It was summer about five years ago; I had just finished seventh grade and was looking forward to my last year of middle school. I was attending an arts summer program at my school. During a snack break, my best friend and I huddled together to talk about things seventh graders talk about; books, cartoons, art, etc. Suddenly, she gasped. She asked me in a very urgent and excited manner, “have you watched Princess Jellyfish?” Confused, I answered, “no… what is that?” She then proceeded to explain the very intricate plot of this short story with a jellyfish-loving heroine in its center. It was a romance anime consisting of eleven episodes and was available on YouTube. At this point, I was already very familiar with anime. It was introduced to me by my social studies teacher, Mr. Brunelli, who had lived a couple of years in Japan and was very immersed in the language and culture. To share his love for Japanese culture and media, he started a club during our lunch period to watch anime with both anime fans and those who were completely clueless about what it was. They are Japanese cartoons, to put it in the simplest of terms. 

When our teacher invited us to the club, I had no idea what Anime was. As I spent more time in the club, I became more and more infatuated with this new type of media. I started with the most popular shows, mostly action, and worked my way down to lesser-known ones. Then, thanks to my best friend and Princess Jellyfish, I discovered the new realm of romance anime. Since I was new to the romance genre, I had a hard time adapting to the slower pace and mature themes that opposed action, which was faster thanks to fights and mainly comedy. Princess Jellyfish is a romance anime about the adventures of a girl completely obsessed with jellyfish, who is learning the ways of the city and must learn how to deal with the opposite sex. After getting hooked on the story, it only took me a whopping two days to finish. I loved it so much that I re-watched it right after finishing it. However, after watching it for a second time, I was left with many questions. Did Tsukimi fulfill her dream of becoming an illustrator? Does she end up with the playful, fashionable, cross-dressing Kuranosuke? Or with his brother, the mature, awkward, and sexually frustrated Koibuchi?There had to be more to the story than this despicable cliffhanger, and I was determined to find that out. 

After a couple of simple google searches, I found out that the anime stems from a manga (Japanese comic) by the same name and was available in English on many manga websites. I went with the first one that popped up called “Mangakakalot”. It took me a minute to start reading because I was too busy laughing at the name. I started from chapter one to not miss any details. It was as if a completely new world opened for me. The art style was completely different from the anime, it was black and white and had a completely different feel. There were things in the manga that had been glossed over in the anime, like new characters and challenges our heroine faces. I could not take my eyes off the screen at all. The manga had about eighty-four chapters, and neglecting my schoolwork and responsibilities, I finished it in what felt like a day, but it was really a week. It was a rollercoaster of emotions. Frustration because of the easily solvable miscommunication. Sadness due to the characters’ backstories. Happiness whenever the heroine succeeded. Cringe whenever something embarrassing happened (which it often did). Shock when the newest character kissed the heroine. And finally, relief and satisfaction when our main character, Tsukimi, fulfilled her new dream of becoming a fashion designer and ended up with the guy we were all rooting for, Kuranosuke. 

After that cute and satisfying ending, I felt empty inside. What now? Something I had been pouring myself into for the past week had ended just like that. So, what should I do next? And that’s when it struck me. All the anime I have watched so far must come from manga as well, so why not read those too? And thus began my manga journey which has not stopped since. Now, rather than just reading them on websites that give my computer and phone viruses, I buy physical manga volumes at Japanese bookstores like Kinokuniya, located right in front of Bryant Park. Also, rather than just sticking to action, I read many different genres, from mystery to mature romance to lighthearted comedies. I have even begun to branch out to Korean and Chinese comics that have their own charm to them as well. Even more so, I began to explore more of the Japanese culture like their music, food, customs, and even a bit of their language. 

As I interact with others that read manga, I notice this subgroup divides itself unconsciously. Action attracts more of a male audience, while romance more of a female audience. After all, many series under these genres were targeted to those audiences in specific. With that in mind, I started to ask myself questions regarding those targeted demographics, mainly women and young girls. How does romance manga impact young girls and women? Has it changed over time or stayed the same? Do young girl readers grow out of manga, or is it something that stays with them well into adulthood? Many questions come to mind as I think about the anime and manga community. Anime and manga have become a big part of many people’s lives around the world, and I am happy to be included in such a diverse group.

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