Manga News and Information
January, 2007On the USA Today Booklist Top 150 (PDF) for the week ending January 7, VIZ Media's Naruto volume 12 ranked #108, Death Note volume 9 ranked #126, and Tokyopop's Fruits Basket volume 15 ranked #148. ANN reports that two titles, Tsubasa by CLAMP and Negima! by Ken Akamatsu, bot published in the U.S. by Del Rey, has been added to the American Anime Awards' manga ballot: Innovative agreement will provide episodes on a download to Own/Rent basis soon after they air in Japan San Francisco, CA, January 10, 2007 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry's most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, has announced that it has licensed from Nippon Television Network Corporation (NTV) the Download to Own (DTO) and Download to Rent (DTR) rights for the United States for the smash hit DEATH NOTE anime series, currently airing in Japan. From ANS:
Game company Idea Factory has announced a love-simulation Playstation 2 game based on Bisco Hatori's popular manga Ouran High School Host Club. Source: Moon Phase Apparel, costume and character merchandise manufacturer COSPA has announced new Dr. Slump (based on the manga by Akira Toriyama) themed t-shirts. The release of the t-shirt is part of the promotional effort for the release of the DVD-BOX "Dr.SLUMP Ararechan Nn-cha series" on March 23, 2007. ANS reports that a new Leiji Matsumoto museum will be built in Kitakyushu. The museum is estimated for completion in 2009, and the redevelopment required is estimated to be several billion yen:
Dark Horse gives The Beat their take on the AMS/PGW bankruptcy:
Pinafore, the maid cafe that appeared in Densha Otoko, announced a second branch in Bangkok, Thailand. Currently the Thailand cafe has 10 employees, and most of the maid are native Thailand residents. Pinefore was established in 2004, and is currently one of the more popular maid cafe in Akihabara. Monthly comics top 10 in the U.S. according to PWCW.
Just when everyone thought Say Hello to Black Jack has finally ended, news came that the manga will resume serialization in Shogakukan's Big Comic Spirits under the title Shin (New) Say Hello to Black Jack. VIZ Media is looking for an Approvals Coordinator (Domestic Publishing) fluent in Japanese. DramaQueen's RUSH Magazine is looking for translators fluent in Russian. Manga Cast points out an interview from Japan's national broadcating network NHK with mangaka Moyoco Anno (Flowers & Bees, Happy Mania, Sakuran, Sugar Sugar Rune, and the most recent Hatarki Man). An English version of the interview can be found here. MangaCast translates the weekly Doujinshi ranking in Japan (12/02) according to Toranoana Akihabara, compiled by Akiba Blog (NSFW). Independent UK publisher SelfMadeHero launches in early February 07. The focus of the launch is Manga Shakespeare, a book series providing a unique combination of manga and classic dramatic texts. SelfMadeHero books reflect what's going on in the best contemporary manga and graphic novels. SelfMadeHero Director Emma Hayley says: 'With our fresh and innovative approach to the classics, we are creating exciting and unique books that will inspire today's generation.' The French Association of Comics Critics and Journalists (l'ACBD - Association des Critiques et journalistes de Bande Dessinée) has released its annual report of on comics and manga in France. The list shows interesting informations about how styles and name-recognition affect manga sales in France. The Japanese manga with the biggest success was Naruto, with 130,000 units printed for each edition. Below is a list of the graphic novel that were printed. All information are from the PDF archive on the Association website. Las Vegas, NV, January 8, 2007 - Graphic novel publisher Yaoi Press has moved their online sales to everythingyaoi.com, and will begin selling manga graphic novels from other publishers on the site. ComiPress is currently for Japanese to English translators. You will be translating Japanese news and articles into English. Having a basic concept of the manga industry is a plus. If you are interested, please contact us via the Contact Form (please use a valid e-mail address), and we will send you more information.
In early 2006, a Japanese blog published an article (the entry was taken down, but a Chinese version can be found here) about a 24-page one-shot called The Miraculous Notebook (不思議な手帖) by Shigeru Mizuki, which was published in the magazine Comic Mystery in 1973. The story of the one-shot revolves around a magical notebook: when a person's name is written on that notebook, the said person dies. Sounds familiar? Below is a summary (with some pictures) of the one-shot: Sea Change Group Show, a group show that will feature work of emerging print makers, will take place from February 1st to 23rd at the Mark Jason Gallery in London. Featured artists include Japanese manga artist Chie Kutsuwada, Akiko Takizawa and Katsu Yuasa. Source: Otaku News
Recently Rozen Maiden suddently went on hiatus in Gentosha's Comic BIRZ. PEACH-PIT's information website "Ohirome Calendar" states that "Our work has been suspended, if the editorial team decides to explain the situation, it will be in the next issue [of Comic BIRZ], until then we cannot disclose any details regarding the matter, it is very regrettable." Editor & Publisher has an article on the weekly strip manga Mail Order Ninja from Tokyopop and Universal Press Syndicate, which will be launched this Sunday and run through July 8th. MangaCast translates the weekly Doujinshi ranking in Japan (12/02) according to Toranoana Akihabara, compiled by Akiba Blog (NSFW). |
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. |
ComiPress teams up with writer Udagawa Takeo and translator John Gallagher to publish an online version of the English-language translation of Manga Zombie.
