Anime UK News Review of 2024 Part 2: Manga, Manhwa and Light Novels
With major shonen series ending in 2024 (My Hero Academia, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba) questions are inevitably being asked as to what will replace them in readers’ affections. We’ve been here before, of course, and eventually something intriguing and different catches the attention – after, of course, the publishers have thrown many series at the wall to see if any stick. We’re still waiting in the UK to be allowed to sign up for K Manga, the ‘new’ digital service from Kodansha, over eighteen months since it started in the US (May 2023). The cost of print and paper is still meaning that physical manga is expensive and some digital editions are much better value than others so not much has changed since 2023 in that respect. But the range of titles available in translation to read (and/or collect) is better than ever – and that’s definitely something to cheer about.
Manga
Darkstorm
I’ve read a lot of manga this year but one new series that stood out to me is This Monster Wants to Eat Me; its atmosphere, its unique story, the haunting art and slow descent into the dark romance is really a fascinating read that I yearn for the next volume as soon as one has been been consumed.
As for on-going releases, I have to give it to Yuri is My Job! No other long-term manga has made me really engage with the characters and emotional layers as this series had. Volumes 10 and 11 I had on my mind for months before I picked up Volume 12, and I eventually had to get my thoughts down in review form. I’m a little sad we’re nearly all caught up with Japan, as this means newer releases will have bigger gaps between them, but I’m also happy it’s still ongoing and that I get to spend time with these characters more in the future.
Demelza
While K Manga may still be avoiding the UK, VIZ did bring us VIZ Manga which opened up the door to several new simulpub series that we were previously missing out on and a good variety of not-shonen titles to read for a cheap subscription fee. Over in Shonen Jump, My Hero Academia and Jujutsu Kaisen both came to an end and other fan favourites like Undead Unluck and Mission Yozakura Family aren’t far behind. Ultimately we’re about to step into an entirely new era of Jump, which should prove interesting!
However, in many ways, I feel the market is starting to stagnate in terms of the variety of licenses. We are seeing more manga than ever, but so much of it is the same old when there are many more interesting things out there (including older titles). I appreciate the publishers are simply following the money, but as someone who reads a lot more in Japanese these days, it is telling the differences between the markets. After the merger last year, it also feels like futekiya vanished into a void with far fewer BL being licensed and those that were often not available under the subscription service. Manga Plus has ramped up translation of Shonen Jump + titles, but fallen out of favour with fans for their aggressive use of AI translations. With that increasingly becoming a problem in the market, it does not bode well for 2025…
Still, it’s not all bad as toward the end of the year we’ve gotten Home Office Romance, Dragon and Chameleon and Just Like Mona Lisa to offer us something different to spend time with. This year also saw the end of Welcome Back, Alice which proved interesting despite its flaws and Kodansha released Mermaid Prince: a collection of one-shorts from Kaori Ozaki.
Sarah
Looking back over the manga I’ve reviewed in 2024, I see more continuing series than new titles. Several have come to an end – but others continue to go from strength to strength, especially Blue Period (Tsubasa Yamaguchi) and Witch Hat Atelier (Kamome Shirahama) from Kodansha and The Summer Hikaru Died (Mokumokuren) and Shadows House (Somato) from Yen Press. And how could I not mention the delightful Mr. Villain’s Day Out (Yuu Morikawa) from Square Enix Manga which continues to delight with its grumpy evil alien general seeking rest and relaxation on Earth by indulging his obsession with pandas.
However, even though several major manga publishers have increased the number of Boys’ Love titles they’ve brought out this year, disappointingly, there have been few that really stand out. However, ongoing thriller Kei X Yaku Bound by Law (Yoshie Kaoruhara) from Kodansha is very stylishly drawn and excitingly written; although the central relationship is currently a fake one to fool the villains, we know, we just know that at some stage…
My best ongoing series overall has to be Kowloon Generic Romance (Jun Mayuzuki) from Yen Press, with its colourful cast and compelling narrative. Who is Kujirai? Is she a clone, a copy, a figment of her own imagination? Why is Kowloon Walled City still standing and filled with people going about their daily lives? And what is Generic Terra?
As for my best new series, Medalist (Tsurumaikada) counts as new because the physical editions began to appear in 2024 after an early digital release by Kodansha. If you haven’t yet met determined ball of energy Inori or her earnest and well-intentioned coach Tsukasa, then you’re in for a treat! There’s so much more to this ice-skating manga than the competitive sports side and the drawings are amazingly accomplished.
Ian Wolf
2024 has certainly been a sad year in some respects when it comes to manga and print media in general. In March Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama sadly died, while in November the last ever issue of NEO Magazine was released, meaning that there is no longer a British publication devoted to anime and manga.
However, there was still plenty to enjoy. Having started at the back end of 2023, Yen Press has continued to bring out the Premium Collection editions of early CLAMP work Tokyo Babylon, and it is interesting to see how much of the social commentary that they wrote about back in the early 1990s still feels relevant. Sticking with that decade, one new title that came out this year that I particularly enjoyed was Kodansha’s My Lovesick Life as a ‘90s Otaku, a romcom set back when anime and manga fans were looked down upon by mainstream society. It was a fun read partly for nostalgia’s sake (except whenever they referenced Rurouni Kenshin), but also because of the will-they won’t-they relationship at the heart of the story.
