February 11, 2014

Do You Read Manga?


According to Wikipedia, "Manga" as a term used outside Japan refers specifically to comics originally published in Japan.

It actually saddens me that some readers do not consider mangas as real books. I mean, mangas are wonderful! They have stories, and they have pictures too! (RIGHT) I never review a manga except to give it three-five lines of comments, but actually, YES, I've been a manga reader for a VERY long time. I think my fondness of these Japan comics started at the same time I started reading and loving books. Doraemon and Crayon Sinchan were my favorites as a toddler! Middle grade Tirta pretty much read any mangas that attracted her eyes, and she also regularly bought Hanalala & Nakayoshi (comic magazine...?) every month.

Now, several years later, I do not read mangas as much as I used to, but I still have some absolute favorites mangakas (authors) whose works I always read whenever it's out in bookstores. I don't want to miss even a single one.

Usami Maki writes the most adorable school romance mangas, ever! Her works are always cute and fluffy, the drawings are simple and clean with not so much details. I always love how she dresses and plays with her female characters' hair. My favorites from Usami Maki are Haruyuki Bus (Bus for Spring) and Kokoro Botan (Love Button) :3


Kaoru Mori won me over with only one series: Emma! It's a story set in victorian regency era, where a maid named Emma fell in love with William, a gentleman from the upper class. Kaoru Mori's magnificent drawing style is rich with exquisite details but also clean at the same time. The lines are soft and quite unique, different from other mangakas.


This shouldn't be a secret. Everybody loves Miiko! Ono Eriko is famous for her Hai, Miiko! series. I grew up with Miiko. I've read the stories of Miiko's life since I was younger than her, and now I'm already 18 and Miiko is still in the 5th grade. Ha ha. It's a super HILARIOUS series about the everyday life of Yamada Miiko, with her family and friends. The big head and big mouth of the characters are Ono Eriko's trademark. I was a sad panda because I couldn't come to Ono Eriko's meet & greet fan event in Jakarta last year :( But then she wrote about it (the event) in the latest installment, volume #26, yay!


Hanalala (Indonesia's version of LaLa) introduces me to Matsuri Hino's works. I'm ADDICTED to her works! Not only her drawing style are rich (but it's a different kind of 'rich' than Kaoru Mori) and detailed (especially in eyes, hair, and clothes), but the plot of her stories are always good! Her skill is amazing. She writes about romance and dares to tackle different topics such as pirate & vampire story. My favorites: Vampire Knight, Wanted, Merupuri.



Other than the 4 mangakas I've mentioned above, I also love these three with their particular works:

With her Goong! series. It's a very famous series (manhwa) from Korea that has been made into a tv drama called Princess Hours (2006). Though I don't really fancy her drawings, Park So Hee can draw clothes and rooms (Korean traditional clothes as well as common wear, and Korean palace interiors with all the details) wonderfully. Goong also has a quite solid plot.


With his Ingenuo. It's actually from Taiwan; the story about Ding Jiayu who's interested in photography. She pretends to be a guy in order to join Yangzhao's team (which apparently, refuses to hire a woman in their team). It's funny, lovely, and the romance is so swoooooony :3 Ryan's drawing is so 80-ish, in my opinion.


With his Yotsuba&, a series about the daily life of Yotsuba, a five year old (super adorable) girl who lives with his Dad. It's so fresh and funny! Yotsuba is still a little girl with huge curiosity and lots of questions about life. Not so much plot, but the drawings are totally lovely! A perfect cure for when you're bored, tired, or when you need something refreshing.


So! Do you read mangas, too? What's your favorites? Have any recommendation for me to read? I'll be very happy if you're willing to share with me! :D

Have fun and read some more,


17 comments:

  1. saya juga baca manga kok :D
    suka juga sama Hai Miiko. Kalau yang lain2 yang disebutkan di atas sih belum baca yah.
    Kalau sekarang lagi suka sama Seki-kun dan mau baca ulang Prince of Tea :))

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    1. Hehe, mangas yg di atas emang kebanyakan khas cewek ya :))
      Prince of Tea pernah denger dan liat beberapa volumenye, banyak juga ya 25 volume

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  2. awal baca aku malah suka baca komik, jaman masih SMP, begitu SMA mulai meninggalkan komik sedikit-demi sedikit lalu berganti haluan baca teenlit, yah masih sesekali baca komik tapi nggak seekstrem dulu. Dari semua penulis manga yang kamu sebutin di atas aku paling suka Park So Hee, karena cuman baru baca itu aja =))
    Penulis manga favoritku Watase Yu, kebanyakan yg aku baca malah nggak romance, kayak Naruto, One Piece, Bleach, Slam Dunk, Prince of Tenis, Gundam Seed :D.
    Mungkin salah satu alsan aku meninggalkan komik adalah rata-rata berseri dan nggak tau kapan seri itu terbit atau tamat, nungguin sampe lupa saking lamanya :(
    Nice posting, Tir :)

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    1. Nah iya banget Kak, terutama yg Naruto, One Piece gitu-gitu, serinya emang banyak banget sampe capek sendiri nungguin ceritanya kelar :))
      Thankyou, Kak Sulis! Btw, favorit komik dari Watasee Yuu-nya yang mana? Mau coba baca

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  3. Waahhh... selera kita hampir sama nih Tirta. sukaaa banget ama Usami Maki. aku koleksi semua yang diatas kecuali Miiko dan Yotsuba. Aku juga suka Furuba dan Nodame, tapi yang paling aku suka itu karya-karyanya Adachi Mitsuru. ihh..kok suka semua ya! hehehehe...
    tapi sekarang udah jarang beli, baca manga scan aja. harga komik udah kemahalan banget rasanya, mending beli novel :(

