Takehiko Inoue's Vagabond, which began serialization in Kodansha's Weekly Morning in 1998, is a samurai manga based on Eiji Yoshikawa's novel Miyamoto Musashi. The manga won the 4th Media Arts Festival Grand Prize and the 24th Kodansha Award for Best Manga in 2000, as well as the 6th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Award in 2002.

Now in its eighth year of serialization, the series is getting closer to its final story arc. In November SWITCH ON Excite released an interview on Inoue's Vagabond. The article explores the development of his drawing techniques, his plans for Vagabond, and more.

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12/28 Update: The official website of Kara no Kyoukai has opened at www.karanokyoukai.com, and the new adaption will be a feature film (as oppposed to an ainme TV series) titled Kara no Kyoukai ~Garden of Sinners~.

According to rumors in Japan, Type-Moon's novel Kara no Kyoukai (空の境界) will be adapted into an anime TV series.

The rumor began earlier this month when Ryogi Shiki, the main character of Kara no Kyoukai, appeared in the 2007 Illustration Calendar of the anime magazine Newtype. It was also announced that a Kara no Kyoukai pin-up poster will appear in next month's issue of Newtype.

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A new film adaption of Akira Toriyama's Dr. Slump has been announced, more information will be available in the February issue of Monthly Shonen Jump, on sale 1/6.

On the 25th of December, a report from the child protection society (the same group mentioned in this article) concluded that "30% of seijin manga (adult manga) contain depiction of sexual intercourse involving children, and juveniles are able to purchase such manga via the internet."

The child protection group, which also serves as the personal advisory group of Metropolitan Police Life Safety Director Yutaka Takehana, points out that the current situation is hurting the "Harmful Book Act," and suggests that measures be taken to prevent the sales of adult manga to juveniles.

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Manga top 10 according to Tohan.

1. Yotsuba&! vol.6
2. Cross Game vol.6
3. V.B. Rose vol.8
4. Konjiki no Gash!! vol.27
5. Hayate the Combat Butler vol.9
6. Major vol.61
7. Gantz vol.20
8. Ahiru no Sora vol.14
9. Gakuen Alice vol.12
10. School Rumble vol.15

Atsushi Yamasaki (NSFW), whose works have appeared in magazines such as Comic Tenma (NSFW), passed away this month during a traffic accident.

Yahoo! Japan has opened a special commemoration website to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Kodansha's Afternoon. The anniversary website will be open from December 25th to February 26th 2007.

TokoToko Editor's Misc. Note, a blog run by a female manga editor who has been in the business for over 15 years, has posted a multi-part article titled "The Reason I Quit My Job as a Manga Editor." Below is a translation of part one of the article:

The Reason I Quit My Job as a Manga Editor Part I

The short answer - I can't communicate well with others. That's all.

The long story - I knew manga to some extent and liked it, so I wanted to be a manga editor since I thought I could handle it. Besides, I didn't want to edit anything else other than manga.

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Aya Nakahara's Lovely Complex, also known as Love★Com, will be adapted into an anime TV series.