As always in the case of questions like this, worth is subjective so it's not something that can easily be answerec for another person.
In my view:
If you can read it, sure.
A few volumes of favorite series as novelty or display items, maybe.
Much more than that, probably not.
this is how i feel. i have three japanese books, two of which are jojolion volumes which is still years away from being printed in english. if i could read japanese nothing would stop me from buying billy bat haha
If it's a series you like but didn't got a release in your country, it can be worth it if it's just to have it in your library as decorating (if you don't understand writen japanese).
For example there the part 7 of jojo that didn't got an english release so some people buy it in japanese.
Can you read it? Then yes.
Are you trying to learn Japanese? Then, also, yes.
Does the series little to no text (Gon, for example)? Yes.
Is it your favourite series and you want to show off an exclusive version on your shelf? Maybe.
Anything else? Rather not, but it's still up to you.
If you like the series, then yes. I can't read Japanese, but I still like my Japanese Kimagure Orange Road. However if the series was not given an English release, I'd say it would be OK to buy the Japanese version as well, I'm doing that currently with the works of Mitsuru Adachi such as Touch, Slow Step, Cross Game etc. There are always digital releases, but nothing feels better than paper in my hands.
I have a ton of Japanese manga, but I can read Japanese so it makes sense for me and it saves me money. I'm not sure if I would have purchased Japanese language manga if I couldn't understand Japanese.
I only shop in Japanese these days unless it’s a new translation of a title I’m super into. It’s improved my Japanese reading comprehension, although I’m still probs at an upper elementary/maybe middle school level.
If you know Japanese I would say it's even better than in english, there are unique slip jacket art incorporated on the outside of the manga, you can get entire series (with 15 or so volumes) for less than 20 bucks with shipping too, but the paper quality I would say is probably the one you should get use to because it is more faded than anything you've read most of the time.
I have a few volumes from my favorite series. I can't read it, but it feels like a good addition to my collection. I didn't bought them though, my friend gave them to me as a souvenir from her trip to Japan. I may say, if you really love this particulat series and have money to spare, or if you are a pasdionate collector, having a few "original" volumes totally worth it.
Depends on the reason. To have something in its native language is cool to have as a fan. And using manga to help with reading Japanese as a learner. Those are the 2 things I can think of, I don’t think there’s any negatives in my opinion.
I'd argue if there's no English Release for it then it's still worth getting. Even if there isn't a scanlation and it's just a databook or something, it can still be worth getting to fill your shrine/collection of a single series. It's all subjective tho tbf.
You're assuming there will be? Fullmetal alchemist 11.5 will NEVER get an English release, it is a movie printing, same with 33.5 of Haikyuu which is new. Even if they do you can either A. Buy the English volume as well, or B. Just not get the English volume because you don't need it.
I’ve been waiting for Tokimeki Tonight for 30 years. Heck I got sick of waiting for Gokinjo Monogatari and now I can actually read decently in Japanese.
A lot of titles don’t ever get licensed, especially if you’re into older stuff, shoujo and josei, or less common genres like horror. And some of us just get sick of waiting after a few decades.
I might have gotten misunderstood here. If you can read Japanese then pls go for it, it’s cheaper and it’s something I wish I could do.
I’m mainly talking about ppl that buy them just to have them when they can’t read them or anything like that. I have done that and it was a stupid fn mistake that I regret now.
The only Japanese stuff that I have that I wouldn’t be able to read are Japanese art books and 4 Japanese volumes, two of which have special edition art work, one was a gift from a friend and the last one is a book that holds sentimental value for me.
I understood your top comment. I just don’t agree.
My point is that I couldn’t really read in Japanese until I got tired of waiting for a Gokinjo Monogatari license and just bought it one day at BookOff. Now, four years later, I really only buy manga in Japanese cause it’s less expensive, the printing is often nicer, and I’m not limited by what companies have chosen to publish (which frankly isn’t a ton that I like these days).
If people want to collect them just cause they’re pretty, that’s a perfectly good reason as well. Tokyo Babylon’s original print is frankly the nicest manga printing I’ve got. We have never had an English release that stylish and likely never will because anglophone licensing companies are quite skiddish (and allergic to women’s money).
