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Author Archive for Lissa Pattillo

Digital Manga Goes Dance and No Pants with Fanime Licenses

By Lissa Pattillo on Thursday, June 19, 2014

Delivering more shiny eyes and panties, Digital Manga announced two new titles at their Fanime panel back in late May:

Dance Blade of the Spirit Master – Issei Hyōju’s
No Pants, No Problem – Azure Konno

Both titles will be released under Digital Manga Inc’s main imprint, Digital Manga Publishing, including print and digital editions. DMP doesn’t yet have release dates for either title.

Dance Blade of the Spirit Master follows the exploits of a young man who inadvertently becomes his world’s first male spiritualist. He enters into a spirit contract while peeping on the female student who was originally intended to be the spirit’s partner.

No Pants, No Problem is a comedy series where a school dress code is altered to put a ban on underwear. … large amounts of awkward ensue?

Licenses like these are difficult to write up without sighing, after a recent CNN article sent angry ripples through the anime and manga community. Is all anime and manga pornographic? Of course not! Still, it certainly isn’t hard to see why some could be fooled into thinking so with a few surface glances.

To each their own of course. And when it comes to all forms of legal perversity, I’m not one to judge – after all, I’m excited for Digital Manga’s confirmation that Ayano Yamane’s Finder (Vol. 07) is on the horizon.

Other new volume confirmations included volumes four and five of Kazuma Kodaka’s Border and volume two of Kou Yoneda’s Twittering Birds Never Fly.

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Categories: Licensing
Tags: Boys' Love/Yaoi, Dance Blade of the Spirit Master, Digital Manga Publishing, No Pants No Problem

Viz Media Visits Jojo’s First Bizarre Adventures with Phantom Blood

By Lissa Pattillo on Sunday, June 15, 2014

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Like many a viewer, I’ve recently been enjoying the Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure anime on Crunchyroll. Dark, twisted, and never more funny than when it’s trying not to be! Viz Media has released a number of Jojo volumes in English, but has never published the initial arc that this anime is based upon. It was tidy timing then that they made their recent license announcement:

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures: Phantom Blood – Hirohiko Araki

AnimeNewsNetwork confirmed this acquisition after a listing for the title was found on Amazon. The listings have since been removed, but showed a price point of $22.99/CAN | $19.99/US, and scheduled for release in February 2015.

“The legendary Shonen Jump series, now available in English for the first time, in a deluxe edition featuring color pages and newly drawn cover art!”

The price is the same as Viz Media’s 3-in-1 editions of Neon Genesis Evangelion, suggesting that as a deluxe edition this will likely also be multi-volume in length and with a larger trim size.

The last print volume of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure was released back in 2010. Hirohiko Araki’s one-shot manga, Rohan at the Louvre, was released more recently in 2012. Viz Media said they’d have more information about the Jojo franchise at their upcoming panel at Anime Expo.

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Categories: Licensing
Tags: Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Omnibus, Viz Media

Viz Media Licenses Pokemon Adventures X & Y For Perfect Square

By Lissa Pattillo on Wednesday, June 11, 2014

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Viz Media knows what the people want and they aim to license ’em all. The publisher announced via press release last week that they’d licensed the manga adaption of Nintendo’s newest Pokemon games:

Pokemon Adventures X & Y – Hidenori Kusaka & Satoshi Yamamoto

The series will be published under Viz Media’s fairly recently added imprint, Perfect Square. Previously Viz released their Pokemon titles under their VIZKids imprint, which Perfect Square replaces, but the shift has lead to only minor changes in the package design (though us fans of consistently still weep some, I know!).

As the new Champion of the Pokémon Battle Junior Tournament in the Kalos region, X is hailed as a child prodigy. But when all the media attention proves to be too much for him, he holes up in his room to hide from everyone, including his best friends. What will it take to get him to come out?! How about an attack on his hometown of Vaniville Town by the two new Legendary Pokémon, Xerneas and Yveltal, and a mysterious organization named Team Flare…?

Volume one of Pokemon X & Y is scheduled for December at $12.99/CAN, $9.99/US. The series is still on-going in Japan so future volumes will be released twice a year. This also means we’ll get thicker initial volumes than the ‘minis’ that Viz released for Pokemon B/W.

