From YaoiSuki comes a brief talk with CPM's John O'Donnell regarding their company's licensing dispute with Japanese BL publisher Libre Publishing:

Since putting up their notice, O'Donnell says Libre has not taken any action to settle the matter, and even refuses to sit down with O'Donnell or any other CPM representatives to try and work it out. Libre has not filed a lawsuit. He hopes that Libre will bring their lawyers to the U.S. so that the matter can be settled, but thinks that they are trying to deliberately harm the sales of the books until CPM's license expires so that they can license the series to another company.

Read More »

theOtaku reports that Yen Press has announced several new manga acquisitions at NYAF07:

• Shoulder a Coffin Kuro
• Hidamari Sketch (to be released as Sunshine Sketch)
• Suzunari!
• Astro

Also mentioned is that Yen Press has licensed ICE Kunion's manhwa titles:

Yen Press acquired manhwa publisher ICE Kunion's titles, and they're reprinting the previously-released books very soon.

Read More »

ANN and About.com Manga report that Go! Comi has confirmed several new acquisitions at this year's New York Anime Festival:

• Bogle by Shino Taira & Yuko Ichiju
• Kurogane Communication by Tomomasa Takuma
• Song of the Hanging Sky by Toriko Gin
• Three in Love by Shioko Mizuki
• Ultimate Venus by Takako Shigematsu
• Yggdrasil by Lay Mutsuki

Del Rey Manga has announced several new licenses at this year's NYAF07:

Manga:

• Gankutsuoh by Maeda & Arihara Yura
• Papillion by Ueda Miwa
• Kami-chama Karin chu by Koge Donbo
• Mao-chan by Ran & Akamatsu Ken

Light Novel:

• xxxHOLiC AnotherHOLiC by NishiOishin
• Kubikiri Cycle by NishiOisin

ANN reports that mangaka Susumu Katsumata, winner of the Grand Prize of the 35th Japanese Cartoonists' Association Awards, passed away on December 3rd due to melanoma:

He was 63 years old. Only close family members and relatives will be requested to attend his funeral, and his chief mourner will be his oldest son Daichi.

Core Magazine's adult manga magazine Comic Mega Plus will come to an end with the release of volume 50. A new adult manga magazine, titled Comic 0 EX (Comic Zero EX), will succeed Comic Mega Plus. The first issue of Comic 0 EX will be released on December 10th.

Top 10 manga (12/05) according to Tohan:

1. Vagabond (27)
2. REAL (7)
3. Pluto (5)
4. Berserk (32)
5. Kimi ni Todoke (5)
6. Detroit Metal City (4)
7. Nodame Cantabile (19)
8. Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin (16)
9. Kaze Hikaru (23)
10. Team Medical Dragon (15)

Additional Rankings:

Read More »

A round up of the new comic release list and views for the week of December 5th 2007:

• ComicList: ComicList for 12/05/2007
• MangaCast: New Manga List for December 5, 2007
• Manga Recon: Weekly Recon, 12/5/07
• theOtaku: New Manga Releases
• Precocious Curmudgeon: Upcoming 12/5/2007

The winners of the 2007 Japanese Media Arts Festival have been announced. One grand prize, four excellence prize, and one encouragement prize were given in each of the four categories. Below are the winners of the manga category:

• Grand Prize:
• Mori No Asagao by Mamora Gouda

Read More »

ICv2 reports that Canadian publisher Drawn & Quarterly will be releasing the Yoshihiro Tatsumi short stories collection Good-Bye in May of 2008:

The 208-page anthology of stories drawn in 1971 and 1972 provides plenty of examples Tatsumi's gekiga manga. Tatsumi coined the title gekiga (literally "dramatic comics") to describe his seriously intentioned work in reaction to the etymological roots of the word manga, which means "irresponsible pictures."