What is Dystopia manga?

A dystopia (from Ancient Greek: δυσ-, "bad, ill", and Ancient Greek: τόπος, "place, landscape"; alternatively cacotopia, or anti-utopia) is, in literature, an often futuristic society that has degraded into a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian. Dystopian literature has underlying cautionary tones, warning society that if we continue to live how we do, this will be the consequence. A dystopia, thus, is regarded as a sort of negative utopia and is often characterized by an authoritarian or totalitarian form of government. Dystopias usually feature different kinds of repressive social control systems, a lack or total absence of individual freedoms and expressions and constant states of warfare or violence. Dystopias often explore the concept of humans abusing technology and how humans individually and collectively cope with technology that has evolved too quickly such as the car, the flamethrower or the microwave. A dystopian society is also often characterized by widespread poverty and brutal political controls such as a large military-like police.

Random Dystopia Manga You might like

Futatabi

6.43

Description:

Rick has lived a normal life as a mechanic's apprentice in a world underground. That, however, is about to change as he bumps into a strange intruder who is not quite like anyone Rick has ever seen before. Venus, the intruder, claims to be from another world just like Rick's, though slightly different. With the police after Venus, can they figure out what is going on? (Source: MU)
Type

oneshot

Volumes

0

Chapters

1

Rating

Status

finished

Started

1985-08-21

Blame!: Denki Ryoushi Kiken Kaisou Dasshutsu Sakusen

(BLAME! Movie Edition: THE ELECTROFISHERS’ ESCAPE)

0

Description:

In the distant technological future, civilization has reached its ultimate Net-based form. An "infection" in the past caused the automated systems to spiral out of order, resulting in a multi-leveled city structure that replicates itself infinitely in all directions. Now humanity has lost access to the city's controls, and is hunted down and purged by the defense system known as the Safeguard. In a tiny corner of the city, a little enclave known as the Electro-Fishers is facing eventual extinction, trapped between the threat of the Safeguard and dwindling food supplies. A girl named Zuru goes on a journey to find food for her village, only to inadvertently cause doom when an observation tower senses her and summons a Safeguard pack to eliminate the threat. With her companions dead and all escape routes blocked, the only thing that can save her now is the sudden arrival of Killy the Wanderer, on his quest for the Net Terminal Genes, the key to restoring order to the world.
Type

manga

Volumes

1

Chapters

7

Status

finished

Started

2017-04-26

Chijou 100-kai ~Dasshutsu Kakuritsu 0.0001%~

(100 Floor Tower ~0.0001% Escape Probability~)

0

Description:

21st Century, Japan. In Tokyo, there's a state-owned gambling tower. 20 men and women gather in the 100 story tower with 1 goal: escape. You get 10 billion yen if you do. If you don’t... (Source: MU)
Type

manga

Status

current

Started

2017-08-22

Marginal

(Marginal)

7.54

Description:

In the year 2999, only eleven cities still survive on Earth. The climate has changed drastically, and a biochemical apocalypse has made women extinct. For centuries, the male population of Earth has survived by depending on only one woman, called the Holy Mother, whose ova are harvested to create genetically engineered children. By now, any concept of a world in which women exist as ordinary people is long gone. Society has re-structured itself around all-male families, and relationships between men and adolescent boys have become the norm. At the beginning of Marginal, the Holy Mother is assassinated by a terrorist known as Grinja. The government in power doesn't want to start a mass panic, so it pretends that the Holy Mother has only shed her vessel, and that she will be miraculously "reborn" in the near future. The public, which is superstitious and devout, believes this easily. Only government officials know that behind the scenes, there is a frantic effort to create a being able to give birth. The manga's story revolves around Kira, who becomes involved in a three-way relationship with Grinja, the aforementioned terrorist, and Ashijin, a young man who calls himself Kira's owner. A complex plot and flawless world-building make the story irresistible, and Kira's search for freedom is as symbolic as it is gripping. (Source: The Pink Panzer)
Type

manga

Volumes

5

Chapters

24

Rating

Sexual Violence

Status

finished

Started

1985-08-01

Housekeeper

0

Description:

In the near future where Android (A.I) becomes common among humans, a virus outbreak suddenly occurred, turning over 70% humanity into zombie-like "Creatures". The A.I soon break away from their infected owners since they're not programmed to recognize "Creatures" as humans, but one of them, the housekeeper Hasty, acted otherwise when her infected young master, Neville's final words struck something in her. Sticking with him after all other humans have been infected in the area they're living in, Hasty vows to do whatever it takes to cure master Neville, even if she has to fight against the whole world who's now looking to exterminate all Creatures to cut off the infection source completely.
Type

manhwa

Status

current

Started

2019-01-21

Grey

0

Description:

