How do you choose what manga to read and animes to watch?

[fcgamer | 4,754]

A lot of my friends were into anime or manga as teens, I guess it comes somewhat stereotypically with the territory as they liked games. I was never into it, though I've recently become interested in diving into this world, though it seems quite intimidating.

With so many options out there, how do you personally decide what to go for? Do you just do the classics? Grab stuff based on genre? Randomly grab titles that you find at junk shops? Listen to friend recommendations?

Similarly, will you start a story off with the first part, or just jump in with the most recent volume? I was never a comics guy growing up, so it's all uncharted territory for me.

 

[a3quit4s | 4,127]

I’ve only felt the need to do this a couple times in my life. The first time around was Trigun when I think it came on Cartoon Network. I’m not sure why but me and one of my friends found it to be really cool and funny. Never read the manga but watched the anime. The second time around was Scott pilgrim - I read the books before the movie came out and still found the movie to be awesome. The third time came when I watched the Netflix Cowboy Bebop - really well done and sad it got cancelled. I watched some of the anime but kind of lost interest and having another hobby that takes up way to much time. 
 

I’d like to read the Initial D Toykopop series but the books are so damn expensive and I already have a wallet crippling hobby

[fcgamer | 4,754]

2 hours ago, a3quit4s said:

I’ve only felt the need to do this a couple times in my life. The first time around was Trigun when I think it came on Cartoon Network. I’m not sure why but me and one of my friends found it to be really cool and funny. Never read the manga but watched the anime. The second time around was Scott pilgrim - I read the books before the movie came out and still found the movie to be awesome. The third time came when I watched the Netflix Cowboy Bebop - really well done and sad it got cancelled. I watched some of the anime but kind of lost interest and having another hobby that takes up way to much time. 
 

I’d like to read the Initial D Toykopop series but the books are so damn expensive and I already have a wallet crippling hobby

For me, this has felt like a long time coming, as several of my friends are into it though I never was.

Last Friday I was finishing up a writing class at the school where I work, and I saw a boy reading a Doraemon manga, probably about 10 years old. Something then dawned on me, essentially that manga and anime would be the bridge between reading boring children's books / watching the Chinese equivalent of Baby Shark videos and full head-on Chinese novels to improve my language ability*

On a different note, here's an interesting article about the history of manga in Taiwan. I'm interested in reading some locally-produced works as well as translations of Japanese series, but the bookshop I was at tonight didn't seem to have anything local.

Tsuei.pdf (pomona.edu)

*I excluded films here as they are visual and I frequently watch Chinese horror films without issue

[Reed Rothchild | 9,592]

I only have superficial knowledge of either (the only manga I own is Akira), but whenever I start a dive into a brave new world, I try to find a source that seems knowledgeable and balanced, and start constructing a list

https://fictionhorizon.com/best-manga-of-all-time/

(I have no idea if this particular list is good)

[fcgamer | 4,754]

2 minutes ago, Reed Rothchild said:

I only have superficial knowledge of either (the only manga I own is Akira), but whenever I start a dive into a brave new world, I try to find a source that seems knowledgeable and balanced, and start constructing a list

https://fictionhorizon.com/best-manga-of-all-time/

(I have no idea if this particular list is good)

How is Akira? I recognize that name from video games.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,592]

12 minutes ago, fcgamer said:

How is Akira? I recognize that name from video games.

I've only read the first two books (3-6 are on my backlog with 500 other books), but it's much bigger in scope than the movie, which seems cool.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,592]

I do want to read and/or watch Attack on Titan.  Such a pulp concept is right up my alley.

[spacepup | 2,412]

37 minutes ago, Reed Rothchild said:

I do want to read and/or watch Attack on Titan.  Such a pulp concept is right up my alley.

Attack on Titan is definitely interesting / fun.  I enjoyed the show WAY more than I thought I would.

As to the OP's question - for me, it just depends.  After a while, you learn a bit about what styles you are into, and then you can look for similar styles.  'Anime' in general is an EXTREMELY broad spectrum of media, and there are lots of different types.  For example, I personally don't so much care for the direct romance or high school drama ones, but plenty of people love those.  There are lots of different genres and it can make a huge difference on the media and your potential enjoyment of it.  I think some people just think of "anime" as one specific style, perhaps not realizing the breadth of entertainment options available.

