Fairy Tail (manga)

Fairy Tail is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. It was serialized in Kodansha‘s Weekly Shōnen Magazine from August 2006 to July 2017, with the individual chapters collected and published into 63 tankōbon volumes. The story follows the adventures of Natsu Dragneel, a member of the popular wizard guild Fairy Tail, as he searches the fictional world of Earth-land for the dragon Igneel. The…

Toriko (manga)

Toriko (トリコ) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro. It follows the adventures of Toriko, a Gourmet Hunter, as he searches for rare, diverse foods to complete a full-course meal. On his journey, he is accompanied by a timid chef who wants to improve his skills. Toriko was serialized in Shueisha‘s Weekly Shōnen Jump from May 2008 to November 2016, with…

Bio Booster Armor Guyver (manga)

Bio-Booster Armor Guyver (Viz Media) or Guyver (Chuang Yi Publishing) (Japanese: 強殖装甲ガイバー, Hepburn: Kyōshoku Sōkō Gaibā) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yoshiki Takaya. The Guyver itself is a symbiotic techno-organic (or biomechanical) device that enhances the capabilities of its host. The manga was originally serialized in Tokuma Shoten‘s Monthly Shōnen Captain, the first appearance being in the February 18 magazine beginning in 1985. When Shōnen Captain was discontinued in 1997,…

Gantz (manga)

Gantz (stylized as GANTZ) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hiroya Oku. It was serialized in Shueisha‘s seinen manga magazine Weekly Young Jump from June 2000 to June 2013, with its chapters collected in thirty-seven tankōbon volumes. It tells the story of Kei Kurono and Masaru Kato, both of whom died in a train accident and become part of a semi-posthumous “game” in which they…

Assassin’s Creed (game/movie)

Assassin’s Creed is an open-world action-adventure stealth video game franchise published by Ubisoft and developed mainly by its studio Ubisoft Montreal using the game engine Anvil and its more advanced derivatives. Created by Patrice Désilets, Jade Raymond, and Corey May, the Assassin’s Creed series depicts a fictional millennia-old struggle between the Assassins, who fight for peace and free will, and the Templars, who desire peace through order and control. The series features historical fiction, science…

Yu-Gi-Oh! (manga/game)

Yu-Gi-Oh! (Japanese: 遊☆戯☆王, Hepburn: Yū-Gi-Ō!, lit. “King of Games”) is a Japanese manga series about trading card gaming written and illustrated by Kazuki Takahashi. It was serialized in Shueisha‘s Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine between September 1996 and March 2004. The plot follows the story of a boy named Yugi Mutou, who solves the ancient Millennium Puzzle. Yugi awakens a gambling alter-ego or spirit within his body that solves his conflicts using…

Sailor Moon (manga/anime/video game)

Sailor Moon (Japanese: 美少女戦士セーラームーン, Hepburn: Bishōjo Senshi Sērā Mūn, originally translated as Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon and later as Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Naoko Takeuchi. It was originally serialized in Kodansha‘s shōjo manga magazine Nakayoshi from 1991 to 1997; the 52 individual chapters were published in 18 volumes. The series follows the adventures of a schoolgirl named Usagi Tsukino as she transforms into the eponymous character…

YuYu Hakusho (manga)

YuYu Hakusho (Japanese: 幽☆遊☆白書, Hepburn: Yū Yū Hakusho) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Togashi. The series tells the story of Yusuke Urameshi, a teenage delinquent who is struck and killed by a car while attempting to save a child’s life. After a number of tests presented to him by Koenma, the son of the ruler of the afterlife Underworld, Yusuke is revived…

Parasyte (manga/anime/life action)

Parasyte (Japanese: 寄生獣, Hepburn: Kiseijū, lit. “Parasitic Beasts”) is a Japanese science fiction horror manga series written and illustrated by Hitoshi Iwaaki. It was published in Kodansha‘s Morning Open Zōkan and Monthly Afternoon magazine from 1988 to 1995. The manga was published in North America first by Tokyopop, then Del Rey, and finally Kodansha USA. The series follows Shinichi Izumi, a high school senior who is the victim of a failed attempt by…

Fist of the North Star (manga)

Fist of the North Star (Japanese: 北斗の拳, Hepburn: Hokuto no Ken, lit. “Fist of the Big Dipper“) is a Japanese manga series written by Buronson and illustrated by Tetsuo Hara. It was serialized in Shueisha‘s Weekly Shōnen Jump for 245 issues published from 1983 to 1988 and initially collected in 27 tankōbon volumes under the Jump Comics imprint. Set on a post-apocalyptic Earth after a nuclear war, the story centers on a warrior…

Berserk (manga)

Berserk (Japanese: ベルセルク, Hepburn: Beruseruku) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kentaro Miura. Set in a medieval Europe-inspired dark fantasy world, the story centers on the characters of Guts, a lone mercenary, and Griffith, the leader of a mercenary band called the “Band of the Hawk”. Miura premiered a prototype of Berserk in 1988. The series began the following year in the Hakusensha‘s now-defunct magazine Monthly Animal House, which was…

Bleach (manga)

Bleach (stylized as BLEACH) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tite Kubo. It follows the adventures of the hotheaded teenager Ichigo Kurosaki, who inherits his parents’ destiny after he obtains the powers of a Soul Reaper—a death personification similar to the Grim Reaper—from another Soul Reaper, Rukia Kuchiki. His new-found powers force him to take on the duties of defending humans from evil spirits and…