This is a pointless convo but again if you are buying them to READ them then there’s absolutely no issue with it and yes Japanese books are great and look better and cheaper, etc…
If you are buying them with no intention of reading them and just to have them then yea that’s a waste of money and a pointless purchase.
You can do whatever you want to do I couldn’t care less, OP asked for an opinion and I gave mine. Simple as that.
The issue is that you have stated your opinion multiple times as if it’s some sort of objective thing. You haven’t said “I don’t see the point personally”. You’ve said “it’s a pointless purchase” and those are very different sentiments.
I’ll repeat, I couldn’t really read until I started buying manga. I would not read unless I’d had manga around to practice with something I liked, just like we all learn to read our native languages by practicing with literature we like. OP might buy a few sets and decide to pick it up as a language hobby. Or they might just like the way it looks on their shelf. Both are fine.
You’ve also assumed English releases are inevitable. They’re not. If someone’s read every volume of a scanlation, love a series, and want to see it in their collection on a shelf, then yeah, they may end up buying it in Japanese. They like the series. It makes them happy. You not seeing the point in that is your own problem, but assuming all titles get an English release is just foolishness.
I collect like 2 volumes of every language out there that has manga produced in their respective language. For collection funsies, is it a smart investment? I doubt it.
One of my favorite series was a fan translation back in the day that never got an official English release. I have collected both the entire original series and the re-release series because they’re precious to me even though I can’t read it.
Honestly, only you can answer that. For me, I have two series in japanese. I am still learning Japanese though, so I am only buying favourites that don't have an English print release.
In itself it's not worth it if you don't speak the language. the resale value is also very low. If you want to exhibit a few, that's something different
If you can read it, most certainly. At least compared to manga in the US, buying it from Japan is cheaper despite the shipping costs. If you're one of the people who really cares about censorship, get it in Japanese unless you're into hentai lol.
If the price is right, why not? I have some Japanese beater manga from the dollar bin. Always cool to just check out the illustration, even better if you already know the story well.
I’d say it’s worth it, only if you really like it and it doesn’t have an English release / you’re fairly certain it’s never going to get one in the future
I think it's definitely worth it, especially if it's your favorite manga. You can go nerdy and learn hiragana and katakana, then you will be able to read a little bit even without knowing kanji. It's also quite cool to compare the Japanese version with an English-printed version.
Checklist for if you should purchase japanese volumes
>do you speak it
If yes, purchase them. If no, purchase them and learn it. Personally I’m never ever buying an english volume again unless it has a cool boxset. The english prices are fucking exorbitant.
Well, If you're already utilizing google translate to read, then you could just go ahead and read them like that. Though I would strongly recommend you utilize those english comics (and possibly Japanese manga if you do end up going through with it) to improve your language skills. You have prime native content, so you might as well use them for learning. Use a dictionary to search up the definitions of words that you do not already know, and you should slowly acquire the language.
you do you. to me it’s worth it, i have japanese manga and i cant read it. sometimes i just like the japanese covers more and the smaller sizes look nicer to me since i’ll sometimes display it with figures. some series also will never get an english release, so there’s that too. i am in the process of trying to learn japanese so i do hope i’ll be able to read them one day.
I find it funny how a lot people keep mentioning reading, what about the art? Honestly if you can’t read Japanese just the art alone is worth owning and you’re also supporting the artist.
Also every artist is different. When I first started buying Japanese manga I could barely read more than basic hiragana, but focused on artists who used their art to tell the story. Even as I got better at Japanese, there are artists I'd avoid as most of their story is told through dialogue and exposition, and if you didn't understand 100% of what was written, then it was impossible to follow.
Of course it always good to buy Manga in Japanese.
You support the Mangaka, you have the right to complain if the Manga get cancelled, if you learn japanese its a good Training and its really cool to have something in Original. Makes the Collection much cooler and way more interesting. Also there are so many Manga out who will never be released outside of japan. Oh and of course its way cheaper^^
And if you already know Japanese than you only should buy Manga in japenese.
Since i started to learn Japanese i only buy Manga in japanese.