Pokemon Adventures X & Y (Vol. 01) is available to pre-order via Amazon.ca | Amazon.com

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Categories: Licensing
Tags: Perfect Square, Pokemon, Viz Media

Digital Manga Launches New Kickstarter for Tezuka’s Captain Ken

By Lissa Pattillo on Wednesday, June 4, 2014

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I’m not sure what surprises me more these days – how many different Osamu Tezuka titles I’ve never heard of, or how many of them Digital Manga takes to Kickstarter. Really, neither facts should shock me. Osamu Tezuka created over 700 volumes worth of manga (according to Wikipedia), and Digital Manga’s previous Kickstarters, which covered five Tezuka titles, were all successful.

Earlier this week, Digital Manga announced their newest Kickstarter, this time for a print edition of Osamu Tezuka’s Captain Ken. Last year DMP announced that they’d acquired the rights to Tezuka’s entire available library.

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Categories: Licensing
Tags: Captain Ken, Digital Manga, Kickstarter, Osamu Tezuka

PR: Digital Manga, Inc. To Launch Captain Ken by Osamu Tezuka Kickstarter

By Lissa Pattillo on Wednesday, June 4, 2014

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Gardena, CA (June 3, 2014) Digital Manga, Inc. has launched a new project on crowd-funding site Kickstarter to translate and publish Osamu Tezuka’s shonen title Captain Ken volumes 1 and 2 for ages 16+ in English for the first time. From June 3 until July 3, fans will be able to pledge for publication of the books and receive Kickstarter exclusive rewards including early release copies of both volumes, the digital companion with featured translation notes, decals, bandanas, messenger bags, and a handmade plush of Captain Ken’s horse, Arrow.

If fans pledge a total of $13,000 or more by the deadline, both volumes of Captain Ken will be released simultaneously for Kickstarter backers to receive in February of 2015, before hitting bookstore shelves in March of 2014, through DMI’s Platinum Manga classics imprint. Swallowing the Earth, Barbara, Unico, Triton Vol. 1 & 2, and Atom Cat were all successfully funded in previous Kickstarter campaigns, but Captain Ken will be first young adult fiction to add to Digital Manga’s Tezuka collection.

Captain Ken takes place after Earth’s colonization of Mars, causing the uprising and civil conflict between the space cowboy colonizers and the native Martians. The story opens up with a diary entry from a Martian, recalling the history of how Earthlings came to be the supreme rulers of Mars.

“It started in the year 1983, when these ‘Earthlings’ landed on our home. Our ancestors approached the strange creatures, but that was when their terror started…we didn’t know for how long this dark period would last.
Then one day, he came…”

This savior who comes to their aid is Captain Ken. He is a mysterious vigilante from Earth who travels to Mars on a secret mission with Arrow, his noble steed who also happens to be a fully stocked armory on four legs. The arrival of this young gunslinger is the start of a chain of events which includes the unveiling of Governor Devon’s corrupted government and the retaliation against Martian slavery by rebel Martians. Ken’s first appearance on Mars also coincidentally coincides with the arrival of an Earthling girl named Kenn Minakami, who bears striking resemblance to him and thus raises further questions and speculations about Ken’s true identity and his role in this fight for Mars.

In this young adult manga, Tezuka pays homage to some of the most prominent historical moments such as the Gold Rush in the West, colonization, genocide, and nuclear warfare.

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Categories: Press Releases
Tags: Captain Ken, Digital Manga, Kickstarter, Osamu Tezuka

PR: Viz Media’s Perfect Square Imprint Acquires Pokemon Adventures X & Y Manga Series

By Lissa Pattillo on Wednesday, June 4, 2014

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VIZ MEDIA’S PERFECT SQUARE IMPRINT ACQUIRES POKÉMON ADVENTURES X & Y MANGA SERIES

New All-Ages Manga Adventure Inspired By The Latest Generation of Pokémon Video Games Join an Expansive Catalog Of POKÉMON Manga Titles Published In North America

San Francisco, CA, June 4, 2014 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, has announced the acquisition of the domestic publishing and digital media rights for the POKÉMON ADVENTURES X & Y manga (graphic novel) series. The manga is based on the Pokémon X and Pokémon Y video games, which launched globally for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems in October 2013.

The new release will launch the latest story arc for the popular entertainment property and joins VIZ Media’s expansive catalog of POKÉMON manga and anime titles. The POKÉMON ADVENTURES X & Y series is rated ‘A’ for All Ages and will debut its first volume in print and digitally in December under the company’s Perfect Square imprint. Future volumes of the series, which is also ongoing in Japan, will be published twice yearly.

