Manga for Grown-Ups

ANIME DETOUR 2022

Introduction

Jessi Silver

• Anime Detour Programming staff member
• Blogger at s1e1.com

For Grown-Ups?

• Manga that has general appeal to an older or more experienced fan
• Manga that has cultural or historical significance

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• It does not only encompass manga that contains nudity/sexual content or violence (though some may)
• It’s not meant to be a judgment call on a manga’s inherent value as a piece of art – manga meant for wider audiences is enjoyable too!

Notes

• Manga is listed on the handout with various information, including where it can be obtained (legally).
• Content warnings are provided, though may not encompass very specific content concerns.

An Overview of Digital Manga Sources

An Overview of Digital Manga Resources

• For various reasons, over the last two years, access to digital manga has become much more of a necessity for manga readers:
• Social-distancing measures and restrictions on in-person shopping meant that going to the local bookstore in person wasn’t always a viable option
• Supply chain issues have meant that manga volumes go out of print more frequently (this is a multi-faceted problem itself)

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• Digital manga also offers more options as far as very niche titles which may otherwise not be viable for traditional distribution
• Some new resources have cropped up since the last time I talked about this many years ago

MangaPlaza - https://mangaplaza.com/

PROS

• Large library with several popular titles
• Some niche content not available elsewhere

CONS

• Comparatively expensive ($6.99/month) and some titles can be purchased elsewhere more cheaply
• In many cases, subsequent chapters are an additional charge even for subscribers
• Catalog is padded with romance titles that may not be of interest to many U.S. readers

Days Full of Promise – by Hisae Iwaoka�Genres: Slice-of-life, Drama

• Koyomi Inagawa works as a freelance wedding planner. Her goal is to get to know each couple and provide them with the perfect day. In this role, though, she often perceives the complications inherent in romantic relationships.
• Portrays the detail-oriented and personal work involved in planning large events, while also exploring Koyomi’s own life and career drive.
• CW: Portrayal of some toxic relationship dynamics

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Days Full of Promise

• Koyomi comes up with a great venue idea for a couple who love to read.

Diary of my Daily Failures - by Eriko Kobayashi�Genres: Slice-of-Life, Diary

• Eriko Kobayashi talks about her experiences with mental illness, including bouts of attempting suicide, and dealing with Japanese mental health resources.
• Colorful, yet very frank look at one person’s experiences in a way that educates and cultivates empathy.
• CW: Depression, attempted suicide, depictions of other mental illnesses.

Diary of my Daily Failures

Eriko uses the tool of manga to share her experiences.

Crunchyroll Manga - https://www.crunchyroll.com/comics/manga

PROS

• Part of the overall Crunchyroll subscription.
• Interface works adequately.

CONS

• Small selection; new entries aren’t added frequently and there isn’t much fanfare when it happens
• Web interface doesn’t always seem to be up-to-date or have entries categorized properly

Planet With - by Satoshi Mizukami�Genres: Sci-Fi, Action, Drama

• Soya Kuroi lives with an alien maid and a giant cat. He also goes to school despite living with amnesia. When the earth is approached by giant (and… strange) creatures, Soya is ordered to fight against the heroes defending the planet! As it turns out, this conflict has the heart of humanity at its core.
• Satoshi Mizukami draws the manga adaptation of the scenario he wrote for the Planet With anime. The story’s themes deal with forgiveness and love winning out over violence and hate.
• CW: Mild fanservice, PTSD, violence.

Planet With

Humanity is at the crossroads of the evolution of love and power, and their galactic fate is at stake.

Inside Mari - by Shuzo Oshimi�Genres: Drama, Psychological

• Isao Komori is a shut-in who has often watched high school student Mari Yoshizaki from afar. One day he wakes up to realize that his consciousness is now inside Mari.
• The premise of this series seems straightforward and unsettling, but quickly reveals itself to be much more psychologically complicated than it appears at first glance.
• CW: Graphic nudity, graphic sexual content, toxic family dynamics.

Inside Mari

Isao’s last memory of being in his own body occurs as he follows Mari home.

VIZ/Shonen Jump - https://www.viz.com/shonenjump

PROS

• Great Price - $1.99/month
• Easy-to-use interface with apps for multiple platforms
• New chapters of ongoing manga are simulpublished

CONS

• Subject matter of many/most titles is aimed at more of a teen audience
• Some titles are web-only due to content

Akane-Banashi - by Yuki Suenaga and Takamasa Moue�Genres: Dramedy, Shonen

• When Akane was young, her father was unceremoniously kicked out of Rakugo performing for dubious reasons. Since then, Akane has trained in secret to become skilled at the art herself and avenge her father.
• Akane is charming due to her unrefined attitude and intense drive. So far this series has done a great job of bringing to life an entertaining art form in a way that’s fun to read.

Akane-Banashi

Akane isn’t nervous at all before her sudden debut.

Look Back – by Tatsuki Fujimoto�Genres: Drama

• Fujino’s 4-panel manga have made her a star of her 4^th grade class, but when a shut-in named Kyomoto asks to give it a try (and happens to be extremely good at it), this thrusts Fujino’s identity into a spiral.
• This one-shot story by the author of Chainsaw Man touches on the interplay of talent and drive, as well as the moments that drive our lives’ trajectory and painful feelings of regret at choices and their after-effects.
• CW: Violence, mild bullying/manipulation

Look Back

Fujino reflects on one of the various small choices she made that may have had far-reaching consequences.