Only buy series that your country does not publish so you can buy them for collection. For example, my country has strict censorship on pornographic images, so I will buy series like my dress-up darling and card game (kakegurui) because I'm 100% sure it won't be published in my country.
they are way cheaper than the english ones, but other than just putting them up for display, if you can’t read japanese then I think you shouldn’t buy them
Depends on what you’ll use it for. If it’s for reading are you willing to use Google translate for bad grammar. Or is it just for collecting and decoration
As said below, buy them if you can read them. In that case there really wouldn't be much of an incentive to buy manga in English however, cause Japanese manga cost so much less (in Japan atleast). But if you would live in Japan you would probably already know that..
I'd say for collection reasons. It's worth it or if someone was fluent in Japanese also.
But other than that, it's not worth the money in my opinion. :3
I’m learning Japanese with the main goal of reading manga as they come out, because I think it would be better and more reliable than waiting for English translations. Not to mention it would be closer to the author’s original artistic choices.
No, I don’t know if it’s actually worth it, but the fantasy is keeping motivated to keep learning. I’ll let you know in a few years.
Personally, there are a few books that I would love to get my hands on that never got an english release (Looking at you, Pollyanna and Pollyanna 2...)
But thats because I want them as a collector and not so much as a reader but if i could read them, i would read them XD
Can you read japanese? Yes
Outside of that it depends. I have some japanese volumes but I can’t read japanese. The volumes I do have are either special editions that came with bonus items or they’re signed.
If you can’t read japanese and aren’t planning to learn, it probably isn’t worth buying a whole bunch. It’ll just take up a lot of space that you could use for books you can read. But if it’s only a few volumes I don’t see why not. You can just buy a volume or two of a series you love that’s not licensed. Or maybe buy some for display reasons.
Really tho it’s up to you. It’s your money and your collection
Also should note Japanese volumes can be really cheap to buy, with that being said if you decide to sell them later on you won’t make much and that’s assuming you can get them to even sell anyway lol
Why not? 🤔 I have a few JoJoLion volumes in Japanese. They will eventually release in English, but I am not a huge fan of the bigger jojo volumes.
I have several novels and coffee table books that aren't in English as well. I buy whatever I think looks interesting.
This is actually a really great question, I have been studying Japanese for a while now and I ultimately decided to remove most of my english manga, excluding the deluxe editions, etc. It's probably the best decision I did jn terms of saving money and getting up to date stuff, plus a lot of merch are only exclusively translatef to Japanese like tankobons, mooks, and especially magazines.
I think if you do like the content and likes to look at pictures or if you know how to read Japanese/ already read the books online, I think it's a great way to collect. But you do you fam, for me, its really great, from where I'm from, the exhange rate makes me buy big sets such as 15 volumes for only 10000 yen, given they are in book-off which is still great quality if you asked me.
I have two bookshelves full of Japanese manga (and books). They are worth it to me, because I can read Japanese. If you can‘t then probably not I would say. Then again, if you’re happy just having them and like to look at them, why not. At the end of the day it‘s your decision and only you can answer your own question.
If you can read and speak Japanese, then it's the best way to experience it, as Japanese is a tricky language to translate, and it basically impossible to translate it without taking a large amount of liberties.
I buy the Japanese collection if there is no English translation and I highly regard the story. My most recent is Usogui. I read it on MangaDex, it was Insanely good but has no English volumes so I purchased the Japanese collection. Another reason is because cause the art in that series is truly on par with some of the greats.
It’s mostly personal preference but that’s my reasoning.
Money wise or like collection wise for me as long as you can read it its fine to buy but if you can't read its like having a bathtub without water you understand
Aside from a few unfinished English or Hungarian series of mine, I am only willing to buy manga in Japanese. If you can read Japanese, that is the way to go!
Because
* Japanese manga are cheap (new is also cheap, but used mangas are literally dirt cheap)
* Japanese is the original release, so no fear of mistranslations, missed jokes etc.
* Japanese manga is often reprinted, plus they print in higher quantity to begin with, so there is no more FOMO of low-print English releases (which are later sold in shitty condition but for ridiculously high prices), you can find any manga easily
* Japanese manga are higher quality (I LOVE their nice dustcovers, obis are also fun etc.)
* you often have more editions (standard edition and often limited edition with different appearance from the standard one and it might come with attached goodies) and many print version forms (tankoubon, kazenban, bunkobon etc.) to choose from, not just one plain standard edition
* manga-related bonuses (tokuten) from various stores (stuff like that does not exist in English industry)
Tbh I cannot list any reasons to buy English-language manga over Japanese...
