Best Adventure Manga of 1997

Gol D. Roger, a man referred to as the King of the Pirates, is set to be executed by the World Government. But just before his demise, he confirms the existence of a great treasure, One Piece, located somewhere within the vast ocean known as the Grand Line. Announcing that One Piece can be claimed by anyone worthy enough to reach it, the King of the Pirates is executed and the Great Age of Pirates begins. Twenty-two years later, a young man by the name of Monkey D. Luffy is ready to embark on his own adventure, searching for One Piece and striving to become the new King of the Pirates. Armed with just a straw hat, a small boat, and an elastic body, he sets out on a fantastic journey to gather his own crew and a worthy ship that will take them across the Grand Line to claim the greatest status on the high seas.

Red is just a normal kid living in the rural Pallet Town, when he decides to go out on his own adventure, along with his rival, Green. In this world of Pokémon, he makes many friends, humans and Pokémon alike. However, all is not well. Team Rocket is trying to capture Mew, a very rare Pokémon, and is performing experiments on other Pokémon, trying to increase their power. Red and his friends must battle against Team Rocket to stop their cruel experiments and unlock the secrets of Pokémon.

Much of the damage attributed to "Vash" is caused by the activities of bounty hunters who are after the 60,000,000,000$$ (sixty billion "double dollars") reward on Vash's head for the destruction of a city called July. Vash does not clearly remember the destruction of July, and only wants "love and peace", as he puts it; though he is a gunfighter of inhuman skill, he uses his weapons only to save lives wherever he can. As the series progresses, more is gradually learned about Vash's mysterious history and the history of the human civilization on Gunsmoke, the desert planet the series is set on. The series is often humorous in tone, but at the same time it involves very serious character development and especially in later episodes it becomes quite emotionally intense. Vash is occasionally joined by a priest, Nicholas D. Wolfwood, who is almost as good a gunfighter as Vash himself, and later is targeted by a band of assassins known as the Gung-Ho Guns for reasons which are mysterious at first. Trigun evolves into a very serious discussion of the nature of morality, posing questions such as: What is the nature of morality? Can we judge different moral codes? If a person is forced to betray their moral code, does that betrayal invalidate that moral code, and can the person still try to live up to that moral code? Can the person find redemption from their wrongs, and if so, how?

Since its creation, Tougenkyou has been a place where both humans and youkai live in peace. However, following the breach of a taboo in an attempt to revive the villainous youkai Gyuumaou, the "Minus Wave" unleashes throughout the land. With this ghastly force at large, the youkai begin to lose their self-consciousness, causing them to devour the townspeople. Tasked by the Three Aspects—the messengers of the heavens—to stop Gyuumaou's resurrection and restore peace, Sanzou Genjou rounds up three old comrades, none of which resemble the definition of ordinary. Being half-human, Gokuu Son, Hakkai Cho, and Gojou Sha are the only youkai with the power and spirituality to withstand the Minus Wave. Despite being skeptical about trusting them due to their mixed blood, Sanzou heads to the west with his companions to eradicate the growing threat.

Katou Narumi suffers from Zonapha Syndrome, a rare ailment that stops his breathing unless he makes people laugh. He's been forced to abandon his training in Chinese kenpo and return to Japan, where he now works as a clown. The only problem: he's not very funny. One day he meets Saiga Masaru, the recent inheritor of a huge fortune, who gives him the first laugh he's gotten all day. When he realizes Masaru is being pursued by assassins, he steps in to protect the boy, only to discover that instead of conventional weapons, the assassins wield huge, eerie puppets. They soon encounter the mysterious Shirogane, who controls a puppet of her own, and claims she was sent from France by Masaru's late grandfather to protect him. Their paths intertwine and diverge, splitting into two stories: Karakuri and Circus, puppets and performers, tears and laughter. The strange circus of living dolls that spreads Zonapha Syndrome, the human puppets known collectively as the Shirogane, and the puppeteers whose undying grudge set in motion both sides of this performance.

Gene Starwind and his partner Jim Hawking run a small business on the backwater planet of Centinel 3. But all that changes the day that Hilda hires them for a bodyguard job. Now, thrust into a mystery they don't fully understand, they're on the run from the cops, the pirates, an angry alien, and a mysterious assassin. But they've got one thing going in their favor - they have the galaxy's most advanced ship, the Outlaw Star. Gene Starwind dreams of life as an Outlaw, and fate smiles on him as he seems to suddenly wind up with a great job. But as things go awry, and he finds himself the new owner of the fastest, most technologically advanced space ship in the galaxy. Unfortunately, it's stolen and the owners want it back... Along with his partner Jim and the lovely Melfina, Gene must fight his way across the galaxy battling pirates, aliens, and assassins as he attempts to discover the secrets of the Outlaw Star. \[Summary of Outlaw Star TV series, taken from ANN; there are significant differences between the anime and manga plots.\] *Note: Chapters 18-21 were never released in volume form, and only through magazine serialization. As of January 1999 the manga has been on an indefinite hiatus with no update on when it will be continued.*

A collection of short stories from the original Rockman universe.

In the previous "Kung-Fu Boy" series, Chinmi became the master of Kempo at Dairin temple, where he trained disciples. When they lose contact with Kyorinji, a temple of the same sect, Chinmi is dispatched to the Kanan Autonomous region to investigate. He tries to enter Kanan with Pushin, a swordmaster whom he met traveling to Kanan. But they are attacked after trying to enter Kanan and pursued by the Border Police who chase them into a waterfall. A fisherman saves them and aids their entrance into Kanan. The people of Kanan are forcibly oppressed by the government. Chinmi befriends the people and makes the big decision to free them with his Kempo. Sorabi Boru, Lieutenant of the Border Police and Jirai, the evil king of Kanan attack Chinmi...