Azuki - https://www.azuki.co/

PROS

• Decent subscription price ($4.99/month)
• Adding new titles regularly, including from more niche publishers (Star Fruit Books)

CONS

• Contains many of the same Kodansha titles that are available on other services

Pop Life – by Minami Q-ta�Genres: Slice-of-Life

• Sakura and Akemi are two women in their 40s. Once drinking buddies, they began living together as single mothers to help one-another raise their children. These are stories from their daily lives.
• This is a story filled with small moments and quiet changes – the characters picking up (and dropping) new hobbies, discussions of aging, the kids experiencing the world.
• CW: Brief references to past abuse and toxic relationships, animal death, alcohol use, sports injury.

Pop Life

Sakura and Akemi reflect on the benefits of their shared household.

Ripples – by Hagiwara Rei�Genres: Psychological

• An individual walks through the snow and encounters a flame burning inside an empty house. They see flashes of memories and dark figures just out of reach. They feel grief, but also as if someone is there to lead them through to the other side of it.
• This visual poem deals with the messiness of processing grief using a unique, dreamlike watercolor art style that captures the ephemeral nature of those emotions.
• CW: Death

Ripples

It can be difficult to capture the “whys” and “hows” of grief.

Other Selections

Robo Sapiens: Tales of Tomorrow – by Toranosuke Shimada�Genres: Sci-Fi, Drama

• A series of lightly-connected stories taking place in the future, where the human race has entered a decline and androids are becoming the dominant population of the planet.
• The clean art style and sparse dialog lends an air of emptiness and melancholy to the futuristic setting. The longevity of the central android characters allows us to witness the deterioration of society in the long term, and the reclamation of infrastructure by the natural world.

Robo Sapiens

ANDROID MARIA RECEIVES HER MISSION.

My Alcoholic Escape From Reality – by Nagata Kabi�Genres: Slice-of-Life Diary

• Author Nagata Kabi continues the chronicle of her life by describing her struggle with alcohol use and its permanent after-effects on her body.
• Kabi-sensei combines her honest, funny, and often emotionally-resonant storytelling style with the subject of self-medicating mental illness, which is a familiar struggle for many.
• CW: Mental illness, suicidal ideation, alcohol use, needles in a medical setting, discussion of medication, discussion of specialized diets

My Alcoholic Escape from Reality

Kabi struggles with the urge to chronicle this particular aspect of her struggle.

Revolutionary Girl Utena: After the Revolution – by Chiho Saito�Genres: Drama, supernatural

• In these 3 short stories, author Chiho Saito revisits several characters from Revolutionary Girl Utena in their adult lives as they struggle to address ghosts from their own pasts at Ohtori Academy.
• These stories provide interesting insights into these familiar characters while allowing them to achieve some closure. That said, as director Ikuhara is quoted in author Saito’s afterword, enough is left open-ended to provide fans with the amount of speculation, theorizing, and dreaming that this franchise has always inspired and encouraged.
• CW: Death, references to human trafficking, incest

Revolutionary Girl Utena: After the Revolution

Touga and Saionji, now both art dealers, become reacquainted with the power to revolutionize the world when Akio Ohtori’s secret art stash is located.

Sneeze – by Naoki Urasawa�Genres: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Slice-of-life

• A collection of one-shot short pieces by manga master Naoki Urasawa. The themes and subject matter vary from piece-to-piece; several incorporate Urasawa’s love of rock music, including a travelogue of his trip to the U.S. to see Paul McCartney and Neil Young perform in concert.
• The stories contain notes and some commentary for each piece.
• CW: Violence, nudity.

Sneeze

This comical short about two mice trying to steal some cake really demonstrates Urasawa’s range as a storyteller.

Maiden Railways – by Asumiko Nakamura�Genres: Romance, Drama, Slice-of-Life

• Railway stations are places where connections are made and missed – just as with the relationships in our lives.
• This collection of short stories from author Asumiko Nakamura (Doukyuusei) captures the ways in which various relationships develop – beginning, ending, and everything in between – framing them along the railway platforms and inside railway cars.
• CW: Slapstick violence (including relationship violence), death

Maiden Railways

A young pickpocket is roped into the middle of an apparent affair unfolding on the Odakyu Romance Car.

Dai Dark – by Q Hayashida�Genres: Sci-Fi, Horror, Action, Comedy

• Zaha Sanko and his companion Avakian flee across space to escape from those who believe that Sanko’s bones have the power to grant wishes. One of the interested parties is a corporation called Photosphere, which classifies Sanko and Avakian as two of the “Four Little Shits.”
• This series, from the author of Dorohedoro, maintains an atmosphere of absurdity and humorous grotesqueness, bolstered by the gritty, detailed art style.
• CW: Violence (extreme),

Dai Dark

Shimada Death, who consumes death itself, reveals her many charms.

Is Kijijoji the Only Place to Live? – by Makihirochi�Genres: Slice-of-Life

• The Shimada twins run a real-estate agency in Kichijoji, one of the most popular places to live in Japan. Many of their customers approach them looking to live within Kichijoji, but the sisters always try to do the most thorough job of figuring out what these clients really want in a home – and often that means living in a completely different neighborhood.
• This series is a fun and pleasant look around various neighborhoods in and around Tokyo, including some of the local restaurants and shopping areas. If you enjoy shows like “House Hunters,” you might really enjoy this manga.
• CW: Occasional mention of diet/weight.

Is Kichijoji the Only Place to Live?

The sisters help to find a perfect neighborhood for a director’s assistant.

Other Resources

Other Resources

• Mangasplaining Podcast – Podcast created by Deb Aoki, David Brothers, Christopher Butcher, and Chip Zdarsky/Steven Murray, that has also just begun publishing a weekly newsletter – subscribers get access to obscure/niche titles that the group has licensed for digital publication.
• https://www.mangasplaining.com/

Thank You!