Manga News and Information
JapanA 6 minute long promotional video for the upcoming Hayate the Combat Butler anime has been made available online. An alternate, short TV commercial video is available in AVI format from the Japanese fan site Hayacale. Source: AnimeNation The Gosho Aoyama Manga Factory, a museum that showcases the works of Detective Conan creator Goshou Aoyama, will open in Kitasakae-cho (Tottori Prefecture) on March 18th. The museum, part of a plan to create Detective Conan related landmarks in Goshou Aoyama's Hometown, will be divided into 6 sections, with each having a specific function, such as anime and manga museums and cafeteria. Source: ANS
The exhibition will feature Toume's early artworks, special artworks, as well as artworks of Toume's currently serialized works. A set of limited edition figurine will also be sold during the exhibition. The figurines are based on HASAMI, a series that Toume created just for the exhibition. Original artworks of HASAMI will also be available during the event. Kondo Shinji, Commissioner of the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs, made a visit on January 12th to the Kyoto International Manga Museum. During his 40 minute visit, Kondo casually read the displayed manga while listening to the curator's explanations. During an interview after the visit, Kondo commented that the exhibition taught him the importance of cooperation between the local administration and the university, which acts as a knowledge base. Kondo also mentioned that the exhibition reminded him of his favorite manga when he was young, such as Kyojin no Hoshi, Ashita no Joe, and Yu Yu Hakusho.
Tunasima said in his online journal that he hopes to bring Jinki back to the fans. Will the fans be able to meet Jinki in another magazine? Five titles will come to an end in this month's and next month's Comic Blade, which signals that the content of Comic Blade will undergo a drastic change. Tunasima's Journal Entry: On January 16th, Yahoo! Japan launched a new free magazine on Yahoo! Comic. The new free web magazine, Flex Comix Blood, will feature contents provided by Flex Comix (which also provides content for the online magazine Shonen Blood). The free magazine will be updated every weekday, and most series are from Shonen Blood.
Fansubs and the Gloom of the Anime Industry - Part 3 In 2006, rumors spread about anime distributor Central Park Media's bankruptcy (which did not happen). Also, a friend of mine was fired by a major anime distributor he worked for; he was involved with many well-known titles, so I was shocked. The fact that even major distributors need to dismiss its capable staffs proves that the anime industry is getting worse. From The Star Online comes a short interview with Tsugumi Ohba, author of Death Note, where he talks about his inspiration for Death Note as well as his views on justice. When asked about his inspiration, Ohba said, "There was nothing in particular. I started thinking of some ideas and while these ideas were still floating in the back of my mind, I got more ideas to fill up detailed plots like the rules and the god of death and so on." According to his response, Ohba did not get his inspiration from Shigeru Mizuki's short story. MangaCast translates the weekly Doujinshi ranking in Japan (12/02) according to Messe Sanoh, compiled by Akiba Blog (NSFW).
- Hayate: Ryoko Shiraishi Hayate the Combat Butler is a comedy manga famous for its numerous crossovers and "easter eggs." Currently the manga is being published in the U.S. by VIZ Media. |
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. |
Kei Toume's 3rd original art exhibition, 
Back in September 2006, 
Japanese anime news site 
The cast for 
ComiPress teams up with writer Udagawa Takeo and translator John Gallagher to publish an online version of the English-language translation of Manga Zombie.
