MangaBlog

Lissa Pattillo has the scoop on two new licenses from Digital, See Me After Class and President Momoi-kun.

Melinda Beasi discusses her experiences with the Digital Manga Guild at Manga Bookshelf.

The Manga Bookshelf team discusses their Pick of the Week.

News from Japan: The end of the Cyborg 009 story will be made into a manga series, Cyborg 009 Kanketsu-Hen conclusion God’s War, which will run on the Club Sunday website. Translator Tomo Kimura shows off the alternate cover for the Japanese edition of vol. 17 of Pandora Hearts. And Hokkaido launches a Lupin-themed train—autographed by creator Monkey Punch—to boost tourism in the area.

Reviews: The Manga Bookshelf bloggers keep it short and sweet in their latest set of Bookshelf Briefs. Ash Brown discusses a week’s worth of manga reading at Experiments in Manga.

Matthew Warner on vol. 2 of @Full Moon (The Fandom Post)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 7 of Blue Exorcist (The Comic Book Bin)
Alex Hoffman on The Book of Human Insects (Manga Widget)
Justin on Breathe Deeply (Organization Anti-Social Geniuses)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 5 of Bunny Drop (Comics Worth Reading)
Anna on vol. 2 of A Devil and Her Love Song (Manga Report)
Rob McMonigal on issue 1 of Gen Manga (Panel Patter)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 1 of Is This a Zombie? (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Sakura Eries on vol. 9 of Maoh: Juvenile Remix (The Fandom Post)
Johanna Draper Carlson on Mastering Manga with Mark Crilley (Comics Worth Reading)
Matthew Warner on vol. 8 of Rin-ne (The Fandom Post)
Kate O’Neil on vol. 8 of Soul Eater (The Fandom Post)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of Twin Spica (Blogcritics)

Lissa Pattillo picks up on two new Digital Manga licenses that were announced via Facebook and Twitter: Wild Honey and Tender Hearts. And speaking of Lissa, Justin interviewed her at Organization Anti-Social Geniuses.

A member of the Digital Manga Guild group Cynical Pink tries to clarify the situation with regard to the DMG groups, noting that they are all independent and are freelancing for Digital Manga Inc., so dissatisfaction with one should not transfer over to all the others. And here’s some excellent advice:

Readers have commented that the quality of DMG titles can be hit or miss, and with the huge selection of titles available now, it’s difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff. To that, I say – PLEASE REVIEW. If one out of every 10 people who read a DMG title left a review on Amazon or B&N or even just on their own blog site (which would then show up in a Google search), then deciding what to read would be that much easier. The localizing group is listed on the credit page of each book. If you find a book you like, look for more by the same group, and vice versa if you unfortunately didn’t like it.

On a more technical note, Erica Friedman explains how manga is produced and how the process differs from other books. The bottom line: Fewer eyes during the editing and production phases results in more typos and clunkier translations in the finished product.

On the latest Manga Out Loud podcast, Ed Sizemore and Johanna Draper Carlson discuss the Jiro Taniguchi MMF, the possible surge of manga sales in comics stores, and the news that Vertical will allow Twin Spica to go out of print.

Melinda Beasi and Michelle Smith discuss the rather odd vintage manga Moon Child in their latest Off the Shelf column at Manga Bookshelf.

Khursten Santos turns the spotlight on BL/josei manga-ka Tomoko Yamashita at Otaku Champloo.

Elisabeth Watson talks to Kurt Hassler about scanlation and its effect on overseas licenses at Publishing Trends:

Hassler argues that rather than “pushing” manga publishing into the digital age, the genre’s robust digital piracy-base has retarded its progress. As if the challenges of image-rich content weren’t enough, Japanese publishers have feared that licensing digital editions internationally is as good as hanging out a “pirates welcome” Jolly Rodger. Consequently, digital rights have been all but impossible for US and other international publishers to negotiate.

At Manga Xanadu, Lori Henderson reviews the April issue of Shonen Jump, which is the final print issue, and she has some thoughts on how Viz handled the digital transition.

Anna is giving away vol. 1 of Toradora at Manga Report; click the link to see how to enter.

News from Japan: Here’s exciting news for those of you who read Japanese (and even those who don’t): A free online version of Hana to Yume. According to the French site Manganews, the site will update every Friday and right now, only series by the younger creators are available online but more are on the way. AstroNerdBoy calls attention to a proposed Japanese copyright law that has some rather alarming provisions—including forcing creators to share copyright with publishers and allowing publishers to shut down doujinshi—and suggests that may be the reason Ken Akamatsu wound up Negima so quickly.

Reviews: Lissa Pattillo links to some short reviews by her and Shannon Fay in their local paper, The Coast.

