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The Manga Revue: Ultraman

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Ultraman made his television debut in 1966, defending Earth from the dual scourge of aliens and giant monsters. What began as a 39-episode series soon blossomed into one of Japan’s most prolific franchises, yielding dozens of sequels, spin-offs, movies, video games–and now a manga, which has been running in Monthly Hero’s magazine since 2011. Today’s column looks at this incarnation of the Ultraman story, which arrived in stores on Tuesday.

For extra insight into Ultraman‘s history, I encourage you to check out Brigid Alverson’s interview with Tomohiro Shimoguchi and Eiichi Shimizu, the creators of the latest Ultraman manga.

Ultraman_2011Ultraman, Vol. 1
By Eiichi Shimizu and Tomohiro Shimoguchi
Rated T, for teens
VIZ Media, $8.99 (digital edition)

Dusting off a beloved franchise and making it appeal to a new generation is a hazardous undertaking: stray too far from the source material and incur the wrath of purists, but hew too closely to the original and risk camp. Manga-ka Eiichi Shimizu and Tomohiro Shimoguchi have found an elegant strategy for introducing Ultraman to contemporary readers, using the original premise of the 1966 TV show as a starting point for a new chapter in the story.

The prelude to volume one neatly outlines Ultraman’s origins. Shin Hayata, member of the Science Special Search Party (a.k.a. the Science Patrol), unwittingly becomes the host for Ultraman, a powerful alien tasked with ridding Earth of dangerous monsters. Only a few members of the Science Patrol know Ultraman’s true identity–a secret they keep from Hayata, who is unaware that he is the vessel for Ultraman’s powers. The story then leaps forward thirty years: Ultraman has returned to his own world, Hayata has retired from the Science Patrol, and his son Shinjiro is beginning to manifest powers of his own.

In contrast to the introduction, which is a model of economy, the first chapter sags under the weight of too much expository dialogue. The characters relate their histories and concerns in such bald declarations that the entire chapter reads like a rejected Mystery Science Theater 3000 script.  (A sample exchange: “We certainly don’t see much of each other these days.” “Right, even though I work at the Ministry of Defense, too.”) The pace improves with the sudden appearance of Be Mular–one of Ultraman’s old adversaries–who lures the inexperienced Shinjiro into a rooftop battle. Although the script has a familiar rhythm–powerful attacks punctuated by snappy one-liners–the fight choreography is well executed; you can almost feel the force of Shinjiro’s punches. Equally important, the fight’s outcome is not a foregone conclusion: the chapter ends on a cliffhanger just as Shinjiro realizes that he isn’t strong enough to protect his family from Be Mular… yet.

If the 2.0 version of Ultraman sounds like a radical departure from the original series, rest assured that Shimizu and Shimoguchi haven’t strayed too far from the show’s roots. The proof lies in the character designs: they’ve done a nice job of bringing Ultraman and Be Mular’s appearance in line with contemporary seinen aesthetics while preserving the look and feel of the original characters. Ultraman and Be Mular don’t exactly resemble their rubber-suited predecessors, but a long-time fan will recognize them as spiritual descendants–a fair compromise for a series that’s toeing the line between 1960s kitsch and 2010s pop culture.

The verdict: The first chapter is a tough slog, but the combat is staged with enough panache that I’ll be checking out volume two.

Review copy provided by VIZ Media.

Reviews: Here at Manga Bookshelf, Sean Gaffney and Michelle Smith tackle the latest volumes of Black Rose Alice, Citrus, Evergreen, and Food Wars! Further afield, Megan R. takes a nostalgic look at Kare Kano: His and Her Circumstances; Aimee A. deconstructs shojo stereotypes in Skip Beat!!; Seth Hahne praises Ajin: Demi-Human for its “fantastic cat-and-mouse” plotting; and Erica Friedman reviews Manga de Tsuzuru Yurina Hibi, a “non-fiction comic essay” about the relationship between a businesswoman and her girlfriend.

Alice Vernon on Akame ga Kill! (Girls Like Comics)
Wolfen Moondaugter on vol. 22 of Arata: The Legend (Sequential Tart)
Austin Lanari on The Art of Satoshi Kon (Comic Bastards)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 5 of Assassination Classroom (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Nick Smith on Awkward (ICv2)
Emma Weiler on vols. 1-5 of Crimson Spell (No Flying No Tights)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 10 of Deadman Wonderland (WatchPlayRead)
Lori Henderson on vol. 1 of The Demon Prince of Momochi House (Manga Xanadu)
Frank Inglese on vols. 5-6 of Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma (Snap30)
Sheena McNeill on vol. 7 of Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma (Sequential Tart)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 10 of Happy Marriage?! (Comics Worth Reading)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 1 of Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto (Anime News Network)
Erica Friedman on vol. 2 of Hayate x Blade (Okazu)
Allen Kesinger on vols. 4-5 of High School DxD (No Flying No Tights)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 6 of Judge (The Fandom Post)
Sarah on vol. 2 of Karneval (Anime UK News)
Anna N. on vol. 5 of Kiss of the Rose Princess (The Manga Report)
Austin Lanari on The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Omnibus Edition: Book One (Comic Bastards)
Ian Wolf on vols. 1-2 of Maid-Sama! (Anime UK News)
Kristin on Manga Classics: Emma (Comic Attack)
Ken H. on vol. 1 of My Hero Academia (Sequential Ink)
Ash Brown on The Science of Attack on Titan (Experiments in Manga)
Frank Inglese on vol. 1 of Tokyo Ghoul (Snap30)
Michael Burns on vol. 1 of Tokyo Ghoul (Ani-TAY)
Michael Burns on vol. 2 of Tokyo Ghoul (Ani-TAY)
Julie on vol. 2 of Tokyo Ghoul (Manga Maniac Cafe)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of Ultraman (WatchPlayRead)
Elizabeth Lotto on vol. 1 of Ultraman (The Outer Haven)
Nick Lyons on vol. 1 of Ultraman (DVD Corner)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 9 of What Did You Eat Yesterday? (Anime News Network)
Wolfen Moondaugter on vol. 2 of The World’s Greatest First Love: The Case of Ritsu Onodera (Sequential Tart)

The Manga Revue: A Brief History of Manga

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I’m taking a break from shojo romances and shoot ’em ups this week and reviewing Helen McCarthy’s A Brief History of Manga, a slim introduction to the medium’s history, stars, and influential series.

9781781570982A Brief History of Manga
By Helen McCarthy
Ilex Press, $12.95

A Brief History of Manga is an odd duck: it’s too short and impressionistic to be a reference work, but too focused on historically significant titles to appeal to a casual Attack on Titan fan. That’s a pity, because Helen McCarthy’s generously illustrated book provides an accessible introduction to manga, from its prehistory to the present.

A Brief History of Manga begins with Toba Sojo’s famous Choju-jinbutsue-giga, a twelfth century scroll depicting frogs, rabbits, and monkeys engaged in human activities, then jumps ahead to the nineteenth century, when European ex-pats helped popularize new cartooning styles via influential publications such as The Japan Punch (1862). The rest of the book explores the emergence of longer-form storytelling, from the newspaper-style comics of Rakuten Kitazawa (1876-1955) to the cyberpunk manga of Masamune Shirow (b. 1961). Sprinkled throughout the book are callouts highlighting specific artists’ contributions to the medium, as well as summaries of famous series, thumbnail histories of important magazines, and milestones in the globalization of manga.

For a reader familiar with Frederick Schodt’s venerable Manga! Manga! The World of Japanese Comics (1983), many of McCarthy’s insights are old news. Schodt covered the early history of Japanese print culture in considerably more detail, painstakingly connecting the dots between Sojo’s frolicking animals, the birth of the Japanese publishing industry, and the emergence of the post-war manga market, bringing his narrative up to the 1980s. The final section of McCarthy’s book is a useful coda to Manga! Manga!, however, offering insights into more recent trends and titles, some well known–Boys Over Flowers, Death Note, Hetalia: Axis Powers–others less so–51 Ways to Save Her, Field of Cole, XX.

