Manga does this better than any Western comic
Comic Reviews - Week Ending 03/27/2022
Good morning, my friend,
ScreenRant put out an article this week announcing One Piece (a very popular Manga about a group of pirates with supernatural powers) outsold all Batman comics combined. This is not a weekly, quarterly, or annual stat. This is a statistic tallying up all sales for each title since the beginning of their respective runs. ScreenRant gets too heavy into the spin department on most things, but I’ve included the link below for reference.
One Piece Officially Outsells Every Single Batman Comic Ever... Combined
I could spend days comparing and contrasting the differences between Manga and the Western direct market. Some of those differences are ripe for adoption, others are cultural and wouldn’t translate. In other words, if someone says “Marvel should do what Manga does”, that’s lazy, unhelpful advice.
It’s easy to pick on the things Manga gets right (affordable price point, distribution, an unbeatable digital model, etc.), but let’s talk about something Manga does better than nearly all Western direct market comics - Manga characters age.
That’s it. There’s no big magic secret. Successful Manga titles such as One Piece, Naruto, Black Clover, Dragon Slayer, Bleach, Dragon Ball, and on and on and on have several things in common, and one of them is life progression.
When you line up several of the most popular titles, the characters start young/inexperienced and they grow over time. They mature. If they start as youngsters, they get older. If they’re adults, their circle of friends and family grows with them.
For example, Goku, the main character from Dragon Ball, begins his run as an infant and is now a grandfather. Naruto starts his journey as a young boy in school and he’s now Hokage (village leader). His nearly-adult son, Baruto, has taken over the adventures.
Back to One Piece. Luffy D. Monkey, the main character with a straw hat and stretchy powers, doesn’t reflect 23 years of physical aging but his personality has matured, his circle of friends has widened, and his status in the world has grown. That’s a lot of words to say Luffy may not seem 23 years older in body but he has grown in every other way.
Growing characters and the world around them is, in part, why Manga has such a large and growing fanbase. Readers get to be part of the character’s life as if they were real people. You mature with them. You’re satisfied when those characters succeed. You’re saddened when those characters fail. Readers are allowed and encouraged to emotionally invest in the lives of characters like Luffy, and emotional investment (no pun intended) is at the heart of every loyal fanbase.
Could this approach work for Western direct market comics? For established characters like Batman and Spider-Man, maybe. But, it would take a herculean effort on the part of publishers to let the characters move on. It’s not impossible, but it would be very tough.
For new creators who are building new characters with longevity, take note of this approach. Don’t be so quick to jump ahead to the fight. Build the character. Let them make mistakes. Let them learn from mistakes and mature from the learning. If they’re kids, let them grow up. If they’re adults, let them grow old (unless you can find a clever way to slow their aging like Goku).
The goal should always be to gain a reader’s emotional investment. You can’t buy that investment. It has to be developed and earned over time. Give your readers a friend they can grow with and you’ll have a reader for life.
I hope you enjoyed this little essay, but let me know what you think. Drop a comment down below and tell me you agree, or if you don’t, where I got it wrong.
And with that, it’s time to get on with this week’s reviews.
BARBARELLA (VOL. 2) #8 – Review
RED SONJA (VOL. 6) #7 – Review
WOLVENHEART #12 – Review
RISE OF THE DJINN #3 – Review
ARMORCLADS #1 – Review
SPEED REPUBLIC #2 – Review
COVER OF DARKNESS #3 – Review
YUKI VS. PANDA #8 – Review
BEYOND THE BEYOND #1 – Review
PENTAGRAM OF HORROR! #1 – Review
A KING’S VENGEANCE #2 – Review
STEALTH HAMMER #1 – Indie Review
THE BREAKER OMNIBUS (VOL. 2) – Review
The Last Session #4 (Mad Cave Studios)
Blood on Sunset #4 (Source Point Press)
In His Own Image #2 (Source Point Press)
Grimm Fairy Tales #58 (Zenescope Entertainment)
Grimm Fairy Tales Myths & Legends Quarterly JACK & JILL (Zenescope Entertainment)
Battlecats (Vol. 3) #7 (Mad Cave Studios)
Grimm Spotlight Mystere: Divinity (Zenescope Entertainment)
Vampirella/Dracula: Unholy #4 (Dynamite Comics)
Pantha #2 (Dynamite Comics)
The Harbinger #6 (Valiant Entertainment)
Scarlett Vs. #1 (Indie Submission)
Ninja World Japan #2 (Enmaku Publishing)
That’s the shortlist. We’ll add more as time and resources allow.
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