It is with mixed emotions (about 55% irritation, 45% resignation) that I say goodbye to OneManga, the popular manga scanlation site that shut down for good last week. Now, it's possible that the folks at OM will eventually restore the unlicensed scanlations they hosted (their FAQ section is unclear on this point), but for now the reading portion of the site is dead.

Wordcandy hosts two scanlated series—Banhonsa and Absolute Witch, both wonderful, funny stories that have yet to find a publisher in the United States. When/if that happens, we will immediately take down the scanlations and pray for them to become rip-roaring successes. However, I can't help but sympathize with people who rely on scanlations for all their manga needs. There are just too many problems with the American manga market: the prices are high, series can be dropped at any point, it can be tough-to-impossible to find back volumes, etc. I understand the flip sides to these arguments, too... but there's no denying that free, easy-to-use scanlation sites like OneManga will be sincerely missed.

Labels: manga, Obituaries, Scanlations