MangaBlog

At Robot 6, Sean Michael Wilson discusses Ax, the alt-manga anthology he edited for Top Shelf, as well as his future projects, with Christopher Mautner.

David Brothers talks to Ed Chavez of Vertical, Michael Gombos of Dark Horse, and Marco Pavia of Tokyopop about the realities of the manga market today.

Erica Friedman discusses the issues she faces as a publisher of yuri (most of which applies to any niche manga). The numbers aren’t pretty.

Lori Henderson has a quick look at the week’s manga news at Manga Xanadu, while Erica Friedman posts the most recent edition of Yuri News Network at Okazu.

At iFanboy.com, Molly McIsaac has a handy starter guide to robot manga.

Shannon Fay critiques the manga readers used by different publishers and lets them know her likes and dislikes at Kuriousity.

Deb Aoki has a transcript up of the Lost in Translation panel from San Diego Comic-Con.

Daniella Orihuela-Gruber looks into her crystal ball and predicts an unhappy end for the manga industry if scanlation continues. Meanwhile, a couple of manga creators have been letting off a little steam by wishing for an unhappy end for scanlators.

Job board: Comix 411 has links for internships at Viz and Tokyopop.

News from Japan: Ken Akamatsu is celebrating the 300th chapter of Negima by releasing a six-page Love Hina one-shot. Natsu no Arashi! is coming to an end, and manga-ka Jin Kobayashi (School Rumble) is already planning a new series. And Erica Friedman notes that all three of the big shoujo magazines are carrying yuri stories.

Special edition: I didn’t realize that Ed Chavez is blogging again at MangaCast, but he is, and he has a bunch of news in his latest post: series that are ending or moving on because Weekly Comic Bunch has folded; two series, Blood Alone and Hayate X Blade, that are moving to new publishers, which may affect their licenses with Seven Seas; and word of a Yoshihiro Tatsumi biopic.

Reviews

Sesho on vol. 1 of Afterschool Charisma (Sesho’s Anime and Manga Reviews)
Connie on vol. 4 of Breath (Slightly Biased Manga)
Zack Davisson on Chibi Vampire: Airmail (Japan Reviewed)
Ken Haley on issues 1-4 of Devil (Sequential Ink)
Connie on vol. 2 of Dorohedoro (Slightly Biased Manga)
Johanna Draper Carlson on The Dreaming Collection (Comics Worth Reading)
Sean Gaffey on vol. 7 of Gatcha Gacha (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Kristin on vol. 1 of Gente and vol. 1 of House of Five Leaves (Comic Attack)
Connie on vol. 1 of Icaro (Slightly Biased Manga)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 5 of Kimi ni Todoke (The Comic Book Bin)
Connie on vol. 1 of Moyasimon (Slightly Biased Manga)
Carlo Santos on vol. 27 of Negima (ANN)
Matthew Alexander on vol. 3 of Ninja Girls (Mania.com)
Michelle Smith on vols. 25-27 of One Piece (Soliloquy in Blue)
Shaenon Garrity on vol. 1 of Peepo Choo (About.com)
Julie Opipari on vols. 1-9 of Sand Chronicles (Blog@Newsarama)
Andre on vol. 7 of St. Dragon Girl (Kuriousity)
Connie on vol. 5 of Your and My Secret (Slightly Biased Manga)
Kinukitty on Yokan Premonition (The Hooded Utilitarian)

Nominations for the Ignatz Awards, which recognize the best independent comics of the year, have been announced, and there are two manga on the list: Susumu Katsumata’s Red Snow was nominated in the Outstanding Anthology or Collection category, and the first volume of Summit of the Gods, by Yumemakura Baku and Jiro Taniguchi, was nominated for Outstanding Graphic Novel and Outstanding Series. The winners will be announced at Small Press Expo on September 11.

On Facebook, Dark Horse thanks its readers for their support and asks what they want to see next, suggesting a possible shift in direction for the longtime publisher of Manly Manga for Manly Men.

For your weekend enjoyment, the Ninja Consultants post a podcast of Jason Thompson’s History of Manga in the U.S. panel from SDCC a couple of years ago.

