Is it fair to compare animes with the manga?

xenocrisis0153

We all have our preferences. We all acknowledge that both animes and mangas each have their pros and cons. Even though they share a story and character cast, I believe that we need to recognize that the two media are different.

Why am I bringing this up? I just recently became hooked on the Ichigo 100% anime. I know both the anime and the manga have gotten a lot of attention. I stopped by the review section and saw that it had a whopping 68 reviews, but even though it's an incredible series (well, in my view), it only had three and a half stars. When I read most of the first 15 reviews, it seemed like a lot of people liked it, but "compared to the manga, it's garbage."

This sends the wrong message to anime-only fans. I'm not a manga person, I tend to stick to animes only. When I select an anime to start watching, I tend to check out the reviews first (don't worry, that's not my ONLY criteria), but when I see all this negativity toward the anime because the story isn't the same or a character wasn't how someone expected, it kinda fogs up the picture I get about that anime.

So the purpose of my thread... does anyone agree with me when I say that it's just plain not fair to shortchange a perfectly good anime series just because it did a few things different from the manga? I mean, no one wants a carbon-copy from paper to monitor. Are there any other example of this happeing that anyone can think of?
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Yuun · Posted: Sat Mar 25, 2006 12:42 pm Post subject:

Well Xeno... I'm pretty much an Anime fan and not particular into Mangas... and I well aware that: There're great mangas out there that has yet turned into anime. At the same time... there're anime out there which is better or worst than the manga version.

Personally... I seldom compare both media as I view it as 2 different thing. However I'm choosey you see... If I pick the manga, I'll stay away from the anime as well as otherwise.

Ichigo 100% sincerely... the anime sux... I never like the anime 1 bit, as for the manga well... I never able to finish it and was like 1/3 left to ends it but I just cant read it anymore. So I cant comment much about this title...

However there're some titles I wanted to point out:
For example Mahou Sensei Negima by Ken Akamatsu Sensei,
Anime:
The anime is surprisingly not bad and that it would have been better if they would have improve the character design. I mean... since when ASUNA got 2 different color eye? And what the heck with all the differences of the anime and the manga?

Manga:
The original Media. Great artwork, and story plot. Very addictive even to someone like me which is not really into manga. Beats the anime ver. flat...

So what is my conclusion? I got many complains for the anime ver. and that I have none for the manga ver. yet again... the anime ver. isn't at all bad. Though I would have wish it to extend much longer instead of just 26ep.

I learn 1 thing about a single title anime that exist in both media, it'll be complains instead of compliment when a comparison is made. I watch an anime for the fun of it, I read mangas for entertainment... why do i stress myself over the comparison and complains?? So to answer your question, Xeno... Yes, I do read other's reviews about certain anime before purchasing them or download it but you see... I'm a stubborn guy who believes in his own opinion more than others... so whether I like it or not... if the particular title ever caught my attention, be it as an Anime or Manga... I'll still give it a try!
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Tevesh · Posted: Sat Mar 25, 2006 1:54 pm Post subject:

They are completely different, and do not deserve to be compared, but people like comparisons because it makes things easier.

I don't compare the anime to manga, except by mentioning that there is a manga. For example, Beck and Berserk both end with nothing really solved or anything, so in my reviews, I will mention that the plot continues past the anime. In the case of the second season of Gantz, I had to mention that it was a complete perversion and useless, because it was.

For your anime, the manga and anime are completely different. The characters are the same, and maybe the premise, but it's different. That shouldn't be compared.

silverkitsune · Posted: Sun Mar 26, 2006 10:30 pm Post subject:

In Japan, manga is usually the more "mainstream" type of media as I understand.
Big reason is: Manga are available pretty much everywhere, convinient stores carry manga, people openly read them in trains or schools. It's a common sight to see a grown men read comic books in trains. They also have manga cafe where you buy drinks and read any manga of your choice from their manga library. Anime is sometimes hard to catch up on tv as you have to follow the tv schedule, and often certain anime airs after midnight. So if you read lot of manga, people wouldn't really think much about it, but if you watched lot of anime, people might label you as an otaku.

