MangaBlog

Manga makes a respectable showing on this week’s USA Today Top 150 Books, with vol. 15 of Naruto slipping from number 53 to 60 and vol. 1 of Kingdom Hearts II rising from 149 to 136. Meanwhile, at Comicsnob, Matt Blind takes a look at online manga sales rankings for this week.

Becky Cloonan has posted a few samples of her art from vol. 2 of East Coast Rising. (Via Blog@Newsarama.)

Busted! Police arrested the proprietors of a maid cafe in Bangkok, Thailand, and seized 200 volumes of allegedly obscene manga. This strikes me as odd:

The police explained the arrests and confiscation: “We investigated due to complaints from guardians that children would frequent the maid cafe. There was obscene artwork in the manga.”

It doesn’t seem like a maid cafe is a place for children anyway. Asahi.com has an article on the kid-friendlier manga museum in Kansai, Japan.

Oliver Chin posts a meditation on Tezuka at the Marvel of Manga blog.

Reviews: Kethylia reviews a light novel, vol. 1 of Trinity Blood: Rage Against the Moons. Julie takes an early look at vol. 2 of Hoshin Engi at the Manga Maniac Cafe. At PopCultureShock, Katherine Dacey-Tsuei enjoys vol. 1 of Alive: The Final Evolution. Active Anime’s Holly Ellingwood reviews vol. 6 of Pichi Pichi Pitch Mermaid Melody and vol. 19 of Hana-Kimi. Johanna checks out vol. 3 of Flower of Life at Comics Worth Reading. Michael Aronson reviews vol. 6 of Godchild at Manga Life. At Prospero’s Manga, Ferdinand reviews vol. 1 of We Shadows and Miranda briefly reviews vols. 7-10 of Death Note. Hung checks out vol. 1 of Samurai Commando: Mission 1549 at the BasuGasuBakuhatsu Anime Blog. J. Bowers looks at vols. 6-7 of Genshiken at Playback:stl. At Newsarama, Tracy, Sarah, and Shelby Edmunds look at two all-ages titles, Kilala Princess and Peach Fuzz. And on his blog, Warren Peace Sings the Blues, Matt Brady checks out the August issue of Shojo Beat.

The newest edition of MangaBlogCast is up at the MangaCast. Links after the cut.

MegaTokyo goes to Japan

MegaTokyo
Full press release at MangaBlog
Fred Gallagher checks in at The Engine

Countdown to San Diego

Arina Tanemura to be Viz’s guest at SDCC
SDCC preview at MangaCast

Backing the Dark Horse

Anime on DVD talks to Michael Gombos of Dark Horse

Tezuka Awards announced

Details at ComiPress

Yes, Naruto Nation is almost upon us, but for those who like a little variety, Viz is also rolling out six new series this fall. Details after the cut.

VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES EXCITING AND DIVERSE ARRAY OF NEW MANGA SERIES FOR THIRD QUARTER OF 2007

Six New Series Deliver Unique Mix Of Historical Drama, Science Fiction, Award-Winning Comedic Romance and Supernatural Action

San Francisco, CA, July 19, 2007 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry’s most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, has announced the North American debut of six new manga titles for the Third Quarter of 2007. The new releases are aimed at Teen and Older Teen readers and include TOGARI, GIN TAMA, LOVE*COM, PRETTY FACE, KUROHIME and the full-color Ani-Manga™ for NARUTO™ THE MOVIE: NINJA CLASH IN THE LAND OF SNOW.

These latest releases deliver a unique and intriguing mix of action and swordplay dramas, mixed with supernatural characters and historical settings that will captivate core fans. New comedic and heartwarming romantic shojo stories will also delight the growing number of female manga readers and shojo manga fans.

“Our latest titles for the summer are quite diverse and offer something for almost every interest,” states Wes Harris, Director, Marketing, VIZ Media. “Summer is the ideal time to relax and manga provides a compact and engrossing activity for all ages. Samurai and action fans will love TOGARI and GIN TAMA, while shojo fans can delight in the quirky gender bending PRETTY FACE and LOVE*COM, which won the 2003 Shogakukan Manga Award. Fall will also see the release of the long awaited KUROHIME, which has caused a sensation in Japan with its blend of black comedy and supernatural action. We look forward to everyone checking out the latest offerings beginning this July!”

