What Is “Mr. Zombie” Manga?
Let’s get right to it. No major manga publisher has released a series titled “Mr. Zombie.” If you’ve seen this name floating around online, it most likely refers to one of two things:
1. Shi Xiong (尸兄) — a Chinese series sometimes fan-translated as “Mr. Zombie”
This is the most probable answer. Shi Xiong (also called “Corpse Brother” in fan translations) is a Chinese property — not a Japanese manga. It started as a web novel (a novel published online in serial installments rather than in print), was adapted into a manhua (a Chinese comic — distinct from Japanese manga or Korean manhwa), and became a long-running donghua (a Chinese animated series) starting in 2014. It follows a character named Bai Xiaofei fighting his way through a zombie-mutant outbreak.
The catch? Shi Xiong is not licensed in English. There’s no official English translation available through any major publisher, which is probably why it’s so hard to find clear information about it.
2. The “Mr. Vampire” film franchise confusion
The classic Hong Kong film series “Mr. Vampire” (1985) features jiangshi — creatures from Chinese folklore that are sometimes described as “hopping vampires” or “hopping zombies.” They’re reanimated corpses that move by hopping with outstretched arms, and they’re a staple of Chinese horror. These are films, not manga, but the crossover in terminology between “Mr. Vampire” and “Mr. Zombie” can muddy search results when you’re looking for manga.
Either way, if you’re looking for zombie manga to actually read in English today, the sections below have you covered.
Shi Xiong: A Closer Look
Since Shi Xiong is the most likely candidate for what people mean by “Mr. Zombie manga,” here’s what you need to know:
- Original format: Chinese web novel (a novel published chapter-by-chapter online) by 七度鱼 (Qiduyu)
- Adaptations: Manhua (Chinese comic) and donghua (Chinese animated series, 2014)
- Story: Follows Bai Xiaofei as he fights through a city overrun by zombie-mutant creatures
- English availability: Not licensed in English — no official translation exists for the web novel, manhua, or donghua
- Where people encounter it: Unofficial fan-translation sites (these are unlicensed and vary widely in quality), Chinese streaming platforms, and recommendation threads where the title gets loosely translated as “Mr. Zombie” or “Corpse Brother”
If you’ve been hunting for an official English release — that’s why you can’t find one. It doesn’t exist yet.
For readers who want zombie stories they can actually pick up and read right now, the next section covers six series that are all officially available in English.
6 Zombie Manga Available in English
Whether you want slow-burn psychological dread, high-octane action, or even zombie romance, there’s a series here for you. These are organized roughly from most horrifying to lightest in tone — so if you want pure terror, start at the top, and if you want something gentler, scroll toward the bottom.
I Am a Hero — Realistic Zombie Horror at Its Finest
Horror level: Extreme
If you want the most grounded, realistic zombie manga ever made, this is it. I Am a Hero drops you into modern-day Japan through the eyes of Hideo Suzuki — a struggling manga assistant with anxiety issues and a tenuous grip on reality. When a zombie outbreak begins, it doesn’t start with explosions and military responses. It starts with small, creepy wrongness. A coworker acting strangely. A news report that doesn’t add up. The slow realization that something is deeply, deeply wrong.
What makes this series special is how real everything feels. The zombies (called ZQN — an in-universe designation the characters use, never fully explained even in the manga itself) are genuinely disturbing. They retain fragments of their former personalities, repeating words and behaviors from their lives in broken, horrifying loops. The body horror — meaning graphic, disturbing depictions of the human body being transformed or violated — is unflinching. The societal collapse feels disturbingly plausible.
One important heads-up: The first two omnibuses are almost entirely character setup. (An omnibus collects multiple regular-sized volumes into one larger book — so each of these omnibuses contains roughly two to three volumes’ worth of story.) If you’re expecting immediate zombie chaos, the pacing might frustrate you at first. Stick with it. The slow build makes the eventual outbreak hit like a truck, and the payoff is absolutely worth the patience.
- Volumes: 11 English omnibuses — completed
- Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
- Anime adaptation: None — but there’s a live-action film (2016)
- Availability: Physical and digital
- Best for: Readers who want zombie horror that feels like it could actually happen
Fort of Apocalypse — Prison Survival Horror
Horror level: Very high
Take a zombie outbreak. Now set it inside a juvenile detention center. Now make the human inmates just as dangerous as the undead. That’s Fort of Apocalypse, and it is relentless.