A Brief History of Manga has a more fundamental problem, however: its layout. Although the book’s designer has taken great pains to group images thematically, and link each entry with a timeline, the visual presentation is sometimes misleading. The 1931 entry, for example, pairs images of “manga pup” Norakuro with robot cat Doraemon without acknowledging the forty-year gap that separates the two characters. (Norakuro’s first story appeared in Shonen Club in 1931, while Doraemon debuted in 1969.) A caption informs the reader that Doraemon creator Hiroshi Fujimoto was born in 1933, but the main text never explicitly establishes the influence of Suiho Tagawa’s series on Fujimoto’s; even a simple, declarative sentence stating that Fujimoto had grown up reading Norakuro would have made this entry more valuable by demonstrating the role of pre-war children’s magazines in popularizing certain character types and storylines.

The first mention of gekiga–“1959: Manga’s Punk Movement Takes Root”–is similarly confusing. Although the text introduces gekiga pioneers Takao Saito (b. 1936) and Yoshihiro Tatsumi (1935-2015), the featured images are drawn from Fukushima Masami (b. 1948) and Kai Takizawa’s ultra-violent Prince Shotoku, a fascinating oddity from the late 1970s. While these images are among the most striking in the entire volume, they are not representative of early gekiga; it’s as if someone saw the word “punk” in the manuscript and set out to find the most visually outlandish artwork to emphasize McCarthy’s word choice. Complicating matters further is that the text never mentions Fukushima or Takizawa, or explains how their work built on the legacy of Saito and Tatsumi–no small oversight, given the pronounced differences between Prince Shotuko and Baron Air (1955) and Black Blizzard (1956), Saito and Tatsumi’s debut works.

I’m less bothered by McCarthy’s omissions than earlier reviewers were*; though it’s easy to cavil about missing works, McCarthy has chosen a representative sample of titles and authors across a wide spectrum of genres, demographics, and time periods. A manga newbie would find enough here to pique her interest, and perhaps steer her towards more comprehensive treatments of manga’s history. Knowledgable readers may find the quasi-encyclopedic format and emphasis on familiar material more frustrating, though they may be pleasantly surprised to discover new names and series through a careful scrutiny of the timeline. I did.

The verdict: A Brief History of Manga would make a swell gift for a new reader looking for information about the P.N.E. (that’s the Pre-Naruto Era).

* It’s worth noting that I heartily agree with Prof. Kathryn Hemmann’s concerns about the dearth of female creators in A Brief History of Manga. As Hemmann persuasively argues, this omission effectively silences some of the medium’s most influential and interesting voices. Click here to read Hemmann’s thoughts on the subject.

Reviews: Over at The Comics Journal, weekly columnist Joe McCullock compares the Dragon Ball comic with its most recent big-screen adaptation. Closer to home, Sean Gaffney and Michelle Smith post a new installment of Bookshelf Briefs. Kathryn Hemmann reviews Buchō wa onee, a bara title “about ferocious anthro muscleheads being adorable.”

Matt on vol. 11 of BTOOOM! (AniTay)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 55 of Case Closed (Sequential Tart)
Al Sparrow on vol. 1 of Chaika, The Coffin Princess (ComicSpectrum)
manjiorin on Clay Lord: The Master of Golems (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Johanna Draper Carlson on Cool Japan Guide: Fun in the Land of Manga, Lucky Cats, and Ramen — A Comic Book Writer’s Personal Tour of Japan (Comics Worth Reading)
Ian Wolf on vol. 1 of The Demon Prince of Momochi House (Anime UK News)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 10 of Dogs: Bullets and Carnage (Sequential Tart)
Ken H. on vol. 49 of Fairy Tail (Sequential Ink)
Nick Creamer on Fragments of Horror (Anime News Network)
Austin Ganari on vol. 36 of Gantz (Comic Bastards)
Al Sparrow on vol. 1 of Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? (ComicSpectrum)
Matt on vol. 2 of Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? (AniTAY)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 3 of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Part One: Phantom Blood (WatchPlayRead)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 3 of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Part One: Phantom Blood (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 2 of Let’s Dance a Waltz (The Fandom Post)
Ash Brown on vols. 1-2 of Maid-Sama! (Experiments in Manga)
Rebecca Silverman on vols. 1-2 of Maid-Sama! (Anime News Network)
Ash Brown on vol. 3 of Maria the Virgin Witch (Experiments in Manga)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of My Hero Academia (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
SKJAM on vol. 1 of My Hero Academia (SKJAM! Reviews)
ebooksgirl on vol. 1 of Recorder and Randsell (Geek Lit Etc.)
Wolfen Moondaughter on vol. 18 of Rin-ne (Sequential Tart)
Julie on The Secret Princess (Manga Maniac Cafe)
Matthew Warner on vol. 5 of Seraph of the End (The Fandom Post)
Joceyln Allen on Sorairo no Kani (Book vs. Brain)
Anna N. on vol. 5 of Spell of Desire (The Manga Report)
Austin Lanari on issue 37-38 of Weekly Shonen Jump (Comic Bastards)
Wolfen Moondaughter on The World’s Greatest First Love: The Case of Ritsu Onodera (Sequential Tart)

Tokyo Ghoul Tops the Best-Seller List

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Tokyo Ghoul

The first volume of Tokyo Ghoul tops the New York Times manga best-seller list. Want to check it out? Viz is offering an extended preview on its digital service.

The Attack on Titan: Before the Fall manga is two degrees of separation from the original series—it’s an adaptation of a light novel spinoff—but even so, it’s doing well, with 1.4 million copies in print in Japan, according to Kodansha’s Bessatsu Shōnen magazine, where the series runs. Kodansha Comics publishes the manga in North America, where the fifth volume is due out on August 25, and Vertical publishes the light novels.

Deb Aoki’s advice to journalists who want to interview manga-ka has lots of interesting tidbits about the industry and cultural differences that make it a good read for any manga fan.

Zainab Akhtar has a quick introduction to the two Inio Asano titles that will be published next year, A Girl on the Shore and Goodnight PunPun.

Erica Friedman brings us the latest edition of Yuri Network News at Okazu.

The venerable shoujo manga magazine Margaret has launched a digital edition.

Reviews

Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of Black Rose Alice (Lesley’s Musings on Manga)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 13 of Blue Exorcist (The Comic Book Bin)
Zainab Akhtar on Fragments of Horror (Comics & Cola)
Lori Henderson on vols. 2 and 3 of Genkaku Picasso (Manga Xanadu)
Richard Gutierrez on vol. 1 of Log Horizon (The Fandom Post)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 75 of One Piece (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Matthew Warner on vol. 28 of Toriko (The Fandom Post)

The Manga Revue: Back to School Special

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My inbox is overflowing with emails touting back-to-school deals on everything from sneakers to school supplies–a sure sign that the fall semester is right around the corner, and a nice reminder that Seven Seas, VIZ, and Vertical all have new (well, new-ish) school-themed comedies arriving in stores this month. Today, I take a look at Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto, a comedy about the World’s Most Fascinating High School Student; My Hero Academia, a shonen adventure about a teen who’s studying to become a superhero; and My Neighbor Seki, a gag series about a slacker who elevates procrastination to an art form.

sakamotoHaven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto, Vol. 1
By Miki Sano
Rated Teen
Seven Seas, $12.99

Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto is “The Aristocrats” of manga, a basic joke that yields endless variations, each more baroque than the last. The premise is simple: transfer student Sakamoto is handsome, brilliant, and athletic, making him a natural target for bullies and lovelorn girls. Any time a challenging situation arises–a bee in a classroom, a classmate injured by a softball–Sakamoto effortlessly meets that challenge, in the process revealing a previously undisclosed talent.

In the hands of a less imaginative storyteller, Sakamoto might be a wish-fulfillment character for every teenager who’s ever been tongue-tied or harassed by other students. Nami Sano puts a distinct spin on the material, however, portraying Sakamoto as so calculating and unflappable that he’s genuinely creepy; Sakamoto never smiles, laughs, or shows any discernible human emotion, even when confronted with other people’s tears or anger. (The real joke seems to be that everyone admires Sakamoto anyway.) I’m not sure that I LMAO, but Sakamoto’s odd persona and equally odd talents are a welcome rebuke to the school council presidents and earnest strivers who populate most teen-oriented manga; I’d much rather spend time with him than a standard-issue shonen prince.

