The Fledging of Taiwanese Manhua:

Rapid changes in consumption patterns have led to the rise of digital comics, or “webtoons,” with each genre appealing to its own niche audience. Recognizing the diversity of subject matter in Taiwanese manhua, and in view of the continued emergence of new online reading platforms, the government’s definition of “comics” that are eligible for official support is deliberately broad.

Vicky Su, CEO of the Fancy Frontier festival and a consultant for the government’s plans to promote comics and animations, is full of enthusiasm for comic books.

Diversity

Vicky Su, chairperson of the Taiwan Animation and Comic Promoting Association (TACPA), draws our attention to the Ministry of Culture’s Golden Comic Awards (GCA). “The winning entries in the last five years are often jaw-droppingly unconventional,” she says.

The Pink Ribbon, which belongs to the yuri (girls’ love) genre, won the GCA Grand Prize in 2019. 2020 saw the triumph of Time Swirl, known for its quirky art style, and The Lion in the Manga Library took first place in 2021. All of these works broke ranks with conventional commercial titles.

The Witch and the Bull, a digital comic serialized on the Line Webtoon platform, won the GCA Grand Prize in 2022, challenging the dominance of traditional print publications. In the same year, Fantastic Tales of Splendid Blossoms—based on a collection of historical fiction featuring yuri themes—won Comic of the Year at the GCA. Hong Kong comic-book artist Lau Kwong Shing’s The Incense Burner of Lust was shortlisted for the GCA in 2023, marking the first time an artist from overseas had received this honor.

That the awards embrace an increasingly diverse range of works that overstep conventional boundaries reveals “the government’s open-minded approach, which rejects any arbitrary definitions of ‘good manhua,’” says Su.

Moonsia’s digital comic The Witch and the Bull challenged the dominance of print publications at the Golden Comic Awards, winning the GCA Grand Prize in 2022. (courtesy of Line Webtoon)

The flourishing of domestic manhua is fueling a drive to explore international markets. The photos show Taiwanese manhua professionals interacting with international publishers and readers at Angoulême. Publicity events include not only talks but also displays of manuscripts and book signings.(courtesy of TAICCA)

Artists taking part in a manhua relay challenge. (courtesy of TAICCA)

What does “success” mean?

So what accounts for the success of a comic book? Su mentions three vital factors: the market, international awards, and foreign rights. Visible progress has been made in recent years, with Taiwanese manhua not only commanding more domestic support, but also garnering attention in the wider world.

Aho Huang, editor-in-chief at Dala Publishing, points out several illustrious examples. Firstly, before 2011, although a scattering of Taiwanese comic-book artists had received the annual International Manga Awards from Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, none had won Gold or Silver. The fifth edition of the IMA, held that year, represented a pivotal moment. ­Cory’s Make a Wish! Da Xi won Silver, ushering in a long series of Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners from Taiwan in subsequent years. 2020 was especially noteworthy, with Rimui’s Funeral Director, Ruan Guang-min’s adaptation of Wu Ming-yi’s The Illusionist on the Skywalk, and D.S.’s Blossom bagging Gold, Silver, and Bronze respectively.

Secondly, a concerted effort has been made to showcase Taiwanese manhua at major book fairs, such as the Angoulême International Comics Festival. As the world has begun to show more interest in Taiwan in recent years, so Taiwanese manhua are gaining more publicity overseas. All these factors—prestigious awards, book fairs, and the island’s increasing visibility—have contributed to a new wave of Taiwanese manhua. Huang conjectures that in the last three years, international rights to over 100 Taiwanese manhua works may have been sold. French publishers alone acquired rights to more than 60 titles: France, a major cradle of comic books, is particularly receptive to foreign cultures. Italian-­language rights to some 30 titles have also been sold.

Dailygreens’ Day Off is the most popular title inter­nationally, with rights having been sold for nine foreign languages. Rimui’s Funeral Director and Yu Pei-yun and Zhou Jian-xin’s Son of Formosa have each been sold into seven countries, with Chang Sheng’s Yan following closely behind, at six.

