It’s the last day of October, so I guess it’s about time I get around to this month’s manga giveaway! This month I have something for you all which I think is pretty neat: the first seven issues (out of twenty-seven) of the original English-language release of Hayao Miyazaki’s Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. The first issue even includes a poster by Mœbius! These comics are a cool manga artifact. The larger page size means Miyazaki’s artwork has plenty of room to breathe, too. As always, the contest is open worldwide!
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Nausicaä has had an interesting publishing history in English. It first showed up as a twenty-seven issue comic series beginning in 1988. Later, Viz would collect the story in seven graphic novel volumes and then again in four “perfect collection” volumes before once again publishing the series in seven volumes, but this time unflipped and with a smaller trim size. Finally, in November 2012, Viz will be releasing Nausicaä in a two-volume, hardcover box set.This got me to thinking about the different formats in which manga has been released in English.
Early on manga was often published similarly to American comics, first as individual floppies before being collected into larger volumes. Sometimes the individual issues were never collected and the comics are the only format in which they were released. Except in those cases (such as parts of The Legend of Kamui), I personally never collected manga in the comics format. I like my manga in book-sized chunks. But book-sized collections that I can actually read—I’m not a big fan of Dark Horse’s tiny Lone Wolf & Cub volumes, for example. For longer series, I appreciate multi-volume omnibus releases. Actually, I like shorter series collected as a single volume, too. Box sets are also fun and often come with additional content and artwork. At the moment, my favorite manga format is Fantagraphics’ oversized hardcovers. Yen Press and Vertical both have some nice hardcover manga, too. And while I’m glad to see digital manga becoming a more viable option, I still prefer my manga in print.
So, you may be wondering, how can you win the first seven issues of Nausicaä?
1) In the comments below, simply tell me which formats of manga you prefer to read and why. (Magazine serialization, individual volumes, multi-volume omnibuses, box sets, hardcover, digital, etc.)
2) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me).
So there you go! For this giveaway each person can earn up to two entries. As usual, there is one week to submit your entries. If you have trouble leaving comments, or if you would prefer, feel free to e-mail me your entry at phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com. I will then post the comment in your name. The winner will be randomly selected and announced on November 7, 2012. Good luck to you all!
VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address, link to your website, Twitter username, or whatever. If I can’t figure out how to get a hold of you and you win, I’ll just draw another name.
Contest winner announced—Manga Giveaway: Nausicaä Giveaway Winner
I personally prefer my manga in as close to the Japanese release as possible, so standard sized graphic novels/collections are best…but I also kind of like slightly oversized ones because you get to see all of the artwork larger and more close-up. (I’d much prefer oversized than the teeny pocket-sized books some companies have released over the years.)
Though I don’t mind omnibus collections, but only if they’re done well. If they have poor bindings and the pages start to fall out, they’re not worth the few bucks you save to get them instead of the individual books. (Tokyopop suffered from this problem frequently. -__- )
I used to buy the single issue floppies a lot back in the day, but that was because 1. they were fairly cheap, and I was a kid back then, so I could buy a lot of them and 2. they were more readily available from my local comic shop than the collected volumes. I actually still have a bunch of the old “Oh My Goddess!” ones (which I think to this day was one of the best edited “floppies”. Dark Horse & Studio Proteus always did such a great job with their editing.)
I tweeted the contest @bunnycartoon, yay! :D
I guess like my anime choices i’ve never really tried to restrict myself to just one format or another, however if forced to choose i would probubly go for a collected volume of a work, but that would be less to do with with any astetic preference as it would be financial – with money being tight it simply isnt an option to drop £3-5 for a magazine just to read only 1-2 titles tops.
Also ive found digital manga sites like J-manga to be another regular haunt and why not – with the sheer volume of titles coming out on japan on a yearly basis, it simply wouldnt be possible for manga companies to release al of them in the west and get any kind of return from them [a fact that me and many other Yokohama kaidashi kikou fans know all to well]- and so for me the only way to legally see many of these titles with out learning the language is via this route.
d’oh – forgot to add my twitter address to contact me at [@chuo_dori] its the same one that ive used to advertise your competition with as well.
Digital Serialization. Individual Volumes after that.
Twitter: @burninglizard
I like larger, omnibus-y books. I just bought Drawn and Quarterly’s Nonnonba, and it is the perfect size. I don’t really like buying/owning super long series, so a few large volumes>lots of regular sized ones for me.
Tweeted @commodorewood
Gosh, I would love to win these :3 For some reason I’m very partial to English single issues of manga, such as Sailor Moon and the Pokemon manga, but I’ve never been a fan of collecting the monthly Japanese “phonebooks,” really.
My favorite are just the standard paperback editions… I don’t really like omnibuses as they look weird on the shelf with the other books, haha. Also, I’m definitely not a fan of digital! I want a shelf full of books, even if it is extremely hard to bring it with me when I move!
Tweeted as well @apricotsushi Thanks for hosting this great giveaway!
Entering the Nausicaa Giveaway
In my case its individual volumes (you can see their original look this way), then multi-volume omnibuses, and finally digital as of late since has that fun new novelty.