The verdict: You’ll either find Sakamoto’s antics inspired or too weird to be amusing.

academiaMy Hero Academia, Vol. 1
By Kohei Horikoshi
Rated T, for teens
VIZ Media, $9.99

Meet Izuku Midoriya: he’s an ordinary teen living in a world where 80% of humanity possesses a super power. That doesn’t stop Izuku from aspiring to become a professional hero, however; since childhood, he’s dreamed about the day he might gain admission to prestigious U.A. High School, a training ground for future crime-fighters. A chance encounter with All Might, a celebrity superhero, gives Izuku a chance to prove his mettle and get the coaching he needs to pass the U.A. entrance exam.

Though the plot twists are unsurprising, and Izuku’s classmates familiar types (e.g. the Bully, the Spazzy Enthusiast), the breezy script propels My Hero Academia past its most hackneyed moments. The clean linework, playful superhero costumes, and artfully staged combat further enhance the series’ appeal; Kohei Horikoshi could give a master class on the reaction shot, especially when a supervillain is wrecking havoc on a downtown skyline. Most importantly, Horikoshi respects the sincerity of Izuku’s ambitions without letting the character’s earnest intensity cast a pall over the fun–in essence, it’s a Silver Age comic in modern shonen drag, with all the corny humor and fist-pumping action of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s best work on Spider-Man.

The verdict: My Hero Academia is as predictable as death and taxes, but a smart script and crisp artwork help distinguish it from other titles in the Shonen Jump catalog.

sekiMy Neighbor Seki, Vols. 1-3
By Takuma Morishige
Unrated
Vertical Comics, $10.95

Like Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto, My Neighbor Seki is a one-joke series: middle-school student Seki goofs off during class, much to the consternation of his seat mate Rumi. Seki isn’t just doodling in his notepad, however. He pets kittens, builds elaborate sculptures from shoji pieces, runs an intraschool mail service, and hosts a tea ceremony. To vary the rhythm of the joke-telling, artist Takuma Morishige occasionally transplants the action from the schoolroom to the playground, though the set-up remains the same; Seki does something outrageous and Rumi reacts, prompting the teacher to scold Rumi for not paying attention.

Given Seki‘s slender premise, it’s not surprising that each volume is a hit-and-miss affair. In volume one, for example, Seki knits a cactus plushie using a double-ended afghan hook. Rumi initially scoffs at his choice of tool; as she observes, “The hallmark of afghan knitting is its unique thickness and softness. It’s a texture best utilized when making sweaters,” not stuffed animals. When she sees the final results, however, she concedes that Seki has chosen the perfect technique and materials for his cactus, sending her into a rapturously funny meditation on yarn. Not all the gags are as successful: Seki’s penchant for staging elaborate scenes with action figures is moderately amusing at first, but grows more tiresome with each new and less imaginative iteration. Still, it’s impossible to deny the energy, creativity, and specificity with which Morishige brings Seki’s exploits to life, making this series more “win” than “fail.”

The verdict: My Neighbor Seki is best enjoyed in one or two chapter installments; when read in large bursts, some scenarios read like 4-koma strips stretched to epic and unfunny proportions.

Reviews: Over at Manga Connection, manjiorin reviews the first four volumes of Princess Jellyfish, which are currently available on Crunchyroll. TCJ columnist Joe McCulloch jumps in the WABAC machine for a nostalgic look at Even a Monkey Can Draw Manga. In honor of 801 Day, Megan R. reviews a title from the Tokyopop/BLU Manga catalog, Shout Out Loud.

Matthew Alexander on vol. 1 of Aoi House (The Fandom Post)
Michael Burns on vol. 5 of Assassination Classroom (AniTAY)
Nick Creamer on vol. 4 of A Bride’s Story (Anime News Network)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 1 of First Love Monster (Anime News Network)
Michael Burns on vol. 7 of Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma (AniTAY)
SKJAM! on Fragments of Horror (SKJAM! Reviews)
Connie on vol. 1 of Junjo Romantica (Slightly Biased Manga)
Sean Gaffney on vols. 1-2 of Maid-Sama! (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Wolfen Moondaughter on vols. 1-2 of Maid-Sama! (Sequential Tart)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of My Hero Academia (WatchPlayRead)
Adam Capps on vol. 3 of My Neighbor Seki (Bento Byte)
Connie on No Touching At All (Slightly Biased Manga)
Adam Capps on vol. 75 of One Piece (Bento Byte)
Ken H. on vols. 9-11 of Sankarea: Undying Love (Sequential Ink)
Matthew Warner on vol. 7 of Say I Love You (The Fandom Post)
ebooks girl on vol. 1 of Shiba Inuko-san (Geek Lit Etc.)
confusedmuse and Helen on Shugo Chara (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Marissa Lieberman on vol. 1 of Spell of Desire (No Flying No Tights)
manjiorin on vol. 1 of Tokyo Ghoul (Manga Connection)
Ian Wolf on vol. 1 of Twin Star Exorcists (Anime UK News)
Connie on vol. 1 of Twittering Birds Never Fly (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 2 of Twittering Birds Never Fly (Slightly Biased Manga)
Lori Henderson on vols. 3-4 of Until Death Do Us Part (Manga Xanadu)
Sarah on vol. 9 of What Did You Eat Yesterday? (Anime UK News)
Connie on vol. 1 of World’s Greatest First Love (Slightly Biased Manga)
Alice Vernon on xxxHolic (Girls Like Comics)
SKJAM! on vol. 1 of Yamada-Kun and the Seven Witches (SKJAM! Reviews)
Ash Brown on vol. 2 of Your Lie in April (Experiments in Manga)

August Manga Releases, ‘Barefoot Gen’ Kickstarter

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Attack on Titan 16

I rounded up the August manga releases at the Barnes and Noble blog; with new volumes of Naruto and Attack on Titan coming out, it’s a big month.

Speaking of Attack on Titan, there has been a flurry of news lately about how big a deal it is, but this sums it all up: There are currently 50 million copies in print of the different volumes of the series; volume 16 is out in Japan and will be out in the U.S. this month.

Last Gasp, the publisher of Barefoot Gen, has launched a Kickstarter to fund the publication of 4,000 hardcover volumes (1,000 each of the first four volumes) and distribution to schools and libraries.

Lori Henderson rounds up the Otakon news, with her own commentary on the new license announcements.

At Heart of Manga, Laura takes a look at this month’s new shoujo manga releases.

Zainab Akhtar writes about Jiro Taniguchi’s The Walking Man and the Japanese concept of ma, or emptiness.

Stop! You’re reading the wrong way! Most MangaBlog readers probably don’t even notice those guides on the last page of each volume that explain how to read manga right to left, but Verneida Vergara does, and she posts a quick survey of which publishers do and don’t include that helpful-to-newcomers information.

Reviews: The Manga Bookshelf team have plenty to say about an eclectic selection of new volumes in their latest Bookshelf Briefs column.

Erica Friedman on Ai Rabu Yuu Yori Aishiteru (Okazu)
Ash Brown on vol. 1 of Akame Ga Kill and vol. 2 of Let’s Dance a Waltz (Experiments in Manga)
Dave Ferraro on vol. 1 of Captain Ken (Comics-and-More)
Amanda Vail on Legal Drug and Drug & Drop (Women Write About Comics)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 12 of Magi (The Comic Book Bin)
Kanta Ishida on My Love Story!! (The Japan News)
Kristin on vol. 5 of My Love Story!! (Comic Attack)
Ash Brown on vol. 1 of Orange Junk (Experiments in Manga)
Sarah on vol. 9 of Ranma 1/2 (2-in-1 edition) (nagareboshi reviews)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 2 of A Silent Voice (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Matthew Warner on vol. 1 of So Cute It Hurts! (The Fandom Post)
Lindsey Tomsu on vols. 1-3 of Zero’s Familiar (No Flying, No Tights)

The Manga Revue: The Demon Prince of Momochi House

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I’m hitting the road for a brief vacation this weekend, so this week’s column is more of a drive-by than a full-on review. On the menu: The Demon Prince of Momochi House, a supernatural rom-com that recently joined VIZ’s Shojo Beat line-up.

demon_princeThe Demon Prince of Momochi House, Vol. 1
By Aya Shouoto
Rated T, for teen
VIZ Media, $9.99

The Demon Prince of Momochi House follows a tried-and-true shojo formula: a plucky girl inherits a house–or a school, temple, or dojo–that’s already inhabited by a posse of good-looking boys. The wrinkle is that Himari–said plucky girl–has inherited a haunted house that sits atop a portal between the demon and human worlds. Her arrival triggers a flurry of supernatural activity, as ayakashi descend on Momochi House to investigate its new resident. Protecting her is Aoi, a seemingly ordinary seventeen-year-old who transforms into a fox-eared demon whenever an unruly spirit appears, and Yukari and Ise, a pair of shikigamis whose human form screams “boy band!”

