Top Work Manga Recommendations

Chainsaw Man

Also known as Chainsaw Man.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Comedy , Drama , Horror , Supernatural

The name says it all! Denji's life of poverty is changed forever when he merges with his pet chainsaw dog, Pochita! Now he's living in the big city and an official Devil Hunter. But he's got a lot to learn about his new job and chainsaw powers!



Notes:
- Nominated for the 2020 Manga Taisho Award.
- Winner of the 2021 Kono Manga ga Sugoi Award.
- Winner of the 66th Shogakukan Manga Award in the shounen category.
- Winner of the 2021 and 2022 Harvey Award for Best Manga.
- Chapters 1-97 were released in Weekly Shounen Jump from Dec 3, 2018 to Dec 13, 2020. The series resumed from Ch. 98 in Shounen Jump+ on July 12, 2022

Tags: Demons , Tragedy , Urban Fantasy , Dissociative Identities , Gore , Male Protagonist , Body Horror , Cosmic Horror , Urban , Henshin , Female Protagonist , Survival , Psychosexual , Work , Monster Boy , Found Family , Cult , Heterosexual , Memory Manipulation , Shounen , Ensemble Cast , Guns , Assassins , Human Pet , Monster Girl , Revenge , Yandere , Terrorism , Shapeshifting , Philosophy , Meta , Slapstick , Afterlife , Primarily Teen Cast , Nudity , Necromancy , School , Delinquents , Cannibalism , Angels , Time Skip , Amnesia , Yakuza , Mafia , Tsundere , LGBTQ+ Themes , Zombie , Chimera , Motorcycles , Yuri

Oyasumi Punpun

Also known as Goodnight Punpun.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Psychological , Slice of Life

Meet Punpun Punyama. He’s an average kid in an average town.
He wants to win a Nobel Prize and save the world.
He wants the girl he has a crush on to like him back.
He wants to find some porn.
That’s what he wants, but what does he get…?



Tags: Coming of Age , Seinen , Tragedy , Philosophy , Denpa , Suicide , Psychosexual , Urban , Male Protagonist , Heterosexual , Time Skip , Anti-Hero , Fugitive , School , Surreal Comedy , Cult , Meta , Work , Nudity , Gods , Body Horror , Love Triangle , Ghost

SPY×FAMILY

Also known as SPY x FAMILY.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Comedy , Slice of Life , Supernatural

The master spy codenamed <Twilight> has spent his days on undercover missions, all for the dream of a better world. But one day, he receives a particularly difficult new order from command. For his mission, he must form a temporary family and start a new life?! A Spy/Action/Comedy about a one-of-a-kind family!



Notes:
- Includes 2 "Extra Missions" and 11 “Short Missions”.
- Nominated for the 24th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2020.
- Nominated for the 13th and 14th Manga Taisho Award in 2020 and 2021.
- Nominated for the 44th Kodansha Manga Award in the Shounen Category in 2020.

Tags: Family Life , Espionage , Found Family , Surreal Comedy , War , Assassins , Female Protagonist , Adoption , Male Protagonist , Work , School , Shounen , Politics , Heterosexual , Ensemble Cast , Super Power , Slapstick , Orphan , Marriage , Guns , Terrorism , Parody , Episodic , Foreign , Fake Relationship , Iyashikei , Satire , Urban , Parenthood , Anachronism , Historical , Tsundere , Hikikomori , Gore

[Oshi no Ko]

Also known as [Oshi no Ko].

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Supernatural

Gorou is a gynecologist and idol fan who’s in shock after his favorite star, Ai, announces an impromptu hiatus. Little does Gorou realize that he’s about to forge a bond with her that defies all common sense! Lies are an idol’s weapon!

Awards: - Nominated for the 14th and 15th Manga Taisho. - Winner of the 7th Next Manga Award in the print category. - Nominated for the 26th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize. - Nominated for the 67th Shogakukan Manga Award in general category. - Nominated for the 46th Kodansha Manga Award.

