Shin Angyo Onshi
Blade of the Phantom Master

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There are manga that are so amazingly well done that they set the bar a tad too high for any anime adaptation. But then there are attempts to bring them to the screen that go beyond that and don't stop at failing to meet expectations: they're outright lazy, shoddy, phoned-in cash grabs that drain the source material of what made it so good to begin with.

If you seek to have a good time, you must, at all costs, read these manga as they are and avoid any adaptations like plague. Do yourself a favor.

The list includes titles that have received pointless fragmentary adaptations in form of short OVAs and the like that fail to represent the original in any meaningful form.

The list doesn't include bad adaptations of manga that isn't great enough to warrant a recommendation to begin with.

More entries will be added in the future. Existing entries are subject to revision.

See also the opposite of this list: Manga adaptations made with love and care: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/2345.

Note: One-Punch Man is a special case as it's present on both this list and the one linked above. This is because its first season is an improvement on the manga experience but the second, produced by a different team, is a horrible mess. For Berserk, the old (1997) adaptation is decent, albeit still inferior to the manga, but all the newer ones range from merely subpar to atrocious garbage.

This list constitutes my personal views and stances. If something isn't on it, it likely means I haven't read the original or am not familiar enough with its adaptation(s) to have a qualified opinion. Feel free to shoot me suggestions via DMs, but make sure you have a convincing argument if it's not something that's already on my main manga/anime list. I don't promise it'll end up here, but I will consider all suggestions.

YLAB is a South Korean production company which has produced numerous manhwa and manga series. The Super String Universe is their flagship shared universe which multiple of their series are set in.

Blue String is their second shared universe, centering on youth action stories which are set in neighbouring cities in the Gyeonggi province. There's also a Red String universe, focused on romance stories.

The order follows YLAB's official website timeline (which is apparently a bit out of date).

Info:
http://ylab-en.com/bbs/board.php?bo_table=02_01_eng#0
https://namu.wiki/w/와이랩%20유니버스
https://www.mangaupdates.com/publisher/k9n5cml/ylab
https://www.reddit.com/r/DistantSky/comments/9p7ijq/super_string_theory_ylab/
https://superstringuniverse.fandom.com/wiki/Super_String_Timeline

Suggested reading orders (aside from release date or chronologically):
https://superstringuniverse.fandom.com/wiki/User_blog:Solideodoxa/Reading_Order_Suggestion
https://www.reddit.com/r/DistantSky/comments/kt250y/super_string_theory_ylab/

After finishing Blade of the Immortal I read an interview of the mangaka, Hiroaki Samura. He talked about how Manji and Rin’s relationship works. They are a team. Too much age gap to be “partners”. Or is there? That thought adds a dynamic to the story.
I don’t know how much that is true, but since then I’ve kept my eyes open about more such series.

Primarily compiled from my own list so I'm sure there's plenty I'm missing! Feel free to send me more :)

2nd stack for WEBTOON's app-only locked series. Sorted by recency. Multiple Western series have been added as Daily Pass Originals since 2024 as well.

Part 1: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/6951
Part 3: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/56724
Ongoing: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/7255

Manga made by non-Japanese creators, excluding those who have migrated to the manga industry (like Boichi and Im Dal Young).

Mangas that have a sword and sorcery, sword-and-sandal, medieval/fantastical middle ages like setting

What the title says.

Mostly obscure manga that are probably worth checking out. (condensed PTR of sorts)

Relatively obscure manga that will most people expand their taste.

Have you ever been reading a story only to randomly encounter a piece of information that you immediately must look up or write down? That's what a side quest's all about.

One of my favorite things about manga is encountering real-world pieces of information, even better when it's the main theme of the story, as with some of these.

These are some stories I've compiled that lead you down internet rabbit holes, teach new facts and introduce numerous references to, as well as information on different skills and topics, including myths, cooking, gaming and so on.
Enjoy!!

It is important to highlight that art is not limited to just creating beautiful illustrations. Visual impact, visual identity, layout, comic book formatting, media format utilization, visual exploration, semantic value in art, design, visual symbolism, etc., also contribute to creating beautiful art.

No particular order.

By "Sola Scriptura of manga", I’m not referring to the best mangas of all, but rather to mangas that had an impact and relevance (not necessarily the most popular) on the industry, serving as milestones and references regardless of whether they are good or bad.

"Sola Scriptura" is a reference to the medieval reformist movements that accepted only the Bible as the absolute Christian authority, rejecting any external authority.

By analogy, I’m referring to mangas that are the references and "authorities" within the cultural and market context of the manga industry.

Not everything here is necessarily referring to the manga exactly. For example, we have Gundam, which originated as an anime, but I included the manga on the list just for representation.

No particular order.

Some of the coolest looking manga cover art I could find.
Volume II: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/62048

This stack groups together works that, through a martial arts background, extend the tradition of the martial arts novel (wuxia), the heroic historical chronicle or the epic shōnen with a classical Chinese/Japanese cultural substratum. They combine legend, codified fighting style and the transmission of techniques.