[...] released in the U.S. from 2004-2009. I read and reviewed much of it about five years ago, but I quit at book 17, because the series was just running too long for me. I did review the fanbook, Fruits Basket [...]

I think people should be smart and invest in 2-10 volume series where they can fall in love with the characters, but also not have to spend too much money.

In this day and age of manga, one-shots can be forgotten the minute they’re finished, but 30+ volume series can get unimaginative into later developments.

Say you bought all the volumes of Naruto (about 30, now). That’s $240.00 whether you spent it all at once or over a long period of time. You could get a Nintendo DS and some games for that price or even invest into your college fund.

[...] pay more attention to descriptions and reviews. I became more selective, and I gave up on several long-running series because their volume count exceeded my [...]

[...] discussion in the Manga I’ve Given Up On post, combined with David Welsh’s comments, reminded me of several more titles. These [...]

ebay I hear such horror stories about, and the cost of the fees makes it not worth the risk to me.

Lori, the more the merrier! And good point about the look affecting people’s attitudes.

I think it’s more than a lack of collectability. Manga look and are treated as paperback books. And the average person doesn’t collect paperbacks. They are meant to be read and traded/given away. It’s been pounded into our heads culturally that comics are collectables, and should be treated as such. I think that’s probably also one of the (many) reasons that manga is doing much better than comics.

Just my thoughts on it..

And why don’t you trust eBay these days? Not much bidding, or deals gone sour?

Old comics I have no luck with. I don’t trust ebay at all these days, no one in town wants them, so I wind up donating them, which is probably my self-delusive substitution for “recycling”.

I wonder if the lack of collectibilty with manga makes it easier for fans to part with unwanted books? Even though I’m not buying floppy comics anymore, I still hold onto my old comics with the thought that one day I’ll get around to selling them off on eBay again.

I’d say there’s a slightly different dynamic at work, though. Since most manga series have an end to look forward to, Sticking with a series can be due to an “in for a penny, in for a pound” attitude, instead of the general completionist attitude found with superheroe comics.

[...] Johanna offers her thoughts on the matter. [...]

[...] hops on the Jump the Shark Express and lists the manga series she has stopped reading. As this is clearly the conversation of the week, [...]

James, great reminder about Ruroni Kenshin. I had the same experience, conveniently when they were about to start a new long arc.

[...] Johanna Draper Carlson discusses some of the manga that she’s abandoned midway through the run. [...]

I can’t believe he doesn’t like Hikaru No Go though, as that book is just such fun for me for some reason. Oddly I’ve also though Monster has only gotten better as its gone on. But then I am a Fugitive fan…

I dropped Sensual Phrase though as I thought it was repeating itself too much. I ‘ve also dropped Case Closed, not out of dislike it just seemed like I blinked and I was suddenly 5 volumes behind.

Oh and Ruroni Kenshin of course! I thought this series was fun adventure when it started, yet I don’t know it just seemed to take itself more and more seriously and I lost interest.