Imagine how readers in Thailand and Vietnam, where the yaoi (boys’ love) genre enjoys immense popularity, would respond to Day Off, which tells the romantic story of two male office workers. Meanwhile Son of Formosa, based on the life of Taiwanese publisher Tsai Kun-lin (1930‡2023), uses a lighthearted drawing style to recount the somber history of the White Terror from a child’s perspective. The series has met with enthusiastic responses in America. Readers in countries as far away as France, Italy, Spain, and Russia have been enthralled by the heroine of Yan, who appears in the guise of a Chinese-­opera actress. Through manhua, Taiwanese culture is reaching more and more people in the world at large.

Jason Chien has worked with the National Archives Administration of the National Development Council on Wind Chaser under the Blue Sky, which won Gold at the International Manga Awards in Japan in 2023. (© 2023 Jason Chien/National Archives Administration/Gaea Books)

Good news from abroad

It is also in recent years that we’ve begun to hear about Taiwanese manhua dazzling foreign markets.

Gao Yan’s The Song about Green: Gather the Wind is a case in point. Originally self-published, it comprised only 32 pages. Nevertheless, the exquisite story and drawings attracted the attention of Japanese rock musician Haruomi Hosono, whom Gao had alluded to in her work. Hosono even invited Gao to take part in the filming of his documentary No Smoking. Gao’s book also caught the eye of Japanese writer Haruki Murakami, who commissioned her to create the cover image for Abandoning a Cat: Memories of My Father. With these feathers in her cap, Gao developed The Song about Green into a two-volume work, which has been commercially published in Taiwan and Japan. In 2023 it ranked ninth in the male readers’ category in Kono Manga ga Sugoi! (This Manga Is Amazing!), a Japanese guidebook that gives annual rankings of comics.

Another manhua artist, Xiaodao, has brought together professional Go players, comic-book rental services, and the issue of mental health in The Lion in the Manga Library. The refreshingly original story caused a stir in France, where numerous publishers expressed interest in acquiring rights. Eventually, two brothers in their 20s won out; Xiaodao’s work is the first title to be brought out by their publishing house.

To understand how Taiwanese manhua have begun to gain an international foothold, we may look to market trends for clues. International comic-book markets are dominated by Japanese manga, American comics, and Franco-Belgian comics (or bandes dessinées, BD). Other major forms of sequential art include Korean webtoons, which came into being relatively recently, and graphic novels, which appeal to adult readers with their sophisticated art and subject matter.

Among these various types of comics, Japanese manga are taking the lead not only in Taiwan but in other parts of the world as well. However, in places like France, where comics are revered as “the ninth art,” sizable audiences encourage emerging publishing enterprises to consider works produced in other Asian countries. Taiwanese manhua, which are catching up with their Japanese counterparts in quality, benefit from this trend.

Owing to half a century of Japanese colonial rule, and to the island’s geographical and cultural proximity to Japan and characteristic openness to extraneous cultures, Taiwanese manhua used to appear too closely modeled on Japanese manga. Researchers agree that Taiwanese manhua began to show traces of Japanese influence as early as their first flowering.

Liu Ting-kang, an adjunct assistant professor of Taiwan culture, languages, and literature at National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU), is a researcher of Taiwanese comics and animations. He tells us that Taiwanese manhua, like Japanese manga, set great store by narrative structures; artists deliberately set up and then reveal moments of humor, as well as taking care to furnish causal links between the events they depict.

However, Liu also emphasizes that Taiwanese manhua often go the extra mile to achieve atmospheric effects—a strength of European comics.

That Taiwanese manhua don’t have their own mainstream stylistic traditions to follow might have to do with their as-yet-immature domestic market. But Su also notices that since the dawn of the new century, many tertiary-level visual design and animation courses have been established across Taiwan, producing numerous talented artists capable of creating manhua.

Government grants have also inspired many fine-art graduates to consider venturing into the manhua industry. Chen Pei-hsiu, M2, Zuo Hsuan, 61Chi, Tseng Yao-ching, and Wu Shih-hung (who won the Raymond Leblanc Prize in Belgium in 2021), all studied in the Department of Fine Arts at NTNU. Their shared academic background reminds us of the last wave of Taiwanese manhua artists, many of whom graduated from Fu-Hsin Trade and Arts School in Yonghe, New Taipei City.

