Forum - View topicHow come the legendary classics before Dragon Ball barely top all time Bestseller Manga Lists?
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Samuknight
Posts: 35 |
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When I peak at the bestselling manga of all times list on wikipedia, I am surprised many classics seen as pioneering or even revolutionizing the entire manga industry don't make a big dent sales wise such as Ashita No Joe-forget that some of the titles and we associate as the most important classics and mangakas as the most important artists who made the greatest impact in anime history are not in the list at all such as Captain Harlock and Shotaro Ishinomori (esp this one!)!
I have to ask why is this? The only legendary author and specific work that whose sales actually matched the their supposed reputation is Tezuka (who had a two whopping works in the top 15 list with both of them selling over 100 million copies, one of them Blackjack even outselling Bleach and his other work Astroboy narrowly missing the 10th place spot to Bleach!) and Doraemon (which in addition to selling over 100 million copies is also the only Kodomoko demograph work in the list). If we count unfinished works, Golgo 13. I mean forget the 100 million copies seller, considering how much Ryoko Ikeda's manga and Ashita No Joe are believed to have been the equivalent of DBZ and Sailor Moon of their time period the 70s, I'm so surprised they only sold over 10 million despite dominating the manga industry during their publication. And of course I'm not counting how much of the pioneer legends such as Go Nagai never had a single work make it to Wikipedia's list. Hell I'm pretty surprised Clamp's only listed work is Tsubasa Reservoir Chornicles (one of their most recent ones) since I remember back in the 90s about how big Clamp's reputation was! Can anyone explain why the supposed legends famed and revered in in the otaku subculture such as Cyborg 009 and the works of Ryoko Ikeda do not match their hype in sales esp they claims of how they dominated the industry during their time? And how come Tezuka the only author with multiple works selling hundreds of millions and Golgo 13 along with Doraemon the only old classics (not counting Tezuka's stuff) that individually made it to the top 15 list from before the pre-Dragon Ball era? I was so surprised that what dominates the top 15 bestseller of all time list were are mosty stuff from the 80s and followed by 90s major hitters and a few 2000s era works. What is the reason for this? I'm especially surprised with Golgo 13 was the only long running series before from the 70s and earlier to reach over 100 million sold. Is the rep of the classic innovators such as Go Nagai and Hana No Ko Lunlun really very overrated in its impact? How come Tezuka along with Doraemon and Golgo 13 the only pre-Dragon Ball classics thats famous outside of Japan to actually match their supposed impact and fame in sales? |
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Chiibi
 Posts: 4829 |
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That's a very good question. I can only speculate that maybe people felt they were too 'dated'...or something. Or they just didn't resonate with the audience as strongly...?
But that's a really random guess on my part and I haven't read any of these classics myself. So I could be totally wrong. I'm sure someone here can give a better answer....and if not, maybe try Answerman. |
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Nate148
Posts: 513 |
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subculture early manga were still known to manga types. Jump was not really big till the 80's and its high point was late 80's early 90's many manga only hit big on the jump to tv as well as Nagai was controversial in the day while later works aimed at a mainstream audience
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Alan45
 Village Elder Posts: 10032 Location: Virginia |
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I would say the primary reason is market size. Back in the 70s the total number of people buying manga was a lot smaller than the number buying two or three decades later. I'm sure someone here has the numbers. With a smaller market, it takes less sales to dominate. Also as the market got larger, it became more diverse with different types of stories coming into competition. Since that was a Wikipedia article you consulted, it likely includes international sales which were small to none back in the 70s.
Once a series stops running the word of mouth hype stops and as a result reprints never get the kind of sales that manga gets first run. Even now, popular titles that sold well get very little notice a few years after they complete their run. Also tastes change, story types and art styles become dated within a decade much less several. The people pushing those older titles as great are a rather small but vocal group. They include mostly those interested in the history of manga. The average current fan likely has little knowledge or interest in those older titles. They want to be involved in what is being talked about currently. |
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MaritLage
 Posts: 140 |
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because the Horizon Corporation has excess resources and pays bribes to have their proprietary content put forth above more deserving proprietary content .
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Alan45
Village Elder Posts: 10032 Location: Virginia |
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I'm not familiar with the Horizon Corporation. Where are they located and what are some of the manga titles they represent?
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Chiibi
Posts: 4829 |
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This answer makes the most sense to me. The number of Manga readers definitely expanded between the 80s and 90s by like...a lot. The era of DB, Sailor Moon, Pokemon, etc. One Piece which also started in the late 90s is still the #1 seller, even now. For a series that started way back in 1997, that's pretty impressive. |
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MangaNeko
Posts: 139 |
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There are a few of things to factor:
#1 Take a look at manga magazine circulation before 2000. Millions of young boys read the manga magazines and NEVER picked up the collected chapters, which is what you’re really looking at. One Piece top sales are usually 4 million for one volume of manga. Shonen Jump circulation topped out at 6/7 million per week, before dropping. #2 Societal changes made identifying as a fan of manga or anime more acceptable. #3 Manga libraries let fans read the older titles easily. #4 Japan is only the size of California, so travel and accessibility are much easier. #5 Classic manga still does not sell very well in America. Seven Seas released some wonderful hardcover collections. Their 2nd Lupin the 3rd collection recently was released. I am not sure how well VIZ’s new classic Takahashi releases UY and MI have done, but it was really nice to have Urusei Yatsura fully completed. Hopefully as fans broaden their manga tastes classics will continue to find new audiences. |
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Samuknight
Posts: 35 |
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Since you brought it up, it makes me curious is used sales also a factor esp for older titles? How about lack of new printing (again in particular for older series)? I remember before the Slam Dunk reprint, a lot of used copies of the original 90s volumes were so freaking common on ebay so this makes me curious how much this would impact sales. Esepecially since some giant bestsellers such as Yu Yu Hakusho hasn't gotten a reprint since original publication and the sales figures are literally those from decades ago shortly after the series ended in Japan. Also how does omnibus colelction count into raw volume sales? Would this impact the data since they're usually counted as one sale figure per omnibus volume rather than the original multiple 3-4 tankoban volumes that would would have made a single tankoban volume? |
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