VOTING! Preferances in Christian manga!

[Psycho Ann]

http://pub6.bravenet.com/vote/vote.php?usernum=479105825

It'll be a great help if everyone can chip in a few minutes to fill out the polls ^^ Call it 'research' and it'll be great if you guys can spread the word around

Thanks!!

[Bobtheduck]

Gee, it won't be hard to guess which votes were mine...

1. I like action, but I like quiet dram too... Of course, comedy is necissary too. Romance is entirely optional.

2. I'm lenient to violence, and I use "questionable words" in my own stories, as well as somewhat violent descriptions (all text, no visuals) so neither of these things bother me. I'd avoid nudity because it is a weakness for too many people... Oh, as for substances, most of the people in my story drink, and as for drugs... Well, I mean even the strictest of uptight christian media producers include drugs in their movies and plays and such. Also, implied sexual things, another thing I'm fine with... I just don't want to see it...

3. I definately get sickened by the lolita/shouta complexes, and incest... Well, yeah... That's self explanitory (Sakura diaries... *starts to throw up* Onegai Twins... *runs to the bathroom* BTW, for our aussie friends and others with similar language, I mean the toilet... Us yanks tend to keep the bath in the same room as the actual "toilet", and we call any room with a toilet a bathroom whether there's a bath or not) Of course, it's a messed up world... These things exist in the real world, and we can't just ignore it...

4. I'd prefer a series, but would love a novel type manga.

5. Hey, if it showed up in the bookstores, that's better than online, because then it would be online TOO...

6. I would like it to be evangelica, but not designed like a tract... I mean, it needs to plant seeds, not expect to bring the entire message... Encourage the contemplating of ideas, not preach at someone.. So, the ambiguous and 'real life' things apply to me as well. I am a C.S. Lewis fan, so Allegorical Fantasy is another good one.

7. I have not seen any good Christian games, only 2 really good christian movies so I'll go with the book thing... If there was a manga based on peretti, I'd read it. The oath would be nice...

[skynes]

1. Action.

2. Violence, Im pretty much immune to it. Not including violence generally makes the anime/manga unrealistic. If you want it to have some kind of realism you'd need to include elements of ALL those options, within reason of course.

3. I hate all the occult stuff in manga. I think it ruins it soo badly. Shaman King, need I say more?

4. I'm not fussy

5. I don't have a credit card or anything so I can't buy online. Bookstore for me.

6. Spiritual Warfare would be an excellent concept for a manga, especially if it was Biblically accurate. Having the Gospel in there is a must but not too 'tracty'

7. What Christian movies? They're practically unheard of and I'm not even going to start on the games, majority I've seen look 10yrs out of date. Albeit there are some exceptions and some look really good.

[Staci]

Voted! *salutes*

I really believe getting polled like this helps out in many areas. I hope you find the answers you're looking for, Psycho Ann!

As for my votes, uhm...

1. Humor
2. Violence
3. Homosexual Themes/et cetera
4. Anthology (Pref. but I'm not picky, they're all good)
5. Online via the maker
6. Spiritual Battles
7. Only if it stays true to the original (though it should be good, too)

[shooraijin]

Mine:

1. Humor. There aren't enough funny Christian *anything*!

2. Violence. Wow, look at the graph. Hardly anyone picked anything else. Plus, as you wisely specify, there's violence and then there's *dripping body fluids* violence.

3. Homosexual themes.

4. Series. I get attached to characters *sniff*

5. Bookstore if I can. If you're going to sell this online, could we have previews to browse, at least a good five or ten pages worth?

6. Everyday life. I like fantasy, but fantasy is such a frequently done genre. I think someone who can accurately capture day-to-day existence's essence would stand out more. As an example, take "Pulp Fiction", a movie which I would not recommend to most -- but I'll give Tarentino this: he accurately captured conversation and interpersonal mannerisms and reaction. The oft-quoted Royale with Cheese scene could have come from anyone, anytime, and sounded realistic and not forced. Getting that same brand of daily realism in a manga would, I think, be tremendous. (Second choice: ambiguous. I like a spiritual series that isn't banging me over the head with it -- and I suspect so will non-Christians who are curious. Ink walks a pretty good line here.)

