Best Comedy Manga of 1998

Shamans are extraordinary individuals with the ability to communicate with ghosts, spirits, and gods, which are invisible to ordinary people. The Shaman Fight—a prestigious tournament pitting shamans from all over the world against each other—is held every five hundred years, where the winner is crowned Shaman King. This title allows the current incumbent to call upon the Great Spirit and shape the world as they see fit. Finding himself late for class one night, Manta Oyamada, an ordinary middle school student, decides to take a shortcut through the local cemetery. Noticing him, a lone boy sitting on a gravestone invites Manta to stargaze with "them." Realizing that "them" refers to the boy and his ghostly friends, Manta flees in terror. Later, the boy introduces himself as You Asakura, a Shaman-in-training, and demonstrates his powers by teaming up with the ghost of six-hundred-year-old samurai Amidamaru to save Manta from a group of thugs. You befriends Manta due to his ability to see spirits, and with the help of Amidamaru, they set out to accomplish You's goal of becoming the next Shaman King.Note: This entry is for the original printing of Shaman King. Please see Shaman King (Kanzenban Edition) for the chapters not included in this edition.

It is said that if a couple gets into the University of Tokyo together, they will live happily ever after. However, for Keitarou Urashima, UTokyo is a distant dream. After failing the entrance exams twice already, he decides to stay at his grandmother's inn in Tokyo in order to prepare for his third attempt. He is, therefore, surprised when he finds out that not only has his grandmother gone on a long vacation, but the inn has also become the Hinata House, an all-girls dormitory! Unfortunately for Keitarou, a series of misunderstandings during his first visit leave him with five untrusting tenants. But when Haruka Urashima, his aunt who works at the dorm, brings up that he is supposedly a UTokyo student, the girls' impressions of him quickly change, and they reluctantly allow him to stay. Feeling guilty about the lie, he slowly gets to know his new neighbors: the cute yet violent Naru Narusegawa, the cheeky and opportunistic Mitsune Konno, the soft-spoken Shinobu Maehara, the straight-laced Motoko Aoyama, and the mischievous Kaolla Su. Thus continues the unpopular Keitarou's difficult journey to get into UTokyo, all for the chance to fulfill his childhood promise to the only girl who has ever shown any interest in him and maybe, just maybe, meet her again.

When Hikaru Shindou discovers an old go board in his grandfather's attic, he is greeted by the spirit of an ancient go master, Fujiwara no Sai. Sai spent his life teaching the techniques of the board game to an emperor during the Heian era, and now in his ghostly state, he is eager to share his passion with the unsuspecting Hikaru. The only problem is that Hikaru is not all that interested in board games. But Sai is not easily dissuaded. Pressured by Sai's unrelenting desire to pursue something he refers to as the "Divine Move," Hikaru begrudgingly consents to playing the game, executing moves as dictated by Sai. But slowly, intrigued by the dedication of his peers, he begins to learn the basics of the game. As Hikaru enters into the world of go, guided by his intangible tutor and inspired by his rival, Akira Touya, he cannot help but be drawn into the complex game as he grows determined to prove his own abilities.

Professor Kawato is the new Japanese teacher in the ill-famed Futagotamaga high shool, whose baseball club is composed by thugs and bullies who have been suspended for a year from all school competitions for causing a brawl during an official match. Now that the suspension is over, the only club's members left are interested only in women, smoking and doing nothing until, under professor Kawato's guidance, they discover a new dream called Koushien. The road to Koushien is far from easy, as they have to get back in shape, to learn how to play baseball and to win everyone else mistrust, including the principal's and other professor's one, with only a few months available. Sweating and fighting, the baseball club will find his determination and strength, as they proceed towards their dreams, while Kawato's enthusiastic and non-conventional ways slowly change the attitude of everyone near them.

High school is hard for Kayano. When she tries to confess her love to the kind but distant Yuichi, the school bully Takeru makes her life hell. But things get worse when Kayano's mother gets engaged to Takeru's father, the school principal! Soon enough, instead of be in love with Yuichi, she falls in her love with her future brother, Takeru. What will she do about this forbidden love? Included one-shot: Volume 11: Flying Rabbit

Jindai High School was a relatively safe place, right up until Sousuke Sagara transferred there. A total nut, he wreaks havoc on the school's student body and gets into a world of trouble with the teachers! But there's more to Sousuke than meets the eye—not just a hell-raising student, he's actually a member of an elite military unit, on an undercover mission to protect the beautiful schoolgirl Kaname Chidori from the KGB.

Yongbi is a bounty hunter without fear or reproach. Especially without fear, actually. Despite his greed and his penchant for drinking (fortunately shared by his faithful horse) and women, Yongbi is still a charming young man. And when a boy carrying a medallion, source of much envy, finds himself under the protection of the adventurer, those who cross their path must prepare for the worst!

Miyu is an 8th grade student. Her parents went working in NASA and they left Miyu. For a moment, Miyu was sent to stay with her Uncle. The first day when Miyu arrive to her Uncle house, her uncle decide to go to India and left Miyu with his son, Kanata. First time, Miyu thought she will stay in her uncle house only with Kanata. But this no longer happen. Soon, there is an UFO landed in Miyu's uncle house. Inside the UFO, there is an cute baby, name Ruu and with his babysister, Wannya...