The plot is as road-tested as the premise. In every chapter (1) Aoi warns Himari not to explore Momochi House on her own (2) Himari ignores him and is promptly attacked by a demon and (3) Aoi then rescues Himari, causing her to blush, stammer, and wonder why she feels flustered when he’s around. Must be heartburn…

If the story barely deviates from the Kamisama Kiss playbook, the brisk pacing and cheerful banter between Himari and her tenants prevents the story from devolving into pure formula. So, too, do Aya Shouoto’s sensual character designs and smart-looking yokai, both of which suggest the influence of CLAMP’s xxxHolic or Gate 7. I’m not sure that snazzy artwork and a spunky heroine are enough to sustain my interest for ten or fifteen volumes, but I’d certainly pick up the next installment to see if the story moves in an unexpected direction.

Reviews: Megan R. takes Full Metal Panic: Overload! for a spin at The Manga Test Drive, while Sean Gaffney posts an early review of Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto. Over at Otaku USA, Sean O’Mara posts a generously illustrated essay on Hayao Miyazaki’s manga.

Sheena McNeil on vol. 15 of 07-Ghost (Sequential Tart)
Adam Capps on vol. 5 of Ajin: Demi-Human (Bento Byte)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 55 of Case Closed (Comic Book Bin)
Kaylee Barton on vol. 1 of The Demon Prince of Momochi House (Bento Byte)
Matt on vol. 1 of Final Fantasy Type-0 Side Story: The Ice Reaper (AniTAY)
Amanda Vail on vols. 1-2 of Drug & Drop and Legal Drug (Women Write About Comics)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 6 of Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma (Sequential Tart)
Patti Martinson on Fragments of Horror (Sequential Tart)
Allen Kesinger on vol. 1 of Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? (No Flying No Tights)
Majin Oni on Jaco the Galactic Patrolman (majinoni6)*
Matt on vol. 2 of Kagerou Daze (AniTAY)
Wolfen Moondaughter on vol. 1 of My Hero Academia (Sequential Tart)
Majin Oni on vol. 1 of Prison School (majinoni6)*
Matt on vol. 1 of Prison School (AniTAY)
Kane Bugeja on vol. 5 of Seraph of the End (Snap30)
Sarah on vol. 2 of Servamp (Anime UK News)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 7 of Tiger & Bunny (WatchPlayRead)
Adam Capps on vol. 1 of Twin Star Exorcists (Bento Byte)
Majin Oni on vol. 1 of Twin Star Exorcists (majinoni6)*
Joseph Luster on vol. 1 of Ultraman (Otaku USA)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 10 of Voice Over! Seiyu Academy (Sequential Tart)
Alberto Cadena on vol. 9 of What Did You Eat Yesterday? (Bento Byte)

* Denotes a video review.

Otakon News, Manga Reigns Triumphant, and More

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Queen Emeraldas

Queen Emeraldas

It’s been a busy couple of weeks! I rounded up most of the new manga license announcements from Anime Expo and Comic-Con International at the Barnes and Noble blog; here’s the latest from Otakon:

Kodansha Comics

  • Queen Emeraldas, by Leiji Matsumoto
  • Complex Age, by Yui Sakuma
  • Forget Me Not, by Nao Emoto

Viz

  • Goodnight PunPun, by Inio Asano (Solanin, Nijigahara Holograph)
  • The Heiress and the Chauffeur, by Keiko Ishihara
  • Blanc et Noir, an art book by Takeshi Obata (Death Note, Bakuman)

Vertical

  • Mysterious Girlfriend X, by Riichi Ueshiba
  • The Gods Lie, by Kaori Ozaki (Immortal Rain)
  • Devil’s Line, by Ryo Hanada

And somewhere in there, Seven Seas announced it has acquired the license to The Other Side of Secret, by Hideaki Yoshikawa.

Sean Gaffney always has interesting things to say about new licenses, so be sure to check out his SDCC/Otakon roundup as well.

On the other side of the coin, Lori Henderson takes a look at all the manga series that are ending in Japan this month.

There has been a flurry of commentary about the importance of manga in reshaping the comics and graphic novel market lately, and the best starting point is probably Heidi MacDonald’s post at The Beat, where she links to it all and provides her own perspective.

Looking for something to read? I did a spring and summer teen manga roundup at SLJTeen.

Justin Stroman caught up with Yen Press publisher Kurt Hassler at Anime Expo and talked to him about a bunch of things, including whether their digital-first licenses will go to print (maybe) and the decision to license Yowamushi Pedal:

Oh you know, there’s a lot of common wisdom in the industry that sports manga doesn’t work, but it’s very short-sighted not to challenge preconceptions, there’s obviously a huge Yowamushi fan base, I’ve seen any number of cosplayers, the anime has been a massive success…it’s one of those properties that we’ve had our eye on for a long time. We think the timing was right, we want to challenge the preconceived boundaries of what the market thinks it can do, and we think it has an excellent chance of being a highly successful title.

Justin also interviewed Viz editor Marlene First.

sasaki_maki-ding_dong_circus2015-cover

Ryan Holmberg writes about avant-garde manga artist Sasaki Maki; Holmberg has translated a collection of 15 Maki stories into English, and the book has just been published by Breakdown Press under the title Sasaki Maki’s Ding Dong Circus and Other Stories, 1967-1974.

ICv2 lists the top ten manga franchises.

The Manga Bookshelf team discuss their Pick of the Week.

Reviews: Ash Brown accounts for a week’s worth of manga reading at Experiments in Manga. Michelle Smith and Sean Gaffney provide short takes on recent releases in the latest Bookshelf Briefs from Manga Bookshelf.

Connie on vol. 6 of Ai no Kusabi (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 5 of Alice in the Country of Clover: Cheshire Cat Waltz (Slightly Biased Manga)
Confusedmuse on Alice in the Country of Hearts (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Connie on vol. 1 of Alice in the Country of Joker: Circus and Liar’s Game (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 30 of Blade of the Immortal (Slightly Biased Manga)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 55 of Case Closed (The Fandom Post)
Connie on vol. 5 of Cross Game (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 5 of Demon Love Spell (Slightly Biased Manga)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 1 of The Demon Prince of Momochi House (The Fandom Post)
Connie on vol. 12 of Dengeki Daisy (Slightly Biased Manga)
Ren on vol. 1 of The Devils and the Realist (Fearless Facade)
Josh Begley on vol. 1 of Emma (omnibus edition) (The Fandom Post)
Kristin on Fragments of Horror (Comic Attack)
Tessa Barber on Gyo (No Flying, No Tights)
Lori Henderson on Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories (Good Comics for Kids)
Erica Friedman on Love Desu (Okazu)
Connie on vol. 8 of Love Pistols (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 3 of No. 6 (Slightly Biased Manga)
AstroNerdBoy on vol. 1 of Non Non Biyori (AstroNerdBoy’s Anime and Manga Blog)
Connie on vol. 4 of Phantom Thief Jeanne (Slightly Biased Manga)
Sarah on vol. 25 of Soul Eater (nagareboshi reviews)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 2 of Tokyo Ghoul (ANN)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 1 of Ultraman (ANN)

The Manga Revue: Prison School and Twin Star Exorcists

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This week, I take a look at two new releases: Prison School, a hotly anticipated series about five boys trying to break out of an all-girls’ school, and Twin Star Exorcists, a shonen manga about two teenage onmyoji who hold the fate of the world in their hands. (Let’s hope they do their best–otherwise, we’re toast!)

Hiramoto_PrisonSchoolV1Prison School, Vol. 1
By Akira Hiramoto
Rated M, for mature readers (18+)
Yen Press, $20.00

Paging Russ Meyer! Prison School is a veritable parade of big-bosomed, wasp-waisted women brandishing whips, kicking ass, and eschewing bras. The target of their scorn: Kiyoshi, Kingo, Gackt, Joe, and Andre, the first five men to enroll at the Hachimitsu Private Academy in its fifty-year history. These hapless souls want nothing more than to “catch glances of breasts and panties,” but their efforts to spy on their classmates incur the wrath of the school’s Shadow Student Council, a secret organization whose primary role is to “crack down on illicit sexual relationships.” After a dramatic show trial in the school’s courtyard, Kiyoshi and friends are sentenced to hard time in the school penitentiary.

