Manga

Once upon a time, one had to read Japanese in order to enjoy manga. Today manga has become a global phenomenon, attracting audiences in North America, Europe, Africa, and Australia. The style has become so popular, in fact, that in the US and UK publishers are appropriating the manga style in a variety of print material, resulting in the birth of harlequin mangas which combine popular romance fiction titles with manga aesthetics. Comic publishers such as Dark Horse and DC Comics are translating Japanese "classics", like Akira, into English. And of course it wasn't long before Shakespeare received the manga treatment. So what is manga?
Manga roughly translates as "whimsical pictures" and its long history can be traced all the way back to picture books of eighteenth century Japan. Today, it comes in two basic forms: anthology magazines (such as Shukan Shonen Jampu) that contain several serials and manga 'books' (tankobon) that collect long-running serials from the anthologies and reprint them in one volume. The anthologies contain several serials, generally appear weekly and are so thick, up to 800 pages, that they are colloquially known as phone books. Sold at newspaper stands and in convenience stores, they often attract crowds of people who gather to read their favorite magazine.

Containing sections addressing the manga industry on an international scale, the different genres, formats and artists, as well the fans themselves, Manga: An Anthology of Global and Cultural Perspectives is an important collection of essays by an international cast of scholars, experts, and fans, and provides a one-stop resource for all those who want to learn more about manga, as well as for anybody teaching a course on the subject.

Inhalt

Introduction
Section One: The Industry
The History of Manga - Jean-Marie Bouissou
Manga in Asia - John A. Lent
Manga in Europe - Paul M. Malone
Understanding Manga Merchandising: An Australian Case
Study - Jason Bainbridge and Craig Norris
Shakespeare as Manga - Emma Hayley
Globalizing from Japan to Hong Kong and Beyond -
Wendy Siuyi Wong
Manga and the Critics - Toni Johnson-Woods
Section Two: The Genres & Formats & Artists
Overview of Manga Genres - Mio Bryce and Jason Davis
Ryori Manga - Lorie Brau
Shojo Manga at Home and Abroad - Jennifer Prough
Beautiful Boys in Japanese Women's Comics - Mark
McClelland

Meanings of Manga - Neil Cohn
The Aesthetics of Manga - Christopher Couch
Visual Representations and Manga - Craig Norris
A Look at Takahashi Rumiko, Watase Yu, Shinohara
Chie, Hikawa Kyoko, Itsuki Natsumi - Mio Bryce
Osamu Tezuka and Family: Early Pioneers of Manga -
Wendy Goldberg
Miuchi Suzue and Intertextuality - Rebecca Suter
Miyasaki's Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind: Manga
into Anime and Its Reception - Marc Hairston
Section Three: The Fans
Fandom in Germany, Italy and France - Bouissou, Pellitteri
and Dolle-Weinkauff
Scanlation - James Rampant
American Otaku and the Search for the Authentic Text -
Stacy Rue
Conclusion