Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Reading one-shot manga is a great way to experience wonderful stories if you are short on time! The stories are self-contained personal tales that can make you laugh, cry, or think about life’s struggles. Many of them are no longer than 50-pages, making them a great way to spend a break.
1. A Silent Voice (Koe no Katachi)
Mangaka: Yoshitoki Oima
Genre: Drama / Slice of Life
Quick Pitch: Oima’s uber-popular A Silent Voice began as an award-winning one-shot manga. Written in 2008, the one-shot wasn’t published until 2011 due to the story content of a deaf girl being bullied at school.
The one-shot follows the same opening arc and lays down background info that appears later in the serialized version, and serves as a great sampler for anyone looking to dive into the emotion series.
2. Toki Doki
Mangaka: Naoshi Komi
Genre: Drama / Romance
Quick Pitch: From the creator of Nisekoi comes a story that might destroy you. It follows Hatsu, a girl with a rare disease that shortens her life whenever her heart rate increases. Haru discovers her secret and promises to help her live life to the fullest.
3. Leaves of the Deep Blue Tree (Kon no Ki Konoha)
Mangaka: Sumomo Yumeka
Genre: Fantasy / Romance
Quick Pitch: As a little girl, Akino went up a mountain with her dad during autumn. She was captivated by a blue tree, which housed the spirit of a young man named Konoha. Every autumn, Akino visits Konoha, which strengthens her feelings for him.
4. Dear Green
Mangaka: Amyuu Sakura
Genre: Drama / Romance
Quick Pitch: Sakura is a delinquent without future plans. Constant comparisons to her talented older sister have left Sakura with shatter confidence, so she’s content with just going through the motions. However, a chance meeting a with a talented photographer may turn her life around.
5. Lamenting God of Death (Nageku Shinigami)
Mangaka: Mitsubachi Miyuki
Genre: Fantasy / Romance
Quick Pitch: Rondo is a shinigami that retrieves the souls of dying people with a kiss. It’s a task he’s accustomed to, but his next target is proving troublesome. Horiuchi Honoka is a cheerful girl, but she is scheduled to die. Rondo is finding it difficult to complete his task after meeting Honoka.
6. By Hero
Mangaka: Amyuu Sakura
Genre: Romance
Quick Pitch: Sendrick is a little sparrow that hates humans He’s spent most of his life flying away from them out of fear, but his opinion starts to change after meeting a girl named Kayana.
7. The Hands of the Demon Adored (Akuma ni Itsukushimi no Te wo)
Mangaka: Shigeyoshi Takagi
Genre: Drama / Fantasy / Romance
Quick Pitch: Miwako is a talented pianist with beautiful hands, which captures the interest of a demon named Rin. The two reach a strange agreement – Rin will possess Miwako’s talented hands, but only after she plays an accompaniment at a wedding.
8. A Fine Day (Hare no Hi)
Mangaka: Nemui Asada
Genre: Drama / Shounen-ai / Slice of Life
Quick Pitch: Natsuki’s father has discovered that his son is gay and sees parallels in both of their lives. At one point, Natsuki’s father divorced his wife after coming to terms with his own sexuality so that they both will be happy. Now, he is keen on giving Natsuki advice without being too prying.
What is your favorite one-shot manga?
