. Before Tezuka, most Japanese comics were drawn on one or four picture format dealing with social or political satire or humour. Tezuka introduced film like story telling and character in comic format in which each short-film like episode is part of larger story arch. And just like film, the only text in Tezuka's comic was character's spoken line. Moreover, each of the pictures in pages flow from top right to bottom left so that people could see and read comic in speed reading manner (note that vertical Japanese is written in top-right down to bottom left order). Tezuka also adopted Disney like facial feature where eyes, mouth, eyebrows or nose are drawn in a very exagerated manner to add more distinct characterisation with fewer lines which made his prolific output possible. This somewhat revived the old ukiyo-e like tradition where the picture is a projection of an idea rather than actual physical reality. Initially, his comic was published in a children's magazine. Soon, it became a specialised weekly or monthly comic magazine, which is now the foundation of the Japanese comic industry. Tezuka adopted his comic to almost all film genres at the time. His manga series cover from action adventure (eg. Kimba the White Lion (Jungle Emperor Leo)) to serious drama (eg. Black Jack) to science fiction (eg. Astro Boy), horror (eg. Dororo, Mitumega Tooru.). It is often commented that any manga genre which Tezuka did not create was done by someone who was desperately trying to find something Tezuka wasn't doing. Though he is known in the West as a creator of the children's animation Astro Boy, many of his comics had some very mature and sometimes dark undertones. Most of his comics' central characters had a tragic background. Atom (Astro Boy) was created by a grieving scientist trying to create an imitation of his dead son, who then later abandoned the boy. Kimba's father was killed by human hunters and the theme of conflict between man and nature was a reccuring theme for the comic. Hyakkimaru in Dororo was born severly crippled because his father offered 48 parts of Dororo's infant body to 48 demons. Some criticise Tezuka's somewhat excessive use of tragic dramatisation in his stories. As the manga generation of children grew up, the market for comics expanded accordingly and manga soon become a major cultural force of Japan. Tezuka also contributed to the social acceptace of manga. His qualification as a medical doctor as well as his serious story lines were used to deflect criticism that manga was vulgar and undesirable for children. He also mentored a number of important comic artists, such as Fujiko Fujio (creator of Doraemon), Akatuka Fujio and Shotaro Ishinomori. Another important trend in manga was gekiga. Between the 1960s and the 1970s, there were two forms of comic serialisation. One, the manga format, was based on sales of comic magazine. The other, gekiga, was based on a rental format, much in the same line as the modern movie rental systems. Manga was based on weekly or biweekly magazine publications so the demand for prompt production and deadline was paramount. Consequently, most manga artist adopted Tezuka-style drawing where characters are drawn in a simpler but exagerated manner - most typified by large round eyes which is regarded as a defining feature of Japanese comic in the west. Gekiga on the other hand did not have any deadline so the artist could use much more detailed drawing and more realistic portraial of character with a greatly complex and mature story line. For this reason, gekiga was considered to be much more artistically superior. However, gekiga's rental business model eventually died out in the 1970s, while comic artists in manga format significantly improved their graphic quality and story. Eventually, gekiga was absorbed into manga and now are used to describe manga style which does not use cartoonish drawing. The most famous gekiga style manga in the West is Akira. Though roughly equivalent to the American comic book, manga holds more importance in Japanese culture than comics do in American culture. In economic terms, a weekly sales of comics in Japan outsell entire annual output of the American comic industry. Several major manga magazines sell several million copies each per week. Manga is well respected both as an art form and as a form of popular literature though it has not reached acceptance of "higher" art genre like film or music. Like its American counterpart, some manga has been criticized for being violent and sexual. For example, a number of film adaptation of manga such as Ichi the Killer or Old Boys were rated Restricted or Mature in the west. However, there have been no official inquiries or laws trying to limit what can be drawn in manga, except for vague decency laws applying to all published materials, stating that "overly indecent materials should not be sold." This