Captive Hearts (Japanese: とらわれの身の上, Hepburn: Toraware no Mi-no-Ue) is a Japanese shōjo manga series written and illustrated by Matsuri Hino. The series centers on the relationship between university student Megumi Kuroishi and heiress Suzuka Kogami and the curse that has bonded their respective families together for the past 100 generations. The series was originally serialized in Japan between 1999-2002 and published in the form…
Bakuman (バクマン。, stylized as BAKUMAN。) is a Japanese manga series written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata, the same creative team responsible for Death Note. It was serialized in Shueisha‘s shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from August 2008 to April 2012, with its 176 chapters collected into 20 tankōbon volumes. The story follows talented artist Moritaka Mashiro and aspiring writer Akito Takagi, two ninth grade boys who wish to become manga artists, with…
Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki (Japanese: 八十亀ちゃんかんさつにっき, lit. “Yatogame-chan Observation Diary”) is a Japanese four-panel manga series written and illustrated by Masaki Andō. It was serialized in Ichijinsha‘s Monthly Comic Rex magazine from May 2016 to September 2022. An anime television series adaptation by Saetta aired from April to June 2019, with a second season airing from January to March 2020. A third season aired from January to March 2021….
Magic User’s Club (魔法使いTai!, Mahō Tsukai Tai!) is a magical girl/boy anime created by Triangle Staff and Junichi Sato. It was first released as a six-part OVA in 1996 and then a 13-episode TV series in 1999, which was broadcast by WOWOW, and then by the anime television network Animax across its respective networks worldwide, including Southeast Asia, South Asia and other regions. Produced by Bandai Visual, the series is directed by Sato,…
Jōkyō Monogatari (上京ものがたり, “Going to Tokyo Story”) is a Japanese autobiographical manga written and illustrated by Rieko Saibara. It was serialized in Shogakukan‘s seinen manga magazine Big Comic Spirits from 2003 to 2004, with its chapters collected in a single tankōbon volume. A live-action film adaptation premiered in 2013. In 2005, the manga, along with Mainichi Kaasan, won the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize‘s Short story Award. Cast Kii Kitano as Natsumi Takahara Fumino Kimura…
Hana Yori mo Hana no Gotoku (花よりも花の如く, ‘More Flower-like Than Flowers’) is a manga series written and illustrated by Minako Narita. Plot The story follows Norito Sakakibara, a young man who apprentices as a Noh performer with the aim of eventually becoming a Noh master. Reception Sales Volume 6 has sold 84,443 copies (as of November 17, 2008) Volume 7 has…
Electric Hands is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Taishi Zaou, (a boys love and girls love pen-name for Mikiyo Tsuda). It is licensed in French by Asuka, which released the manga in January 2009. It is licensed in North America by Digital Manga Publishing, which released the manga on November 18, 2009. It is licensed in Germany by Egmont Manga. Reception Faustine Lillaz, writing for Planete…
Captivated, by You (Japanese: 夢中さ、きみに。, Hepburn: Muchū sa, Kimi ni) is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Yama Wayama. Originally written as a doujinshi (self-published manga) in February 2019, the manga was later acquired by the Comic Beam editorial department, who published the manga in one volume in August 2019. A television drama adaptation aired from January to February 2021. Synopsis Captivated, by You is an anthology…
After School Dice Club (Japanese: 放課後さいころ倶楽部, Hepburn: Hōkago Saikoro Kurabu) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hirō Nakamichi. It focuses on a group of teenage girls and their efforts to set up a board game café. It was serialized in Shogakukan‘s shōnen manga magazine Monthly Shōnen Sunday from March 2013 to June 2021, with its chapters collected in nineteen tankōbon volumes. An anime television series adaptation by Liden Films aired from October…
Yasuko to Kenji (ヤスコとケンジ, lit. “Yasuko and Kenji”) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Aruko. Yasuko to Kenji was serialized in the shōjo manga magazine Bessatsu Margaret from April 2005 to November 2006. In 2008, the series was adapted into a comedy drama which aired in Japan on Nippon Television. Plot The show focuses on a man named Kenji and his younger sister Yasuko, whose parents died in an…
Wata no Kunihoshi (綿の国星, “Cotton’s Country Star” or “Planet of Cotton Country”) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yumiko Ōshima. It was serialized by Hakusensha in LaLa magazine from 1978 to 1987 and collected in seven tankōbon volumes. The story is about an abandoned kitten called Chibi-neko (drawn as a small girl with cat ears and a tail) who is adopted by a young man named Tokio…
Ultra-Fem Shishihara-kun (Japanese: 女子力高めな獅子原くん, Hepburn: Joshiryoku Takamena Shishihara-kun) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Mii Aimai. It began serialization on Comic Smart’s Ganma! website in September 2019. As of July 2023, Ichijinsha has released seven volumes. Publication Written and illustrated by Mii Aimai, the series originated as a one-shot released in August 2019. The one-shot was turned into a full series, which began serialization on…
