I read my first manga today

[NeutralDrow]

Spoiler: Too big

]If you're not reading Ichi the Killer then you're not reading manga

Spoiler tags are your friend. Or at least not posting huge amounts of large images.

 

[Kakarot4739]

Honestly this topic could run on forever; there are far too many mangas out there that create a wide range of emotions. If you don't mind things like excessive violence or blood or sex (as long as there is a worthy story behind it) here are a few I recommend:

Akira
Battle Royale
Claymore
Elfen Lied
Saikano

And if you prefer something lighter, more along the lines of comedy, suspense, or action:

Case Closed
Cowboy Bebop
Death Note
Full Metal Panic!
Genshiken

(Bleach and Full Metal Alchemist fit in this category)

Now I can't exactly list everything I've read, since it would add way too many names to these lists, but these are five of my favorites on each side.

 

[Agent Larkin]

Spoiler: Too big

]If you're not reading Ichi the Killer then you're not reading manga

Spoiler tags are your friend. Or at least not posting huge amounts of large images.

Fuck spoiler tags.

And that sort of attitude will have you kicked out. Also using an image file with the name trolltroll is not very wise.

 

[Amethyst Wind]

Read Bokurano and then tell me you didn't come out the other end changed.

 

[the_unseen]

death note, bleach, and fullmetal alchemist are the best.

You forgot the following:

Eden
Monster
Azumangah Daioh/Yotsuba&! (both by the same creator)
Great Teacher Onizuka (already mentioned)
Basilisk
Blame!
Genshiken
Hellsing



Have I missed any? Most likely, but all of the above are worth a look in my opinion.

Stop forgeting about Gantz, uncensored nudity, extreme violence and gore, and deep characters that aren't just meatbags that can move. Also it has a seriously screwed up storyline and is not afraid to kill off characters. It is like the best manga out there.

now to stop the rant and give a link: http://www.thespectrum.net/manga_scans/?preview=manga_Gantz

PS: a reminder to everyone who doesn't know that you read RIGHT to LEFT, not the normal left to right.

 

[DannyBoy451]

If you're not reading Ichi the Killer then you're not reading manga

Spoiler: Fail

On Topic:

I really enjoyed the original Dragon Ball series, had some pretty funny 4th wall breaking moments, so I'd reccomend that.

Also tried for a while to get into Gantz, but the plot's so conveluted that it really made it not worth it, despite all the ultraviolence and boobage.

 

[Spektre41]

Read Bokurano and then tell me you didn't come out the other end changed.

I came out severely depressed and confused, so eh.

To answer the topic at hand, the best manga/anime out there are definitely Full Metal Alchemist, FLCL, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, and Serial Experiments Lain.

 

[RagnorakTres]

Hm... *Reading along...sees image* GAH! *Runs and throws up*
*Returns, wiping mouth* That is not manga, that is an excuse to draw blood disguised with bad writing. Decent art, though. I'll stop feeding the troll now.

Anyway, I'll throw some recommendations out here.

Shaman King: Great characterization is the main draw for me at this point. Story is clichéd and the dialogue is "meh," but the characters are very interesting.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Just keeps getting more interesting with each installment I read.

D.Gray Man: Same thing with Shaman King, though it's more the characters' neuroses that make them compelling than anything else.

Dragon Ball: Funny as all get out. Parodies itself constantly.

 

[The Random One]

Fullmetal Alchemist is the best one, because it manages to both have the spirit of most well-known manga (i.e., an underpowered, honorable, usually teenager, usually spiky-haired person uses his amazing talent at a specific skill and the power of friendship to defeat evil in a realistic fantasy world) while at the same time sidestepping most of the negative clichés and giving a storyline that's actually interesting, as well as characters that are well-rounded and you can actually care for. It's an excellent one for starting off.

Everyone says wonders about Death Note, but it's painfullly obvious the author was winging it as he went on, which is not how you should do a mystery story at all. Still, the concept is interesting enough to warrant a read. It's quite short, at least (well, relatively so).

Bleach is good in the beginning, when it doesn't take itself so seriously, then it devolves into Drangonball Z WITH SWORDS! [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ptitlekt6mtovm4vne?from=Main.INSPACE] with more characters than every other manga put together. Seriously, it's easier to keep track of the characters in One Hundred Years of Solitude than in the later sagas of Bleach.

Hellsing is Bleach except it's even more over nine thousand, and it never stops not taking itself seriously (as far as I know, at least).

I did think xXxholic was about porn addition as well (one of the side effects of being exposed to manga series first on 4chan - you never know when something actually is porn). I've only read the first issue, where it's agressively estabilished that it takes place in the same canon as Sakura Card Captors. I'm not sure what to make of it yet.

Never read Akira or Cowboy Bebop, but I've heard they're, like, genre-defining.

There are a few others I like, but it's down to personal taste. I never heard of any of those other ones that were mentioned here, so, since I am the center of the Universe, I must conclude that they suck.

 

[Fraught]

Spoiler: Too big

]If you're not reading Ichi the Killer then you're not reading manga

Spoiler tags are your friend. Or at least not posting huge amounts of large images.

Fuck spoiler tags.

Umm, I beg you pardon?

Also, that comic is fucked up.

EDIT: I read your previous posts. Hahahahahahah, "fuck spoiler tags".
Man, you're the funniest man I've ever seen.

 

[NeutralDrow]

Never read Akira or Cowboy Bebop, but I've heard they're, like, genre-defining.

Unnecessary side note time!

Akira is genre-defining from all I've heard too (described as much, much better than the anime, and the anime was pretty good), but funny you bring up Cowboy Bebop. That one's actually a reversed case: the anime came first, and is much better than any of the manga adaptations I've read. Same goes for spiritual successor series Samurai Champloo.

 

[theonlywildman]

For a good laugh read Bo-Bo-Bo Bo-Bo-Bo-Bo. I think that it is pretty damn funny but is very odd.
Another good one would be Samurai Champloo.

 

[Kotaro]

If you're reading FMA, I would suggest that you stick to the manga and avoid the anime. Why? Because the anime was not very loyal to the source material, and even went off into a completely different plotline after a while.
Personally, after finishing both versions, I feel that the manga's story is superiaor in every way.

 

[spuddyt]

If you're reading FMA, I would suggest that you stick to the manga and avoid the anime. Why? Because the anime was not very loyal to the source material, and even went off into a completely different plotline after a while.
Personally, after finishing both versions, I feel that the manga's story is superiaor in every way.

They started another anime, with the suffix Brotherhood that is going to follow the manga more closely.
Meanwhile, to avoid suggesting things that have already been suggested, i'd go with something old I recently started and have found quite funny in Ranma 1/2.

 

[Resistance205]

Akira
Battle Royale (one of the best)
Death Note
Code Geass

For lighter ones
Bleach
Naruto

Thats all I can remember right now, I have a stack of them in my closet, but since it is ten to two over here, I can't go rooting through it.

 

[gigastrike]

also XXXholic is a good read as well

Now that sounds like the kind of manga I could get into.

How the hell did you see that?