freedom has allowed artists to draw manga for every age group and for about every topic. The manga styleThe popular and recognizable style of manga is very distinctive. Emphasis is often placed on line over form, and the storytelling and panel placement differs from those in Western comics. Panels and pages are typically read from right to left, consistent with traditional Japanese writing. While the art can be incredibly realistic or cartoonish, it is often noted that the characters look "Western", or have large eyes. Large eyes have become a permanent fixture in manga and anime since the 1960s when Osamu Tezuka(see above) started drawing them in this way, mimicking the style of Disney cartoons from the United States. Being a very diverse artform, however, not all manga artists adhere to the conventions most popularized in the west through anime such as Akira, Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball Z, and Ranma ½. A fair number of manga artists do not feel that their stories and characters are set in stone. So a set of characters may build relationships, jobs, etc. in one set of stories ("story arc") only to have another story arc run where the same characters do not know each other. The Tenchi series in particular is known for this; there are more than thirteen different unrelated story arcs based around Tenchi and his friends. Manga formatManga magazines usually have many series running concurrently with approximately 20–40 pages allocated to each series per issue. These manga magazines, or "anthology magazines", as they are also known (colloquially "phone books"), are usually printed on low-quality newsprint and can be anywhere from 200 to more than 850 pages long. Manga magazines also contain one-shot comics and various four-panel yonkoma (equivalent to comic strips). Manga series can run for many years if they are successful. Manga artists sometimes start out with a few "one-shot" manga projects just to try to get their name out. If these are successful and receive good reviews, they are continued. When a series has been running for a while, the stories are usually collected together and printed in dedicated book-sized volumes, called tankōbon. These volumes use higher-quality paper, and are useful to those who want to "catch up" with a series so they can follow it in the magazines or if they find the cost of the weeklies or monthlies to be prohibitive. Recently, "deluxe" versions have also been printed as readers have gotten older and the need for something special grew. Old manga have also been reprinted using somewhat lesser quality paper and sold for 100 yen each to compete with the used book market. Manga are primarily classified by the age and gender of the target audience. In particular, books and magazines sold to boys (shōnen) and girls (shōjo) have distinctive cover art and are placed on different shelves in most bookstores. Japan also has manga cafés, or manga kissaten. At a manga kissaten, people drink coffee and read manga. Many things appear in manga format, including wanted posters for criminals. Traditionally, manga are written from right to left. Some publishers of translated manga keep that format, but some switch the direction to left to right, so as not to confuse Western readers. DōjinshiSome manga artists will produce extra, sometimes unrelated material, which are known as omake (lit. "bonus" or "extra"). They might also publish their unfinished drawings or sketches, known as oekaki (lit. "sketches"). Dōjinshi is produced by small amateur publishers outside of the mainstream commercial market in a similar fashion to small-press independently published comic books in the United States. Comiket, the largest comic book convention in the world with over 400,000 gathering in 3 days, is devoted to dōjinshi. Unofficial fan made comics are also called dōjinshi. Some dōjinshi continue with a series' story or write an entirely new one using its characters, much like fan fiction. Types of mangaMany of these genres apply equally well to anime (which very often includes adaptations of manga) and Japanese computer games (some of which are also adaptations of manga). By target audience
Genres
Popular shōnen manga series
Popular shōjo manga series
Popular seinen manga seriesOh My Goddess! (manga) cover
