There are American comics, and then there is manga. Two interpretations of the same medium, both with their own style, format, and worldbuilding processes. There are many who are fans of one over the other, and there are those who love both. I’m a man of both, so allow me to give you my interpretation of each, how they coexist, and why both should be celebrated.

The Structure of American Comics

With American comics, the general idea is to have characters solving the conflict of the week. There are also plotlines that span over the course of a few issues, and some plots last over several trades, but it’s right back to the hometown when the conflict is resolved. It’s a process that’s been seen in such cases as Secret Wars or Batman: A Death in the Family, where a major, often tragic, event happens, and the protagonist must address the problem in their tried-and-true way before essentially “resetting the atmosphere.”

With American comics, the protagonists usually have lifetimes that function differently than a real-life human. Such is the case with superheroes, especially. Spider-Man, Batman, The Flash, and many other well-known characters are put through the ringer day in and day out, but they also don’t seem to age all that much.

There are in-universe reasons for some characters, but these characters were also created to be familiar faces that comic fans could return to, as well as usher the next generation of comic fans into. This is the long-form way of saying that American comics primarily focus on iconic characters tackling the troubles that plague their hometowns and worlds with no real end goal. A character’s journey is done, for the lack of better terms, when they meet their demise—rest in peace, Captain Mar-Vell.

The Structure of Manga

Manga, on the other hand, builds their stories to an inevitable conclusion. With the occasional exception, the stories run until their main protagonists’ primary conflict ends. The protagonists usually defeat the villain, save their home, retrieve an artifact that saves their home, or even overcome their personal doubts. Most manga series don’t reach past 30 volumes, while American comics can clear that page count almost effortlessly.

One example of manga continuing past its initial conclusion, however, is Dragon Ball. The original ending had Goku becoming the strongest in the world and marrying Chi-Chi. What makes Dragon Ball one of those exceptions is that it’s had more than one ending. Goku sacrificed himself to defeat his brother, he sacrificed himself to defeat Frieza, Gohan defeated Cell, Goku stopped Kid Buu, and slowly, the series has become more of an ever-expanding universe.

I can’t outright say that American comics were the influence for the series’ continuation, but I do know that Dragon Ball is not the first to do it and will certainly not be the last.

Visual and Production Differences

Another difference between the two is that most American comics are fully colored, contrasted to manga’s primary design of black and white. Manga normally puts out the next chapter on a weekly basis, while American comics take a little longer. American comics are released mostly in single issues or trades, while manga is serialized in magazines by the chapter or as books spanning over 200 pages.

Manga-ka usually do the story and art, whereas American comics delegate those tasks to different people. Despite opposing approaches to many facets of their production, there are series that are bridging the gap.