15 of the Best Fantasy Manga: Classics and New Stories
Whether it be in manga, prose, cinema, or television, fantasy is one of the most intriguing literary subgenres. There are many fantastic stories to be found in the world of fantasy manga. Keep reading!
Mythology, folklore, or other well-known and iconic works of the genre can inspire the settings of a fantasy manga.
Fantasy manga can just as readily take place in our contemporary society as in a post-apocalyptic society where technology is buried alongside the old world.
They are typically distinguished by a low level of technological advancement.
Additionally, these mangas frequently include magical or other amazing skills, odd or enigmatic creatures, or humanoid species that live alongside humans or have separate continents from ours.
Here are 15 excellent fantasy genres that put the fantastical element in front and center.
Manga Comics
1. Teen Titans Go
Not the godawful kiddie cartoon, but the Teen Titans offshoot comics from the 2003 TV series.
The anime-inspired design of the show served as the inspiration for the comics, which begin by being very comical before delving into their own plots.
Some unfinished business is resolved, including what happened to Terra and the Titans’ ancestry.
2. Scott Pilgrim
When the story opens, Scott, a 23-year-old who is trying to move on from a failed relationship, is dating a 17-year-old.
He then develops a crush on ramona flowers, a delivery lady, and tries to battle her nasty ex-boyfriends in video game fashion in order to win her over.
But Ramona isn’t faultless, and her ex-boyfriends aren’t always hasty with their rage.
The story makes Scott realize how bad of a person he is for cheating on two women while dating them and motivates him to change.
3. Van Von Hunter
Van Von Hunter is a web comic that lovingly parodies fantasy adventure tales. It is currently on an indefinite hiatus.
They returned the terrible powers to sever the kingdom of Dikay’s two times-peaceful state of tranquility.
The one individual who long ago overcame the terrible tyranny is the lone source of hope for the country: Van Von Hunter, the evil hunter.
He battles the exiled former monarch of Dikay, who has returned to retake his throne with the help of his devoted memory-impaired sidekick!
4. W.I.T.C.H.
This animation demonstrated that perhaps westerners are capable of telling a proper magical girls’ tale.
Will Vandom, who is resentful of her parent’s separation and uncertain about her future, relocates to a new location.
Then the electrical devices in her home begin communicating with her.
A monster almost snatches her at a Halloween party where she attends, but his friend gets to speak with another girl named Elyon.
Will receives a diamond from her friend’s grandmother that enables her to transform into a flier-like supernatural creature.
To preserve Elyon while battling her, she and her new companions must combine their abilities in this world and a magical one.
Latest Manga
5. Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle
A demon ruler has kidnapped Princess Syalis. He can only irritate her because he is holding her prisoner and cannot harm her.
For her part, Syalis only needs a restful night’s sleep because her bedclothes are scratchy and her limbs are tense.
She then starts borrowing things to make her nights better. Written for our generation and is incredibly relatable.
6. If it’s for My Daughter, I’d Even Defeat a Demon Lord
This comic made its debut in 2018. When the main character dale discovers a demon girl abandoned and resolves to take care of her, it is very charming.
Despite her strange past, he wants the best for Latina, and she loves him in return.
Dale’s desire to protect and raise Latina fascinated people because it reveals a friendlier aspect of people than we typically witness.
7. Liselotte & the Witch’s Forest
In this tale, making friends with your enemy and starting over again are darker themes.
Liselotte, a woman in exile, is shocked to discover a man who resembles her childhood buddy but is memory-less.
She quickly wants to establish a new home and make friends with the witches in the nearby woods.
The witches first prefer to curse Liselotte and her maids in order to make them flee, but Liselotte has nowhere else to go.
Classic Fantasy Manga
8. Revolutionary Girl Utena
The girl occasionally wishes she knew how to escape her own suffering and depression.
Utena aspires to track down the enigmatic prince who rescued her when she was a youngster and make him become a royal.
She does this by transferring to a school where there is a mystery dueling club and a student named Anthy who appears to require protection.
The more Utena searches for her prince and attempts to unravel the riddle, the more she becomes aware that Anthy could require more than a straightforward rescue.
9. Magic Knight Rayearth
In this tale, three girls find themselves on another planet where they must save the priestess from a villain.
The typical storyline doesn’t play out as expected. You have to read both of the two manga series that exists.
Usagi, a middle schooler who discovers she is a chosen fighter for justice, gathers her companions to battle evil.
10. Sailor Moon
She despises death and dying as well, but as she gets older, she learns to deal with it and embrace her new responsibilities.
The manga takes a more gloomy perspective on how Usagi must mature and become the warrior queen who would one day make evil tremble.
11. Fullmetal Alchemist
What is life, exactly? Why can’t we achieve immortality or bring the dead back to life? That we might lose our siblings or limbs.
Edward and Alphonse Elric, two brothers, are the main characters of Fullmetal Alchemist.
They are alchemists with a common tragic background, and they inhabit a universe that has elements of early 20th-century Germany.
When the Elric boys attempt to revive their mother, they discover that they lack an arm, a leg, and a body.
They enlist in the military as alchemists to restore their original bodies and become embroiled in a long-running plot.
12. Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle and Xxxholic
These are parallel works that clamp the concept of parallel universes under their control.