International influenceDemo by Brian Wood (story) and Becky Cloonan (art) is an example of an American comic that is influenced by mangaManga has long had an influence on international comics and animation the world over. American alternative comics artists such as Frank Miller and Scott McCloud were somewhat influenced by manga in a few of their works. Other artists such as Americans Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan (Demo) and Canadian Bryan Lee O'Malley (Lost At Sea) are heavily influenced by the mainstream manga style and have received acclaim for their work outside of anime/manga fan circles. These artists have many other influences that make their work more palatable to non-manga readers. These artists have their roots in the anime/manga subculture of their particular regions. American artist Paul Pope worked in Japan for Kodansha on the manga anthology Afternoon. Before he was fired (due to an editorial change at Kodansha) he was developing many ideas for the anthology that he would later publish in the U.S. as Heavy Liquid. As a result his work features a strong influence from manga without influences from international otaku culture. In France there is a "Nouvelle Manga" movement started by Frédéric Boilet which seeks to combine mature sophisticated daily life manga with the artistic style of traditional Franco-Belgian comics. While the movement also involves Japanese artists, a handful of French cartoonists other than Boilet have decided to embrace its ideal. In addition, there are many amateur artists who are influenced exclusively by the manga style. Many of these have their own small publishing houses, and some webcomics and webmanga in this style have become very popular (see Megatokyo). For the most part, these artists are not yet recognized outside of the anime and manga fan community. Many people outside of those circles view those works as being too focused on the American anime subculture, and not focused enough on telling stories that resonate with a wider audience. Manga outside JapanLanguage notes
This page about manga includes information from a Wikipedia article. Additional articles about manga News stories about manga External links for manga Videos for manga Wikis about manga Discussion Groups about manga Blogs about manga Images of manga |
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Many people outside of those circles view those works as being too focused on the American anime subculture, and not focused enough on telling stories that resonate with a wider audience. Nice was the birthplace of:. For the most part, these artists are not yet recognized outside of the anime and manga fan community. The ferry companies SNCM and Corsica Ferries operate from the Nice harbour and sail to several towns on Corsica. Many of these have their own small publishing houses, and some webcomics and webmanga in this style have become very popular (see Megatokyo). A tramway is currently under construction and is expected to begin operation in 2006. In addition, there are many amateur artists who are influenced exclusively by the manga style. Public transportation within the city and to neighboring areas is provided by the Ligne d'Azur company. While the movement also involves Japanese artists, a handful of French cartoonists other than Boilet have decided to embrace its ideal. The city is served by Cote d'Azur International Airport and has a railway station. In France there is a "Nouvelle Manga" movement started by Frédéric Boilet which seeks to combine mature sophisticated daily life manga with the artistic style of traditional Franco-Belgian comics. The more famous is the farandole. As a result his work features a strong influence from manga without influences from international otaku culture. Traditions are still alive, specially in the folk music and the dances. as Heavy Liquid. In the recent decades Nice, as the rest of France, has received immigrants from other parts of the world, mainly Northern and Western Africa as well as southeastern Asia, which has further enriched the cultural life of the city. Before he was fired (due to an editorial change at Kodansha) he was developing many ideas for the anthology that he would later publish in the U.S. Local food culture, which includes pissaladiere a pie with onions and anchovies paste; socca, a kind of pancake made from chickpea flour; bouillabaisse and fish soup; "Stockfish" (traditionally prounounced as "Stoquefiche" (French spelling) with special emphasis on the first "e"), farcis, vegetables stuffed with breadcrumbs; and salade nicoise, a tomato salad with green peppers of the "Corne" breed, baked eggs, tuna or anchovies, and olives. American artist Paul Pope worked in Japan for Kodansha on the manga anthology Afternoon. Niçard is an Occitan dialect but strong Italian influence makes it less unintelligible with other non-extinct Provençal dialects that exist around. These artists have their roots in the anime/manga subculture of their particular regions. The local language Niçard is still spoken by a minority and there are strong Italian and Corsican influences as well as Occitan. These artists have many other influences that make their work more palatable to non-manga readers. Nice has a distinct culture due to its unique history. Other artists such as Americans Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan (Demo) and Canadian Bryan Lee O'Malley (Lost At Sea) are heavily influenced by the mainstream manga