It is believed that cartoons are created mainly for children. However, in the Land of the Rising Sun, animation, namely anime, shot in manga, is popular not only among children, but also among adults.
Manga - as part of Japanese culture
Japanese comics, manga - this is part of the national Japanese culture. They are not limited to any genres and graphics (“big eyes”), but they are used to create characteristic bright animated works.
The most developed animation culture in the world is Japanese animation, which includes anime and, of course, manga.
What is manga, and what is the difference between it and anime? Few people ask this question, but it is essential and is embodied in the very nature of these two concepts. They are an integral part of Japanese culture. Manga is the original source, the progenitor of anime. In fact, without it, the anime would not exist , because only the most popular Japanese comics in the future will multiply and come to life. Therefore, it is right to say that manga is Japanese comics, and anime is already animation.
A brief excursion into the origin of “Stories in Pictures”
The manga previously bore the neat and understandable name of "Stories in Pictures." The first mention of hand-drawn stories, archaeologists found in the first centuries of the existence of Japan. Researchers found drawings structurally resembling modern comics in the tombs of ancient rulers, also called kofun mounds.
The proliferation of comics was hindered by the ambiguity and complexity of Japanese writing. Therefore, the manga in Japanese is read from right to left, and not from left to right, illustrated with many black and white drawings, graphic special effects and a minimum of text.
The first Japanese comic book is considered Choujuugiga ("Funny pictures from the life of animals"). They are dated to the 12th century and belong to the pen of a Buddhist priest and artist Toba (another name is What). Choujuugiga is made in the form of 4 paper scrolls. However, at the time of Kakuya, the work he created did not have a modern name.
Hokusai Katsushika gave the strange and funny pictures, characterized by grotesque images, a single name - manga.
What are manga and doujinshi?
Oddly enough, seemingly independent Japanese animation learned a lot from European cartoons and American comics. This merger occurred in the second half of the 19th century. And already at the beginning of the 20th century, Japanese comics found their own niche in Japanese culture. The manga was funded and encouraged by the government. However, comics that went against the interests of the state were prohibited. It was then that the first fantastic manga hero appeared - a giant robot that opposed the hated USA (1943).
The real coup occurred in the postwar years thanks to Tezuka Osamu. Manga was formed as the mainstream of Japanese mass culture and acquired features that are characteristic of it today: black and white illustrations on stripes, a color cover, rare pictures on pages, a standard expression of emotions with signs, strokes.
Those who draw and create manga are called "mangaks." However, in the Japanese market there is not only professional manga, but also amateur. It was with the "doujinshi" that many modern mangaki began.
What is interesting for manga readers?
What is manga? This is a synthesis of cartoon effects, comics, and exciting stories. These are unrealized dreams of cinemas about cheap, but beautiful and high-quality special effects that attract attention and force viewers to follow every step and action of the characters. This is the depth and variety of subjects.
Interesting, exciting events unfolding on the pages of the manga soon became a refuge for many genres completely unrealized in cinema: science fiction, mysticism and others.
Cinema techniques for less money are available to the manga: drawing action from different angles, large, medium plans, detailing, demonstrating the movement in stages, visualization.
It should also be noted the transfer of emotions characteristic of the manga heroes. It is massive, grotesque, but never superfluous. The Japanese themselves in life make poor use of the mimic transmission of feelings, they just say: "I am sad, fun." But manga and anime characters are the exact opposite of their creators. The transfer of emotions is concentrated and realized through poses, costumes, dances, words, through everything that surrounds the character.
Looking through the Japanese comics, you can find sparks escaping from the eyes, a whirlwind above your head. Such a designation is sometimes not completely understood by European readers, but readers from the Land of the Rising Sun are well aware of this “language." After all, the main patterns of character emotions were developed by O. Tezuka.
It is believed that the more the hero experiences, the more sketchy his image becomes, the more his appearance changes from realistic to grotesque. It is this transformation that attracts European fans: it gives the manga dynamism, lightness and expressiveness.
What is so unusual about the symbolic language of Japanese comics? Very often, specific designations, known even to a small Japanese, will be new to an unprepared reader, and therefore will be incomprehensible.
For example, the traditional manifestation of anger on the pages of the manga is a cross wrinkle on the forehead, and the blood flow from the hero’s nose is a sign of lust and lust, fainting is neither fear nor a manifestation of poor health, but a sign of surprise.
Based on this, before you start studying the manga stripes, you should first study its "conditional language", and by the way, it is no easier than Japanese characters.