manga newbie

Hi,
I haven't been reading manga for very long and I wanted to know what were some good series to get into.
Unfortunately, I don't really know what I like because I've only read Fruits basket. I do know that I like fantasy novels.
I've heard of death note and alchemist something or other....and I noticed lucky star and marmalade boy (?) in passing.
Are any of those titles good? I'd appreciate any other recommendations I can get.

Whether or not a title is good depends entirely on personal opinion. Myself, I don't much care for Death Note, but I know a lot of people who really like it. I've enjoyed what I've read of Full Metal Alchemist (which is probably the alchemist series you've heard of), and I enjoyed Marmalade Boy when I read it, though the relationships get somewhat...strange. Of course, they aren't really any stranger than the relationships in Fruits Basket....

Since you've said you really like fantasy novels, I would recommend checking out From Far Away by Kyoko Hikawa. It's one of my favorite fantasy manga, and at 14 volumes it's a mid-length series.

I always recommend Her Majesty's Dog which is the series that actually got me started on reading manga. It is an urban fantasy which you might enjoy. It is an ongoing series.

A few other complete fantasy series that I enjoyed are Wish, Cardcaptor Sakura and Tokyo Babylon, all by Clamp.

Two other Clamp series that are fantasy based and ongoing are Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles and xxxHolic that I would totally recommend.

Thnaks! I just hope they're at my library.....

For Wish, do you think it's understandable if I just started from the second one? The first volume is "Lost" at my library...and wow I spelled "Thanks" wrong...I really need to start proofreading my messages before I post them...

I pulled out and took a look at the second volume of Wish this morning. It does do a pretty good job of letting you know the characters and the main parts of what's going on from volume one so I think you should be okay starting there.

well that's good....I think I might just break down and buy it off amazon though.
I got Her Majesty's Dog from the library and I really enjoyed it! thanks again for the reccomendations.

I sthere anything else by Kyoko Hikawa? I really loved what I've read of From Far Away. It's my kind of book!

A couple other fun series:
- Red River by Chie Shinohara - Japanese girl gets transported back in time to the Hittite Empire at the height of its power

- Paradise Kiss by Ai Yazawa - Gorgeous, unique art; can be a little graphic so I don't know if your library would carry it due to the sex and nudity. But it's one of my favorite series.

- Ranma 1/2 by Rumiko Takahashi - Mostly I just wanted to balance out this list with a comic with a male protagonist, and Ranma was one of the first popular stories that I can remember in the late 1990s, when I started reading manga

Unfortunately my library doesn't carry Red River but it does have Paradise Kiss and Ranma 1/2. I'll take a look at them. Thanks!

From Far Away is the only Kyoko Hikawa title that has been translated into English at this point in time. She has a few other titles, but as far as I can tell they are all older works, and probably not very likely to get picked up by US publishers (if they're even still in print in Japan, which I'm starting to think is doubtful).

Another fun action/fantasy/adventure series is Black Cat by Kentaro Yabuki. It comes in at 20 volumes, and 15 of them have been released in the US. Don't know whether or not your library would carry it, but it's worth looking in to, right?

They don't have it. My library needs to get more graphic novels! I've seen the anime though, and it's pretty interesting. And I wish more of Kyoko Hikawa's work had been translated. From Far Away is so good! It's okay though. I have a lot of series to look through now!

Love Hina or Shugo Chara

>11 shadrach_anki: I'm really enjoying the anime of Black Cat and think I'll have to try out the manga soon as well. Do you know if there is much of a difference in the storyline between the two?

>14 Jenson_AKA_DL: - I'd have to say...yes and no. The anime changed a number of things in the timing department, which in turn changed various character interactions and dynamics. The manga begins about two years after Train becomes a Sweeper. He and Sven are already partners--have been for quite a while. Stuff about Saya doesn't really come up until seven or eight volumes in.

I prefer the timing of the manga to to the timing of the anime, but your mileage may vary. I read the manga a couple years before I saw any of the anime, so I already had that version of events firmly in my head.

>15 shadrach_anki: Thanks!

Anyone who likes both Ranma and fantasy novels should also check out Mermaid's Scar (by Rumiko Takahashi). The art is similar to Ranma, but the story is a bit darker and involves more literal fantasy elements (as opposed to just lots of martial arts physics like Ranma).

my library does have black cat after all! i'm all caught up to vol. 15 and can't wait for 16 to be released.

Narutos a good manga

Mars is also a really good series (it's my favorite series)

I've started Naruto and think it's fantastic...I'm on volume 31. shikamaru is like my favorite character!

i've also started death note. i really like it. L's hilarious.

If you like Fruits Basket, you should enjoy Skip Beat by Yoshiki Nakamura. Kyoko follows childhood friend and crush Sho Fuwa as he rises in stardom in Tokyo. When she finds out he regards her as little more than an annoying housekeeper, she vows to get revenge on him at his own game--show biz! The only unfortunate thing is that this series isn't finished yet--however, there are several volumes out so you should be well occupied with this for awhile. It's published in the U.S. by Viz.

The Twelve Kingdoms by Fuyumi Ono was a favorite anime of mine, though I haven't been able to find a manga version if one exists... you should be able to rent it though.

Other titles quickly.... Samurai Champloo, Cowboy Bebop, Bleach, Fullmetal Alchemist, and though I haven't read it myself, i hear that Eyeshield 21 is entertaining.

>22 waiting4morning: 12K is based on a series of novels, currently being released in English. There are no manga of it, that I'm aware of.

>22 waiting4morning:
I read the description of The Twelve Kingdoms and it seems a bit like Fushigi Yuugi. Check it out, maybe you'll like it.

i'm actually all caught up on FMA. waiting for the next volume is horrible! and yeah i really want to read Bleach. I'll keep those recommendations in mind if i'm looking for a new series to read!