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A selection of titles from the gekiga scene, a short-lived yet influential artistic movement that flourished during the 1960s to the 1970s and maintains a prominent underground presence today. While mostly known as a pioneer of cinematic paneling and close attention to realism, it would be more accurate to consider gekiga as a counterculture. Surrealistic, autobiographical, and experimental works emerged as an alternative to the Tezuka school of aesthetics and paved the way for other artists to different modes of expression.

This is in NO WAY a comprehensive list and should be treated more as a starting point for diving into this movement. There are so many more important artists and titles in the scene that MAL unfortunately does not have entries for, and probably never will. Since I can't speak Japanese, there may also be some titles that I am unfamiliar with. The 50-title limit doesn't help either, but I hope this gets you started in this often-unexplored side of manga.

Note: Not all of these titles are available in English.
11/04/2022 Updated to include more underground artists.

If you enjoyed this interest stack and want to learn more about gekiga, feel free to check these other outlets:
The MAL Gekiga Club
Taniguchi Scanlations
Habanero Scans
Illuminati-Manga
Hox Scanlations
Stinky Scans
Ryan Holmberg's translations
Star Fruit Books
Glacier Bay Books
Koenji Shawn Reviews
The Comics Journal
Breakdown Press
Drawn and Quarterly
New York Review Comics
AX Volume 1: A Collection of Alternative Manga

A collection of amazing 1 volume manga that can be read in one sitting, for anyone wanting a short but tantalizing read.

Growing up sucks lmao

One thing I've noticed over the years is the sheer amount of people that want recommendations based on a handful of titles that get the whole "being a teenager is physical and emotional hell" angle down pat. You know the ones, we've all been there.

The listed series all deal with the relationships between youths and their bodies, the bodies of others, and the difficulties of becoming an adult. I tried to select series that are more grounded, but ones that capture that same mood and themes will be considered as well.

Manga that are not very long that you can read in one sitting.
Lots of short story collections, 1-8 Volume series, and oneshots. One sitting does not mean a short time mind you.

I binge read most of these in one sitting. But not all of them. However i will include ones that i think could probably be read in one sitting.

yuri / wlw / GL manga by women, for women. this is a work in progress -- feel free to send recs!

Ephemerality is the quality of existing only briefly.

Mono no aware (物の哀れ),[a] lit. 'the pathos of things', and also translated as 'an empathy toward things', or 'a sensitivity to ephemera', is a Japanese idiom for the awareness of impermanence (無常, mujō), or transience of things, and both a transient gentle sadness (or wistfulness) at their passing as well as a longer, deeper gentle sadness about this state being the reality of life.

"This too shall pass" (Persian: این نیز بگذرد) is a Persian adage translated and used in several languages. It reflects on the temporary nature, or ephemerality, of the human condition — that neither the bad, nor good, moments in life ever indefinitely last. The general sentiment is often expressed in wisdom literature throughout history and across cultures, but the specific phrase seems to have originated in the writings of the medieval Persian Sufi poets.

Manga that share their that have the same title as other, unrelated manga.

Other titles not on here (yet)

