Bleach blogging, manga mavens, and more

On the USA Today Top 150, vol. 15 of Naruto slips from 58 to 88 and vol. 20 of Bleach debuts at number 111. Speaking of Bleach, Viz is going to start serializing it in Shonen Jump, which means more time between tankoubons; John Jakala has some suggestions for whiling away the weary weeks between volumes.

Shonen Jump posts a brief interview with Slam Dunk creator Takehiko Inoue. Viz announced at SDCC that they had licensed the manga, and a preview will run in the December issue of SJ. (Via Blog@Newsarama.)

Manganews comments on Viz’s press release yesterday about Tekkonkinkreet:

It’s hard to argue with the opinion that the manga industry is becoming increasingly reliant on new talent and a new generation of manga-ka. While the much-revered authors of several years past still remain dear to the manga community, commercially, licensing companies have started to strike up deals with the newer generation of artists.

If you asked Viz, they’d tell you Taiyo Matsumoto (Ping Pong) falls squarely into that category, and that his blend of Japanese and Western art styles is what sparked their interest in his work.

If you like your manga with a British accent, check out Sweatdrop’s latest podcast, featuring reports on SDCC and Japan-EX, a roundup of new titles, and soundbites from industry insiders, including Helen McCarthy, co-author of The Anime Encyclopedia. And ComicBitsOnline.com has an interview with Sweatdrop member/Rising Stars of Manga winner/Hamlet artist Emma Vieceli.

At AICN, Scott Green surveys all the manga resources that have come out recently, from Jason Thompson’s The Complete Guide to Manga to the magazine Otaku USA. Speaking of Otaku USA, Manga Punk posts an entertaining interview with editor-in-chief Patrick Macias.

Hung takes a look at manga industry blogs at the BasuGasuBakuhatsu Anime Blog.

Yaoi Press and Netcomics already have a deal to put YP books on Netcomics’ webcomics site. Now they are even cozier: YP will handle Netcomics’ convention exhibits in the U.S.

Reviews: At MangaCast, alierarobot posts a review of Dolis, a manga that’s, well, a little different, and Ed links to podcaster Sesha’s audio review of Space Pinchy and vol. 1 of The Last Uniform. Dan Polley reviews vol. 1 of Le Chevalier d’Eon at Manga Life. At Active Anime, Holly Ellingwood reviews vol. 14 of Fullmetal Alchemist and My Paranoid Next Door Neighbor, and Christopher Seaman checks out vol. 9 of XXXHoLic. Anime on DVD’s Matthew Alexander gets an early look at vol. 1 of Pumpkin Scissors. Bill Sherman reviews the XXXHoLic omnibus for Blogcritics. At the Manga Maniac Cafe, Julie takes an early look at vol. 5 of Emma. Connie reviews vol. 3 of Queens at Slightly Biased Manga. At Mecha Mecha Media, John Thomas spots a brief review of vol. 1 of Alive: The Final Evolution in Entertainment Weekly and then posts his own review.