The Manga Mania

CEBU, Philippines -  It wouldn't be wrong to refer to "manga" as "Japanese comics;" what would be wrong is to simply look at "manga" as a trivial form of entertainment.

True, "manga" is comics made in Japan or by Japanese creators. The various, countless storyline and themes have captivated the world - leaving readers with truly inspiring tales of wonder, action, romance and adventure.

Read by people of different age groups in the Land of the Rising Sun - and, consequently, in different parts of the globe - "manga" stories are typically printed in black and white, and are usually serialized in "manga" magazines.

Generally, "manga" serials are released in weekly installments, with each chapter presented as an "episode" of a story that runs for several issues.

In Japan, the term "manga" is not only specific to comics, but is also used to refer to cartooning, with "manga" creators professionally referred to as "mangakas."

To the rest of the world though, the term is used in reference to comics that hail from Japan.

Manga Forms and Conventions

Again, serialized manga titles are often found in mainstream weekly manga magazines that are published in Japan. Usually, these are released with other manga titles compiled in each issue, and they generally run somewhere between 20 to 40 pages per title or chapter.

If a particular manga gains a huge fan base, manga publishers reprint compiled volumes of the series. These re-published compilations are referred to as "tankobon" volumes, or what could be described as compiled paperback volumes.

In the indie or small-press publishing side of the manga world, the "dojinshi" is very well known. It is the alternative counterpart of mainstream manga, generally featuring original stories and characters, although variations of the "dojinshi" are also present - from parodies of established manga titles or characters to fan fiction yarns.

The dojinshi is also widely viewed as an avenue where up-and-coming mangakas are discovered by mainstream manga publishers, with a number of professional mangakas known to have started out as the authors or creators of dojinshis.

Given manga's stellar popularity, there are a number of manga-influenced comics made outside of Japan, too.

In South Korea, these are referred to as "manhwa," or "manhua" as they are called in Taiwan, Hong Kong and in China. In France, these are called "la nouvelle manga," usually authored by Japanese and Franco-Belgian creators. In the broader international scene, there's the Original English-Language Manga, or OEL Manga.

Between mangas and animes, the former is often described as the comics version of a story, while the latter is the animated version of a popular manga. Though the term "anime" technically refers to any animated film in Japan, the manga-anime connection is often found in how hit manga titles are adapted into animes, either as an ongoing series or as movies.

Depending on how popular a manga title is, anime adaptations can happen either after or during a manga series' ongoing run, with some manga adaptations even known to extend to live action movies and regular radio shows.