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Manga
- What is it?
Manga
is basically Japanese comics. Examples include Akira Toriyama's
Dragon Ball or Naoko Takeuchi's Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon.
Shorter volume sets would include CLAMP's X 1999 or Johji
Manabe's Caravan Kidd. Ultraman began as manga before it ever
was a television show; it's the same with Dragon Ball, which
was originally published in Shounen Jump in installments.
Manga
is an art form that is taken quite seriously in Japan and
is much more popular and widespread than comics are, or ever
will be in America. Comic-style art also has a longer richer
history in Japan than it does in America, just by the sheer
fact that it comes from 2000-year-old culture. Asian countries
had comics long before anyone European or American ever did.
I think we really started getting into the media in the 1900's?
Not all that long ago…basic fact. We did not originate
it like a LOT of people in this country wishes to believe.
If you REALLY want to dig deep…the ancient Egyptians
may have been THE very first ever...
There
are gigantic mangas that come out weekly and monthly that
feature 10 to 20 different artists. The monthly ones remind
me of phonebooks because they really are just that thick!
An example would be Shounen Sunday.
There
are different mangas for each age group AND profession ranging
from young children to students to parents to businessmen.
There is a manga for EVERYONE.
In
most cases, but NOT all, manga is a predecessor to anime,
video games or live-action movies and/or television shows.
Examples:
Some of my favorites are Dragon Ball, Gon, X 1999, Video Girl
Ai, Record of Lodoss War, Caravan Kidd, Drakuun, Ushio to
Tora and Dr. Slump.
Professional
comics from Japan or Japanese in style are called manga. Amateur
or more specifically, fan artists' comics are called doujinshi.
And many, many doujinshi are VERY high in quality. A writer
of manga, like Naoko Takeuchi are called Mangaka. A master
of manga, like Akira Toriyama and Shirow Masamune are called
Manga no Kami-sama
Thanks
to daiotaku.com
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