Mangaka RPG

Undere: That person who agrees with practically everything you say enthusiastically, as a way to quickly gain intimacy, so to speak. Un is a casual/informal way of saying "yes".
Bakadere
Clumsy, absent-minded, and lovable, from baka, meaning silly. The bakadere has good intentions, gets everything wrong, and loves without any calculation.
Sadodere
It greatly provokes the person they like and enjoys their embarrassed reaction, in a sadistic way. Fan guides say that the sadistic type tends to soften over time; the difference from the yandere is that they want a reaction, not possession. Provocation that turns into real humiliation is a limit in fiction and in life.
Teasedere
Playful and mischievous, he teases those he likes because he finds it cute when they get embarrassed, and makes it clear that he cares. Fans describe him as the gentle version of sadore: never cruel, always on the other person's side.
Kiridere
Serious, firm, and reserved in public, and openly affectionate, even a little spoiled, when alone with someone he loves. Kiri comes from kiritto, a word for a firm and well-defined appearance. The charm lies in the contrast between these two sides.

• Tsundere: Cold, harsh, or angry on the outside, but softens and shows a sweet side over time ("I didn't do this for you!").
• Yandere: Very sweet and affectionate at first, but develops an obsessive, jealous, and possessive love to the point of eliminating rivals.
• Kuudere: Calm, serious, of few words and seemingly "unemotional," but harboring deep care within.
• Dandere: Shy, quiet, and withdrawn due to embarrassment, but becomes warm and talkative when she gains confidence with someone.
• Deredere: Sweet, cheerful, full of energy and affectionate from the very first moment, without masks or shyness.
• Himedere / Oujidere: Someone who demands to be treated like royalty (princess or prince) by the person they like.
• Kamidere: So proud as to have a superiority complex and act like a deity (kami).
• Mayadere: An antagonist or dangerous being who is initially an enemy, but may switch sides for the one she loves.

Main Demographic Categories

• Shonen (aimed at a young male audience, focused on action, friendship, and overcoming challenges):
Dragon Ball Z
• Naruto
One Piece
• Shoujo (aimed at a young female audience, focused on romance and emotional drama):
Sailor Moon
• Sakura Card Captor
• Kimi ni Todoke
• Seinen (aimed at adult men, with more mature, complex, or violent storylines):
• Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin)
• Death Note
• Berserk
• Josei (aimed at adult women, depicting everyday life, work, and real relationships):
• Natsuyuki Rendezvous
• Orange
• Kodomuke (aimed at children):
• Spirited Away
• Kiki's Delivery Service

Main Plot Genres

• Action and Adventure:
• Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
Hunter x Hunter
• Science Fiction and Cyberpunk:
Cowboy Bebop
• Steins;Gate
• Akira
• Mecha (Giant Robots):
• Neon Genesis Evangelion
• Gurren Lagann
• Sport:
• Super Campeões (Captain Tsubasa)

🎭 Plot Genres (The style of the story)

• Isekai: The protagonist is transported, reincarnated, or trapped in another world (usually medieval or a video game world) (e.g., Sword Art Online, Re:Zero, KonoSuba).
• Slice of Life: Focused on ordinary, realistic daily life, showcasing the beauty in the little things of routine (e.g., K-On!, Yuru Camp).
• Mecha: Stories focused on giant robots controlled by humans, mixing science fiction with military or political conflicts (e.g., Evangelion, Gundam).
• Mahou Shoujo (Magical Girls): Ordinary girls who gain magical powers to fight evil, usually with striking transformations (e.g., Sailor Moon, Madoka Magica).
• Spokon (Sports): Stories focused on a specific sport, highlighting team spirit, intense training, and championships (e.g., Haikyuu!!, Kuroko no Basket).
• Gore / Horror: Focused on suspense, horror, and scenes with lots of blood, mutilation, or disturbing psychological elements (e.g., Another, Tokyo Ghoul).
• Ecchi: Anime with strong visual appeal of a sensual nature and erotic comedy, but without explicitly adult content (e.g., High School DxD, To Love-Ru).
• Cyberpunk: A subgenre of science fiction set in a dystopian future with high technology and a low quality of life (e.g., Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, Ghost in the Shell).