Page McKee on vol. 6 of Blue Exorcist (Sequential Tart)
Sheena McNeil on vols. 1 and 2 of A Devil and Her Love Song (Sequential Tart)
Kate Dacey on vol. 2 of A Devil and Her Love Song, vol. 3 of Drops of God, and vol. 2 of GTO: 14 Days in Shonan (The Manga Critic)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 3 of Drops of God (Comics Worth Reading)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of Gate 7 (Blogcritics)
Margaret O’Connell on In the Bed of My Dear King (Sequential Tart)
Rob McMonigal on vol. 8 of Jormungand (Panel Patter)
Sheena McNeil on vols. 7 and 8 of Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan (Sequential Tart)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 7 of Rosario + Vampire: Season II (Sequential Tart)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 8 of Rosario + Vampire: Season II (The Comic Book Bin)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 4 of Sailor Moon (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 7 of Sakura Hime (The Comic Book Bin)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 1 of Soulless (Comics Worth Reading)
Wolfen Moondaughter on vol. 7 of Stepping on Roses (Sequential Tart)

Here’s my quick rundown of this week’s new manga releases at MTV Geek. Johanna Draper Carlson and Lissa Pattillo give their takes as well.

Sean Gaffney looks over next week’s new releases at A Case Suitable for Treatment.

JManga announced that they are not stopping at going global—they are going intergalactic! Before our readers on Mars get too excited, though, you should check the date—we are awfully close to April 1. What’s not a joke is their deal on Moritasan Wa Mukuchi—they are giving away the first volume for free to anyone who signs up for a new account or upgrades to a paid subscription by midnight (PST) on April 1. Also new at JManga: Nihongo Corner, a place to buy and read untranslated manga, and a special deal on manga from Shinshokan’s Wings magazine.

Everyone has their biases, and Melinda Beasi talks about her own preferences when it comes to BL.

In his latest House of 1000 Manga column, Jason Thompson takes a look at one of Naoki Urasawa’s early manga, the first to be translated into English: Pineapple Army.

Deb Aoki alerts us that Chi’s Sweet Home creator Konami Konata is coming to TCAF (the Toronto Comic Arts Festival) this May.

Matt Blind posts a recent list of manga best-sellers (based on online sales) and he also posts a fresh edition of Manga Radar with some added commentary.

Barcelona-based manga fan Sara shows off her collection at The Manga Critic.

To celebrate the coming of spring—and the start of baseball season—Ash Brown is giving away a volume of Cross Game at Experiments in Manga.

Reviews: Omar has some short manga reviews, including the last volume of Twin Spica, at About Heroes. Ash Brown posts My Week in Manga at Experiments in Manga.

Connie on vol. 9 of Bakuman (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 7 of Blue Exorcist (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on vol. 9 of Dengeki Daisy (Slightly Biased Manga)
TSOTE on Garouden (Three Steps Over Japan)
Connie on Glass Sky (Slightly Biased Manga)
Kristin on vol. 1 of GTO: 14 Days in Shonan (Comic Attack)
Erica Friedman on Kanojyo no Sekai (Okazu)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 2 of Magic Knight Rayearth (omnibus edition) (Blogcritics)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 8 of Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan (The Comic Book Bin)
Philip Anthony on Sakura Hime (Manga Bookshelf)
Connie on vol. 7 of Sakura Hime (Slightly Biased Manga)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 3 of Summit of the Gods (Comics Worth Reading)

Hi everyone! I’m back from my trip to an Undisclosed Location—all will be revealed shortly! Thanks to Kate for her able stewardship while I was gone!

I’m a bit late in mentioning this—tomorrow is the last day—but JManga is running a yuri promotion right now: They are giving a 100-point rebate (about a dollar) on each yuri manga, although they only seem to have three. Interestingly, the JManga front page is starting to look like the front of a Japanese manga site, crowded with small banner ads offering various deals (50% off on Tsugumomo!) I like this—it’s not very elegant, but it has a feeling of richness—so many bargains!

In other digital manga news, Khursten Santos reviews Viz’s SigIKKI site, which delivers the goods in every way but one: The manga is free, it’s really good, and it is available worldwide, but the site hasn’t been updated since December, presumably because Viz is shifting its efforts toward its app and VizManga site.

Ed Sizemore wraps up the Manga Moveable Feast, which highlighted the work of Jiro Taniguchi, and he also revisits the question of whether manga can be defined in any strict, formal sense.

Reviews: Anna reviews some Harlequin manga from the JManga site at Manga Report.

Zack Davisson on vol. 1 of .hack//CELL (Japan Reviewed)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 19 of 20th Century Boys (Comics Worth Reading)
Sean Gaffney on vol. 5 of Bunny Drop (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Kristin on vols. 8 and 9 of Dengeki Daisy (Comic Attack)
Leroy Douresseaux on vol. 8 of Kamisama Kiss (The Comic Book Bin)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of One Piece (Blogcritics)
Lesley Aeschliman on vol. 1 of Sand Chronicles (Blogcritics)
TSOTE on vol. 22 of Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei (Three Steps Over Japan)
Erica Friedman on vol. 16 of Tsubomi (Okazu)

It’s almost time for the second annual Aniblog Tourney, in which dozens of anime blogs face off, March Madness style, for the honor of Best Anime Blog. This year, tournament organizers have widened the scope of the contest to include manga blogs as well, explaining that “The anime and manga spheres seem to be very disconnected from each other, so hopefully we can spread some of the readers of anime blogs into reading some manga blogs.”