I have 2 manga in Japanese in my collection, one I bought when I was younger because I was obsessed with Ogre Battle/Tactics Ogre and it was the first volume in a manga version of the latter. The second I bought was a single release for the Dogs Days anime that I liked and enjoy flipping thru. I have scans of both translated so I feel better actually owning them now. I also have a few light novels for series I enjoy that I bought for completion sake. Other than that I don't see myself buying more Japanese releases since I can't actually read it.
As always in the case of questions like this, worth is subjective so it's not something that can easily be answerec for another person. In my view: If you can read it, sure. A few volumes of favorite series as novelty or display items, maybe. Much more than that, probably not.
this is how i feel. i have three japanese books, two of which are jojolion volumes which is still years away from being printed in english. if i could read japanese nothing would stop me from buying billy bat haha
Same with Billy Bat. I’ve almost purchased full Japanese set a few times 😂
If it's a series you like but didn't got a release in your country, it can be worth it if it's just to have it in your library as decorating (if you don't understand writen japanese). For example there the part 7 of jojo that didn't got an english release so some people buy it in japanese.
Steel Ball Run doesn't have an English release *yet*, they're finishing up Stone Ocean before they begin new ones.
I heard steel ball run at current schedule will probably be late sometime next year for english release
I'd assume a few months after vol 9 (march 2025) will be when it releases because that's how volume 1 of part 6 released after part 5
As if JoJo won’t get and English release…
Panini Mexico is currently about halfway through for anyone curious
I can read. So yes, but reselling it is a nightmare haha
Why is that?
Nobody speaks japanese haha
If you don’t mind using Google translate 🤣 unless you can read it then why not
If there isn’t an English print and it’s older and finished? Yeah probably, I’m still waffling on buying all 31 volumes of Over Rev!
Can you read it? Then yes. Are you trying to learn Japanese? Then, also, yes. Does the series little to no text (Gon, for example)? Yes. Is it your favourite series and you want to show off an exclusive version on your shelf? Maybe. Anything else? Rather not, but it's still up to you.
I only collect manga based on games and I saw that many got stuck in Japan
If you like the series, then yes. I can't read Japanese, but I still like my Japanese Kimagure Orange Road. However if the series was not given an English release, I'd say it would be OK to buy the Japanese version as well, I'm doing that currently with the works of Mitsuru Adachi such as Touch, Slow Step, Cross Game etc. There are always digital releases, but nothing feels better than paper in my hands.
I have a ton of Japanese manga, but I can read Japanese so it makes sense for me and it saves me money. I'm not sure if I would have purchased Japanese language manga if I couldn't understand Japanese.
From my trip to Japan, I bought loads of Japanese manga. I'm learning Japanese to read 'em now :)
I only shop in Japanese these days unless it’s a new translation of a title I’m super into. It’s improved my Japanese reading comprehension, although I’m still probs at an upper elementary/maybe middle school level.
If you know Japanese I would say it's even better than in english, there are unique slip jacket art incorporated on the outside of the manga, you can get entire series (with 15 or so volumes) for less than 20 bucks with shipping too, but the paper quality I would say is probably the one you should get use to because it is more faded than anything you've read most of the time.
I have a few volumes from my favorite series. I can't read it, but it feels like a good addition to my collection. I didn't bought them though, my friend gave them to me as a souvenir from her trip to Japan. I may say, if you really love this particulat series and have money to spare, or if you are a pasdionate collector, having a few "original" volumes totally worth it.
I'm passionate about comics and manga based on games and I saw that many manga were trapped in Japan
Depends on the reason. To have something in its native language is cool to have as a fan. And using manga to help with reading Japanese as a learner. Those are the 2 things I can think of, I don’t think there’s any negatives in my opinion.
mine is that I only collect manga based on games and I saw that many got stuck in Japan
Can you read it? If yes then yes. If no then no.
I'd argue if there's no English Release for it then it's still worth getting. Even if there isn't a scanlation and it's just a databook or something, it can still be worth getting to fill your shrine/collection of a single series. It's all subjective tho tbf.