TOGARI • Rated “T+” for Older Teens • MSRP: $9.99 • Available Now!
A unique 8-volume action series from award-winning manga artist Yoshinori Natsume, TOGARI is the latest addition to the VIZ Media imprint and tells the adventures of Tobei, a ruthless samurai from feudal Japan who was executed and damned to hell for the past 300 years for his heinous deeds. But Tobei is given a chance for redemption when he is sent to the modern world to vanquish 108 malevolent spirits called Toga in only 108 days. Armed with a mysterious wooden sword named Togari (which feeds off of the malice and evil of the user to become more powerful), Tobei struggles to make sense of the modern world and its often baffling customs while searching relentlessly for the evil demons he must defeat. He must also obey two cardinal rules – he cannot commit any new sins or crimes in the modern world, or he risks being beheaded again, and secondly, he cannot harm and mortal human, no matter how evil, for if he does, he shall receive similar damage. Originally serialized in Japan’s manga anthology Shukan Shonen Sunday, TOGARI enjoys an international audience, having been translated into Spanish, Korean, Chinese and French.

GIN TAMA • Rated “T+” for Older Teens • MSRP: $7.99 • Available Now!
GIN TAMA is an irreverant comedic samurai meets sci-fi manga series created by Hideaki Sorachi that has become a smash hit in Japan. GIN TAMA is set in feudal Japan in the ancient capital city of Edo, now modern Tokyo. The country has been taken over by aliens called Amanto who have banned carrying swords in public, much to the consternation of the now vanquished class of samurai. The story focuses on an eccentric samurai with a natural perm named Sakata Gintoki, his (partial) apprentice Shimura Shinpachi, and a superstrong teenage alien girl named Kagura. All three are “freelancers” who search for work and perform odd jobs in order to pay the monthly rent, which ultimately usually goes unpaid. GIN TAMA premiered in Japan’s Weekly Shonen Jump in 2004 and a popular animated series followed, premiering on Japanese TV in April 2006. The manga series has become one of the top ten best sellers in Japan, with the first four volumes selling more than 2.7 million copies. Laughs and action ensue in this unique manga series, from SHONEN JUMP ADVANCED, which blends out-of-this-world characters (literally) with historical drama.

LOVE*COM • Rated “T” for Teens • MSRP: $8.99 • Available Now!
Risa Koizumi is the tallest girl in class, and the last thing she wants is the humiliation of standing next to Atsushi Ôtani, the shortest guy. But fate and the whole school have other ideas, and the two find themselves cast as the reluctant stars of a bizarre romantic comedy duo. Rather than bow to the inevitable, Risa and Atsushi join forces to help each other and pursue their true objects of affection. But in the quest for love, will their budding friendship become something more complex? Creator Aya Nakahara won the 2003 Shogakukan Manga Award for this unique romantic breakthrough hit, which was also made into a major motion picture and a PS2 game in 2006. VIZ Media will release LOVE*COM through its SHOJO BEAT imprint.

PRETTY FACE • Rated “T+” for Older Teens • MSRP: $7.99 • Available August 2007
He wanted to be her boyfriend, but he’ll settle for being her twin sister! PRETTY FACE is an intriguing series by Yasuhiro Kano revolving around a high school boy who impersonates a girl as a result of an operation gone terribly, but comically awry. When his school bus crashes, teenage karate star Rando is sent into a coma. A year later he wakes up to find that his disfigured face has been reconstructed in the image of his secret crush, Rina! Not knowing what Rando originally looked like, the mad plastic surgeon Dr. Manabe used a photo in Rando’s pocket as the model for his reconstructive surgery. Abandoned by his friends and parents, the all-new Rando is mistaken for his would-be girlfriend’s long-lost twin sister and adopted into her family. Can he put aside his feelings and be a good “big sister” to Rina, even when he’s still a teenage boy from the waist down? Find out in this new series from SHONEN JUMP ADVANCED.