style and have received acclaim for their work outside of anime/manga fan circles. A controversial official report stated that de Montgolfier had made unwarranted accusations. American alternative comics artists such as Frank Miller and Scott McCloud were somewhat influenced by manga in a few of their works. In 2003, local head prosecutor Eric de Montgolfier alleged that some judicial cases involving local personalities had been suspiciously derailed by the local judiciary, which he suspected of having unhealthy contacts, through Masonic lodges, with the very people that they are supposed to prosecute or judge. Manga has long had an influence on international comics and animation the world over. Jacques Peyrat, the mayor of Nice since 1995, is a member of the UMP party and former member of the Front National. Many of these genres apply equally well to anime (which very often includes adaptations of manga) and Japanese computer games (some of which are also adaptations of manga). He was then convicted of several counts of corruption and associated crimes and sentenced to prison. Some dōjinshi continue with a series' story or write an entirely new one using its characters, much like fan fiction. As accusations of political corruption against Jacques Medecin grew, he fled France in 1990 and was arrested in Uruguay in 1993, leading to his extradition in 1994. Unofficial fan made comics are also called dōjinshi. October 16, 1979 23 people died when the coast of Nice was hit by a tsunami. Comiket, the largest comic book convention in the world with over 400,000 gathering in 3 days, is devoted to dōjinshi. In the second half of the 20th century, Nice bore the influence of mayor Jean Medecin (mayor from 1947 to 1965) and his son Jacques (mayor from 1966 to 1990). Dōjinshi is produced by small amateur publishers outside of the mainstream commercial market in a similar fashion to small-press independently published comic books in the United States. "sketches"). By a treaty concluded in 1860 between the Sardinian king and Napoleon III it was again transferred to France, and the cession was ratified by over 25,000 electors out of a total of 30,700 although the plesbicite was most likely sabotaged by the French. They might also publish their unfinished drawings or sketches, known as oekaki (lit. Conquered in 1792 by the armies of the French republic, the county of Nice continued to be part of France until 1814; but after that date it reverted to Sardinia. "bonus" or "extra"). In 1775 the king of Sardinia destroyed all that remained of the ancient liberties of the commune. Some manga artists will produce extra, sometimes unrelated material, which are known as omake (lit. From 1744 till the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748) the French and Spaniards were again in possession. Some publishers of translated manga keep that format, but some switch the direction to left to right, so as not to confuse Western readers. The treaty of Utrecht in 1713 once more gave the city back to Savoy; and in the peaceful years which followed the "new town" was built. Traditionally, manga are written from right to left. Captured by Catinat in 1691, Nice was restored to Savoy in 1696; but it was again besieged by the French in 1705, and in the following year its citadel and ramparts were demolished. Many things appear in manga format, including wanted posters for criminals. By opening the ports of the countship to all nations, and proclaiming full freedom of trade, Charles Emmanuel in 1626 gave a great stimulus to the commerce of the city, whose noble families took part in its mercantile enterprises. At a manga kissaten, people drink coffee and read manga. In 1600 Nice was taken by the duke of Guise. Japan also has manga cafés, or manga kissaten. Pestilence appeared again in 1550 and 1580. In particular, books and magazines sold to boys (shōnen) and girls (shōjo) have distinctive cover art and are placed on different shelves in most bookstores. In 1543 Nice was attacked by the united forces of Francis I and Barbarossa; and, though the inhabitants repulsed the assault which succeeded the terrible bombardment, they were ultimately compelled to surrender, and Barbarossa was allowed to pillage the city and to carry off 2,500 captives. Manga are primarily classified by the age and gender of the target audience. It was in Nice that the two monarchs in 1538 concluded, through the mediation of Pope Paul III, a truce of ten years. Old manga have also been reprinted using somewhat lesser quality paper and sold for 100 yen each to compete with the used book market. During the struggle between Francis I and Charles V great damage was caused by the passage of the armies invading Provence; pestilence and famine raged in the city for several years. Recently, "deluxe" versions have also been printed as readers have gotten older and the need for something