It's actually been quite a while since I picked up a new manga series. Nowadays, I just stick to a handful of series to follow, so it was nice to find something new to read. I chose to read Mushishi(shishishishi) since I've had a couple friends of mine recommend the anime to me before, so I was really interested in seeing what it was all about.


Mushishi centers on Ginko, who wanders the world investigating mushi, supernatural creatures and phenomena, and helps people troubled by them. The world of Mushishi is incredibly lush. It's kind of hard for me to describe or pick out the right word. Reading the manga just fills me with this sense of wonder. The lore is rich and heavily influenced by East Asian folktales, making it very fascinating for me to read about. I've read several manga that deal with demons or supernatural creatures, but never one that was quite like this. The mushi are depicted very abstractly and in a wide variety. Because of the episodic nature of the manga, each chapter features a new type of mushi. The uniqueness of each case is what makes the world feel so deep.

What I find interesting is that Ginko isn't an active protagonist. What I mean is that Ginko doesn't solve people's problems by himself with a snap of a finger. Instead, he acts more like a catalyst. He helps people understand their problem and helps them figure out how to solve it. Although we follow Ginko in every chapter, we hardly learn anything about him, like why his clothes are so unfittingly modern compared to everyone else's Edo-Meiji era clothing. Rather, we learn more about the people he meets and their stories. This is why Mushishi is so interesting! It's a manga that finds its way through quiet storytelling. Since there is no ongoing plot, the people simply come and go. Each chapter is just this perfect bite-sized story that leaves you satisfied. This is definitely something great to read while curled under some blankets with a warm drink.

Since we're talking about manga, I figured I'd drop in one of my favorites:


Otoyomegatari, or a Bride's Story, by Kaoru Mori is a historical romance manga set in 19th century Central Asia. It features a myriad of couples (which includes a polyamorous couple!) and follows their daily lives. It's an incredibly well researched manga and gives a very accurate portrayal of the cultures and customs of Central Asia, a setting I feel is very rarely used or discussed in comics in media in general. The art is stunning. Mori does an amazing job of rendering the insane amount of textures and patterns. It really makes you wonder if this woman is okay or human. Even if you aren't interested in the romance genre, I still think it's a great manga to read for anyone interested in learning about another culture.