The Best Shoujo Artists

Manga isn't always about the art but it's a huge plus for any savvy manga fan. Here are a few of my personal favourite mangakas. I am purely looking as art and the storytelling.  So in no particular order we have:




Kisara from Dear by Fujiwara Cocoa,
I swear I only like the art

• Peach-Pit - Lolita Loving Duo

Comprised of Banri Sendo and Shibuko Ebara, they probably have the most detailed character design and fashion I've ever seen, making use of lots of full body shots to showcase this. Their female characters such as Hinamori Amu, has a an infinitely extensive wardrobe of Punk/Goth Lolita whereas Amu's sister wears Sweet lolita clothes. To add to this, they have a good measure of bishies to oggle over coughTsukuyomiIkutocough.

• Ichinose Kaoru - Elegant character design

I like her for pretty similar reasons to Peach-Pit. Her characters have a dainty, delicate feel and look to them. It's hard to explain but I was blown away at how pretty 2d characters look when I started reading Mishounen Produce.

• Akizuki Sorata - Simplistic yet detailed

Akizuki's poweress can only really be shown in her fantasy works like Akagami no Shirayukihime. Though visually, her oneshot, Otogibanashi no Fude, clearly shows her untapped potential. She has clean and simple looking characters with some intricate costumes that are usually European inspired. If you look closely, she has also paid close attention in her backgrounds with realistic buildings and landscapes (probably helped by some assistant/s perhaps) and it allows you to escape into the world she has constructed. This is something many fantasy/sci-fi mangas lack, that "Other-worldliness".

• Toma Rei - Intricate and sophisticated

Her best work, Reimei no Arcana illustrates how Toma can really set the mood visually with her art. Compared to her other school life mangas like Boku wa Kiss de Uso wo Tsuku, she knows exactly how to convey a dark ambiance in the story while not allowing it to overpower the whole atmosphere of it. She really considers her demographic this way and the romance steers the story away from being totally depressing. Her art is beautiful, sharp but soft at the same time. I look forward to her future works.

• Sakisaka Io - Cute but realistic

She primarily deals with the slice of life genre and does a good job portraying them. Her scenes are quite symbolic sometimes. I think what makes her stand out from other mangakas is her distinct style. A lot of artists draw the same way instead of developing their own style thus makes their work quite forgettable. Sakisaka's art is a nice change from the sea of cliched clones. I personally like her characters in Strobe Edge the best though Ao Haru Ride is nice too.

• Fujiwara Cocoa - Transient and whimsical (Bishie Fest.)

You may have probably noticed that I really love Fujiwara Cocoa's works. I like how her characters look simple but have this certain charm to them. I also regard her and Peach-Pit to have great manga covers, most of which I dislike. Two of her series, Dear (not to be confused with DearS by Peach-Pit) and Youko x Boku SS have a great ensemble cast with plenty of bishounens to fawn over.

Do you agree with this list? Who are you're favourite shoujo manga artists? And if I missed anyone, comment below and let me know.