Live Action
These shoujo series that have live-action versions! It can be either a TV series or movie. The TV series may or may not be Japanese. Taiwan does a lot of great live-action adaptations :)
- Change!, by HASHIBA Mao and TERADA Toshio
Title:Change!
Author:HASHIBA Mao and TERADA Toshio
ISBN# 4-08-847016-8
Margaret Comics, 1999
I first came in contact with the story of ‘Change!’ in the form of a live action Japanese TV drama by the same name that aired in late 1998. I just watched it recently, and loved it :) The drama is 11 or 12 episodes long (each episode is one hour). At the end of the last episode, the 2 main actresses in it did an ad plugging the manga that goes ... - Gokusen, by MORIMOTO Kozueko
Title:Gokusen
Author:MORIMOTO Kozueko
ISBN# 4-08-862503-X
You Comics, 2000
I probably would not have purchased this manga series if I hadn’t watched the live action drama first. Boy I am glad I did, because I am now hooked! The art style in this is not something I am usually attracted to. There are only 3 nice-looking characters in this series. Everyone else looks kind freaky shounen-manga scary. Vaguely Initial-D-ish. But the story is a lot of fun, and that is what hooked me ... - Hanazakari no Kimitachi E, by NAKAJO Hisaya
Title:Hanazakari no Kimitachi E
(For You in Full Blossom)
Author:NAKAJO Hisaya
ISBN# 4-592-11602-X
Hana to Yume Comics, 1997
Yay! It’s another manga by Hisaya NAKAJO! I love her work! Her lines are so clean and solid, and the backgrounds are detailed too! There is something about the way she draws people that really appeals to me. Her characters are always so stylish too :) Not only is the art great, the stories are cute! ^_^ I like how she keeps up the romantic tension ... - Hotaru no Hikari, by HIURA Satoru
Title: Hotaru no Hikari
- It’s Only Little Light in my Life
Author: HIURA Satoru
ISBN# 4-06-340529-x
Kodansha Comics, 2005
As I am currently getting ridiculously fangirly over the second season of the live action drama for this series, I figure now is a good time to talk about this manga! Hotaru no Hikari is a josei manga, or manga aimed at an older audience than your average shoujo fare. This series is aimed at young women in their 20′s, and features a heroine in ... - Itazura na Kiss, by TADA Kaoru
Title:Itazura na Kiss
(Mischevious Kiss)
Author:TADA Kaoru
ISBN: 4-08-849727-9
Margaret Comics, 1991
Here is a wonderful shoujo manga series that I can’t believe I have neglected to add to my page! This is such a fun manga, and one of my favorites! The plot for this may seem similar now to a lot of other series I talk about on this page, but remember that it first began back in 1991. I figure that back then the plot idea may not have been ... - Kimi ni Todoke, by SHIINA Karuho
Title: Kimi ni Todoke
(Reaching You)
Author: SHIINA Karuho
ISBN# 978-4-08-846061-1
Margaret Comics, 2006
Ahh, I can’t believe I haven’t included this manga on this site sooner! It is such a good series! I originally saw this series at my local bookstore a few months ago, but I never picked it up because at the time there were already 5 volumes out, and I was sort of reluctant to start a series that would require that much of a financial investment. However, this manga ... - Kimi wa Petto!, by OGAWA Yayoi
Title:Kimi wa Petto!
Author:OGAWA Yayoi
ISBN# 4-06-325918-8
Kodansha Comics, 2000
There were two main things that attracted me to this manga- the title, “Kimi wa Petto” – “You’re a Pet” and the fact that the heroine of the story is shown on the cover eating Pocky. Now I am wondering which member of the food-sharing couple pictured here is the pet, and who is the master. Hmmm…. and I really love Pocky.. ok, I’ll get it! Heheh, it’s as simple as that. As ... - Oishii Kankei, by MAKIMURA Satoru
Title:Oishii Kankei
(Delicious Relationship)
Author:MAKIMURA Satoru
ISBN# 4-08-785132-X
Young You Comics, 1999
I can’t believe I haven’t covered this manga on my page yet! I just have to include Oishii Kankei, it’s such a cute series! I was first introduced to this series through the live-action drama that was made several years ago. I fell in love with the drama- it was so funny, and the characters so were so likable :) I was very happy to find the manga and compare ... - Otomen, by KANNO Aya
Title: Otomen
Author: KANNO Aya
ISBN# 978-4-592-18414-0
Hana to Yume Comics, 2007
Wow, two new summaries on the same day! Go me!
How could I possibly resist such an adorable cover? Look at him! He’s blushing! And there are hearts! And SPARKLES! So many SPARKLES! Yes, I am easily swayed by shiny things… Fortunately, this turned out to be a really amusing story too! I haven’t reviewed anything by this author here before. The art style is very clean and attractive, and the hero ... - Parfait Tic!, by NANAJI Nagamu
Title: Parfait Tic!
Author: NANAJI Nagamu
ISBN# 4-08-853247-3
Margaret Comics 2000
Heh, I jump from one very long series (Tokimeki Tonight) to another, Parfait Tic!. However, this one is a bit more modern. This one is already a rather popular series, so I never really thought to talk about it here, but then I realized that they are making a live-action TV drama version of it in Taiwan, and I suddenly felt the need to go re-read all my volumes. This led me to ... - Romance Godan Katsuyou, by FUJITA Kazuko
Title: Romance Godan Katsuyou
(Four Steps to Romance)
Author: FUJITA Kazuko
ISBN# 4-09-133291-9
Flower Comics, 1989
I have had this cute 4-volume set of manga for a long time, but for some reason I never sat down and read it. I sometimes actually forget I own a series, and then when I see it mentioned elsewhere and become interested in it, I am startled to discover I already own it ^_^; Such was the case with this series. I picked it up at a manga ... - Switch Girl!!, by AIDA Natsumi
Title: Switch Girl!!
Author: AIDA Natsumi
ISBN# 978-4-08-846132-8
Margaret Comics, 2007
Wow, 2 reviews in one day! I must be excited about going to Anime Expo this week :) Anyway, This is such a fun manga! I purchased it after reading a brief preview, and I am glad I did! The art is cute and the situations and characters are very funny! I don’t think I have talked about any other series by this author before, but after reading this one, I am ... - Yasuko to Kenji, by Aruko
Title: Yasuko to Kenji
(Yasuko and Kenji)
Author:Aruko
ISBN# 4-08-847885-1
Margaret Comics, 2005
Ah this is such a fun series! I decided to summarize Yasuko to Kenji because of a live action TV drama version of it that recently started airing, which I am enjoying very much. It reminded me that I do have the manga, and that I never talked about it here. This is a fun comedy series, which, after re-reading it, does seem perfect for a live action adaptation. And while the ...