Tags: Revenge , Idol , Acting , Reincarnation , Tragedy , Female Protagonist , Male Protagonist , Seinen , Twins , Detective , Time Skip , Work , Age Gap , Otaku Culture , Love Triangle , Female Harem , Heterosexual , Anti-Hero , Suicide , Bullying , Educational , Urban Fantasy , Tsundere , Primarily Female Cast , Primarily Teen Cast , Urban , Pregnant , Filmmaking , VTuber , Cosplay , Denpa

Kanojo, Okarishimasu

Also known as Rent-A-Girlfriend.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Ecchi , Romance

In today’s Japan, “rental” services can deliver an afternoon with a “friend,” a “parent,” even a fake girlfriend! After a staggering betrayal by his girlfriend, hapless freshman Kazuya gets just desperate enough to give it a try. But he quickly discovers how complicated it can be to “rent” an emotional connection, and his new “girlfriend,” who’s trying to keep her side hustle secret, will panic when she finds out her real life and Kazuya’s are intertwined in surprising ways! Family, school, and life all start to go wrong, too… It’s sweet but naïve boy meets cute but ruthless girl in this 21st-century manga rom-com!



Tags: Male Protagonist , Love Triangle , Shounen , Primarily Female Cast , Prostitution , Gambling , Female Harem , Work , Tsundere , Heterosexual , Fake Relationship , Acting , Primarily Adult Cast , College , Coming of Age , Meta , School , Agriculture , Slapstick , Nudity , Filmmaking

Wotaku ni Koi wa Muzukashii

Also known as Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Romance , Slice of Life

Narumi Momose has had it rough: every boyfriend she’s had dumped her once they found out she was an otaku, so she’s gone to great lengths to hide it. When a chance meeting at her new job with childhood friend, fellow otaku, and now coworker Hirotaka Nifuji almost gets her secret outed at work, she comes up with a plan to make sure he never speaks up. But he comes up with a counter-proposal: why doesn’t she just date him instead? In love, there are no save points.



Notes:
- Includes 29 extra chapters.
- The English edition combines 2 Japanese volumes into one each (so e.g. the first two Japanese volumes are combined into 1 English volume).

Tags: Otaku Culture , Primarily Adult Cast , Office Lady , Video Games , Heterosexual , Work , Episodic , Josei , Female Protagonist , Male Protagonist , Meta , Iyashikei , Office , Ensemble Cast , Cosplay , Tsundere , Crossdressing , Chibi

Look Back

Also known as Look Back.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Slice of Life

Fujino is a fourth grader who draws a manga strip for the school newspaper. Her art makes her the star of the class, but one day she's told that Kyomoto, a student who refuses to come to school, would also like to submit a manga for the paper...



Note: The one-shot was compiled in a special volume, released on September 3, 2021.

Tags: Drawing , Tragedy , Female Protagonist , Hikikomori , Primarily Female Cast , Coming of Age , Work , School , Autobiographical , Meta , Shounen , Primarily Child Cast

ReLife

Also known as ReLIFE.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Psychological , Romance , Slice of Life

When the responsibilities of being an adult and the ugly side of corporate bullying betrays one's childhood dreams, many would wish to return to their innocent childhood to relive their life and make the right decisions. Dumbfounded by the offer presented to him, 27-year-old Arata Kaizaki hopes to turn his life around through a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Returning home from his part-time job, Arata is persuaded by Ryou Yoake, an employee of ReLife Research Institute, into participating in an experiment which will help him overcome his difficulties and re-enter corporate life. As part of the ReLife experiment, Arata's physique is reverted to that of a 17-year-old, and all he must do is relive his high school life for one year. Waiting for him at the end of the experiment is a job offer that he has been struggling to get ever since he left his first company.

With few other options, he decides to go along with this plan. However, with adult-like tendencies and many years since his last formal education, Arata steps into an unexpectedly challenging territory—a normal day of high school.