Over at Manga Worth Reading, Ed Sizemore interviews Fanfare/Ponent Mon publisher Stephen Robson. As Ed notes, Fanfare is responsible for publishing almost 70% of the Jiro Taniguchi titles available in English.

Also at Manga Worth Reading: Ed Sizemore explores Jiro Taniguchi’s artistic influences.

VIZ Media announced that it would be producing an original graphic novel series based on the popular Redakai television series, currently airing on Cartoon Network. Look for the first full-color book in October 2012.

Connie has a licensing request: Setona Mitzushiro’s Heartbroken Chocolatier.

The Manga Bookshelf gang declare Dororo and Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service this week’s must-buy manga.

News from Japan: In a recent interview with Geijutsu Shincho, Katsuhiro Otomo revealed that he is working on his first long series since AKIRA. Otomo was stingy with details, saying only that the story would appear in a shonen magazine.

Reviews: In their latest Going Digital column, Melinda Beasi and Sean Gaffney review both manga apps and online manga. Over at Experiments in Manga, Ash Brown shares his thoughts on A A’, King of Thorn, and Mister Mistress.

Connie on vol. 3 of Dawn of the Arcana (Slightly Biased Manga)
Connie on Golgo 13: Ice Lake Hit (Slightly Biased Manga)
Sean Gaffney on vols. 1-3 of Hana-Kimi (A Case Suitable for Treatment)
Rob McMonigal on vol. 8 of Jormungand (Panel Patter)
Sakura Eries on vol. 7 of Oresama Teacher (The Fandom Post)
Matthew Warner on vol. 3 of Psyren (The Fandom Post)
Lori Henderson on The Quest for the Missing Girl (Manga Xanadu)
Rebecca Silverman on vols. 5-6 of Sakura Hime: The Legend of Princess Sakura (Anime News Network)
Lori Henderson on Samurai Legend (Manga Xanadu)
Anna on vol. 7 of Stepping on Roses (Manga Report)
Johanna Draper Carlson on vol. 2 of Summit of the Gods (Manga Worth Reading)
Anna on Tenka Ichi!! (Manga Report)
Sean Gaffney on Young Miss Holmes, Casebooks 1-2 (A Case Suitable for Treatment)

Greetings, MangaBlog readers! Brigid is away on a top-secret mission at the moment, so she’s asked me to fill in for her until next week. As always, I’ll do my best to bring you the latest manga news and reviews, but please don’t be shy about pointing me towards articles I’ve missed. The next round-up will be on Monday morning.

New Manga Bookshelf columnist Aja Romano debunks three myths about fan fiction.

Continuing this week’s discussion about where fans buy manga, Matt Blind examines manga lovers’ online shopping habits. His conclusion: Naruto, Bleach, Black Bird, and Sailor Moon are just as popular online as they are in brick-and-mortar stores.

Jason Thompson dedicates his latest House of 1000 Manga column to Kouta Hirano’s Hellsing.

Erica Friedman discusses Monthly Comic Beam, “the magazine for the comic freaks.” (That’s the magazine’s tagline, not Erica’s assessment of it, BTW.)

Say it isn’t so: Vertical, Inc. revealed that the English-language edition of Twin Spica is likely to go out of print due to poor sales.

Self-proclaimed otaku Night Rose shows off her growing manga collection at The Manga Critic.

Over at Manga Worth Reading, Ed Sizemore rounds up the latest contributions to the Jiro Taniguchi Manga Movable Feast. Among the highlights is a thought-provoking essay by Craig Fischer on The Walking Man. “Taniguchi’s art is the antithesis of expressionism: he represents the world with as much objectivity as he can, and the results are both breathtaking (in its cascade of details) and a little abstract, a little detached, not unlike the Walking Man himself,” Fischer explains. “Taniguchi’s art is cool, more like mapmaking than passionate storytelling.”

News from Japan: Hiromu Arakawa has won the fifth annual Taisho Award for Silver Spoon, a shonen manga set an an agricultural school. After a one-year hiatus, Kariko Koyama will resume work on Sheryl: Kiss in the Galaxy, a spin-off of Macross Frontier than ran in Bessatsu Friend.

Reviews: For their latest BL Bookrack column, Melinda Beasi and Michelle Smith cast a critical eye over four recent releases, including Tweeting Love Birds and You and Tonight.

Carlo Santos on vol. 19 of 20th Century Boys (Anime News Network)
Connie on vol. 4 of Afterschool Charisma (Slightly Biased Manga)
Kristin Bomba on vol. 7 of Butterflies, Flowers (Comic Attack!)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 1 of A Devil and Her Love Song (Sequential Tart)
Ed Sizemore on Koduko no Gourmet (Manga Worth Reading)
Rebecca Silverman on vol. 15 of La Corda d’Oro (Anime News Network)
Sheena McNeil on vol. 7 of Rosario + Vampire Season II (Sequential Tart)
Connie on A Single Match (Slightly Biased Manga)
Wolfen Moondaughter on vol. 7 of Stepping on Roses (Sequential Tart)
Connie on Tired of Waiting for Love (Slightly Biased Manga)