If you google something like "Anime Genres" you can find all sorts of lists and explanations about the different types out there, and then maybe you can use that to get a feel for what you might be interested in, and research around for good ones.  For example, Shounen are really popular - typically lots of action, adventure, etc.

A few series that I personally really enjoy, in no particular order, are:

* Fullmetal Alchemist (love this one)
* Attack on Titan
* Neon Genesis Evangelion
* Death Note
* Ranking of Kings (see my avatar!) (thanks to Gloves for showing me this one!)
* Serial Experiments Lain
* Ghost in the Shell
* Demon Slayer (relatively recent one, pretty popular)
* Twelve Kingdoms

Then there are tons of great movies like everything Ghibli that I love.

I don't expect you to like everything - I certainly don't - but I do encourage people to give it a try, as opposed to just assuming all anime/manga is one thing, and writing it all off.  There is some great stuff out there!

[Abelardo | 154]

I've only read one manga, Battle Angel Alita, it was so many years ago but I couldn't put it down, it's not that big either so I would recommend that one. Oh and I was not into comics so yeah it was that good.

I watched just about any anime I could get my hands on during the 90s, the classics are good to get your feet wet, would recommend Ghost in the Shell, Ninja Scroll, Spirited Away, Macross Plus, and a personal favorite was Wicked City. For more modern anime I guess pick a genere and see what's out the, watch one or a couple of episodes and decide, I rarely watch anything modern these days but Hi Score Girl was entertaining.

[Gloves | 11,843]

MyAnimeList is a good resource for both tracking your own anime and manga read/watch lists, and getting news & reviews (and rankings) for anime and manga. I'm usually pretty up to date on what's coming out and I'm fairly picky about what I watch, but I've seen a fair bit.

Of recent anime Cyberpunk Edgerunners on Netflix was actually excellent. Netflix has been putting out pretty decent stuff these past few years.

Classics like Death Note, Full Metal Alchemist (I suggest Brotherhood specifically, but either or), Cowboy Bebop, those are great. One Piece is still going, so buyer beware if you're hoping to see an ending any time soon (1000+ episodes and counting), but it's easily one of the best anime ever. Honestly the classics are generally classics for a reason. 

SLIGHTLY less known you might go for something like Samurai Champloo which is excellent. If you like food and over the top anime, and don't mind a bit of really bizarre nudity (yeah, quite the mix), Shokugeki no Souma is pretty fun (though I don't suggest the extra seasons, they were pretty purely filler and/or beach episodes). Escaflowne was one of my favourites as a kid, though re-watching it recently it felt less Legend of Dragoon and more Inu Yasha.

What else... If you want a slice of life anime, Komi Can't Talk is pretty good high school slice of life. Aggretsuko is also decent if you're into the Sanrio stuff (and heavy metal). 

Can't go wrong with the recent (season 2 soon!) Ranking of Kings. I saw Spacepup's avatar up above and don't even have to look at the post itself to imagine he probably mentions it. Hunter x Hunter is super fun shounen with great characters. Attack on Titan is currently ranked among the best anime of all time which is impressive for something new (FMA: Brotherhood has held that spot for a long time); apparently the new/final(?) season is incredibly good, which would align with my read of the manga. Kill La Kill and Gurren Lagann are both awesome in their own ways (Kill la Kill another NSFW warning).

I could go on and on with suggestions honestly. It's such a broad topic and I've consumed so much of it, I'd probably need to zone into a single topic not to talk forever.

[fcgamer | 4,754]

Thanks everyone for all of the suggestions and information so far

Stuff like Dragon Ball Z, I guess if I get into other series and enjoy them then I should go watch the classics, but this just never appealed to me. 

I grabbed two books tonight, one was the first volume of Alice in Borderland as I enjoyed the Netflix series (I was talking with @Tanooki and mentioned it), and I think that paired with watching my student read a manga made me feel it could be a fun way to improve my Chinese.

The other book I forgot already the name, it was just randomly chosen as I thought it looked interesting. I'll report back in a few days as I start to progress through these two books.