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🎯 Demographics (Who the work is intended for)

• Shonen: Aimed at a young male audience. Focused on action, overcoming challenges, friendship, and epic battles (e.g., Naruto, Dragon Ball, One Piece).
• Shojo: Aimed at a young female audience. Focused on relationships, feelings, school dramas, and emotional growth (e.g., Kimi ni Todoke, Ao Haru Ride).
• Seinen: Aimed at adult men. It deals with complex, political, violent, or psychological themes, with realistic or mature fantasy stories (e.g., Berserk, Vinland Saga, Monster).
• Josei: Aimed at adult women. It portrays the daily life of college, career, mature romantic relationships, and the dilemmas of adulthood in a realistic way (e.g., Nana, Wotakoi).
• Kodomo: Aimed at children. Educational, lighthearted stories with strong visual appeal (e.g., Pokémon, Doraemon).

1. The Protagonist "Cut and Paste"

• Identical appearance: He is usually a young man with short, straight black hair and no other striking visual features (often nicknamed "generic Kirito" by fans, in reference to the protagonist of Sword Art Online).
• Clichéd past: In real life, he was either an exploited office worker (salaryman) or an antisocial student (hikikomori) who had no friends, girlfriend, or future prospects.
• The accident: Almost 90% of the time, he dies after being run over by the infamous Truck-kun (the truck that became a joke in the community for being the biggest portal to other worlds).

2. The World: Medical Fantasy RPG Style (Dragon Quest Copy)

Instead of creating a rich mythological or magical universe (like in The Lord of the Rings), generic isekai authors simply copy the rules of a video game:
• Flat world: The setting is always a medieval Europe with green lawns and stone villages.
• The guild system: The protagonist arrives in the world and the first thing they do is go to the "Adventurers' Guild," where they receive an identification card.
• Status Screens: The world has physical laws that display floating windows with the level (Lv), hit points (HP), mana (MP), and skills written on them, as if it were a game.
• Repeated monsters: The first enemies are always Goblins or Slimes.

3. Absurd Power Without Effort (Cheat Skills)

The hero doesn't need to train for years like Goku or Naruto. He starts the first episode by breaking the balance of the universe because the God who reincarnated him gave him a stolen ability (cheat). He defeats ancient villains with a snap of his fingers, making the story lack any real tension or danger, since the audience knows he'll never lose.

4. The Instant Harem with No Personality

Female characters are often introduced solely to inflate the protagonist's ego. This usually includes:
• A blonde-haired elf, a beast-girl (with cat or wolf ears)

Complaints that some isekai anime and manga "copy" Berserk stem from a deep frustration within the community with the superficiality in the use of dark fantasy elements.
People criticize this trend primarily for three structural reasons:

1. The aesthetics of the generic "Black Swordsman"

The most obvious visual complaint arises because dozens of isekai protagonists use the exact same iconic look as Guts, the protagonist of Berserk:
• All-black clothing with torn capes.
• An absurdly gigantic sword (similar to the Dragon Slayer) carried on the back.
• A bitter, cold, and lonely personality.
• Often, a streak of white hair or a noticeable scar.
When a manga fan sees this design repeated in several generic works, the feeling of lack of originality is immediate.

2. Edgy for pure convenience (Without the dramatic weight)

The major difference that generates outrage lies in the execution of the suffering.
• In Berserk: Guts' trauma and the dark tone of the world are built up psychologically, deeply, slowly, and painfully. The danger is real, and the consequences are brutal.
• In revenge Isekai: It has become a very common cliché for the protagonist to be betrayed by his companions in the first chapter and thrown into a dungeon. He decides to take revenge and adopts a "dark" posture like Guts. However, in a few chapters he gains an extremely overpowered ability, defeats everyone effortlessly, and creates a harem. The "dark" tone becomes just a superficial shell to mask an adolescent power fantasy.

3. The saturation of the "Revenge in Dark Fantasy" formula

Following the success of dark fantasy and isekai works that subverted the genre (such as the beginning of Arifureta or The Rising of the Shield Hero), the Japanese market was flooded with mass-produced copies and light novels that rigorously repeat the same structure.
Because Berserk is the greatest historical reference in the world for dark fantasy co-op.

