My Top 10 Best Manga - Part 2

This is a continuation of My Top 10 Best Manga - Part 1 if you haven't read it. You don't really have to but I'd recommend it only for the sake of knowing that you're missing out on potential awesome reads. So onwards and upwards for part two!

The masterful creator of manga, Osamu Tezuka, was the original creator for this story. Very similar to Astro Boy there is a large difference between the two, mainly Pluto has a giant mystery/murder plot behind it rather than a small robot boy saving people. There are robots, they follow the laws which are vastly similar to Asimov's original Three Laws of Robotics. There is so much intrigue and development of the characters that you get very attached to the story and wish to know more.

The story follows Gesicht, a german robot inspector working for Europol. The tale wraps mystery upon mystery as heroes of the 39th Middle East War in Persia are murdered. Robot heroes that are adored by the people for their passion and strength in the line of duty. This story is in a time where A.I. is becoming distorted by that which we consider human. There is a controversy within the story about how closely newer model robots are starting to resemble humans and it even goes so far as making some robots unaware of their own existence as robots. (BOGGLES THE MIND) I recommend this for an action packed, thrill ride that leaves you wondering after each page but cleanly finishing and leaving you satisfied.

Okay so this story was one of the most strangely shocking I have ever read. It was so shocking it made it in the top five. Whoa! The reason being is because this is a harem based tale which involves one unlikely male winning the affection of several desirable females. It's supposed to target men. However, it's also supernatural, which I didn't see when I started reading the story. Which probably also helped contribute to the massive shock I got mostly towards the end. Koio Minoto is the hand behind this supernatural mystery harem thriller, starting its serialization in 2000 it is truly an eerie tale.

Taiyo Nakabiru is just an average guy, vacationing to the island of Okinawa and hoping to pick up girls. The one he decides to hit on seems to know him. Not only that but apparently it was his fault that her mother died. It appears that she and her two sisters know him, even though he does not remember ever going to Okinawa before. After convincing the three sisters, Nagisa, Shibuki and Mio Miyara, to let him help them out with their work and to let him learn diving from them, Taiyo's childhood with the sisters slowly comes back to him, and certain strange events involving a mystical white whale begins to haunt them. It's pretty spooky. I enjoyed it and the story has stuck with me for years. I highly recommend it.

Written by Sho Fumimura, and illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami this work was started in 1990 and finished its serialization after five years. This is a political thriller/crime drama which wouldn't initially be that interesting to me except that the story revolves around two of the most potent characters I've ever read. These two characters, childhood friends, are Akira Hojo and Chiaki Asami whose ultimate goal is making Japan a safe place for them, a sanctuary.

So what makes this story unique? Well what if the boys as teens decide to play rock, paper, scissors to determine who takes the high path and who takes the low path? By high path I mean becoming a notable dignitary and high ranking politician to eventually become Prime Minister to sit on the Diet of Japan. The low path being dropping out of school joining the nearest Yakuza gang and eventually leading the entire criminal underground. Now let's throw on an even more amazing twist, the one who becomes the criminal, his entire purpose as the criminal is to help the other become the Prime Minister. There is so much thought and care put into this story that the moment I finished reading it I immediately knew it would forever be one of my favorites. Check it out, you won't regret it.

This is a comedy series written and illustrated by Yasuhiro Kano, it was published in 2006 and ended its serialization in 2008 because of low ratings. It was still an amazing read and it saddens me that the story had the potential of continuing and didn't, but nonetheless it is my third favorite of all time.

A man named Taiga Kuzumi is the individual who unknowingly enters a world that isn't anything like ours. The classic school theme is a constant in most anime and manga and this story is no exception. The difference with this school though is everyone has magic powers, except Taiga. He unwittingly gets pulled into this school and within the first chapter becomes infamous. What I find so wonderful about this manga is that this powerless person uses his reputation as a "gold plate" user to trick everyone into believing he is ultimately powerful. Of course that doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. There is so much misunderstanding and you can never really figure out if Taiga is extremely unlucky or lucky but either way it's a hilarious story that because of its humor it made my top five. If you need a laugh, just read the first chapter.