While most manga are pretty popular in their own right, there's no denying that these works truly become mainstream when their anime adaptations end up being of the highest quality...barring a few exceptions, that is. People who get into these amazing anime generally tend to discard the manga since, in their mind, the adaptation has already covered everything that was told in the manga anyway. As a result, reading the manga almost seems like a waste of time for many fans.
However, there are times when the anime simply doesn't cover the entire story, as it should. This is mainly due to a litany of reasons, and the anime's quality doesn't need to be reduced as a result. However, there's no denying that people should read the manga of the following anime adaptations to get the full picture of the story.
10 Bleach
This entry will probably not age well, given the fact that the Thousand-Year Blood War arc is going to get adapted soon. However, before this news, most people accepted the fact that the original story of Bleach would've remained incomplete for quite some time indeed.
This made the manga a mandatory read for fans of the series. Watching Ichigo get an upgraded version of his Zangetsu and fight against the powerful Yhwach was a thing of beauty and made for a great time indeed.
9 Deadman Wonderland
Deadman Wonderland was an anime that started off on a great note. However, the removal of an important side character and poor pacing ultimately led to the show falling off and failing to secure a second season.
Now, the manga is the only way to get the complete picture of the story. It's a great read and really messed up at times, even more than the anime...which is saying a lot!
8 Gantz
Speaking of messed-up stories, it's impossible to not bring up Gantz. Featuring a simple premise where the dead get a chance to fight for their right to rejoin the land of the living, the events of Gantz can be really messed up indeed.
The anime series and film are pretty decent in their own right, but they're notably incomplete and don't feature the full story of Gantz. Instead, people who are hooked on this premise should just check out the manga for the full story instead.
7 Noblesse
It might be cheating to put Noblesse on this list, given the fact that it's a manhwa. However, it's a small technicality, and most people appreciate the idea of this underrated medium getting some much-needed attention.
Crunchyroll has taken a great initiative to adapt some of the more popular manhwa around. Unfortunately, most of these adaptations are fairly lackluster, and Noblesse is no exception here. People who want to get the full picture of this series' story should just stop wasting their time and check out the manhwa instead.
6 Tower Of God
Tower of God is another popular manhwa that received a long-overdue anime adaptation. While the first few episodes of this show were pretty great, the pacing of the series truly went off the rails later on.
This made it almost mandatory to check out Tower of God's manhwa instead to check out the story as it was meant to be. Given that a second season for this show is yet to come out, reading the manwha becomes even more critical for fans of the series.
5 Trigun
Trigun is a pretty great anime series that has slowly waned in popularity over time. It's a shame, especially since the show had a ton of promise that was ultimately squandered with an anime-original ending.
The manga becomes necessary reading for people who want the full picture of what happened in the series. It's definitely worth it, given the high quality of Trigun's story and its charming characters.
4 Claymore
Claymore is a great dark fantasy series that any fan of the genre should check out. The protagonist, Claire, starts as the weakest member of the Claymores before developing extensively over the course of the series.
However, just like Trigun, Claymore veered away from the plot of the manga and decided to go for an anime-original ending, which disheartened many fans. Thankfully, the adaptation did lead to the series becoming pretty popular, with the manga being a great read that ends as it should have.
3 Berserk
The late great Kentaro Miura is responsible for penning what is arguably one of the most influential manga of all time. The themes, motifs, and imagery of Berserk are so iconic that they still influence modern fictional works to this day.
A Berserk adaptation was just bound to fail, given how challenging it would've been to adapt the beautiful source material. As a result, it's better to just read the manga instead...especially if the alternative is to watch the horrible 2016 adaptation.
2 Elfen Lied
Elfen Lied is notorious for being one of the most violent anime around. The first episode is hard to watch for many and shows just how vicious Lucy really is.
However, there's a softer side to this character that's explored in the anime...before it abruptly stops with an ending that fails to clear up most of the plot points that were left hanging. Viewers who wanted to check out the full picture had to check out the manga instead, which was pretty great in its own right.
1 Hunter X Hunter
Yoshihiro Togashi is one of the most legendary mangaka of all time. His work on classics like Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter X Hunter are simply in a class of their own, even though the latter has gone on multiple hiatuses that have irritated fans to no end.
The Hunter X Hunter anime is easily one of the best ways to experience the series and covers some of the best arcs in the show. However, it hasn't adapted the entire story, and viewers have to check out the manga to find out what happens after the end of the anime.