There was also comedy in the crime-caper series The Fable, which gets some laughs out of some pretty dark subject matter, as well as the much more light-hearted Is the Order a Rabbit?, a series I have been wanting to read ever since I reviewed the anime, and happily the original comic is just as good. One of the more surprising series for me was motor-racing manga Initial D, which was a series I already knew was well regarded. While certain aspects such as the character design might be a bit off to more modern readers, the action in the story is thrilling.
Digital Manga
Demelza
Despite being less expensive than print and giving publishers like Kodansha more freedom to experiment, our digital offerings this year haven’t been tremendously different to years prior. I’ve started a lot less digital series this year, but one series I was happy to see the return of was Tokyo Tarareba Girls Returns 2, which is the long-awaited sequel. The first series made it to print, so I’m hoping this will follow suit in the months to come so fans can complete the collection.
Sarah
My deep disappointment with futekiya’s new and ongoing points-style subscription led to me cancelling my subscription for Manga Planet this year. Thank goodness, then, for Animate International, which continues to bring new BL titles every month that can actually be purchased and downloaded to your own digital reader! Stand-out titles (continuing or new for 2024) include: Loveless Momentum by Zenika Sumiyo about two amateur musicians that play together in a concert band; the moving and realistic All About My Two Dads by Roji about the joys and problems of parenting as a gay couple and the wonderfully crazy Tashiro-kun, Why’re You Like This? by Yamada which has echoes of Genshiken and will appeal to anyone who’s involved in manga fandom or producing doujinshi. There’s something for all tastes in BL in their lists and there are often bonus editions which cost a little extra – but who doesn’t like bonus material?
Manhwa
Noemi10
As a huge manhwa fan, I was pleased by the Ize Press releases this year. They continue to publish some favourite series (Solo Leveling, Villains Are Destined to Die and Tomb Raider King) while also launching quite a few new popular series, such as Unholy Blood, SSS-Class Revival Hunter and The Uncanny Counter. My top pick of the year though is See You in My 19th Life. I’ve been a loyal reader of the digital release on Webtoon, so I was overjoyed when Ize announced the print release. Although I read it from start to finish as a web comic, I’m enjoying the re-read as this series is still able to make me feel all the joy and the sadness I felt for the characters during my first read-through of the story of Juwun Yun who remembers all her past 17 lives!
Ize Press has already announced a few new titles for the first half of 2025, and I can’t wait to discover them and see what else is coming in later 2025!
Sarah
Tied to You (WHAT/Chelliace) Ize Press’s first foray into Boys’ Love has not left much of a positive impression on me, sadly. Although its Teen rating makes it accessible for a broad age-range, its dull colour palette makes it rather an uninspiring read so far. However, Semantic Error (Angy/J. Soori) has made it to physical book form at last (admittedly after most of us had already read it as a webtoon) and it’s a very welcome addition to the Ize Press manhwa list. Not everyone has warmed to this unusual enemies to lovers relationship between two students, one neurodivergent but brilliant at IT, the other the tall, good-looking, easy-going – but I love its wicked sense of humour. Review to follow shortly.
Light Novels
Demelza
Despite feeling as though the manga industry is in a rut, I’ve found that the light novel offerings have proved more interesting this year. Finally running out of isekai, the publishers have had to turn to other genres resulting in more BL, romance and other kinds of fantasy. Yen Press has won my favour with a combination of Demons’ Crest, Amalgam Hound, Babel and The Other World’s Books Depend on the Bean Counter. Last year I found the new titles just couldn’t compete with new entries of existing favourites for me, but I think ‘24 has proved more fruitful in that regard as I found myself eagerly anticipating new releases of many of the newcomers.
Unfortunately, we also saw the loss of Tentai Books, who had been going through a tough spell since Covid and ultimately couldn’t deliver on any of their promised releases. Likewise, Monogatari Novels have still yet to release anything in English despite originally listing titles for the end of 2023! And with the drama they continuously seem to be embroiled in, I’m not sure things will improve for 2025 there…
Sarah
I was sad that one of my favourite fantasy series Raven of the Inner Palace (Koukou Shirakawa) from Seven Seas Airship reached its seventh and final volume this November but also glad that it managed to deliver a satisfying (if bitter-sweet) conclusion. But my standout new supernatural light novel series of 2024 has to be The Contract Between a Specter and a Servant (Michiru Fushino) from Yen Press which has reached its third volume and strikes a very readable balance between understated but effective supernatural horror and intriguing character dynamics. I also recommend the ongoing saga of The Case Files of Jeweler Richard (Nanako Tsujimura) Seven Seas Airship which has now taken young jeweler-in-training Seigi all over the world (Volume 8, set in Provence, is a stand-out for me) and has left the events of the anime series far behind.
