What do you think?
Rate this book
Cipher #1
Cipher, Volume 1
When Siva and Cipher, identical twin brothers, trade off attending school and acting auditions, they encounter many mishaps and must learn the value of having their own identities.
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1985
2 people are currently reading
160 people want to read
About the author
Minako Narita
68 books24 followersAssociated names : Minako Narita
Name (in native language) : 成田美名子
Zodiac : Pisces
Blood type : AB
Born in Aomori in 1960. Debuted in 1977 with “Invitation to a Star” in the girls' manga magazine “Hana to Yume”. Her best-known works are “Alien Street” and “Cipher.” Debuting in December of 1984, Cipher was a true oddity among shojo manga in general. While manga certainly could take place in the United States, Cipher was definitely drawn and written by someone who absolutely loved the country, especially what was going on there during the 80's. In fact, when Jason Thompson covered it in his House of 1000 Manga article, he outright called Cipher "The Most '80s Manga Ever."[1][2]
[1]http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/house...
[2]http://landofobscusion.blogspot.it/20...
Acclaimed for her precise and intricate drawings and “watermark,” a collection of her pictures. Her works deal mostly with human relationships, life, ideals, friendship, etc. Currently, her “Hana Yori mo Hana no Gotoku,” a manga series featuring a young Noh performer, runs in the bimonthly magazine “Melody”.
She is regarded as one of the most important manga authors of 80's and 90's.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
May 28, 2016
This series discusses the emotional trauma that occurs between two brothers, when life finally gets too far, and they need to begin healing their broken character. This story focuses almost entirely on the development of the Cipher & Siva characters and their relationship with each other and the people that matter to them. The story has a strong progression which neither gets tired or tiresome, and it resolves itself in a very satisfying way. This can't be said for most manga series.
One unique thing about this series is that it is originally set in America (primarily New York), starring Americans! Almost invariably the setting is Japan, and sometimes Korea, with the occasional school trip to the USA and Canada. And when Americans are represented in manga they generally appear as a vehicle for comedy. This is a very kind (and generally non-stereotypical) portrayal and I think it must attest to the author's own interest and love of the country!
The only negative I have to say about it, does not in fact relate to the story or composition, but to the actual mechanics of the translation. And that is, the text in the first volume attempts to fill the Japanese shaped speech bubbles too closely. With Japanese text, it is often read and written vertically top to bottom and left to right -- which is the same pattern that you use to read each frame in the manga. While English text is read and written horizontally from right to left. In this translation, the translator (or someone) decided to try to conform the English text to the Japanese bubbles by writing it vertically (one letter above the other) and written from right to left. However, when attempting to read each panel in correct order, one automatically assumes the correct reading order to be left to right which would create greater continuity -- so almost every bubble I read in the wrong direction. It was an obvious over site by the editor and was corrected for the second volume, but it still causes me a lot of headaches -- as I read this series several times a year.
This is one of my top 10 favourite manga! Highly highly recommended.
One unique thing about this series is that it is originally set in America (primarily New York), starring Americans! Almost invariably the setting is Japan, and sometimes Korea, with the occasional school trip to the USA and Canada. And when Americans are represented in manga they generally appear as a vehicle for comedy. This is a very kind (and generally non-stereotypical) portrayal and I think it must attest to the author's own interest and love of the country!
The only negative I have to say about it, does not in fact relate to the story or composition, but to the actual mechanics of the translation. And that is, the text in the first volume attempts to fill the Japanese shaped speech bubbles too closely. With Japanese text, it is often read and written vertically top to bottom and left to right -- which is the same pattern that you use to read each frame in the manga. While English text is read and written horizontally from right to left. In this translation, the translator (or someone) decided to try to conform the English text to the Japanese bubbles by writing it vertically (one letter above the other) and written from right to left. However, when attempting to read each panel in correct order, one automatically assumes the correct reading order to be left to right which would create greater continuity -- so almost every bubble I read in the wrong direction. It was an obvious over site by the editor and was corrected for the second volume, but it still causes me a lot of headaches -- as I read this series several times a year.
This is one of my top 10 favourite manga! Highly highly recommended.
