Manga Xanadu

I know everyone raves about Junji Ito, but I’ve found a lot of his work too far on the disturbing side. I don’t think I’ve been able to finish one of his titles, and I’m still haunted by Gyo‘s fish with metallic spider legs. **shudder**. It’s great that we’re getting this new collection of his so soon, but when are we gonna get his Cat Diary? I’ll bet that’s a series I can complete!

Several publishers have books coming out this week, just not a lot. Gen Manga Entertainment is back in the print game. Over the last couple of months they’ve been releasing books in print. This month it’s Stones of Power. The third volume of Attack on Titan Before the Fall, the manga adaptation of the second two light novels is out this week from Kodansha. I still want to see the first volume adapted. Vertical Comics has #2 volumes of Ajin and Witchcraft Works out, two titles that appear to be doing well for small publisher. Alice in Wonderland could almost be considered a genre on its own  with all the titles that have come out of Japan lately that are based, however loosely, on the original story. Seven Seas Entertainment jumped on that bandwagon with I Am Alice Body Swap In Wonderland, a gender-bending take on the story. If you like gender-bending stories, and aren’t completely burned out on Alice derivatives. In a different Wonderland, Deadman Wonderland, Viz Media finally surpasses the original Tokyopop releases and comes out with all new material with Volume 6. If you’ve been waiting for the rest of the story, it starts here.  Full list…

Shuiesha, the publisher of all the Shonen Jump titles released an app in Japan that allows 30 manga to be read for free. Some of these titles first run in Weekly Shonen Jump, and some in their mobile app Jump Live. This is all well and good for people living in Japan, but no so much for us here in the west. But that doesn’t mean we can’t wish. Going through the list, there are 5 titles that I would like to be able to read, or at least check out a few chapters or volumes. Rough Diamond: Manga Gakko ni Yokoso (Welcome to Manga School) – This series follows Yuuto Takatsuki, a high school boy who has already had a series published. Just as his series is ending, and he is looking forward to a normal high school, he helps out a fellow mangaka, and ends up missing one day of school too many, and isn’t able to pass his grade. Luckily, he’s offered a teaching position at a manga school. The principal will help me make his absenses disappear for teaching the class, but the only problem for Yuuto is that he has to teach students older than…

Just reading the description of this new series makes me think it’s a mash-up of Blue Exorcist and Nisekoi. But since it’s been licensed, it must have something going for it. Guess we’ll have to wait until next summer to find out.

It’s the first Tuesday of the month, and publishers have manga to release! If you haven’t been following the weekly releases, DC finally has the first volume of Batman: The Jiro Kuwata Batmanga collected, and perfectly timed for landing under the Christmas tree. It’s mix of Batman action and 60s insanity will be a double treat for Batman/manga fans. Or just something for non-Batman fans to laugh at. For not so laughing material, Vertical Comics releases volume 12 of Knights of Sidonia, their popular sci-fi series. This series will be caught up with the Japanese release with its next volume. Fans will then have to endure a long and excruciating wait to get their next fix. Can they hold out? Viz Media has the lion’s share of titles this week with their shonen and shojo titles making landfall. Assassination Classroom, the title about an alien threatening to destroy the Earth that takes on a class of middle school misfits is finally out. I’m seriously considering this one. New in shojo is Yukarism, a gender-bending, time-traveling title by Chika Shiomi. I will pick up the first volume of any series by her. She is one of the few mangaka I have that…

Not sure what to get the manga lover in your life? Viz Media has some suggestions from their extensive library of titles! VIZ MEDIA SPOTLIGHTS EXCITING MANGA TITLES FOR WISH LISTS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON  2014 Holiday Releases Include New Manga Box Sets, Shojo And Action/Sci-fi Manga Series And Other Exciting Gift Ideas For Any Special Fan!  San Francisco, CA, November 11, 2014 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, has announced a compelling array of manga, special box sets, novels and other titles that will make ideal gifts to suit a wide range of budgets and interests to delight readers and fans of all ages this holiday season. Notable selections, which will be available in plenty of time for the start of the 2014 holiday shopping season, include lavish new box set editions for manga series BLACK BIRD, ONE PIECE, and VAMPIRE KNIGHT as well as the hardcover  storybook – PRINCESS MONONOKE: THE FIRST STORY – an oversized, full-color edition of the original Princess Mononoke story, created by Hayao Miyazaki in 1980 while he was first conceptualizing the landmark animated film. New and exemplary shojo manga series from VIZ Media’s Shojo…

Every week, Viz Media and the New York Times posts the top ten bestselling books. For Viz Media, it is the bestsellers on their site, Vizmanga.com. The New York Times gets their numbers of print sales from retailers. Offered here is a listing of these books with their status this week compared with the previous week, and some way-off analysis of the activity.   Vizmanga for the week of November 18, 2014 Food Wars Vol 4     ∗ One-Punch Man Vol 5     ∗ Naruto Vol 2     ↑ 2 Naruto Vol 1     ↔ Naruto Vol 67     ↓ 2 Bleach Vol 62     ↓ 5 Blue Exorcist Vol 12     ↓ 1 Mad Love Chase Vol 2     ∗ Zone-00 Vol 1     ∗ Dengeki Daisy Vol 15     ↵ Bleach Vol 62 gets kicked from the top spot by digital first debut Food Wars Vol 4. One-Punch Man Vol 5‘s debut takes the second spot, while the Narutos switch around a few spots but still take the rest of the top five. Two new Viz Selects debut this week as well. Zone-00 is another Tokyopop license rescue, that only got 4 volumes here, while Mad Love Chase‘s…