Note: Includes 16 extra chapters

Tags: Age Regression , Memory Manipulation , Shapeshifting , School , Full Color , Rehabilitation , Amnesia , Ensemble Cast , Coming of Age , Seinen , Kuudere , Male Protagonist , Work , Heterosexual , Tragedy , Time Skip , Age Gap , Love Triangle , Volleyball , Suicide

GTO

Also known as GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Drama , Ecchi

Former juvenile delinquent Onizuka finds himself thrust into to role of high school teacher, facing students who behave just as he used to and an administration that doesn't trust him. Using the brash an unorthodox methods he picked up in his youth, Onizuka manages to reach through to his kids and help them with their problems.



Notes:
- Won the 22nd Kodansha Manga Award for Best Shounen Manga.
- The chapter count includes the 7 chapters extra GTO: Great Toroko Oppai♡ (Tomoko's Big Adventures) published in volumes 11 and 12, and one extra published in volume 25.

Tags: Teacher , School , Ensemble Cast , Coming of Age , Work , Male Protagonist , Terrorism , Bullying , Tragedy , Rehabilitation , Delinquents , Nudity , Gangs , Shounen , Age Gap , Family Life , Motorcycles , Dragons , Crime , Revenge , Heterosexual , Yakuza , Detective , Acting , Guns , Police , Espionage , Drugs , Slapstick , Primarily Teen Cast

Bungou Stray Dogs

Also known as Bungo Stray Dogs.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Drama , Mystery , Supernatural

Having been kicked out of the orphanage, a despairing young man by the name of Atsushi Nakajima rescues a strange man from a suicide attempt--Osamu Dazai. Turns out that Dazai is part of an armed-detective agency staffed by individuals whose supernatural powers take on a literary bent!



Tags: Urban Fantasy , Detective , Super Power , Mafia , Crime , Male Protagonist , Classic Literature , Fugitive , Seinen , Primarily Male Cast , Tragedy , Work , Ensemble Cast , Primarily Adult Cast , Orphan , Anti-Hero , Philosophy , Terrorism , Conspiracy , Gore , Assassins , Suicide , Vampire , Monster Boy , Police , Guns , Swordplay , Torture , Circus , Sadism , Time Manipulation , Tsundere , Shapeshifting , Found Family

Bakuman.

Also known as Bakuman。.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Romance , Slice of Life

Average student Moritaka Mashiro enjoys drawing for fun. When his classmate and aspiring writer Akito Takagi discovers his talent, he begs Moritaka to team up with him as a manga-creating duo. But what exactly does it take to make it in the manga-publishing world?



Tags: Drawing , Work , Meta , Writing , Educational , Shounen , Coming of Age , Male Protagonist , Heterosexual , Otaku Culture , Tomboy , School , Tragedy

Kusuriya no Hitorigoto

Also known as The Apothecary Diaries.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama , Mystery

Maomao, a young woman trained in the art of herbal medicine, is forced to work as a lowly servant in the inner palace. Though she yearns for life outside its perfumed halls, she isn’t long for a life of drudgery! Using her wits to break a “curse” afflicting the imperial heirs, Maomao attracts the attentions of the handsome eunuch Jinshi and is promoted to attendant food taster. But Jinshi has other plans for the erstwhile apothecary, and soon Maomao is back to brewing potions and…solving mysteries?!



Note: Won the Grand Prize in the Printed Manga category at the Tsugi ni Kuru Manga Award 2019.

Tags: Female Protagonist , Medicine , Detective , Historical , Foreign , Ancient China , Primarily Female Cast , Seinen , Drugs , Tragedy , Royal Affairs , Politics , Work , Crime , Maids , Adoption , Asexual , Heterosexual , Episodic , Conspiracy , Suicide , Chibi , Ojou-sama

Kaichou wa Maid-sama!

