Shoujo with interesting artwork?

[Hardian]

I find that many shoujo manga have similar artwork. I'm quite new to following this genre, though (I think it's since last year). So unless I really pay attention to the detail, or at glance, sometimes they all look similar.

Do you have any recommendation on shoujo manga or mangaka, that have easily noticeable artwork, or when you look at it you knew that it's from 'that certain author'...?

I think Fruit Basket's Natsuki Takaya, Otomen's Aya Kanno, Dawn of the Arcana's Touma Rei are quite the examples. It doesn't have to be very distinctive, just the ones that you think are having quite a style unique to the author.
I prefer the not-too-big eyes, though :)

I also would love to know if you have any favorite artwork of a certain mangaka.

Thank you.

[Selena]

Ha ha ha, yeah, a lot of them do have similar artwork.

Yuu Watase probably has the most generic of them all. I never recognize her artwork, and so I always get suckered in if I don't read the author's name (I'm not too big a fan of her work).

Naoko Takeuchi's work is pretty recognizable, I think. Though, it could just be because I've been a Sailor Moon addict since the age of 6...

[Hardian]

Selena wrote: "Naoko Takeuchi's work is pretty recognizable, I think. Though, it could just be because I've been a Sailor Moon addict since the age of 6... "

Yes, actually that often seems to be the case. I was about to mention Yuu Watase myself as another example xD, her art is pretty recognizable to me.
My question can be very subjective indeed, though I think it's still interesting to know what everyone likes regarding author's artwork.

[Kristen]

There was one manga that I read a while ago that had a really unusual and distinctive art style: . The artist never did anything else, though. But the character designs were very different from the usual shoujo.

I also find that manhwa looks pretty different from manga. The Korean comics have a tendency to be more...pointy? Usually.

[Ipshita]

I like Amano Shinobu's style, although its her stories that really attract me. Takagi Shigeyoshi's art style also seems a bit different.

I also really admire Hwang Mi Ri's art style.

[Hardian]

Kristen wrote: "There was one manga that I read a while ago that had a really unusual and distinctive art style: . The artist never did anything else, though. But the characte..."

Wow, judging from the Love Roma covers, the art looks more like.. 'atypical'? Is it really a shoujo?
At glance it reminds me to Yumi Unita sensei's artwork. It's too distinctive for what I'm looking for here, but now I'm curious xD

Yes, manhwa indeed looks pretty different compared to manga. Though sometimes I don't realize it when some Korean artist draw manga such as in 'Until Death Do Us Part'. But mostly are pretty recognizable, though I can't say for sure what makes them look so different.
I think many of them are much detailed with bolder lines, especially in shading, and I find that they draw character's figure more realistically, in height and composition, while many manga have their character in child-like figure.

Ipshita wrote: "I like Amano Shinobu's style, although its her stories that really attract me. Takagi Shigeyoshi's art style also seems a bit different.

I also really admire Hwang Mi Ri's art style."

Do you have any recommended title from each mangaka?
Takagi Shigeyoshi's Film Girl is released here. I remember her art style quite stands out in the list of licensed shoujo manga I encountered months ago.

[Ipshita]

Amano Shinobu's ラストゲーム 1 Last Game 1 has very swiftly become one of my favourites. I highly recommend it!

I liked Takagi Shigeyoshi's Flower in a Storm more than Film Girl.

As for Hwang Mi Ri, I liked her The Moment When a Fox Becomes a Wolf, Vol. 1. I also started reading Delinquent Cinderella and Become Habituated to Kiss, but these are not yet completely scanlated into English so I'm still patiently waiting for them.

[Jec]

Hello, I like Sakisaka Io's Ao Haru Ride and Mikimoto Rin's Kyou no Kira-kun (both are shoujo mangas)

As for my favorite mangaka, I love Asano Inio :)
His art style is detailed and very distinguishable, his stories though, are dark and psychological.

[Anaika]

I like Say I Love You by Kanae Hazuki. The artwork is really pretty and the story line is good too. I also like Cardcaptor Sakura by: CLAMP, but that's my childhood and those colored pages in the Omnibus editions... no words needed.

[Hardian]

Jec wrote: "Hello, I like Sakisaka Io's Ao Haru Ride and Mikimoto Rin's Kyou no Kira-kun (both are shoujo mangas)

As for my favorite mangaka, I love Asano Inio :)
His art style is detailed and very distinguis..."

I enjoyed Ao Haru Ride and Kyou no Kira-kun too :)
I'm also a fan of Inio Asano's art style, I'd say exceptional.

Anaika wrote: "I like Say I Love You by Kanae Hazuki. The artwork is really pretty and the story line is good too. I also like Cardcaptor Sakura by: CLAMP, but that's my childhood and those colored pages in the O..."

I've been looking forward to "Say I Love You". I've seen the anime adaptation of it. Though honestly I don't really like the main love interest, some other characters look interesting, heard some good words about it.
CLAMP, yes of course. I wish they'd make another shoujo title.

[Jec]

Is "Say I Love You" the same as "Sukitte Ii na yo"? I haven't seen the anime adaptation yet, is it good??? The manga is still ongoing :(

[Hardian]

Jec wrote: "Is "Say I Love You" the same as "Sukitte Ii na yo"? I haven't seen the anime adaptation yet, is it good??? The manga is still ongoing :("

I believe so.
I haven't finished watching the anime, just seen some episodes of it, so I can't say for sure whether it's good. It doesn't seem so different to the manga, though.

