Dozens of new official English manga translations come out every year, and 2023 is no exception. Famous publications such as Shonen Jump, Shueisha, Kadokawa, and Square Enix pump out translations almost simultaneously with their Japanese counterparts. Simulpubs are practically an industry standard now to give official access to non-Japanese speaking audiences, partially to curb piracy.
With dozens of English manga and manhwa releases in 2023, it’s difficult to choose what to read. Luckily, there are quirky and eye-catching titles to watch out for per genre. Most publications also host their translations online. If not, their online storefronts helpfully list which titles have official English translations.
COMEDY: Handsome Must Die
- Shonen Jump+/Manga PLUS by Shueisha
Yuri absolutely loves his idol Ryo Kirigirisu. She loves him so much that she copied his looks and mannerisms to feel connected to him and to prepare for his big Tokyo Dome concert. The problem is that her chance encounter with the love of her life ends up with Yuri taking his place to end a decades-old conspiracy.
The new comedy manga has more in common with Devilman Mangaka Go Nagai’s works than its art style. It has no qualms going for gore and bizarre, slapstick humor. Having an over-the-top approach also allows it to take serious jabs at the idol industry, offering some obvious references to Johnny & Associates and dyed-in-the-wool industry practices.
- Other titles: Stan for Salvation, Makabe-sensei's Perfect Plan, The Pension Life Vampire, Sachi’s Records, History’s Mentalist, Tsuruko Returns the Favor
DRAMA: Beat & Motion
- Shonen Jump+/Manga PLUS by Shueisha
Humiliated for drawing at a young age, Tatsuhiko swears off his passion and drifts through life without a purpose. That is until a drunk woman jerks him out of listlessness. One viral animated video later, Tatsuhiko ends up collaborating with his favorite artist and the random drunk woman, Nico Kashiwagi.
Naoki Fujita’s work about chasing dreams is hard-hitting and draws from life experience. After all, Beat & Motion is a direct result of his hard work, as it won the right to publication from Shonen Jump+’s web series Million Tag. Aside from serialization, the manga will also receive an anime adaptation from Netflix sometime next year.
- Other titles: Shojo Null
- Untranslated: Lost in the Farthest Ends, The Absolution of Maria
ACTION: STAR: Strike It Rich
- Comikey
Nozomi Tenma feels washed out at 27. Her detached retina cut her pro career short and her technique’s too methodical for unsanctioned fighting. Unwilling to leave fighting, she starts an underground female fighting circuit with her best friends, a dirty cop and a broke yakuza. There’s just one problem: their prize fighter, Hongou Hina, is an unstoppable monster obsessed with fighting Nozomi. She’s also concealing the location of chemical weapons that a cult almost used to go to war with the Japanese government.
Kengan Ashura Mangaka Yabako Sandrovich once again delivers high-adrenaline, well-choreographed fights. Like his other fighting series, Strike it Rich’s cast varies in looks and body types, ranging from lethally cute schoolgirls to Baki-like fighters. None of the characters can be called “virtuous” either, befitting its comically off-the-wall plot.
- Other titles: Origin (licensed English release), Tenmaku Cinema, Kill Blue, Ice-Head Gill, Martial Master Asumi, Do Retry, VIBRATION MAN, Service Wars, The Soul Spewing Wielder, Demon Lord Exchange!!, Jiangshi X, The Healer Ditches The Boonies To Become An S-Rank Adventurer
HORROR: DRCL Midnight Children
- Viz Media
Redheaded Mina Murray is a master of catch-as-catch-can wrestling and a scholar to boot. Yet, as the only girl in Whitby School, she’s bullied every day. But when a monster ravages her only friend, she and her bullies discover horrors beyond their comprehension. Shin-ichi Sakamoto’s take on Dracula is hauntingly gorgeous. Reminiscent of the period’s black-and-white prints, Sakamoto’s textured black lines and painstaking detail create a 19th-century London full of despair and aching beauty. This world allows for a stronger contrast between the children’s innocence and Dracula’s monstrous influence.
DRCL Midnight Children began circulation in 2021 but was licensed for translation in February 2023. Its first English volume is slated for release on September 19, 2023.