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    1. Aku juga suka Nodame! Lucuuu, dan suka banget sama Chiaki-nya <3
      Iya, dulu komik biasa cuma 9500, jadi tiap minggu bisa beli, lama-lama makin naik sampe jadi 17500-18500 kayak sekarang ya... :(

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  4. Dulu aku suka Maki Fujita (kalo ga salah namanya)
    Tapi aku lama lama lumutan ta nungguin tamatnya -__- terus pokoknya aku gamau baca yang lain kalo bukan dia ahahaha.
    Tapi kayanya liat yang Usami Maki keren deh ya :))
    Kalo yang Park So Hee aku belum pernah baca, tapi aku ngikutin dramanya. Daaaan sukaa bangeet aku duluu sama Princess Hour *nostalgia* xD

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    1. Gue kayaknya dulu pernah sekali dua kali baca komiknya doi.
      Usami Maki bagus nivvvv dan ceritanya ringan tapi menyentuh gitu
      Sama, gue nonton dramanya dulu (dan kesengsem setengah mati sama Prince Shin) baru baca komiknya, uehehehehehe

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  5. Saya juga baca komik, tapi sekarang2 ini uda jarang karena semakin mahal.. One Piece terbaru harganya 20rb :"""D
    Cuma Miiko aja yang saya baca dari list di sini, biasanya bacanya macam shonen manga ato shoujo yang satuan. Klo panjang suka ga dilanjutin, kaya macam Naruto ato Detektif Conan (Kenshin dan One Piece pengecualian)

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    1. Iya, sekarang tankoubon gitu aja udah ada yang sampe 18.500-an satunya *kekep dompet*
      Kalo shonen gitu emang biasanya panjang-panjang ya, untung aku sukanya yg rata-rata maksimal cuma sampe 20-an (kecuali Miiko yg bisa dibaca ga berurutan), ga bakal bisa sabar kalo harus nunggu lama banget kayak yg ngikutin Naruto gitu misalnya :')

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  6. aku suka baca Conan, dari SD sampe sekarang... aku juga suka Goong, cuman males beli bukunya~ jadi baca dari aplikasi di tab aja...
    rekomendasi komik sih, mungkin komik seri Scramble (Scramble-b!, High School Scramble, sama Graduation Scramble) yang dikarang Tomoko Yoshimura? artworknya bagus~~ ceritanya juga menarik... nggak bosen deh dibaca berulang-ulang ;)

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    1. Kayaknya pernah liat yg seri Scramble-B itu, bagus ya? Mau coba baca deh nanti :D Thankyou deena!

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  7. aku suka baca Conan, dari SD sampe sekarang... aku juga suka Goong, cuman males beli bukunya~ jadi baca dari aplikasi di tab aja...
    rekomendasi komik sih, mungkin komik seri Scramble (Scramble-b!, High School Scramble, sama Graduation Scramble) yang dikarang Tomoko Yoshimura? artworknya bagus~~ ceritanya juga menarik... nggak bosen deh dibaca berulang-ulang ;)

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  8. Yes, I am quite the manga reader! I like a few of the ones you mentioned (*Vampire Knight* and *Yotsuba&!*), and others I would like to check out, as I have not heard of them (like *Hai, Miiko!* and *Love Button*).

    I have been on an Arina Tanemura kick for awhile, and I am presently reading her *Gentleman's Alliance Cross* (*Shinshi Doumei Cross*) series. I read her *Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne* series and her *Sakura Hime* series earlier this year as well.

    Some of my other favorite mangakas are Naoko Takeuchi (*Sailor Moon*, *The Cherry Project*, *Maria*, *Wink Rain*, *PQ Angels*, *Love Witch*, *Prism Time*), Wataru Yoshizumi (*Marmalade Boy*, *Marmalade Boy Little*, *Ultra Maniac*, *Mint na Bokura*, *Handsome Girlfriend*, *Random Walk*, *Spicy Pink*,*PxP*, *Cherish*, *Datte Suki Nandamon*, *Chitose, Etc.*, *Kimi Shiki Iranai*, *Cappucino*), Mayu Shinjo (*Kaikan Phrase*, *Demon Love Spell*, *Love Celeb*, *Ai Ore!*, *Haou Airen*, *Akuma no Eros* *Sex=Love^2*, *Sexy Guardian*, *Midnight Children*, *Heart no Daiya*, *Suki no Sadist*, and many more!), Kayono (*Royal 17*, *Lovenista*, *Princess Hanaka*, *B-Men no Kazoku*), and Koge-Donbo (*Pita-Ten*, *Kamichama Karin*, *Kamichama Karin Chu!*, *Digi-Charat*, *Chicchana Yukitsukai Sugar*, *Kon Kon Kokon*, *Pavane for a Dead Girl*, *Yoki Koto Kiku*, *Koihime Soushi*).

    I would love any recommendations you offer me! https://www.goodreads.com/BookaholicHolly

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    1. Hi, Holly!
      Wow, you definitely read A LOT of mangas!
      I think I'm familiar with some mangakas you've mentioned like Naoko Takeuchi (of courseeeee, Sailor Moon is such a legend!), Mayu Shinjo and Koge-Donbo, but I haven't heard of the others. Thank you for recommending them, though, I really appreciate it, I'll put them on my list to check later! :D

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  9. manga yg aku baca skrg cuma 2, Topeng Kaca sama Miiko. Mau cari Emma nih, di mana ya?

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