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Summary
There are severalmangaartists known for recycling their own material in their next works, like story themes, characters, or even the same universe. The countless similarities between their works make it easy for fans to identify the author.
An example of this is Hiro Mashima, the creator of thepopular seriesFairy Tail, who took a lot of inspiration from his previous work,Rave Master. However,some manga artists are not afraid of changing genresand going beyond the themes of their other popular series.
While some mangaka deliver masterpieces while sticking to the same genre and demographic, likeJunji Ito’s horror storiesor Mitsuru Adachi, who created several hit sports series about baseball such asTouch,H2, andCross Game,some manga authors create wildly different works that stand on their own and achieve success.
10Yabako Sandrovich Writes Brutal Martial Art Fights & Cute Girls Exercising
Contrasting Works: Kengan Ashura & How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift?
Yabako Sandrovich is a manga writer best known for his work onKengan Ashura, a series that exudes adrenaline from every panel.Kengan Ashurais a work loaded with energetic and brutal sequences, showing martial arts’ different styles in an extensive range of combats and situations of savagery at their maximum splendor in sync with the aggressive nature of his art.The characters are often compared withBaki Hanma’s figthersfor their brutality, which inspired a recent crossover from Netflix titleBaki HanmaVs. Kengan Ashura.
Despite the author’s love for martial arts, Sandrovich later wrote a completely different manga,How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift?, a slice-of-life about cute girls who attend a local gym to exercise and lose weight. An odd series that explains exercise routines as well as nutritional tips to live healthily was adapted into an anime that went viral for its catchy opening. The themes of both series are light day and night. However, the author includes cameos that confirm that both series happen in the same universe.
Cardcaptor Sakura
Cast
Cardcaptor Sakura is an anime series centered on Sakura Kinomoto, a young girl who accidentally releases magical Clow Cards and must retrieve them using magical abilities bestowed on her.
Any manga fan has heard of CLAMP, the most famous quartet of Japanese authors best known for the popular magical girl seriesCardcaptor Sakura. The genre of their work is fantasy and science fiction with a little romance, andwhile some are more childish and innocent, likeCardcaptor SakuraandKobato, others are more adult with mature themes, such asChobits,Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles,andxxxHolic. One work that stands out from the others for its themes and violence isX/1999.
X/1999touches themes like free will, predestination, and sacrifice. A dark mosaic for which CLAMP is inspired by diverse esoteric disciplines and beliefs:feng shui, Christian eschatalogy, Buddhism, Shintoism, etc., bringing together many very diverse philosophical, religious, and cultural references that display all their writing abilities but also deliver graphic scenes that fans wouldn’t expect from the same creators of the sweet Sakura Kinomoto.
8Riichiro Inagaki Writes an Exciting Sports Series & a Scientific New World
Contrasting Works: Eyeshield 21 & Dr. Stone
Riichiro Inagaki is a manga writer who gained popularity with his sports manga about American football,Eyeshield 21, illustrated by Yusuke Murata, who’s currently adapting ONE’s webcomicOne-Punch Man.Eyeshield 21is a fun spokon with a little drama that combines football with an excellent narrative in which the main character, Sena Kobayakawa, overcomes many challenges to achieve his dream of playing in the Christmas Bowl.
Inagaki’s later hit manga wasDr. Stone, a science fiction series about a teenage genius who uses his knowledge to rebuild civilization after being petrified. The premise of the series itself is fantastic and bizarre, but consistent with the spirit of science, something that always advances, opens new paths for humanity, and makes the planet a better place than it was.Both works are so distinctive that it’s not easy to tell they came from the same mind; however, both are exciting and optimistic mangas.
Contrasting Works: Go! Go! Loser Ranger!&The Quintessential Quintuplets
The Quintessential Quintuplets (2017)
Negi Haruba was inspired by Ken Akamatsu’s works to the point that his pen name is based onNegima! Magister Negi Magi’s protagonist. This influence can be seen in Haruba’s most popular manga,The Quintessential Quintuplets, a harem manga about a tutor teaching quintuplets with the subsequent romantic developments, since Akamatsu’sLove Hinais considered by many to be the work that popularized the sub-genre.
However, Naruba’s next manga,Go! Go! Loser Ranger!,showed a totally different side of the author.Loser Rangeris inspired by Sentai, like Power Rangers, but with a dark twist reminiscent of what The Boys already did with superheroes. Far away from a romcom about quintuplets,Loser Rangerdemonstrates Naruba’s great ability to mix humor, violence, and action.
Contrasting Works: A Silent Voice & To Your Eternity
Yoshitoki Oima surprised the world with her seriesA Silent Voice, which won her the prestigious Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize for a New Creator in 2015. Oima’sA Silent Voiceis a drama about bullying and redemption, showcasing how children are rejected by their own peers for being different through a premise that seeks to call for reflection and teach about forgiveness.