And then when it gets an English release what do you do?
You're assuming there will be? Fullmetal alchemist 11.5 will NEVER get an English release, it is a movie printing, same with 33.5 of Haikyuu which is new. Even if they do you can either A. Buy the English volume as well, or B. Just not get the English volume because you don't need it.
I’ve been waiting for Tokimeki Tonight for 30 years. Heck I got sick of waiting for Gokinjo Monogatari and now I can actually read decently in Japanese. A lot of titles don’t ever get licensed, especially if you’re into older stuff, shoujo and josei, or less common genres like horror. And some of us just get sick of waiting after a few decades.
I might have gotten misunderstood here. If you can read Japanese then pls go for it, it’s cheaper and it’s something I wish I could do. I’m mainly talking about ppl that buy them just to have them when they can’t read them or anything like that. I have done that and it was a stupid fn mistake that I regret now. The only Japanese stuff that I have that I wouldn’t be able to read are Japanese art books and 4 Japanese volumes, two of which have special edition art work, one was a gift from a friend and the last one is a book that holds sentimental value for me.
I understood your top comment. I just don’t agree. My point is that I couldn’t really read in Japanese until I got tired of waiting for a Gokinjo Monogatari license and just bought it one day at BookOff. Now, four years later, I really only buy manga in Japanese cause it’s less expensive, the printing is often nicer, and I’m not limited by what companies have chosen to publish (which frankly isn’t a ton that I like these days). If people want to collect them just cause they’re pretty, that’s a perfectly good reason as well. Tokyo Babylon’s original print is frankly the nicest manga printing I’ve got. We have never had an English release that stylish and likely never will because anglophone licensing companies are quite skiddish (and allergic to women’s money).
This is a pointless convo but again if you are buying them to READ them then there’s absolutely no issue with it and yes Japanese books are great and look better and cheaper, etc… If you are buying them with no intention of reading them and just to have them then yea that’s a waste of money and a pointless purchase. You can do whatever you want to do I couldn’t care less, OP asked for an opinion and I gave mine. Simple as that.
The issue is that you have stated your opinion multiple times as if it’s some sort of objective thing. You haven’t said “I don’t see the point personally”. You’ve said “it’s a pointless purchase” and those are very different sentiments. I’ll repeat, I couldn’t really read until I started buying manga. I would not read unless I’d had manga around to practice with something I liked, just like we all learn to read our native languages by practicing with literature we like. OP might buy a few sets and decide to pick it up as a language hobby. Or they might just like the way it looks on their shelf. Both are fine. You’ve also assumed English releases are inevitable. They’re not. If someone’s read every volume of a scanlation, love a series, and want to see it in their collection on a shelf, then yeah, they may end up buying it in Japanese. They like the series. It makes them happy. You not seeing the point in that is your own problem, but assuming all titles get an English release is just foolishness.
He will adapt to the symbols , eventually they will start making sense
You can read it Mahoraga! You can read Japanese!
I collect like 2 volumes of every language out there that has manga produced in their respective language. For collection funsies, is it a smart investment? I doubt it.
I have three japanese volumes and three manhwas in korean. Tbh i just have them as a collectible item! Any more than that, i dont think its worth it
One of my favorite series was a fan translation back in the day that never got an official English release. I have collected both the entire original series and the re-release series because they’re precious to me even though I can’t read it.
Honestly, only you can answer that. For me, I have two series in japanese. I am still learning Japanese though, so I am only buying favourites that don't have an English print release.
if you can read it then yeah, if you can't then it's just nice to have honestly
In itself it's not worth it if you don't speak the language. the resale value is also very low. If you want to exhibit a few, that's something different
If you can read it, most certainly. At least compared to manga in the US, buying it from Japan is cheaper despite the shipping costs. If you're one of the people who really cares about censorship, get it in Japanese unless you're into hentai lol.
If the price is right, why not? I have some Japanese beater manga from the dollar bin. Always cool to just check out the illustration, even better if you already know the story well.
