Oh boy, where do I even begin...
4. KATEKYO Hitman Reborn!
Comedy and action? TOGETHER? I know, I'm shocked too, but unlike several other TV shows that try this, Hitman Reborn just nails it. The story is, again, as follows: Tsuna is neither smart nor can he play sports which has gotten him labelled,'No-Good-Tsuna'. Until a baby named Reborn who's in the MAFIA (ORIGINALITY ALERT), tells him that he is soon to be the leader of the Vongola family and Reborn trains him while at the same time helps him grow a group of friends to be in his family. And so follows a hilarious, slightly romance filled story. Oh, and the action comes in when Reborn, literraly shoots Tsuna in the forehead, if Tsuna has regret he'll come back with 'Dying Will', his clothes will explode, he'll get a little fire on his forehead and he'll kick the crap out of who he needs to kick the crap out of. With, yet another, good supporting cast and good humour, KATEKYO Hitman Reborn! does humour and action how I like humour and action.
Why? Why the hell are you so surprised about a combination of comedy and action?
So many series have this combination, so I doubt you've really looked that hard... if at all. The comedy isn't even that prominent in the later arcs, which are arcs that are actually good in comparison to the bore of a first arc you just described. My recommendation to anyone who does intend on reading REBORN! is to watch like... the first 10 episodes of the anime and then skip to around Chapter 60 or so in the manga. You'll miss a couple of minor character introductions, but you'll feel like you haven't wasted as much time on fillery content.
2. One Piece
If you look at my old names you'll see the following: Mystery Treecko, Cadet Falcon and ONEPIECEPWNS. Need I say more? Yes, actually I do. The story, for the second to last time, is as follows: Gold Roger (I could've spelt it correctly, but I'm not for spoiler issues) was the king of the pirates. He attained wealth, fame and power beyond your wildest dreams. Before he died, he said the following," You want my treasure? You can have it, I left everything I gathered together in one place. Now you just have to find it. (FUNimation version)" Ever since, Pirates from all over the world set sail for the Grand Line, searching for One Piece, the treasure that would make their dreams come true (4kids version). Monkey D. Luffy, wants that treasure so he can be King of the Pirates himself. And so begins his epic quest to go into the Grand Line to look for One Piece. With other good main characters, a slow pace at first, but it soon picks up, and cool fights, One Piece holds a special place in my heart.
Ah... I have to try so hard to refrain on commenting. But, the art style is just a really big turnoff for me, among other things.
1. Dragon Ball
"ZOMG, DBZ SUX, THERE ARE LIEK, NO FITES N EET SOUND LIEK THEIR P00ING WHEN THEY POWER UP LOL!" RandomPCschlub. Interesting, you forgot IMO. And I know some people were thinking this weren't you? Don't deny it, you were. But look closer. Do you see a 'Z' at the end? No, you don't. It's just Dragon Ball, you know, the most influencial anime/manga series of all time? Dragon Ball. The story, for the umpteenth time, is as follows: Goku is a small boy who fends for himself in the mountains while gaurding his most prized possesion. A strage golden orb with four stars in it. One day, a blue haired girl by the name of Bulma comes to his home and tells Goku that the orb is a Dragon Ball, if they collect all 7 then they can get a wish. And so begins an epic quest to find the Dragon Balls. With humour, a good supporting cast and no constapation, Dragon Ball is easily my favourite Shonen Jump manga of all time. I mean, you might not like Dragon Ball, but its influence can still be felt in the industry to this day. Doesn't that count for something?
I actually never got into Dragon Ball. I loved Dragon Ball Z as a kid, and I can still tolerate it to this day, but I could never get into the original series. It just wasn't anywhere near as epic as Z was (and you can argue this if you want, but I think all of the power ups made things look more epic in the end. :<).
But, there are some things that pizz me off in general about the enlish version of SJ. Let me put them out in steps.
Step 1. FORGET ABOUT 4KIDS
I don't want Ultimate Muscle, I was Kinnikuman the Second. I don't want Zolo, I want Zoro. I don't want Jaiden, I want Judai. Just because 4kids dubbed the anime your translating, doesn't mean you have to abide by them.
I wasn't aware that many people read the English version of Shonen Jump? But hey, listen. They don't care what
you want. They care about what will make them money, and keeping the manga names consistent with the anime names will help. If you want the original names, read it online like everyone else or go to Japan.
Step 2. Let's talk about old manga
What I mean is, why don't you guys bite the damn bullet and begin translating older manga like Kinnikuman and Fist of the North Star. You translated Dr. Slump and they were all running at the same time at one point, what's there to lose? You'd make them populor and they more than deserve it. I want to know what Kinnikuman did but you guys won't translate it.
Are you complaining to scanlators or SJ? Scanlators are scanlating all those, and SJ is being smart by not publishing those in English since they're only interested in what will sell. I can guarantee only a small minority of the small minority of English Jump readers would read these older titles.
Step 3. Naruto and BLEACH
Why is it that all of your money has gone into those 2? I know they're populor but for the love of god, you just finished up the Alabasta arc. You just finished. You are more that 30 volumes behind but with Naruto and BLEACH (well Naruto at least), you're pretty much at shoulders. Give everything equal funding so fans like me won't have to read fan-lations.
One Piece is one of Jump's "Big Three" along with BLEACH and Naruto. So you're being kind of hypocritical here. Clearly you have no grasp on the fact that popular = money. Why should they give some random manga nobody is going to read the same funding as BLEACH, Naruto, or One Piece, which all have large, loyal fanbases?
So, what do you think of SJ, what would you do to improve them and what are your favourite SJ manga?
One of my favorite SJ manga, which unfortunately came to a close recently as the brains behind the operation decided to move on, is to-LOVE-ru. It was a lighthearted ecchi-comedy with a likable cast of characters and a simple concept. Alien girl with affinity for inventing strange gadgets comes to Earth, meets our protagonist, falls in love him, aliens hunt for alien girl to be their bride so that they can rule the universe, strange gadgets go out of control occasionally and cause a whole slew of unlikely scenarios.
Then there was Double Arts, which had a relatively short run due to not being popular but had a more unique concept:
A boy and a girl are forced to join hands for all eternity!? In a land ravaged by an epidemic known as "Troy", the only people with healing arts capable of stopping the seizures caused by the disease are the Sisters. Although they have a high resistance to the disease, they are searching for a person who is truly immune, if they exist, so that they can find a cure. The main character is Sister Elraine, one of the Sisters who becomes infected with Troy. But, when she touches Kiri, a seemingly ordinary boy, her seizures stop. Could he be the one!?
Since they were joined at the hands, they learned a very intriguing fighting style through dance. It got cut at Chapter 23 though, so it didn't really get a proper conclusion, unfortunately.
Ultimately, my favorite SJ titles right now are BLEACH and Katekyo Hitman REBORN!