Also known as Maid-sama!.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Romance

The class president has a little secret she's keeping from everyone in her high school... As President of the Student Council, the overachieving feminist Misaki really socks it to the guys in an attempt to make the former all-boys' school attract a more female student body. But what will she do when the most awesome boy in class finds out Misaki's part-time job is in a maid café?! It's love at first fight in this shojo romantic comedy—with a whole new look at the battle between the genres!



Included one-shots:
Volume 1: Toumei na Sekai (A Transparent World)
Volume 4: Tsuide ni 3 Baka mo Maid-sama! (And While We're at It, the Idiot Trio as Maids!)
Volume 4: Soshite Momotaro mo Maid-sama (Peach Boy Is a Maid Too!)
Volume 6: Aoi Haru (Blue Spring)
Volume 6: Fukukaichou wa Ouji-sama!? (The Vice-President Is a Prince?!)
Volume 7: Aoi to to Yukai na Nakama-tachi (Aoi with Fun Friends)
Volume 8: Baka to Furyou to Hero to (An Idiot, a Delinquent and a Hero)
Volume 8: Toaru Asa no Seitokaishitsu (A Particular Morning in the Student Council Office)
Volume 11: Kaichou wa Shisuji-sama! (The President Is a Butler!)
Volume 11: Konnichiwa Imouto desu (Hello, I'm the Little Sister)
Volume 12: Sentimental Ikkun (Sentimental Ikkun)
Volume 13: Maid Latte Hikaeshitsu (Maid Latte Back Room)
Volume 15: Baka to Furyou to Madonna to (An Idiot, a Delinquent and a Madonna)
Volume 17: Comics Kakioroshi Short Story (Exclusive Short Comic)


Tags: Shoujo , Female Protagonist , Heterosexual , Tsundere , School , Primarily Teen Cast , Maids , Tomboy , Work , Crossdressing , Butler , Male Harem , Love Triangle , Bar , Restaurant

Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou

Also known as Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou.

Status: Finished
Genres: Sci-Fi , Slice of Life

Set hundreds of years in the future after an environmental catastrophe, Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou (also known as Yokohama Shopping Log) centers on the simple life of Alpha, an android who runs a small coffee shop in coastal Japan. Alpha stands witness to chronicle the end of humanity’s days with coffee, a slice of watermelon, and the sound of her moon guitar backed by distant seagulls. Quiet and bittersweet, this tale is about the melancholy beauty that can be found even as the end approaches.



Tags: Iyashikei , Post-Apocalyptic , Female Protagonist , Coming of Age , Philosophy , Rural , Robots , Time Skip , Lost Civilization , Coastal , Artificial Intelligence , Seinen , Episodic , Work , Mopeds , Yuri , Travel , Restaurant , Family Life , LGBTQ+ Themes , Motorcycles , Nudity

Bokutachi wa Benkyou ga Dekinai

Also known as We Never Learn.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Ecchi , Romance , Slice of Life

Nariyuki Yuiga is in his last and most painful year of high school. In order to gain the “special VIP recommendation” which would grant him a full scholarship to college, he must now tutor his classmates as they struggle to prepare for entrance exams. Among his pupils are “the sleeping beauty of the literary forest,” Fumino Furuhashi, and "the Thumbelina supercomputer," Rizu Ogata–two of the most beautiful super-geniuses at the school! While these two were thought to be academically flawless, it turns out that they’re completely clueless outside of their pet subjects…!?



Tags: School , Teacher , Female Harem , Male Protagonist , Tomboy , Heterosexual , Primarily Female Cast , Age Gap , Coming of Age , Time Skip , Shounen , Cute Girls Doing Cute Things , Primarily Teen Cast , Tanned Skin , Kuudere , MILF , Twins , Marriage , Ghost , Maids , Work

Ki ni Natteru Hito ga Otoko Janakatta

Also known as The Guy She Was Interested In Wasn't a Guy at All.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Music , Romance

Fashionable and upbeat high schooler Aya falls head over heels for an employee at a local CD shop. He's got an air of mystery about him, great style, and an impeccable music taste. Little does she know—this supposedly male employee is actually her female classmate Mitsuki! Mitsuki generally keeps to herself, but since her seat is right next to Aya's, she can't help but be extremely aware of the other's crush. Revealing the truth is out of the question for Mitsuki—but perhaps getting closer to Aya wouldn't be so bad...



