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Licensing | Press Releases | Release Lists

Otaku USA: On The Shelf – February 13, 2013

Otaku USA: On The Shelf - February 13, 2013

Our snow here was short-lived, two feet of beautiful white fluff now little more than some crusty banks after a night of rain. It was rather disappointing! On the other hand, it means there’s nothing but some distance between me and new comics.

For my thoughts on the new manga out this week, you can check out my On The Shelf article for Otaku USA.

Awkward Silence (Vol.03) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Deltora Quest (Vol.10) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Hayate the Combat Butler (Vol.21) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Hiroaki Samura’s Emerald & Other Stories [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
InuYasha VIZBig (Vol.14) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Knights of Sidonia (Vol.01) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]


Seven Seas Finds A Fairy Tale With Dictatorial Grimoire License

Seven Seas Finds A Fairy Tale With Dictatorial Grimoire License

Seven Seas is hopping into the licensing ring for 2013 with their first new revealed title of the year:

Dictatorial Grimoire – Ayumi Kanou

“Upon receiving a posthumous letter from the dead father he never knew, (Grimm) Otogi transfers to a new school and moves into an abandoned mansion as part of his inheritance. There, he finds a manuscript that reveals the truth about his ancestors: the Brothers Grimm made a deal with mystical beings known as the Märchen Demons, who now have a claim on Otogi’s life. With a dashing male Cinderella as his guide, can Otogi Grimm unlock the power of the manuscript and stop the fairy tale demons before they destroy him first?” – Seven Seas

Seven Seas will be releasing the first volume, subtitled Cinderella, in September 2013 for $13.99/US, $15.99/CAN. Pre-orders became available for the title on Amazon (US/CAN) shortly after being listed for retailers to order from their distributor, MacMillan (source). The series is three volumes total and, like their recent release of Alice in the Country of Joker, will be a larger trim size and include a couple  full colour pages.

Dictatorial Grimoire is the artist’s second work published in English. Ayumi Kanou’s adaptation spin-off for the Tales of the Abyss games, Jade’s Secret Memories, was released by Bandai Entertainment last year.

With a pretty cover and a fairy tale basis for the story, this series sounds right up my alley. And there’s classic character gender-bending – even better! I love reading stories like this and seeing how the author incorporates and reinvents familiar faces. Amazon.jp has some preview pages for the interior artwork as well, only making me look forward to it more.


Cross Dressing, Breasts & Barely Legal: Project-H Licenses Five New Titles

Cross Dressing, Breasts & Barely Legal: Project-H Licenses Five New Titles

Project-H added five new titles to their license library over the weekend:

Club for Cross Dressers – Jo Soo Bu
September 2014 ($17.95/US, $19.99/CAN)

Coffin of Cerebrum – Tokihara Masato
June 2014 ($19.95/US, $21.99/CAN)

Fantasy Hentai: School Girls – Shikishirokonomi
November 2014 ($19.95/US, $21.99/CAN)

The Tale of Boobs: Chichi Monogatari – Ohkami Ryosuke
December 2012 ($19.95/US, $21.99/CAN)

You See, Teacher… (Vol. 01) – Tachibana Ei
September 2014 ($17.95/US, $19.99/CAN)

These new books were initially announced via their Twitter account.

Like all Project-H books, these are absolutely not for kids! All five books are scheduled for print releases, while Chichi Monogatari and Coffin of Cerebrum are also getting digital releases. There haven’t been many Project-H licenses granted digital rights but it looks like the Japanese publishers are opening up more and more on that front. You can read bit more about that in my recent interview with Project-H’s VP of Sales & Distribution.

Though the majority of these books don’t interest me, I was immediately intrigued by Club for Cross Dressers and You See, Teacher... Pretty boys cross dressing! Though Project-H’s My Cute Crossdresser ended up being pretty unmemorable, I can’t deny my like of the subject. The art styles are also way more to my liking also (see image above). You can see previews of these two titles on Amazon.jp: Club for Cross Dressers & You See, Teacher… 18+ only of course!


Otaku USA: On The Shelf – February 6, 2013

Otaku USA: On The Shelf - February 6, 2013

So, last week? Not much manga. This week? Wooooow on the manga! So, so much! Where do we start? Where do we begin? How am I possibly going to carry home all the books I hope to buy tomorrow!? Hard to complain about an issue like that though I suppose.