The world is covered in wastelands that are dotted with numbered "Towns." All Towns are supervised by computers called "Little Mamas" (nodes conected to the world governing super-computer called "Big Mama"); the underprivileged live in the slums and are referred to as "People." One can only become one of the privileged "Citizens" by joining the army and fighting the other Towns' forces, as the Towns are continually at war with one another. Combatants earn 50 credits per mission, plus 30 credits for every enemy killed. Once the total reaches 1000, the fighter's class is increased by one category (starting at F, then going to E, D, C, B and making one's way up to A). The A class guarantees a transfer to the idyllic, legendary "City." Citizens have numerous advantages over People: in addition to getting out of the ghetto, they do not worry about being beaten up, raped or otherwise victimized. It's this advantage that leads Grey's lover, a girl known as "Lips," to become a Citizen. Her death leads Grey to join the army as well and follow her dream of getting to the City by sheer force of will. Grey soon earns the nickname "Grey Death" for his tenacity on the battlefield and ability to survive when the rest of his comrades are killed. He only accepts orders that keep him alive, and will not kill the resistance fighters that fight against the Town system because they are not worth any points. Sullen and cocky, Grey exists only to survive and kill, in that order. Grey's sense of loyalty gets him into trouble when he finds out that his field commander, a man that saved his life many times, is lost in the African sector. He abandons Town 303 to go look for him. Along the way, he discovers who and what the resistance fighters are, why the Towns are all different in both military might and how they are run, and what the true secret of "Big Mama" is. source: wikipedia
Type

manga

Volumes

2

Chapters

18

Rating

Status

finished

Started

1985-01-01

Kin to Tetsu

(Fungus and Iron)

0

Description:

On a star with a thoroughly managed society, mankind was dominated by fungi and deprived of all freedom. An "Irregular," the strongest soldier, Dante, decided to overturn the reason of this world after his chance meeting with a girl. Thus, the boy rises against the star. In order to meet you again. (Source: Kodansha, translated)
Type

manga

Status

current

Started

2021-03-09

86: Eighty Six - Fragmental Neoteny

0

Description:

The prequel story depicts how Shinei became a pilot.
Type

manga

Status

current

Started

2021-04-27

Messiah no Tettsui

(Messiah’s Hammer)

0

Description:

2034, a time when the development of AI advanced greatly and the appearance of the humanoid "Totomo" has been widely accepted. Tamotsu, an ordinary office worker, loses both his daughter and has half his body replaced with mechanical parts due to an accident. While trying to live earnestly with his wife, his body begins to malfunction... (Source: MU)
Type

manga

Volumes

3

Chapters

28

Status

finished

Started

2019-01-25

Akudama Drive

(Akudama Drive)

0

Description:

Long ago, the "Kantou" and "Kansei" countries had a war that divided the world. But at the end of the war, Kansei became a vassal to Kantou. However, Kansei's government and police force declined, and crime became rampant. The criminals are called "Akudama." (Source: Anime News Network)
Type

manga

Rating

17+ (violence & profanity)

Status

current

Started

2020-07-07

C.O.P

(C.O.P)

0

Description:

In the near future, a renewable energy source called ‘Aphorium’ becomes the world’s leading power source. This energy revolutionises the fields of biomedical, material, pharmaceutical, and energy engineering and becomes a resource more valuable than gold. However, cartels begin to illegally export ‘Aphorium’ and control its market. Subsequently, the global company ‘Skycaston’ suggests the creation of the I.T.S: Instant Trial System - an android programmed to incarcerate cartel members without needing a trial. ‘Seo Woojin’, an investigator placed on disciplinary probation, if he can successfully become an educational navigator for the new ‘Magnum’ series of I.T.S military androids, he will be reinstated in his former position. Woojin accepts this offer. A story about an android with the power to prosecute suspects on the spot and a human detective. Source: MU
Type

manhwa

Rating

Teens 13 or older

Status

current

Started

2021-01-20

Supsogui Dam

0

Description:

Dam, who at some point stopped growing, avoids people and leaves to the forest. (Source: Naver, translated)
Type

manhwa

Chapters

131

Status

finished

Started

2019-12-23

Battle Royale

(Battle Royale)