[Jec]

Ah, forgot to add that I adore Yamakawa Aiji's art style, too.

[Anaika]

Jec wrote: "Is "Say I Love You" the same as "Sukitte Ii na yo"? I haven't seen the anime adaptation yet, is it good??? The manga is still ongoing :("

The anime was good but not as good as the manga.They stayed true to the manga very well though so its really only seeing it in action rather than paper. I got use to calling it by its English translation because the volumes are coming out in English now<3 so when I type it in the search bar I put the English translation.

[Hardian]

Jec wrote: "Ah, forgot to add that I adore Yamakawa Aiji's art style, too."

I agree again ;)
I just read the early part of her Stand Up!, though I'd say my favorite so far would be Yajirobee. Her art style I see in Yajirobee is somewhat kinetic. The characters are drawn with gestures, they don't just stand up straight. Loved it.

[Ipshita]

Jec wrote: "Ah, forgot to add that I adore Yamakawa Aiji's art style, too."

I've read her Tomodachi no Hanashi and Majo to Boku. She really portrayed a great friendship in Tomodachi no Hanashi. Loved that one :)

[Kageyama]

Kayoru is one artist I know off the top of my head. She has amazing art, even though her manga is not the best (typical shoujo story line and one shots).

[— Massiel]

My favorite shoujo manga is Hirunaka no Ryuusei, i don't know... I love that manga a lot, and also Suki-tte Ii na yo, can be a little cliché but is amazing.

A shoujo different in so many ways is Calling You, i recommended. And is short.

[Miku]

贄姫と獣の王 #1
This book is new but have a very interesting and beautiful artwork.


There is also Miriam Vol. 1 the mangaka of From Far Away.

[Terrence]

Is Magus Bride Shoujo? It has a female lead. I vote that. Just look at the cover for volume 1.



The art inside is equivalent to a Berserk for detail I would say. I'm catching up on the other volumes this month.

[Selena]

Terrence wrote: "Is Magus Bride Shoujo? It has a female lead. I vote that. Just look at the cover for volume 1.



The art inside is equivalent to a Berserk for ..."

That one's technically shounen. I couldn't tell either and had to look it up when it was suggested for a group read. Very good series regardless of intended audience. :-)

[Weeably]

I would say Cardcaptor Sakura. Maybe Claymore if that counts.

[Selena]

Anthony wrote: "I would say Cardcaptor Sakura. Maybe Claymore if that counts."

Cardcaptor Sakura certainly has a distinctive artstyle (as do all of Clamp's works). I think Claymore is Shounen though, isn't it?

[Weeably]

I apologize I had thought the premise was a strong female lead. I'm not sure what a Shoujo is.

[Selena]

Anthony wrote: "I apologize I had thought the premise was a strong female lead. I'm not sure what a Shoujo is."

Shoujo is manga that is aimed at girls 18-ish and younger. Series like Sailor Moon, Kimi ni Todoke, and Ouran High School Host Club are all shoujo manga. Anymore, it's gotten more and more difficult to tell between the "intended audiences" for manga, especially with a lot of shoujo tropes (romance, main characters being female, etc.) have been bleeding into shounen series and shounen tropes (collecting things, magical mayhem, male main characters, friendship, etc) bleeding into shoujo.

Sometimes it's easy to tell (DBZ could never be mistaken for a shoujo, while Wedding Peach would be tough to mistake for a shounen), but a lot of the time I have to look at Wikipedia or the publishing magazine to tell the difference.

[Terrence]

Anthony wrote: "I apologize I had thought the premise was a strong female lead. I'm not sure what a Shoujo is."

Shoujo, Shounen, Seinen, and Josei (as far as I know) are designations of where the manga was published. In the case of Shoujo it means the comic was published in a monthly magazine for a younger female audience. Shounen would be for younger male audience. Seinen for older males (and there's apparently an even further designation above that for adults), Josei for older females (I had no clue that was even a genre name until I arrived here; hardly anyone mentioms the term Josei on the anime boards elsewhere).

I think Claymore is targeted more at a male demographic. Shoujo manga is a lot more about the target audience than the lead. Shoujo doesn't have to be lovey dovey I guess, but I usually associate couple drama as Shoujo. It can be tough though. I'm guessing a couple drama like ReLife and The Art Club Has a Problem is likely more Shounen. I'm not sure about Orange.

Already mentioned it another thread, but I really recommend watching the anime or reading the manga for Monthly Girls Nozaki Kun. It's about the most masculine protagonist you'll ever meet being a Shoujo manga writer (but the story you're reading, Nozaki-Kun itself, is technically published a Shounen).

[Selena]

Speaking of distinct styles, Natsume's Book of Friends has a look and feel all its own.

[Terrence]

Behind the Scenes!! is also pretty great art wise (and it's a male protag with a focus more on behind the scenes work for college film clubs than on romantic stuff), though it overuses the sparkly tone effects a bit (someone called the art busy in a review on its Goodreads page, which I think is accurate).

https://www.goodreads.com/book/photo/...