Digital Light Novels
Demelza
Digital offerings are mostly still the same as print, especially as there’s been no real increase in publishers. Of course, there are still plenty of digital exclusives thanks to J-Novel Club and this has been an exciting year for them in particular as they finished publishing Ascendance of a Bookworm and rescued Chivalry of a Failed Knight after Sol Press’ died a death. Like the major print publishers they’re running out of notable isekai titles to license and we’re now seeing a lot more fantasy romance or newer titles fresh out of Japan making their debuts.
My favourite of the newer titles has undoubtedly been Dagashi-ya Yahagi: Setting Up a Sweets Shop in Another World, which yes is isekai but has such a charming premise in that the main character’s ability is to call up Dagashi-ya wherever he is. I’ve learnt a lot about cheap Japanese sweets, I can say that much! I’ve also been fond of Management of a Novice Alchemist, which had an anime a few years ago and proves a good change of pace as we follow a young girl setting up her own alchemy store in a small village.
Danmei and Manhua
Sarah
The danmei list from Seven Seas continues to go from strength to strength and they’ve added another very attractively drawn full-colour manhua this autumn: Dinghai Fusheng Records, based on the novels (coming in 2025) by Fei Tian Ye Xiang with gorgeous art by Qian Er Bai. Apart from standout ongoing danmei novels, notably Priest’s steampunk Stars of Chaos: Sha Po Lang, new titles that started this year which are well worth your time include diverting murder mystery Peerless by Meng Xi Shi (below, stunning cover art by Me.Mimo) and the sweeping historical saga Ballad of Sword and Wine: Qiang Jin Jiu by Tang Jiu Qing. Much more danmei to come in 2025!
Looking Forward to 2025…
Noemi10
One of the titles I’m most excited about is Lady Devil, which will be published by Ize Press in April 2025. From the blurb and the images I could find online, it gives me the same vibe as Villains Are Destined to Die, which mixes romance with gothic elements. I’m hoping it lives up to my expectations.
2025 will also (probably) see the end of a few manhwa that started my obsession, such as My Gently Raised Beast and The Abandoned Empress. So I’m ready for publishing houses to surprise me! We don’t yet know all the new releases for 2025, but with the popularity soaring for series like Solo Leveling, The Beginning After the End and Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint (also thanks to their forthcoming anime adaptations), I wonder what new titles in this genre will be published in the English market.
Darkstorm
The end of Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card came about in Japan this year, and its final volumes will be released in English for 2025. It’s been a nostalgic yet wild ride, so I’m looking forward to seeing its conclusion. We’re also finally getting new volumes of My Happy Marriage on the manga side, and the latest Yuri is My Job has early release in 2025 so we’ll be all caught up with Japan so far.
As for new releases, a few from Square Enix Manga have already caught my eye: Love in the Palm of His Hand brings another queer/disability love story to the West, with the steamy Assassin and Cinderella and the darker Bride of the Death God also bringing new romance flavours to the manga scene that I’m looking forward to.
Demelza
Next year I’m eager to see what happens with Shonen Jump now so many of the pillars have come to an end. I’m not so excited about the rest of the English manga market as a lot of the recent licenses leave a lot to be desired, but I’m sure as always there will be plenty of surprises along the way.
Plus in light novels, J-Novel Club are preparing to launch a BL imprint early in the year. As a big supporter of theirs over the years, I can’t wait to see what’s in store there. Particularly now futekiya aren’t publishing anything after their brief go at “Super Light Novels” a couple of years ago. Of course, there’s Yen Press, Seven Seas and Tokyopop to compete with but I think this genre in particular has room for one more…
Sarah
Seven Seas are bringing us SF title Black Blood by Hayate Kuku whose unusual and original BL manga deserves much more attention – and from the excellent Hitomi Takano (My Boy) comes SF series Gene Bride, a fascinating and disturbing look at gender roles in society from a woman’s perspective.
Tokyopop LoveLove have one-shot BL The Little Bird Sleeps by the Sea by Yuu Minaduki (Love Nest and Engage from SuBLime) a genuinely moving story of found family.
Square Enix Manga Wash It All Away Mitsuru Hattori looks promising and different too! ‘Although Wakana has no knowledge of her own past, her cleaning services safeguard memories imbued in customers’ precious items.’
Ian Wolf
I am certainly planning to continue reading all the titles I have been reviewing for AUKN. As someone who is keen on CLAMP it will be interesting to see if they follow up on Tokyo Babylon with any of their other Premium Collection editions.
In terms of brand new titles approaching, two VIZ titles jump out. The latest work from Inio Asano, the creator of Goodnight Punpun and Dead Dead Demon’s Dededede Destruction, comes out in English in February. Sci-fi series Mujina into the Deep follows a man whose life has changed after he encounters two people, one a runaway child, and the other an assassin.
As someone who is a fan of ice hockey though, the March release of Dogsred is also appealing to me. Created by Satoru Noda, this is his second manga about the sport, but the first only lasted about a year. After that, Noda found success with Golden Kamuy, and now has reworked his original story into something new, now with the extra clout that comes with his previous success. The story follows a 15-year-old who is brilliant at figure skating, but the death of his mother and a burst of outrage causes him to be banned from the sport. He ends up moving to Hokkaido and is drafted into ice hockey team, despite having never playing the game before.