In manga and anime, the use of stereotypes and clichés (tropes) is a very common tool. Authors use these ready-made formulas so that the audience can instantly identify a character's personality or the direction of the story without needing lengthy explanations.
The most frequent stereotypes in manga fall into three main categories:

1. Personality Types (The "Deres")

In the world of manga, female (and sometimes male) personalities are often categorized by suffixes based on standardized behaviors:
• Tsundere: A character who behaves in an aggressive, arrogant, or cold manner at first, but hides a very sweet and caring side that is gradually revealed.
• Yandere: Starts out as someone extremely sweet, kind, and passionate, but develops a morbid and violent obsession, capable of hurting or even killing anyone who gets close to their love interest.
• Kuudere: An extremely cold, cynical, quiet character with no emotional expressions, but who harbors deep feelings inside.
• Dandere: An extremely shy, antisocial, and silent character who only gains confidence and opens up when around someone they trust.

2. Stereotypes of Protagonists (Especially in the Shonen Genre)

The protagonists of action and adventure manga usually follow a very specific formula:
• The "Bottomless Glutton": The hero has a superhuman appetite, eats mountains of food (usually meat or ramen), and regains his strength through eating (e.g., Goku, Luffy, Naruto).
• The "Idiot Genius": The protagonist is incredibly naive, clumsy, or stupid when it comes to everyday things, but demonstrates absurd and instinctive tactical genius in battle.
• The Destined Orphan: Almost always, the protagonist has no present parents, was raised by a grandfather/master, or carries a tragic lineage secret (or a monstrous power sealed within) that makes him "the chosen one."

Fanservice is any element included in an anime or manga that is not essential to the main story, but is included solely to please or entertain the audience.
The term originated in the otaku community and encompasses different types of content:

Most common types of fanservice

• Sensual or ecchi content: This is the most classic and well-known meaning of the word. It involves scenes of partial nudity, exaggerated cleavage, camera angles focused on the characters' bodies, accidental falls in intimate positions, or episodes that take place entirely on the beach, in hot springs (onsen), or while wearing swimwear.
• References and crossovers: Winks to fans, such as special appearances by classic characters, recreations of famous poses, inside jokes (easter eggs), or old opening themes playing during moments of great emotion in battle.
• Epic actions or fan fantasies: When a beloved character strikes a super cool pose, pulls off a nostalgic move, or displays impressive power just to excite the audience, even if the scene doesn't change the course of the plot.

Why do studios use it?

• Marketing and engagement: Helps to capture the attention of the target audience (often young people in shonen works) and generates discussions on social media.
• Product sales: Attractive or charismatic characters quickly become lucrative action figures, posters, and collectible items.

The original author (mangaka) has legal rights to their work, but the level of actual control they have over the anime varies greatly from project to project. Generally, they act as a consultant, not as the director or head of animation.
The author's relationship with the anime production works like this:

1. Design Approval (Character Design)

Before the anime begins to be definitively designed, the studio's character designer makes several proposals for how the characters will look in color and in motion.
• The author approves: The studio sends these drawings to the manga artist. He analyzes them and gives the "green light" or requests adjustments (such as "the hair needs to be spikier" or "the eyes are too big").
• Color palette: Since the manga is in black and white, the author helps define the official colors for the hair, eyes, and clothing, which had never appeared in color before.

2. The level of involvement varies (The 3 types of authors)

Depending on the contract, the author's size, and their available time, the level of involvement varies drastically:
• The Active Supervisor: Some authors insist on reviewing each script, approving the voice actors, and drawing sketches for the animation team.
• Example: Eiichiro Oda (One Piece) and Tite Kubo (Bleach) are highly involved in the adaptations and new arcs of their anime.
• The Distant Consultant: The author focuses on continuing to draw the weekly/monthly manga (which already consumes all of their time) and trusts the studio. They only approve macro decisions and the initial design.
• The Separated Creator: In rarer cases, the author sells the adaptation rights and lets the production committee make 100% of the creative decisions, interfering in almost nothing.

