[10] Best Omnibus Manga That Collectors Can Buy

If you just want a quick list of the best omnibus manga, then here it is:

1. Vinland Saga
2. Death Note (All-in-One Edition)
3. Gantz
4. Berserk Deluxe
5. Hellsing Deluxe
6. PTSD Radio 1
7. Goodnight Punpun
8. Blade of the Immortal
9. Pokémon Adventures
10. Battle Royale Ultimate Edition

Now, if you want to know why each and every one of these omnibus are worthy of your collection, then keep on reading below!

1. Vinland Saga

Vinland Saga lands at number one on this list because it is one of the best Epics to ever touch a manga page. That and I am a huge fan of history, and Vinland Saga is full of amazing historical details pertaining to the Viking Era. Vinland Saga follows Thorfinn, who is the son of a Viking that was murdered by someone important to them (I’m not going to spoil anything else, though.) Vinland Saga is Thorfinn’s epic story of revenge, filled with violence, bloodshed, and adventure.

Another reason why Vinland Saga lands here at number one is that I’m obsessed with its art.

The details are absolutely beautiful and the art style and the story both work in tandem to create such an immersive experience. Vinland Saga has consistently made my stomach tense up in a way that only something truly epic can, which is why I’m dropping it at #1 on my Omnibus list. (psst, the hardcover books also look absolutely sick on any bookshelf).

2. Death Note (All-in-One Edition)

Death Note is one of the best manga to have ever been written. If you’re a fan of mystery, suspense, and thriller manga, then you’ll love Death Note. There’s a good chance you’ve already seen or read Death Note, so I won’t go into too much detail (I also don’t want to spoil it for anyone who hasn’t.) But in summary, Death Note is one of the best “cat and mouse” stories to have ever been told.

The story follows Light Yagami, who finds a book that will kill anyone whose name he writes in it. Light does not shy away from using this power and gets a really intense god complex. He starts killing many people and draws the attention of the government. But how do you catch someone that is killing with a powerful, paranormal book? That’s where L comes in.

Death Note is a story about Light Yagami vs L (and a few others). Two geniuses each trying to outwit the other. One trying to solve a case, and the other trying to keep their power without getting caught. Death Note is truly one of the best stories to have ever been told, and the omnibus is one of the best ways to read it in its entirety.

Don’t get me wrong, the Death Note Black Edition of the manga also looks awesome.

But I actually prefer having just one large omnibus, especially for a series that I’ve already seen or read.

3. Gantz

Gantz is a story about an afterlife “game” of sorts. The story follows two boys who die a brutal death and are then teleported to a new world. In this world, they are forced to play a sort of game. In this game, they are sent on missions to kill aliens. If they kill the aliens before the time runs out, they are awarded points, otherwise they lose and die permanently. Pretty simple Isekai, right? Quite similar to Alice in Borderland.

Well, Gantz takes the number 3 spot because, not only is it a classic, but its story, characters, and plots go above and beyond outrageous. The manga is violent, it’s shocking, and just straight up bizarre. I’m glad that Gantz chose the omnibus format because I would not want to read the story in smaller doses. If you’re into violence and death games, then Gantz is a must-read.

4. Berserk Deluxe

Berserk is another classic manga, and probably the one most people think of when they think of a huge, hard-cover, manga omnibus. Berserk was originally released in 1990 and it is notorious for its violence. It is not a book for the faint of heart, and I mean that seriously. Do not get this omnibus if you are not looking for something very brutal and shocking.

If you’ve been to your local bookstore anytime in the last few years, then there’s a good chance you’ve seen this Deluxe version of Berserk. It’s hard to miss - it has 700 pages and is absolutely massive. Beyond the absolutely brutal innards, this book just looks awesome. If you plan to collect the entire series, just make sure you have a really stable bookshelf, though.

5. Goodnight Punpun

Goodnight Punpun is one of the best slice of life / coming of age stories to ever be put into manga form. The story follows Punpun Onodera throughout all major parts of his early life (childhood, middle school, highschool, and early 20s). I love Goodnight Punpun so much because a few of its themes hit so close to home for me. Goodnight Punpun shows us a young man’s life as he struggles with who he is, what he wants, and battles depression and very serious situations.

