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Clinginggiant

  • Arizona
  • Joined Mar 5, 2014
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My Top Manga

With Comments, Thoughts, and Mini Reviews on some entries.
1 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 7: Steel Ball Run

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 7: Steel Ball Run

Araki is a genuis being able to switch up the Jojo's Bizarre Adventure series and make it work each time with great story, flamboyant and ridiculous characters, and amazing action between manifestations of ones own fighting spirit. Steel Ball Run is his most different of the parts and for me it's the absolute best. Not just out of the Jojo series but out've everything I've watched and read. Not even my favorite anime comes close to this manga series.

Rating: 5

2 Berserk

Berserk

One of the most dark and tragic stories in all of manga. Just wish this was released faster. I've only been reading this for the past few years and am seriously frustrated with all the breaks the series suffers from. I can't even begin to imagine how the people that has been reading this for the past 20 something years feel.

Rating: 5

3 Blade of the Immortal

Blade of the Immortal

Blade of the Immortal is one of the best revenge themed manga around in my opinion. Starts off good despite having a 'villain of the week' feel. It however, quickly becomes a masterpiece once it ditches that pattern of story telling by time it gets into the second arc of the story. From the Kaga arc and onwards it remains a top quality story. The Immortality experiments arc is one of my all time favorites in manga.

Blade of the Immortal has amazing art that only keeps getting better as you read, unforgettable characters, and some of the best coordinated manga fights I've seen in a single series (especially in the later half). 

Rating: 5

4 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable

Testosterone infused slice of life(ish) story with Stands! As I said Hirohiko Araki is a genuis.

Rating: 5

5 Fullmetal Alchemist

Fullmetal Alchemist

Whats to say about this that hasn't already been said, it's amazing.

Rating: 5

6 Bastard!! Heavy Metal Dark Fantasy

Bastard!! Heavy Metal Dark Fantasy

Hilarious and action packed series.

Bastard!!'s art starts off very 80's looking (of course), it's pretty good for its time but dated by todays standards. However, the art improves greatly while reading. By time you reach volume 15 there is a drastic change in drawing style from Kazushi Hagiwara, and with each passing volume it only gets better. By chapter 125 (Volume 23) the arts evolution really shows and is absolutely gorgeous. I've heard that Hagiwara has re-illustrated the first several volumes of Bastard!! to update and match the later art, which would be a great excuse to reread it. I'm unsure if you can actually find them anywhere online though.

The drawback is that it's incomplete and the series has been on indefinite hiatus at 27 volumes and with no end anywhere in sight. Viz also dropped publication at volume 19, unfortunately.

Rating: 4.5

I posted a full revised review of this series here

http://www.anime-planet.com/users/Clinginggiant/reviews/24374

7 BLAME!

BLAME!

There's little dialogue throughout BLAME! but just look around at the art, it's a beautifully dark drawn world filled with amazing action sequences and characters. Despite its 10 volumes it makes for a pretty quick read, that is unless you get caught up in its art. Which you most likely will. You'll be busy staring at every small detail of Tsutomu Nihei's gorgeous illustrations, whether that be a simple hallway and staircase or a massive industrial skyscraper.

Rating: 4.5

8 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 6: Stone Ocean

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 6: Stone Ocean

Has the only female Jojo and alot of my favorite characters from a single JoJo series, alwhile being set in a prison.

Rating: 4.5

9 Desert Punk

Desert Punk

One of the most underrated titles in my opinion. No publication in the U.S. with slow translations and subs. Desert Punk is an insanely fun comedy action series that follows one of the most despicable but awesome protagonist ever drawn on paper, Kanta aka Desert Punk. The story later transitions from primarily being a comedy to a more serious nature and it pulls it off well.

Rating: 4.5

10 Claymore

Claymore

Rating: 4.5

11 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 5: Golden Wind

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 5: Golden Wind

Rating: 4.5

12 Rurouni Kenshin

Rurouni Kenshin

Anime never got a proper send off, finishing without the Jinchu arc. Well, we can always read it at least.

Rating: 4.5

13 Solanin

Solanin

Rating: 4.5

14 One Piece

One Piece

As said on my top anime list, One Piece stays pretty great from Alabasta arc and onwards.

Rating: 4.5

15 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 8: Jojolion

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 8: Jojolion

So far a fun setting with colorful characters that often come with the JoJo series.

Rating: 4.5

16 Gantz

Gantz

Rating: 4

17 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3: Stardust Crusaders

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3: Stardust Crusaders

Great and fun read but probably the most overrated JoJo part. It just always seemed to over shadow the other parts but finally we got an anime adaption past part 3.