POKÉMON ADVENTURES X & Y is written by Hidenori Kusaka with artwork by Satoshi Yamamoto. As the new Champion of the Pokémon Battle Junior Tournament in the Kalos region, X is hailed as a child prodigy. But when all the media attention proves to be too much for him, he holes up in his room to hide from everyone, including his best friends. What will it take to get him to come out?! How about an attack on his hometown of Vaniville Town by the two new Legendary Pokémon, Xerneas and Yveltal, and a mysterious organization named Team Flare…?

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Categories: Press Releases
Tags: Perfect Square, Pokemon, Viz Media

PR: Viz Media Marks the Return of Hunter x Hunter Manga With Special Promotion

By Lissa Pattillo on Thursday, May 29, 2014

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VIZ MEDIA MARKS THE RETURN OF SMASH HIT ACTION/ADVENTURE MANGA HUNTER X HUNTER WITH SPECIAL PRINT AND DIGITAL PROMOTION

Long-Running Fantasy Adventure Returns With Brand New Chapters In WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP On June 2nd; Fans Can Dive Into The Entire Series With Special Promo Pricing

VIZ Media celebrates the return this summer of HUNTER X HUNTER with a special digital and print sale on all volumes of the hit action/adventure series. Brand new chapters of creator Yoshihiro Togashi’s long-running manga (graphic novel) are set to debut in the Japanese edition of Weekly Shonen Jump magazine on Monday, June 2nd and will also appear the same day in the North American digital counterpart published by VIZ Media and available at: http://shonenjump.viz.com.

For a limited time, from May 26th thru June 9th, HUNTER X HUNTER (rated ‘T+ for Teens) Volumes 1-32 on the VIZManga.com platform will be $2.00 off their regular MSRP ($6.99), making all volumes available for only $4.99 (U.S. / CAN) each. The sale price will be available through VIZManga.com and the VIZ Manga app for iOS and Android, and special pricing may be available through the digital partners storefronts for Nook, Kindle, GooglePlay, iBooks and Kobo.

In addition, manga fans can also catch print editions of HUNTER X HUNTER at 40% off their regular MSRP ($9.99 USD) when ordered through the Barnes & Noble web site at: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/manga/379003481.

In the HUNTER X HUNTER manga series, Hunters are a special breed, dedicated to tracking down treasures, magical beasts, and even other people. But such pursuits require a license, and less than one in a hundred thousand can pass the grueling qualification exam. Those who do pass gain access to restricted areas, amazing stores of information, and the right to call themselves Hunters.

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Categories: Press Releases
Tags: Hunter x Hunter, Shonen Jump, Viz Media

PR: Viz Media Releases New Volume for Hit Millennium Snow Manga Series

By Lissa Pattillo on Thursday, May 22, 2014

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VIZ MEDIA ANNOUNCES THE RETURN OF THE HIT SHOJO MANGA SERIES MILLENNIUM SNOW

Catch The Digital And Print Debut Of A Brand New Volume From Creator Bisco Hatori’s Paranormal Romance Series; New 2-In-1 Omnibus Manga Release For Earlier Volumes Also Debuts

San Francisco, CA, May 20, 2014 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, invites manga (graphic novel) fans to mark to the much-awaited digital and print debut on June 3rd of a brand new volume from Bisco Hatori’s hit manga (graphic novel) series – MILLENNIUM SNOW – as well as the release on the same day of a new 2-in-1 omnibus print edition.

Volume 3 of the romance about a handsome young vampire and an ailing teenage girl will be published under the Shojo Beat imprint, is rated ‘T’ for Teens, and will carry a print MSRP of $9.99 U.S. / $12.99 CAN. The new release marks the return of the critically acclaimed series after it had been put on hiatus by the creator and has never before been released in English.

A digital version of MILLENNIUM SNOW, Vol. 3 also will debut on June 3rd for $6.99 (USD/CAN) on VIZManga.com and through the VIZ MANGA App for the Apple iPad®, iPhone® and iPod® touch, Android-powered smart phones, as well as through the Nook, Kobo, Kindle, iBooks and GooglePlay stores. Volumes 1-2 of MILLENNIUM SNOW are available across multiple platforms from the extensive VIZ Media digitally catalog.

Fans also can catch the two earlier volumes of MILLENNIUM SNOW with a new 2-in-1 omnibus print version that also releases on June 3rd and bundles Vols. 1-2 into a handy single edition. The 2-in-1 omnibus edition is rated ‘T’ for Teens and will carry an MSRP of $14.99 U.S. / $16.99 CAN.

In Bisco Hatori’s acclaimed series, seventeen-year-old Chiyuki Matsuoka was born with heart problems, and her doctors say she won’t live to see the next snow. Toya is an 18-year-old vampire who hates blood and refuses to make the traditional partnership with a human, whose life-giving blood would keep them both alive for a thousand years.

