Have you read Mermaid’s Saga by Rumiko Takahashi? It is very different from Ranma, but it is my personal favorite. It is quite a bit darker, but worth checking out if you can find it.
Let’s see… Mangas?
What was my first one? Considering the first one as the first I did read whole, umh…
I guess… it was either Sailor Moon or Dr. Slump
I also have read Mermaid Melody
I am reading Hayate no Gotoku, the Touhou official mangas (all of them), Ad Astra per Aspera, the NEW Sakura Card Captor manga, and Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun
I’m sure taht I have read of checked more mangas before, but my poor memory doesn’t let me remember which ones right now.
Thanks for the recommendation, I haven’t actually read it! I’ll definitely check it out if I get a chance.
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The hiatus is finally over!! Iris Zero is back! Chapter 34 is out!
And here I spent decades believing that hope is never rewarded…
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Woah is this real life? Let’s hope the author’s health doesn’t relapse again like last time it came off hiatus…
This will be embarrassing to admit, but most of the manga I tend to read (at least what I’ve read so far of course) are either shounen of various kinds, dramas and romance whether they are very serious subject matter or not, or iyashikeis (if that terms really exists for manga like it does for anime) which have started to become just as enjoyable to me as the drama/romance genre.
I am seriously surprised how much I tend to enjoy watching Non Non Biyori as an anime (didn’t get around to the manga yet), reading Sweetness and Lightning, and reading and watching Sunshine Sketch. I know Mushishi, Natsume’s Book of Friends, Yotsuba, Aria, and others will all be different in their own way but it’s still some of the most enjoyable material I’ve ever read or watched. It makes for a good overall suggestion for someone who can enjoy something that is slower-paced or can handle something soothing or geuninely happy. 
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While I am not a HUGE manga reader, I have read and am currently reading quite a few of them. I will give some recommendations to some lesser known titles (relatively unknown, anyway and with a few exceptions) that I think are rather underrated/are some of my favorites. Most I am still reading but some of these I have finished reading. This is both kinda a list and serves as some recommendations/suggestions. Apologies for the massive length of this post, but I wanted to include a little of everything.
Seinen/Romance:
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Kimi Wa Pet: This manga isn’t terribly long, but contains easily some of the most human characters I have ever read in any manga. It is somewhat similar in the vein to a Slice of Life manga but instead centers around a magazine publication rather than a high school. While the plot may not be some epic tale or quest, it is a great fairly easy going manga with some well-written drama, comedy and of course dynamic and realistic characterization.
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Deep Love: Compared to Kimi, this one is a LOT heavier/darker. It’s rather short but is a very grim and depressing tale that is definitely not for the feint of heart. It still is a very well told story all the way through and has a very haunting/sad ending. I would almost compare this tonally with other manga like Berserk, though I wouldn’t say it’s quite as dark (still very explicit though).
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Kamisawa ga Uso wo Tsuku: This will easily be the shortest one on the list, but by GOD is this one fantastic. It is a very short (like 5 chapters short) story that at first, seems like just a simple love story. Underneath it though is some brilliant metaphors, downright GORGEOUS artwork, fantastic characterization and some very sharp writing. This is one that you can attempt to dive deeper in to examine or just enjoy the ride.
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Oyasumi Punpun: I am still reading this one but if you like the darker/more psychological spin on the typical school format, then this is a great manga to read. Like Deep Love, there is some really disturbing stuff in it though, so if you aren’t into that then I probably wouldn’t. But if you don’t mind some uncomfortable/dark themes, then there should be no problem. It is also very… abstract and weird but I think that just adds to the charm.
Shoujo:
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Dengeki Daisy: I am still reading this one actually but of all the manga I have read thus far, this is likely my favourite of all time. It has some of the best characterization I have seen in any manga and definitely goes far in breaking shoujo conventions by having its protagonist (Teru) slowly become braver and compliments the main lead (Kurosaki) really well. There is even a lot of stuff in there that affected me emotionally on a very deep level (comparable to some of my favourite Key stories), especially around the midpoint of the series.
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Ouran High School Host Club: Obviously, this is well known, but I think for anyone who really enjoyed the anime I argue the source material is even better. Especially the ending, which I felt gave the characters much more development and shows you where they all ended up in the future. Some may not like that it moved away from being a fairly unique reverse harem/comedy with romance elements and moved to a more romanced/typical shoujo based story, but it does it really well and I felt it was a smooth and natural transition, since the anime and earlier manga chapters had hints of this already.
