With a plethora of manga released almost daily, the industry is brimming with new series, ensuring there's something tailored to every taste and preference. Despite this influx, there is a universal set of standards only a handful of manga meet that elevates them above other books. And while an engaging storyline is highly crucial, it's just one part of a larger context.

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A good manga needs to have a captivating premise, very likable characters, and an extremely captivating art for it to be an all-rounded experience for its readers. And given that manga is a visual form of entertainment, distinct from traditional books, its art should take center stage in its appeal. This is especially important in romance, where emotional depth and chemistry between characters must be detailed enough for the audience to feel it through their screens.

7 Red River

Art that's Unique and May Not Appeal to Everyone's Taste

• Written By: Shinohara Chie
• Status: Finished

Red River is a historical fantasy romance that has a very unique isekai subplot. Additionally, it has an art that initially comes off as rough and not very polished, but once readers get past that barrier, it becomes considerably easy to digest.

The story is slightly reminiscent of InuYasha with its historical subplot, but instead of the main character jumping back into the Edo period, she goes back in time to the Hittite empire in ancient Anatolia. There, she becomes ensnared in the evil queen's plot and is destined to be used as a blood sacrifice. Fortunately for her, Prince Kail, one of the princes of that time, comes to her aid in the nick of time.

6 Honey Lemon Soda

Cutest Art with the Most Unexpected Abstract Elements that Seamlessly Blend Together.

• Written By: Murata Mayu
• Status: Ongoing

Honey Lemon Soda is a cute, slice-of-life romance that follows high-schoolers getting a chance at falling in love and consequently transitioning into adulthood. Although the storyline is pretty straightforward, the art is anything but. This manga's art is the textbook definition of a manga with good 'modern art.' Most of its sequences, especially the romantic ones, are filled with cute abstract designs that fully capture the dreamy feel of it. The characters, regardless of their standing in the story, are highly detailed and distinct—so much so, that they're hard to forget in the long run.

The book's main female character, Uka Ishimiori, is a shy, socially anxious high school freshman with a certain amount of trauma about socializing and making friends. She was bullied in middle school for her shyness, and was, in turn, isolated by her classmates. After an unexpected encounter with the most popular guy in school, Uka starts noticing more and more people entering her circle; she can feel her life steadily changing, whether she likes it or not.

5 Nana

Modern Storyline Accompanied by Dark, Almost Gothic-Inspired Art

• Written By: Yazawa Ai
• Status: On Hiatus

Nana, stylized as NANA, is one of the most groundbreaking manga ever made. It explores highly sensitive themes surrounding young adults and their extremely unforgiving debut into adult society. Consequently, it features storylines and characters that are not only extremely relatable but also very 4-dimensional—they almost feel real. So, naturally, with a narrative as intricate and nuanced as Nana, it demands artwork that not only meets but surpasses expectations, and thankfully, it delivers in every aspect.

It follows the story of two girls with the same name, Nana, who start their lives as roommates in an apartment in Tokyo. Both of them have completely different personalities, and that is one of the reasons they find themselves charmed by each other. Nana Osaki is the lead vocalist of an underground band known as Black Stones. She has a tough exterior and dresses up as a cliché rock-punk chick. On the contrary, Nana Komatsu is a bubbly, sweet, and upbeat golden retriever-esque girl who has a knack for being immature, naive, and entitled. Both of them, with their newly acquired freedom, learn to navigate through actual adult scenarios in the big city, encountering heartbreak, loss, and even death along the way.

4 Dawn of the Arcana

Gorgeously Beautiful Blend of Modern and Traditional Art

• Written By: Rei Toma
• Status: Finished

Rei Toma is known for their fantasy-romance stories with a premise that is built on beast-like beings and humans. They use very intricate yet understated art to accompany their stories, making it a perfect blend of contemporary and traditional. Most of their books also feature very heavy themes surrounding discrimination, politics, and society as a whole.

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Dawn of Arcana is one of their most famous manga. It revolves around a princess of a small country who essentially gets forced into marriage with an arrogant and ruthless prince of a larger country. She goes into the marriage fully expecting to be treated wrong, only to realize that there's so much more to him than meets the eye.

3 The King's Beast

Flawlessly Portrays the Complex Emotions of the Characters

• Written By: Rei Toma
• Status: Ongoing

The King's Beast is Rei Toma's most recent ongoing work that is set in the same universe as Dawn of Arcana, and possibly around the same time as well. While Dawn of Arcana is older in terms of release date and still has a bit of that rawness to it in terms of its art, The King's Beast shows a more polished and streamlined version of it. It's also a bit more centered around the beast-like beings (known as Ajin) rather than the humans.

The entire manga focuses on revenge from the lens of a young Ajin girl who has to disguise herself as a man in order to find out more about the murder of her twin brother. Her twin brother, Sogetsu, was working under a prince of their country when he was murdered, and the girl believes it was the prince who did it. She vows to take the him down but realizes that maybe her vindication against him is misplaced. Upon further investigation, she uncovers other malevolent forces at play in the shadows.

2 Sora Log

Carefully Crafted Rough Scribbles with Deliberate Detailing

• Written By: Mitsuki Kako
• Status: Finished

Mitsuki Kako, the mangaka behind Sora Log, is renowned for possessing one of the most unique art styles in the realm of shoujo manga. Her art could be best described as rough scribbles with deliberate detailing in the right places. It's all over the place in the best way possible. With Sora Log, she pushes the boundaries further, embracing the manga's distinct character traits with a slightly more unrestrained approach, making the entire thing look immensely striking.

Hikaru is an odd, eccentric but well-intentioned girl with a passion for stargazing and astronomy. She's incredibly easy to befriend and always sees the best in others. This inevitably leads her to cross paths with the school's resident bad boy, Minato. Despite his not-so-good reputation, Hikaru notices something about Minato that everyone else doesn't—he's not as rugged as he makes himself out to be.

1 The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity

Minimalistic in All the Right Places.

• Written By: Mikami Saka
• Status: Ongoing

The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity is a delightfully amusing twist on the typical enemies-to-lovers trope, following the rivalry between two schools, and consequently the students in them. While it is another slice-of-life manga, its art tells another story entirely. It's not overly exaggerated or detailed with its art, it's subdued and minimalistic, but has the cutest, fluffiest details where it really matters. The entire manga is like a hot coffee on a cold winter day—meaning, its coziness is off the charts!

The enemies-to-lovers trope comes from the setting of the story. Rintaro, the main male character, is enrolled in an all-boys high school that's famous for having rebellious, rough-around-the-edges, and rude boys in it. Conversely, the main female character is in an all-girls school that has rich, elegant, but arrogant girls in it. These two schools sit side by side, yet their students harbor a deep-seated animosity toward each other. However, despite their circumstances, Rintaro and Kaoruko find themselves inexplicably drawn to each other.

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