Deb Aoki talks to Tokyopop CEO Stu Levy and the Otaku Six, who are touring the country not only to promote manga but also to film a reality show to be broadcast via Hulu.com.

Lori Henderson has this week’s list of new all-ages comics and manga at Good Comics for Kids.

News from Japan: The virtual idol Hatsune Miku (her voice is computer-generated) will be the subject of a new 4-koma manga in Weekly Young Jump. A new manga cafe in the city of Nagoya offers lessons and equipment for would-be manga-ka. The sixth volume of Ooku will include a special guidebook to the world of the story. And Bamboo Blade is drawing to a close.

Reviews: Danielle Leigh, Melinda Beasi, and Michelle Smith discuss vols. 13 and 14 of Nana in the latest installment of The Nana Project at Comics Should Be Good. EvilOmar posts a fresh set of brief manga reviews at About Heroes. Other reviews of note:

Ed Sizemore on vol. 1 of Bakuman (Comics Worth Reading)
Kristin on vol. 3 of Biomega (Comic Attack)
Sean Gaffney on Color Bleach (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Connie on vol. 2 of Dorohedoro (Slightly Biased Manga)
Angela Eastman on vol. 1 of Gente (Suite101.com)
Kate Dacey on Gente and House of Five Leaves (The Manga Critic)
Erica Friedman on vol. 4 of Girl Friends (Okazu)
Greg McElhatton on vol. 1 of House of Five Leaves (Read About Comics)
Connie on vol. 4 of InuYasha (VizBig edition) (Slightly Biased Manga)
AstroNerdBoy on vol. 5 of Kitchen Princess (AstroNerdBoy’s Anime and Manga Blog)
Ryan Cecil Smith on The Legend of Kamui (Attentiondeficitdisorderly)
Ed Sizemore on vols. 8-10 of Mushishi (Comics Worth Reading)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 4 of Ooku: The Inner Chambers (The Comic Book Bin)
Connie on vol. 2 of Pokemon Adventures (Slightly Biased Manga)
Billy Aguiar on vols. 1 and 2 of Portrait of M&N (Prospero’s Manga)
Shannon Fay on vol. 21 of Skip Beat! (Kuriousity)
Liz Reed on vol. 4 of Sumomomo Momomo (Manga Life)
Tangognat on vol. 1 of There’s Something About Sunyool (Tangognat)
Lori Henderson on vol. 2 of Twin Spica (Comics Village)

At About.com, Deb Aoki has a lengthy, wide-ranging interview with Felipe Smith about his inspirations for Peepo Choo and the experience of creating manga for a Japanese magazine.

Jason Thompson writes about the Spider-Man manga for the latest edition of his House of 1000 Manga column at ANN.

News from Japan: ANN has the latest Japanese comics rankings, including the news that the latest volume of One Piece has sold over 2 million copies.

Reviews: Melinda Beasi and Michelle Smith review some recent yaoi manga in their August BL Bookrack column. Lori Henderson discusses the loss of a character in vol. 44 of One Piece; obviously, her review includes a spoiler.

Carlo Santos on vol. 1 of Bakuman (ANN)
Jones, one of the Jones Boys, on vol. 1 of Children of the Sea (Let’s you and him fight)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 1 of Code:Breaker (The Comic Book Bin)
Katherine Farmar on vols. 1-4 of Flower of Life (Comics Village)
Charles Webb on vol. 1 of House of Five Leaves (Manga Life)
Derik Badman on vols. 8-10 of Mushishi (Madinkbeard)
Julie Opipari on vols. 1-9 of Sand Chronicles (Blog@Newsarama)
Kiki Van De Camp on vol. 7 of Sand Chronicles (Animanga Nation)
Julie Opipari on vol. 21 of Skip Beat! (Manga Maniac Cafe)

At Rocket Bomber, Matt Blind has the most recent manga sales charts (reflecting online sales) and he also takes a closer look at how Yen Press is doing.

Amazon has listed Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, as a 2011 release from Viz, which has already announced it has licensed the anime.

Vol. 2 of Chi’s Sweet Home is Melinda Beasi’s Pick of the Week at Manga Bookshelf.

E is for Eden, Emma, ES, and a host of other titles as David Welsh continues his seinen alphabet at The Manga Curmudgeon.