Tags: Female Protagonist , Yuri , LGBTQ+ Themes , Tomboy , Josei , Rock Music , Gyaru , Primarily Female Cast , Primarily Teen Cast , Work , School , Iyashikei , Fashion

citrus

Also known as Citrus.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Romance

Yuzuko Aihara, a high school girl whose main interests are fashion, friends and having fun, is about to get a reality check. Due to her mom’s remarriage, Yuzu has transferred to a new, all-girls school that is extremely strict. Her real education is about to begin.

From Day One, happy-go-lucky Yuzu makes enemies, namely the beautiful yet stern Student Council President Mei. So what happens when a dejected Yuzu returns home and discovers the shock of her life: that Mei is actually her new step-sister who has come to live with her? Even more surprising, when Mei catches Yuzu off-guard and kisses her out of the blue, what does it all mean?



Note: Includes 9 bonus chapters.

Tags: Yuri , Female Protagonist , Inseki , Primarily Female Cast , School , Family Life , Gyaru , Work , Time Skip , LGBTQ+ Themes , Love Triangle

Innocent

Also known as Innocent.

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Psychological

In the 18th century, seeking "freedom and equality," the event that gave birth to modern French society, the French Revolution, began. There was one protagonist that lived within the darkness, Charles-Henri Sanson. He was the fourth-generation head of the Sanson family, and the executioner of Paris. This is the story of a man nobly facing his harsh fate...



Note: Innocent was nominated for the 18th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize "Reader Award" in 2014 and for the 8th Manga Taishou Award in 2015.

Tags: Historical , Seinen , Coming of Age , Gore , Tragedy , Politics , Foreign , Male Protagonist , Bisexual , Female Protagonist , Nudity , Work , Time Skip , Primarily Adult Cast , Ensemble Cast , LGBTQ+ Themes , Swordplay , Crossdressing ,

BECK

Also known as BECK.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Music , Romance , Slice of Life

For the first 14 years of his life, Yukio Tanaka has been one heck of a boring guy. He has no hobbies, a weak taste in music, and only a small vestige of a personality. He yearns for an exciting life, but his shy, and somewhat neurotic personality make him his own worst enemy. Little does he know that his life will be forever changed when he meets Ryusuke Minami, a wild and unpredictable 16 year-old fresh from America, who happens to be in a rock-and-roll band named after his Frankenstein-like patched dog—Beck.



Tags: Band , Coming of Age , Male Protagonist , Rock Music , Primarily Male Cast , Shounen , Foreign , Heterosexual , Female Protagonist , Crime , Love Triangle , Bullying , Work , School , Mafia , Swimming , Guns , Martial Arts

Zom 100: Zombie ni Naru Made ni Shitai 100 no Koto

Also known as Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Comedy , Horror

Surviving a zombie apocalypse beats being a wage slave any day! After spending years slaving away for a soul-crushing company, Akira's life has lost its luster. He lives in a trash-filled apartment, his pay is abysmal, and he can't even muster up the nerve to confess his love to his beautiful co-worker. But when a zombie apocalypse ravages his town, it gives him the push he needs to live for himself. Now Akira's on a mission to complete all 100 items on his bucket list before he...well, kicks the bucket.



Note: Volume 1 contains a bonus chapter titled "Sakura Mochi Of The Dead" Note: Volume 4 contains a bonus chapter titled "Show Club of the Dead"

Tags: Zombie , Primarily Adult Cast , Post-Apocalyptic , Pandemic , Male Protagonist , Surreal Comedy , Slapstick , Seinen , Survival , Work , Heterosexual , Gore , Motorcycles , Body Horror , Ensemble Cast , Philosophy , Nudity , Space