special grew. The maritime strength of Nice now rapidly increased until it was able to cope with the Barbary pirates; the fortifications were largely extended and the roads to the city improved. These volumes use higher-quality paper, and are useful to those who want to "catch up" with a series so they can follow it in the magazines or if they find the cost of the weeklies or monthlies to be prohibitive. In the course of the 13th and 14th centuries it fell more than once into the hands of the Counts of Provence; and at length in 1388 the commune placed itself under the protection of the Counts of Savoy. When a series has been running for a while, the stories are usually collected together and printed in dedicated book-sized volumes, called tankōbon. As an ally of Pisa it was the enemy of Genoa, and both the King of France and the Emperor endeavoured to subjugate it; but in spite of all it maintained its municipal liberties. If these are successful and receive good reviews, they are continued. During the Middle Ages Nice had its share in the wars and disasters of Italy. Manga artists sometimes start out with a few "one-shot" manga projects just to try to get their name out. In 729 it repulsed the Saracens; but in 859 and 880 they pillaged and burned it, and for the most of the 10th century remained masters of the surrounding country. Manga series can run for many years if they are successful. In the 7th century Nice joined the Genoese league formed by the towns of Liguria. Manga magazines also contain one-shot comics and various four-panel yonkoma (equivalent to comic strips). It soon became one of the busiest trading stations on the Ligurian coast; but as a city it had an important rival in the Roman town of Cemenelum, which continued to exist as a separate city till the time of the Lombard invasions, and has left its ruins at Cimiez, which is now a quarter of Nice. These manga magazines, or "anthology magazines", as they are also known (colloquially "phone books"), are usually printed on low-quality newsprint and can be anywhere from 200 to more than 850 pages long. Nice (Nicaea) was founded in the 5th century BC by the Greeks of Marseille and received the name of Νικαία ("Nikaia") in honour of a victory over the neighbouring Ligurians (Nike being the goddess of victory). Manga magazines usually have many series running concurrently with approximately 20–40 pages allocated to each series per issue. There were settlements in the Nice area approximately 400,000 years ago: the site of Terra Amata shows one of the earliest uses of fire and construction of houses. The Tenchi series in particular is known for this; there are more than thirteen different unrelated story arcs based around Tenchi and his friends. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur région, Nice is a commune and the préfecture (administrative capital) of the Alpes-Maritimes département. in one set of stories ("story arc") only to have another story arc run where the same characters do not know each other. . So a set of characters may build relationships, jobs, etc. The city is a major tourist center and a leading resort on the French Riviera (Côte d'Azur). A fair number of manga artists do not feel that their stories and characters are set in stone. Nice (pronounced [nis]) (Occitan: Niça or Nissa; Italian: Nizza) is a city in southern France located on the Mediterranean coast, between Marseille and Genoa, with 933,080 inhabitants in the metropolitan area at the 1999 census. Being a very diverse artform, however, not all manga artists adhere to the conventions most popularized in the west through anime such as Akira, Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball Z, and Ranma ½. "Nice the very loyal city" (loyal to the House of Savoy), but the motto was shortened in 1860 when Nice became French.. Large eyes have become a permanent fixture in manga and anime since the 1960s when Osamu Tezuka(see above) started drawing them in this way, mimicking the style of Disney cartoons from the United States. 1 The original city motto was Nicæa civitas fidelissima, i.e. While the art can be incredibly realistic or cartoonish, it is often noted that the characters look "Western", or have large eyes. Christian Wolff (born 1934), American composer of experimental classical music. Panels and pages are typically read from right to left, consistent with traditional Japanese writing. Yves Klein (1928-1962), artist. Emphasis is often placed on line over form, and the storytelling and panel placement differs from those in Western comics. Simone Veil (born 1927), lawyer and politician. The popular and recognizable style of manga is very distinctive. Jean Behra (1921-1959), Formula One driver. However, there have been no official inquiries or laws trying to limit what can be drawn in manga, except for vague decency laws applying to all published