Favorite Manga Genre

No, not your favorite series. Not your favorite author. Your favorite genre! There's a wide array of genres out there, some that are used across the entertainment world and others that seem to be manga specific (how I do love you, salaryman manga). Genres and target audiences are basically the same thing in this context: Salaryman manga is as much a genre as shoujo is. Say your favorite genre and list some works that you think either represent the genre at its best or are good 'gateway' series.

Slice of Life happens to be my favorite manga genre. If you're not sure what that is here's the definition:

Wikipedia wrote:

A slice of life story is a category for a story that portrays a "cut-out" sequence of events in a character's life. It may or may not contain any plot progress and little character development, and often has no exposition, conflict, or dénouement, with an open ending. It usually tries to depict the everyday life of ordinary people, sometimes but rarely, with fantasy or science fiction elements involved. The term slice of life is actually a dead metaphor: it often seems as if the author had taken a knife and "cut out" a slice of the lives of some characters, without concern for narrative form. It is sometimes called tranche de vie, from the French.

Sounds like a boring hunk of cheese, doesn't it? Well, I find these series charming in their own way. If you're curious, or at least a little intrigued, by this description then these series would be a great way to test the waters: Aria, Yotsuba&!, and Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou.

So, what's your favorite genre?

It's hard to pick one since most of my series have a lot of the same genres, but I'm going to say Fantasy/Supernatural.

Quote :

Fantasy fiction features stories set in fanciful, invented worlds, an alternate and more fanciful version of our own world, or in a legendary, mythic past. Fantasy fiction stories generally involve magic, mystical elements, or supernatural creatures. The genre's relatively loose definition means it includes a large number of works in styles ranging from pseudo-mythological epics to more deliberately modern works, and includes works which also fall under other genres, such as horror fiction, comedy, action-adventure or Romance. Some works generally classified as fantasy fiction also include elements of Science fiction, and with many works revolving around psychics, ghosts, etc. being easily classified as either, some bookstores and critics tend to categorize the two genres together as speculative fiction.
-- Wikipedia

Some series that are good with that label are : Fullmetal Alchemist, Record of a Fallen Vampire, Dogs Bullet & Carnage, Black God, Future Diary, and tons more.
I also like Drama (not romance drama), Thriller, Mystery, Action/adventure.

I have a thing for fleshed out fantasy settings in books (except Harry Potter, never clicked with me). I don't mind manga with fantasy-ish elements in it, but I prefer completely alternate universes. I've been meaning to at least preview Future Diary, but I never got around to it. My all-time favorite fantasy manga would be The First King Adventures. I picked up the only two volumes released by ADV and they've long since been out of print. And no translating group has picked up the project, so I'm stuck wondering what happens to Valume and his companions.

The 4-koma/panel genre is also a favorite of mine. Here's a description:

Wikipedia wrote:

Yonkoma manga (4コマ漫画, "four cell manga", or 4-koma for short?), a comic-strip format, generally consists of gag comic strips within four panels of equal size ordered from top to bottom. (They also sometimes run right-to-left horizontally or use a hybrid 2x2 style, depending on the layout requirements of the publication in which they appear.) Though the word yonkoma comes from the Japanese, the style also exists outside of Japan in other Asian countries as well as in the English-speaking market.

Think of classic newspaper comic strips. The series in this genre range from the funny to the bizzare. A favorite manga-ka of mine produced two series that hit both extremes: GA and Shoulder a Coffin Kuro. The former is pure comedy and the later is a mixture of fantasy and the supernatural. It's weird, you really have to read it.

For me it doesn't have to be a completely alternative universe, I don't mind things that are set in present day but have a twist like with fairies or something.
Future diary is really good, it gets better as it goes, at first it might seem rushed, but in later volumes its way better.
Aren't the 4 panel things sometimes at the end of manga volumes in like the extras? If so, I love the really good ones, the best I've read are from Fullmetal Alchemist.

Clovers_Gal wrote:

Aren't the 4 panel things sometimes at the end of manga volumes in like the extras? If so, I love the really good ones, the best I've read are from Fullmetal Alchemist.

Yep, that's usually where they are. But there are series that are told completely through the 4-panel style.

Hmmm I don't usually buy mangas because of the risk I will go off the series but usually comedy, ecchi or fantasy. But I usually buy the manga's to anime that never really finished.

Supernatural or Violent...

i have moods. when im really sad, i want hardcore sappy shojo happy endings. when im pissed, i want violent kick but shonen. and i like the slice of life idea when im feeling normal(but thats a rare one there)

Either Action, Romance, Comedy, Shounen, and Shojou.