KUROHIME • Rated “T+” for Older Teens • MSRP: $7.99 • Available September 2007
Kurohime is a big busty witch with the command of magical guns. She was once foolish enough to challenge the Gods and in doing so was punished. A curse was put on her that turned her into a little girl. The only way she can break this curse and turn back in to her old big bad buxom self is to fall in love! This premise leads Kurohime on all kinds of crazy adventures in a magical land full of dangerous surprises in this new series from SHONEN JUMP ADVANCED. Creator Masanori Ookamigumi Katakura made his debut as the artist for GENOCIDER MAMI, a three-volume manga collaboration with writer Takeshi Narumi. Katakura wrote and illustrated his next work, GO DA GUN, which was serialized in Japan’s Monthly Shonen Jump and concluded after 16 volumes. Katakura’s most recent series, KUROHIME, first appeared in Monthly Shonen Jump Extra in 2000, and has been running in Monthly Shonen Jump since 2003. The enormous popularity of the series spawned the creation of a KUROHIME game for the PS2, released in Japan in March 2006.

NARUTO™ THE MOVIE: NINJA CLASH IN THE LAND OF SNOW ANI-MANGA™ • Rated “T” for Teens • MSRP: $14.99 • Available September 2007
All the action from the smash hit first NARUTO feature film is depicted frame-by-frame in this full-color Ani-Manga! NARUTO is now one of the most popular and successful manga and anime properties in North America. NARUTO THE MOVIE: NINJA CLASH IN THE LAND OF SNOW is a theatrical side story based on the continuity of the animated TV series and was a box office hit upon its initial release in Japan. VIZ Media screened the movie to thousands of enthusiastic fans nationwide earlier this summer. New and existing fans of the hit title will not want to miss this exciting latest addition to the NARUTO collection. The general storyline of both the NARUTO manga and animated series depict the adventures of a young boy named Naruto Uzumaki who is training to become a ninja. Naruto, cursed with the spirit of the nine-tailed fox demon sealed within his body, was forced to live a bullied life discriminated against by his fellow villagers. But Naruto was resilient and undaunted, and his determination often inspires those around him. Naruto is thrilled when he is sent on a mission to protect his favorite actress, Yukie Fujikaze, on the set of her new movie, The Adventures of Princess Gale. But when the crew ventures out to film in the icy, foreboding Land of Snow, Yukie mysteriously flees! Naruto and his squad set off to find her…unaware that three Snow Ninja lie in wait, with a sinister purpose that will force Yukie to face her hidden past!

Kodansha will announce the winners of their International Manga Competition next month, but here’s a scoop: the grand prize winner is a North American artist. No word yet on who, but we can start guessing. The winning manga will be featured in the magazine Morning, which has a circulation of 500,000, and may be developed into a full-length manga, which could be interesting—an American manga published in Japan. (As always, the first question is, will it be flipped?) The deadline for the next contest is in December, so sharpen your pencils and get to work!

Pickings are slim, but the MangaCast crew reviews this week’s new manga anyway.

The Japan Times reports that Japanese companies are catching on to the marketing as well as the money value of licensing.

Queenie Chan reports on her LJ that she has finished vol. 3 of The Dreaming and is hard at work on Odd Thomas, the graphic novel about the character created by Dean Koontz. And she links to an interview in which we learn that if it hadn’t been for the dot-com bust, Queenie might have gone on to a lucrative career in Information Systems instead of manga.

Bad news for Divalicious fans: T Campbell learns it has been cut back to two volumes.

LJ’er sparklyfanta has some thoughts on CLAMP and feminism. (Via When Fangirls Attack.)

More NSFW follies: ComiPress has an article about the notion of “harmful manga,” i.e., smut, loli, etc. The article itself has occasioned some controversy; read the comments. At Icarus Comics, Simon Jones puts it into perspective. And ANN has a handy checklist!

Erica Friedman has info on the contests at Yuricon.

News from Japan: Shogakukan will be re-releasing some of Moto Hagio’s work as a “Perfect Collection.” (Via ComiPress.)

ANN’s Zac Bertschy interviews Anime Expo marketing consultant Chase Wang about the problems with this year’s con.