I’d be the first to admit that the premise has potential: what woman or girl hasn’t fantasized about coolly administering a karate chop to a lecherous jerk on the subway or in the street? What prevents Prison School from rising above grindhouse fare is Akira Hiramoto’s complete dehumanization of his characters. The Student Council members are portrayed as ball-busting man-haters, intent on humiliating the boys for their sexual proclivities, while the prisoners are depicted as sniveling pervs. The only genuinely sympathetic pair are Kiyoshi and Chiyo, a cute girl who shares Kiyoshi’s passion for sumo wrestling. Kiyoshi’s desire to have a normal relationship with Chiyo provides the story’s few emotionally authentic moments; by contrast, most scenes revel in the lurid, psychosexual relationship between the boys and their jailers.

Though all of the characters are objectified, no one fares as poorly as Meiko Shiraki, the Shadow Council’s Vice President. Hiramoto always draws her from an extreme angle–upskirt is one of his favorites–that emphasizes her monstrously distended breasts and reveals her penchant for wearing thongs. Perhaps a fifteen-year-old boy would find her terrifyingly sexy, but an older reader who’s seen actual breasts would have a hard time viewing Meiko as anything but a fetishist fantasy.

All of which is to say: Prison School could have been a sly riff on Escape from Alcatraz, The Great Escape, or even Caged, but Hiramoto’s strenuously raunchy scenarios overwhelm the other elements of the story, stopping it dead in its tracks.

The verdict: Prison School is an all-or-nothing proposition: you’ll either love it or hate it.

twin_starTwin Star Exorcists, Vol. 1
By Yoshiaki Sukeno
Rated T, for teens
VIZ Media, $9.99

Twin Star Exorcists is a love story dressed up as an action-packed supernatural adventure. At the beginning of volume one, the principal characters have a meet-cute that establishes their personalities in broad strokes: Rokuro is gifted but reluctant to use his exorcism skills, while Benio is gifted but trigger happy, nuking monsters at the slightest provocation. Making their Darcy-and-Elizabeth dynamic more complicated is that Rokuro and Benio are destined to marry and have a child who will save the world from the Kegare, a demonic race that lives in a parallel universe. (Rokuro and Benio are also fourteen, a point underscored by their endless bickering.)

Although the fight scenes are competently executed, the beats are so familiar that the combat feels superfluous. And therein lies Twin Star Exorcists‘ biggest problem: it’s boring. The plot lines, characters, and demon lore are so familiar that the story lacks a distinctive personality; even the setting is cliche. (Rokuro and Benio attend an exclusive academy for onmyoji in training.) Just two days after finishing the volume I couldn’t remember the principal characters’ names–a sure sign that the author treated each element of the story as something to be checked off a list, rather than an integral part of the narrative.

The verdict: Zzzzzz…..

Reviews: GC4K contributor Mike Pawuk praises Svetlana Chmakova’s Awkward, just out from Yen Press. Over at Heart of Manga, Laura posts brief reviews of He’s My Only Vampire, The Ancient Magus’ Bride, and Let’s Dance a Waltz. Joe McCulloch dedicates his latest TCJ column to CoroCoro magazine.

Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 17 of 07-Ghost (WatchPlayRead)
Connie on Alice in the Country of Clover: Nightmare (Slightly Biased Manga)
Alice Vernon on Awkward (Girls Like Comics)
Connie on vol. 29 of Blade of the Immortal (Slightly Biased Manga)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 7 of Deadman Wonderland (Sequential Tart)
Allen Kesinger on vol. 1 of The Devil is a Part-Timer! (No Flying No Tights)
Chris Randle on Fragments of Horror (The Guardian)
Frank Inglese on vol. 6 of Gangsta (Snap30)
Sarah on Kitaro (nagareboshi reviews)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 13 of Knights of Sidonia (The Fandom Post)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 1 of Love Stage!! (Comic Book Bin)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 1 of Love Stage!! (Comics Worth Reading)
Marissa Lieberman on vol. 1 of Midnight Secretary (No Flying No Tights)
Thomas Maluck on vols. 1-3 of My Love Story!! (No Flying No Tights)
ebooksgirl on vol. 3 of My Neighbor Seki! (Geek Lit Etc.)
Helen and confused muse on Natsume’s Book of Friends (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 2 of No Game No Life (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Erica Friedman on Okujou no Yuri Yurei-san Side B – Nakayoshi Quiz (Okazu)
A.J. Adejare on vol. 2 of Oreimo: Kureneko (The Fandom Post)
Connie on vol. 1 of Paradise Kiss (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 3 of Phantom Thief Jeanne (Slight Biased Manga)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 3 of Pokemon X.Y (Sequential Tart)
Lostty on vols. 1-4 of Princess Jellyfish (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 17 of Rin-ne (WatchPlayRead)
Ash Brown on vol. 2 of Sengoku Basara: Samurai Legends (Experiments in Manga)
Frank Inglese on vol. 6 of Terra Formars (Snap30)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 9 of Voice Over! Seiyu Academy (Sequential Tart)
Lesley Tomsu on vols. 1-2 of Witch Buster (No Flying No Tights)
Ken H. on vol. 2 of Your Lie in April (Sequential Ink)

US Manga Market on the Rebound

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Deb Aoki rounds up the major manga news from Anime Expo and San Diego Comic-Con, while Heidi MacDonald and Calvin Reid weigh in on the overall state of the comics industry. The good news: the manga market has rebounded from the late 2000s, when a glut of product and the collapse of Borders forced several publishers to shut down.

Over at Comic Book Resources, Brigid Alverson interviews Tokyopop founder Stu Levy about the company’s new business plan, which consists of three key components: “licensed Japanese manga, graphic novels based on brands, and new products based on Tokyopop’s existing global manga properties.”

Going to Otakon? Ed Chavez hinted that Vertical Comics may have three or four licensing announcements. In other Vertical news, all seventeen volumes of Black Jack are now available in ebook form.

Crunchyroll just launched five new manga series, including Scum’s Wish, The Morose Mononokean, and Princess Jellyfish.

DMP’s latest Kickstarter campaign successfully funded print editions of Osamu Tezuka’s Storm Fairy, Crime and Punishment, and Unico.

Tokyo Ghoul tops this week’s New York Times Manga Best Sellers, while Attack on Titan tops ICv2’s list of the Top 10 Manga Franchises of Spring 2015. Also making the ICv2 cut are long-time favorites Death Note and Naruto and relative newcomer Sword Art Online.

Are you a Dorohedoro fan? If so, keep your eyes peeled for the first issue of Marvel’s Ant-Man: The Last Days; Q Hayashida provided the cover art. (Issue ships on 8/15.)

Justin Stroman talks to several Digital Manga Guild localizers about their experiences–good and bad–working for DMP.

The folks at ALC Publishing have translated Rica Takashima’s article “Japan: Fertile Ground for the Cultivation of Yuri,” which originally appeared in the December 14th issue of Eureka.

News from Japan: Creator Masaya Hokazono (Inugami) just launched Osoroshi Ya (Dreadful Shop), a new website for manga horror enthusiasts. Natsuki Takaya is hard at work on a sequel to Fruits Basket. Beginning September 4th, a new chapter will be posted every week at the HanaLaLa website. The end is near–for Orange, Cross H, and Grendizer Giga, that is.

Reviews: At Kaleo, Henry Ma reviews the latest chapters of Bleach, and offers predictions for the next installment. Ash Brown posts short reviews of After I Win, Alice in the Country of Hearts: My Fanatic Rabbit, and Aquarion Evol.