The story follows Maeda Yoshiaki, a teenager wrongly imprisoned for murder. Before he can even figure out the prison’s social hierarchy, zombies breach the walls — and survival becomes a minute-to-minute question. The locked-room setting creates suffocating claustrophobia. You can’t just run away when the building itself is a cage.
What really elevates this series is how the creature designs escalate. The zombies don’t stay as simple shambling corpses — they mutate, evolve, and become increasingly nightmarish as the story progresses. The pacing is fast and the violence is brutal.
- Author: Yuu Kuraishi (story), Kazu Inabe (art)
- Volumes: 10 volumes — completed
- Publisher: Kodansha Comics (digital only — available on Kindle, Apple Books, and other digital manga platforms)
- Best for: Readers who want high-tension survival horror with creative monster design
School-Live! (Gakkougurashi!) — Psychological Horror in Disguise
Horror level: High
This one is tricky to talk about without ruining it. Here’s what can be said safely: School-Live! follows the School Living Club, a group of girls who love their school so much that they’ve decided to live there full-time. It seems cute. It seems cheerful. It seems like a cozy slice-of-life manga — the kind of low-stakes, everyday-life story where nothing dramatic happens and the appeal is just watching characters hang out.
Go in as blind as possible. Read the first chapter without looking anything up. The less you know, the harder it hits.
What can be said is that this series contains some of the most effective psychological horror — horror that targets your mind and emotions rather than relying on gore — in all of manga. The contrast between its surface presentation and its actual content creates a gut-punch that stays with you long after you put the book down.
- Author: Norimitsu Kaihou (story), Sadoru Chiba (art)
- Volumes: 12 volumes — completed
- Publisher: Yen Press
- Anime: Yes (2015) — the anime (Japanese animated series) is also great, but read the manga first
- Availability: Physical and digital
- Best for: Readers who want horror that messes with your emotions, not just your stomach
Highschool of the Dead — Classic Zombie Action
Horror level: Moderate
Highschool of the Dead is the series that brought zombie manga to a mainstream audience. When a sudden zombie pandemic erupts, a group of high school students must fight their way out of school and across a collapsing city. It’s fast, loud, and packed with over-the-top action sequences.
The art by Shouji Sato is dynamic and detailed — the zombie kills are creative and the action choreography is genuinely impressive. If you’ve seen the 2010 anime adaptation, the manga delivers the same energy with even more detail on the page.
Two things to know before you start:
First, this series has heavy ecchi content — meaning frequent sexualized imagery of the characters, including provocative poses, revealing outfits, and gratuitous camera angles. It’s not subtle and it’s present throughout. If that’s a dealbreaker for you, be aware going in.
Second — and more significantly — the story has no ending. Writer Daisuke Sato passed away in 2017, and the series was discontinued at 7 volumes. It stops mid-story with no resolution. Some readers still find it worth reading for the ride; others prefer completed series. Just know what you’re getting into.
- Author: Daisuke Sato (story), Shouji Sato (art)
- Volumes: 7 volumes — discontinued (no ending)
- Publisher: Yen Press
- Anime: Yes (2010) — a well-known classic
- Availability: Physical and digital
- Best for: Readers who want adrenaline-fueled zombie action and don’t mind sexualized content
Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead — Feel-Good Zombie Action
Horror level: Moderate
Here’s a question: what if a zombie apocalypse was the best thing that ever happened to you?
That’s the premise of Zom 100. Akira Tendou has spent three miserable years at a soul-crushing corporate job — overworked, sleep-deprived, and dead inside. Then zombies show up and destroy society. And Akira’s first reaction? Pure, unbridled joy. No more office. No more boss. He’s finally free.
He immediately creates a bucket list of 100 things he wants to do before becoming a zombie, and the series follows him checking items off while navigating the apocalypse. It’s colorful, energetic, surprisingly heartfelt, and genuinely funny. The zombies are a real threat — people get bitten, things get dire — but the tone stays fundamentally optimistic and adventurous.
