License Requesting the Fall 2012 Anime Season – Manga Edition

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So you’ve decided you really like that hot new 2012 anime property – so much so that you want to support it by actually buying the manga instead of just reading it on a scan site! First of all, congratulations, you are a very rare individual. But it’s not as easy as walking up to a publisher at New York Comic Con and saying “Hey, you guys should get _____!” After all, what if they don’t deal with that publisher? What if it doesn’t have a manga? What if it’s already licensed and you didn’t realize it?

So, for the anime fan who wants to try a bit of manga, a quick guide to how to beg for Fall 2012 titles. (Note: if I don’t mention a title here, it doesn’t have a manga as far as I can tell.)

First off, let’s eliminate series that are already licensed and actively coming out here. That takes care of Bakuman (Viz), Hayate the Combat Butler (Viz), Hidamari Sketch (Yen), Jormungand (Viz), Kamisama Hajimemashita (Viz) and Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal (Viz). (It’s a Viz world, kids, we just live in it.) I’m also including BTOOOM! (Yen), which is licensed but doesn’t debut till next year.

Secondly, there’s a couple of series which were licensed, but are now, putting it politely, “On hiatus”. Asking about them will likely get you a pained look and a ‘We have no plans at this time’ response. So that takes out Code: Breaker (Del Rey), JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure (Viz), and Gintama (Viz). The one exception to this is Code: Breaker – JManga has picked up the two volumes Del Rey released, and there is a definite possibility for more in that online-only direction. And technically, JoJo’s finished the arc that it was putting out, so I suppose it’s more ‘didn’t pick up further arcs’ than ‘on hiatus’.

Lastly, Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo is based off a light novel that has no manga yet, as far as I can tell. Asking about light novel licenses is a great way to get publishers to cry.

So, which publisher can you nag for which books?

SEVEN SEAS: Well, they aren’t at NYCC (they don’t do the East Coast), so a politely worded tweet might do the trick. The anime Onii-chan Dakedo Ai Sae Areba Kankei Nai yo ne, aka ‘As Long As There’s Love, I Don’t Care If He’s My Brother!’ is the latest in a theme of faux-incest titles. And runs in Comic Alive. Both of which are very similar to things Seven Seas has recently picked up.

TOKYOPOP: OK, so technically they don’t put out much these days. But honestly, there’s really no better fit for Seitokai no Ichizon, a Kadokawa title that runs in Dragon Age. See if you can sweet-talk Stu.

KODANSHA COMICS: There are two really obvious titles here and one less so. The non-obvious one is Shin Sekai Yori, based on an award-winning SF novel. Its manga adaptation does indeed run in Kodansha’s Bessatsu Shonen Magazine. It began… about 2 weeks ago. So ask them to keep it in mind for NYCC 2013. So that leaves the two big contenders: Sukitte Ii na yo and Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun, both of which run in Kodansha’s shoujo magazine Dessert. They’re both terrific, but they are in a magazine that is generally ignored when it comes to shoujo NA licenses (honestly, Kodansha Comics tends to avoid anything but Nakayoshi these days), and they’re both still running (series that haven’t already ended in Japan worry publishers).

VERTICAL, INC.: See the two previous titles. If Kodansha says no, maybe Vertical wants to try it out? They are putting out Limit this fall, after all…

JMANGA: Aside from Code: Breaker, which I mentioned above, the one that jumps out at me is Teekyū, a school tennis comedy from Earth Star Entertainment’s Comic Earth Star. JManga recently put out four of their titles, so there’s always a possibility of more.

YEN PRESS: The only one that really leaps out at me is Zetsuen no Tempest, a fantasy manga that runs in Square Exin’s Shonen Gangan. Being a Gangan title, Yen seems the most likely player there. It’s also possible they might look at Little Busters, the latest from the Air/Kanon/Clannad folks, which runs in Kadokawa’s Comp Ace, but that seems less likely.

VIZ MEDIA: There’s a whole host of properties Viz *could* license here, but I’m not sure how many are genuinely *possible* licenses. Magi – The Labyrinth of Magic has a lot of potential, and is probably the most likely title on this list, but it’s 14 volumes and still running, and it also runs in Shonen Sunday, whose success in North America has been poor in the post-Inu Yasha age. Dangerous Jii-san Ja is a comedy 4-koma manga for kids about a goofy grandpa that runs in Corocoro. I can’t see it coming out here. At all. Medaka Box I have discussed many times before, and the same points still apply. And as for To-Love-Ru Darkness, even if the prequel had come out via Viz, this new sequel is simply too M-rated for their usual Jump line.

I HAVE NO IDEA: Two titles simply don’t leap out as going to any publisher. Aoi Sekai no Chūshin de is a fantasy manga that seems to anthropomorphize the console wars, and is written by a Russian woman. It is put out by Micro Magazine. I don’t know who they are either. Judging by the name, I’m guessing they focus on gaming. Lastly, there’s Chiisai Oyaji Nikki, from Ohzora Shuppan, which is about a very small old man.

