What distinguishes manga from comics and graphic novels generally, in your opinion, other than their generally Asian origin?
To my mind manga cannot be separated from their country and culture of origin. Everything about them, from the way creators tell stories to the symbols and gestures involved are created with a Japanese audience in mind. Those outside Japan can learn all of the sound effects and references, but most readers will not instinctively understand every joke or implied meaning simply because the story comes from an environment we didn’t grow up in. That being said, there are elements that make manga markedly different from the comics and graphic novel titles here (now on to the sweeping generalizations!). Manga tells stories with more images and more panels per page. The reader is expected to put together a lot more panels in a less traditional order than the transitions and layouts found in many mainstream Western comics. That doesn’t make it better than Western comics, just different, and something that readers new to manga have to learn. While stories are meant to be read quickly, during yo