7. Only if the manga is good. I can tolerate some liberties if it improves the feel of the series.

[Mave]

ohh..may I may I? XD

1) this is very tough for I would like to see Christian manga handle all genres (which is possible IMHO). However, I choose drama.

2) Use of abusive substance, personally I tolerate other elements (swearing, sexual themes, violence) only IF it was necessary for the story. Just don't make it ridiculously excessive.

3) Blatant fanservice

(does questionable Judeo-Christian references relate to misrepresentation such as follows? ---> (Ex. the Devil is actually good and ooh handsome too, nice vampires being abused by evil cross-haggling Christians) if so, I really hate that too.

4) Doesn't really matter but I chose one shot.

5) Online via maker, I prefer things more personal.

6) Everyday life <-- simply because that's what I'm doing for now, however I will give a try with more shonen/fantasy-like themes later on.

5) Only if I like the original movie/series/book

Ann, is this related to the management of Anime Angels Mangazine? Just wondering..^^

[Technomancer]

My own views, not so much as a reader of manga per se but rather as a reader of webcomics and narrative fiction. The survey doesn't allow multiple options, and some of my views require a bit of explanation

1. Drama and Humour. Things like action and horror have their place, but not at the cost of narrative depth. Romance is something that goes along with drama, but should also be a part of the overall story rather than its central element.

2. It really depends on the story, since all of those elements can be justified to a greater or lesser extent depending on what one is writing about, and for whom. Generally though I'd say alcohol/tobacco as well as "mature themes"; real people should act like real people.

3. homosexual themes.

4. I prefer series, both for the greather depth wrt story and characters, but also because I become attached to the characters and setting.

6. Fantasy/Sci-fi and ambiguous (in general). While one doesn't care to be beaten over the head with a theme, allowance needs to be made for historical realism.

[inkhana]

action (I likey the action...XD That shouldn't surprise anyone...)

Tossup between violence and use of substances. Excessive language and crude humor really bother me.

homosexual themes (yaoi/yuri); incest; pedophilia (shota/lolita), etc.

Series.

Online, either from the maker or a retailer.

Fantasy. I only feel somewhat comfortable with adaptations and spiritual battle stuff, and I live an everyday life everyday, so...

Only if I liked the original movie/game/book

[kaji]

I hope our votes helped in some way...

Oh, my votes were exactly like Shooraijin's and for pretty much the same reasons!

However, for some of the responses I would have liked to select every option...

[ShiroiHikari]

1. drama, because it's flexible. many dramas also have some elements of comedy, romance, whatever.

2. violence. you just can't do most stories right if there's not -some- violence shown. although I can also tolerate some language, so long as it's not really excessive. also, implied sexual themes are tolerable for me as long as they're implied and actually help the story.

3. homosexual themes. but I was torn between this and questionable usage of Judeo-Christian ideas. you know, stuff like Wish and Angel Sanctuary.

4. series. I get attached too. lol. not something with 20 volumes, but something with at least 5 or 6.

5. in the bookstore! that way it'd be easier for me to be like "hey, you should read this". besides, I hate ordering online >.>

6. ambiguous. but I was really torn between that and everyday life. either one would be really cool.

7. only if the manga itself is good.

[Bobtheduck]

I don't think we have to worry about "questionable use of Judeo-Christian themes" in a christian manga, though... unless you mean controversial doctrines...

[Gypsy]

Voted! ^^ Are you going to share your findings with us when it's all said and done?

:Edit: Uh, nevermind, I should have waited for that page to calculate and refresh before jumping back over to this window to post. Pay no attention to me! *hides*

[Kat Walker]

1. I agree there's not nearly enough Christian humor out there. And since we'd have to rely much more on wit as opposed to mind-numbingly pathetic potty humor like most secular fare...chances are it'd be high quality and do very well. I am also a fan of dramatic, epic storylines -- us fangirls love 'em! But lets wait for the LotR furor die down first.

