Manga genres and tags

These manga fully or mostly take place on an island, whether the land mass is in the sea or floating in the air.

These manga feature a society that is physically isolated from the world. The populace might live inside of a walled or domed city, or are limited to a small island. Typically, the society is unaware of what exists outside of their borders in the Outside World, or are forbidden to go there.

These manga predominantly or fully take place in Italy.

Iyashikei (癒し系) is a sub-genre of Slice of Life manga that is designed to have a "healing" effect on the viewer. Iyashikei manga are typically Episodic, have little to no conflict, and showcase the characters' peaceful lives. These titles often take place in the peaceful Countryside, but can occur in a variety of other locations such as a home, workplace, or school. Common features include mellow atmospheres, soothing soundtracks, and gorgeous background art.

Japanese mythology refers to any number of stories involving kami (deities or spirits), oni (ogres), and/or youkai (fey-like creatures). Manga commonly include ideas based on the creation myth, featuring Amaterasu, Susano-o, Izanagi and Izanami; tales of incredible beasts such as the serpentine Orochimaru; or stories of mortal deities or folk heroes like Momotarou.

These manga focus on the appreciation of Jazz music, or on the musicians themselves, whether they’re amateurs or professionals.

Josei (女性), translated as "woman", is a demographic aimed at women from late teens through adulthood. These titles tend to be more mature, often focusing on realistic situations such as work life or romance. Josei is the counterpart of Seinen, a demographic aimed at older teens and men.

Journalism is the focus of these manga. Characters may be news anchors, photojournalists or reporters that work in the field, or people who work in a career involving newspapers, magazines, or other related areas.

These manga are directly or loosely based on the Journey to the West novel by Wu Cheng'en.

These manga fully or mostly take place in a jungle: a tropical rainforest dominated by trees and dense vegetation.

Kendo is the focus of these manga. Training and competing in tournaments or championships are common themes in sports titles, as well as individual or team spirit, or being an underdog who goes against the odds to succeed.

Kickboxing is a Hand-to-Hand Combat sport that is similar to Boxing. Kickboxing features two unarmed opponents who kick and punch. These manga typically focus on characters training and then traversing amateur or professional circuits, earning fame and fortune with their skills.

These manga feature a kidnapping as the central plot, whether it's carried out during the manga, or characters must deal with the aftermath of a kidnapping.

Characters in these manga take on the responsibility of running a town or kingdom, whether they take control of an existing one, or build their own from the ground up. Typically, these manga focus on the administrative duties that keep civilization going, such as implementing new laws, constructing buildings, dealing with economic issues, engaging in international diplomacy, and acquiring the land needed for expansion through trade, negotiation, or open warfare.

These manga feature koalas: Australian marsupials known for clinging to tree branches and snacking on eucalyptus leaves. They are sometimes referred to as koala bears, although they are not members of the bear family.

Lacrosse is the focus of these manga. Training and competing in Tournaments or championships are common themes in Sports titles, as well as team spirit, or being an underdog who goes against the odds to succeed.

These manga feature landlords: people who own or manage a property and its tenants. They might collect rent, perform building maintenance, or conduct routine inspections of the rooms being leased.

These manga feature lawyers. Also known as attorneys, these characters are in the business of practicing law, using their legal expertise to argue cases in court before a judge or jury.

These manga are a part of the Leijiverse: a term used to describe anime and manga that are a part of the same universe created by, or heavily influenced by, Leiji Matsumoto. Titles in the Leijiverse can be directly connected through shared characters or places, or can be loosely connected through common themes or concepts. 

These manga have an LGBT theme as a strong focus. Examples include gender or gender identity themes; an LGBT relationship as a primary focus; or an LGBT character as a protagonist, especially if their gender or sexual orientation is showcased as a back story or plot point. Read more about how we tag LBGT-related content on Anime-Planet.

These manga take place in, or focus on, libraries. Librarians and library patrons are common protagonists.

Characters in these manga undergo a significant lifestyle change. They might be a commoner who becomes royalty, are rich and become poor, or have a sudden change in popularity. They might move from the city to the country, have a significant job change such as leaving the mafia or embark on a new career, or experience other personal changes such as a debilitating injury, becoming a parent, or coming to terms with their sexuality.

A light novel is a Japanese novel that usually has less than 500 pages and contains a minimal amount of illustrations - sometimes only the cover contains artwork. See also: Novels, Web Novels.

Characters in these manga feel sad and alone. Those suffering from loneliness might be physically separated from others, or they might feel emotionally isolated even if they are surrounded by people. Depression or other mental illnesses might contribute to their feelings.

Kokuhaku (告白) is the act of declaring your love to another in hopes of dating them. In these Romance manga, the protagonist wishes to confess to their crush, but anxiety, planning, and other factors might stand in the way!

A love triangle is a set of interconnected romantic relationships between three people. These manga focus on the trials and tribulations of characters who may at first be in love, uninterested, or completely oblivious, as they untangle their feelings, make their choices, and try to win the heart of their beloved. More complex sets of relationships involving more than three people, sometimes called love polygons, may also be included.

These manga feature the Mafia: traditionally Italian Gangs that follow a strict code of honor called Omertà.

Magic is the use of gestures, incantations, or rituals to harness some kind of supernatural power. Characters in Magic manga tend to go by titles such as witch, wizard, mage, or sorcerer, and may be occupied with learning to harness these abilities or with finding magical relics or battling against strange entities... or other magic users.

These manga feature young, generally school-aged girls as defenders of love, life, and justice. They typically stumble upon the source of a magical power, or are granted one by allies that are aware of evil forces on the rise. Often by using a special item or with the help of a magical familiar, these characters are able to transform into an alter-ego ready to cause mischief or fight their foes. Magical Girl is a sub-genre of Henshin Heroes.

Characters in these manga attend a Magic School where they learn about the magical arts.

Mahjong is a table game that originated in China and has many regional variants. In the game, four players take turns drawing tiles with the goal of making a hand worth the most points, and ultimately winning the most points after several rounds. These manga showcase the game of mahjong through gambling, tournaments or casual play.

These manga showcase maids: women - or rarely men - who are employed to help cook, clean, run errands, or anything else that their master requires. The manga might also feature a Master-Servant Relationship. Alternately, maids might be employees of a theme cafe where cosplay is required to please customers.

Characters in these manga are in charge of managing a small or large-scale operation, such as owning a restaurant or shop, building or growing a town or kingdom, or constructing a world-class dungeon. The primary focus of these manga is the day-to-day operations of how to succeed at their job, whether it's increasing revenue, managing inventory, or improving kingdom morale.

These manga explore manga from the industry or consumer side. Common themes include the creative and design process, editing or meeting publishing deadlines, distribution and marketing, or the culture of manga consumption.