materials, stating that "overly indecent materials should not be sold." This freedom has allowed artists to draw manga for every age group and for about every topic. Rene Dreyfus (1905-1993), Grand Prix driver. For example, a number of film adaptation of manga such as Ichi the Killer or Old Boys were rated Restricted or Mature in the west. Robert Caesar Childers (1838-1876), British Orientalist scholar. Like its American counterpart, some manga has been criticized for being violent and sexual. Marcel Journet (1867-1933), tenor. Manga is well respected both as an art form and as a form of popular literature though it has not reached acceptance of "higher" art genre like film or music. Albert Calmette (1863-1933), physician, bacteriologist and immunologist. Several major manga magazines sell several million copies each per week. Melchior de Vogue (1848-1910), author. In economic terms, a weekly sales of comics in Japan outsell entire annual output of the American comic industry. Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807-1885), nationalist revolutionary and Italy's most famous soldier of the Risorgimento. Though roughly equivalent to the American comic book, manga holds more importance in Japanese culture than comics do in American culture. Andre Massena (1758-1817), Duke of Rivoli, Prince of Essling, soldier in the armies of Napoleon and a Marshal of France. The most famous gekiga style manga in the West is Akira. Eventually, gekiga was absorbed into manga and now are used to describe manga style which does not use cartoonish drawing. However, gekiga's rental business model eventually died out in the 1970s, while comic artists in manga format significantly improved their graphic quality and story. For this reason, gekiga was considered to be much more artistically superior. Gekiga on the other hand did not have any deadline so the artist could use much more detailed drawing and more realistic portraial of character with a greatly complex and mature story line. Consequently, most manga artist adopted Tezuka-style drawing where characters are drawn in a simpler but exagerated manner - most typified by large round eyes which is regarded as a defining feature of Japanese comic in the west. Manga was based on weekly or biweekly magazine publications so the demand for prompt production and deadline was paramount. The other, gekiga, was based on a rental format, much in the same line as the modern movie rental systems. One, the manga format, was based on sales of comic magazine. Between the 1960s and the 1970s, there were two forms of comic serialisation. Another important trend in manga was gekiga. He also mentored a number of important comic artists, such as Fujiko Fujio (creator of Doraemon), Akatuka Fujio and Shotaro Ishinomori. His qualification as a medical doctor as well as his serious story lines were used to deflect criticism that manga was vulgar and undesirable for children. Tezuka also contributed to the social acceptace of manga. As the manga generation of children grew up, the market for comics expanded accordingly and manga soon become a major cultural force of Japan. Some criticise Tezuka's somewhat excessive use of tragic dramatisation in his stories. Hyakkimaru in Dororo was born severly crippled because his father offered 48 parts of Dororo's infant body to 48 demons. Kimba's father was killed by human hunters and the theme of conflict between man and nature was a reccuring theme for the comic. Atom (Astro Boy) was created by a grieving scientist trying to create an imitation of his dead son, who then later abandoned the boy. Most of his comics' central characters had a tragic background. Though he is known in the West as a creator of the children's animation Astro Boy, many of his comics had some very mature and sometimes dark undertones. It is often commented that any manga genre which Tezuka did not create was done by someone who was desperately trying to find something Tezuka wasn't doing. Dororo, Mitumega Tooru.). Astro Boy), horror (eg. Black Jack) to science fiction (eg. Kimba the White Lion (Jungle Emperor Leo)) to serious drama (eg. His manga series cover from action adventure (eg. Tezuka adopted his comic to almost all film genres at the time. Soon, it became a specialised weekly or monthly comic magazine, which is now the foundation of the Japanese comic industry. Initially, his comic was published in a children's magazine. This somewhat revived the old ukiyo-e like tradition where the picture is a projection of an idea rather than actual physical reality. Tezuka also adopted Disney like facial feature where eyes, mouth, eyebrows or nose are drawn in a very exagerated manner to add more distinct characterisation with fewer lines which made his prolific output possible. Moreover, each of the pictures in pages flow from top right to bottom left so that people could see and read comic in speed