Manga News and Information
January, 2007The first issue of a new seinen magazine titled Comic Charge (コミックチャージ) will be released by Kadokawa Shoten on March 20th. Comic Charge will be Kadokawa Shoten's first seinen magazine, and will be released bi-weekly (1st and 3rd Tuesday every month) for 290 yen. Peter Ahlstrom is looking for nomination suggestions for this year's Hugo Awards and the John W. Campbell Award for best new writer, which will be held in Japan this year. From MangaCast comes the Diamond Previews for February 2007, which provides information on new U.S. releases for April/May 2007. Manga top 10 according to Tohan.
The picture in question is a spread scene with Lala and Haruna taking a bath together, with a tremendous amount of bubbles are covering their bodies, to the extent that only their faces can be seen. The illustration is published in a very artificial condition. To quote some of To-LOVE-Ru creator Kentaro Yabuki's comment at the back of Weekly Shonen Jump: A 6 minute long promotional video for the upcoming Hayate the Combat Butler anime has been made available online. An alternate, short TV commercial video is available in AVI format from the Japanese fan site Hayacale. Source: AnimeNation The Gosho Aoyama Manga Factory, a museum that showcases the works of Detective Conan creator Goshou Aoyama, will open in Kitasakae-cho (Tottori Prefecture) on March 18th. The museum, part of a plan to create Detective Conan related landmarks in Goshou Aoyama's Hometown, will be divided into 6 sections, with each having a specific function, such as anime and manga museums and cafeteria. Source: ANS
The exhibition will feature Toume's early artworks, special artworks, as well as artworks of Toume's currently serialized works. A set of limited edition figurine will also be sold during the exhibition. The figurines are based on HASAMI, a series that Toume created just for the exhibition. Original artworks of HASAMI will also be available during the event. Beginning in April of this year, Content Works will launch a new service which will allow consumers to combine their favorite Osamu Tezuka manga titles into their own online magazine called Osamu Tezuka On-Demand Magazine. On the USA Today Booklist Top 150 (PDF) for the week ending January 14, no manga were present. JBC Publishing will release Fullmental Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa in Brazil during the Anime Dreams event, which takes place from January 25 - 28 in São Paulo city. The publisher will also present a challenge for the FMA fans - an enigma game that can only be discovered on the website www.mangasjbc.com.br/fma. The organizers of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo are soliciting ideas for a mascot. According to the announcement, this "contest" is open to organization and people from around the world, from professional designers to anime and manga artists. The deadline is May 31st, and the winning proposal will received 200,000 yuan (~$25,000). The official rules can be found here (an English version should be available soon). Icarus Blog reports that Bare Back, an online erotica magazine, is holding a Best of 2006 Awards, Among the nominees are: Best Hentai Manga One Shot or Anthology One Shot First Volume of the Hit Japanese Fantasy Fiction Series Makes U.S. Debut March 2007 Los Angeles, CA (January 17, 2007)- Leading youth-oriented publisher TOKYOPOP is pleased to unveil for the first-time ever in English the best-selling hit Japanese novel series The Twelve Kingdoms, the latest addition to the company's rapidly growing line of serialized youth novels, releasing under the company's Pop Fiction banner. The Beat reports that Gonzalo Ferreyra is now VIZ Media's new VP Sales, Publishing & Home Video. Also Moneka Hewlett has been promoted to Director of Sales, Publishing, Sales, and Brian Ige is now Director Of Sales, Home Video. Source: The Beat Cartoon Network Latin America will be airing Saint Seiya - Hades Phase starting March 12th at 12:30 a.m. (Monday to Tuesday, local schedules). Saint Seiya will be on Toonami along with other shows such as Pokemon, Naruto, Zatch Bell, Captain Tsubasa, Dragonball Z, Yu Yu Hakusho, Ranma ½ and InuYasha. Source: Papo de Budega Kondo Shinji, Commissioner of the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs, made a visit on January 12th to the Kyoto International Manga Museum. During his 40 minute visit, Kondo casually read the displayed manga while listening to the curator's explanations. During an interview after the visit, Kondo commented that the exhibition taught him the importance of cooperation between the local administration and the university, which acts as a knowledge base. Kondo also mentioned that the exhibition reminded him of his favorite manga when he was young, such as Kyojin no Hoshi, Ashita no Joe, and Yu Yu Hakusho. Icarus Publishing's blog previews the adult manga coming out in February in "February Previews Adult for manga lovers [Special Headline Edition!]" (NSFW). The latest issue of PWCW has been released: New York Comic-con, the Second Time Around: Calvin Reid and Heidi MacDonald looks at this year's NYCC, taking place between February 23 - 25. Basilisk Broadens its Fanbase: Kai-Ming Cha looks at how the Basilisk series is building its fan base in the U.S. Houston, Texas, 15th January 2007. Last week, DramaQueen announced a new title at Ohayocon in Ohio. During the panels at Ohayocon, DramaQueen gave the audience a sneak preview of a new title that they have acquired: Devil x Devil by Sawauchi Sachiyo
New Website Launch Hamlet published by SelfMadeHero is a reinterpretation of Shakespeare's classic play in manga form. In this manga, Hamlet is set in a dramatic futuristic world. A great earthquake has divided our planet into separate colonies. The state of Denmark has grown prosperous and defended itself successfully against neighbouring states. But could it be that its greatest threat comes not from without, but from within the state itself? Manga Romeo and Juliet published by SelfMadeHero is a reinterpretation of Shakespeare's classic play in manga form. Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare's most famous love story, unfurls in a dramatic manga setting, in which Verona becomes a street in the highly fashionable Shibuya district of Tokyo. The star-crossed lovers, touching in their youth and innocence, are caught up in a bitter feud between two Yakuza families (Japan's 'mafia') whose rivalry erupts into violence and killing on the streets. Romeo, a rock star, is a Montague who falls in love with Juliet, a Capulet.
Tunasima said in his online journal that he hopes to bring Jinki back to the fans. Will the fans be able to meet Jinki in another magazine? Five titles will come to an end in this month's and next month's Comic Blade, which signals that the content of Comic Blade will undergo a drastic change. Tunasima's Journal Entry: On January 16th, Yahoo! Japan launched a new free magazine on Yahoo! Comic. The new free web magazine, Flex Comix Blood, will feature contents provided by Flex Comix (which also provides content for the online magazine Shonen Blood). The free magazine will be updated every weekday, and most series are from Shonen Blood. |
Manga Zombie
Finale: Panelosophy
An ongoing conversation about the philosophy behind manga both in the U.S. and abroad. Manga Ranking
Monthly charts of comparative manga rankings based on aggregate online sales listings from Matt Blind. |
The latest issue of Shueisha's 
Kei Toume's 3rd original art exhibition, 
Back in September 2006, 
ComiPress teams up with writer Udagawa Takeo and translator John Gallagher to publish an online version of the English-language translation of Manga Zombie.
