During the last two years, graphic novels and manga have become a huge part of my life. My partner and I have managed to build up quite the collection, in what I would consider to be a relatively short amount of time. I’m sure it won’t come as a surprise that a large percentage of my manga collection is cat themed. As a cat owner and lover of all things cats I can never resist buying a cute cat manga when I see one. Now with the introduction out of the way join me as we take a look at some of my favourite cat manga.
A Man and His Cat
A Man and His Cat tells the story of Fuyuki Kanda, a widowed pianist who gave up performing when his late wife passed away. It’s a heartwarming story not only about the relationship between him and his cat Fukumaru but also one that follows his personal journey to finding his love for music again. The story begins in a pet store where Fukumaru has been living for a long time, he’s seemingly the runt of the litter who’s never picked and forever alone, until one day when Kanda buys him and their connection is instantaneously undeniable. In the first few volumes you’ll get to witness Kanda and Fukumaru’s relationship blossom, you’ll see Kanda learn what it means to be a cat dad, you’ll laugh at loads of relatable slapstick moments and also witness Fukumaru learn what it feels like to be loved.
This manga is exceptional and I honestly can’t praise it enough. The story progression is beautiful as well as being hilariously funny in all the right places. It also holds enough emotion to enable you to easily connect with the characters. The story is written from not only Kanda’s perspective but also Fukumaru’s too, so you’ll get to hear the inner thoughts of the cutest and most lovable manga cat around. Whenever I read a volume of this manga it just makes me wish and hope that my cats love me as much as Fukumaru loves Mr Kanda. I can’t wait to read more, 10/10 would recommend!
Cat + Gamer
Cat + Gamer tells the story of Riko, an officer worker who finds a stray kitten and spontaneously decides to adopt it. Riko is video game obsessed, whenever she’s not at her day job you’ll find her in front of the TV. She has no idea how to take care of a cat so she does what she does best and aims to ‘level up’ the kitten as she would with the characters in her game.
If you decide to read any of the manga on this list this would be the one I’d recommend taking a look at first, especially if you’re new to manga. Cat + Gamer is a really easy read with tons of character and unique story telling. I’ve never laughed so much when reading a book before, the characteristics of the cat are so realistic and relatable to a fellow feline lover. Volume two in particular had lots of stand out moments, every single thing the cat was doing is something that my cats have done at some point. It’s irresistibly charming, and if you own a cat you’re guaranteed to love this one. 10/10 adorable!
The Complete Chi’s Sweet Home
Chi’s Sweet Home is quite different to the other cat manga on this list because the ‘complete edition’ versions read forwards like a standard graphic novel as opposed to back to front like other Japanese manga. That isn’t the only thing separating Chi’s Sweet Home from most of my other manga though, it’s also in full colour and although it does have an ongoing story it’s predominantly formatted like a series of sketches. Chi’s Sweet Home is about a family that re-home a lost kitten, the only catch is that they aren’t allowed pets in their apartment so as you can imagine it becomes quite the ordeal to keep Chi hidden.
I love this manga not only because Chi is incredibly sweet, but there is also quite a lot of depth to the story too as Chi reminisces about his mum and siblings that he got separated from when he initially found himself lost.
Ex-Yakuza and Stray Kitten
Ex-Yakuza and Stray Kitten is about exactly that, an ex-yakuza member who takes in a helpless stray kitten he found on the side of the road and nurses it back to full heath. I’ve only read two volumes of this so far and I absolutely love it. The kitten, Sabu, isn’t sure about Jin (the ex-yakuza) at first, and suspects his intentions aren’t entirely pure. We soon find out though that Jin owns a pet rescue cafe and that Sabu is going to be the newest recruit.
This is such a charming story, Sabu and Jin are both great characters and from only reading two volumes so far I can tell that there’s going to be lots of adorable adventures yet to come. I can’t wait to pick up the next volume.
The Masterful Cat is Depressed Again Today
The Masterful Cat is Depressed Again Today isn’t your typical cat manga, it’s one that took multiple times seeing it in the shop for me to actually pick it up. I’m glad I did though because it’s really funny. It’s about Saku, a woman who took in a stray cat, but little did she know that Yukichi (the cat) would grow even bigger and taller than her. This now-giant cat becomes something akin to Saku’s butler, he cooks, cleans and generally takes care of Saku in a hilarious reversal of the typical cat and owner dynamic.
There are some really funny moments in the first volume, we see Yukichi cleaning the bathroom but he’s wearing an all in one waterproof outfit, because, well you know, cats notoriously don’t like water. There’s also a bit where Saku gets gifted a cat bed by one of her colleagues at work after learning she has a cat; but it’s far to small for Yukichi and can barely even fits his head let alone the rest of his body. This is made even more funny because later on in the story we actually see Yukichi using it to sleep, with only his head fitting inside. Overall this is a really funny cat manga with a bit of a twist compared to the others on this list. Definitely worth picking up if you want a good laugh.
Thank you for reading about some of my favourite cat manga, I’m quite new to the manga scene so if you have any recommendations for me, let me know in the comments below. I hope you’ve learnt about at least one manga you’re looking forward to checking out, I’m sure you noticed there’s a bit of a theme when it comes to cat manga, all the cats seem to start out as strays, I can only assume this is to pull at our heartstrings and to keep us reading more.
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