News from Japan: Manga-ka Yukito Kishiro says on his blog that his Battle Angel Alita, which he put on hiatus after a dispute with his editors, will return, in either Shueisha’s Ultra Jump (its original home) or Kodansha’s Evening. The dispute is a bit complicated, but it’s an interesting story and I encourage you to check the link.

Reviews: Carlo Santos delivers another batch of undiluted opinions on a variety of recent releases in his latest Right Turn Only!! column at ANN. Other reviews of note:

Zack Davisson on vol. 4 of Alice in the Country of Hearts (Japan Reviewed)
Kristin on Clan of the Nakagamis and Clan of the Nakagamis: The Devil Cometh (Comic Attack)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 2 of Dorohedoro (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Erica Friedman on Girlish Sweet (Okazu)
Connie C. on vol. 1 of Good-Bye (Comics Village)
Emily on Hotaru no Hikari (Emily’s Random Shoujo Manga Page)
Billy Aguiar on vols. 1-3 of Nightschool (Prospero’s Manga)
Lissa Pattillo on vol. 1 of Wolf God (ANN)
Ken Haley on vol. 1 of Vampire Hunter D (Sequential Ink)

The big news of the weekend is that Tokyopop is releasing Hetalia: Axis Powers digitally, via Zinio, before the print edition comes out—and at a lower price ($5.99) than the print version ($12.99). At All About Manga, freelance editor Daniella Orihuela-Gruber (who worked on Hetalia) gives five reasons why she thinks you should try it.

At Good Comics for Kids, the bloggers discussed Twin Spica for this month’s online book club, Lori Henderson has the latest list of all-ages comics and manga, and everyone shares what’s keeping them up at night for The Reading Pile.

Kate Dacey, David Welsh, and Sean Gaffney look at this week’s new manga.

For those who have been away from the computer a lot (like me!), Lori Henderson has the past week’s manga news, and Erica Friedman wraps up the week’s yuri news at Okazu. Melinda Beasi catches us up on news and reviews of Korean comics in the latest edition of Manhwa Monday at Manga Bookshelf.

Gottsu-Iiyan presents part 3 of his translation of a joint interview with Takehiko Inoue and Eiichiro Oda at The Eastern Edge.

At The Manga Critic, Kate Dacey looks at an oddity from the past, Lycanthrope Leo, a Viz manga that she describes as “a horror story with a plot that might best be described as Teen Wolf meets The Island of Dr. Moreau with a dash of WTF?!” Kate also reveals the winning nominee for the Manga Hall of Shame, and as the winning submission came from Erica Friedman, who really knows how to take down a comic, it’s well worth a click.

David Welsh’s latest license request: More Minoru Toyoda, please!

PC World reviews the Manga Browser app for Android phones and finds it wanting, chiefly because it draws its content from online databases, such as OneManga.com, that have a bad habit of disappearing.

News from Japan: The Australian takes a long look at Professor Munakata at the British Museum, a series running in Big Comic that is the joint work of museum staff and a Japanese creator. The first issue of the new magazine Jump SQ.19 will be available free on the iPad starting this week. Manga-ka Eri Takenashi is resuming work on Kannagi after a lengthy hiatus due to poor health. Bandai recently licensed the series for U.S. publication. Black Butler manga-ka Yana Toboso denounced manga and anime piracy on her blog. And Canned Dogs rounds up photos of Comiket (day 1, days 2 and 3).

Reviews: Melinda Beasi checks out some recent Shojo Beat releases at Manga Bookshelf.