Reviews: Matthew Alexander hits the adult racks with his review of vol. 1 of Flash Bang at Anime on DVD. At Active Anime, Scott Campbell checks out vol. 1 of Shaman Warrior and Holly Ellingwood reviews vol. 3 of Trinity Blood. Connie wraps up vols. 10, 11, and 12 of Death Note and them moves on to the next stage with a lenghthy review of Apollo’s Song at Slightly Biased Manga. Julie gets a sneak peek at vol. 1 of Pretty Face at the Manga Maniac Cafe.

Behind the cut is the latest press release from Viz on everything that will be going on at their SDCC booth.

VIZ MEDIA WELCOMES RENOWNED SHOJO MANGA CREATOR AND OFFERS EXCITING GAMING ACTIVITIES, PANELS AND SCREENINGS FOR 2007 COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL

Demos of Latest Anime Action Video Games in Booth 4113, Screening of NARUTO™ the Movie, and Two Eisner Award Nominations for NAOKI URASAWA’S MONSTER Highlight This Year’s Show

San Francisco, July 18, 2007 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry’s most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, has announced a bevy of special events, interactive games, artist appearances, a special theatrical screening, and speaker panels for the 2007 Comic-Con International. Comic-Con is renowned as the nation’s largest comic book and science fiction event and takes place July 26-29 at the Convention Center in San Diego, CA. VIZ Media will be located in Booth 4113.

Personal appearances by notable manga artists and creators are always a highlight of VIZ Media’s presence at Comic-Con and this year the company is pleased to welcome Arina Tanemura, the renowned creator of the popular shojo manga series FULL MOON and THE GENTLEMEN’S ALLIANCE †.

VIZ Media will be featured across several panels throughout the convention, kicking off with a general anime and manga discussion on Thursday, July 26 at 1:30 p.m. in Room #2. Arina Tanemura will participate in a special SHOJO BEAT™ magazine panel discussion set for Saturday, July 28 at 1:30 p.m. in Room #2. She will provide insights into her work and experiences as a manga artist, and answer questions from fans and press. A SHONEN JUMP™ panel is scheduled for Friday, July 27 at 11:30 a.m. also in Room #2. Other scheduled VIZ Media panel discussions include a dedicated discussion about NARUTO NATION™ and the buzz surrounding the hit NARUTO™ anime and manga series, set for Saturday, July 28 at 11:30 p.m. also in Room #2 and “You Outta Know About These Manga” to take place Sunday, July 29th at 12:30 p.m.

VIZ Media will have a commanding presence on the main show floor in Booth #4113 showcasing some of the company’s latest and most popular manga and anime titles which also will be made available for purchase in a vividly arrayed retail area. There will be a special “green-screen” activity that will allow visitors to pose for pictures with a variety of characters and backdrops from popular series including NARUTO, DEATH NOTE, MÄR, INUYASHA, FULL MOON and BLEACH.

The company has further partnered with several leading game manufacturers to present a variety of anime-related interactive video games throughout the convention. Attendees will have a chance to play the ultimate NARUTO party game on the hottest gaming system, as NARUTO: Clash of Ninja Revolution for the Nintendo Wii will be among those featured in the VIZ Media booth. The next generation in NARUTO games from TOMY Corporation and D3Publisher of America, Inc. (D3PA) will include all new game-play designed specifically for the Wii controllers, new character animations, new interactive environments and characters that have never been featured in the Clash of Ninja game series. The game also features special mini-games created exclusively for the Wii Remote in fast-paced ninja action for up to four players in nine different game-play modes.

Namco/Bandai Games America will demo NARUTO: Uzumaki Chronicles 2 for the Sony PlayStation 2. It’s up to Naruto Uzumaki and his powerful ninja allies to stop a dangerous and mysterious rival ninja clan long believed to have disappeared. They have sworn to resurrect an unstoppable army of ancient horror that will threaten the very survival of the Hidden Leaf Village. NARUTO: Uzumaki Chronicles 2 delivers the epic action adventure with an original storyline, multiplayer cooperative/versus action and over 10 playable/customizable characters.

Ubisoft will also feature a playable demo of NARUTO: Rise of a Ninja for the Xbox 360 as a world debut exclusive to the VIZ Media booth. It will be the first time the public will be able to play the game, which contains a fully-featured Konoha Village, realistic chakra training with Kakashi-Sensei, fast-action game-play sequences, head-to-head battles and more.