2. Don't you just love grey areas? A majority of these themes always depend on the story style, an appropriate age demographic, and the exact context they're being expressed in. However, some things really have absolutely NO business being graphically depicted in a Christian work. Like Sho said, there's violence and then there's *disembowled guts spilling out* violence. There's risque, and then there's *absolutely no shame* risque.

3. Since there's not an "all of the above" choice, I went with "questionable usage of Judeo-Christian ideas". Just because that tends to frustrate me, and I see it as a sign of both the ignorance and the contempt society at large has for God. That I find much more disturbing than anything 'dirty', although I most certainly cringe at many of the other things on that list.

4. I like series, more room for character development. Short series collections or novel-length comic series (think the Akira manga) are a close second.

5. Bookstores all the way. I have no means of buying online, and it'd feel much more legit to see a Christian manga shelved right along the popular releases.

6. A mixture of everyday life and an epic spiritual struggle is my pick, as a story I am currently brainstorming involves both elements. It stays grounded without being boring. I also really like the idea of "Christian but not preachy" ambiguity, that has the potential to hit some real philosophical/intellectual points without turning people off because of the "Jesus freak" factor. Fantasies are a bit too cliche, and Biblical/Evangelical aren't contemporary enough to make a big impact.

7. There haven't really been any overtly Christian books/movies I think would make a good transition to manga, quite frankly. Although if someone managed to do a good non-corny version of "Left Behind", I'd be thoroughly impressed.

[ShiroiHikari]

btw, this is a good thread. I'm sticking this.

[Psycho Ann]

Thanks a lot Shiroi! I was going, "Hey... is that a "stuck" beside the thread title?" O.O

And great big thanks to all of you, and yes, I'll be tallying up the results much later. The explanations were a great bonus, I didn't expect it ^^ This research is partly for my own curiousity, partly for all the Christian mangaka out there (not just for the mangazine), partly for my company, and partly because I know everyone would like to know the results as well. And also because I'm praying that the overall result would show what *He* wants in Christian manga/comics ^^

I had got some suggestions to make it possible to choose more than one answer but sadly there isn't that feature on the free bravenet voting ^^;; Even so, I think that it forces you to choose your biggest preferance/qualms about a certain matter. Like the questionable stuff in secular manga--all of those bother me, but each bother me to a different extent (biggest being the sexual stuff (yaoi/yuri/incest/etc.).

This is really, really, great, THANK YOU SO MUCH GUYS!!! *big hug to everyone*

[Little T-chan]

1. All of these choices fit so well!!! So hard to choose!! But I always love a good laugh so I'm going with HUMOR.

2. Explicit language...=_=; Don't approve of it...but the other choices bother me more.

3. Homosexual themes and incest

4. Series

5. Local bookstore

6. I voted for spiritual battle...but now that I really think about it..I'd probably read "everyday life" instead of "spiritual battle" cuz I'm not really into battles...

7. Only if I liked the original thing.

[Ingemar]

1. Action. I think that's the only good genre of manga. I would also say 'drama,' but the term is way to broad for my tastes.

2. Violence. We should not forget the violence that was Christ's passion.

3. Questionable usage of J/C themes. Not that I'm offended, per se, but it's just become very annoying to narrow J/C through a terribly limited, insular Japanese worldview. Maybe I should have changed my answer to homosexuality, or whatever.

4. One shot. I'm sick and tired of blowing money on manga (namely Inu-Yasha, which, in retrospect, I find more or less a mediocre work with slow development). I believe a writer with tremendous talent can say a lot with a little material.

5. bookstore

6. Ambiguous. Hopefully enough that the PC sensors or anti-religious types don't pick it up and berate it.

7. only if the original was good

[Elric_kun]

1. action, humor, drama~

2. violence :3

3. -___-

4. series

5. bookstore

6. fantasy :3

7. only if the original was good

[termyt]

I chose a violent, yet funny fantasy manga series based on solid theology that I can buy online.