reading manner (note that vertical Japanese is written in top-right down to bottom left order). And just like film, the only text in Tezuka's comic was character's spoken line. Tezuka introduced film like story telling and character in comic format in which each short-film like episode is part of larger story arch. Before Tezuka, most Japanese comics were drawn on one or four picture format dealing with social or political satire or humour. He later commented that a part of reason he went to medical school was to avoid conscription and he actually didn't like seeing blood. Tezuka was greatly inspired by the film and later decided to become a comic artist, which at the time (and somewhat even now) was an unthinkable choice for someone who qualified as a medical doctor and Ph.D in medicine. Though a war propaganda film, it was also a children's film, so the main theme of the film was peace and hope in the time of darkness. In 1945, Tezuka who was studying medicine, saw a war propaganda animation film called "Momotarou Uminokaihei" whose style was largely copied from Disney's Fantasia. Osamu Tezuka, widely acknowledged to be the father of story-based manga, became popular. Manga as people know it in the 20th and 21st centuries only really came into being after Dr. Manga at this period was known as Ponchi-e (Punch-picture) and, like its British counterpart Punch magazine, mainly depicted humour and political satire in short 1 or 4 picture format. Thus, they imported Western artists to teach their students things such as line, form and colour (things which were never concentrated on in ukiyo-e as the idea behind the picture was normally considered more important). When the United States began trading with Japan, Japan tried to modernise itself and catch up with the rest of the world. Manga developed from a mixture of ukiyo-e and Western art movements. However, gi-ga (literally "funny pictures") drawn in the 12th century by various artists contain many manga-like qualities such as emphasis on story and simple, artistic lines. The word first came into common usage after the publication of the 19th century Hokusai manga, containing assorted drawings from the sketchbook of the famous ukiyo-e artist Hokusai. Literally translated, manga means "random (or whimsical) pictures". . Stories are often modified to appeal to a more mainstream market. A small amount of the total Manga output of Japan is adapted into anime, which is usually created afterwards, once a market interest has been established. It comes mainly in black and white, except for the covers and maybe the first few pages. Manga developed from a mixture of ukiyo-e and Western styles of drawing, and took its current form shortly after World War II. Manga (漫画) is the Japanese word for comics and/or cartoons it usually refers specifically to Japanese comics. Mangaka (漫画家) Literally "Manga professional" is a Japanese term for a manga author/artist. It is also commonly called コミック(komikku, from comic) in Japanese. Because nouns in Japanese do not have a plural form, manga is the form for both plural and singular. Densha Otoko (Comedy/Drama). MONSTER (Horror/Drama). Lone Wolf and Cub (Samurai Drama). Ghost in the Shell (Sci-Fi). Blade of the Immortal (Samurai Drama). Berserk (Medieval/Fantasy). Angel Densetsu (Drama). Oh My Goddess! (Fantasy/Action). Akira (Sci-Fi). 3x3 Eyes (Mythology/Comedy/Horror). Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon (fantasy/romance/action). Cardcaptor Sakura(Action/Fantasy). X/1999 (Paranormal). Revolutionary Girl Utena (Action/Drama). Please Save My Earth (Sci-fi/Drama). Marmalade Boy (Comedy/Romance/Drama). Kareshi Kanojo no Jijō) (Comedy/Romance/Drama). Kare Kano (His and Her Circumstances a.k.a. Hana-Kimi (Hanazakari no Kimi-tachi e) (Comedy/Romance/Drama). Fruits Basket (Comedy/Romance/Paranormal). Boys Over Flowers (Hana Yori Dango) (Drama/Romance). Ceres, Celestial Legend (Ayashi no Ceres) (Paranormal/Romance). Nana (Drama/Romance). Inuyasha (action/adventure/comedy). Saint Seiya (Mythological/Adventure/Action). Rurouni Kenshin (Historical Fiction/Romantic Comedy/Action). Negima (Harem/Magic/Comedy). Great Teacher Onizuka (High School Comedy/Action). Dragon Ball (Super-Powered Martial Arts). One Piece (Pirate Action/Comedy). Samurai Deeper Kyo (Samurai Epic). Naruto (Fantasy/Ninja). Fullmetal Alchemist (Action/Adventure/Comedy). Bleach (Action/Adventure/Fantasy). Shōnen-ai (or Yaoi, gay romance). Shōjo-ai (or Yuri, lesbian romance). Moé (also mahō kanojo or magical girlfriend). Mecha (giant robots). Magical girl (mahō shōjo). Dōjinshi Fan-art or self-published manga. Battling companion (not an official name). Semi-alternative (popular publication individualistic style). La nouvelle manga (Franco-Belgian/Japanese artistic movement). Gekiga (dramatic pictures). Alternative (See also: Garo)
Kodomo children. Josei (or redikomi) women. |