The One Piece Podcast interviewed Japanese fans about their relationship with Eiichiro Oda’s long-running series. The result: a lively documentary about one of the world’s most popular comic book franchises.

Over at Manga Therapy, Tony Yao reflects on the important role that editors play in shaping your favorite manga series.

Melinda Beasi sings the praises of Yumi Tamura’s Basara.

TCJ’s Joe McCullough kicks off his This Week In Comics column with a brief appreciation of Manga Pachinko 777, a magazine dedicated to Japan’s favorite gambling machine.

Wondering what you might find in the current issue of Ribon? Heart of Manga offers a brief list of ongoing series.

Justin Stroman files a lengthy report on his experiences at NYCC 2014.

Ed Chavez shows off the spiffy new Vertical Comics logo, and explains why Vertical, Inc. decided to create a separate imprint for its extensive manga catalog.

You, too, can be the proud owner of a super-sized Pikachu, Doraemon, or Totoro bed for about $370.

LINE Corp. just announced that it will be teaming up with Kodansha and Shogakukan to offer manga in English and Chinese via their LINE Manga app. Although details are scarce, this appears to be a global initiative; no word on potential regional restrictions.

News from Japan: Yukito Kishiro will pen the final installment of his long-running Gunnm/Battle Angel Alita series in Evening magazine. The first chapter hits Japanese newsstands on October 28th.

Reviews: Make room for an another exhibit in the Manga Hall of Shame: Alice Vernon nominates Btooom! for Worst Manga of 2014.

Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 5 of Deadman Wonderland (Comic Book Bin)
Megan R. on vols. 1-2 of Gyo (Manga Test Drive)
Mad Manga on In Clothes Called Fat (Cartoon Geek Corner)
Megan R. on Kitaro (Manga Test Drive)
Al Sparrow on vol. 1 of Kokoro Connect (Comics Spectrum)
Helen on vol. 3 of My Little Monster (Narrative Investigations)
Danica Davidson on vol. 1 of My Love Story!! (Otaku USA)
Tony Yao on vol. 1 of My Love Story!! (Manga Therapy)
Alexander Hoffman on Pink (Sequential State)
Mad Manga on vol. 1 of Sweet Rein (Cartoon Geek Corner)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Witchcraft Works (A Case Suitable for Treatment)

If you like Osamu Tezuka and Ludwig van Beethoven — and really, who doesn’t like both? — you’ll be thrilled to hear that Tezuka’s Ludwig B. is being adapted for the stage. Now if only someone would license the manga…

The seventh volume of Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin tops this week’s New York Times Manga Bestseller list, while the first volume of Attack on Titan drops to third place.

Contest alerts! Yen Press is giving away a copy of Satsuki Yoshino’s Barakamon, while VIZ Media is offering autographed copies of Takeshi Obata’s Death Note and All You Need Is Kill.

The Manga Bookshelf gang’s weekly recommendations run the gamut from Ajin to Whispered Words.

What would manga hair look like on a real person? Brian Ashcraft investigates.

Last Gasp Books, publisher of The Strange Tale of Panorama Island, is running a Kickstarter campaign to help fund its fall publication schedule. While there are no manga in the works, backers can snag some original artwork by Little Fluffy Gigolo Pelu creator Junko Mizuno.

Japanese fans give (mostly) positive marks to Disney, which has been airing an Americanized version of the Doraemon anime.

Speaking of famous cats, the Japanese American National Museum has organized an exhibit commemorating the fortieth anniversary of Hello! Kitty. The show, which runs through April 26, 2015, examines the character’s history and impact on global pop culture.

News from Japan: Soul Eater Not! will finish its run in Monthly Shounen Gangan in November.

Reviews: Anna N. and Michelle Smith dedicate the latest Bookshelf Briefs to Honey Blood, My Love Story!! and other recent shojo releases.

Sarah on vol. 13 of Attack on Titan (Nagareboshi Reviews)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 1 of Happy Marriage?! (Anime News Network)
Erica Friedman on vol. 2 of Hourai Girls (Okazu)
Sarah on vol. 1 of Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (Nagareboshi Reviews)

Fairy Tail: Blue Mistral will be published by Kodansha Comics USA.

On Sunday, Kodansha revealed that it would be publishing CLAMP’s Tsubasa: WoRLD CHRoNiCLE and Hiro Mashima’s Fairy Tail: Blue Mistral. Also in the queue for 2015 are Inuyashiki by Hiroya Oya (Gantz) and L♥DK by Ayu Watanabe (Kimi ga Suki).

Publisher’s Weekly is reporting that Vertical, Inc. has created a separate imprint for its growing manga catalog. Vertical Comics will release “about 20 new manga titles” over the next twelve months, with a long-term goal of publishing “30 to 40 manga and anime-oriented titles a year.” The Vertical, Inc. name will be reserved for fantasy novels, cookbooks, thrillers, etc.