On a different note, I felt really weird buying it, I never saw myself diving into this stuff.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,592]

3 minutes ago, Gloves said:

I've consumed so much of it

Well this explains the lack of movie watching

[Gloves | 11,843]

Just now, Reed Rothchild said:

Well this explains the lack of movie watching

Toss more anime movies in the mix and I'll give my opinions lol.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,592]

9 minutes ago, Gloves said:

Toss more anime movies in the mix and I'll give my opinions lol.

As you wish

[Brickman | 4,019]

I think spacepup said it best. Anime and manga are such broad terms because they have something for every genre. Searching for genres is a good way of finding thing you like.

I must admit, before learning Japanese I had never read a manga in my life but now I love them because they’re great for learning and also really fun to read.

I’ve really gotten into the slice of life anime and manga, which some people can’t really get into. Teasing Master Takagi San, Clannad, Yotsubato, Yuru Camp and Shirokuma Cafe are all excellent imo.

If you want a video game related anime/manga to start with then high score girl is a great one. Otherwise I think Spacepups list covers all the standard greats from different genres
 

[spacepup | 2,412]

Gundam Wing was also one of my favorites when I was younger - loved that.  I also loved Ronin Warriors (Samurai Troopers).

And woo! Someone else watched Escaflowne - I really enjoyed that.

I should clarify - as Gloves pointed out - FMA Brotherhood is where it's at - definitely better than original.

In terms of movies, there are many that I love:

* Akira (this one is just absolutely classic.  Brutal, but classic.)
* Jin Roh
* I love all the Ghibli movies, but some of my favorites are:
---Nausicaa
---Princess Mononoke
---Laputa (Castle in the Sky)
---Spirited Away
---Grave of the Fireflies (awesome movie to watch *once* hah)
---Ponyo
---Howl's Moving Castle
---The Cat Returns

There's a ton more content I like - but like Gloves, it's just too expansive without narrowing down first.

 

[Tanooki | 4,953]

Yeah we talked about the whole anime and manga thing, and they do haver overlapping utility with trying to pick up bits of language too the more you crack into it, more so the anime, since those symbols you kind of need to know first to get anywhere, vocab, grammar structure.  Having anime subbed is like a little kids early programming with read-along.

Currently I'm tinkering with that which is why we had talked.  Viz Media recently dumped a few of their most popular TV franchise series up on YT for free, they're mostly dubbed if I remember right, but the one I'm doing is Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon/Crystal as that is SUB only.  No more boppy 90s valley girl stuff along with the wonky censorship for the karens of the era.  It's a bit more bloody, gritty, enough open death threats and more it's quite the change yet familiar.  As you listen and read along the words start to line up, the grammar begins to make sense, as various things are repeated you learn a bit here and there.  Clearly immersion would be better, but it's a nice step.

It's trouble, but I'm double dipping that with the dubbed Black Cat, always was curious about it, and the start was a bit confusing and meh but it picks up quite well.  I've got a small mounting pile of stuff backlogged I need to get through, Escaflowne is one of them since that popped up, something I never ever got to somehow.  Vampire Princess Miyu the 2 DVD OVAs is another which are pretty short.

 

All the while recently with a power outage for days I went through Himitsu Sentai Gorenger and also the Mario Manga books, looking down the barrel of the 5 legendary edition volumes of Zelda next.

I could give a number of video recommendations from movies, ova and tv series or as I did for dave there, linked up my current list of anime I have on my inventory site.

[G-type | 2,537]

in the early 90s, seemed like there was only like a dozen movies that even made it to the states. Out of that batch, I liked Ninja Scroll, Akira, Vampire Hunter D.

My favorite Ghiblhi movies are: My Neighbor Totoro, Howls Moving Castle, Kiki's Delivery Service, Princess Mononoke, Nausicaa Valley of the Wind

[YOURTURN | 1,257]

If we are talking about today... I'll simplify by saying that it depends on what I am interested in.

I can make a long speech about my history with both anime and manga. Including brief explanations that would help those who knew that I had a breakdown understand what caused it to be that bad. And so on, and so forth.

But right now?

Anime = Detective Conan while I am living where I am. My paternal genetic cousin is Arthur Conan Doyle. Which is not the reason why I watch it. I just do because it is a good anime adaptation. Even if they create a few episodes that he would have criticized in the end. If I was where I wanted to be, and almost ended up being at, my list would have definitely been longer. With the original Bubblegum Crisis being on top of that list.