Overall, Taiwanese manhua are characterized by their mastery of the art of storytelling and by their stylistic expressiveness. Su states that Taiwanese manhua artists craft their works both by meeting the narrative requirements of their stories and by adhering to their own predilections. Not only can they strike a balance between market forces and their own artistic aspirations, but their works also point to Taiwan’s distinctive cultural identity, paving the way for more local comics to enter global markets.

Gao Yan’s The Song about Green caused a stir in Japan even before it became popular in Taiwan. It won the approval of musician Haruomi Hosono and writer Haruki Murakami and ranked ninth in the male readers’ category in Kono Manga ga Sugoi! in 2023.

Taiwanese manhua are strong in niche topics. This photo shows Dailygreens’ Day Off, a yaoi work whose rights have been sold for nine foreign languages.

Chen Pei-hsiu, who worked as an artist-in-residence in Blois, France, draws on her experiences abroad in her creative projects. Her work exudes a profoundly artistic vibe.(courtesy of Chen Pei-hsiu)

The identity of Taiwanese manhua

The new generation of manhua artists distinguish themselves from their predecessors by mining the deep strata of local culture and history.

Liu Ting-kang, who believes that “the brand identity of Taiwanese manhua is now fully fledged,” divides Taiwan’s manhua into several categories. Especially representative are works that treat local cultural and historical themes. For example, Zuo Hsuan’s The Summer Temple Fair (or Rites of Returning), which has been adapted into a TV drama, depicts the historic town of Daxi in Taoyuan, and Li Lung-chieh’s 1661 Koxinga Z revisits the Dutch colonial era from the viewpoint of the colonists, turning Koxinga into a villain. Artist July has collaborated with the National Archives Administration of the National Development Council on The Free China Junk, using historical materials to tell a story of young dreamers on the sea.

In a country that outstrips its neighbors in the pursuit of gender equality, Taiwanese manhua cannot fail to tackle gender issues. Manhua artist Huihui has teamed up with playwright Chien Li-ying to explore modern sexuality in their Tender Is the Night. Rice and ­Dumpling’s Miss T’s Sexcapades in Japan deals with the liberation of the female body. Nownow’s Guardienne (Tan-Tsiu-Niu) interrogates female subjectivity in the context of a Qing-Dynasty ghost story. There is of course also the popular Day Off, which has been published in multiple languages.

Liu observes that even though Taiwanese manhua perhaps cannot claim to be world-beaters in portraying commercially popular themes such as heroism, friendship, and martial prowess, their achievements in the depiction of culture, history, and LGBTQ topics are certainly impressive. As book markets are becoming increasingly segmented, Taiwanese manhua are particularly well equipped to satisfy their niche audiences.

Taiwanese comic books demonstrate thematic diversity, stylistic versatility, and a strong inclination to engage with social issues and shed light on humanity. They afford rich insights into modern Taiwanese society.

Evergreen Yeh’s Lost Gods is inspired by the form of Shanghai comic strips and the stylistic characteristics of Japanese manga. It has been warmly received in France.

Liu Ting-kang believes that Taiwan’s manhua industry is fully fledged in terms of styles and genres.

Kiya Chang’s Gei Shu Dou’s Sweet and Antique Vacation (Gaea Books, 2024) is a refreshing and easily digestible work that brims with Tainan’s cultural vitality, portraying back streets, old temples, a pastry shop, and historic sites. (© 2024 Kiya Chang/Tainan Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage/Gaea Books)

Exuding a literary charm, Chen Pei-hsiu’s graphic novel For the Time Being (Dala, 2019) portrays the daily lives of women in Taipei. Chen’s style is simple and relatable, true to the capital’s streetscapes and the fabric of everyday life there. (© 2019 Chen Pei-hsiu/Dala Publishing)

Evergreen Yeh’s Lost Gods (Kiwi Cultural and Creative Co., 2024) combines the stylistic characteristics of Japanese manga with the form of Shanghai comic strips to portray the folk beliefs behind a monument to tree spirits on Alishan.

Based on Yang Shuangzi’s short stories, Monday Recover’s Fantastic Tales of Splendid Blossoms (Taiwan Tohan Co., 2020) is a yuri work set in the Japanese colonial era. It combines history with fantasy. (courtesy of Taiwan Tohan Co.)