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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: Emma Bangaihen, Emma Bangai-hen, Emma Further Tales, Victorian Romance Emma

Japanese: エマ

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Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: 10

Chapters: 72

Status: Finished

Published: Dec 12, 2001 to Feb 12, 2008

Genres: Award Winning, Romance, Slice of Life

Theme: Historical

Demographic: Seinen

Serialization: Comic Beam

Authors: Mori, Kaoru (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 8.14¹ (scored by 11,396 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #542²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #649

Members: 31,448

Favorites: 874

Resources

Wikipedia

8.14

Ranked #542Popularity #649Members 31,448

MangaComic BeamMori, Kaoru (Story & Art)

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Volumes: /10

Chapters: /72

Emma

Vol. 1
$9.99

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Synopsis

It's the turn of the 20th century, and Victorian era England plays host to a poignant and emotional saga of love between two individuals of thoroughly different societal standing. Working class maid Emma and wealthy aristocrat William Jones find themselves falling for one another despite their allotted positions in life, and it is their persistent efforts to traverse the dangerous minefields of wealth, power, and staunch tradition, that provides the gripping emotional drama of Kaoru Mori's Emma. The rigid social structures of the time and the disapproving elite, including but not limited to William's own family, seek to keep the lovestruck pair apart due to their heavy condemnation of this breach of proper conduct. But despite their best attempts to resist one another, William and Emma's relationship deepens, and their feelings for one another prove to be stronger than the harshest of judgments.

From the author of the acclaimed series Otoyomegatari, comes this impassioned tour de force of two individuals who strive to never give up on their love. But will William and Emma's relationship fall prey to the slew of unforeseen ordeals that rise up to challenge it, or will they get their happy ending after all?

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Emma won the Excellence Prize at the 2005 Japan Media Arts Festival for the Manga Division. In 2007, the English release was listed by Library Journal as one of the best graphic novels and was named by the Young Adult Library Services Association as one of the 10 best graphic novels for teens for 2008.

The series was first published in English by DC Comics under the CMX imprint from September 20, 2006 to December 8, 2009. Yen Press republished the series in 2-in-1 hardcover omnibuses from May 19, 2015 to August 30, 2016. It was also published in Polish by Studio JG from November 22, 2013 to October 9, 2015.

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Characters

Emma

Main

Jones, William

Main

Atawari, Hakim

Supporting

Mölders, Dorothea

Supporting

Stownar, Kelly

Supporting

Hans

Supporting

Adèle

Supporting

Jones, Collin

Supporting

Campbell, Eleanor

Supporting

Jones, Aurelia

Supporting

Reviews

Jan 17, 2009

Archaeon

Recommended

As one who was born and raised in England, and a closet bibliophile, it's no surprise that I'm familiar with many classic works of english literature from the victorian period, especially those by Dickens, Austen and the Bronte sisters. Many other works that have tried to mimic those worthies have often turned out to be trashy romantic fiction of the first order (e.g. Mills & Boon novels and the like).

Imagine my surprise then, to find a manga that was not only based on that period, but was also excellent in almost every aspect. That manga is Emma by Mori Kaoru (not to be confused ...

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Jun 26, 2025

Kkulpanda

Mixed Feelings

Emma is a historical romance manga set in Victorian England, notable for its attention to period detail and its gentle, subdued atmosphere. Approaching this series with relatively high expectations, I found myself appreciating many elements while also, due to these high expectations, I was not fully happy with the outcome.

One of the manga’s strongest qualities is its immersive setting. Kaoru Mori clearly put significant effort into capturing the nuances of Victorian society, for me it was mostly and clothing what left me in awe—which provides a rich backdrop for the developing romance.

The characters are sympathetically written, and their emotions, while often subtle, feel genuine. ...

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Jul 2, 2025

tabbycatcircus

Not Recommended

It’s a nice read, but no masterpiece.

The premise is intriguing and the way it was initially executed does a great job of developing the romance for the main couple, establishing familiar, impactful side characters, and setting the tone for the rest of the work. The emotional moments are executed with great weight expected and deserved. However that’s all there is to talk about regarding this manga’s praises.
There are some simple yet compelling conflicts regarding class and how it affects the main couple, but nearing the end they are resolved abruptly and poorly, as the story attempts to distract you with chapter upon chapter ... of side character development which is all wedged in after a heated argument the ML has with his family. Yes it was fun to see those side character points resolved, but it left me thinking in the end that it should have really been about the side characters as a whole, not forcing me to read about Emma and her husbando; that's because the end was very underserved and came out of nowhere: everyone reunites in some cheesy, anticlimactic wedding, and given all the narratively useless side characters that only ever seem to set a light tone for a work that claims angst, the main couple and the story as a whole leaves an underwhelming impression.

Art-wise, the character designs are consistent yet too simple for a cast this large, to the point it’s hard to tell anybody apart, as they have the same potato-face as FMA Hiromu Arakawa’s art yet notably less expressive, something that stands out when you have to read five successive pages containing no dialogue (which does happen often).

As a side, there are just too many naked women.
There are so many bath scenes and shots of undergarments and ladies getting dressed but absolutely none for the males, female nipples are often shown yet you are lucky to catch a glimpse of skin below the neckline on a man, which is very tiresome, especially since the mangaka is female. Blah blah blah it’s “seinen” demographic magazine but no, that’s no excuse. Men should be seen sexualized, especially in a story that gives much weight and focus to both ML and FL, especially for a heavy romance where they show much desire for each other. It's not some self insert slop that relies on some gimmick in a modern setting and draws out the romance, nay, the main appeal is the period setting, so it was so jarring to see female nudity all of the time. And it's not only bath scenes and clothing changes, but also scenes with a woman and a man. The man is fully clothed and hardly attractive as he is old and with facial hair, while the woman is butt naked (and perfect shape after birthing 5+ children). It's like the manga is saying "yes, women are the ones who are desirable by default in their natural state, any desire a woman might have towards a man in a ROMANCE genre be damned." Women receive this messaging all the time about women’s beauty and as a result, seem so keen on sexualizing themselves all of the damn time in every demographic, in so many shoujo romances, and they don’t complain about it, so why can’t there be more male form appreciation in their own demographic, why can't we all go back to admiring Greek male forms? For instance, in the afterwords after every volume, the female mangaka will not stop sexualizing women and talking about bunny suits. What male mangaka does that towards men? Why are so many Japanese female mangaka like this? To make another Arakawa comparison, at least she draws the hot males shirtless with nice battle damage often for a manga in the shounen demographic.

I guess it will be a long time until I consume anything else set in a time period of a country like this again, because really there’s too much focus on what makes a woman appealing (and the idea that men don’t have to look appealing to women) something which continues to this day, so it’s only natural it would attract female mangaka like Mori who are so often meme’d into fetishizing other women. What what I expecting?

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Poll: Emma Chapter 66 Discussion Kitsu-nee - Mar 10, 2018	2 replies	by Arhael1 »» Jun 9, 4:47 PM
Poll: Emma Chapter 65 Discussion removed-user - Jul 4, 2011	3 replies	by Arhael1 »» Jun 9, 4:33 PM
Poll: Emma Chapter 52 Discussion Beatnik - Dec 24, 2009	9 replies	by TangyTea »» Mar 6, 8:49 PM
Poll: Emma Chapter 34 Discussion Beatnik - Dec 23, 2009	3 replies	by _colorful_ »» Mar 1, 1:23 PM
Poll: Emma Chapter 25 Discussion Beatnik - Dec 20, 2009	8 replies	by _colorful_ »» Mar 1, 10:03 AM

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