WHAT IS 'MANGA'......?

Manga is basically the Japanese equivalent of what you might know as comic books. They have a very unique style which has developed over many years. We hope here you can learn to appreciate the art that is manga and become an avid manga fan!
 

Manga (漫画^?) are comics created in Japan, or by Japanese creators in the Japanese language, conforming to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century.^[1] They have a long, complex pre-history in earlier Japanese art.^[2]

In Japan, people of all ages read manga. The medium includes works in a broad range of genres: action-adventure, romance, sports and games, historical drama, comedy, science fiction and fantasy, mystery, horror, sexuality, and business/commerce, among others.^[3] Since the 1950s, manga has steadily become a major part of the Japanese publishing industry,^[4] representing a ¥406 billion market in Japan in 2007 (approximately $3.6 billion) and ¥420 billion ($5.5 billion) in 2009.^[5] Manga have also gained a significant worldwide audience.^[6] In Europe and the Middle East the market is worth $250 million.^[7] In 2008, the U.S. and Canadian manga market was valued at $175 million. The markets in France and the United States are about the same size. Manga stories are typically printed in black-and-white,^[8] although some full-color manga exist (e.g. Colorful). In Japan, manga are usually serialized in large manga magazines, often containing many stories, each presented in a single episode to be continued in the next issue. If the series is successful, collected chapters may be republished in paperback books called tankōbon.^[9] A manga artist (mangaka in Japanese) typically works with a few assistants in a small studio and is associated with a creative editor from a commercial publishing company.^[10] If a manga series is popular enough, it may be animated after or even during its run,^[11] although sometimes manga are drawn centering on previously existing live-action or animated films^[12] (e.g. Star Wars).

The term manga is a Japanese word referring both to comics and cartooning. "Manga" as a term used outside Japan refers specifically to comics originally published in Japan.^[13] However, manga-influenced comics, among original works, exist in other parts of the world, particularly in Taiwan ("manhua"), South Korea ("manhwa"),^[14] and China, notably Hong Kong ("manhua").^[15] In France, "la nouvelle manga" has developed as a form of bande dessinée comics drawn in styles influenced by Japanese manga. In the United States, people refer to what they perceive as manga-styled comics as Amerimanga, world manga, or original English-language manga (OEL manga). Still, the original term "manga" is primarily used in English-speaking countries solely to describe comics of Japanese origin.

The Shogakukan Manga Award (小学館漫画賞 Shōgakukan Mangashō^?) is one of Japan's major manga awards, sponsored by Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga since 1955 and features candidates from a number of publishers.

In 2005, Bleach was awarded the Shogakukan Manga Award in the shounen category.