What makes Goodnight Punpun so good is that we know why Punpun is how he is, we see him as a child, his dysfunctional family growing up, and we see him as a teen / young adult. The story is simple, but Punpun’s mind is in chaos. Self-doubt, anxiety, depression, wanting more than he has in life. It’s not a story I could read twice but it’s one I am so glad that I’ve read.

While the story is a slice of life, it can be very intense and horrifying just like life can.

6. PTSD Radio

As you can tell from the cover, PTSD Radio is a very creepy story and the perfect omnibus for horror manga fans to add to their collection. It’ll fit right alongside Uzumaki, Gyo, Ibitsu, and any other large, creepy book you have laying around. PTSD Radio is written by Masaaki Nakayama who is very into body horror, Lovecraftian existentialism, and shares many similarities with the horror manga king - Junji Ito.

PTSD Radio is about an ancient being / hair god, Ogushi and its curse. The omnibus is full of creepy, horrifying episodes that you’ll come to find out are much more than what they seem on the surface.

I pretty much bought PTSD Radio as soon as I saw it on the shelf at my local chain bookstore. It’s so creepy looking and caught me off guard when I saw it wasn’t written by Junji Ito. I’m proud to have this in my horror manga collection. PTSD Radio was probably published as an omnibus because that’s the only way to truly enjoy the story. The story is episodic and each episode feels very disconnected from the rest. However, the story rewards those who pay attention and there really is something deeper to be found as you get further into the story.

7. Hellsing Deluxe

If you were a fan of how the Berserk Deluxe omnibus looked but you just weren’t interested in the source material, then I may have just the thing for you. Hellsing was first released in 1997, and it’s yet another classic to make this list. Hellsing is pretty much a story of the Illuminati teaming up with the vampire lord Alucard in order to defeat a bunch of undead Nazis. I’m not sure what more you could want out of a manga than that, but Hellsing has it!

It’s an action-packed dark fantasy manga and definitely something all manga fans need to check out at some point. Of course, I also love that this Omnibus put a red spin on Berserk’s hard cover style. I think the red looks brilliant and will pop in any manga collection. Again, just make sure you have some sturdy shelves!

8. Blade of the Immortal

Blade of the Immortal has some of the best, most developed, nuanced characters in all of manga, so you will not be disappointed with adding it to your collection. It is another epic story of revenge, akin to Vinland Saga. If you start Blade of the Immortal, you’ll probably finish it soon after because it has a very fast-paced story, even if it is very long (3 Omnibus). The story is about a cursed warrior aiding a young girl in a quest for revenge.

While the premise of the story is pretty simple, what makes Blade of the Immortal so good (and why it makes this list) is due to its characters and their depth. There are no clear cut good guys and bad guys in this manga. There is a ton of nuance and many gray areas. Good characters can do bad things and bad characters can do good things. Blade of the Immortal is an Epic of old. It is not a modern tale of good guys taking out bad guys, so if you choose to read it, be prepared to do some introspective analysis on yourself and the world.

Blade of the Immortal also has a pretty nice looking hard cover Deluxe Volume available, similar to Hellsing or Berserk. The Deluxe volumes are just the omnibus volumes in hard cover form, so you’ll be getting the same story either way.

9. Pokémon Adventures

I’m a huge fan of Pokémon so I was stoked when I saw the Pokémon Adventures omnibus just chilling on a shelf at my local bookstore. I’m really happy to say that the story doesn’t follow Ash Ketchum at all, which is great because we’re getting a brand-new story (and a huge one at that).

If you’re a fan of Pokémon, you have to get Pokémon Adventures. If you’re like me, then you love diving into the lore of things you’re a fan of. Pokémon Adventures is one of the best ways to get lost in the Pokémon universe. It does a much better job of doing so than the anime and even the games. Books are far less limited than games and animation, so the artist can truly build a world and help us believe that it is real. Satoshi Tajiri, the creator of Pokémon, has even said that Pokémon Adventures is the closest version of Pokémon to how he imagined the world to be.