This is a great entry point if you want zombie manga but don’t want to be emotionally devastated.
- Author: Haro Aso (story), Kotaro Takata (art)
- Volumes: Ongoing (new volumes are still being released and the story isn’t finished yet)
- Publisher: VIZ Media
- Anime: Yes — Season 1 aired in 2023
- Availability: Physical and digital
- Best for: Readers who want a fun, uplifting take on the zombie genre
Sankarea: Undying Love — Zombie Romance
Horror level: Low to moderate
What happens when a boy who’s obsessed with zombie movies accidentally creates a real resurrection potion — and a girl from a deeply troubled household drinks it?
Sankarea is a romance first and a zombie story second, but it takes both elements seriously. Chihiro Furuya is a zombie fanatic who’s always dreamed of having a zombie girlfriend. Rea Sanka is a sheltered girl escaping an abusive father. When she dies and comes back, their relationship becomes the heart of the story — and the series asks genuinely interesting questions about what it means to love someone whose body is slowly decaying.
Sankarea: Undying Love, Vol. 1
There are real horror elements here — body horror, dark family dynamics, and the ever-present dread of Rea’s deterioration — but the emotional core is romantic and often tender. It’s a unique genre blend that works better than it has any right to.
- Author: Mitsuru Hattori
- Volumes: 11 volumes — completed
- Publisher: Kodansha Comics
- Anime: Yes (2012)
- Availability: Physical and digital
- Best for: Readers who want romance with dark, horror-tinged undertones
Quick-Pick Guide: Which Zombie Manga Fits You?
| What You Want | Read This | Volumes | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Realistic, grounded horror | I Am a Hero | 11 omnibuses | Completed |
| Brutal survival in a confined space | Fort of Apocalypse | 10 volumes | Completed |
| Psychological horror that tricks you | School-Live! | 12 volumes | Completed |
| Classic over-the-top action | Highschool of the Dead | 7 volumes | Discontinued |
| Fun, colorful zombie adventure | Zom 100 | Ongoing | Ongoing (new volumes still releasing) |
| Romance with zombie elements | Sankarea | 11 volumes | Completed |
If you’re a horror fan: Start with I Am a Hero or School-Live! — these two hit the hardest and deliver the most satisfying horror experiences.
If you’re new to manga entirely: Zom 100 is the friendliest entry point. It’s fun, it’s accessible, and the anime can serve as a preview before you commit to the manga.
If you want something completed: Four of these six series are finished — I Am a Hero, School-Live!, Fort of Apocalypse, and Sankarea all have endings. No waiting for new volumes, no worrying about cancellation.
FAQ
Is “Mr. Zombie” a real manga series?
No widely published manga exists with this exact title. The name most likely refers to Shi Xiong (尸兄), a Chinese web novel/manhua/donghua sometimes fan-translated as “Mr. Zombie” or “Corpse Brother.” It is not officially available in English.
What is Shi Xiong (尸兄)?
A Chinese web novel by 七度鱼 (Qiduyu) that was adapted into a manhua (Chinese comic) and a long-running donghua (Chinese animated series, starting in 2014). It follows a character named Bai Xiaofei fighting through a zombie-mutant outbreak. There is no official English license for any version of the series.
What is the best zombie manga for beginners?
It depends on what kind of experience you want:
- For horror fans: I Am a Hero — realistic, completed, 11 English omnibuses. It’s the gold standard for zombie horror manga.
- For a lighter entry point: Zom 100 — ongoing, fun tone, colorful art, and has an anime adaptation you can sample first.
Which zombie manga have anime adaptations?
- Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead — anime aired 2023
- Highschool of the Dead — anime aired 2010
- School-Live! — anime aired 2015
- Sankarea: Undying Love — anime aired 2012
- I Am a Hero — no anime, but has a live-action film (2016)
- Fort of Apocalypse — no adaptation
Can I read Shi Xiong in English?
Not officially. There is no licensed English translation available for the web novel, manhua, or donghua. Unofficial fan translations exist in various places online, but there is no legitimate English-language release.
Are any of these zombie manga still ongoing?
Only Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead is still ongoing as of this writing — meaning new volumes are still being published and the story hasn’t reached its conclusion yet. The other five series on this list are either completed or discontinued.