July 6, 2022
I’ve been dropped into some weird 80’s romcom.
July 25, 2012
komen :
bagi yg ngefans karya narita-san dan sudah membaca Alexandrite, pasti suka dg cerita ini.
sekali lagi temanya lebih condong ke relationship boyish (apa istilahnya ini, belum nemu) dibumbui sedikit romance. dan karyanya kali ini lebih gelap daripada Alexandrite.
jadi, bagi yg udah baca Alexandrite, pasti kenal dg Jake, sobat Alex.baru ngeh, ternyata Jake punya sodara kembar, Roy yg muncul juga di Alexandrite. cerita Chiper ini berpusat pd Jake dan Roy.
Jake dan Roy remaja, tinggal bersama secara mandiri, maksudnya hidup dari duit sendiri tanpa backingan dari orangtua. ada alasan kenapa mereka memilih tinggal sendiri termasuk tindakan mereka gonta-ganti identitas.
identitas di sini maksudnya ketika di sekolah (walaupun bisa menghasilkan duit, tetap ga lupa sekolah), hanya ada satu orang yang teman-teman kenal, yaitu "siva". jake dan roy gantian sekolah dg identitas "siva" ini. jadi teman2nya pada ga tau bahwa "siva" ini sebenarnya bukan orang yang sama.
rahasia ini mereka jaga sebaik-baiknya sampai kehadiran Anise muncul.
Anise ini termasuk cewek polos. dia berkeinginan berteman dg siva. siva menolak secara halus. tapi dg suatu kejadian, identitas siva terbongkar, maka mau ga mau, jake dan roy menerima kehadiran anise.
orang bilang, hubungan sosial ga akan bisa lepas dari kehidupan. ini terjadi dg jake-roy, lambat laun mereka membutuhkan sosok orang ketiga seperti anise ini. dan ujung-ujungnya, roy, si kembar yang paling bandel ini jatuh hati dg anise.anise pun punya perasaan sama. gayung bersambut, mereka berdua pacaran, tanpa tau hubungan ini akan membawa perubahan besar bagi jake dan roy.
komen karakter :
Jake
kalo roy bandel, istilahnya punya dark side, jake lbh dominan malaikatnya. pinter, selalu tenang, bertanggung jawab, tipe yg akan selalu dipercaya orang. setelah roy punya anise, jake bisa dibilang hilang arah. dia takut kalo roy ga akan butuhin dia lagi, dan takut akan jadi identitas yg kosong. untungnya, dia ketemu sosok lawan jenis yg menarik perhatiannya. tapi rasa ketergantungannya pada roy menuntut jake menghadapi pilihan pahit
Roy
lebih aktif dan suka tantangan juga lebih emosional. stlh punya anise, rasa sayangnya tetap lebih besar pd Jake. dan lebih egois, karena itu lah, jake harus menerima dampak keegoisan roy pd suatu kejadian yg merubah pandangan hidup mereka berdua. didasari penyesalan mendalam dan sadar bhw selama ini dirinya sudah banyak membuat repot Jake, Roy meninggalkan jake dan hidup terpisah dengannya.
well, hubungan yg dialami Jake dan roy mungkin sering terjadi pada anak kembar. dimana biasanya mereka diidentikkan satu paket, tanpa banyak yg menyadari bahwa tiap anak memiliki identitas yg berbeda.aku suka dg karyanya narita-san ini, mampu menghadirkan cerita ttg saudar kembar dg kerumitan hubungan mereka plus dilatarbelakangi dg kehidupan barat. ga banyak pengarang komik yg bisa membuat cerita "dunia barat" ini tanpa lepas jg dari sentuhan timur.plus jadi tau deh gmn Alex ketemu jake. pantesan pas pertama baca alexandrite, agak bingung dg ceritanya tanpa memperkenalkan tokoh-tokohnya. untung nemu cerita chiper ini mangascan.
