By now I’m sure most have heard about DramaQueen‘s apparent preparations for a come back, publisized highly in an article by Publishers Weekly. Quick recap, it’s been a loooong time since DQ has released any of their books, leaving many worried that they were going under or dropping licenses.
Now with word of a comeback on the near horizon, DramaQueen has begun sending out cease and desists to scanlation groups for some of their licenses, such as the Tyrant Who Falls In Love.
Taisa, DQ’s representative on the DQ forums, has been doing the best she can to keep the curious informed while remaining under a non-disclosure agreement. She did have this to say recently though: “I’m not sure what the bosslady intends to do as far as announcements. But if she doesn’t say something by the end of May, then I’ll be sure to spill whatever beans I have to spill.”
Just a little more to let us know there does indeed seem to be something stirring over at DQ. Now we just need some release dates!
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I think this stems from an incident on the forum when someone commented there asking about updates for Tyrant. Another poster cheekily posted that if they're tired of waiting on DQ, they can check out the scans at [listed a URL]. Why someone would come to a publishers forum and post a link to scans of a licensed property is beyond me, and I recall seeing it and think…ho'shit. (^_^)
[…] DramaQueen fans: The company is sending out cease and desist notices to scanlators. Kuri-ousity has the scoop, along with the latest from their […]
[…] Signs of life at moribund manga publisher Drama Queen: They’re sending out cease-and-desist nitices to scanlators. (Link via Brigid […]
I'll belive in their comeback when I have a copy of Not/Love, Awakening Desires and Spirit of the Roses in my hot little hand. Until then its just more hot air blown up our skirts by The people in charge.
Although I wouldn't mind seeing DQ have a comeback, for their sake I hope the comeback includes more respect for their customers. Seriously, it really works my nerves when a manga company thinks it is perfectly fine to pull a disappearing act. Additionally, I think it might have been a smarter move to actually wait until the first volume of Tyrant was actually available to the fans (or at the very least until the website was updated with fresh information about the upcoming release) before sending out any cease and desist letters. Right now, they just look bad in the eyes of the fans who have been deprived of a much loved series for too long. DQ has held on to the Tyrant license for ages without any releases to show for it. They should be begging for forgiveness for their crime of holding Tyrant hostage for so very long. Instead they slap the fans in the face by threatening the scan groups who have helped to keep interest in the series alive during this unacceptably long period.
That being said, I really do hope that DQ will be able to pull a comeback off, and that they will do a much better job the second time around. For instance, actually get their manga out on the store shelves, instead of forcing everyone to buy online through their website. I really did like the quality of their releases, (and yes, I do own them all) and they certainly have a great eye for picking good works. However, I am willing to give up on DQ's licenses forever(as much as I love my yaoi) if DQ doesn't impress me this second time around.
@Tosh >> Though I'm sure the staffers at DQ meant no disrespect to fans of their licenses, it's still safe to say they'll be walking a fine line when they finally resurface. It's a long time for a company to go with no releases and so much hush-hush about the future of all the titles under their belt.
I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt though and waiting (albeit less and less patiently) for some new books to appear! I'll reserve further thoughts until then, but here's hoping it's a more stable go!
[…] can pick them up. Readers may remember that it wasn’t too long ago that DQ issued cease and desists to scanlation groups offering translated version of their license, Tyrant Who Falls in […]
Does anybody know what in the world's going on with this "release" as of right now? I have no idea what DramaQueen is doing these days. Totally confusing….
It seems pretty safe to say that DramaQueen is dead with no plans for future releases due to next to no funding, only two staff and a poor public reputation after months of failed promises :(
You never know, they could suddenly come back, but I wouldn't hold hopes too high at this point.