Ecchi:
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Sore wa Totsuzen, Unmei no Aite ga: This is fairly lighthearted ecchi material, though this one comes with a bit of a warning ahead of time. If you are like me and get uncomfortable with… well, lets say family relations that are a little TOO close for comfort, then you might want to skip Chapter 0 and 4.5. The stories are broken up into a few cute and well-written love stories. It’s all really adorable and has an interesting premise overall.
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Suzuka/Fuuka: This one is definitely a bit more popular (especially the latter with the anime adaptation) and fairly polarizing, but I really like these two mangas. They are both done by the same mangaka and boast some amazing artwork, well written/fairly realistic characters and a interesting romance. It definitely has some issues with pacing (especially in Suzuka) and some plot points some may seem as cop-outs, but I think the emotionally deep storytelling and characters are good enough to push past some of the problems these manga has.
Rom-Com/Slice of Life:
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Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai/Haganai: This one I finished somewhat recently and defintely delivers on the comedy aspect of things. Nice balance of well timed jokes and later on starts developing characters and creates some well thought out Drama. Honestly just a very humourous but enjoyable manga (though it isn’t finished and may or may not be on hiatus).
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Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou: I have been currently re-reading this one and is overall a really good piece of slice of life manga. The art quality is VERY high, the characters while one dimensional at first
grow into more fleshed out people who start to become your own friends in a sense and sports easily one of the most adorable female characters in manga history. -
Komi-san wa Komyushou Desu: This one is fairly light on story and definitely leans to the more Slice of Life side of things, but I definitely think this one is really underrated. The comedy is great and
the characters are really enjoyable, especially Komi herself. This manga is honestly worth reading just for her alone. -
Onani Master Kurosawa: Ok, so this one is… interesting to say the least. I know some might be put off by the introduction to it but its honestly far deeper than it seems at first and has some incredibly deep character development for its protagonist. I am still reading through it but for those who aren’t put off by the concept for first couple chapters, this is definitely worth a read.
Action/Shounen:
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Vagabond: A great historical/adult long running manga (300+ chapters) that has some immensely beautiful art and some considerably complex characters and stories. Haven’t read a ton of this, but I really liked what I was reading.
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Bokurano: I read a little bit of this but… DAMN this one is something. The way I describe it is if you mixed Evangelion with Madoka Magica. Definitely another disturbing psychological one that deals with some really grim circumstances for those who are into that kind of storytelling.
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Pokemon Adventures: Wanted to end with a much more uplifting manga compared to the last two. A solid adventure manga that is just really enjoyable to read through. The protagonist has some solid character depth and is certainly one of the better Pokemon doujinji out there.
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I personally have a strong inclination to shounen manga, but I also read a few shoujo when I feel like it. I’m only following a few right now: there is Arslan Senki, Gin no Saji, Akatsuki no Yona, Ballroom e Youkoso and Watashi ga Motete Dousunda.
Obviously, I will almost instantly read anything by Hiromu Arakawa, though I never really got into Juushin Enbu for some reason and Shanghai Youma Kikai was kinda forgettable. Also I seriously need to properly read FMA; idk why I just read random chapters of that manga while I’ve already watched Brotherhood for how many times already. ((btw if you have seen the anime, I highly recommend Volume 15; it has more details on the Ishbal war and it’s realllyyyyy good.))
Now I’ll talk about the ongoing. Arslan Senki is ridiculously slow, but it’s the one I most actively follow. I love the little character interactions, which the anime adaptation fell short of capturing. As I said, this is ridiculously slow-paced, but I think this gets easier to read once you’ve grown to like the cast.
Though I’m more inclined to see more of her Gin no Saji. I have so much respect for Gin no Saji, but it has been on hiatus and I’m just really waiting to see how it concludes because it seems really close to ending already. The good news is that the latest chapter gives closure to Hachiken and Aki’s romance, and as expected of Arakawa, it’s great. Also Maron is the best fictional character ever conceived.
(btw the anime adaptation is nice)
Akatsuki no Yona is really good and I highly recommend it, though I haven’t been actively watching out for it recently. Probably because I don’t really care much about the current arc. Otherwise, this is a really fun read, and the characters are compelling.