Manga = ??? as I'm still looking. But until then I am doing a soft return for the Naruto franchise. But I am nearly sure that I'll find a definitive series when I return to Tokyo later this year. With hopes What's Michael? will be reprinted around the time I return back from Tokyo. Otherwise I'll be looking at how I sought series out during my pre-2012 days. With me adding that, like anime as well, I will not get into Sanrio Boys.

So long story short... I just go where my interests take me.

[Tanooki | 4,953]

I will throw this out there, and probably going to get some potential disagreement here, but in the last 10-15 years, creeping in a bit earlier yet things have become greatly watered down, largely with not the movies but the series stuff.  Laugh maybe if you will, but a good tell, utterly shit names for the stuff.  I don't mean like one to two word titles, but where they decide to write a sentence or even two of nonsensical questions and statements.  There are a few select stand outs that don't follow that rule, but maybe counted on your own digits.  The short name is Danmachi/Sword Oratoria, but often it has the kind of surface level skeezy name of Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?  The title is fairly misleading, and the story follows going into this ever deeper dungeon, meaning of some value to one girl or guy to the next, and not for mackin' on chicks which makes the title stupid and confusing.

It's a mix of age, but also to be blunt, times changed and even there with fears of offending those they want to peddle the anime and manga to outside of the asian and particular Japanese markets have watered down a good bit of subject matters and things covered into a haze or just dropped cold.  Other things have been twisted away from some of their inclinations say like hte ever popular Lupin isn't a big womanizing man-whore anymore on top of primarily being a worlds greatest cunning thief.  Watch a Lupin made post 2010-15 vs peak Lupin of the 70s-90s, it's obvious, much like how they kind of turned 007 into a simp compared to when Connery through Brosnan ran the run of those movies.

Here's the current stuff I have for anime.  I don't want to take images or paste a list, better this way and you can google anything of interest.  Some of it is pretty hardcore super non-PC, definitely niche into some dark shit (Violence Jack) you won't find in a store these days (oddly I did, cover looked good, then reality hit....hah)  http://tanooki.byethost8.com/anime.html

[Tenjikuronin | 1,755]

2 hours ago, Tanooki said:

Laugh maybe if you will, but a good tell, utterly shit names for the stuff.  I don't mean like one to two word titles, but where they decide to write a sentence or even two of nonsensical questions and statements. 

 

[Tanooki | 4,953]

YUP!  That's the kind of tripe I was pointing at directly.  Mass marketed mass produced generic stirred up shit meant to hit quick, hit for profits, and then bail except in the rare case somehow millions get sucked into it, then there's sequels.  What has been lost since the 70s-mid 00s era is where the series had more general thought to it much like the movies and short run of OVAs did.  Great media with all sorts of ranging genres and topics that just stand up exceptionally well, enough of it, had you been a blind man/woman and just hearing it would make them not realize it was anime/a cartoon at all.  Some pretty good quality of story telling, characters, general plot run of a cycle were quite nicely done since the stuff is rooted in the manga culture which feeds off that before it went into the sentence of diarrhea titling too.

We have that movie of the week going, despite it being about Mononoke it's a Ghibli love fest in there, that has been both done largely as video but also manga and film comic in print as well.  Think back to those decades of other greats, and not just the go-to like the OG dragon ball, Akira, Dominion Tank Police, Ah My Goddess, Magic Knight Rayearth, Golgo-13, Gundam, Dirty Pair, Bubblegum Crisis, Armitage, Devil Hunter Yohko, Macross, Lupin, Vampire Hunter D or Vampire Princess Miyu, Venus Wars, Ranma, Sailor Moon, and so on.  There was so much that just hit so damn well.

I just fired off some pretty timeless stuff here that retains value, and will far longer than that shit show mass run stuff will.  There's a reason in recent times why you can find so many sub-licensed to run free/or minimal pay old anime streamers have popped up lately, a key one, RetroCrush, even had apps on fire sticks and the rest, and exist as well.  They have more select stuff than the Funimation/Crunchyroll mass of their catalogs into the more coveted stuff they don't have their tentacles in as the demand is more there than for the new blanditude you see now.