Tweeted-https://twitter.com/BookLoverC/status/263784247444254720
Pretty fantastic giveaway, Ash:)
E-mail-bookandmoviedimensionblogger[at]yahoo[dot]com
I agree I much prefer the individual volumes and besides I love the unique look of the books that (:
Here is the link to my tweet
Twitter@bibliophile101
Email kcody007@yahoo.com
Posting on behalf of Ben Jonas:
I like being able to read a ton of manga in a physical format that doesn’t cost a bundle and doesn’t have me waiting for months on end for a new volume. (I’m looking at you, Viz.)
On the other hand, individual volumes are not only lighter, but also look nicer on book shelves.
The magazine format was nice while it lasted (since it introduced me to a number of titles I otherwise would’ve ignored), but with Shonen Jump’s demise and Viz’s rush to make everything popular digital (good luck with that), there’s no manga magazine currently in existence stateside, which means, sadly, this format is now obsolete.
I tried digital, but I just can’t see myself paying any form of cash for a mere single digital volume. (If it were for an unlimited-use service, with the option to read older chapters anytime, I might reconsider.) Plus, there are titles out there that have been discontinued by American publishers that were completed by scanlators. Bring back titles like “Kage Kara Mamoru”, “Tsukihime”, “Ninin Ga Shinobuden”, “Those Who Hunt Elves” and “Two Flowers For The Dragon” (and complete them), and then we’ll talk.
So, to summarize, I like my manga in print, with as many pages, high print quality and as few typographical errors as possible. (The latter of which seems to be frequently ignored by Kodansha USA.)
Oh, this question is quite the easy one for me! I’ve always loved just the plain, normal, classic individual volumes—no matter how long a series! Of course, once I’ve collected those, sometimes I like to collect additional omnibus editions, for the extra content. It all depends on how much I like the series.
Email;
kichouna@hotmail.com
(further expansion on my answer: I was buying American/European graphic novels before I got into manga, which is probably where my preference for oversized omnibus volumes stems from. That, and having all the books on my shelf be one size looks kind of strange to me)
I prefer Individual volumes. I like to sit down and marathon though a volume. I like omnibuses too, but not as much as individual.
Twitter – @XTakeshiKunX
Email – XSoulOfTheSkyX@gmail.com
Posted on behalf of Stephanie (sorry Blogger is being troublesome!):
Individual volumes. I have a rather small Manga collection though. I usually stick to what has been recommended based on my anime likes or if someone who knows me and Manga, suggests something they think I’ll collect, instead of read and gift to my niece for her turn at them. Like, “Parasyte” by Hitoshi Iwaaki, my favorite Manga to date. I’d never lend those out. Hikaru No Go and Gunslinger Girls are faves too. I do love Miyazaki’s anime, so that got my attention here. I’m pretty much a Manga noob. I work backwards from the anime to the Manga, it seems.
I have manga in every format, including the old American comic book style, but the individual volumes are still my favorite, with digital as the format I enjoy the least. I’ll always prefer curling up in bed with a stack of manga over reading it on anything digital.
I definitely have a soft spot for box sets and hardcovers, though those aren’t as common, so I don’t have as many of them. I also love volumes that have a slipcover or colored pages. The fancier, the better, I guess. I loved the colored pages in vol. 1 of the Spice and Wolf manga! =D
I first got into manga by reading Shonen Jump back when it was first released here, and then got more into shoujo with the release of Shojo Beat, so I was sad to see them go out of print. =(
Tweeted as @KenshinGirl
My reasons for the format I love most are few (and perhaps a bit silly), but strongly felt.
I prefer individual volumes of my favourite manga so that I have a choice of beautiful cover art to show off in my room, almost like an accessory to the overall design! Funny thing is, most of my manga volumes seem to blend with my room’s colour story perfectly, though unintentional.
However, I don’t just let the volumes sit around for looks… I find sitting down with an actual physical copy of a book so much more relaxing and easy on my eyes than viewing manga in digital formats.
Thank you for this opportunity!
Oh, and I also tweeted from: @knitetgantt
Posted on behalf of Tion:
as a collector, i prefer individual volumes or omnibuses above anything else. :))
there’s nothing like holding a book its more engaging imo
Personally, I prefer my manga in omnibus hardcover format. A hardcover lasts much longer and feels much better to hold and read, and omnibuses allow for getting series faster and cheaper too.
Link to tweet:
https://twitter.com/ahmedhamed88/status/265767092714889216
I prefer individual volumes.
Hey Ash… just showing off some blogger love… you don’t need to enter me into the contest, but I enjoy reading pdf digital copies of graphic novels.
I prefer reading in bulk in individual volume format. Paperback books. I’ve tried following the old Shonen Jump anthology, but I couldn’t get into it. I’ve also tried digital on JManga, and it just isn’t the same as having the book in your hands.
(Not sure if I am eligible to win, since I won a giveaway in the past, but I have to throw my name in the Nausicaa hat. Ignore this if I’m not eligible)