Christian literature could definitely use a few more laughs and we shouldn't be afraid of Sci-Fi or fantasy. Nudity doesn't bug me, but it's rarely edifying and violence tends to be more acceptable. I'm also not opposed to yaoi themes because this is something we need to deal with as Christians so the right handling of it could be both entertaining and valuable. I am much more leery of the use (misuse) of Christian themes, scripture, and doctrine.

[shooraijin]

> so the right handling of it

Key phrase, I think. I think that sinful actions would demand consequences, for one thing (gay *or* straight), whether it be the obvious physical ones, or the realization of guilt.

[uc pseudonym]

I wasn't going to post what I voted, but everyone else is and Ann said it was an unexpected bonus, so...

1. Action. I was very, very close to choosing humor, but in most cases I find that manga that is considered funny I really don't find as such, so this was a safer bet. Furthermore, I feel that action is likely to bring in an important crowd; it will, however, miss the drama-oriented crowd.

2. Violence, in accordance with my previous choice. Action without any violence would be a strange hybrid I'm not sure I would approve of. At the same time, I wouldn't mind most of the others used tastefully, save gore and nudity (and crude humor eliminates itself in that category by default).

3. Questionable use of Judeo/Christian values, easily. If there are any theological values present, I'd like them to be done correctly. Not that I mind if characters have something wrong, or have flawed values, but if the series actively promotes something that I can't support as a Christian I am uncertain I could actually term it Christian manga. That strays from the question, but it does at least relate to the primary topic.

4. Series; I like the style best. But I would also strongly support single volume one shots, for reasons similar to Ingemar's.

5. It is largely irrelevant for me, but I selected bookstore simply because it is the most difficult of the three to acheive, and would still allow the other two.

6. A very tough call; I like a great many of those. Instead of a standard answer, I'll speak to each one.

Spiritual Battle: I certainly don't mind, given that I've written it myself.
Everyday Life: Very important, in my mind. More so than many of the others, though not necessarily more interesting.
Fantasy: Done properly, it has a good appeal and a high chance of getting across a good message without beating people over the head.
Biblical: In my mind we already have enough variations of the Bible, so this would strike me as a bit old.
Evanglical: Hardly bears mentioning.
Ambiguous: Unless the hints are slightly more obvious, it strikes me as somewhat pointless. It might as well be explicitly Christian, if they are the only people who will get anything out of it. But if most secular people would have questions raised in their minds due to the hints, it has great potential.

7. Both of the first two. The first is somewhat of a requirement for the second in my mind, but the second is the actual output.

[Kat Walker]

4. One shot. I'm sick and tired of blowing money on manga (namely Inu-Yasha, which, in retrospect, I find more or less a mediocre work with slow development). I believe a writer with tremendous talent can say a lot with a little material.

Good point. It irritates me when some mangas just totally milk the cow for all its worth and stretch the simplest storylines for 10 volumes. I mean, just END it already. Give us a break.



If there's going to be a one-shot manga done, it ought to be just one good graphic novel. I like short stories as much as the next person, but audiences are attracted by loveable characters probably more than anything -- and its difficult to pull off well-rounded development in just one short little pocket-sized book.

That may be another good question to add to the poll: what keeps you hooked on a certain manga the most? Action/adventure? Good angsty romance? Likeable characters? Interesting story? Etc.

[Psycho Ann]

Oop, one more thing, I'm starting to see a pattern... the question number 3 refers to *secular* manga, just to make it clear.

And that is a good question Kat, I'll put it in a better survey in the future ^^ Though, that question is pretty general isn't it? To narrow it down to Christian manga it'll probably have a few extra options like, "the sound theology", "cool angels", "Jesus really rocked", etc.