3. Who has the final say?

If there's a major creative dispute, the Production Committee and the Anime Director usually win, since they're the ones investing millions of yen in the project.
Many authors avoid creating problems to ensure the production runs smoothly, but there are historical exceptions.

Transforming a manga into an anime is a complex process that involves everything from business decisions to the meticulous work of hundreds of animators. This entire ecosystem exists primarily to boost sales of the original work.
The process is divided into four main stages:

1. The Business and the Production Committee

Making an anime is extremely expensive. That's why companies rarely finance a project on their own.
• The Committee: Publishers (such as Shueisha), record labels, TV networks, and animation studios come together to form a Production Committee. They split the costs and profits.
• The Choice: They analyze popularity, the number of volumes published, and the sales potential of products (action figures, t-shirts, soundtrack) before giving the "green light".

2. Pre-Production (The Planning)

With the funding secured, the creative team springs into action:
• Screenplay (Series Kousei): A main screenwriter adapts the manga's story into a TV episode format (usually 20 minutes long). This is where they decide what to cut, what to extend, and where to insert "filler" episodes (original episodes).
• Character Design: The black and white visual style of the manga needs to be simplified and adapted so that animators can repeatedly draw it in motion. The official color palette is also defined.

3. Production (Animation)

This is the most time-consuming part, where the static paintings come to life:
• Storyboards (Econte): The director draws a comic book "sketch" of the entire episode, defining the camera angles, the timing of each scene, and the actions.
• Key Frames (Genga): More experienced animators draw the main positions of a movement (for example: the beginning and end of a punch).
• Intermediate (Douga): Beginner animators or outsourced studios draw all the sheets that fall between the keyframes to make the movement appear fluid.
[Static Manga] ➔ [Storyboard / Angle] ➔ [Key Frames (Beginning/End)] ➔ [Intermediate Drawings (Movement)]

Mangaka (Japanese: 漫画家) is the term used in Japan to designate the author, cartoonist, or comic book artist responsible for creating a manga. Outside of Japan, the word has become specifically associated with professionals who produce comics in the Japanese style.

What does a manga artist do?

• Complete creation: Often, the mangaka is responsible for both the script (story, dialogue, and plot) and the art (drawings, hatching, and inking), although in some cases there is a division of functions between scriptwriter and illustrator.
• Training: Many study at art schools, manga colleges, or start as assistants (working in the studio of a more experienced mangaka) before launching their own works. Others gain recognition through contests promoted by publishers.
• Routine: In Japan, the routine of a professional manga artist working on weekly magazines is extremely intense, demanding tight deadlines and continuous work.

What makes people like manga (Japanese comic books) involves a combination of deep narratives, creative freedom, and a unique emotional connection.
The main reasons that attract readers are:

1. Diversity and depth of topics

• Variety of audiences and genres: Contrary to the stigma that comics are only for children, manga cover everything. There are specific categories for children, young people (Shonen and Shojo) and adults (Seinen and Josei), addressing themes such as samurai, sports, cooking, psychological drama, science fiction and existential dilemmas.
• Complex stories: The plots often stray from the basic "good versus evil" trope and explore pain, fear, overcoming challenges, and maturing in a serious and impactful way.

2. Reading rhythm and experience

• Own pace: Unlike watching an anime (which has a speed dictated by the animation and soundtrack), reading manga allows the person to define the timing of each scene, imagining the voices and sounds on their own.
• Access to exclusive content: There are far more manga published worldwide than anime adaptations produced. Many excellent stories never get an anime version, or advance much further in the original story than what the screen showed.
• Narrative agility: The reading is usually dynamic and fluid, ideal for those who want to follow long sagas without the long pauses between TV seasons.

3. Art and identification

• Expressive style: The drawing style — with strong use of hatching, intense facial expressions, and cinematic framing — conveys strong emotions very easily.
• Connection with the characters: The protagonists are usually built on the archetype of the constantly evolving hero (who makes mistakes, suffers defeats, and gets back up), which generates great empathy and serves as motivational inspiration for everyday life.