"What is Manga?"

[Adam Arnold]

What is manga exactly?

If you haven't read our article on this very subject, then be sure to check it out here.

As you can see, we all have our own unique definitions of what manga is and I bet that article started those brain cells of yours churning. So think you have a better definition?

We'll we want to hear it!

Come on, it's a hotly contested topic and we want to hear what manga means to you!
_________________

- Adam Arnold
Forum Administrator
Seven Seas Entertainment

[Tsujiai-kun]

Manga is a way of style in order to tell a story from one person to another. Each artist tells a story throuhg their own style, layouts, dialogue spoken, character development and such.

Each manga is unique for their own stories and is flexible towards the artist's taste. It's very dynamic and can be defined in any style of uniqueness, done in tones, and has very different styles from each page to the next.

It gives the artist and reader a new opportunity to simply want to tell a story that they wish to tell someone else. It's usually relating through emotions, events, or any type of thing in life.

Manga itself is a piece of artwork because there are numerous possibilities in manga that enables each artist to use their own style and story telling. For example, the contrast of Paradise Kiss and Kare Kano can be easily seen, even though they are both shoujo. Or the example from Naruto to Vampire Hunter D.

Maybe it's the flexibility that catches my eyes in this type of work because there are no bounderies written on how to make a manga.

[Hi no Tori]

I think, when defining manga, the context in which you're referring it to is pretty important. Lemme 'splain:

You have manga vs. traditional American comics, vs. daily comic strips or funnies, vs. manhwa, etc.

When using it to differentiate between two separate works of sequential art, the term manga does seem to boil down to the simple question of "Where's it from?"

Like Jake said in his nifty write-up, some people do associate manga with simple stylistic choices. I tend to agree with his more amorphous view of manga, however. Though in practice, I spend very little time worrying about what I should call what I'm reading, watching, or playing. Instead, the only questions that pop into my mind are "Is this good?"

So far, the stuff I've seen here is good. And that's all that matters to me.


EDIT: Corrected login error. - adam_omega

[aaron_b]

[Tsujiai-kun]

Yeah, I agree. I think manga simply puts artwork into words of a literature, simply taking what words can't express enough. There are some things words can't define, but a simple blush on a character can.

Plus mangas make it more personalized to the reader when the character themselves show humanly traits and speaks like one as well. People tell stories through these to find their audience and people that relate to them. It's someone just wanting to give a simple message. XD Haha!

[Yvonne X]

What I could say about manga though is that manga itself is like poetry in motion. I mean you let your thoughts wander around the book and read it thoroughly as if you are reading a regular book except that it has pictures in it.

I agree with what all you have to say and pretty much manga is ineffably contagious to some of us though (like me). Manga itself is good and I enjoy the concept of each writer and their ideas that they emphasize in it.
_________________
I can't believe that a paradise such as this existed. I am so thrilled.

[Manga_Jake]

I'm thrilled to see so many opinions so soon! What qualifies as "manga" will continue to change, as more and more creators around the world "get it" and bring their talent to the table. Change is good. Still, a lot of companies throw the word around these days hoping to group their product in with the fastest growing category in the publishing world. I'm sure that out of the emergent intelligence of hundreds of thousands of readers a new definition will evolve. In the meantime, as a manga fan and manga professional, I'm fascinated by the process! It's a very exciting time to be a manga fan.

-Jake Forbes

[Hi no Tori]

Well, I think there are two types of people that push manga. There are those who merely use the word manga to promote it, and those that define it by showing us what it really is.

I think those who define it impress me more than those who merely sell it, or use it as a brand.

[michael n yahgulanaas]

Isn't man-ga like hai-ga. I am told that in the Japanese language "Haiga" means word pictures such as in illustrations for poems. "ga" means pictures and that "man" means without limit. Pictures without limits.

When we say "Manga" are we really talking about a specific popularize drawing technique, a product line, or are we prepared to consider or read pictures that are more stylisticaly expansive and are 'picture (stories) without limits'?

The rapid growth of imported Japanese manga provides us as readers or producers a chance to blow the doors off rectangles and gutters. Additionally we are faced with a greater choice, do we also embrace or at least welcome continued innovation in the world of graphic literature.

The success of Japanese manga is that it tells us that the north american readers of all ages were always there. We just wanted to experience new approaches not the cookie cutter material that is typical of a centralized main stream north american comic factories and distribution system.

There is always the risk that Manga may be exactly the opposite of what the words mean and it is only the latest corporate cookie cutter.

hopefully not,
regards

mny
www.rockingraven.com

[Tsujiai-kun]

Hmm... I differentiate manga from north american comics because the layouts aren't cut dry and all in specific boxes, completely set up in such an organized way. When in manga, the layouts are much more personalized by the artist and is designed almost as a separate painting as each page goes on. It can almost be seen as the page being a poster of its own.

Each person has their own definition of manga, but I think all in all, it stands out for uniqueness because in each manga, a new definition of manga rises from the artist's works as they try to approach the problems of having a cliched comic book.