MangaBlog

At “あいとゆうきのおとぎばなし” JP Meyer unpacks last month’s MIT symposium on anime and manga (podcast and transcripts at Anime Pulse). Those with a thirst for more knowledge should check out the MIT Anime Club website, which includes a list of MIT references in anime (what, you thought there weren’t any?).

ICv2 rewrites the press release on the new Tokyopop lines of chapter books and taps into a universal truth:

kids love fart jokes

It’s worth a click to see the sample cover. Clearly Tokyopop knows what they’re doing here, creating a book that looks just like big sister’s OEL manga.

From ComicList, here’s what to expect in comic stores this week.

A. D. VISION
Full Metal Panic Overload, Vol 5, $9.99
ANTARCTIC PRESS
NHS Pkt Manga, Vol. 8, $9.99
DARK HORSE COMICS
Scary Book, Vol. 2, Insects=, $13.95
Whats Michael, Vol. 11, Planet Of The Cats, $9.95
DC COMICS (CMX)
Musashi #9, Vol. 7, $9.99
DIGITAL MANGA DISTRIBUTION
Little Butterfly, $12.95
You & Harujon, $12.95
DR MASTERS PUBLICATIONS INC
Four Constables, Vol. 4, $13.95
Hinadori Girl, Vol. 3, $9.95
Iron Wok Jan, #18, $9.95
Real Fake Princess, Vol. 1, $9.95
GRAPHIX
Baby-Sitters Club, Vol. 1, $16.99
SEVEN SEAS ENTERTAINMENT
Inverloch, Vol. 1, $14.99
VIZ MEDIA LLC
Art Of Kikis Delivery Service, $29.99
Cheeky Angel, Vol. 12, $9.99
Descendants Of Darkness, Vol. 11, $9.99
Kikis Delivery Service Film Comics, Vol 2, $9.99
Naruto Collector Magazine #1, $9.99
No Need For Tenchi, Vol. 7, 2nd Ed., $9.99
Please Save My Earth, Vol. 16, $9.99
Ranma 1/2, Vol. 34, $9.99
Red River, Vol. 12, $9.99
Shojo Beat, June 06, #6, $5.99
W Juliet, Vol. 10, $9.99

What, no Tokyopop? I surfed over to their site and pulled the following list of books, all dated May 9 for releases. But some are already out, and this may be more for bookstores than comics stores:
· Yonen Buzz Volume 2
· iD_eNTITY Volume 6
· King of Hell Volume 13
· Pita-Ten (Art book)
· MADE IN HEAVEN Juri
· Boys Be … Volume 9
· Initial D Volume 22
· Rozen Maiden Volume 1
· Dazzle Volume 2
· Heaven Above Heaven Volume 5
· Dead End Volume 4
· Chronicles of the Cursed Sword Volume 15
· Dragon Hunter Volume 14
· Hands Off! Volume 6
· Confidential Confessions -Deai- Volume 1
· Mobile Suit Gundam Ecole du Ciel Volume 3
· PhD: Phantasy Degree Volume 6
· Lizzie McGuire Cine-Manga Volume 14
· Mobile Suit Gundam SEED (Novel) Volume 3
· SpongeBob SquarePants Who’s Hungry? – Patty Hype
· Scrapped Princess Volume 3
· Boys of Summer Volume 1
· Death Jam Volume 1
· Hyper Police Volume 6
· +ANIMA Volume 1
· Shrine of the Morning Mist Volume 1
· Samurai Deeper Kyo Volume 18
· Blade of Heaven Volume 7
· Kindaichi Case Files, The House of Wax
· Neck and Neck Volume 5
· Avatar Volume 2
· BLAME! Volume 4
· GetBackers Volume 14

The Beat has the latest Tokyopop scoop: They’re expanding into easy readers with Manga Chapters, a line of chapter books aimed at the 6 to 9 age group and Manga Readers, chapter books for the 8 to 12 crowd. As David Welsh observes, this is a good idea but not exactly earth-shattering. The books sound like they will basically be prose books with a liberal dose of manga and manga-style illustrations. If that sounds weird, then you don’t have pre-teens in your house who are addicted to the W.I.T.C.H. books.

Here’s the meat of the press release:

Launching in September of 2006, Manga Chapters combine two immensely popular formats: chapter books for children who are beginning to read-and manga, the fastest-growing category in the publishing industry. These 96-page books, competitively priced at $4.99, contain simple yet engaging storylines, liberally dosed with spot illustrations and manga that boost reading comprehension while visually engaging the reader.

Debut titles in the Manga Chapters program include: The Grosse Adventures: The Good, The Bad & The Gassy, created by Annie Auerbach, the author of more than 90 books for children (including the New York Times best-seller Bob’s Egg Hunt), and from Eisner Award-Nominee Alex de Campi, Agent Boo: The Littlest Agent-the perfect sci-fi series for young girls and boys.

Manga Readers, the next level of books in TOKYOPOP’s kids’ manga program, are designed for mid-grade readers and modestly priced at $5.99. This new, innovative line features youth-oriented stories, in an easy-to-digest 96-page format-a perfect follow-up to Manga Chapters. Scheduled for release in July 2006 are three diverse titles: Alex de Campi’s Kat & Mouse, a tale of two girls who use science and math to solve mysteries; Josh Elder’s Mail Order Ninja, which chronicles the adventure of a boy and his new ninja companion, and from Eisner Award-winner Keith Giffen and comic veteran Shannon Denton (X-Men and Spider-Man), Zapt!-the story of a 12-year-old who tries to squeeze in his duties as an intergalactic policeman between homework and chores.

The Otaku has an interview with Peter Goodman, editor-in-chief of Stone Bridge Press, publisher of books on Japanese culture. Stone Bridge doesn’t publish manga, but their catalog includes plenty of interest to the aspiring otaku, including Japanese the Manga Way, The Anime Companion, and Cruising the Anime City: An Otaku Guide to Neo Tokyo.

Over at Flipped, David Welsh surveys the blossoming manga market.

ComiPress has a summary of how anime and manga magazines fared in 2005.

Not manga, but this made me laugh: 20 Toy Librarians at Beaucoup Kevin.

Anime Pulse has a podcast, and a transcription for those who prefer reading to hearing, of last month’s symposium at MIT titled “Violence and Desire in Japanese Popular Culture.”

The people and topics covered:

Professor Anne Allison (Duke University) on Pokemon capitalism and desire
John O’Donnell (founder, Central Park Media) on Otaku entrepreneurs and anime distribution in the US
Professor Ian Condry (MIT) on fansubs, piracy and global media