Los Angeles, CA (September 25, 2009) ― TOKYOPOP is thrilled to unveil its manga and graphic novel offerings for the first four months of 2010 — a year packed with new titles from fan-favorites Tachibana Higuchi, Tanaka Suzuki and Benjamin, as well as soon-to-be-treasured works from creators new to the U.S.!

In January, TOKYOPOP will release HAPPY CAFÉ by Kou Matsuzuki, which follows the exploits of the workers of Café Bonheur, a delightful neighborhood pastry shop. The shop’s newest employee, Uru Takamura, her surly superior, Shindo-kun, and her sleepy colleague Ichiro-kun, try to make the world a little brighter with some tasty treats in this delightful romantic shojo comedy that will appeal to fans of ME & MY BROTHERS and MAID SAMA.

February brings us PORTRAIT OF M & N, starring two students in high school with something to hide. Created by the bestselling manga-ka of GAKUEN ALICE, Tachibana Higuchi, M and N refer to Mitsuru and Natsuhiko: she’s masochistic; he’s narcissistic. All they want is to be normal high school students!

Prepare for Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland (March 5, 2010) manga style with ALICE IN THE COUNTRY OF HEARTS. In this inventive retelling of the classic tale, Alice is dragged down the rabbit hole into a frightful world, where the fairytale-like citizens wield dangerous weapons for an insidious cause. Unable to return home, will she be able to happiness in a world full of danger and beautiful young men?

Just in time for Valentine’s Day comes REMEMBER from international superstar Benjamin, the creator of ORANGE. These profoundly moving stories depict the essence of romance and loss, and the risky consequences of throwing one’s heart into life. With a truly unique painterly art style, this gorgeous full-color collection also includes illustrations by Benjamin, his artist notes and pictures, all making for an excellent addition to TOKYOPOP’s graphic novel line.

DEADMAN WONDERLAND by Jinsei Kataoka and Kazuma Kondo, the creators of EUREKA SEVEN, also releases in February. DEADMAN WONDERLAND follows Ganta, a middle school student who witnesses the murder of his classmates — and then is convicted for it and sent to death row… Watch the exclusive manga trailer at www.TOKYOPOP.com/DeadmanTrailer.

March’s manga releases come in like lions, leading off with the .HACK//CELL novel, written by Ryo Suzukaze and illustrated by Akira Mutsuki.

.HACK//CELL follows Midori, an Edge Punisher who hires herself out as a professional victim so that players can attempt to kill her without resistance.

Also in March, look out for HANAKO AND THE TELLER OF THE ALLEGORY by Sakae Esuno, the creator of FUTURE DIARY. This chilling manga follows a detective who investigates allegories that have turned into physical manifestations of people’s fears and beliefs in urban myths.

HARU HANA by Yuana Kazumi, the creator of THE FLOWER OF DEEP SLEEP and MILLION TEARS, also hits bookstores in March. HARU HANA tells the story of Hana Yamada, who has just moved to Tokyo and isn’t doing as well as she’d hoped. Her new school life starts poorly, and to compound her various problems, she breaks out in hives whenever a hot guy touches her!

April showers the manga universe with more .HACK — this time.HACK//4KOMA, a collection of four-panel comics. The laugh-out-loud funny 4KOMA features the adventures of the cast of the first two .HACK video games and is a must-have for all .HACK aficionados.

And finally, KOKAKU DETECTIVE STORY by Yoshisugu Katagiri, which follows a flashy young samurai named Kokaku. While he may fight corruption and gambling as a part of the Black Crow family, what he really wants to do is lie around and eat chili peppers!

About TOKYOPOP:
Founded by multi-cultural media visionary Stuart Levy, TOKYOPOP is hailed as a leading youth-oriented entertainment brand and an innovator of manga creation, with a revolutionary artistic vision that transcends countless platforms. From the introduction of the first-ever extensive manga publishing program in North America, to the development of its manga-originated intellectual properties into film, television and digital entertainment, TOKYOPOP has changed the way teens experience pop culture. The company’s global reach has expanded to Europe and Asia, with offices in the UK and Germany, in addition to its Los Angeles and Tokyo operations. With millions of fans logging onto the new social networking site www.TOKYOPOP.com, reading its books, which are licensed in 41 countries in more than 20 languages, and watching its DVDs and television programs, TOKYOPOP’s award-winning catalogue of licensed and original properties has made the company a visionary in an ever-growing teen entertainment marketplace. Visit www.TOKYOPOP.com for additional information.

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About the Author: Lissa Pattillo

Lissa Pattillo is the owner and editor of Kuriousity.ca. Residing in Halifax, Nova Scotia she takes great joy in collecting all manners of manga genres, regretting that there's never enough time in the day to review or share them all. Along with reviews, Lissa is responsible for all the news postings to the website and works full time as a web and graphic designer.