- Ki onna wo gin no sara e (1967) by Miyuki Saga

- Glass no Shiro (1969) by Masako Watanabe

- Secret Love (1970) by Masako Yashiro

- Mariko (1971) by Riyoko Ikeda

- Mou, Kirai! (1972) by Keiko Takemiya

- Konchuu no Ie (1973) by Ryouko Takashina

- Kyuuketsu Shoujo Carmilla (1973) by Miyuki Saga

- Hana no Youna Lilibeth (1973) by Masako Watanabe

- My Dear Romeo is a Girl (1973) by Miuchi Suzue

- Hadashi no Mei (1973) by Hiroko Fukuhara

- Aoi Tori Tobaso! (1974) by Hiroko Fukuhara

- Itoko Valeria (1975) by Hiroko Fukuhara

- Season When l'm Touched (1975) by Tomoko Naka

- Sei Alice Teikoku (1976) by Miuchi Suzue

- Lemon no Kisetsu (1976) by Machiko Satonaka

- Watashi no Aishita Otomodachi (1978) by Masako Watanabe

- Kurenai ni Moyu (1979) by Hiroko Fukuhara

- Sukyandarumun wa yoru no yume (1979) by Kumi Morikawa

- Alto no Koe no Shoujo (1979) by Yukiko Shino

- Fresh Green no Kisetsu (1979) by Yukiko Shino

- Baroness Ramu (1979) by Mineko Yamada

- Akujo Series (1980) by Masako Watanabe

- Lilac Time (1981) by Amie Hayasaka

- Shuushifu no Hibiki (1982) by Marimura Naka

- Kurara Hakusho (1982) by Saeko Himuro

- Kanojotachi (1982) by Kashi Michiyo

- Yajikita Gakuen Douchuuki (1982) by Ryouko Shitou

- Evetachi no Heya (1983) by Sachiko Nagahama

- Hahaoya no Musume-tachi (1984) by Minori Kimura

- Naisho de Wavy Night (1986) by Tomoko Kuramochi

- Dream Message (1988) by Ariyoshi Kyouko

- Aki no Chou (1989) by Hisato Chiba

- Purachina Junguru (1994) by Shino Suzuhara


side note but I found some websites, which feature a lot more vintage yuri so I'm adding the links since they're good resources for more obscure titles! ^_^

https://fullesdansaires-blogspot-com.translate.goog/2019/04/vintage-yuri.html?_x_tr_sch=http&_x_tr_sl=ca&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=sc

https://www.douban.com/doulist/146923368/

criteria:

- title must be or contain a colour

- cover art must contain that colour

only one manga added per colour

Originally posted by anonymous people in 4archive.org nearly 10 years back.
The list is quite rare to find nowadays and hence I decided to create a stack since its really good. If you find it helpful, restack for better reach. Thank you!

The list had 10 Categories with 5 manga in each. I will create the stack in the original sequence :

1. Horror
2. Scenery Po*n
3. Minimalism
4. Realistic Characters
5. Western Influences
6. Costume Design
7. Monster Design
8. Feminine
9. Manly
10. Stylistic Action

[Note : In case a manga contains sequels, only the first one will be included in the list. However the recommendation encompasses the entire sequence of that manga including its sequels.]

Mangas that have WLW relationships, but aren't tagged as one.

Doesn't mean that the title is good or worth reading or there's good representation.



Feel free to add something i missed or correct me.

Main (or one of the main) plot - yuri does have impact on the story, you can't remove it.
Subplot - yuri does not have much story impact, you can easily remove it. But it exist and it's here. DOES HAVE a kiss or thoughts/words like 'i love (Emilia) you, mah dearest girl'.

No queerbait, no yuribait, no tag, no publishing mangas.
Only WLW, only finished manga, onle happiness and joy (JK).

Also you can check my other stack 'Main sapphic characters in non yuri manga'.

Plan to add when ended/translated - Oooku, Gangsta, Jeong-Nyeon.

manga that's not tagged as yuri but features yuri or has subtext

A selection of mangaka who excel at creating short format stories and are known for their distinctive artistic vision. This stack features a notable single-volume work from each.

Authors in order:

Taiyou Matsumoto
Natsume Ono
Moto Hagio
Jiro Taniguchi

Sumomo Yumeka
Haruko Ichikawa
Ebine Yamaji
Osamu Tezuka

Asumiko Nakamura
Shuehiro Maruo
Moyoco Anno
Tomoko Yamashita

Yumiko Ooshima
Tatsuki Fujimoto
Harada
Usamaru Furuya

Nishioka Kyoudai
Yama Wayama
Kyoko Okazaki
Fumi Yoshinaga

Erica Sakurazawa
Shintaro Kago
Inio Asano
Q-ta Minami

Machiko Kyou
Junji Ito

deeply moving manga with mature themes centering complex queer characters. (TW: CSA, SA, abuse, suicide, self-harm, among others). features themes of trauma, grief/loss, among others. some of these get pretty dark and/or heavy but many of these are still quite hopeful and heartwarming.

some works i couldn't include because of the limited nature of MAL's database (summaries from official publishers):

⭐︎ 12 Days by June Kim - Drama, GL (completed)

Jackie grapples with grief after her former lover Noah meets an untimely demise in a car accident. To help herself cope, Jackie decides to drink Noah's ashes in beverages over a course of twelve days. A surreal tale that tackles difficult subjects such as loss and the challenges of same-sex love.

⭐︎ To Die in June by Kuragenanami - Drama, GL (completed)

In the late stages of World War II, a group of young girls are recruited into the Japanese army. A story of naive girls who haven't yet discovered themselves, of love, war, and revolution.