An original English-language manga or OEL manga is a comic book or graphic novel drawn in the style of manga and originally published in English. The term "international manga", as used by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, encompasses all foreign comics which draw inspiration from the "form of presentation and expression" found in Japanese manga. This may also apply to manga-inspired comics made in other languages.
History and nomenclature
The growth of manga translation and publishing in the United States has been a slow progression over several decades. The earliest manga-derived series to be released in the United States was a redrawn American adaptation of Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy published by Gold Key Comics starting in 1965.
In 1979, the Gold Key published the comic book Battle of Planets, based on a television series of the same name. Marvel published a series based Shogun Warriors, bringing characters of the mecha anime and manga series: Brave Raideen, Chodenji Robo Combattler V and Wakusei Robo Danguard Ace.
Original English-language manga first began to appear in the U.S. in the mid-1980s. The San Antonio-based publisher Antarctic Press produced the anthology Mangazine in 1985, and the Ohio-based Rion Productions published two issues of Rion 2990, by Doug Brammer and Ryan Brown, in 1986. Between 1986 and 1988, First Comics published a serie about a mecha, Dynamo Joe, created by Doug Rice, it was scripted first by John Ostrander then by Phil Foglio. Ben Dunn sometimes filled in for Rice on the art.
In the late 1980s Antarctic and Eternity Comics published manga-inspired works like Ben Dunn's Ninja High School (debuting in 1987) and Jason Waltrip's Metal Bikini (debuting in 1990), as well as adaptations of anime like Captain Harlock, Robotech and Lensman.
As early as 1993, Japan-owned Viz Media issued a line of American manga. Shortened to "Amerimanga", it is thought to be the earliest colloquial name for these types of works. Other variations on OEL manga, such as western manga, world manga, global manga, manga-influenced comics, neo-manga, and nissei comi can occasionally be heard as substitute names, but the term OEL manga is most commonly used today. OEL manga gradually became more widely used, even if usually incorrectly, because it was a more inclusive, global term that included works produced by all English-speakers encompassing works originating in countries such as Canada, Australia, and United Kingdom as well as in the United States. Anime News Network columnist Carlo Santos made the first recorded use of the term on April 28, 2005, on his personal blog, and others began using it on forums and spreading the popularity of the phrase. By October 2005, publishing industry journal Publishers Weekly was also making use of the term, but manga publishers have yet to use it in official advertisements or press releases.
However the original parent loan word, manga, is still used by publishers such as Tokyopop, HarperCollins, and various small presses as a blanket term for all of their bound graphic novels—without reference to origin or location of its creator(s). The significance of the word, however, has mutated outside Japan as a reference to comics originally published in Japan, regardless of style or language. Merriam-Webster's dictionary defines the word manga as meaning "a Japanese comic or graphic novel", reflecting the change of the meaning this word has had once used outside Japan.
Because the word "manga"—being a Japanese loanword in English use—means comics initially published in Japan, there have been attempts to find more appropriate terms for the growing number of publications of manga created by non-Japanese authors. Beside the term “OEL Manga”, there is also the term “manga-influenced comics” (MIC) in use. For example, Megatokyo, which was scheduled to be published by the largest manga producer Kodansha, is still referenced as a "manga-influenced comic".