Again, thanks everyone XD XD

[Kat Walker]

Yes definitely. A question on preferred art styles might be a good one too. Traditional manga, western-influenced, tradtional western, chibi, serious, cute, etc... you can think of something. ^^;

[cbwing0]

My votes:

1.Horror-I like horror in general, and it would be interesting to see a Christian take on it. An action/horror title would also be acceptable.

2.Violence-The rest are more obviously wrong; and I don't mind violence.

3.Homosexual themes-This was my vote, although in hindsight I might choose "questionable use of Judeo-Christian themes" instead.

4.Series-I like to get more pages for my money. I don't buy a lot of manga, but I would if it came in huge paperbacks.

5.Online via major seller-They usually have the best prices, and definitely the best range of titles. Most will also recommend similar titles that you might enjoy.

6.Fantasy-If I wanted to experience everyday life, I would live it .

7.Only if the manga is good-Although a manga based on a bad movie/book/game would probably get overlooked even if it was good.

[Kinkosami]

1. Drama... for ShiroiHikari's reasons.

2. Gore. Violence doesn't really bother me, especially in manga.

3. Blatant fan-service. I'm sick of seeing this stuff in manga. I would have voted for the yaoi/yuri stuff, but I haven't seen much of that....

4. One-Shot; single volume story (200+ pages). My mom doesn't let me buy many manga, so I try to get the shorter ones so I can get the whole story.

5. In the local bookstore. I Like going and actually holding and looking at the book before I buy it.

6. Ambiguous: appeals to secular public with hints only a believer might 'get'. I couldn't decide between this and Everyday Life. I think the other stuff might get a little... boring... maybe. More non Christians might buy this too.

7. Only if the manga itself is good.

Some of my choices I'm second guessing now.... I can never decide on anything...

[glitch1501]

1. action

2. violence

3. i put blatant fanservice, but also homosexual themes is something i dont like either

4. series

5. amazon.com, although after reading kinkosamis reason for book store i agree

6. fantasy

7. only if the manga itself is good.

[uc pseudonym]

3. Questionable use of Judeo/Christian values, easily. If there are any theological values present, I'd like them to be done correctly. Not that I mind if characters have something wrong, or have flawed values, but if the series actively promotes something that I can't support as a Christian I am uncertain I could actually term it Christian manga. That strays from the question, but it does at least relate to the primary topic.

Let me amend this by saying that I did mean that it was the thing in secular manga that I dislike most, but quickly moved tangentally onto the subject of those themes in relating to Christian manga...

[Ducky]

1) Comedy - My definitian of comedy is rather loose though, like I laugh at the word cat. But lighthearted stuff is always fun to read I suppose any genre can be humorous so other than that drama or action.

2) Violence - It's easier to deal with I guess. Plus it lends itself more to being a needed part of the story as opposed to gratuitous.

3) Homosexual stuff - It's just totally unnessecary and irritates me for no other reason than the utter wrongness of it. Crude jokes are also bothersome, they're just annoying.

4) Series - shortish series, my bank acount likes short series, my brain likes long ones. I get attatched to the characters and I always want to know more about them.

5) Bookstore - the instant gratification and the ability to fanatically snatch the latest volume off the shelf is so much fun.

6) Fantasy - I've been a fan of fantasy since I was a kid so seeing some christian fantasy manga would totally rock. Spiritual warfare stuff is really nifty too.

7) If the manga is good then the rest isn't that big a deal. Most likely I wouldn't have seen the original anyway so it wouldn't have to much impact on my opinion.

[true_noir_chloe]

Thanks for doing this Ann. It shows you really care about what you've been called to do.

1. I almost picked Humor, but went with Drama
2. Violence
3. I can't remember, the one which remarked about over yaoi/yuri/pedophilia themes and such.
4. Series - I just like the characters too much to call it quits after one book ^__^
5. Bookstore - I love bookstores
6. Real Life, but I would be happy with Fantasy or Ambiguous, I could only choose one though
7. I chose the middle answer, can't remember what it was.