What earthly power can defeat The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at the bookstore? Manga! As Brigid Alverson reports, the January 2025 Circana Bookscan numbers show that readers are still interested in perennial favorites Chainsaw Man, Spy x Family, and Solo Leveling, as well as hardcover editions of older titles like Berserk and Vagabond. Equally significant: all twenty volumes on Circana’s list were published by Dark Horse, VIZ, and Yen Press.
NEWS AND VIEWS
The ALA just released its list of 2024’s Best Graphic Novels for Adults, which includes a good selection of manga. [American Library Association]
Shaenon Garrity and Meg Lemke offer a sneak peek at this year’s new and noteworthy manga, and highlight a few of 2024’s best titles. [Publisher’s Weekly]
Once more, with feeling: Dark Horse will be publishing a new omnibus edition of Gantz G this fall. [ICv2]
Dragon Ball Super fans rejoice: a new one-shot will run in next week’s issue of V-Jump. [Anime News Network]
As part of his ongoing series about the manga industry, Isaiah Colbert interviews Kumar Sivasubramanian about translating Dan Da Dan. [i09]
The Reverse Thieves podcast names Takahashi From the Bike Shop its Manga of the Month. [Reverse Thieves]
Kara Dennison explains why Star of Beethoven “has the earmarks of an interesting story” and “the earmarks of a series likely to be cut down before its time.” [Otaku USA]
REVIEWS
Erica Friedman reviews Hitorimi Desu 60-sai Lesbian Single Seikatsu… Hagai Palevsky offers an in-depth analysis of Tokyo These Days… Andrew Osbourne takes Tokyo Alien Brothers for a spin… and Beneath the Tangles looks at recent volumes of Centuria, Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, and Solo Leveling.
- Adults’ Picture Book: New Edition, Vol. 2 (Mark Thomas, The Fandom Post)
- Bless, Vols. 2-3 (Demelza, Anime UK News)
- Call of the Night, Vol. 18 (King Baby Duck, The Boston Bastard Brigade)
- Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!, Vol. 13 (Sarah, Anime UK News)
- The Color of the End: Mission in the Apocalypse, Vol. 1 (Giovanni Stigliano, Asian Movie Pulse)
- Don’t Toy With Me, Miss Nagataro, Vol. 1 (Megan D., The Manga Test Drive)
- The Elusive Samurai, Vols. 13-14 (King Baby Duck, The Boston Bastard Brigade)
- Firefly Wedding, Vol. 1 (Kristen Elyse Butke, The Beat)
- Fall in Love You False Angels, Vol. 1 (WinterVenom, Behind the Manga)
- Kanna’s Daily Life, Vol. 12 (King Baby Duck, The Boston Bastard Brigade)
- The Legend of Kamui, Vol. 1 (Terry Hong, Booklist)
- Mecha-Ude: Mechanical Arms, Vol. 1 (Kevin McCormack, Anime News Network)
- Mr. Mega Man, Vol. 1 (Josh Piedra, The Outerhaven)
- Palace of the Omega, Vol. 1 (Kristen Elyse Butke, The Beat)
- Queen’s Quality, Vol. 21 (Josh Piedra, The Outerhaven)
- Rainbow Days, Vol. 14 (Josh Piedra, The Outerhaven)
- A Star Brighter Than the Sun Shines Bright, Vol. 1 (Kara Dennison, Otaku USA)
- Sketchy, Vol. 1 (Merve Giray, The Beat)
- Thunder 3, Vol. 2 (Ian Wolf, Anime UK News)
- Tokyo Alien Brothers, Vol. 1 (wendeego, Yatta-Tachi)