Japan is all about "on-the-go" type of life style. People are always so damn busy to sit in front of tv and watch anime. So that's where manga comes in, manga are usually very small sized to fit for holding with one hand, and pretty cheap. It's very "portable" unlike anime (though the new iPod video may have changed this). This might be why cellphones are such a neccessity in Japan, people are constantly moving around.

Recently, many mangaka's have started to publish their manga for viewing on cellphones. So you'd have to pay and download manga legally to read it on your cellphone.

BTW I don't live in Japan, the web is where I live. Wink

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Raiden · Posted: Tue Apr 04, 2006 2:34 pm Post subject:

Well...I guess in my opinion It's alright to compare both, even though their stories might/may change in some point.

And like Yuun said, the differences seen in Mahou Sensei Negima are quite a shock to me. There are more stories in the manga than the anime, and the manga has more events. The reason That I also like the anime versions of the manga stories is that I want to hear to hear if their voices will match their personalities. (esp. Yue and Kaede^^).

Love Hina wasn't bad at all in the anime but the last episode was kinda a cliffhanger and I cannot call it a real ending since the Manga version showed us the REAL ending to the Love Hina series.

The reason I like to read the manga and watch the anime is that I want to see the different points of events that happens in the series that the other didn't have. More like a in-depth explanation of what's really happening in their world.
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Keitarou · Posted: Wed Apr 05, 2006 7:50 am Post subject:

The one great thing up there in xeno's post is the issue of actually be-grudging something in comparison to something else. It IS ok to compare two works and to even state which one you prefered. However, if you're writing a review for the Ichigo 100% anime, there damn well better be an actual review for the Ichigo 100% anime in there. "Not as good as the manga" is not a review... it's a comparison only. Talk about the animation, the music, the storyline. You have to review the actual subject itself before you go comparing it to anything else.

However, xeno, you may not realize it, but you yourself are making that very same comparison. You've stated that you're an "anime-only fan"... so what you're saying is that you rate anime higher than manga. That's fine. There is nothing wrong with that. So the issue you're having isn't really a problem with comparing things, it's with what I stated in the previous paragraph and what comes after this paragraph.

(All things below this point are not an attack. All things below this point are pure human nature, and each and every one of us here does it. It is, however, important for us to understand what it is that we're doing.)

The issue that you're really having is that people disagree with you. You viewed the anime Ichigo 100% (and felt that it was good enough that you wanted to share it with others), but you won't ever read the manga because you feel that anime is better than manga overall... you have no interest in manga. When you then see countless people saying "yeah, it was ok, but compared to the manga...", you can't help but feel defensive over the fact that it's anime and you like anime, not manga, and that you enjoyed this anime, so it should be good, great, greatest, and you desperately want to share it with others.

I know that feeling... the feeling of wanting to shout from the hilltops how amazing something is just to find out that there are other people in the world that felt it was sub-par and might be scaring away even more people that haven't seen it yet. My favorite movie of all time is Dancer in the Dark, and I make everyone I know watch it. I'm lucky if 50% of the people I have watch it enjoy it as much as I do. For some time in my life I used to judge friends solely on whether or not they could enjoy it. If they didn't like it, then they weren't worthy of my time. At some point I realized, wow... I'm a dick. I expect my opinion to be the foremost expert on ENTERTAINMENT!? I still force people to watch the movie, however I no longer follow it up with "did you like it? did you like it? no? get out of my house!"

Opinion. It's a wonderful word. Everybody gets one. Nobody's is exactly the same.

Having said that, let me say that I really enjoyed the Ichigo 100% anime. I also enjoyed the manga. And what I would say is that it was as good as it could possibly be for a short adaptation of a rather complex writing work. They did a masterful job of condensing it into a season regulated anime. I can also understand, however, how fans of the original work maybe wanted something longer, perhaps a little more serious, and in much more detail.