James Fleenor on Avatar: The Last Airbender: Book 2: Earth (Anime Sentinel)
Nick Smith on vol. 1 of Bakuman (ICv2)
Zack Davisson on vol. 7 of Bizenghast (Japan Reviewed)
Jaime Samms on vol. 2 of Can’t Win With You (Kuriousity)
Lissa Pattillo on Crimson Cross (ANN)
Dave Ferraro on vol. 1 of The Dawn of Love (Comics-and-More)
Diana Dang on vol. 1 of Deadman Wonderland (Stop, Drop, and Read!)
Connie on vol. 17 of D.Gray-Man (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 1 of Diamond Girl (Slightly Biased Manga)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 2 of Dorohedoro (The Comic Book Bin)
Kelakagandy on A Drunken Dream and Other Stories (kelakagandy’s ramblings)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 1 of Flower in a Storm (Comics Worth Reading)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 1 of Gente (The Comic Book Bin)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Gente (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Zack Davisson on vol. 3 of Happy Cafe (Manga Life)
Ken Haley on vol. 7 of Higurashi When They Cry (Sequential Ink)
Connie on vol. 17 of Hoshin Engi (Slightly Biased Manga)
Erica Friedman on Issho ni Kaero (Okazu)
Connie on vol. 5 of Kiichi and the Magic Books (Slightly Biased Manga)
AstroNerdBoy on vol. 4 of Kitchen Princess (AstroNerdBoy’s Anime and Manga Blog)
Connie on vol. 1 of Laon (Slightly Biased Manga)
Erica Friedman on Love Flicker (Okazu)
Sophie Stevens on vol. 6 of Megatokyo (Animanga Nation)
Sean Gaffney on vols. 8-10 of Mushishi (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Leroy Douresseaux on The Object of My Affection (The Comic Book Bin)
Connie on vols. 10 and 11 of One Thousand and One Nights (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 2 of Pet Shop of Horrors (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 5 of Pig Bride (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 1 of Queen of Ragtonia (Slightly Biased Manga)
Michelle Smith on vols. 2 and 3 of There’s Something About Sunyool (Soliloquy in Blue)
AstroNerdBoy on vols. 14-16 of School Rumble (omnibus edition) (AstroNerdBoy’s Anime and Manga Blog)
Sean Gaffney on vols. 14-16 of School Rumble (omnibus edition) (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Amy Grockl on vol. 2 of Sugarholic (Comics Village)
Zack Davisson on vol. 2 of The Times of Botchan (Japan Reviewed)
Zack Davisson on vol. 1 of The Witch of Artemis (Japan Reviewed)

Jason Thompson presents another strange vintage manga, Kazan, in his latest House of 1000 Manga column at ANN.

Graphic Novel Reporter talks to AX editor Sean Michael Wilson about the new alt-manga anthology.

At iFanboy, Molly McIsaac presents a starter guide to shoujo manga.

Sean Kleefeld was there for the Dayton stop on Tokyopop’s Greatest Otaku tour, and he documents the event in words and pictures. It sounds like it was pretty laid-back.

OneManga.com has pulled all the manga scans and scanlations from their site, and Sunday Comics Debt takes a moment to reflect on what they did right. Interesting reading.

Reviews: Kate Dacey posts the latest entry in the Manga Hall of Shame, Color of Rage, and David Welsh continues the theme of Bad Manga Week with his own selections of the worst manga ever. At Every Day Is Like Wednesday, J. Caleb Mozzocco posts short, witty reviews of the first volumes of three horror manga and a handful of school manga.

Kristin on vol. 2 of Black Butler and vol. 1 of Time and Again (Comic Attack)
Michael Buntag on vol. 6 of Black Lagoon (NonSensical Words)
Sesho on vol. 2 of Blade of the Immortal (Sesho’s Anime and Manga Reviews)
Danica Davidson on vols. 1-4 of Death Note (Graphic Novel Reporter)
Snow Wildsmith on vol. 1 of Dengeki Daisy (Good Comics for Kids)
Snow Wildsmith on A Drunken Dream and Other Stories (Graphic Novel Reporter)
Carl Kimlinger on vol. 10 of Hellsing (ANN)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 20 of Hikaru No Go (Comics Worth Reading)
A Library Girl on King of the Lamp (A Library Girl’s Familiar Diversions)
Casey Brienza on vol. 1 of My Girlfriend’s A Geek (Graphic Novel Reporter)
Sesho on vol. 2 of One Piece (Sesho’s Anime and Manga Reviews)
Danica Davidson on vol. 1 of Raiders (Graphic Novel Reporter)
Danica Davidson on vol. 1 of Ratman (Graphic Novel Reporter)
A Library Girl on vol. 1 of RE:Play (A Library Girl’s Familiar Diversions)
Charles Webb on vol. 3 of Time and Again (Manga Life)
Courtney Kraft on Utahime: The Songstress (Graphic Novel Reporter)