Justin Stroman roamed the Javits Center with a microphone and a question: why do you buy manga?

Sean Gaffney shares his impressions of Day Four of NYCC.

ICv2 reports that attendance at NYCC 2014 topped 150,000 people, surpassing San Diego Comic-Con’s previous record of 130,000.

Reviews: Ash Brown posts brief reviews of Attack on Titan: Before the Fall, My Love Story!!, and A New Season of Young Leaves.

Matthew Warner on vol. 12 of 07-Ghost (The Fandom Post)
Matthew Warner on vol. 7 of Happy Marriage?! (The Fandom Post)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 12 of Loveless (The Fandom Post)
Angela Sylvia on vol. 21 of Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan (The Fandom Post)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 24 of Pokemon Adventures (Lesley’s Musings on Anime & Manga)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of Puella Magi Madoka Magica (Lesley’s Musings on Anime & Manga)
Lori Henderson on vol. 1 of Sona-G: Heaven Is Not Needed (Manga Xanadu)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 24 of Toriko (Comic Book Bin)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 19 of Vampire Knight (Comic Book Bin)

Volume 10 of Kaoru Mori’s Emma.

Exciting news! Kurt Hassler announced that Yen Press will be re-issuing Kaoru Mori’s Emma, which was previously published by CMX Manga. The new edition will be released in five hardcover omnibus editions, making it perfect for libraries, collectors, and folks who missed this awesome Victorian melodrama the first time around. Yen also announced a number of new manga acquisitions, including Trinity Seven, A Certain Magical Index, Chaika: The Coffin Princess, and Prison School Manga, as well as a new project from Nightschool creator Svetlana Chmakova.

MangaBlog OG Brigid Alverson shows off some Takeshi Obata swag on the floor of NYCC.

Sean Gaffney files a report on Day One of New York Comic-Con.

Chinese newspapers have been critical of a traveling exhibit featuring Doraemon, arguing that the character represents a “soft” form of cultural imperialism.

How are Japanese fans reacting to the end of Naruto? Otaku USA has a report.

The Escapist profiles Laura Mehaffey, who runs the “South’s first traveling graphic novel and Japanese manga library.” Mehaffey, a professional librarian, visits conventions, book sales, and other events to promote literacy through comics.

At Heart of Manga, Laura shares a list of this month’s new shojo volumes.

Reviews: In her latest Right Turn Only! column, Rebecca Silverman looks at the latest volumes of D-Frag, Soul Eater Not!, and What Did You Eat Yesterday?

Ash Brown on vol. 4 of Bond of Dreams, Bond of Love (Experiments in Manga)
Ken H. on vols. 2-3 of Brave 10 (Sequential Ink)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of Honey Blood (Lesley’s Musings on Anime & Manga)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 8 of Kamisama Kiss (Comic Book Bin)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 19 of Vampire Knight: Limited Edition (Lesley’s Musings on Anime & Manga)
Ken H. on vol. 4 of Vinland Saga (Sequential Ink)

Tokyo Ghoul will debut in June 2015.

Breaking news from New York Comic-Con: VIZ Media has licensed two new series, both of which will debut in June 2015. The first, Tokyo Ghoul, focuses on a college student who unwittingly receives an organ transplant from a demon. The second, So Cute It Hurts!!, is pure shojo fodder: fraternal twins Mitsuru and Megumu swap identities to attend each others’ school. The twist? Mitsuru enrolls in an all-girls academy, while his sister enrolls in a high school for delinquent boys.

Pack your beret: ReedPOP, the company that organizes New York Comic-Con, just announced the first-ever Paris Comic-Con, which will be held from October 23-25, 2015.

The New York Times files a report on the business of comic conventions, noting that over 150,000 people will be attending this year’s NYCC. Not everyone is enthusiastic about conventions’ increasing emphasis on movies, television, and video games, however. Blogger Denise Dorman argues that comics — and their creators — are being marginalized at the very events they helped popularize.

Paging Julie Taymor! Shueisha and Masashi Kishimoto have approved a stage adaption of Naruto. No word if Bono and the Edge will be contributing musical numbers…

The final volume of Vampire Knight arrives in stores on Tuesday, October 14th.

Reviews: Ash Brown kicks the tires on manga adaptations of Pride and Prejudice and Les Miserables, while Jason Thompson dedicates his latest House of 1,000 Manga column to Attack on Titan.

Rebecca Silverman on Helter Skelter: Fashion Unfriendly (Anime News Network)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 3 of The Infernal Devices: Clockwork Princess (The Fandom Post)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 7 of Midnight Secretary (The Fandom Post)
L.B. Bryant on Time Killers (ICv2)
Marissa Lieberman on Wolf Children: Ame & Yuki (No Flying No Tights)
Kristin on vols. 1-2 of World Trigger (Comic Attack)