In recent years manga, as the Japanese comic books are called, has been consolidated as a pop culture phenomenon in a global scale, including Brazil. After over a century of fusions between Western influences and Japanese artistic traditions, manga has become a rather peculiar form of printed visual story-telling, achieving a distinctive place not only in modern Japanese society, but also, its influences have been felt in the North American cinema scene as well. This thesis objective is to examine the ways through which manga has developed visually up to its actual state and its present influences over other media.