When Crunchyroll purchased retailer Right Stuf in 2022, the streaming giant posted a notice at its site reassuring consumers that this “acquisition aims to serve anime fans and collectors an even wider array of merchandise for online purchase including manga, home video, figures, games, music and everything in between.” The full impact of this decision, however, didn’t hit customers until last week, when Crunchyroll announced that it would be closing down Right Stuf and folding it into the new Crunchyroll Store, prompting fans to express concern about unfulfilled orders, and lament the end of Right Stuf’s discount programs. Over at ANN, Nicholas Dupree and Steve Jones rounded up reactions and offered their own two cents on what this decision means for anime and manga fans. I can’t say that I’ll miss Right Stuf—it was never my go-to site for manga—but this kind of retail consolidation seldom bodes well for consumers.
Elsewhere, Brigid Alverson has the details on a new partnership between Penguin Random House and Tappytoon as well licensing news from Seven Seas and Dark Horse… the Vincent Van Gogh Museum is using a Pokémon exhibit to introduce kids to the Starry Night artist… Manga Planet just revamped its subscription service… the first volume of Haruki Murakami Manga Stories will be released on October 24th… the first ten volumes of George Morikawa’s Hajime no Ippo are now available through the KMANGA app… the first volume of Inio Asano’s Mujina Into the Deep has a nifty-looking trailer… and the final volume of Kentaro Yabuki’s Ayakashi Triangle will arrive in Japanese bookstores around Christmas.
AROUND THE WEB
In this week’s must-read essay, Deshan Tennekoon explains what makes Yotsuba&! such a joy to read. “The premise of the series is simple: it’s about a bubbly, inquisitive five-year-old girl named Yotsuba and her daily adventures in the small Japanese town to which she’s recently moved,” he explains. “Yotsuba’s sunny disposition is her defining trait and Azuma makes it natural and endearing. This is not to suggest she is always chirpy – she has her bad days and her tantrums, too. However she’s doing on any given day, Azuma’s portrayal of her has an honesty to it, and the series is never saccharine.” [SOLRAD]
Justin Guerrero offers a sneak peek at Blood Blade, a new vampire series from Oma Sei. [The Beat]
The Manga Machinations gang convene a roundtable on Susume Higa’s Okinawa. [Manga Machinations]
On the latest episode of Manga in Your Ears, Kory, Apryll and Helen discuss My Brain is Different: Stories of ADHD and Other Developmental Disorders. [Taiiku Podcast]
Will Fabricant 100 flop with David and Jordan? Tune in to find out! [Shonen Flop]
David Brothers leads a lively discussion about Yashuhiro Nightow’s *other* manga, Blood Blockade Battlefront. [Mangasplaining]
Elliot and Andy look at two series by non-binary authors: X-Gender and Until I Love Myself: The Journey of a Nonbinary Manga Artist. [ScreenTone Club]
Over at Dad Needs to Talk, Rob offers his thoughts on a brand-new series from Kodansha, That Time the Manga Editor Started a New Life in the Countryside. [Dad Needs to Talk]
REVIEWS
In a thoughtful review of River’s Edge, Scott Cederlund praises Kyoko Okazaki for being “honest and raw in her storytelling”… Nubia Jade Brice gives high marks to #DRCL Midnight Children… Renee Scott reviews the first two volumes of My Girlfriend’s Child… and Megan D. declares Psychic Academy “one of the ripest, most ridiculous pieces of garbage I’ve reviewed on this site in a good long while.”
New and Noteworthy
- Associate Professor Akira Takatsuki’s Conjecture, Vol. 1 (Noemi10, Anime UK News)
- Associate Professor Akira Takatsuki’s Conjecture, Vol. 1 (Danica Davidson, Otaku USA)
- A Business Proposal, Vol. 1 (Nicki S., No Flying No Tights)
- Dark Gathering, Vol. 1 (Joel Savill, The Beat)
- The Deer King, Vol. 1 (Adam Symchuk, Asian Movie Pulse)
- Game of Familia, Vol. 1 (Adam Symchuk, Asian Movie Pulse)
- Glitch, Vol. 1 (Sarah, Anime UK News)
- I Don’t Need a Happy Ending (Rebecca Silverman, ANN)
- It Takes Two Tomorrow, Too, Vol. 1 (Demelza, Anime UK News)
- Kagurabachi, Vol. 1 (Matias de la Piedra, The Beat)
- River’s Edge (Scott Cederlund, From Cover to Cover)
- Soichi (Jerry, No Flying No Tights)
- That Time the Manga Editor Started a New Life in the Countryside, Vol. 1 (King Baby Duck, Boston Bastard Brigade)
Complete, OOP, and Ongoing
- Case Closed, Vols. 80-82 (SKJAM! Reviews)
- Love in Sight, Vol. 1 (King Baby Duck, Boston Bastard Brigade)
- Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms, Vol. 2 (Demelza, Anime UK News)
- Mieruko-chan, Vol. 8 (Josh Piedra, The Outerhaven)
- My Clueless First Friend, Vol. 3 (Josh Piedra, The Outerhaven)
- Undead Unluck, Vol. 3 (King Baby Duck, Boston Bastard Brigade)