Watashi ga Motete Dousunda is a really enjoyable comedy, but I’m not a big fan of the more recent chapters. My favorite aspect of this manga is the interactions within the harem; they’re comedy gold and full of feel-good fun. For the recent chapters, it seems to be going for drama, but it was just falling flat because it failed to set the right tone. And no, the random FMA reference didn’t help.
I think my favorite right now is Ballroom e Youkoso. The interactions between Tatara and Chinatsu is weirdly compelling. I’m really looking forward to its anime adaptation, and what the PVs have shown so far has been really impressive.
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I caught a few episodes of the anime when it was airing and decided that
- It’s like if Fushigi Yuugi held up/was good
- This anime does not have anywhere near enough episodes to do anything with this set up
So I started picking up the manga when Viz started releasing it in the US. I am still pretty early on, but the manga is indeed really enjoyable so far.
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The author does a fantastic job of balancing Yona’s cuteness with this incredibly hot, majestic presence. The fact that she’s voiced by objectively best girl Kotorin just makes me love her even more.
Iris Zero has been back from hiatus for a while now (I believe those who like manga should check it out, it’s one of my favorites).
Also, I read a terrific manga last year. Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou. Has anyone heard about it?
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oh hey, I like Iris Zero too!
I kinda forgot until what chapter I have read tho…
The heroines are lovely ><
^ THIS
I really loving the latest chapter
I feel a great satisfaction when they finally going out, I mean every time they were going to confess, distraction will always cancel it hahaha
Gin no Saji comedy is superb btw
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Made in Abyss is a pretty good dark, bloody manga. There was an anime adaptation recently but I’d recommend the manga, especially since the anime ends pretty early on in its story. Problem is, the mangaka has a very relaxed updating schedule.
While I’m mentioning manga I’ve liked, Taiyou no Ie and Dengeki Daisy are nice lighter reads.
A manga I like is Tomodachi game but I dont neccesarily need an anime adaptation or something. It is a story about money and friends and the question which of the two is more important and then they play games to test their friendship and stuff blablabla. I think not very much people know about it so I just want to point it out cause I really like the MC. He seems very kind and stuff but also has a dark side. It was some time ago I last read it (still not finished though) so maybe some things I wrote arent totally right but you just have to check it out yourself!
Also a link to make it easier for you guys 
I’m ways into Part 5 of Jojo right now! Two of my close friends are huge fans and have been hyping me into it over the last several months. Part 4 has probably been my favourite so far. 
Does anyone here read Gakkou Gurashi? It’s on hiatus at the moment. Looking forward to seeing what Chapter 59 has in store considering THINGS…
If you’ve watched the anime before and enjoyed it you should consider picking it up! You’ll notice quite a few differences in the first two volumes.
Heck yeah! It’s been way up high on my to-read list for a good while. I’ll have to find the time to sit down and get through the first volume.
I watched this music video someone made using clips from the OVA. Really soothing.
Wow, I didn’t even notice someone mention YKK. It’s the one Iyashikei that I get. Like if I was to make a story, I’d probably just end up with YKK. It’s like Aria, but at the point where the world is so over that nothing matters anymore.
Edit: Also wow, that AMV is really hi def. I’ve only ever seen VHS rips, but it’s even more beautiful in HD.
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A little while ago I bought the Omnibus version of Azumanga Daioh. So far, I’m thoroughly enjoying it. Would anyone like to share their thoughts on the series and Omnibus books in general?
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My thoughts on Azumanga Daioh aren’t going to be very useful, but in general it is supposed to be one of the best iyashikei and comedy anime ever made (if not one of the early ones as well). However, the manga itself is supposedly 4-koma style and still has a ton of charm (on top of seeming to get a lot of praise) but that needs to be confirmed by someone other than me. This series is worth at least a look for many anime and manga readers.
As for Omnibus books, I really like them. It is a little bit harder to read when owning a physical copy, but sometimes the omnibus books are either larger then the original volumes or contain additional content.
It also helps that they are cheaper to buy and may have slightly better translations (although the opposite can be true). The price of omnibus books digitally compared to buying the 2 or 3 volumes separately pretty much can’t be beat either, and some websites just seem to have better sales on their 2-in-1 or 3-in-1 books than they do for individual volumes too.
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It’s been a while, but there is a great sale on some digital manga on, at the very least, Amazon US and BookWalker (which is having a 30% coin boost to go with it). This includes:
5 Centimeters Per Second
Garden of Words
She and Her Cat
Voices of a Distant Star
Hopefully this helps someone else.
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