With new volumes of Bleach, GTO: 14 Days in Shonan, Negima!, Pokemon, Sailor Moon and many more, you can check out my write-up for this week’s On The Shelf at Otaku USA.

Ai Ore (Vol.08) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Alice in the Country of Joker: Circus & Liars Game (Vol.01) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Bleach 3-in-1 (Vol.04) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Bleach (Vol.55) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Dawn of the Arcana (Vol.08) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Devil & Her Love Song (Vol.07) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Fairy Tail (Vol.23) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Genshiken Omnibus (Vol.03) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
GTO: 14 Days in Shonan (Vol.07) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Haganai: I Have No Friends (Vol.02) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Kamisama Kiss (Vol.12) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Miles Edgeworth: Ace Attorney (Vol.04) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Naruto 3-in-1 (Vol.04) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Naruto (Vol.60) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Negima! (Vol.37) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Nura Rise of the Yokai Clan (Vol.13) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
One Piece 3-in-1 (Vol.05) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Pokemon Adventures Platinum (Vol.07) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Sailor Moon (Vol.09) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Sengoku Basara Samurai Legends (Vol.02) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Skip Beat (Vol.30) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Slam Dunk (Vol.26) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Stepping on Roses (Vol.09) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Tegami Bachi (Vol.12) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Tenjo Tenge (Vol.11) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Toriko (Vol.14) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]


Back in Off*Beat Business: An Interview With Jen Lee Quick

Off*beat

Back in January I was able to share the news that Jen Lee Quick’s Off*beat series would be going back to print, and with the long-awaited third volume finally being released after some long legal struggles. Today I’m pleased to say that not only do we now have more details about these upcoming books but also an interview with the creator herself!

Jen Lee Quick, comic artist and creator off Off*beat, and the staff of the newly announced, Chromatic Press – the publishing company behind the series’ new editions – were kind enough to organize an interview for me so I could ask some questions about the past, present and future of one of my favourite graphic novel series.

You can read the full interview after the cut, as well as see a bonus Off*beat image by Jen drawn just for this interview!

Read more…


Toss It To The Hounds – Kodansha Comics Licenses Sherlock Bones

Kodansha Comics Licenses Sherlock Bones

Kodansha Comics‘ first new license of the year is out and it combines two of my favourite things – Sherlock Holes and puppies!

Sherlock Bones – Yuma Ando & Yuki Sato

The story of Sherlock Bones follows a young man who adopts a dog from the pound only to (somehow) discover the dog is the reincarnation of Sherlock Holmes. Armed with the dog’s deductive reasoning, the two of them begin solving crimes around the city.

Now I’ve typed out synopsis for a lot of manga series in Kuriousity’s six year history, but I have to say that this one is definitely one of the silliest. Sherlock Holmes reincarnated as a crime solving puppy?! But what can I say, I’m really curious. It sounds so cute! This is the first time the author Yuma Ando has had a work translated into English, but Yuki Sato’s work, Yokai Doctor, was previously released by DelRey.

A listing for Sherlock Bones originally popped up on Amazon late this past Friday (US/CAN), and has since appeared on Random House’s website, the distributor for Kodansha Comics. The book is scheduled for release in September 2013 for the standard Kodansha Comics book price of $10.99/US, $11.99/CAN.


SuBLime Celebrates Anniversary with New Manga Licenses

SuBLime Celebrates Anniversary with New Manga Licenses

SuBLime celebrated their one year anniversary yesterday. It was on January 31st, 2012 that SuBLime released it’s first digital books, including volume one of their re-release of Love Pistols. Happy book-day, SuBLime!

In honour of their one year of boys’ love, they’ve announced their acquisition of some more. The following two books (which are featured in the picture above) have been licensed for print and digital releases:

Man of Tango – Tetuzoh Okadaya
September 2013

Tableau Numéro 20 – est em
October 2013

If Tetuzoh Okadaya’s Man of Tango looks familiar, that’s because the now defunct Deux Press had licensed the title back in 2008. It’s great to see such a classy looking book get a second chance!

“Angie, though hailed as “The Man of Tango,” had never truly felt the deep, fiery passion of Latin dance. That is, until he met Hiro, a man born from a Latin mother, who was under his Japanese grandfather’s custody and now lives as a Japanese citizen. Now, a slow, seething desire begins to rock his body and soul! At first feeling a nostalgic familiarity toward the Latin dancer, Hiro finds himself drawn into the seductive beat of a Latin dance, opening his body and heart to the smoldering heat of his Tango partner.” – Deux Press

Tableau Numéro 20 is a collection of short stories by est em, whose other works released in English include Seduce Me After The Show and Age Called Blue.