--ditulis pada bulan puasa, yg moodnya lbh banyak condong ke komik drpd novel--
bagi yg ngefans karya narita-san dan sudah membaca Alexandrite, pasti suka dg cerita ini.
sekali lagi temanya lebih condong ke relationship boyish (apa istilahnya ini, belum nemu) dibumbui sedikit romance. dan karyanya kali ini lebih gelap daripada Alexandrite.
jadi, bagi yg udah baca Alexandrite, pasti kenal dg Jake, sobat Alex.baru ngeh, ternyata Jake punya sodara kembar, Roy yg muncul juga di Alexandrite. cerita Chiper ini berpusat pd Jake dan Roy.
Jake dan Roy remaja, tinggal bersama secara mandiri, maksudnya hidup dari duit sendiri tanpa backingan dari orangtua. ada alasan kenapa mereka memilih tinggal sendiri termasuk tindakan mereka gonta-ganti identitas.
identitas di sini maksudnya ketika di sekolah (walaupun bisa menghasilkan duit, tetap ga lupa sekolah), hanya ada satu orang yang teman-teman kenal, yaitu "siva". jake dan roy gantian sekolah dg identitas "siva" ini. jadi teman2nya pada ga tau bahwa "siva" ini sebenarnya bukan orang yang sama.
rahasia ini mereka jaga sebaik-baiknya sampai kehadiran Anise muncul.
Anise ini termasuk cewek polos. dia berkeinginan berteman dg siva. siva menolak secara halus. tapi dg suatu kejadian, identitas siva terbongkar, maka mau ga mau, jake dan roy menerima kehadiran anise.
orang bilang, hubungan sosial ga akan bisa lepas dari kehidupan. ini terjadi dg jake-roy, lambat laun mereka membutuhkan sosok orang ketiga seperti anise ini. dan ujung-ujungnya, roy, si kembar yang paling bandel ini jatuh hati dg anise.anise pun punya perasaan sama. gayung bersambut, mereka berdua pacaran, tanpa tau hubungan ini akan membawa perubahan besar bagi jake dan roy.
komen karakter :
Jake
kalo roy bandel, istilahnya punya dark side, jake lbh dominan malaikatnya. pinter, selalu tenang, bertanggung jawab, tipe yg akan selalu dipercaya orang. setelah roy punya anise, jake bisa dibilang hilang arah. dia takut kalo roy ga akan butuhin dia lagi, dan takut akan jadi identitas yg kosong. untungnya, dia ketemu sosok lawan jenis yg menarik perhatiannya. tapi rasa ketergantungannya pada roy menuntut jake menghadapi pilihan pahit
Roy
lebih aktif dan suka tantangan juga lebih emosional. stlh punya anise, rasa sayangnya tetap lebih besar pd Jake. dan lebih egois, karena itu lah, jake harus menerima dampak keegoisan roy pd suatu kejadian yg merubah pandangan hidup mereka berdua. didasari penyesalan mendalam dan sadar bhw selama ini dirinya sudah banyak membuat repot Jake, Roy meninggalkan jake dan hidup terpisah dengannya.
well, hubungan yg dialami Jake dan roy mungkin sering terjadi pada anak kembar. dimana biasanya mereka diidentikkan satu paket, tanpa banyak yg menyadari bahwa tiap anak memiliki identitas yg berbeda.aku suka dg karyanya narita-san ini, mampu menghadirkan cerita ttg saudar kembar dg kerumitan hubungan mereka plus dilatarbelakangi dg kehidupan barat. ga banyak pengarang komik yg bisa membuat cerita "dunia barat" ini tanpa lepas jg dari sentuhan timur.plus jadi tau deh gmn Alex ketemu jake. pantesan pas pertama baca alexandrite, agak bingung dg ceritanya tanpa memperkenalkan tokoh-tokohnya. untung nemu cerita chiper ini mangascan.
--ditulis pada bulan puasa, yg moodnya lbh banyak condong ke komik drpd novel--
September 2, 2016
1st read : 28 Nov 2011
2nd read : 2 Sept 2016
Main story dari Alexandrite, shoujo manga favoritku. Bagi yg sudah pernah baca Alexandrite sebelumnya pasti awal-awalnya bingung sama si kembar Jake (Siva) & Roy (Cipher) yg tampaknya punya sejarah pertemanan sama Alex dari dialog mereka dengan Alex si tokoh utama di Alexandrite, secara cuma Alexandrite yg diterjemahkan ke dalam bahasa Indonesia, yg Cipher sayangnya tidak. Makanya pembaca Indo pada bingung dah awal-awalnya waktu baca Alexandrite yg adalah spin-off dari Cipher.
