Breaking news: The CBLDF will join the defense of a U.S. citizen who faces criminal child pornography charges because of manga that Canadian customs agents found on his computer.
A new manga magazine debuted this week with very little fanfare: GEN magazine debuted with four stories in its first issue, which is available for free download at the link. What gives? Julie Opipari interviews GEN editor-in-chief Robert McGuire at the Manga Maniac Cafe. McGuire says the digital edition of the magazine will be published simultaneously in Japan and the U.S. and that it will feature original seinen and doujinshi stories solicited from underground artists. A special collector’s print edition is also available at a price.
Crunchyroll is opening up its JManga online manga service to beta testers in North America; it’s a lottery, and ANN has the details and a link to the signup form.
Lori Henderson has the list of this week’s all-ages comics and manga at Good Comics for Kids.
In his latest House of 1000 Manga column, Jason Thompson writes about Dame Dame Saito Nikki, a 4-koma manga about life among American manga fans, which was supposed to be published over here but for some reason never made it.
The Manga Moveable Feast continues with Melinda Beasi’s essay on “intimacy porn” in Wild Adapter, Chou Jones’s look at themes, and David Welsh’s license request for more manga from Wild Adapter creator Kayuza Minekura.
Tony Yao puts Chi’s Sweet Home on the couch at Manga Therapy.
David Brothers continues his analysis of Akira here, here, and here at 4thletter!
Houston Press blogger Karen Rust puts together a list of her top 20 manga.
Lissa Pattillo shows off her latest purchases at Kuriousity.
AstroNerdBoy notes that Viz has reprinted some scarce volumes of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.
News from Japan: Eri Takanashi says that Kannagi, which has been on hiatus due to her health problems, will resume in the September issue of Monthly Comic Rex, due out on July 27. Yu Yagami, creator of Those Who Hunt Elves and Hikkatsu!, has a new series, Kankyō Hogo-Tai Mottai-9 (Evironmental Protection Team Mottai-Nine), in the online manga magazine Flex Comic Next. Ryusuke Hamamoto, who drew the color comic Compass for the U.S. publisher Image and designed the characters for the Petite Eva manga, is launching two new series. There was a bit of a dustup over the Fractale franchise this week, after the artist for the manga adaptation complained online that she found it “uninteresting” and would prefer to work on something else, and the director of the anime from which the manga was drawn asked her to do just that. And the most recent issue of Kodansha’s E-no magazine will be its last; the replacement magazine will start up in October and will include at least three current E-no series.
Reviews: Carlo Santos takes a look at Tenjho Tenge and a handful of other recent manga in his latest Right Turn Only!! column at ANN. Other reviews of note:
TSOTE on vol. 11 of Geobreeders (Three Steps Over Japan)
Michelle Smith on vols. 1 and 2 of March on Earth (Soliloquy in Blue)
Lori Henderson on vols. 1-3 of Saiyuki (Manga Xanadu)
Kristin on The Spiral of Sand (Comic Attack)
Jeff Chuang on vol. 5 of Sunshine Sketch (Japanator)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 5 of Sunshine Sketch (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Ed Sizemore on vol. 1 of Wandering Son (Comics Worth Reading)
In case anyone out there thinks, “Eww, I’m sure that guy must be a pervert” when they hear about the guy who faces child pornography charges, I’ll bring up a name near and dear to many manga fans: Fumi Yoshinaga. On Right Stuf’s page for the first volume of Gerarad & Jacques, there is this warning: “This item is banned in Canada, and will be seized by Customs if ordered.” From the sounds of things, that volume could get you in just as much hot water as this guy is in.
Funny, because I saw a copy of Gerard and Jacques in a Toronto public library a few years ago.
Well this is fascinating. Out of curiosity, I just took a look at the Toronto Public Library’s catalog, to see if maybe they only had the second volume of Gerard & Jacques, but not the first. According to their catalog, they’ve got 15 copies of the first volume, and 12 of the second. If Customs will confiscate the first volume if you try to have it shipped to Canada, 1) how did they get 15 copies (changes in the law?) and 2) why can the library have it when apparently individuals cannot?
It was coming across the border at one point (I got my copies at a local comic store), I don’t know about now. The Indigo website lists it as unavailable, but they still have one copy of each at one of their bookstores in Toronto.
A lot of the yaoi titles used to be delayed coming in to the comic stores, but that delay didn’t always apply to the Indigo chain. I think they inspect the books differently for smaller stores.
It was really fun reading and watching manga. my daughter and I are having so fun watching manga together. thanks for the manga writers, we owe you.