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Categories: Press Releases
Tags: Bisco Hatori, Millennium Snow, Omnibus, Shojo Beat, Viz Media

PR: Revisit The Brutal Action With BATTLE ROYALE: ANGELS’ BORDER One-ShotManga!

By Lissa Pattillo on Thursday, May 22, 2014

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THE KILL OR BE KILLED SAGA OF BATTLE ROYALE CONTINUES AS VIZ MEDIA RELEASES NEW MANGA ONE-SHOT BATTLE ROYALE: ANGELS’ BORDER

Creator Of Original BATTLE ROYALE Novel Koushun Takami Returns With The Graphic Full Story Of The Girls In The Lighthouse

San Francisco, CA, May 21, 2014 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, has announced the release on June 17th of BATTLE ROYALE: ANGELS’ BORDER, a new one-shot manga (graphic novel) written by Koushun Takami, author of the original BATTLE ROYALE novel.

BATTLE ROYALE: ANGELS’ BORDER debuts in print from the VIZ Signature imprint, is rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens, and will carry an MSRP of $12.99 U.S. / $14.99 CAN. The new single-volume release reveals for the first time in graphic novel form the full story and grisly demise of the girls in the lighthouse that was so memorably featured in the original BATTLE ROYALE book and live-action film. BATTLE ROYALE: ANGELS’ BORDER features artwork by Mioko Ohnishi and Youhei Oguma.

A digital version will also launch for $8.99 (USD/CAN) on June 17th on VIZManga.com and through the VIZ MANGA App for the Apple iPad®, iPhone® and iPod® touch, Android-powered smart phones, as well as through the Nook, Kobo, Kindle, iBooks and GooglePlay stores.

Author Koushun Takami’s notorious literary thriller, BATTLE ROYALE, possessed an irresistible premise: a class of junior high school students is taken to a deserted island where, as part of a ruthless authoritarian program, they are provided arms and forced to kill one another until only one survivor is left standing. Criticized as violent exploitation when first published in Japan – where it then proceeded to become a runaway best seller – Battle Royale has become a Lord of the Flies for the 21st century, a potent allegory of what it means to be young and (barely) alive in a dog-eat-dog world.

In BATTLE ROYALE: ANGELS’ BORDER, most of the students from Shiroiwa Junior High scatter as soon as they reach the remote island where they must participate in the latest round of the Program. But Yukie Utsumi and five of her friends lock themselves in the lighthouse, clinging to a desperate hope of survival. They all trust each other, but they also know that only one can survive the Battle Royale…

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Categories: Press Releases
Tags: Battle Royale, Viz Media

Viz Media Confirms Print Edition World Trigger, Will Reprint Jojo

By Lissa Pattillo on Thursday, May 15, 2014

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Viz Media’s been dropping little bits of news throughout the past few weeks, resulting in plenty of good news for print fans. Time for a round-up!

During their Sakura Con panel, Viz Media confirmed that World Trigger will be getting print editions. The new series has been serializing in Shonen Jump since last year (and is very good!). Volume one is scheduled for October 2014 and is currently available to pre-order via Amazon.ca | Amazon.com

Coinciding nicely with the recent addition of its anime to Crunchyroll, Jojo’s Bizzarre Adventure is coming back to print. Viz Media has released sixteen volumes of the series but individual volumes have been difficult to find after going out of print. Fresh volumes are said to be arriving in their warehouse starting this month so retailers such as Amazon and RightStuf will be able to start fulfilling orders again.

Pokemon is getting some new packaging with three upcoming boxsets for the various manga series. Bundling the individual volumes into ‘season’ sets, Viz Media has three sets coming in the Fall – Pokemon Adventures: Ruby & Sapphire, Pokemon Black & White Set 02, and Pokemon Adventures: Diamond & Pearl/Platinum. More information is available via their press release.

Viz Media has also recently released their newest Jump Pack. This in-store purchase comes with “New Print Issue Features 100+ Pages Of Manga Content, A 3-Month Digital Subscription And An Exclusive
Blue-Eyes White Dragon YU-GI-OH! Collectable Trading Card”.

The Jump Packs are great ways for those without the ability to purchase online to still get subscribed to Viz Media’s Weekly Shonen Jump. I love that they’re continuing to offer this option and the cost is entirely worth it.

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Categories: Manga Minis
Tags: Crunchyroll, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Pokemon, Shonen Jump, Viz Media, World Trigger