Signs you are The Hype Seeker
- You read sound effects out loud in your head.
- Your favourite pages have almost no words.
- You have replayed a fight scene in your mind on the bus.
- You judge a series by its first big battle.
Superpower
Can feel a BOOM through the screen. Hype Seekers feel the motion on a still page. You follow speed lines, impact frames and lettering like choreography, and you can tell a great fight from a good one by how it moves.
Weakness
Skims the talking to get to the punch. You skim the talking to get to the punch, and sometimes the talking explained why the punch mattered. Sound effects in a language you don't read also lose half their punch.
Tip
Test your ears in the manga SFX quiz. Sound effects are part of the action, so learning a few of them makes every fight louder.
Reads best with
Test your ears: ten sound effects, a ticking timer and a streak to protect. Manga sound effects quiz
Take the quiz
Not sure this is you? Seven questions, about a minute.
The other reader types
Questions
Why are manga sound effects so big?
Because they are part of the drawing. Artists letter them by hand so the shape of the word shows the force, speed or rhythm of the sound.
What does a power-up page usually look like?
A full or double page, few words, heavy speed lines and one large sound effect. The art does the talking.
