5 manga that deserve an anime adaptation (and 5 that deserve a live-action adaptation)

For many manga fans, what they desire to happen to their favorite work is an adaptation. This adaptation can either be into anime or live-action; it does not matter, as long as it is seen and becomes something else. For a manga to be adapted, it means that it has gained some sort of critical and public acclaim.

This is why many manga fans wish for such acclaim for their favorite manga or anime; it is a way of saying their manga has won. Despite the popularity of many manga, they never get an anime adaptation. The likes of Vagabond, The Horizon, and Liar Game are on this table, as they are yet to be adapted.

Some manga need an adaptation now or in the near future. An adaptation would boost the popularity of some of these manga and etch their names in the annals of time. Here are five manga that deserve an anime adaptation and five deserving of a live-action adaptation.

Disclaimer: This article reflects the author’s views and may contain spoilers.

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5 manga that deserve an anime adaptation

1) Nue’s Exorcist

Nue's Excorcist manga cover (Image via Shueisha)

Nue’s Exorcist bears many similarities to Tite Kubo’s Bleach, but the presence of fan service sets it apart. The series is also lighter than Bleach and contains Harem elements. The series follows Gakuro Yojima, a boy who can see spirits.

His life is turned upside down when he encounters a spirit named Nue. They sign a contract together, and he is granted this power; this power comes with a condition, as Gakuro has to now fight malevolent spirits alongside other exorcists.

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2) Real

Real is another masterpiece by Takehiko Inoue (Image via Shueisha)

Real is a series made by the world-famous mangaka, Takehiko Inoue, and it is his third work about basketball. Where Real differs from Inoue’s previous works is its focus on Wheelchair Basketball.

Differently-abled individuals play Wheelchair Basketball, and Real does not look at the individuals with scorn, but with admiration. The series shows society’s pitfall towards differently-abled individuals and the strength of these characters despite the woes they encounter.

If there is any sports series that requires an adaptation, it is Real. It has over 90+ chapters, and each of them could be broken into at least two seasons. An anime of Real would break the internet.

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3) Oyasumi PunPun

Oyasumi PunPun deserves an adaptation (Image via Shogakukan)

Oyasumi PunPun might be highly controversial in terms of themes and graphic scenes, but there are many current anime with equally controversial themes; Oyasumi PunPun won’t stand out. A lot of scenes that were shown in the manga can also be implied by clever editing and the over-the-top animation present in anime.

What makes Oyasumi PunPun perfect for anime is how psychedelic the art can be. The main character, PunPun, always has his form change, and also has a vivid animation. These little quirks deserve to be brought to life by a proficient studio.

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4) Red Blue

Red Blue is breaking many Shonen tropes (Image via Shogakukan)

Red Blue follows the line of increasingly dark Shonen like Jujutsu Kaisen, Hell’s Paradise, and Chainsaw Man. It bears many similarities to Teppu, as it focuses on MMA, but it has the most unappealing protagonist.

Red Blue breaks a lot of tropes that the anime world has held, and it will be interesting to see how the gruelling fight scenes are handled. The story is currently ongoing, and a new chapter is released weekly.

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5) Gokurakugai

The main character of Gokurakugai (Image via Shueisha)

While Kagburachi is generally hailed for its gritty and dark themes, Gokurakugai stands out in a story that talks about the dark side of humanity. The story is set in a world with humans and beastmen, and the city shown bears many similarities to Gotham.

The two main characters, Tao and Alma, have a dynamic that has been replicated numerous times in anime, with the most recent example being Dandadan. An anime of Gokurakugai will be full of laughs and at the same time, have many serious moments.

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5 manga that deserve a live-action adaptation

1) Vagabond

Sasaki Kojiro from Vagabond (Image via Kodansha)

Vagabond is Takehiko Inoue’s, and most fans who glance at Vagabond’s pages compare it to an Akira Kurosawa film. Vagabond’s art is so lifelike that an anime adaptation would struggle to make it look good. The story’s pacing is also slow, which contrasts with many anime's faster pacing.

A live-action adaptation of Vagabond will closely resemble Shogun, the HBO show. Vagabond’s dark themes are better represented in live-action than anime.

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2) A Bride’s Story

A Bride's Story is historical fiction that feels like Slice of Life (Image via Yen Press)

A Bride Story is another manga with a slow story on this list. It is historical fiction, and it is centered around a tribe that lived in the Caucasus Mountains. Many aspects of the story might be controversial, but no storytelling medium handles controversy more than live-action.

Another reason why A Bride’s Story would be difficult to turn into an anime is the level of detail. A Bride’s Story is heavily detailed, and none of that can be left out of the story. It would be a struggle for any studio to bring that to life.

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3) Hirayasumi

Hirayasumi is called the lofi of manga (Image via Shogakukan)

If Hirayasumi does not get a live-action series, it should at least get a movie that focuses on the main character. Hirayasumi is a Slice of Life story that feels slow and meditative. The characters come in different types, and each of them is committed to doing one thing—living.

However, each character struggles to find a balance between chasing dreams and finding their own personal happiness. Hirayasumi feels like a Richard Linklater film, especially the Before Trilogy, as they both tackle similar issues.

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4) Sayonara Eri

Goodbye Eri is a psychedelic experience for many viewers (Image via Shueisha)

Sayonara Eri deserves to be a live-action movie and nothing else. While the story is a one-shot and doesn’t offer much in length, it makes up for it in depth. Many viewers who come across Sayonara Eri for the first time are confused about what the story entails, but at its heart, the story is a disquisition on the power of storytelling.

If adapted to a film, Sayonara Eri would bear many similarities to David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. Mulholland Drive and Sayonara Eri are stories that show one thing, but are a tale of many layers.

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5) No Longer Human (Junji Ito)

Yozo Oba is the protagonist of No Longer Human (Image via Shogakukan)

No Longer Human is unique among the works of Junji Ito, as its horror is not centered on the supernatural, but on the psychological. No Longer Human has dark themes, and these will be better conveyed in live action than in anime. There are also graphic scenes that can not be implied or removed, this is why No Longer Human is best as a live action adaptation.

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Final thoughts

Many Otaku want their favorite stories to get an anime or live action adaptation; however, not all stories can be adapted. This can be due to the sheer scale of the art in the manga, as any adaptation into anime or live action would be expensive, or at the end of the day, subpar. Some other stories are too controversial and need to be handled sensitively.

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