- Other titles: Takopi's Original Sin, Shibatarian, Jinrui-Shoku, The Summer Hikaru Died (licensed English release)
- Untranslated: Strange Tales of Kisaragi, Animal Human, Oni Otoshi
REINCARNATION/ISEKAI: Surviving The Game As A Barbarian
- Webtoon
Manhwa and Manhua rival manga for the amount of reincarnation and isekai titles churned out in each market every year. Surviving the Game as a Barbarian is one such example, although it quickly stands out as a title to watch out for.
Gamer Hansu Lee played the roguelike Dungeon and Stone for nine years before he reached the final boss. Upon beating it, he’s sucked into the game and reincarnated as the character he played. He quickly finds out that reincarnates like him are treated like evil spirits and instantly killed upon discovery. Hansu uses his game knowledge and newfound beefiness to survive the harsh new world. Along with the early twist, Hansu’s understandable fear, quick thinking, and iron will make his journey an interesting follow.
- Other titles (manhwa): Baby Tyrant, How to Diet as a Lady, I Adopted a Villainous Dad, I Became a Sitter for the Obsessive Villains, I Don’t Trust My Sister, I Hold the Tyrant's Heart
ROMANCE: Mikane And The Sea Woman
- Shonen Jump+/Manga PLUS by Shueisha
When his mother finds a new boyfriend who doesn’t want to live with him, Mikane decides to go back to the country to live with his father. There, at sea during summer vacation, he helps a woman whose foot was cut and discovers she is a sea slug or purple nudibranch mermaid.
Mikane and The Sea Woman’s appeal lies in existential dread, coming-of-age woes, and its take on Japanese mythology. Mikane and his middle school friends all have their burdens to bear, surrounded by a sea that takes in their pain and loneliness. With only a few chapters out, there are still a lot of questions to be answered in this bittersweet title.
- Other titles: Insomniacs After School, March Comes In Like a Lion (licensed English release), Couple Breaker, Heroine's Shares for Sale, My Girlfriend Gives Me Goosebumps!, Yumeochi, Blooming Love, I Spy a Married Life
BOY'S LOVE: I’m Kinda Chubby And I’m Your Hero
- Seven Seas Entertainment
Theater actor Honjirou, nicknamed Ponjirou or Clumsy Honjirou, has never felt insecure about his chubby body. He’s more concerned about his acting and whether he’s cut out for a leading role. And although he works out for health reasons, he stresses out more about fumbling his lines and feeling unable to connect with the audience. Then, out of nowhere, he receives a gift from a secret admirer.
I’m Kinda Chubby and I’m Your Hero is a sweet, calming love story that’s down-to-earth. Honjirou, nicknamed Ponjirou or Clumsy Honjirou, and his love interest Inari come to admire each other for pursuing their dreams and never giving up. Their friendship develops naturally and, with time, will turn into something sweeter.
- Other titles: Training Mr. Sakurada (Nov.), Delinquent Daddy and Tender Teacher, I Didn’t Mean to Fall in Love
- Untranslated: Ore ni wa Zenbu Kikoeteru!, Ao to Midori
GIRL'S LOVE: I Don't Know Which Is Love
- Yen Press
Scorned college freshman Soraike Mei vows to find a girlfriend after she ends her high school career with her crush for falling for a man. But without doing anything, her college debut ends in success as she unwittingly becomes the object of an insatiable desire for five women.
Mei is hilarious, honest about her desires, and refreshingly in tune with her inner thoughts and libido. Other than her personality, her love interests also gravitate towards her because of how she unsuspectingly fulfills their needs. Riri’s need for touch, Maria’s proclivity for observation, Minato’s voice kink, Karin’s wandering tongue, and Kaoru’s sensitive nose find a target in Mei, who doesn’t know who to fall in love with. I Don't Know Which Is Love was published last year, but only received an English translation this year. Kadokawa's YouTube channel has a voiced version of its first chapter.
- Other titles: Assorted Entanglements, I Married My Female Friend (Dec.)
- Untranslated: The Guy She Was Interested in Wasn't a Guy at All, There Is No Love Wishing Upon a Star, If That's Love, Break It