Anything in that list take your fancy? You know I’ll be uselessly beating the Medaka Box drum…

Manga the Week of 10/10

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It’s a smaller week, Week #2, but it tries harder! What’s coming out right before New York Comic Con?

Kodansha has two titles that, as usual, came out yesterday via Amazon and bookstore-oriented places. (pats Diamond on the head) Arisa is in the homestretch with Vol. 9, and Cage of Eden is starting to gear up with Vol. 7. Cage of Eden’s cover is also only mildly socially unacceptable this time! (I make no guarantees about the inside, though. Expect boobs.)

Seven Seas has a troika of releases, many of which hit Diamond *and* bookstores this week. For some reason, the Northeast Corridor (including me) is getting these in next week. Dance in the Vampire Bund hits its penultimate volume (don’t panic: a sequel has already started in Japan), and still has Vampire in the title, in case you missed that. Venus Versus Virus has a 3rd omnibus out, which I think may be the last (total apathy about the series prevents me from verifying this). And Girl Friends, Morinaga Milk’s popular yuri manga, gets a print release with the first of two omnibuses. Girl Friends is sweet, likeable, funny, and does not end with dead lesbians (sorry for the spoilers).

Sublime, Viz’s BL imprint, has Vol. 2 of Punch Up. Which has a kitty on a hot guy’s head. I don’t think I need to say anything else, really. KITTY!

Speaking of kitties, or at least catboys, Viz is starting to re-release the fantasy manga Loveless, which runs in Comic Zero Sum and is… not *quite* BL, even though most of the fandom would disagree with you. It is extremely popular, though, and it’s nice to see Viz rescue it. They also have a new Case Closed and the penultimate volume (did I really use penultimate twice in one post?) of Kekkaishi, which is beloved by bloggers (and hence has mediocre sales, the usual fate of titles beloved by bloggers).

So what appeals to you guys? Also, would you buy a manga that has as a tag line ‘Beloved by bloggers!’?

Paradise Kiss, Vol. 1

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By Ai Yazawa. Released in Japan by Shodensha, serialized in the magazine Zipper. Released in North America by Vertical, Inc.

I had already done a review/overview of this series for a Manga Movable Feast a while back, but now we have Vertical’s new re-release with larger trim and a new translation, so it’s time to give it another look. Which I honestly don’t mind, as this is such a terrific series. I won’t be talking too much about the technical details – the larger size makes the asides much easier to read, I do note. As for the translation, it’s definitely different, and there are pluses and minuses to both. I do prefer Arashi not sounding like Johnny Rotten, though.

The cover and chapter pictures, by the way, might give away a bit of the plot: Yukari becomes a model. But then, most of you probably guessed that as it’s the premise. Yazawa has an eye for fashion and posing, and it all comes to the fore here, with many long, lingering shots of outfits and fabric, and even the rudimentary drudgery of sewing beads is made to look glamorous. Paradise Kiss is a colorful, vibrant place. By contrast, Yukari’s life is as stark and black and white as the manga itself – we barely get to know anyone besides Hiroyuki at her school, and her attention is so quickly distracted by George and company that her diligence to study is in doubt. (Notably, the entire PK group urge her to keep studying, and constantly ask if she has to hit the books. They’re all good students, and don’t want to be seen as the reason she isn’t. It’s Yukari’s own fault that she winds up blowing everything off all the time.)

I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again – I really like Hiroyuki, and I’m glad to see how he interacts with Yukari and the others. The sequence where Yukari drags him to meet Miwako is painful but very well done – and Yukari, as many ‘well-intentioned’ folks seem to do, immediately realizes she’s made a mistake. That said, it worked out well in the end, even if what we mostly get from the story of Miwako. Arashi and Hiroyuki is of things left unfinished – by forcing a choice onto Miwako, Arashi has unwittingly left everything more open-ended than it should be. This will come back to haunt him in future volumes…

A word of warning to those who hate it – this manga is rife with metatextuality. The non-Yukari cast constantly talk about chapters, page placement, etc., reinforcing the fact that Yukari is not only entering the fashionista world of Paradise Kiss, but the manga ‘world’ as well. There are also several references to Yazawa’s shoujo manga Gokinjo Monogatari, which starred Miwako’s older sister, Mikako. Mikako makes a cameo, and a few other characters also show up. Don’t worry if you’ve never read the (unlicensed) prequel; the references actually serve to better flesh out the characters, and show that this isn’t just a story that began once Yukari entered the scene.

Did I forget to mention George? I did. Hi, George. I’ll have more to say about him in my next review. In the meantime, Paradise Kiss has attractive, vibrant characters, gorgeous and striking art, and a wonderfully wicked sense of humor. I’m incr3edibly happy that it’s back in print.