0

Description:

Battle Royale takes place in a fictional fascist Japan in the year 1997. The state, known as the Republic of Greater East Asia, arose after an alternate World War 2 where Japan emerged victorious and a rebellion was put down by the combined military and police forces. The government controls everything, and anything "immoral", such as rock music, is banned, unless it beautifies the government, along with an unnamed dictator with a strong cult of personality able to bend the whims of the populace. The government has established a military program, the Battle Experiment No. 68 Program, wherein fifty randomly selected classes of third-year junior high school students are kidnapped, dropped into a remote location, and forced to kill one another until only one student of each class remains. Ostensibly, it is to help the government and its military research survival skills and battle readiness – in actuality, it is meant to instill terror and distrust in all of Japan's citizens to curb any attempts at rebellion, by showcasing the government's power and ability to target citizen's families and preying on the fear of being killed by a friend. (Source: Wikipedia)
Type

novel

Volumes

1

Chapters

82

Status

finished

Started

1999-04-01

Navigatoria

(Navigatoria)

0

Description:

Enter a world where the First Space War has ended, and Earth has claimed its first extraterrestrial colony. Manabu Houo, a boy born into a totalitarian state, finds his only joy in watching forbidden movies with his childhood friend, Hina-chan. However, one day upon returning home, he finds a group of government officials waiting for him...?! Watch as this thrilling sci-fi school drama unfolds on a distant planet! (Source: MANGA Plus)
Type

manga

Status

current

Started

2024-02-18

Flower War

(Flower War)

0

Description:

Near future. As the earth reaches its end due to environmental pollution, the earth wakes itself up from the ancient sleeping guardian (flower-like biological weapon). They attack mankind, the culprit of environmental pollution, and trying to destroy civilization. Fight against the founding guards of the surviving human-power of the robot defenses. A slum-born new robot pilot, Kay, is assigned to the Moonlight Fox and encounters a different type of guardian during a battle against them. (Source: MU)
Type

manhwa

Status

current

Started

2020-02-14

Brave New World

0

Description:

An anthology of stories about different takes on humanity's future. "Conquer or be conquered. Shocking perspective of what may await us in the future. 2017 Naver Webtoon artists' IT dystopia collaboration!" (Source: MU)
Type

manhwa

Chapters

17

Rating

Status

finished

Started

2017-08-18

GABULI

0

Description:

In the year 20XX, a bill was passed to indentify and surveil every citizen using nanomachines and DNA data. Those who don't possess this identification are deemed criminals, "NoIDs". As disappearances continue in the city, Liu and Tough are living their lives as NoIDs in the slums, helping people find what they lost. - MU
Type

doujin

Rating

Teens 13 or older

Status

current

Started

2021-08-08

Fake Rebellion

(Fake Rebellion)

0

Description:

A world where humans are dominated by cyborgs. A wanderer in one of the lowest ranked zones encounters a girl proclaiming to be a former empress.
Type

manga

Status

current

Started

2018-11-28

Different Nation

(Different Nation)

0

Description:

Since the earth invasion 20 years ago, co-existence between human beings and aliens were established in this country. ICPO, an institution with a mission to prevent violent crime happening in the invaded nation is the main protagonist of this full-colored Sci-fi human drama. Together with Roy, the former New York police officer, and the serious alien Leonardo, Rika, a new Japanese investigator confronting the crime organization in the bizarre but thrilling “Different Nation,” which past-name we already knew. (Source: Manga Club)
Type

manga

Status

current

Started

2019-02-01

Ribirudo Waarudo

(Rebuild World)

0

Description:

The pinnacle of human civilization has come and gone, leaving only ruins in its wake. Society and science now struggle to rebuild, rediscovering scraps of knowledge from powerful ancient artifacts that defy comprehension. These relics of the “Old World” can make the fortunes of those who find them—if ancient security systems and rogue bioweapons don’t kill the relic hunters first. Akira, a young street orphan, sets out to become one such hunter to escape his brutal life in the slums. Untrained, malnourished, and poorly armed, Akira would be lucky to make it back from the ruins alive—until an encounter with Alpha, a mysterious, ghostly woman, changes his fate forever. Alpha needs a hunter, and she’s willing to train Akira to get one. Will her support be enough to help a penniless kid from the slums climb to the top of a crushing and merciless world?
Type

novel

Rating

Teens 13 or older

Status

current

Started

2019-05-17

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