Aku reread lagi seri ini secara aku sudah lupa ceritanya gimana, cuma ingat kalau ini lebih kompleks dan tidak sesimpel Alexandrite, haha. Aku ini fans beratnya Narita-sensei, suka sama shoujo manga buatan dia yg notabene lokasinya selalu di US (ada juga sih yg di Jepang, yaitu Natural dan More a Flower than a Flower/Hana Yori mo Hana no Gotoku -- spin off dari Natural), beda dari manga karya mangaka lainnya yg sangat nasionalis sekali di Jepang semua lokasinya. Dan lagi dia sukses menggambarkan kehidupan, budaya dan kebiasaan penduduk di US, maksudku sih ga terkesan kaku atau semacam dibikin orang Jepang gitu, semacam ditulis penduduk US atau orang yg benar-benar pernah tinggal di US gitu. Intinya baca karya dia pertama kalinya waktu masih muda itu aku jadi ngeh sama kebiasaan dalam kehidupan orang sono (masih tetap ga bisa memahami kenapa kebanyakan(?) orang US suka pakai sepatu di dalam rumah, sebagai pecinta kebersihan, aku rasa jorok bgt sepatu yg dipake di luar seharian entah abis nginjak kotoran entah tahi atau pipis anjing/manusia atau kotoran apa juga ikut dibawa ke dalam rumah, tidak dalam kamar tidur sih kayanya).
Poin plus lainnya dari sensei yg bikin aku suka bgt sama karya-karyanya adalah artwork dia yg bagus dan proporsional sekali tubuh karakternya, panel gambar juga bersih dan rapi.
2nd read : 2 Sept 2016
Main story dari Alexandrite, shoujo manga favoritku. Bagi yg sudah pernah baca Alexandrite sebelumnya pasti awal-awalnya bingung sama si kembar Jake (Siva) & Roy (Cipher) yg tampaknya punya sejarah pertemanan sama Alex dari dialog mereka dengan Alex si tokoh utama di Alexandrite, secara cuma Alexandrite yg diterjemahkan ke dalam bahasa Indonesia, yg Cipher sayangnya tidak. Makanya pembaca Indo pada bingung dah awal-awalnya waktu baca Alexandrite yg adalah spin-off dari Cipher.
Aku reread lagi seri ini secara aku sudah lupa ceritanya gimana, cuma ingat kalau ini lebih kompleks dan tidak sesimpel Alexandrite, haha. Aku ini fans beratnya Narita-sensei, suka sama shoujo manga buatan dia yg notabene lokasinya selalu di US (ada juga sih yg di Jepang, yaitu Natural dan More a Flower than a Flower/Hana Yori mo Hana no Gotoku -- spin off dari Natural), beda dari manga karya mangaka lainnya yg sangat nasionalis sekali di Jepang semua lokasinya. Dan lagi dia sukses menggambarkan kehidupan, budaya dan kebiasaan penduduk di US, maksudku sih ga terkesan kaku atau semacam dibikin orang Jepang gitu, semacam ditulis penduduk US atau orang yg benar-benar pernah tinggal di US gitu. Intinya baca karya dia pertama kalinya waktu masih muda itu aku jadi ngeh sama kebiasaan dalam kehidupan orang sono (masih tetap ga bisa memahami kenapa kebanyakan(?) orang US suka pakai sepatu di dalam rumah, sebagai pecinta kebersihan, aku rasa jorok bgt sepatu yg dipake di luar seharian entah abis nginjak kotoran entah tahi atau pipis anjing/manusia atau kotoran apa juga ikut dibawa ke dalam rumah, tidak dalam kamar tidur sih kayanya).
Poin plus lainnya dari sensei yg bikin aku suka bgt sama karya-karyanya adalah artwork dia yg bagus dan proporsional sekali tubuh karakternya, panel gambar juga bersih dan rapi.
