Manga is a Japanese word essentially meaning comic books, and refers to all of the awesome graphic novels that Japan produces. It seems like a natural progression or something that should go hand in hand: if you read comics you read Manga and vice versa. Perhaps it is a comfort thing; perhaps people are put off by the fact that most Manga is in black and white; perhaps it does just not know where to start.  Below are some of the reasons you should read Manga.

You’re becoming familiar with another culture.

A lot of Manga has unique and interesting insights into Eastern culture. From simple things like cultural traditions (taking shoes off at the door and putting on sandals, the way food is served, etc) to more deep things like gender roles, how they view Americans, their deep rooted religious culture etc. There are many subtle things to notice and remark upon – so much, in fact, that when I studied abroad in Japan I was already prepared for a lot of the culture due to my obsessive reading of Manga as a young teenager. It a great thing for the readers because series come out VERY quickly and generally wrap up at a much faster rate than a lot of American comics. Most Manga series wrap up pretty quickly, so you get expedited gratification.

If you’re a comic fan, there’s really not any good reason not to!

So you obviously like comic books. You like reading riveting, interesting stories accompanied by fantastic artwork. You involve yourself with the mythos to the extent that you have somehow found yourself to a website completely dedicated to comic books

There’s literally something for everyone.

Do you like epic fantasy battle scenes and girls wielding Claymores? There’s a Manga for that. Do you like heart wrenching angst ridden romances? There’s a Manga for that. Do you like stories only involving animals? There’s a Manga for that. Do you like space cowboys? There’s a Manga for that. Do you like girls who are actually computers falling in love with human boys? There’s a Manga for that.

Seriously, if you can imagine a niche you would like to read, a Manga probably exists of it. There’s horror, romance, adults only, action – ANYTHING. Manga encompasses an insanely expansive catalog for something that has only been really popular in Japan since the 1950s.

Pick up your first Manga Online here.