It’s that time again! The end of June is quickly approaching, which means the monthly giveaway at Experiments in Manga is now commencing. Summer has most definitely arrived in the Northern Hemisphere and it has been ridiculously hot in some places. One Japanese tradition is to tell ghost stories in the summer hoping that the chilling tales will help beat the heat. And so with that in mind, this giveaway will provide an opportunity to win the first volume of Seiju Natsumegu’s Ghost Diary and Chasiba Katase’s In/Spectre, published in English by Seven Seas and Kodansha Comics respectively. As usual, the giveaway is open worldwide!
Considering my well-established love of Japanese folklore and yokai it might just be wishful thinking, but recently there seems to have been a wave of manga in translation that incorporate traditional Japanese legends, ghosts, spirits, monsters, and so on. (I’m not at all complaining.) Whether they appear as main or supporting elements in a story, even just the promise that they’ll be included is usually enough for me to give a manga a try. Ghost Diary and In/Spectre, two of the more recent manga releases dealing with Japanese supernatural traditions, provide distinctly modern takes on Japanese folklore and mythologies. But while they do share some similarities, Natsumegu and Katase’s approaches are vastly different and the contrasts between the two series can be quite interesting.
So, you may be wondering, how can you a copy of the first volumes of Ghost Diary and In/Spectre?
1) In the comments below, tell me a little about one of your favorite manga about Japanese folklore, ghosts, or urban legends. (Don’t have a favorite? Simply mention that instead.)
2) If you’re on Twitter, you can earn a bonus entry by tweeting, or retweeting, about the contest. Make sure to include a link to this post and @PhoenixTerran (that’s me).
And there you have it! Everyone participating can earn up to two entries and has one week to submit comments. If needed or preferred, those comments can also be sent to me directly at phoenixterran(at)gmail(dot)com. They will then be publicly posted here in your name. The giveaway winner will be randomly selected and announced on July 5, 2017. Good fortune to you all!
VERY IMPORTANT: Include some way that I can contact you. This can be an e-mail address in the comment form, a 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: Summer Spookiness Winner
Oh there’s just so many good ones! Right now though, gonna go with Noragami, it’s just so good! But there’s also Demon Prince of Momochi House, Kamisama Kiss, Kitaro, Nightmare Inspector, Mob Psycho 100, Kekkaishi, Pet Shop of Horrors, and tons of Pokemon are based on Japanese myths and legends
My favorite manga about the Japanese folklore is the Nurarihyon no Mago. I like how this series introduces the characters and how they contribute to the character development of Rikuo and his friends.
Hoozuki no Reitetsu Hell is a bureaucracy, and business is running smoother than ever thanks to the demonic efficiency of Hoozuki, chief deputy to Lord Enma, the King of Hell. Whether offering counsel to the Momotarou of Japanese folklore or receiving diplomatic missions from the Judeo-Christian Hell, the demon who runs the show from behind the king’s imposing shadow is ready to beat down any challenges coming his way into a bloody pulp. Metaphorically, of course…
The poster boy for micromanagement and armed with negotiation skills worthy of Wall Street, Hoozuki no Reitetsu follows the sadistic and level-headed Hoozuki as he spends his days troubleshooting hell. With an abundance of familiar faces from popular Japanese legends and East Asian mythology working middle management positions, this referential and anachronistic dark comedy brings new meaning to the phrase “employer liability.” Just how hard could it be to manage employees from hell, anyway?
the anime is awesome too
I actually am not that familiar with any such manga, but would really like to get started on some!
“In the comments below, tell me a little about one of your favorite manga about Japanese folklore, ghosts, or urban legends.” How about “Uzumaki” by Junji Ito? I recently read that, and it was terrific!
I liked some of xxxholic’s earlier chapters with Japanese folklore!
I RTed your tweet via @kpossibles
Death Note. Hands down.
1. My favorite manga featuring Japanese folklore is Kamisama Kiss. I’m really enjoying it so far! I also like Kekkaishi and Natsume Yuujinchou a lot.
2. I tweeted about the giveaway as @Bamboopanda27
Thanks for the awesome giveaway! :)
Anyone remember Yokaiden? ;)
Although not published in English, my favorite stories in this genre are Fujiwara Kaoru’s Kindai Renai and Shiinai Takashi’s Ghost Sweeper Mikami (I actually helped sub the anime! *feels old*).
well, i have much favs but my choice going to be Jigoku Sensei Nubei, i liked this series which i remember watching the episode license that was aired on my local Television and reading the manga and my favs pairing is Nube and Yukime love interests.
I would say I have 2 favourite manga in these categories, one about japanese folklore the very popular Noragami, and one about urban legends, the infamous Durarara.
I retweeted your tweet about the contest @lShiinal.
Thank you for the giveaway!!!
There are a lot of names that come to my mind:
Noragami
Inari, Konkon, Koi Iroha
Kamisama Hajimemashita
etc.
However, I’ll go with Cocoa Fujiwara’s Inu x Boku SS.
It started kinda fluffy and I liked the atmosphere back then, and the 2nd half is just heartbreaking. However, that didn’t change my feelings about this one.
(It’s sad hearing about her death tho)
Retweeted:
@BloodyGaikotsu
It’s Natsume Yuujinchou (aka Natsume’s Book of Friends),of course.
(rt @busha69)
Normally I try not to pick anything that’s already been mentioned, but in this case it’s impossible for me to choose anything but Natsume’s Book of Friends. I was actually a huge fan of Midorikawa Yuki even before Natsume began serialization. Her previous work tended to be a bit strange, with characters who were difficult to read, but Natsume is nice and accessible without losing too much of that delicate atmosphere she’s so good at capturing.
My favorite manga with Japanese folklore would have to be Bleach (Shinigami) and Noragami (Japanese gods). Also, even though it’s not a manga, when I think of Japanese folklore, I can’t help but also think of the anime Ghost Stories (the English dub was hilarious and the only reason that it was any good) with is all about spirits of Japanese folklore.
My favourites is Kamisama Hajimemashita/Kamisama kiss and Natsume Yuujinchou / Natsume’s Book Of Friends. I love both of the series, I personally liked Kamisama Hajimemashita more. I liked the relationship between the two leads and the struggles they both had before they met each other. I also liked their standpoint from each other, how Nanami (Female lead) was a god and Tomoe (Male lead) was a Familiar to her.
Retweeted: @Sevolsyob
I love youkai manga so much! There are so many great ones, but my favorite has to be Natsume’s Book of Friends. It’s such a sweet series and the slow, gradual way the characters develop over time makes the reading experience so rewarding. I also love Midorikawa’s creepy-cute youkai designs😊💕
My favorite folklore manga is Natsume’s Book of Friends…I like the Yokai Watch anime but I haven’t read the manga.
Retweeted: @theanimeland1
One of my favourite folklore manga is Kamisama Hajimemashita. I really enjoy the plot and the development that happen in that series. I like Natsume Yuujincho too but sadly I havent read the manga since I only watch the anime series