Lets get started

FINALLY!

It's been almost three weeks since we our first post, and it's finally time to get to the good stuff.

So I happen to be a bit of a manga-nerd. For anyone else who is you probably know that due to licensing a whole lot of online sites have restricted which mangas they allow you to read, which has been a big problem for a lot of their frequent readers, myself included in some.

So for my first blog I'm gonna review the two sites that I personally recommend and then list some stats for the others.

1. Spectrum Nexus

 Layout

This site is clearly set out, from the home page you have a list of the newest manga chapters, reviews and anime videos. It's also got a well set out navigation bar at the side that doesn't cause any confusion through titles like some sites have done in the past. Also, like any half decent manga site, it's got a drop down list on the side to quickly jump to your favourite mangas. It's rather unique in that it opens your manga in a new tab/window when you start reading, allowing you to continue reading comments, reviews or watching videos while you have your manga open (of course you can do this on other sites, this just does it automatically). The main critisism I have to the layout is there is no login/sign up form until you go to the message board, which can be confusing and off-putting to some users.

Content

This site contains 134 mangas total, 1 of which is an amateur manga, which the site supports and even has a form to submit your own manga. The sites content has many well known and popular titles including

• Naruto
• Bleach
• One Piece
• Fruits Basket
• Inuyasha

and also some less known ones that attract readers.

So overall, this site has a mostly simple layout and is yet to yield to licensing, still offering access to a decent numebr of popular manga series.

2. Mangafox

 Layout

The site is one of the easiest to naviagate. The search bar is used to quickly find your manga, displaying results as a drop down list that refines as you type more characters with a quick link to that manga. There's also an advanced search option, where you can find mangas that are korean or japanese, by certain authors, genre, year it was released, rating and whether it is completed or not, which is a very useful tool for discovering new mangas that you probably would never have found otherwise. The very top bar contains the login and register options, which stay there whichever page you're on, making it much easier to find when you want it. Of course there are forums, but as well as the main forum page each manga series has discussion on it's page to easily find relevant conversations. And one handy feature that this site showcases is bookmarking. When you have to step away from the computer, you simply hit the little bookmark button you find at the corner of the page and then when you come back you can go to your bookmarks and pick up where you left off easily.

Content

This site contains a large amount of manga, 6,764 mangas total. Although this large number is good, you cannot read all of the mangas. When licensing came in, the site decided not to delete licensed  mangas and simply block them, which means they still appear on the directory, but once you click on it you scroll down and wind up dissapointed. You can't read bleach OR inuyasha on their site, and their most popular manga is History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi. Maybe that manga is popular, but I haven't heard of it, and it's certainly not mainstream where I come from.

This site provides what I believe is the most efficient reading on the internet, with a large number of avaliable mangas, despite some being listed but unavaliable which I think is just evil.

Other stats

Manga reader

Number of manga: 1462
Top manga: Princess Resurrection
Most unique feature: Interesting layout


Manga volume

Number of manga: 1054
Top manga: Air Gear
Most unique feature: Search by genre on home page


Manga toshokan
Number of manga: 1029
Top manga: Freezing
Most unique feature: Bookmarks


Manga what?

Number of manga: 6167
Top manga: N/A site doesn't rank
Most unique feature: A freakin' epic banner!

So there you go, two must-see manga sites, and 4 that would also be worth checking out. I'll see you all next wednesday.


Ciao,
Shigure