Erica Friedman on vol. 2 of Akuma no Riddle (Okazu)
Chris Beveridge on vol. 1 of The Complete Chi’s Sweet Home (The Fandom Post)
Rebecca Silverman on vols. 1-3 of Demon From Afar (ANN)
Anna N. on vol. 2 of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Part One: Phantom Blood (The Manga Report)
Helen on Kitchen Princess (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Megan R. on Kujibiki Unbalance (The Manga Test Drive)
Matthew Warner on The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (The Fandom Post)
Kristin on vol. 1 of Maid-Sama (Comic Attack)
Jon Parrish and Luke Thompson-Moritz on vol. 3 of Peepo Choo (Comic DNA)
Sean Gaffney on vols. 17-18 of Ranma 1/2 (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Matthew Warner on vol. 11 of Sankarea: Undying Love (The Fandom Post)
Jeff Alford on Trash Market (Run Spot Run)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 1 of Twin Star Exorcists (ANN)
Jocelyn Allen on Wagamama Chie-chan (Brain vs. Book)

The Manga Revue: Fragments of Horror

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I’m too squeamish for horror movies–the blood alone is enough to send me screaming for the exits. But horror manga? That’s in my wheelhouse, as manga allows me to engage with the material as much–or as little–as I wish. Junji Ito’s work is largely responsible for showing me the possibilities of comic book horror; I don’t think I’ll ever forget the image of an enormous great white shark climbing a flight of stairs in pursuit of his next meal, or an entire village consumed by a voracious plague of… spirals. (It’s scarier than it sounds.) So when VIZ announced that they would be publishing a new collection of Ito stories, I knew I would buy it. But does Fragments of Horror deliver? Read on for the full scoop.

fragments_horror_vizFragments of Horror
By Junji Ito
Rated T+, for older teens
VIZ Media, $17.99

Uncanny–that’s the first word that comes to mind after reading Junji Ito’s Fragments of Horror, an anthology of nine stories that run the gamut from deeply unsettling to just plain gross. Ito is one of the few manga-ka who can transform something as ordinary as a mattress or a house into an instrument of terror, as the opening stories in Fragments of Horror demonstrate. Both “Futon” and “Wood Spirit” abound in vivid imagery: apartments infested with demons, floors covered in eyes, walls turned to flesh, rooves thatched in human hair. Watching these seemingly benign objects pulse with life is both funny and terrifying, a potent reminder of how thin the dividing line between animate and inanimate really is.

Taut–that’s another word I’d use to describe Fragments of Horror. Each story is a model of economy, packing 60 or 70 pages of narrative into just 20 or 30. “Dissection Chan,” for example, explores the forty-year relationship between Tatsuro, a surgeon, and Ruriko, a woman who’s obsessed with vivisection. In a brief flashback to Tatsuro’s childhood, Ito documents the unraveling of their friendship, capturing both Ruriko’s escalating desire to cut things open and Tatsuro’s profound shame for helping her procure the tools (and animals) necessary for her experiments. Three or four years have been packed into this seven-page vignette, but Ito never resorts to voice-overs or thought balloons to explain how Tatsuro feels; stark lighting, lifelike facial expressions, and evocative body language convey Tatsuro’s emotional journey from curious participant to disgusted critic.

Not all stories land with the same cat-like tread of “Dissection Chan.” “Magami Nanakuse,” a cautionary tale about the literary world, aims for satire but misses the mark. The central punchline–that authors mine other people’s suffering for their art–isn’t executed with enough oomph or ick to make much of an impression. “Tomio • Red Turtleneck”  is another misfire. Though it yields some of the most squirm-inducing images of the collection, it reads like a sixteen-year-old boy’s idea of what happens if your girlfriend discovers that you’ve been stepping out on her: first she’s angry at you, then she’s angry at the Other Woman, and finally she forgives you after you grovel and suffer. (In Tomio’s case, suffering involves grotesque humiliation with a cockroach–the less said about it, the better.)

Taken as a whole, however, Fragments of Horror is testament to the fecundity of Ito’s imagination, and to his skill in translating those visions into sharp, unforgettable illustrations like this one:

ito_horror_interior

PS: I recommend pairing this week’s review with 13 Extremely Disturbing Junji Ito Panels, a listicle compiled by Steve Fox. (The title is a little misleading: the images are unsettling, but are generally SFW.)

Reviews: Sean Gaffney reads Pandora in the Crimson Shell and Magika: Swordsman and Summoner so that you don’t have to. At Women Write About Comics, Amanda Vail compares the light novel and manga versions of The Devil is a Part-Timer!

Connie on vol. 3 of Alice in the Country of Clover: Knight’s Knowledge (Slightly Biased Manga)
Jennifer Wharton on vols. 1-6 of The Betrayal Knows My Name (No Flying No Tights)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 55 of Case Closed (WatchPlayRead)
Kristin on vol. 1 of The Demon Prince of Momochi House (Comic Attack)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of First Love Monster (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Frank Inglese on vols. 3-4 of Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma (Snap 30)
Megan R. on Fushigi Yugi: Genbu Kaiden (The Manga Test Drive)
Connie on vol. 6 of Gravitation (Slightly Biased Manga)
Dave Ferraro on The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (Comics and More)
Wolfen Moondaughter on vol. 13 of Library Wars: Love and War (Sequential Tart)
Connie on vol. 6 of Love Pistols (Slightly Biased Manga)
Ash Brown on vol. 4 of Mushishi (Experiments in Manga)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 5 of My Love Story!! (WatchPlayRead)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 10 of Nisekoi: False Love (Comic Book Bin)
Joe McCulloch on Pandora in the Crimson Shell (The Comics Journal)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 28 of Pokemon Adventures: Emerald (Sequential Tart)
Wolfen Moondaughter on vol. 1 of Requiem of the Rose King (Sequential Tart)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 18 of Rin-ne (Comic Book Bin)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 10 of Sankarea: Undying Love (The Fandom Post)
confusedmuse on Skip Beat! (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 4 of Soul Eater Not! (The Fandom Post)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 4 of Spell of Desire (Sequential Tart)
Courtney Sanders on vol. 1 of Twin Star Exorcists (Three If By Space)
Ken H. on vol. 5 of Witchcraft Works (Sequential Ink)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 6 of Wolfsmund (The Fandom Post)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 5 of World Trigger (The Fandom Post)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 3 of Yukarism (WatchPlayRead)

 

Tokyopop + Disney = Manga Mickey?

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Anyone hoping for a definitive statement of Tokyopop’s 2015-16 plans was probably disappointed by the company’s SDCC panel. The company reiterated its intention to do “original manga,” announced it was launching a phone game called Sushi Cross, and hinted that it was negotiating an agreement with Disney. Tokyopop also revealed it will publish a new boxed edition of M. Alice LeGrow’s Bizenghast, one of the company’s best-selling OEL manga titles.

UDON announced that it would be reissuing Moyocco Anno’s tween-friendly fantasy Sugar Sugar Rune (originally published by Del Rey Manga in the 2000s). Also on UDON’s calendar: the oddly punctuated Steins’; Gate, which debuts next month.

If you didn’t make it to SDCC 2015, never fear: Deb Aoki has posted a detailed recap of the Best and Worst Manga Panel of 2015. Although the group focused on new releases from 2015, all five panelists also discussed manga they’d liked to see licensed, from Ai Yazawa’s Neighborhood Story (Gokinjo Monogatori) to Gengoroh Tagame’s My Brother’s Husband (Otouto no Otto).

 

UDON to Publish Rose of Versailles; Showa Wins Eisner

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rose-of-versailles-udonUDON may have scored the biggest coup of SDCC 2015: at its Saturday panel, the publisher revealed that it had acquired the rights to Rose of Versailles. UDON will release Riyoko Ikeda’s ground-breaking shojo manga in a 2-in-1 omnibus format next spring.

Shigeru Mizuki’s Showa 1939-1944 and Showa: A History of Japan, 1944-1953 clinched the Eisner Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material–Asia, beating out All You Need Is Kill, In Clothes Called Fat, Master Keaton, One-Punch Man, and Wolf Children: Ame & Yuki.

At the Kodansha Comics panel, one new title was announced: Paradise Residence, an ongoing series by Oh! My Goddess creator Kosuke Fujishima. The Kodansha team also gave the audience a sneak peak at volumes 16 and 17 of Attack on Titan–both of which will include special extras–and hinted that they might have some additional licensing news at Otakon.

Dark Horse will publish a new omnibus edition of Hiroaki Samura’s Blade of the Immortal. No publication date has been set.

Sword Art Online: Progressive and Tokyo Ghoul lead this week’s New York Times Manga Best Seller list.

Erica Friedman posts the latest Yuri Network News update.