Anyways, Stardust Crusaders does have some of the best showdowns in the entire JoJo series especially when Joestar group takes on Dio Brando. Polnareff and Iggy vs Cool Ice is a great mention as well.

Rating: 4

18 Attack on Titan

Attack on Titan

Rating: 4

19 InuYasha

InuYasha

Inuyasha was my earliest anime experience that actually stuck with me to adulthood. At the time when I was a kid I didn't know what an anime was, but I could tell it was alot different and more cool than my kiddie cartoons. With that being said, of course I love the manga of Inuyasha as well.

Rating: 4

20 Knights of Sidonia

Knights of Sidonia

Rating: 4

21 Vagabond

Vagabond

Vagabond would be higher on my list if it wasn't for the first 13 volumes where we just follow Musashi Miyamoto around as he basically goes and dojo bashes at random to be "Invincible Under the Heavens" as he says. Makes for a pretty dull story to be honest. However, the story really takes off with the introduction of Sasaki Kojiro and we get to see how a deaf child grew up and became such a skilled swordsman. Vagabond stays consistently great after the 14th volume and even Musashi matures after awhile but my rating is still affected by its slow start, and not to mention it's current hiatus.

Rating: 4

22 All You Need Is Kill

All You Need Is Kill

A military action with a smart set up but straight foward and easy to follow plot. Had no idea I was getting into a time travel series when I blindly purchased this. It was quite the delightful surprise.

Rating: 4

23 Biomega

Biomega

Another work of art and thinker of a story by Tsutomu Nihei.

Rating: 4

24 Teppu

Teppu

Natsuo Ishidou has gotta be one of the most coolest and badass females in manga. Unfortunately it ended without resolving some things such as two fights that were hyped up to be important. Regardless it's a great read.

Rating: 4

25 Pumpkin Scissors

Pumpkin Scissors

Like Desert Punk, Pumpkin Scissors has an almost non existent fan base and translations, and publication was abandoned in the U.S. after volume 5. It deserves better.

Rating: 4

26 Black Butler

Black Butler

Rating: 4

27 Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun

Monthly Girls' Nozaki-kun

Favorite rom-com, perhaps because the romance plays second banana to the comedy in this series.

Rating: 4

28 Happiness (Shuzo OSHIMI)

Happiness (Shuzo OSHIMI)

Rating: 4

29 Bleach

Bleach

Rating: 4

30 Naruto

Naruto

Rating: 3.5

31 Naruto: The Seventh Hokage and the Scarlet Spring

Naruto: The Seventh Hokage and the Scarlet Spring

This was a simple but good story that allowed us to see that Masashi Kishimoto may have finally portrayed a heroine right. Thank goodness it was about Sarada, because Boruto seems annoying as hell.

Rating: 3.5

32 Battle Angel Alita

Battle Angel Alita

Rating: 3.5

33 Birdy the Mighty (2003)

Birdy the Mighty (2003)

Rating: 3.5

34 NOiSE

NOiSE

An enjoyable mini prequel to one of my top tens, BLAME! And with this entry that marks 4 series from Tsutomu Nihei that makes my favorites. He's just behind Hirohiko Araki with a count of 6 entries, would be 7 if I would read the manga version of Battle Tendency lol.

Rating: 3.5

35 Toriko

Toriko

Rating: 3.5

36 Mimi’s Tales of Terror

Mimi’s Tales of Terror

This consists of 6 short horror stories all revolving around a young woman and most of them are pretty memorable. The Woman Next Door, The Seashore, Just the Two of Us (This one being my personal favorite), and The Scarlet Circle are all nice and creepy tales.

Rating: 3.5

37 Inuyashiki

Inuyashiki

I've never seen a series that has used such a protagonist before, and let me just say I'm a huge fan of the character Ichirou Inuyashiki. He's gotta be one of the most unlikely but likable leads in all manga.

Rating: Was a 4.5

Updated Rating: 3

Wow, as of chapter 77 this manga got beyond retarded and I dont think it can recover. Funny how one little thing could turn something so good to almost unreadable garbage. I didn't vote for him but even if you don't like the current president of the united states, he would never say such trash over an international broadcast. Still gave it a 3 cause it was great up to that point and I can't bring myself to pull it from my faves because of it. It can just sit at the bottom of my list.

Comments

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TheIceQueen Feb 7, 2017

You have good taste. Inuyasha was my first anime too!