ALA 2014: 26 Picks from the Best & Worst Manga Panel

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At the American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference in Las Vegas this weekend, a group of comics bloggers, retailers, and librarians came together to rant and rave about their picks for the best (and worst!) manga released in the past three years. Christopher Butcher (Manager, The Beguiling, Director of the Toronto Comic Arts Festival, and blogger at Comics212.net), Eva Volin (Alameda Free Library, CA; Good Comics for Kids), Thomas Maluk (Richland Library, SC; No Flying, No Tights) and I picked 23 new and current manga titles to spotlight, and 3 to jeer at the special ALA 2014 edition of the Best and Worst Manga panel.

Our only restrictions were that we needed to pick titles that either debuted or had at least one new volume published within the last three years, and they had to be available in print (sorry digital-only manga releases).  So what made the cut?

BEST NEW MANGA FOR KIDS/TWEENS (Age 0-14)

• Kitaro by Shigeru Mizuki (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Library Wars: Love and War by Kiiro Yumi (Shojo Beat / VIZ Media)
• My Love Story!! by Kazune Kawahara and Aruko (Shojo Beat / VIZ Media)
• Pokemon Black and White by Hidenori Kusaka and Satoshi Yamamoto (Perfect Square / VIZ Media)

BEST NEW MANGA FOR TEENS (Age 15+)

• No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular by Nico Tanigawa (Yen Press)
• Say I Love You. by Kanae Hazuki (Kodansha)
• Summer Wars by Mamoru Hosoda and Iqura Sugimoto (Vertical)

BEST NEW MANGA FOR ADULTS

• Sakuran by Moyoco Anno (Vertical)
• Vinland Saga by Makoto Yukimura (Kodansha)
• What Did You Eat Yesterday? by Fumi Yoshinaga (Vertical)

BEST CONTINUING SERIES

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  Mobile Suit Gundam: the Origin Vol. 1 | © Yoshikazu Yasuhiko. Yoshiyuki Tomino, Hajime Yatate

  Blue Exorcist by Kazue Kato (Shonen Jump/VIZ Media)

• A Bride’s Story by Kaoru Mori (Yen Press)
• Dragon Ball: Full Color Edition by Akira Toriyama (Shonen Jump/VIZ Media)
• Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko (Vertical)
• Showa: A History of Japan by Shigeru Mizuki (Drawn & Quarterly)
• Sunny by Taiyo Matsumoto (VIZ Media)

WORST MANGA

• Bakuman. by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata (Shonen Jump/VIZ Media)
• Haganai: I Don’t Have Many Friends by Itachi and Yomi Hirasaka (Seven Seas Manga)
• High School DxD by Ichiei Ishibumi, Hiroji Mishima and Zero Miyama (Yen Press)

UNDERRATED BUT WONDERFUL MANGA

• Cross Game by Mitsuru Adachi (Shonen Sunday/VIZ Media)
• The Flowers of Evil by Shuzo Oshimi (Vertical)
• Helter Skelter: Fashion Unfriendly by Kyoko Okazaki (Vertical)
• Tableau Numero 20 by est em (SuBLime Manga/VIZ Media)

MANGA WE’RE MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO READING – FALL 2014/2015 RELEASES

• Master Keaton by Naoki Urasawa and Hokusei Katsushika (VIZ Media)
• Monster: The Perfect Edition by Naoki Urasawa (VIZ Media)
• Prophecy by Tetsuya Tsutsui (Vertical)

THE BEST OF THE REST – THE RUNNERS UP

In addition to these picks, there were several others that were recommended, but didn’t quite make the cut to the top of the list.

BEST MANGA FOR KIDS/TWEENS: RUNNERS UP

• Chi’s Sweet Home by Konami Kanata (Vertical)
• From Far Away by Kyoko Hikawa (Shojo Beat/VIZ Media)
• Kingdom Hearts by Shiro Amano (Yen Press)
• Kitchen Princess by Miyuki Kobayashi and Natsumi Ando (Kodansha Comics)
• Yotsuba?! by Kiyohiko Azuma (Yen Press)

BEST MANGA FOR TEENS: RUNNERS-UP

• Attack on Titan by Hajime Isayama (Kodansha Comics)
• Kimi no Todoke by Karuho Shiina (Shojo Beat/VIZ Media)
• Pluto by Naoki Urasawa (VIZ Signature/VIZ Media)
• Real by Takehiko Inoue (VIZ Signature/VIZ Media)
• Seven Deadly Sins by Nakaba Suzuki (Kodansha)
• Solanin by Asano Inio (VIZ Media)
• Wolf Children: Ami and Yuki by Mamoru Hosoda, Yu, Yoshiyuki Sadamoto (Yen Press)

BEST MANGA FOR ADULTS – RUNNERS-UP

• Strange Tale of Panorama Island by Edogawa Rampo and Maruo Suehiro (Last Gasp)
• Vagabond by Takehiko Inoue (VIZ Signature/VIZ Media)
• Nijigahara Holograph by Asano Inio (Fantagraphics)

MANGA WE’RE LOOKING FORWARD TO READING – RUNNERS UP

• A-Jin: Demi Human by Tsunina Miura and Gamon Sakurai (Vertical)

UNDERRATED BUT WONDERFUL – RUNNERS-UP

• Ooku by Fumi Yoshinaga (VIZ Signature/VIZ Media)
• Utsubora: The Story of a Novelist by Asumiko Nakamura (Vertical)