So who's the winner in the argument? Nobody. That's what's awesome with opinions.
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xenocrisis0153 · Posted: Wed Apr 05, 2006 4:31 pm Post subject:

Bowser · Posted: Sat Jul 08, 2006 6:37 am Post subject:

Although I agree with the statement that both anime and manga are two different medias and should be judged for their own medium and credits.

But I truely do believe that it is fair to compare both of them. No I dont just mean compare a random anime to a manga, but rather a manga and anime that share the same title. Simply because they share the same title and usualy, the same story line (or roughly the same).

Its exactly the same thing as comparing a film to it's book counterpart (with the book usualy being the original). This is because the book came first and tends to have a cult following of its own, so the movie (which is based on the book) has to be able to live up to it and please the fans of the book, because in the end, the story being used isnt the original, the book's is.

So it's the same for anime, which is more often than not based on a manga of the same title. Anime has to live up to it's 'older sister's' reputation. This is not to say that it will fail if it deviates, even completly. for example, there are many out there whp prefer Fullmetal Alchemist anime to its manga counterpart, or My-HiME manga to its anime counterpart (which is the rare instant of the anime being the original), and as we know, they both change pretty much radicly (even completly in My-HiME) from the original.

So basicly, its about expectations from the fans, but don't let that ruin it for you. For example, everyone tells me Lord of the Rings books are much better than the movie, but I enjoy the films a lot better simply because I can see the action and the music, it's stupid, but we are all different that way, some prefer the manga medium to anime. Others prefer the different twists the story takes in an anime/movie than it does in the manga/book.

lol, Im sorry, I dont think I made much sence, I'm bad at explaining myself~(>U<)
Maybe I should'nt be here.

NeL · Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 10:50 am Post subject:

well, it's hard to just create an anime w/c has the exact same storyline, not to mention the time and money animators had to consider......because of that, like novels being turned to a movie, some scenes had to be cut to save time and money.

I just want to say that anime will not be like its manga counterpart.

mistabean · Posted: Tue Jul 11, 2006 4:22 pm Post subject:

I don't have any qualms with it. In fact, I might as well go over to lurk and leech off the manga there. The only thing that matters is that they started to bring in the manga spoilers in... Now that will just ruin my entertainment.

Although, I might being disappointed if the anime doesn't follow the manga. But it was nice all the same if they do it to bring out a character (one title escapes me...). But to completely change a story, now that's a different question altogether.
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basha54 · Posted: Thu Jul 13, 2006 4:12 pm Post subject:

i rather watch than look a still pics manga like comics and anime is a video
so i really depends on there own opinions
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xenocrisis0153 · Posted: Sat Jul 15, 2006 4:53 am Post subject:

chuckles · Heimin (Commoner) Joined: Mar 30, 2006 Posts: 50

at first i was more of a manga guy... for simple reasons.. i don't have to mulit-task my eyes(reading and watching the anime.. LOL) and it has more detail than anime.. (for example the ichigo 100%.. i was so disappointed by the anime because i read the manga and was expecting so much from it.. ) but there are some anime that i haven't read the manga.. but till i've seen mai hime.. the anime and manga is totaly diffrent ( from what i've read so far.. hehee.. ) so now it's a 50-50 if there's a manga read and if there's an anime watch.. hehe.e.

quosimos · Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2006 6:30 am Post subject:

I don't see why it would be unfair to compair the manga with the anime. The end product or, I should say, the experience is all that matters to the audience. If the anime doesn't develop certain themes and elements as well as the manga, or the manga isn't as exciting as the anime, or the other way round, where's the problem in saying so?

Fyorax · newbie! Joined: Jun 09, 2004 Posts: 2 Location: MV, USA

Both anime and manga have their own specialities. I read Elfen Lied and sometimes I don't get what happened. Then I watch Elfen Lied anime, and since I already watch it, it help me understand more of whats going on. The thing about anime is that we know when the ppl is going back to the past...its kind of hard to know which one is past talk or why they suddenly screams. But yah I guess both are interesting in their own ways ^^. I like them both ^^.