SuBLime also announced four additional licenses that would be digital only:

Perfect Training – Kanpeki na Shiiku & Yuiji Aniya (June 2013)
Sweet Monster – Amasugi Monster & Tsubaki Mikage (June 2013)
Pretty Men Fighting Dirty – Otokomae Dorowars! & Sakira (July 2013)
Lost Letters – Yagi-san Yuubin & Sakae Kusama (August 2013)

Though some of us weep at the lack of print availability, all of these titles seem worth a look based on those covers, and the quality of SuBLime’s digital releases are really good too. For the collectors, SuBLime also announced a sale with RightStuf.com – all their print books are 40% if you purchase two or more. Nice!


Otaku USA: On The Shelf – January 30, 2013

Otaku USA: On The Shelf - January 30, 2013

January’s going out with a bit of a whimper, but still, manga! And a Legend of Zelda book that is a must have for many. You can read about the manga titles out this week over at my On The Shelf article for Otaku USA.

Bloody Monday (Vol.09) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]
The Limit (Vol.03) [Amazon CAN, Amazon US, RightStuf]


Vertical Inc Licenses Summer Wars for Autumn 2013 Release

Vertical Inc Licenses Summer Wars for Autumn 2013 Release

Vertical Inc has its first announced license of the year – Summer Wars! Adapted from the award-winning movie of the same name, Summer Wars is a manga title I’ve seen requested quite a bit for a while now. Patience rewarded!

Summer Wars (Part 01)- Mamoru Hosoda & Iqura Sugimoto
October 2013 – $14.95/US, $16.95/CAN
Amazon US / Amazon CAN

Summer Wars will be released in two omnibus volumes that include colour inserts and some words from the series’ artists.

I really love the Summer Wars movie, so I’ll definitely be buying the manga version of it. I’m not sure it’ll carry the same spark without all the colours and crazy digital-world movements, but I’m eager to see what angles the book takes. Will it focus on different elements than the movie? Different weight on different characters? A word for word of the original? We’ll see soon enough!

The original movie was released in English by Funimation, while UDON Entertainment is publishing a material book for the movie this coming May. The story follows a young man who is asked to be a fake fiance for his classmate during summer vacation. While initially it seems just a matter of fooling her lively and close-knit extended family, soon they’re all drawn into a conflict against a computer virus that is destroying the internet system their modern society relies on.


Gotta Print ‘Em All – Viz Licenses Pokemon Heart Gold & Soul Silver

Viz Media Licenses Pokemon Heart Gold, Soul Silver

Rejoice, awaiting Pokemon fans looking to fill some gaps in your collection – a listing on Viz Media’s website have confirmed their acquisition of Pokemon Adventures: Heart Gold & Soul Silver. Volume one is scheduled for release early August 2013 for $9.99/US, $12.99/CAN. Listings for this license originally popped up on Amazon (US/CAN) in mid-December.

This three volume arc of the Pokemon story is being published as a separate Pokemon Adventures collection, instead of being in numbered sequence with the on-going series. The same thing was done with Diamond & Pearl Platinum, and Black & White. 

Chronologically, Viz Media has already published Pokemon Adventures’ chapters for the ‘original’ Gold and Silver arcs, which are similar but different than Heart Gold & Soul Silver. They both follow the two leads who were named after the originating game series. These volumes were released as Pokemon Adventures (Vols. 8-14), with a box set published this past September (Amazon US/CAN).

Pokemon: Black & White (Vol. 04)Amazon listings (US/CAN) also reveal the date of the first collected volume of Pokemon Adventures: Black & White. Viz Media has been releasing mini volumes of this series since July 2011 to keep in close proximity to the original Japanese serialized chapters. They’ll be releasing those chapters again in thicker graphic novels that are in line with both the price and page count of their other Pokemon Adventures books.

The B&W listing brings two questions to mind: will these new volumes take the artwork from the collected editions in Japan (which often have some updates compared to chapters originally published in magazines), or will it be the same we’ve seen in the minis? And the second question – am I picky enough about bookshelf consistency to sell my minis and replace with these? Knowing myself, the possibility is high… What about you?


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