The new omnibus edition of Chi’s Sweet Home looks ridiculously cute. ‘Nuff said.

The Manga Bookshelf gang previews next week’s new arrivals. Over the Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi blog, Brigid Alverson highlights July’s best manga, from Twin Star Exorcists to Pandora in the Crimson Shell.

News from Japan: The last chapter of So Cute It Hurts! will appear in the August issue of Sho-Comi; eleven volumes have been released to date. Corpse Princess creator Yoshiichi Akahito just launched a new “battle fantasy manga” in Shonen Gangen magazine.

The Japan Times has a fascinating profile of manga-ka Machiko Satonaka, whose series Tenjo no Niji chronicles the life of the Empress Jiro (645-702 AD).

Reviews: Ash Brown jumps in the WABAC machine for a look at Sanpei Shirato’s The Legend of Kamui, which VIZ originally published in English in the 1990s.

ebooksgirl on vol. 10 of Attack on Titan (Geek Lit Etc.)
Connie on vol. 2 of Black Rose Alice (Slightly Biased Manga)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 64 of Bleach (WatchPlayRead)
Jocelyn Allen on Deathco (Brain vs. Book)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 1 of The Demon Prince of Momochi House (Comic Book Bin)
Svetlana Fedotov on Fragments of Horror (Fangoria)
Matthew Warner on Gyo (The Fandom Post)
Connie on vol. 1 of No. 6 (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 5 of Toradora! (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 1 of Whispered Words (Slightly Biased Manga)
TSOTE on The World of Mud Men (Three Steps Over Japan)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 6 of World Trigger (WatchPlayRead)
Ken H. on vol. 2 of xxxHolic Rei (Sequential Ink)

Dark Horse Reveals 2016 Publishing Plans

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I_am_a_HeroDark Horse announced it will publish four new manga in 2016–Danganronpa: The Animation, I Am a Hero, Fate/Zero, and Giganto Maxia-–and reissue RG Veda, formerly a Tokyopop property. Dark Horse also revealed plans for spiffy omnibus editions of Astro Boy and Oh! My Goddess.*

At VIZ’s Shonen Jump panel, editors confirmed that Gakkyu Hotel: School Judgment will make the leap to print in February 2016, while Best Blue, a brand-new shonen sports manga, will appear simultaneously in the Japanese and American editions of Weekly Shonen Jump.

Jennifer de Guzman talks to creators Rikki Simmons, Tavisha Wolfgarth-Simons, and Sophie Campbell about their experiences publishing OEL manga with Tokyopop in the mid-2000s.

Do you love writing about shojo? Laura at Heart of Manga wants to hear from you; she’s currently looking for contributors.

News from Japan: After three years of sporadic updates, Kentaro Miura’s Beserk will resume regular serialization in Young Animal magazine on July 24th. The Attack on Titan: Lost Girls light novel is being adapted into a manga for Bessatsu Shonen Magazine; look for the first chapter in August. Fans of My Love Story!! should mark their calendars: the live-action film opens on October 31st.

Reviews: Michelle Smith, Anna N., and Sean Gaffney post short reviews of Assassination Classroom, Love at Fourteen, Say I Love You, and other recent releases. Over at The Comics Journal, Joe McCulloch tackles Junji Ito’s new anthology Fragments of Horror.

Joseph Luster on vol. 5 of Ajin: Demi-Human (Otaku USA)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Alice in Murderland (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Carrie Hildebrand on vol. 64 of Bleach (Three If By Space)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 1 of Chaika: The Coffin Princess (Anime News Network)
Joseph Luster on Dream Fossil: The Complete Stories of Satoshi Kon (Otaku USA)
Amanda Vail on Dream Fossil: The Complete Stories of Satoshi Kon (Women Write About Comics)
Alice Vernon on vol. 1 of Emma (Girls Like Comics)
Leroy Douresseaux on Fragments of Horror (Comic Book Bin)
Joseph Luster on Fragments of Horror (Otaku USA)
confused muse on Fruits Basket (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Ash Brown on Gyo: The Death Stench Seeps (Experiments in Manga)
Matthew Warner on vol. 4 of High School DxD (The Fandom Post)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 5 of Kiss of the Rose Princess (WatchPlayRead)
Matthew Warner on vol. 5 of Little Battlers Experience (The Fandom Post)
Naru on vol. 1 of Love Stage!! (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Joseph Luster on vol. 1 of My Hero Academia (Otaku USA)
Sakura Eries on vol. 8 of My Little Monster (The Fandom Post)
Sakura Eries on vol. 4 of My Love Story!! (The Fandom Post)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 10 of Nisekoi: False Love (WatchPlayRead)
Matthew Warner on Puella Magi Oriko Magica: Extra Story (The Fandom Post)

* Editorial note: As my colleague Brigid Alverson reported in May, Dark Horse originally announced many of these licenses at an unscheduled Anime Central panel. The title of the post has been updated to reflect the error.

Kodansha Licenses Princess Jellyfish; Tokyopop Returns

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Kuragehime_vol01_CoverJust a quick programming note before I tackle the day’s news: The Manga Revue is on hiatus this week so that I can focus on breaking stories from San Diego Comic Con. The Revue will be back on Friday, July 17th with an in-depth look at Junji Ito’s Fragments of Horror. On to the links…

This year’s Anime Expo yielded several major licensing announcements, including the welcome news that Kodansha Comics will be publishing Princess Jellyfish in 2016. Vertical, Inc. also unveiled two recent acquisitions: Nichijou, a surreal gag manga, and FukuFuku: Kitten Tales, a josei title from the creator of Chi’s Sweet Home. For a complete list of all of the titles announced at AX 2015, check out Sean Gaffney’s comprehensive round-up.

The biggest news story of AX 2015 was the re-launch of Tokyopop. Not surprisingly, the Robofish reboot generated numerous essays from industry veterans and journalists, including Alex de Campi, Heidi MacDonald, Aja Romano, and Brigid Alverson. Pour yourself a cup of coffee and read up on Stu Levy’s second act.

Mobile Suit Gundham and Tokyo Ghoul top this week’s New York Times Manga Best Seller list, followed by the perennially popular Naruto and Attack on Titan.

Publisher’s Weekly reports that the North American comics market grew 7% last year, generating almost $1 billion in print and digital sales.

Erica Friedman compiles the latest yuri publication news.

Megan R., host of The Manga Test Drive, shows off her manga collection and discusses her reading habits.

Justin Stroman interviews the husband-and-wife team of Christine Schilling and James Dashiell, who are currently translating Akame ga Kill! and The Seven Deadly Sins. Fun fact: the two met at Tokyopop, where Schilling was an intern and Dashiell was a letterer.

What will you find on the New Arrival shelf this week? The Manga Bookshelf gang sift through the good, the meh, and the awful.

News from Japan: Move over, Daigo Asahina–Atsushi Okubo, creator of Soul Eater, has a new “sci-fi firefighting battle manga” in the works for Weekly Shonen Magazine. Over at Weekly Shonen Jump, creator Masahiro Hirakata will debut Best Blue, a manga about a champion swimmer. Saint Seiya‘s Masami Kuramada also has a new series launching this year: Ai no Jidai (Ichigoe Ichie), a “semi-autobiographical” story that will run in Weekly Shonen Champion.

Reviews: Over at Organization Anti-Social Geniuses, confusedmuse sings the praises of Kaori Yuki’s The Cain Saga. Johanna Draper Carlson had an exceptionally productive long weekend, posting reviews of Ani-Emo, So, I Can’t Play H, and Emma. Not to be outdone, Ash Brown posted brief reviews of The Ancient Magus’ Bride and Man of Many Faces.

Ken H. on vol. 5 of Ajin: Demi-Human (Sequential Ink)
Anna N. on vol. 1 of The Demon Prince of Momochi House (Manga Report)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 5 of Food Wars!! Shokugeki no Soma (Sequential Tart)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vols. 1-2 of Love at Fourteen (Comics Worth Reading)
Kristin on The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (Comic Attack)
Nick Creamer on vols. 5-6 of Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer (ANN)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 6 of Monster Musume (ANN)
Lori Henderson on vol. 2 of Prophecy (Manga Xanadu)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 14 of Rosario + Vampire, Season II (Sequential Tart)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 1 of Twin Star Exorcists (Comic Book Bin)

 

The Manga Lover’s Guide to SDCC 2015

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sdcc_logoAre you headed to San Diego this week? If so, this column is for you! We’ve compiled a handy list of the major manga events, from VIZ’s Ultraman spectacular to Tokyopop’s Don’t-Call-It-a-Comeback panel. Our own Brigid Alverson will be joining an all-star line-up of bloggers for the Best and Worst Manga of 2015 panel, which will be held on Saturday, July 11th at 7:00 pm. We’ll also be updating the blog throughout the week with the latest licensing announcements.

