Some of my favorite romance stories are ones that function as good character pieces that flesh out the individual issues of their characters before moving...
Feb 21, 2023 • Subscribe
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Sensor GN
Sensor is easily one of the strangest Junji Ito yarns to date, combining Christian mythos, Lovecraftian beings, and a Heaven's Gate-style cult.
Stalemate GN
Yes, you read the synopsis right: the main, five-chapter story in Toomi Aoyama's single-volume book Stalemate is a romance between a guy and his older uncle.
Kitaro GN
This volume of Kitaro is a second edition of the one Drawn & Quarterly originally released in 2013, and for fans of the franchise – and especially the…
Centaurs GN 1
Dark historical fantasy doesn't get much better than this.
Appare-Ranman! GN
While it doesn't serve as a replacement for the wonderful anime series, people who prefer a more-plot oriented than character-oriented route may prefer it.
Black Paradox GN
Black Paradox can come off like a 'hybrid' or 'experimental' work, depending on how familiar you already are with Junji Ito's repertoire.
Offshore Lightning GN
Offshore Lightning is one of those books that you find yourself thinking about long after you've finished reading it.
MAO GN 1
Takahashi's latest seems to borrow elements from her previous popular works, but does it add anything new to her tried and true recipe?
Life GN 1
Two decades after its initial release, Life presents a viciously recognizable picture of the social hellscape that middle and high school can be.
Tista GN 1
Before there was SPY x FAMILY there was Tista. Tatsuya Endō's first serialized work shares some themes with his latest – heroine Tista Lone is an orphan who
Helck GN 1
A human makes a play for demon king, stating he hates humankind just as much as a demon should. He just has to convince Red Vamirio, and her…
Helck GN 2
What started as an over-the-top comedy with great face reactions slowly revealed itself to be much more of a suspenseful and dark story.
Tista GN 1
From the creator of SpyxFamily comes a difficult story, replete with themes of what we owe those who "save" us and just how much power any one person…
Glass Syndrome GN
Glass Syndrome combines the more prurient aspects of its genre with a heartfelt love story, creating characters that you desperately want to see happy.
MonsTABOO GN 1
Take a bit of social commentary on twisted, corrupt adults, add in schoolgirls who use monsters as transformed weapons to fight them, and then throw in a game…
Dandadan GN 1
A lot of manga have bawdy humor and fail, but Dandadan manages to make it work by displaying its heart alongside its horror and humor.
Asadora! GN 4
As metaphors for the 60s go, it's a pretty good one, and Urasawa is a good enough creator to really make it work. Things are building to the…
Ayashimon GN 1
This volume is packed with everything from yakuza action to twisted backstories to humans against monsters. Does this manga from the creator of Hell’s Paradise manage to bring…
Loved Circus GN
This feels like a volume created by somebody whose eyes are bigger than their stomach. The ambition for the piece is clear, but the execution does not go…
SINoALICE GN 1
This manga adaptation of the popular mobile game gambles on a risky decision: to deliberately confuse its readers on what's real and what's just a dream.
Higehiro GN 1
Is there actually some insightful character stuff present that looks like it can take full advantage of this arrangement? The answer is surprisingly yes for a good chunk…
Look Back GN
From the creator of Chainsaw Man comes a story about the passion of artists and the tragedies that shape our life.
Ayashimon GN 1
Most of us have probably tried it at some point. What “it” means varies, but the definition is always “something that works in my favorite story.” Whether
Asadora! GN 3
The plot may be thickening in this volume, but it's in the same way that instant pudding thickens in the fridge: in other words, it's just sitting there.
Our Colors GN
From the creator of My Brother’s Husband comes a story of a high school artist struggling to be openly gay and the reassurance he finds at a local…
Barbarities GN 1
Barbarities' first volume is an interesting opening to a political BL tale. The politics and the side romance may be a little more intriguing than Joel and Adam…
Wolverine: Snikt! GN
Wolverine: Snikt! is an interesting side dish that manages to wow visually while being mostly rote in every other respect.
Semelparous GN 1
It feels more like the book is interested in gratuitous girl-on-girl groping than in exploring or creating a relationship.
Goodbye, Eri GN
Imagine reading a story with love, tragedy, suspense, mystery, fantasy, and at least one mindfuck within 200 pages.
Red Flowers GN
The peace and solitude of rural spaces is a persistent theme throughout the book, and there is something that feels a bit idealized about that, making it clear…
Secret Urban Legends GN
Have you heard the story about the abandoned house where a girl still waits for her friends to finish their game of hide-and-seek? And what if mosquitos can…
Sakamoto Days GN 1
A retired assassin finds domestic bliss and opens a convenience store, but the crime world isn't ready to let Sakamoto go.
Mame Coordinate GN 1
This manga about modeling tries to balance the glam with the less than savory aspect of the job, but is the problem really its protagonist?
The Two Lions GN
One of Furuya's strengths as a storyteller is the ability to carefully and quietly capture real emotions of the sort that we typically hide inside ourselves; the insecurities…
The Liminal Zone GN
It's latest collection visits the infamous Aokigahara and transforms it into an unsettling purgatory of people addicted to the strange powers that come from a mysterious cave within.
SPY×FAMILY GN 8
It's Yor's turn to shine! After being criminally underused for seven volumes, volume eight's focus is on Yor as she takes on the task of being bodyguard to…
Tesla Note GN 1
Because the anime adaptation made some questionable artistic choices, it's worth mentioning that the manga is much more attractive on the art front.
Ragna Crimson GN 4
With an anime adaptation in the works, Grant explains why Ragna Crimson gets better with each volume.
Otherside Picnic GN 1
Otherside Picnic creates a creepy world that gives a sense of vast, unexplored space and dangers lurking just below your line of sight.
Dark Gathering GN 1
I mean it when I say I wasn't expecting to be terrified from reading Dark Gathering. This surprise isn't a downside. That this story was able to genuinely…
SPY×FAMILY GN 6
There's less Anya in this volume, which is definitely too bad, but Nightfall very nearly makes up for it.
Yuri Espoir GN 1
Yuri Espoir is an odd combination of froth and sadness. The way that the world seems hellbent on crushing Kokoro under the burden of false heteronormativity is undeniably…
Afro Samurai GN 1
Striking art can't make up for a barebones story with little narrative or characterization to chew on.
Captain Corinth GN 1
At this point in genre saturation, a space soldier being dropped into a medieval fantasy planet feels positively revelatory.
Great Pretender GN 1
The story of the Great Pretender is one of a good person trying desperately to be a bad guy in a world where everyone is out for themselves.
Hello, Melancholic! GN 1
This is by and large an extremely familiar story – but that doesn't mean it can't be a good one if told well, and through this first volume,…
Heart Gear GN 1
Sci-fi fans will find a lot to love in this Isaac Asimov-inspired story about an artificial lifeform becoming human through its interactions with a human child
Yakuza Lover GN 2
Instead of just weeping prettily, Nozomi Mino shows she's willing to draw Yuri as messy, even ugly in her anger.
Guardian of Fukushima GN
Relaying both hope and hopelessness in the face of disaster, Guardian of Fukushima is a stark telling of one man's unyielding will to save the animals left behind.
Blue Box GN 3
Regardless of where the romantic component of the story goes, if it continues to develop its theme of straightforward dedication with believably emotional moments, I definitely will find…