Manga Left to Right and Right to Left, the Poll

Very sorry if this has been asked (or polled) before. I was wondering what is more preferred in manga in terms of reading. Left to Right (Western Style), or Right to Left (Traditonal Manga Style). Thanks

 

well manga Is a japanese from of drawing so it would be a offence if we europeans would start doing manga from left to right, cause then it wouldn't bee manga anymore, :glazed: Am I not right

 

Yea i agree with Mangaka, it should be right to left cus i am so used to reading manga that way any way why not?

 

I really don't mind from which side I read my manga

But if I had to choose, Right to Left.

- Teddz

 

I chose right to left, although it really doesn't matter that much to me.

 

I can get used to reading it in any direction, but if i had to make a choice then i would prefer to have it going from right to left.

Plus this way the cars drive on the left side of the road which is how they do it in Japan (i think).

 

I find these kind of questions really... well, stupid. I mean, really... if you let how you read a manga even remotely influence you and, even if it's a microscopic bit, how much you would enjoy the manga or in some way influences what manga you will read... well, I think you can see where I'm going with this. I have no preference, whatsoever, and I'm not gonna abandon that stance just to aid one side or the other.

Anyways... yeah, sorry 'bout that rant... I just deal with a lot of people who refuse to read a manga that's printed from left to right. So it's rather annoying.

 

Same with me but after a while of mainly reading un-flipped manga it feels wierd to read western style when the rear flipped manga (Nadesico, Big O) rolls around.

 

same with the rest but it's kinda weird if a non-japanese mangaka publishes a manga following the japanese style. :anime:

 

While that's an admirable stance, Amon, I'll admit I'm actually one of those people who gets turned off by left-to-right-printed manga. Allow me to explain why...

While, theoretically, the content of the manga remains the same regardless of which direction it reads in, I find it incredibly annoying when all the images have been mirror-flipped. I mean, it took me, what - maybe five minutes to adjust to reading right to left the first time I picked up a manga that was printed the traditional way. And I've never gone back. It really gets to me when I have to keep reminding myself, "Oh, right, so-and-so is actually right-handed, this is just flipped so he seems to be using his left," or "Wait, this character's bangs are on the OTHER side." It's a lot more of a hassle to constantly adjust to looking at a mirrored image than it is to read right to left.

I think a lot of it has to do with my artistic tendencies... I use my manga for reference when I do fanart, so it's important to me that character accessories, designs on clothing, hair, etc. are on the correct side. But I'm also really obsessive about things being done "correctly" - I don't like localization of an anime or manga if it in any way alters perception of the original, to be honest. I realize that not everyone feels that way, but eh.

For those reasons, I am influenced when buying manga; while I won't absolutely refuse to purchase one that's been flipped, I'm far more likely to buy something that's as authentic as possible. I see reading manga in right-to-left format as just another part of the experience, like listening to the Japanese language in subtitled anime. I mean, if you go to a Japanese restaurant to eat sushi, wouldn't it seem a little odd to you if the place was decorated like a classic American burger joint? It might not change the taste of the food, but it does make the experience a bit less authentic. Same thing with manga.

 

I prefer to read things in a format as near to the original as possible. So, when I'm reading manga, I prefer reading right-to-left. When I'm reading Korean manhwa, many of which seem to be published left-to-right...well, you get the idea.

Dilandau has a very good point. While the story may not be changed in flipped manga, the feeling is a bit different. Some stories, it isn't really all that much of a problem. Yes, the art is mirror imaged, but it doesn't change anything story-wise. Other series, like Inuyasha, suffer somewhat due to the flipping.

*shrug* It doesn't matter enough to me that I want to waste time arguing over the merits of one or the other style.

~Shadrach Anki

 

Thanks, this has been quite helpful. I really have no choice of which style I'd rather read, as long as it hasn't been messed around with, I'd hate to read a flipped manga and would not flip any manga myself, I mean, how really long does it take to get use to reading from left to right, or right to left. :anime:

 

it doesn't really matter to me.
i just wish all the companies would print their manga in either right to left or left to right so i wouldn't have to switch soo much.( i live in america.)

 

I don't really care either way, and also I can't tell my left from right so it really doesn't matter!

 

Either way is ok with me, but if I had to coose Ill pick right to left

 

While I will happily read manga either way, being lefthanded I find right to left feels more natural for me. Also left to right has the downside of flipping images, none more apparent that with one of the godzilla manga where they were looking at a map of japan and it was the wrong way around!

 

Either way is okay... in fact, however way the author (of each series) intended would be better. Anyone ever read a manga that went top-to-bottom?

 

Not that I'm aware of, four-panel comics aside. However, you make a good point. Authenticity is a good thing.