Manga News and Information
March, 2008Canned Dogs reports that the manga Kare to kanojo no kyoukaisen, which is currently serialized in Ichijinsha's Comic REX, ended unexpectedly due to the death of its mangaka, Yorishiro Tomoyuki:
The following manga appeared on the USA Today Booklist Top 150 (PDF) for the week ending March 2nd:
SAN MATEO, CA, March 5, 2008 -- Yaoi-Con, the premiere Western fan convention dedicated solely to the yaoi genre of Japanese anime and manga, is pleased to announce its eighth annual event, to be held the weekend of September 26-28, 2008 at the Marriott San Mateo-San Francisco Airport hotel in the South San Francisco Bay area. A New Way to Experience Japan Anaheim, California (March 5, 2008) ‹ Want to experience Kyoto? Get wild in Osaka? See the all that is anime/manga in Tokyo? Attend the Tokyo Anime Fair? Be part of the Tokyo Game Show? Anime Expo® 2008 and Intermixi Japan Tours announce the Pre-Registration Grand Prize Getaway to Japan! All pre-registered attendees who register prior to June 15, 2008 will be automatically entered. Winners will be announced at Anime Expo® 2008's Opening Ceremonies July 3, 2008. Anime Expo® 2008 will be held from July 3-6, 2008 at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, CA. More information can be found on the website www.anime-expo.org. Company Set to Release Four Titles in 2008: Fever, Hotel Africa, Martin and John, and Too Long Los Angeles, CA (March 4, 2008)-TOKYOPOP, the leader of the global manga revolution, is thrilled to announce a multi-book publishing deal with Korea's hottest female manga creator, Hee Jung Park. In 2008, TOKYOPOP will release Fever (March), Hotel Africa (April), Martin and John (July) and Too Long (August). The company will premiere each of these stunning new series on its web site (www.TOKYOPOP.com) as well as on its MySpace profile (www.Myspace.com/TOKYOPOP). The free previews are part of a year-long effort--which will also include contests and giveaways, convention promotions, and online features--to promote the luscious artwork and sophisticated storytelling of this innovative global manga creator. Brigid Alverson's MangaBlog is three years old! In Brigid's own words:
Top 10 manga (3/05) according to Tohan:
Additional Rankings: From MangaCast comes the Diamond Previews for March 2008, which provides information on new U.S. releases for May/June 2008. Seven Seas has announced that it will be giving out light novels to anime/manga-related blogs that are willing to review their titles:
In the latest Oricon poll, readers were asked who their favorite mangaka were. Below are the results: 1. Ai Yazawa Source: Tokyograph From Kajiwara Ikki Part 2: Searching for the Dark Side of Kajiwara Ikki
The search for the Dark Side of Kajiwara doesn't stop with his early Lunatic Period. We press onward into his Golden Age for further rich troves of the extreme... Kajiwara Ikki's 'Conditions of Manhood' (Otoko no Jōken) came out in Shonen Jump during the early 70s. The series was penned by Kajiwara and drawn by Kawasaki Noboru, in a revival of the combo responsible for the smash hit 'Star of the Giants' (Kyōjin no Hoshi). This time round, the story centered on an aspiring manga artist rather than a would-be baseball pro, but all the duo's familiar elements were still there – yakuza mobsters, desperate poverty and extreme plot twists. For all the success of 'Star of the Giants', however, the core readership of Shonen Jump – tender in years and sensibilities – didn't take kindly to the succession of graphic slaps in the face that made up 'Conditions of Manhood'. But the short-lived series had a longer afterlife. In later years, manga fans of a certain stripe re-approached 'Conditions' with fresh eyes, and found that it was an outstanding guidebook to Kajiwara's extreme world in general.
Also ending in the same issue is Yoshiyuki Nishi's Muhyo to Rouji. Finally, Katsutoshi Murase's K.O.Sen will end in issue 15 of Weekly Jump. Yoshihiro Togashi's Hunter x Hunter resumed serialization in issue 14 of Jump, and will run for 10 chapters before going back on hiatus. According to Shueisha, a special one-shot by Marvel's Stan Lee and Shaman King mangaka Takei Hiroyuki will appear in the newly announced Jump SQ.II, a special issue of Jump SQ that will be launched on 4/18. Also, an one-shot titled Kare no Satsujin Keikaku by Mohiro Kitoh, mangaka of Bokurano, will appear in the May issue of Jump Square (4/4). Mediation will be launching a new BL light novel label titled "Hug Novels" on March 10th. 3 novels will be released on the day of the launch:
Source: LightNovel.org Inspired by a post from Reversing Everything, Manga Xanadu has posted an article looking at the possibilities of using Amazon's Kindle E-reader to read manga. Via: MangaBlog ANN reports that France's Center for International Studies and Research (CERI) will be hosting a 2-day manga conference (PDF) on March 15th and 17th respectively:
South Carolina Now is reporting that a student was removed from his school due to possession of a "Death Note":
Via: Journalista The Putrajaya Arts Festival has organized a manga competition in Malasia called The Original Manga Competition. The deadline is March 15th and the grand prize winner will receive RM5,000 and one year subscription from Komik Factory. Source: Vrempire Lair BL manga review and news site YaoiSuki is closing its doors:
From About.com:Manga comes an interview with Erica Friedman, President of Yuricon and yuri manga publisher ALC Publishing. Also, the rules for the 2008 Yuricon Poster Contest are up, the deadline is April 30th. Last but not least, Erica has posted an "Okazu Glossary of Terms" that explains various manga-related terms to beginners. Via: MangaBlog (MARCH 3, 2008- New York, NY) —After a month of fierce competition, Eddie Sharam and James Woodhead's ROAD was voted by readers as the winner of the February 2008 www.Zudacomics.com competition. About ROAD: Felix lives in a futuristic world where there is a road that you can travel down your whole life that will never end or repeat. Felix will attempt to solve the riddle of this Road. ROAD will continue as a regularly updating web comic at http://www.Zudacomics.com/road. From About.com:Manga comes an interview with Jenna Winterberg and Michelle Nguyen, editors of Gothic & Lolita Bible. Also available is a preview gallery of Gothic & Lolita Bible volume 1. Richmond, CA ・ March 1st, 2008 Today, Infinity Studios LLC is proud to announce the introduction of our all digital ebooks. Starting on March 1st 2008, Infinity Studios will be offering ebook editions of all new titles scheduled to be released; available for purchase only through the Infinity Studios website. http://www.infinitystudios.com This includes Zero volume 4 and Sweety volume 3 which were originally scheduled for release in February 2008. Plus reviews, Japanese 101, Ketchup Mania, contests & more in episode 61! GRIMES, IA, February 29, 2008 – Anime producer and mega-online anime retailer Right Stuf, Inc. is pleased to welcome Stu Levy - the president, C.E.O. and Chief Creative Officer of TOKYOPOP – to episode 61 of ANIME TODAY. Japanese, comics published by the artist and sold at special events across Japan, have become a driving creative force, and a sensational way to connect with other fans. In the past, Pop Japan Travel has visited these dojinshi markets, but only as spectators. That's about to change. This August, aspiring dojinshi creators, established small press comic artists and manga admirers alike will have an unprecedented opportunity. Pop Japan Travel's Mind Over Manga Tour offers guests the chance to go behind the scenes of one of Japan's most respected dojinshi events, Comitia -- and if you choose, print and sell your own comic or art book directly to Japanese readers! |
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. |
After 379 chapters, Takeshi Konomi's tennis manga 
ComiPress teams up with writer Udagawa Takeo and translator John Gallagher to publish an online version of the English-language translation of Manga Zombie.