September 21, 2007
this review is also for the rest of Cipher series, since i'm too lazy to write one by one, since the volume numbering are different in the japanese and the american version. i have finished reading the japanese version with limited knowledge of japanese, so my interpertation of the story depends a lot on the pictures and also on the american version (read only up to vol.7).
cipher is perhaps Narita Minako's sensei's darkest manga that i've read so far. it started when Anise, a schoolmate of Jake Rang asked him to befriend her, later she found out that the Jake Rang who went to her school was actually two different people, Jake and his twin brother Roy. They shared one identity; and when one went to school, the other would stay at home, not answering the phone, nor going out from their apartment. Although it started the way many shoujo-manga from this generation, the story focuses more on the life of Jake and Roy rather than on Anise's love interest. as the story evolves, we are enlightened as to why the twins lead their life as one entity.
... to be continued ...
cipher is perhaps Narita Minako's sensei's darkest manga that i've read so far. it started when Anise, a schoolmate of Jake Rang asked him to befriend her, later she found out that the Jake Rang who went to her school was actually two different people, Jake and his twin brother Roy. They shared one identity; and when one went to school, the other would stay at home, not answering the phone, nor going out from their apartment. Although it started the way many shoujo-manga from this generation, the story focuses more on the life of Jake and Roy rather than on Anise's love interest. as the story evolves, we are enlightened as to why the twins lead their life as one entity.
... to be continued ...
May 26, 2009
This is so ridiculously '80s...this volume includes a prized Hall & Oates record, a Michael Jackson doll and many a mullet.
May 18, 2022
Những tác phẩm của tác giả Minako Narita luôn có vibe rất đặc biệt.
Nó rất nhẹ nhàng, dù không thiếu drama. Cảm giác đọc vô cùng dễ chịu.
Cipher kể về câu chuyện của một cô gái vô tình biết được bí mật của cậu bạn nổi tiếng Siva cùng trường. Hoá ra cậu và anh trai sinh đôi đã luôn thay nhau tới trường và sinh hoạt chung 1 cuộc sống ở ngoài dưới cái tên Siva. Cô chấp nhận cá cược với họ rằng sau 2 tuần sẽ có thể phân biệt được ai là Siva, và đâu là Cipher...
Nó rất nhẹ nhàng, dù không thiếu drama. Cảm giác đọc vô cùng dễ chịu.
Cipher kể về câu chuyện của một cô gái vô tình biết được bí mật của cậu bạn nổi tiếng Siva cùng trường. Hoá ra cậu và anh trai sinh đôi đã luôn thay nhau tới trường và sinh hoạt chung 1 cuộc sống ở ngoài dưới cái tên Siva. Cô chấp nhận cá cược với họ rằng sau 2 tuần sẽ có thể phân biệt được ai là Siva, và đâu là Cipher...
December 25, 2019
Am I reading this series for meme purposes while the turkey cooks? Yes. Am I entertained? Also yes
June 24, 2020
I read this story a very long time ago, and Cipher is one of those mangas that truly stand out more than others because of their incredible artwork.
June 29, 2025
Love 3 of them
October 30, 2024
(Full series review)
This manga was fun to read, especially if you like the 80s aesthetic. The art was beautiful, and I loved the 80s America and the pop culture references. I even found some new music to listen because of it!
However, it has a lot of drama going on and it went darker than I expected. I feel like the characters were somewhat overly dramatical but I guess that's just a shoujo manga thing. It was best when it focused on Anise's relationship with the twins, but she was pushed to the side later. I think the brothers were kinda entitled and annoying but they grow eventually. Some plot points felt outdated, which is fair because it's from the 80s anyway, but overall it was fun read.
This manga was fun to read, especially if you like the 80s aesthetic. The art was beautiful, and I loved the 80s America and the pop culture references. I even found some new music to listen because of it!
However, it has a lot of drama going on and it went darker than I expected. I feel like the characters were somewhat overly dramatical but I guess that's just a shoujo manga thing. It was best when it focused on Anise's relationship with the twins, but she was pushed to the side later. I think the brothers were kinda entitled and annoying but they grow eventually. Some plot points felt outdated, which is fair because it's from the 80s anyway, but overall it was fun read.
October 5, 2015
Apparently I never rated this. Hmmm...
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews