Bleach it

I've been spending this summer getting reacquainted with some of my favorite reading material. It's been great, really great.

One of my all time faves is Bleach. It may sound familiar because many people know of the wildly popular, and exhaustingly long-running anime. But if you haven't read the manga, then you haven't really experienced Bleach yet. It's one of the most visually arresting reads out there.

What I like about it the most is that it contains some of the strongest female characters in the history of female characters in "boy's genre" manga - perhaps in the history of female characters EVER. None of them are infantilized, sexually objectified, nor are they given one-dimenstional roles to play. They are drawn with (what can be considered in manga) wide variety in face and body type. Their personalities range from taciturn, to wise, to vulnerable, to witty, to charming, to spunky, to emotionally drained. They've seen things and done much. These are female characters of both action and thoughtfulness, and it's all treated with respect.

There needs to be more female characters like that.