Pokémon Adventures has a crazy number of manga volumes and omnibus available. The first omnibus starts as red, the second is blue, the third is yellow, and it just keeps going all the way to Ruby and beyond. So no matter when you started enjoying the franchise, Pokémon Adventures has you covered. Even if you don’t enjoy the games, the world of Pokémon is so full of imagination and wonder, that the series is an incredible read.

Before you read Pokémon Adventures, do note that it does not shy away from killing Pokémon or people, or taking dark twists and turns. It doesn’t do it often, but it does happen.

10. Battle Royale Ultimate Edition

By now I’m sure everyone knows what a battle royale is. The Battle Royale manga is no different than any battle royal game you have heard of or played (Apex Legends, Fortnite, etc). Battle Royale is about a death game, where the participants are dropped on an island and forced to fight to the death until only one is remaining. The thing that makes Battle Royale so intense and messed up is that the participants in the battle royale are kids.

Battle Royale is another classic that makes this list and is actually based off of a 1999 novel. The manga and novel follow the same story. Overall, the manga isn’t going to blow you away with its story. However, it is action-packed, has clear cut good guys and bad guys (and one major psychotic antagonist), full of intense moments, and well worth the read.

A manga omnibus is a collection of manga volumes that have been combined and published as one large book. Most omnibus will contain about 3 volumes of a manga, while others will contain the entire manga story. Many manga are only available in omnibus form, but some have an omnibus and individual volumes.

Most manga are published in volumes, so you’ll buy volume 1, volume 2, etc individually. Manga volumes are usually pretty thin books. Omnibuses, on the other hand, combine these volumes into one large book. So if you pick up the Gantz Omnibus Volume 1 manga for example, you’ll actually be getting the first three volumes of Gantz. Omnibus are nice because they’re usually cheaper than buying the volumes individually, and it requires having less books in your collection.

Some manga, like Gantz, are only available in omnibus form. They still release in volumes, it’s just that each volume of the omnibus has 2 or 3 volumes of the actual story inside. However, there are also omnibus like the Death Note All-in-One Edition that were originally released as individual volumes and then turned into an omnibus later.

You should get the omnibus of a manga instead of a manga set. It is usually much cheaper to collect all of the omnibuses of a manga than it is to collect the entire set individually or in a box set. The downside of collecting omnibus is that they usually use lower-quality paper than individual manga volumes.

In my opinion, you should use your best judgment for any manga series you plan on collecting. For example, I have the Death Note omnibus because I’ve seen the anime and just wanted to read the story and wasn’t worried too much about how it looked in my collection. However, I really like how the individual manga volumes of One Piece look when they’re together, so if I ever go down that rabbit hole, I’ll probably avoid the omnibus and just pick up a huge box set.

The advantage of collecting the omnibuses is that it is much cheaper than collecting the individual volumes. However, sometimes they’re not as aesthetically pleasing when put on a shelf, and the paper quality can be lower than the individual volumes’ (see One Piece again).

A manga omnibus is worth the price because omnibuses are cheaper than buying individual volumes and still contain the same story. Most manga omnibuses contain about three volumes of a manga and cost about $10 less than buying the volumes individually. The $10 saved adds up over a high number of volumes.

Let’s look at the first One Piece omnibus. This omnibus contains volumes 1 - 3 of One Piece and costs about $15. Now if you look at the individual volumes of One Piece, you can see that they cost about $8 - 10 a piece. So to get three volumes of the manga individually, you’ll pay about $15 more. Now, think about if you wanted to collect the entire series of One Piece (or even half), in the end you’ll pay hundreds more for the individual manga volumes than you would for the omnibus.

Some collectors prefer the individual volumes because they usually have a higher build quality and arguably look better on a shelf. However, for people that just want to read the story and own the manga, the omnibus is the best way to go. They’ll save you a ton of money while delivering the same great story that you came for.

Alright, so these are my picks for the top 10 omnibus manga available right now! I included (affiliate) links to all of them, if you want to pick them up and support the site at no extra cost (wink wink), or you can grab them from your local bookstore!

Either way I hope you found something awesome to check out and add to your collection. Enjoy your reading!