Manga based on anime originals
Just some general observations I’ve noticed when it comes to manga based on anime originals, I think there’s a few different categories most can fit into pretty neatly. Our favorite big franchise Gundam has pretty much every type.
Side Stories
You want more out of an anime but it’s so standalone! That’s good, not everything needs a sequel or be a part of a bigger franchise. Sometimes though, an original anime gets itself a side story manga, Samurai Champloo is a great anime, one of my favorites. I did not “need” more of it, but more of it is found in the manga. I think it is significantly below the anime though. Main issue is that well, it’s a manga. There’s no soundtrack, and for Samurai Champloo of all things that is a major issue unfortunately. Nevertheless, some more adventures with our main characters is fine to get. And oh boy, if you thought gundam was a large anime franchise, it is an equally as large manga franchise, with just side-story stuff to main series being as big.
Fixing Mistakes
Not every anime original is good. Sometimes it’s pacing issues, a shitty ending, or well whatever else you want. As long as it’s not animation or a bad soundtrack, a manga “remake” could be a second stab at this. Gundam wing is not a bad anime. It is a complete shitshow of one that is a really mixed bag. I don’t know how to feel about it. I do now how to feel about the manga Gundam Wing Glory of the Losers, a modern manga remake of the anime. It is IMO pretty better than the anime. It integrates some prequel stuff that was once a loose collection of oneshots, adds new backstories, and just fixes some lingering plot issues in the anime. Now what I have not watched nor read is darling in the franxx. They say the manga has a better ending. I dunno, you find out.
Really Short Recaps
Man, I think these are just sad. Not really common anymore, but looking into Gundam especially, pretty much every series got a really short manga recap. Remember Gundam Wing? When it was done airing, a 3 volume adaptation of a 50 episode anime was done. I found a translation of this and read it and man, I guess if your series lacks a recap movie(like gundam wing does) then….. Sure what the hell. Otherwise why?
Own Twists on Things
These are IMO the gold standard. Rather than being a different story entirely, or trying to “fix” things, some manga based on anime is the author being given more free rein and doing what they want. Evangelion is a great anime. I also enjoyed the manga more. It is quite a bit different while following the same “general” plot as the anime, but in it’s own way. My favorite part is that it ran so long that it got an epilogue which gave Mari much more development than rebuild movies did. There’s also Gundam Origin in this category, oh boy. I have some big issues with this manga which is basically a different version of 0079.