Capcom will offer Mega Man Star Force™ for the Nintendo DS™ – the first game in a new Mega Man® series making its debut in three versions – Pegasus, Leo and Dragon, a first for any Mega Man title. VIZ Media is the publisher of the popular MEGAMAN NT WARRIOR™ manga series. In Mega Man Star Force, players explore towns and interact with people in the real world while the action-packed battles take place in the virtual “Wave World.” Enemy encounters take place on a three by five grid in a 3D perspective, where players use a portfolio of Battle Cards that each have distinct attributes and attack powers. Developed by the team behind the popular Mega Man Battle Network® series, the game marks the start of a new era for Mega Man, who celebrates his 20th anniversary this year.

Finally, Microsoft will present famed game producer Hironobu Sakaguchi of Mistwalker game studio and developer Artoons highly anticipated Xbox 360-exclusive BLUE DRAGON™ as an exclusive in VIZ Media’s booth. Featuring the character design of Akira Toriyama, who designed Dragon Ball Z, Blue Dragon is an epic role-playing game (RPG) centered on a young boy named Shu and his friends. These unlikely heroes possess miraculous strength and the magical power to control phantom shadows that mirror the actions of their masters. Shu and friends must wield their skills to save their world from impending doom. Encountering various people on a planet with numerous ancient ruins, the characters and their shadows travel through a world full of mysteries and illusions, where the slightest touch can cause reactions of unparalleled magnitude.

Following the Japanese tradition of previewing the newest Trading Card Game (TCG) additions at Jump Festa, the sprawling annual convention for SHONEN JUMP in Japan, for the very first time, VIZ Media will offer for sale at Comic-Con a special new collection of YU-GI-OH! game cards for $3.99 per 5-card pack. Fans have been clamoring for the release of these Premium Packs, which will be released domestically by Upper Deck in September. Some of the cards to look for include the Magician of Black Chaos, Black Magic Ritual, Gemini Imps, Return Zombie, Dark Magic Curtain, Legacy of Yata-Garasul, Javelin Beetle and Javelin Beetle Pact. These are a must-have for any YU-GI-OH! fan.

A variety of special convention giveaways are also planned, including the coveted VIZ Media convention tote bag for 2007, newly designed in purple, featuring DEATH NOTE and MÄR. Other giveaways include SHOJO BEAT bookmarks featuring BACKSTAGE PRINCE, SKIP BEAT, BEAUTY POP, THE GENTLEMEN’S ALLIANCE † and PUNCH, full-color posters for BLEACH, POKéMON The Movie 9, SPIRITED AWAY, CASTLE IN THE SKY and more. The VIZ Media Prize Patrol is a regular facet of Comic-Con and attendees spotted wearing VIZ Media prize beads (available at the booth) can win special premiums including POKéMON accessory straps, SONIC THE HEDGEHOG and INUYASHA trading card game packs, BOYS OVER FLOWERS purses and more. Also on hand for giveaway will be manga samplers, including the brand new TEKKONKINKREET manga sampler, anime samplers, SHONEN JUMP and SHOJO BEAT magazine samplers and more.

VIZ Media will screen the first NARUTO feature film — NARUTO THE MOVIE: NINJA CLASH IN THE LAND OF SNOW – at 4:30 pm on Saturday, July 27 at the United Artists Horton Plaza Theatre, located walking distance from the Convention Center. Tickets are available for free on a first come, first served basis. NARUTO is rated T for teen.

Finally, the 2007 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, considered the Oscars of the comic book industry, are scheduled for Friday, July 27 and VIZ Media is pleased to have NAOKI URASAWA’S MONSTER manga nominated in two categories for Best Continuing Series and Best US Edition of International Material-Japan

“This year’s agenda for Comic-Con promises to be the most action-packed one yet and we are very excited to stage a variety of fun gaming events, screenings and special giveaways that are sure to delight the thousands of anime and manga fans who attend,” states Liza Coppola, Sr. Vice President of Marketing. “There is absolutely something for everyone in VIZ Media’s offerings this year and meetings our fans and offering some sneak peaks of what’s to come will make Comic-Con the must-attend event of the summer!”