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What are some good short manga?

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Mumei

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I'm looking for manga that are six volumes or less (I'm willing to fudge a bit if something is amazing, but at least give me some stuff under seven if you're going to give me something over), that are available for purchase in the U.S., and are not out of print.

I've read at least a volume of a few manga that fit my criteria, or come fairly close, already:

Abandon the Old in Tokyo
Akira
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
Old Boy
Pluto
Sanctuary
Wandering Son

And I own Solanin and a few volumes of Children of the Sea, but have not yet read either. Any suggestions?
 
Getenrou.

Also Majime na Jikan.

Two really good short stories. Getenrou is more for the twists and Majime na Jikan is for making you cry.

edit: oh wait, licensed ones? Those don't really fit the criteria then.
 
The good mangas are not very short. Buda, from Ozamu Tezuka is cool.

buddha_osamu_tezuka_boraborahut.jpg
 
I was gonna suggest Ikigami, but that's 10 volumes (though it seems to go by really fast). I don't read many under that 6 volume limit that also have US releases; most of what I've read tend to be 10-12.
 
Koe no katachi is a great one that's about to end, so it'll be fairly short. It started as a one shot, so you can read that and see if uo like it it's at six volumes at the moment, but it's ending in maybe one more volume. It begins about a young boy who bullied a deaf girl and turns into a really interesting and unique story. I recommend it to anyone and everyone, great story about youth. This one isn't in the US yet, but I'd check out the one shot anyways and see if you like it.

Onnanoko ga shinu hanashi- slice of life story about friendship and love.


Marie no kanaderu ongaku (The Music of Marie)
Very unique short manga, beautiful art and unexpectedly emotional story

Message
The only manga to ever make me cry, also inspired me to start hiking and mountain climbing. It's a longer one shot.

Blame!

Mushishi

Uzumaki

I primarily read short manga, but I'm on my cellphone so I'll have to edit this in a few minutes after I get my list
 
Seeing that you're interested in Inio asano works, you should probably get nijihara holograph and What a Wonderful World.
 
I haven't had a chance to read it yet, but a friend of mine suggested The Walking Man, from Jiro Taniguchi.

It's a one shot issue, too.

Could be up your alley.
 
Uzumaki and Gyo by Junji Ito
Solanin and Nijigahara Holograph by Inio Asano
Sunny by Taiyo Matsumoto (ongoing)
A Bride's Story by Kaoru Mori (ongoing)
Thermae Romae by Mari Yamazaki

EDIT: also Cross Game by Mitsuru Adachi (yes it's technically way over the 6 volumes limit but it's really brilliant if you have any interest in a slice-of-life-ish coming-of-age story and don't mind the baseball part. Not that there's anything wrong with the baseball part but there are just not many fans of sports manga in general.
 
If you're not married exclusively to Japanese content, I often recommend Scott Pilgrim by Bryan Lee O'Malley to people who are segueing into comics/manga. It's 6 volumes; the art style is clean, fun, and very active; the story is relatable and entertaining, with a lot of manga-style influences; and I get a nickel for every volume sold.

That last bit is a lie, but you should still check it out.
 
Blame! - Search for the net-gene. One of my absolute favorites. Gorgeous architecture. The length is misleading,as it is a quick read.

Planetes - Space salvage crew.

The Voices of a Distant Star - Long distance relationship.

The Music of Marie- Mechanical goddess in the sky

Mushishi - Spirit problem solver.

I don't know about availability in the US. If you can find them, they are all worth it.
 
Uzumaki is one of the best manga I have ever read. $20 gets you the hardcover collection with all 3 volumes. If you enjoy Lovecraft, this book is right up your alley.
 
any or most of the Tezuka stuff in the US:
The eight volumes of Budha
-Dororo
-Unico(lovely artwork, stunning in color, kinda depressing actually)
-Ayako

Non Tezuka stuff:
-Saturn Apartments
-Gundam Origin
 
The hard part is the "Still in print" part. Some of my favorite shorter series are now sadly long out of print in English.

A Bride's Story was already mentioned and it's still ongoing, but it's so good and the US editions are lovely.

OH! Thermae Romae! Yen also put out amazing editions of that. That's complete.

I really liked House of Five Leaves, which is only 8 volumes.
 
If you liked Sanctuary, you could try Strain from the same creators
http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT2xFSuk0cQFOI0ooPw4wGS8YPBZbVWAotlhPe2cPrTOwjkH4T1XPcgQdFT

It's very similar actually, although not as solid as Sanctuary.

I also read "Records of Lodoss War : the Lady of Pharis" as a standalone story, I'm not sure it ties with the rest of the universe which I haven't read, but it worked fine that way for me. Very classic fantasy universe, very nice drawings with a strong western inspiration apparently.

I liked contemplative one shots by Taniguchi too, like The Walking Man (title says it all ^^, it's just short stories about a guy who walks around and enjoys his daily life)

*edit : can't tell if those are still in print in the US, though. I think they're not hard to find around here, but they're not in English.
 
Pesmerga00 said:
Blame! - Search for the net-gene. One of my absolute favorites. Gorgeous architecture. The length is misleading,as it is a quick read.

Planetes - Space salvage crew.

Mushishi - Spirit problem solver.
Click to expand...

All out of print in english. (Blame and planets were tokyopop) Biomega and Knights of Sidonia are still around though, and Biomega is only 6 volumes.

Mushishi is available digitally from Kodansha USA I think.
 
Sonicbug said:
All out of print in english. (Blame and planets were tokyopop) Biomega and Knights of Sidonia are still around though, and Biomega is only 6 volumes.

Mushishi is available digitally from Kodansha USA I think.
Click to expand...


That sucks. Although I do like Biomega ( and NOISE) as well. They are all part of the same continuity. Kinda, sorta, maybe. Who Knows?
 
Mumei, I need you to make an exception and read the 13-volume void that is Oyasumi PunPun. I will continue to bug you about it until you read it.

You already know part of the reason why I rank this manga in the monster/berserk tier.

I also sadly don't have any short manga recommendations, which you haven't already read. I'm going to keep my eyes open on this thread for future reads though.
 
Happy-Go-Lucky-Days by Takako Shimura, two volumes.

A bunch of light-hearted short stories about sex and sexual relationships.
 
Hiroki Endo Short Stories

Once gave them both to a female coworker, who wanted to know what was the deal with Mangas.

She didn't even finish volume 1. :lol
 
That's because Hiroki Endo is a misanthrope who hates life and wants to make everyone as miserable as possible.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I'm at work right now so I can't really respond to as many suggestions as I like, but I will when I get a chance at home.
 
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