Although the story was a success, which gainedA Silent Voicean anime film adaptation, Oima decided her next work would be a fantasy, distanced from the modern world.To Your Eternityis a drama and adventure with its fair share of action, featuring an immortal being’s journey of self-discovery while experiencing grief and loneliness. Despite the difference in themes and plots, Oima’s abilities are displayed in both stories, creating a complex portrait of human feelings.
Contrasting Works: Death Note & Bakuman
Death Note
Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata are a manga creator’s duo primarily known for their famous seriesDeath Note, acclaimed for its deep exploration of ethical and moral themes, focusing on the psychology and motivation of the characters. Ōba’s narrative style and Obata’s artistic skills madeDeath Noteone of the most striking and memorable manga; however, the duo of authors took a radical turn with their next work,Bakuman.
WhileDeath Noteis about a student who receives a mysterious book from a Shinigami and develops a god complex, becoming obsessed with power,Bakumanis a more realistic story, showing a manga within a manga.Bakumanstars two students whose dream is to become professional manga artists, explaining the process behind it, from the storyboard to meeting the editors, to the operation of Japanese publishers, all with multiple references to classic works of the genre.From the dark and sober atmosphere ofDeath Noteto the more optimistic, classic shōnen style ofBakuman,these stories highlight the author’s versatility.
Muneyuki Kaneshiro is mostly known for his unique sports mangaBlue Lock, inspired by the style of a death-game series like his previous workAs The Gods Will. However, he also created two other series quite unique in their own:a horror series about a police officer whose life changed after frogs began to fall from the sky and enter people’s bodies, transforming them into monsters;Jagaaan;andWe Did It, a coming-of-age drama about guilt, regrets, and facing the consequences of one’s actions.
Both are dark stories, really far away from the classic sports genre. WhileJagaaantouches themes like humanity, reminiscent ofParasyte, with a setting and aesthetic more likeGantz,We Did Itshows, in the style of crime and punishment, the worst of human beings and what it means to hit rock bottom, displaying uncomfortable situations derived from unhealthy decisions.These different and varied stories showcase Kaneshiro’s talents and skills and confirm that he is certainly a very prolific manga author.
Contrasting Works: Fullmetal Alchemist & Silver Spoon
Fullmetal Alchemist
Hiromu Arakawa’s legacy is irreproachable, and she constantly shows her versatility by not being afraid to radically change the genre and themes of her new works. Although her most emblematic work to date is undoubtedlyFullmetal Alchemist, the artist also shines with realistic manga such asSilver Spoon, a slice of life about an agricultural school that has nothing to do with battles or fantasy themes like alchemy. The story is a reflection of the author’s connection to life on a farm, following day-to-day life in the field with a feeling of realism.
Arakawa can also write comedy manga, as demonstrated by her autobiographical storyNoble Farmer, and swift to a totally different genre with her most recent work,Daemons of the Shadow Realm. However, whatever the genre,Arakawa has the ability to create deep characters and mix elements of comedy and drama in the same story while exploring complex themes, making every manga an incredible experience.
2Takehiko Inoue Goes From School Basketball To a Samurai’s Epic Journey
Contrasting Works: Slam Dunk & Vagabond
Takehiko Inoue’s mangas stand out for their meticulously detailed art and emotional narrative. WhileSlam Dunkremains his greatest completed work, Inoue’s love for basketball is reflected in his other series,Buzzer Beater, which includes science fiction elements, and in Real, a more personal story where the heroes under the basket are in wheelchairs, whose problems go from regrets to thinking about what could have been, going far beyond just youthful love.
Even if they are all dramatically different, these three stories share basketball as a premise. However,Inoue went to the other side of the specter withVagabond, undoubtedly his best work, even if unfinished, for his amazing drawing, without fear of violence or blood, and as wild and cruel as the fearful and erratic period where it is set.Vagabondis about going along one’s path, where Musashi fights against himself, his doubts, and the past that torments him. Inoue’s works, though different, share the message of overcoming the obstacles in life.
Astro Boy
Astro Boy, a 1963 animated film, tells the story of a super-robot created by Dr. Boyton in the image of his deceased son. Rejecting the robot, Dr. Boyton sets Astro Boy on a journey where he is aided by Dr. Elefun, facing numerous adventures, battles, and moral dilemmas.
Osamu Tezuka is known as the Godfather of Manga for creating some of the most memorable series of all time, such asAstroboy,Black Jack,Jet Marte, andKimba the White Lion. Although his works are primarily known for their comedy and cartoonish character design, inspired in part by Walt Disney, during his career, Tezuka slowly transitioned towards more adult stories, shifting to series with critical portraits of certain Japanese social issues among his more than 700 works, going through two marked phases of artistic and thematic evolution
While his most famous series,Astroboy, is a science fiction manga dealing with themes like technology, space-time conflicts, war, the risks of weapons, and the exploitation of nature and its resources,Dororois the most particular, being the darkest and most violent manga of the author, with the story of the protagonist’s tireless search to complete his humanity set in the Japanese feudal era, in a world of superstitions and civil wars. The variety of genres in the series he authored prove thatOsamu Tezuka is certainly the best manga author who created wildly different works.