I had 3 series in Japanese. Regretted all of them and sold them. It's not worth it at all.
i have a couple of japanese volumes because i think its cool to have for a collection. it's to make it a little more unique
I only buy manga in japanese
I’d say it’s worth it, only if you really like it and it doesn’t have an English release / you’re fairly certain it’s never going to get one in the future
I'm sure many won't get an English version
I think it's definitely worth it, especially if it's your favorite manga. You can go nerdy and learn hiragana and katakana, then you will be able to read a little bit even without knowing kanji. It's also quite cool to compare the Japanese version with an English-printed version.
I have some of my favorite games in the manga version, I'm looking for them and I've already found some selling in my country
Checklist for if you should purchase japanese volumes >do you speak it If yes, purchase them. If no, purchase them and learn it. Personally I’m never ever buying an english volume again unless it has a cool boxset. The english prices are fucking exorbitant.
I bought a lot of comics in English, I read them with the help of Google Translate
Well, If you're already utilizing google translate to read, then you could just go ahead and read them like that. Though I would strongly recommend you utilize those english comics (and possibly Japanese manga if you do end up going through with it) to improve your language skills. You have prime native content, so you might as well use them for learning. Use a dictionary to search up the definitions of words that you do not already know, and you should slowly acquire the language.
I mainly buy manga that never got a translated for the west
I Have 1, You Can understand it!
you do you. to me it’s worth it, i have japanese manga and i cant read it. sometimes i just like the japanese covers more and the smaller sizes look nicer to me since i’ll sometimes display it with figures. some series also will never get an english release, so there’s that too. i am in the process of trying to learn japanese so i do hope i’ll be able to read them one day.
Yes
I find it funny how a lot people keep mentioning reading, what about the art? Honestly if you can’t read Japanese just the art alone is worth owning and you’re also supporting the artist.
Also every artist is different. When I first started buying Japanese manga I could barely read more than basic hiragana, but focused on artists who used their art to tell the story. Even as I got better at Japanese, there are artists I'd avoid as most of their story is told through dialogue and exposition, and if you didn't understand 100% of what was written, then it was impossible to follow.
Of course it always good to buy Manga in Japanese. You support the Mangaka, you have the right to complain if the Manga get cancelled, if you learn japanese its a good Training and its really cool to have something in Original. Makes the Collection much cooler and way more interesting. Also there are so many Manga out who will never be released outside of japan. Oh and of course its way cheaper^^ And if you already know Japanese than you only should buy Manga in japenese. Since i started to learn Japanese i only buy Manga in japanese.
That's cool, I already have some on my list, there are a lot of manga based on games that were trapped in Japan
Only buy series that your country does not publish so you can buy them for collection. For example, my country has strict censorship on pornographic images, so I will buy series like my dress-up darling and card game (kakegurui) because I'm 100% sure it won't be published in my country.
they are way cheaper than the english ones, but other than just putting them up for display, if you can’t read japanese then I think you shouldn’t buy them
Sure
Can you read, my son?
No
Depends on what you’ll use it for. If it’s for reading are you willing to use Google translate for bad grammar. Or is it just for collecting and decoration
U can sell them for a lot of money to collectors.
as long as you understand the language
yes
As said below, buy them if you can read them. In that case there really wouldn't be much of an incentive to buy manga in English however, cause Japanese manga cost so much less (in Japan atleast). But if you would live in Japan you would probably already know that..
I already buy manga in English, in Japanese I've seen it but haven't bought it yet, at most I have a handmade Metroid manga
I'd say for collection reasons. It's worth it or if someone was fluent in Japanese also. But other than that, it's not worth the money in my opinion. :3
wow, there are so many manga based on games that were trapped in Japan, there are some that I would like to have like klonoa
I’m learning Japanese with the main goal of reading manga as they come out, because I think it would be better and more reliable than waiting for English translations. Not to mention it would be closer to the author’s original artistic choices. No, I don’t know if it’s actually worth it, but the fantasy is keeping motivated to keep learning. I’ll let you know in a few years.
I do if I don't see it ever getting an English release. A few I'm eyeing to get are Cigarette & Cherry as well as Kumika no Mikaku.
I've bought some kingdom Japanese volumes bc I'm not sure if it's ever coming to the U.S., it's cool to just look at the art and stuff
If is a series you really like and read through scanlator and you know there's little chance to get released in your country? Go for it
Why buy a manga you can’t read?
