7 New Manga Releases to Enjoy in April 2024

My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999 was adapted into a popular anime last year, and now the English translation of the source manga will finally be available in print. The series is a romantic comedy about Akane, a college student who has recently been dumped. She continues to play the RPG she and her ex used to play together and then meets Yamada, another gamer. Turns out Yamada has an elite ranking in the game, and it’s the only thing he cares about. But can Akane get him to take an interest in her?

Ako’s life feels like a directionless blur. She spends her days just going back and forth between her job at the video rental shop and seeing her boyfriend, and her 20s are quickly passing her by. But one day, she sees a female skateboarder practicing, and something is ignited inside her. Ako rediscovers what it is to be passionate about something and resolves to change her life for the better in this captivating and reflective josei manga.

John is a plain, ordinary boy who doesn’t consider himself particularly special. But he is proud of one thing: his two very popular friends, twins Jekyll and Hyde. The twins are a mischievous pair and love switching places to trick those around them, with John being the only one who is usually able to tell the two apart. But when an event leads to the death of one of the twins, John must figure out which twin is the one who is left. Yuu Morikawa is also the creator behind the fantasy comedy series Mr. Villain’s Day Off, and readers are sure to have plenty of fun discovering a whole different style of storytelling from the same mind in this somber mystery.

The Yamaemori family, guardians of the Yamae shrine located in the mountains, is said to be cursed with the fate of early death. Mamoru Yamaemori has taken up this mantle of shrine guardian and accepted his cursed fate since that means he can try to protect his two younger brothers from the same. What the townspeople don’t know is that the duty of the Yamae shrine guardians is far more treacherous than they can imagine: Mamoru spends his days fighting horrific man-eating monsters called Tengu, acting as the last line of defense between them and the unsuspecting citizens. In order to do so, he has undergone a terrible, dark ritual and will stop at nothing to fulfill his cursed duty in order to ensure his brothers never have to do the same.

As a high schooler, Ichika Sendawara was diagnosed with a terminal illness and given two years to live. Three years later, she lives a full, happy life as a college student while simultaneously knowing in the back of her mind that she doesn’t have much time left. Everything changes when she meets Professor Yurugi. Ichika is immediately drawn to him, inspired by his lectures on philosophy, and finally feels a meaning to live, however briefly. Very soon after, Yurugi leaves the school abruptly, leaving Ichika wondering why and what if. But fate brings them back together again when Ichika spots Yurugi on the train, and the two discover they have more in common than they thought. Quietly contemplative and poignant, this beautiful series explores deep philosophical questions about life, love, and loss.

Fish Society is a collection of short story manga by panpanya, a creator known for unique and whimsical stories with surreal elements. Earlier works that have been translated into English include An Invitation from a Crab and Guyabano Holiday. This newest collection highlights some more of panpanya’s fascinating shorts, including the titular story about a fish market where the fish themselves come up from the sea to work, displacing the humans who had brought so much unnecessary bureaucracy and complication to the industry.

29-year-old Hiroto Ikuta doesn’t have a career, love life, or clear future—and he couldn’t care less! Hiroto’s got a relaxed, easygoing outlook on life and he doesn’t let worry get in his way. But after inheriting a house from an old lady he had befriended, Hiroto finds himself living with his 18-year-old art student cousin. Will she throw off his carefree lifestyle? Filled with warmth and charm, this is a lovely slice-of-life series about people just trying to figure it out.

Soon-to-be parents Sara and Kouta Takano are expecting their first child to be born any day now. But then, news of the attempted assassination of Malala Yousafzai reaches Japan and shakes Sara to her core. In such a cruel and unjust world, how will she raise and protect a child? This award-winning manga captures stunningly the fears and anxieties of modern life.