How to become a manga addict

May 22, 2014 — by Devin Zhao

Reporter presents the process of becoming a manga addict.

Hey. You there. You, the freshman who got bored after finishing two minutes of homework. You, the junior who’s pulling her hair out worrying about the two SAT II’s she has to take in a week. And you, the senior who needs an excuse to procrastinate.
Why not become a manga addict?
What’s manga, you ask? Simply put, manga is pretty much the Japanese version of comics except slightly more erotic, fight-packed and suspenseful. Those who would like a video representation should go for anime. 
Now, I present to you the 100 percent, Devin Zhao guaranteed guide of how to become a manga addict.
1. Choose your manga
First of all, you must find that one manga that’s going to get you hooked. Websites such as Mangafox, Mangahere, and every other Manga (insert word here) contain free manga and cater to your tastes.
Once you’ve gotten on your manga site, bookmarked twice to be sure, a list of new chapters face you. Now is the time to be awed.
It’s truly time to find that one series that you’re going to obsess over for the rest of your manga-addicted life. But first, you must read the top three mangas of any manga website: “Naruto,” “One Piece” and “Bleach,” or else you’ll be isolated from the rest of the manga community.
What are you waiting for? Start reading. You’ll get so hooked that you can’t leave your screen.
2. Throw away the trash
After reading all your favorite mangas four times over, you’ve probably discovered that school is irrelevant compared to finding out how Donflamingo from “One Piece” gets pummeled by Luffy in the next few chapters, one chapter per week.
You’ve also created the optimal schedule for reading your favorite manga the moment it’s released to the public. After extensive research, you’ve discovered that doing homework can be delayed to maximize the time you spend reading manga. Studying for tests becomes trivial, while barely maintaining minimum grades becomes the norm.
You might notice your lack of sleep due to too much reading, but that’s nothing that 5-Hour Energy drinks, coffee and late afternoon naps can’t fix. 
Eventually, you’ll notice that manga has replaced your friends and even your family. You live the life of a scavenger, searching the back of the refrigerator for leftovers and expired food, and then go back to your laptop to resume reading.
When the grading period ends, you’ll find that your grades have  deviated majorly from what colleges want, but that’s insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Your parents won’t be proud of you to say the least, but all the females in “Rosario + Vampire” will always accept you for who you are.
3. Lose your desires
After repeated encounters with your tiger mom’s sharp bamboo stick, your slightly battered mind has pieced together that you’ll have to get a job one day, and you need education to achieve that. 
Finals week has arrived, and you need to make a comeback with your grades. Saturday morning comes, and with more than 48 hours before your first final, you feel that you have more than enough time to relax. A few chapters of that new manga wouldn’t hurt, right?
As one chapter leads to another, you think that watching the anime version would be more accurate in displaying the characters’ feelings. Hours later, you’ve watched all the episodes of the anime and read all the fan fiction you can put your hands on. With your mind at peace, you can begin studying.
Then you look at the clock; it’s Sunday night, 10 p.m. You swivel your head to stare at your bedside mirror — Good Lord, your hair’s messy and unkempt, your body smells like dried sweat. You need to shower, eat and shave; there’s no way you can get a good night’s sleep and study efficiently for your final.
You lean back in your chair, breathing in the late night air. Manga has come back to ruin your life, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Maybe one day you’ll get rid of that addiction, but for now, you’ll have to manage.
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