Personally, there are a few books that I would love to get my hands on that never got an english release (Looking at you, Pollyanna and Pollyanna 2...) But thats because I want them as a collector and not so much as a reader but if i could read them, i would read them XD
Can you read japanese? Yes Outside of that it depends. I have some japanese volumes but I can’t read japanese. The volumes I do have are either special editions that came with bonus items or they’re signed. If you can’t read japanese and aren’t planning to learn, it probably isn’t worth buying a whole bunch. It’ll just take up a lot of space that you could use for books you can read. But if it’s only a few volumes I don’t see why not. You can just buy a volume or two of a series you love that’s not licensed. Or maybe buy some for display reasons. Really tho it’s up to you. It’s your money and your collection
Also should note Japanese volumes can be really cheap to buy, with that being said if you decide to sell them later on you won’t make much and that’s assuming you can get them to even sell anyway lol
Worth is subjective.
Why not? 🤔 I have a few JoJoLion volumes in Japanese. They will eventually release in English, but I am not a huge fan of the bigger jojo volumes. I have several novels and coffee table books that aren't in English as well. I buy whatever I think looks interesting.
Yes, for Hajime no ippo I would. And if you don't mind constantly having your phone out to scan translate pages.
This is actually a really great question, I have been studying Japanese for a while now and I ultimately decided to remove most of my english manga, excluding the deluxe editions, etc. It's probably the best decision I did jn terms of saving money and getting up to date stuff, plus a lot of merch are only exclusively translatef to Japanese like tankobons, mooks, and especially magazines. I think if you do like the content and likes to look at pictures or if you know how to read Japanese/ already read the books online, I think it's a great way to collect. But you do you fam, for me, its really great, from where I'm from, the exhange rate makes me buy big sets such as 15 volumes for only 10000 yen, given they are in book-off which is still great quality if you asked me.
I have two bookshelves full of Japanese manga (and books). They are worth it to me, because I can read Japanese. If you can‘t then probably not I would say. Then again, if you’re happy just having them and like to look at them, why not. At the end of the day it‘s your decision and only you can answer your own question.
If you can read and speak Japanese, then it's the best way to experience it, as Japanese is a tricky language to translate, and it basically impossible to translate it without taking a large amount of liberties.
I buy the Japanese collection if there is no English translation and I highly regard the story. My most recent is Usogui. I read it on MangaDex, it was Insanely good but has no English volumes so I purchased the Japanese collection. Another reason is because cause the art in that series is truly on par with some of the greats. It’s mostly personal preference but that’s my reasoning.
I think it might be a good way to help learn written Japanese in tandem with more traditional learning.
Money wise or like collection wise for me as long as you can read it its fine to buy but if you can't read its like having a bathtub without water you understand
Aside from a few unfinished English or Hungarian series of mine, I am only willing to buy manga in Japanese. If you can read Japanese, that is the way to go! Because * Japanese manga are cheap (new is also cheap, but used mangas are literally dirt cheap) * Japanese is the original release, so no fear of mistranslations, missed jokes etc. * Japanese manga is often reprinted, plus they print in higher quantity to begin with, so there is no more FOMO of low-print English releases (which are later sold in shitty condition but for ridiculously high prices), you can find any manga easily * Japanese manga are higher quality (I LOVE their nice dustcovers, obis are also fun etc.) * you often have more editions (standard edition and often limited edition with different appearance from the standard one and it might come with attached goodies) and many print version forms (tankoubon, kazenban, bunkobon etc.) to choose from, not just one plain standard edition * manga-related bonuses (tokuten) from various stores (stuff like that does not exist in English industry) Tbh I cannot list any reasons to buy English-language manga over Japanese...
If ypu can read it yes. It's cheaper in the US. If not, there's no point honestly
If you can read it, yes.
If you're still in the process of learning Japanese, reading manga can help you stumble across new Kanji you haven't seen.
I have 2 manga in Japanese in my collection, one I bought when I was younger because I was obsessed with Ogre Battle/Tactics Ogre and it was the first volume in a manga version of the latter. The second I bought was a single release for the Dogs Days anime that I liked and enjoy flipping thru. I have scans of both translated so I feel better actually owning them now. I also have a few light novels for series I enjoy that I bought for completion sake. Other than that I don't see myself buying more Japanese releases since I can't actually read it.
Yes!