A final note about the programs listed below: our list focuses on manga, but there are also a wealth of anime programs including cosplay panels, voice acting workshops, and screenings of Spirited Away. A comprehensive schedule of anime events is now live on the SDCC website, and available through the Comic-Con app (iOS and Android).

THURSDAY, JULY 9th

Shonen Jump: Past, Present, and Future
10:00 – 11:00 am, Room 5AB
From the program: “Hang out with the English language editors of the world’s most popular manga, plus special surprise guests! Come hear some exciting news about the latest new series, all-time fan favorites, and everything in between. Plus a chance to win amazing prizes by showing off your SJ trivia skills.”

What Do Women Want? Female Gaze in Manga
3:00 – 4:00 pm, Room 29AB
From the program: “From shojo manga to boys love manga to reverse harem ‘otome’ video games and anime filled with delectable guys, these media have been catering to the tastes of female fans in Japan. These stories are reaching readers and inspiring comics creators worldwide more than ever. See what manga publishing pros Leyla Aker (senior vice president, publishing, VIZ Media), JuYoun Lee (editor-in-chief, Yen Press), Lillian Diaz-Pryzbyl (head of comics, Sparkler Monthly), and manga creator Jamie Lynn Lano (The Princess of Tennis, Denkiki) have to say about ‘female gaze’ in manga, why it sells, and why it matters. They’ll also share their picks for your next must-read manga that’ll make you swoon. Moderated by Deb Aoki (Publishers Weekly, Manga Comics Manga).”

VIZ Media
4:00 – 5:00 pm, Room 7AB
From the program: “Come party with VIZ Media! And by party, they mean sit in a chair and listen to thrilling tales of upcoming releases and other Earth-shattering announcements from North America’s largest distributor of manga and anime… Hosted by Urian Brown, Charlene Ingram and VIZ Media staff, with special guests.”

Making a Living in Manga: Japan Creators, Editors Talk
5:00 – 6:00 pm, Room 29AB
From the program: “What’s it like to work as a comics creator in Japan? What does it take to sell your self- published manga at Tokyo’s Comic Market (Comiket), the world’s largest comics show? How do Japanese manga editors work with creators to craft addictive stories that keep readers coming back for more? Hear what it’s really like to work in the motherland of manga from Japan- and U.S.-based pros who have done all of this and more. Akihide Yanagi (writer, agent), Kamome Shirahama (manga artist, Eniale & Dewiel), Philip S. Y. Tan (Heaven, Uncanny X-Men), Makoto Nishi (manga editor), and Philip Knall (translator, salaryman) offer a rare look behind the scenes of Japan’s manga biz, followed a Q&A session moderated by Deb Aoki (Publishers Weekly, Manga Comics Manga).”

Dark Horse Manga
6:00 – 7:00 pm, Room 9
From the program: “Dark Horse’s history with Japanese comics can be traced back to the company’s earliest years… Dark Horse continues to publish some of the industry’s bestselling titles… Be on hand for a look at the past, present, and future of manga at Dark Horse.”

Manga: Lost In Translation
7:00 – 8:00 pm, Room 9
From the program: “It seems that manga is charging back from its late ’00s slump, and anime simulcasts have become the norm. So what is it like to work in the industry? Here’s your chance to ask some of the top professionals in the manga and anime industry about their jobs and the titles they’ve worked on. Join William Flanagan (Fairy Tail), Jonathan “Jake” Tarbox (Fist of the North Star), Mari Morimoto (Naruto), Stephen Paul (One Piece), Ed Chavez (director, Vertical Comics), and Lillian Diaz-Przybyl (head of comics, Chromatic Press Inc.) for this panel.”

FRIDAY, JULY 10th

Get Your Comic Published in Japan: Silent Manga Audition
1:30 – 2:30 pm, Room 5AB
From the program: “Jonathan Tarbox (CEO, Arashi Productions) explains how manga artists from any nation can submit their work to a contest run by a major Japanese publisher. Winners will have their submission published in Japan and be considered for the opportunity to work in the manga industry…”

VIZ Media: Ultraman
3:00 – 4:00 pm, Room 23ABC
From the program: “For their first international appearance, Eiichi Shimizu and Tomohiro Shimoguchi, creators of the new VIZ Media manga series Ultraman, inspired by the original Japanese TV show, are joined onstage by special guests from Legendary Comics to discuss Japan’s quintessential superhero and the influence of kaiju in today’s pop culture…”

Manga Publishing Industry Roundtable
5:00 – 6:00 pm, Room 4
From the program: “Manga publishing in North America has definitely seen its shares of highs and low, from the manga boom in the early 2000s to the crash ten years later, caused by a perfect storm of the U.S. recession, Borders bookstores closures, and the growth of online piracy. So how are things now? Get a taste of what’s hot, what’s not, and what’s next for manga in North America and Japan, from top publishing pros including Leyla Aker (senior VP, publishing, VIZ Media), Kurt Hassler (VP, publishing director, Yen Press), Michael Gombos (director of licensing Asia, Dark Horse Comics), Ben Applegate (associate director, publishing services, Penguin Random House), and Erik Ko (chief of operations, Udon Entertainment). Moderated by Deb Aoki (Publishers Weekly, Manga Comics Manga).”

Showcasing the Best in Korean Comics
7:30 – 8:30 pm, Room 26AB
From the program: “A team of Korea’s prolific artists and animation studios, represented by Jongmin Shin (CEO of EGA Studios), showcases the latest and greatest trends in Korean comics and animation. They will also showcase their recent and upcoming productions on some of today’s hottest comics. Join Jongmin and crew for this Q&A session moderated by Austin Osueke (publisher of eigoMANGA).”

SATURDAY, JULY 11th

Kodansha Comics
11:30 am – 12:30 pm, Room 8
From the program: “The publisher of the manga megahit Attack on Titan… reveals exciting upcoming titles. General manager Kana Koide and senior editor Ben Applegate will answer your questions about Kodansha’s books and the manga industry.”

Spotlight on Yu-Gi-Oh! and Creator Kazuki Takahasi
2:00 – 3:00 pm, Room 7AB
From the program: “Get a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the Yu-Gi-Oh! phenomenon and a sneak peek at the third Yu-Gi-Oh! feature film through the eyes of world-renowned manga artist and Yu-Gi-Oh! creator Kazuki Takahashi, and other distinguished panelists…”

Tokyopop: The Robofish Rises
6:00 – 7:00 pm, Room 28DE
From the program: “Big News, TOKYOPOP is coming back! Meet Stu Levy (founder, CEO), Clay Bohle, and the TOKYOPOP team to get the scoop firsthand. Giveaways for all attendees. If you’re an artist, bring your portfolio for review, and if you’re a fan, bring all your questions.” [Editor’s note: for more information about Tokyopop’s past and future, check out Brigid’s recent article at Comic Book Resources. If you’re planning to bring your portfolio, be sure to read Alex De Campi’s blog post about her complicated–and sometimes exploitative–relationship with Tokyopop.]

Best and Worst Manga of 2015
7:00 – 8:00 pm, Room 23ABC
From the program: “A panel of opinionated bloggers, retailers, librarians, manga mavens, and comics curmudgeons spotlight the best new manga that hit the shelves in the past year. See them rave about their favorite continuing series. Watch them rant about the excruciatingly mediocre manga that they were forced to read. Find out what Brigid Alverson (Robot 6, Good Comics for Kids), David Brothers (4thletter!), Christopher Butcher (The Beguiling, Toronto Comic Arts Festival), Eva Volin (Alameda Free Library, No Flying No Tights), and Deb Aoki (Manga Comics Manga, Publishers Weekly) loved and loathed to read in the past year. Hear about their picks for the most anticipated upcoming releases for fall 2015 and beyond, and discover their favorite underappreciated manga gems that are worth picking up.”