I’ve been looking forward to Yukarism ever since it was announced back in February. But then, I’m always looking forward to a new Chka Shiomi title. I love her works Yurara and Rasetsu from Viz, and Canon from CMX. While the premise of gender-bending and past lives doesn’t thrill me, I’ll trust Shiomi to provide a title I’ll enjoy. TRAVEL BACK TO EDO-ERA JAPAN WITH THE LAUNCH OF THE SEXY NEW SHOJO MANGA SERIES YUKARISM FROM VIZ MEDIA  Dreamy Historical Romance Depicts A Teenage Writer’s Extraordinary Past Life As A Courtesan In Edo-era Japan; New Series From The Creator Of YURARA And RASETSU Debuts In Print And Digitally!!  San Francisco, CA, November 19, 2014 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, entices shojo manga (graphic novel) readers with the print and digital launch of the new series – YUKARISM – on December 2nd. The nostalgia-tinted historical romance comes from creator Chika Shiomi, who is widely known among manga fans for her series YURARA and RASETSU (both available from VIZ Media). YUKARISM will be published under the Shojo Beat imprint and is rated ‘T’ for Teens. Print MSRP will be $9.99…

Every week, Viz Media and the New York Times posts the top ten bestselling books. For Viz Media, it is the bestsellers on their site, Vizmanga.com. The New York Times gets their numbers of print sales from retailers. Offered here is a listing of these books with their status this week compared with the previous week, and some way-off analysis of the activity.   Vizmanga.com for the week of November 11, 2014 Bleach Vol 62     ↔ Chibi Vampire: Airmail     ∗ Naruto Vol 67     ↵ Naruto Vol 1     ↓ 1 Naruto Vol 2     ↓ 1 Blue Exorcist Vol 12     ↓ 4 Trinity Blood Vol 9     ∗ Lucky★Star Vol 5     ∗ Nisekoi Vol 5     ↵ Vampire Knight Vol 19     ∗ Bleach keeps its hold on the top spot for a second week in a row. It’s followed by the anthology Chibi Vampire: Airmail and a trio of Naruto volumes. The newest, vol 67 returns, pushing vol 1-2 back one place each. Select titles Trinity Blood and Lucky Star debut with their newest volumes, and surprisingly, Nisekoi vol 5 returns with vol 6’s print release. Vampire Knight Vol 19 debuting isn’t a surprise,…

I wonder if Viz has a catalog of Tokyopop former releases and they just check off the books they want, or if they are going from a list from the staff, either way, they are adding even more to their Viz Select line, so they must like how the sales are doing. VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES SUBSTANTIAL NOVEMBER DIGITAL MANGA UPDATE AND SPECIAL PRICING ON SEVERAL POPULAR SERIES Catch Digital Launch Of 6 Hot New Manga Series And Updates To More Than 20 Ongoing Titles; Special November Pricing On 5 Fan-Favorite Series And Titles To Debut on ComiXology VIZ Media continues the drive into fall with the announcement of an array of digital manga updates and new series debuts for November. Fans and readers can catch today’s launch of two new series debuts including creator Aya Shouoto’s paranormal shojo drama, KISS OF THE ROSE PRINCESS and the final volume of NEON GENESIS EVANGELION. Other notable new digital series kicking off throughout the rest of the month include 3 titles from the VIZ Select imprint. Return to the world of CHIBI VAMPIRE with CHIBI VAMPIRE AIRMAIL on November 11th, savor the dark, demonic suspense of ZONE-00, which launches on November 18th, and…

Every week, Viz Media and the New York Times posts the top ten bestselling books. For Viz Media, it is the bestsellers on their site, Vizmanga.com. The New York Times gets their numbers of print sales from retailers. Offered here is a listing of these books with their status this week compared with the previous week, and some way-off analysis of the activity.   Vizmanga.com for the week of November 4, 2014 Bleach Vol 62     ∗ Blue Exorcist Vol 12     ∗ Naruto Vol 1     ↵ Naruto Vol 2     ↵ Claymore Vol 25     ∗ Dengeki Daisy Vol 15     ∗ Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures Part 1: Vol 2     ∗ Kiss of the Rose Prince Vol 1     ∗ Food Wars Vol 3     ∗ Naruto Vol 3     ↵ Just as the Obata sale ends, Viz starts a Naruto sale, in honor of the series ending this month, and as expected, early titles hit this week’s list. The first three volumes make a respectable showing with volumes 1 and 2 breaking the top 5. New shonen titles take up the majority of the list with the newest Bleach taking the top spot. The second volume of…

Collecting One Piece can seem like a daunting task when you look at all the individual volumes and see those numbers up in the seventies. Fortunately, Viz Media is making it easier by releasing box sets, and this latest features what I think was the best arc so far; Waters Seven. If there was ever a run from One Piece that was a must, this one is it. VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES RELEASE OF ONE PIECE MANGA BOX SET 2  New Box Set Edition Features The Continuing Adventures Of The Straw Hat Pirates With Vols. 24-46 Of The World’s Bestselling Manga Series  San Francisco, CA, October 23, 2014 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, delivers a special treat to fans with the latest Box Set installment for the world’s most popular manga series – ONE PIECE. The ONE PIECE Manga Box Set 2 will be released on November 4th and is rated ‘T’ for Teens. The set contains Volumes 24-46, which comprise the series’ third and fourth story arcs – Skypiea and Water Seven – and will carry an MSRP of $185.99 U.S. / CAN. The Box Set also…