In addition to Sakura and Syaoran, who visit several planets in search of Sakura’s memories, we encounter Watanuki, a student with an unusual talent, who begins working at a magic shop in an effort to control his abilities.
Watanuki helps yuko, the owner of the shop, by cooking, cleaning, and running errands.
Despite himself, he grows to like both Yuko and his traveling companion’s friends.
Although there are weird time travel paradoxes, the two stories have an amazing relationship and make a bittersweet pair.
13. Soul Eater by Atsushi Ohkubo
The Death Weapon Meister Academy, a facility where children can get tremendous warrior training, serves as the setting for Soul Eater.
One of our student heroes is the son of Shinigami Death, who is the headteacher of the school, which is located in the appropriately called Death City.
There are a lot of grim and decrepit images in this, yet it’s all done in a rather cartoony, cheerful style.
14. Full Moon O Sagashite
Despite having throat cancer, Mitsuki aspires to perform on stage like her parents.
Because an operation that could save her life could also take away her voice, she declines to have it.
Two death gods appear and inform Mitsuki that she will pass away in a year, even after the operation.
So that she can perform on stage before they have to harvest her soul, they transform her into an older adolescent as a final request.
Mitsuki navigates her own traumas and those of her family, while the gods struggle to determine who will stop her from dying.
15. Pet Shop Of Horrors
A pet store proprietor named D in San Francisco gives clients’ pets as morality checks. If they’re fortunate, that animal will grow to be their lifelong friend.
If they’re not as fortunate, suffering and horror follow.
A police officer is investigating in the meantime because he has reason to believe that D is a risk.
Other Fantasy Manga Without Anime
There are some fantastic fantasy manga series available, but they have adapted none of them so far for the big screen. The ones you might want to see are listed below.
16. The Legend of the Northern Blade
The Murim is a setting or concept used to define a fantasy world of magical martial arts for people who are familiar with other manhwa stories.
These martial artists have the ability to control energy, pound mountains down, and even fly in such a world.
This is the setting for the Legend of the Northern Blade, which centers on Jin Mu-Won, the fourth-generation sect leader of the Northern Heavenly Sect and son of Jin Kwan-Ho.
The story of Jin’s transformation from a prisoner in his own run-down home to something greater is chronicled in this manhwa.
Every step of the road is amazing. There is never-ending action, and it also excels at the subtle character moments.
To actually do it right, though, would take a very well-executed adaptation because any small letdown would be a crime.
17. The Seven Deadly Sins by Nakaba Suzuki
We can find a more traditional look in The Seven Deadly Sins, a contemporary shonen manga.
Anyone who grew up playing Japanese games from the PS1 and PS2 periods will find the setting and cast of protagonists to be quite appealing.
Ten years before the novel begins, a group of knights known as the Seven Deadly Sins dissolved.
After being blamed for a coup against the Liones Kingdom, they committed this crime.
Now that the Holy Knights are in charge, Princess Liones must gather the Seven Deadly Sins and overthrow the Holy Knights in order to bring about the restoration of the realm.
18. Black Clover by Yūki Tabata
The intriguing Black Clover on paper should rank alongside One Piece and Naruto as one of the major shonen manga.
Yet, despite its popularity, its supporters are frequently silent while its critics are outspoken.
Into a magical universe, Asta, a young boy, was born.
Asta was born without any magical abilities, despite the fact that magic is ubiquitous and widespread.
As Asta is unable to use mana, he concentrates on developing his physical power.
He did, however, have a best buddy named Yuno who possesses amazing magical abilities in the orphanage where he was raised.
With diverse strategies, Yuno and Asta are competing to succeed the current Wizard King of the Clover Kingdom, which gives the manga its name.
19. Fairy Tail by Hiro Mashima
The imaginatively titled Earthland is where Fairy Tail takes place.
There are many guilds on this planet governed by wizards with magic.
Natsu Dragneel, the main character of Fairy Tail, is a magician in one of these guilds.
Natsu amasses a band of distinctive characters (wizards, knights, and dragon slayers) as he travels the Kingdom of Fiore in search of the father who reared him and then vanished.
In true shonen style, this is a story with a larger narrative that moves the plot along and more focused character arcs that keep the reader interested in the characters’ development.
20. Witch Hat Atelier
It is possible to revive the idea of magic in a story like Witch Hat Atelier, making it feel once more, well, magical.
The protagonist of this fantastic manga series is a young girl named Coco who lives in the country with her mother, a dressmaker.
There are many things to adore in Witch Hat Atelier, like the overarching story with the witches and the brim hats, the enigmatic but clear rules of the magic circles that witches create, and the various magical techniques used by the characters.
Because the reader is learning about magic at the same time as the heroine, Coco, the book is just so much fun to read.
As a result, the setting has a constant air of “wonder” about it.
The actual artwork for this manga is also stunning, which is the cherry on top.
This book is among the best manga available that isn’t an anime since it feels like a lovely fusion of traditional storybook art with contemporary manga aesthetics thrown in.
A lot of suspense is built up in fantasy manga, which is thrilling.
You want to keep reading without stopping as you become more and more into it.
Which of them was your favorite? Let us know in the comment box below!
