Katsuhiro Otomo is a Japanese manga artist, screenwriter, animator and film director. He is best known as the creator of the manga and anime franchise Akira, including the original 1982 manga series and the 1988 animated film adaptation. He was decorated a Chevalier of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2005, promoted to Officier of the order in 2014, became the fourth manga artist ever inducted into the American Eisner Award Hall of Fame in 2012, and was awarded the Purple Medal of Honor from the Japanese government in 2013. Otomo later received the Winsor McCay Award at the 41st Annie Awards in 2014 and the 2015 Grand Prix de la ville d'Angoulême, the first manga artist to receive the award. Artists influenced by Otomo and his work include Naoki Urasawa, Naoki Yamamoto and Makoto Aida.
Monster is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Naoki Urasawa. It was published by Shogakukan in their Big Comic Original magazine between 1994 and 2001, with the chapters collected and reprinted into 18 tankōbon volumes. The story revolves around Kenzo Tenma, a Japanese surgeon living in Germany whose life enters turmoil after getting himself involved with Johan Liebert, one of his former patients, who is revealed to be a dangerous serial killer.
Hajime no Ippo is a Japanese boxing-themed manga series written and illustrated by George Morikawa. It has been serialized by Kodansha in Weekly Shōnen Magazine since October 1989 and collected into 130 tankōbon volumes as of March 2021. It follows the story of high school student Makunouchi Ippo, as he begins his career in boxing and over time obtains many titles and defeats various opponents.
Naoki Urasawa is a Japanese manga artist and musician. He has been drawing manga since he was four years old, and for most of his career has created two series simultaneously. Urasawa has been called one of the artists that changed the history of manga and has won numerous awards, including the Shogakukan Manga Award three times, the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize twice, and the Kodansha Manga Award once. By 2016, his various works had over 126 million copies in circulation.
Takeshi Obata is a Japanese manga artist that usually works as the illustrator in collaboration with a writer. He first gained international attention for Hikaru no Go (1998–2003) with Yumi Hotta, but is better known for Death Note (2003–2006) and Bakuman (2008–2012) with Tsugumi Ohba. Obata has mentored several well-known manga artists, including Nobuhiro Watsuki of Rurouni Kenshin fame, Black Cat creator Kentaro Yabuki, and Eyeshield 21 artist Yusuke Murata.
Flower of Life is a slice of life comedy manga series by Fumi Yoshinaga revolving around a group of friends in a high school. The manga is serialised in Shinshokan's Wings. It was nominated for the first annual Manga Taishō award in 2008 and one of the Young Adult Library Services Association's 2008 Great Graphic Novels. The manga is licensed in North America by Digital Manga Publishing.
Showa: A History of Japan, known in Japan as Comic Showa-shi, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Shigeru Mizuki. A semi autobiographical work, this manga describes the author's experiences growing up during the Shōwa period. The author is a veteran of the Japanese army, but his series is filled with critical views of Japanese and American militarism.
Solanin is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Inio Asano. It was serialized in Shogakukan's Weekly Young Sunday from 2005 to 2006. In North America, the manga was licensed for English language release by Viz Media.
Princess Jellyfish is a Japanese josei manga series written and illustrated by Akiko Higashimura. It was serialized in Kodansha's manga magazine Kiss from October 2008 to August 2017. The manga is licensed in North America by Kodansha USA. An 11-episode anime television adaptation directed by Takahiro Omori was produced by Brain's Base and aired on Fuji TV's Noitamina programming block between October and December 2010. The anime has been licensed by Funimation. A live-action film adaptation premiered in Japan on December 27, 2014. A ten-episode live-action drama series aired from January to March 2018.
Space Brothers is a Japanese manga series by Chūya Koyama which has been serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Morning since December 2007. It has been nominated twice for the Manga Taishō, in 2009 and 2010. An anime adaptation by A-1 Pictures aired in Japan from April 1, 2012 to March 22, 2014. It was adapted into a live action film that premièred on May 5, 2012. An anime film premièred on August 9, 2014, titled Space Brothers #0.
One-Punch Man is a Japanese superhero franchise created by the artist ONE. It tells the story of Saitama, a superhero who can defeat any opponent with a single punch but seeks to find a worthy opponent after growing bored by a lack of challenge due to his overwhelming strength. ONE wrote the original webcomic version in early 2009.
Assassination Classroom is a Japanese science fiction comedy manga series written and illustrated by Yūsei Matsui. The series follows the daily life of an extremely powerful octopus-like being working as a junior high homeroom teacher, and his students dedicated to the task of assassinating him to prevent Earth from being destroyed. The students are considered “misfits” in their school and are taught in a separate building; the class he teaches is called 3-E. The series was serialized in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine from July 2012 to March 2016 and compiled into twenty-one tankōbon volumes.
The Strange Tale of Panorama Island is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Suehiro Maruo and based on a 1926 novella of the same name [ja] by Edogawa Ranpo. The manga adaptation was published in English by Last Gasp on July 1, 2013.
In Clothes Called Fat is a Japanese drama josei manga written and illustrated by Moyoco Anno and serialized on Shufu-to-Seikatsu Sha's Weekly Josei magazine. A compilation volume was released on November 15, 1997. It was published in English by Vertical and in French by Kana.
The Summit of the Gods is a manga series written and illustrated by Jiro Taniguchi. Based on a 1998 novel by Baku Yumemakura, it follows Fukamachi, a photographer who finds a camera supposedly belonging to George Mallory, a mountaineer who went missing on Mount Everest, and goes on a mountain-climbing adventure along with his friend Habu Joji.
Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Inio Asano. It is about two high school girls who struggle with the mundanity of life after an alien spaceship descends on Japan. The manga has been serialized in Shogakukan's seinen manga magazine Big Comic Spirits since April 2014. It is licensed in North America by Viz Media. It won the 66th Shogakukan Manga Award in the general category in 2021.
The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime is a biographical manga based on Osamu Tezuka's life, created by Tezuka Productions and Tezuka's assistant Toshio Ban. It was serialized by Asahi Shimbun's Asahi Graph from 1989 to 1992 and collected into two volumes in 1992. It was published in North America by Stone Bridge Press, with a translation by Frederik L. Schodt, on July 12, 2016. The North American edition was nominated for the 2017 Eisner Award in the "Eisner Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia|Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia]]" category.
Yoshitoki Ōima is a Japanese manga artist and writer, best known for her manga series A Silent Voice.
Burning Kabaddi is a Japanese kabaddi manga series by Hajime Musashino. It has been serialized in Shogakukan's Ura Sunday website and MangaONE app since July 2015 and has been collected in fifteen tankōbon volumes. An anime television series adaptation by TMS Entertainment is set to premiere on April 2, 2021.
Soredemo Ayumu wa Yosetekuru is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Sōichirō Yamamoto. A webcomic version titled Shōgi no Yatsu was posted in 2018. The manga has been serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine since March 2019. An anime television series adaptation will premiere in 2022.
