VIZ Media Celebrates Two Historic Shonen Jump Anniversaries With Exciting New Collector's Editions

40th Anniversary Of Japan's Weekly Shonen Jump And 5th Anniversary Of SHONEN JUMP Magazine Commemorated With Special Collector's Edition Of Top Manga Anthology's Articles And New Hardcover Presentations Of Several Most-Loved Manga Series

San Francisco, CA, July 10, 2008 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry's most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, has announced several exciting new releases to coincide with the 40th anniversary of Weekly Shonen Jump, one of the longest-running and widely read manga (graphic novel) magazines in Japan, and the 5th anniversary of VIZ Media's domestic counterpart, SHONEN JUMP magazine, which continues to be North America's most successful comics anthology.

The August issue of SHONEN JUMP magazine will kick off the celebration of these anniversaries by announcing the SHONEN JUMP Experience sweepstakes and offering a limited-edition poster featuring spaces to collect six character sticker designs from NARUTO, BLEACH, SLAM DUNK and DEATH NOTE. These character stickers can be found in select new Shonen Jump manga and DVDs released between August and October 2008. Over one million units of product will contain the stickers, as well as entry forms for the SHONEN JUMP Experience Sweepstakes. The Grand Prize is a six-day trip for two to attend Jump Festa in Japan, one of that country's largest and most respected animation and comics conventions. For complete sweepstakes rules and information, please visit shonenjump.com/wsj40.

VIZ Media's SHONEN JUMP imprint will further publish an array of new Collector's Editions beginning this summer that feature jacketed, hardcover, larger-sized presentations of much-loved manga series such as NARUTO, BLEACH, DEATH NOTE and DRAGONBALL Z as well as a special Shonen Jump Fifth Anniversary Collector's Edition that compiles some of the best manga series, articles and interviews from the magazine's past 5 years.

"These two anniversaries are important benchmarks in the history of manga in both Japan and North America," says Marc Weidenbaum, Editor-in-Chief, SHONEN JUMP magazine. "Weekly Shonen Jump has played a vital role in Japan's manga culture for over four decades and gave birth to some of the genre's most beloved titles. In North America, SHONEN JUMP magazine has played an important role in spreading manga fandom across the country, and it will continue to be a leading vehicle to present new series to the ever-expanding domestic audience. We look forward to fans enjoying the upcoming August issue that celebrates these anniversaries and also exploring the array of new Collector's Editions that present some of manga's and SHONEN JUMP magazine's best work in an exciting new way!"

SHONEN JUMP FIFTH ANNIVERSARY COLLECTOR'S EDITION - Rated "T" for Teens - MSRP: $24.99 - Available August 5, 2008
SHONEN JUMP America's most successful comics and celebrates its 5th anniversary with this special edition. Each month, SHONEN JUMP publishes more than 300 pages of the world's most popular manga—Japanese comics that range from the ninja action of NARUTO to the soul-reaping epic that is BLEACH to the ocean-faring adventures of ONE PIECE. Gathered in this collectible edition is all the manga from the very first issue of SHONEN JUMP, published in December 2002—plus the first chapter of NARUTO, now one of the most successful manga series, which originally appeared in the second issue of the magazine. Also included are feature stories from the first five years of SHONEN JUMP, including Japanese lessons, manga sudoku and rare interviews with great manga creators such as Masashi Kishimoto (NARUTO), Akira Toriyama (DRAGON BALL Z), Tite Kubo (BLEACH) and Eiichiro Oda (ONE PIECE)—over a dozen in all. This hardcover edition also comes with a full-color dust jacket with new cover art, a manga-history timeline, a valuable YU-GI-OH! trading card, and essays by SHONEN JUMP's American and Japanese editors.

COLLECTOR'S EDITIONS - Rated "T" for Teens - MSRP: $19.99 each
VIZ Media SHONEN JUMP Collector's Editions celebrate some of manga's most notable series in gorgeous hardcover with full-color dust jackets, heavier paper stock and larger-sized presentations (5 ¾ x 8 ¼ inches), that include several new color pages not featured in the original volumes. These editions are an attractive way to collect, preserve and display these unique and original titles in a way befitting the serious fan.

SHONEN JUMP COLLECTOR'S EDITIONS INCLUDE:
BLEACH Volume 1, Available: August 5, 2008
NARUTO Volume 1, Available: September 2, 2008
YU-GI-OH! Volume 1, Available September 2, 2008
DEATH NOTE Volume 1, Available: September 2, 2008
DRAGON BALL Volume 1, Available: October 7, 2008
DRAGON BALL Z Volume 1, Available: October 7, 2008

Launched by VIZ Media's parent company Shueisha, Inc. in 1968, Weekly Shonen Jump is one of the longest running manga magazines in Japan and boasts more than 3 million readers. Many of the most popular and successful manga series such as NARUTO, BLEACH, and YU-GI-OH! premiered in the magazine's pages and the publication continues to be a leading platform for new artists. Weekly Shonen Jump, in association with Shueisha, is also the sponsor of the prestigious Tezuka Award, named for manga pioneer Osamu Tezuka, and an annual manga competition where work from emerging artists is judged by a panel of top manga creators. Winners often go on to become successful creators whose work is published by the magazine.

About VIZ Media, LLC
Headquartered in San Francisco, CA, VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), is one of the most comprehensive and innovative companies in the field of manga (graphic novel) publishing, animation and entertainment licensing of Japanese content. Owned by three of Japan's largest creators and licensors of manga and animation, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media is a leader in the publishing and distribution of Japanese manga for English speaking audiences in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and South Africa and is a global ex-Asia licensor of Japanese manga and animation. The company offers an integrated product line including magazines such as SHONEN JUMP and SHOJO BEAT, graphic novels, and DVDs, and develops, markets, licenses, and distributes animated entertainment for audiences and consumers of all ages.