Tag Archives: license request

Manga Widget Investigates, MMF-Edition: Katsu!

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Hey folks! We are postponing this week’s Rescue Me! post in lieu of a MMF license request. Please check back in next week for more Rescue Me! content.

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As hopefully you know, this week is the Cross Game Manga Moveable Feast, a monthly celebration of manga that lasts an entire week. For May, we are celebrating Mitsuru Adachi’s critically-acclaimed Cross Game, a Shonen Sunday manga published from May of 2005 until February of 2010. Derik Badman is hosting the MMF at The Panelists website, so check back there every day this week for more Cross Game content. Cross Game is 17 volumes long, and is being published in an omnibus format in the USA – seven of the 17 volumes have been released so far, the first translated omnibus volume consisting of the first three volumes, while the second two omnibuses are two volumes long apiece.

Mitsuru Adachi is a sports writer, primarily. He has worked in other genres, such as history and fantasy, but his major area of expertise is sports manga, which is why we haven’t seen too much of him the USA until now. Being a sports manga writer is sort of a kiss of death in the publishing industry in the USA – manga like Prince of Tennis and Eyeshield 21 are not popular in the USA, even though they do very well in Japan. This difference comes from the  audience differences between the two nations – in Japan, manga is for everyone, and caters to people of wide tastes and hobbies. Shonen Sunday and Shonen Jump target kids in junior high and high school, and manga in Japan has a much higher penetration rate than here in the USA. And, to be blunt, many of the people who read manga in the USA are not sports-oriented, and don’t enjoy reading about sports.

Cross Game has shown us that even when an author focuses on a sport, they can still manage to tell other stories. Adachi is especially adept at de-emphasizing action and the very meat-and-potatoes scenes that make most other sports manga tick – instead, he focuses on character interaction and emotion, and lets the reader fill in the blanks when it comes to action. It’s a very slick presentation that features a sport, but does not emphasize it above all other things.

Despite his perceived limited scope, it is my opinion that Mitsuru Adachi is one of greatest mangaka in Japan, rivaling Rumiko Takahashi in skill and popularity. His work is allegoric yet heartfelt, and maintains a pace and scope of storytelling unmatched by other mangaka. It seems like a tragedy that more of his writing has not yet made it to the USA, and I think that this is a problem that Viz Media and its parent companies need to rectify, so I’m making a suggestion for Viz Media‘s next Adachi release – Adachi’s 2001-2005 series Katsu!.

Katsu! is a boxing manga about a young man, Katsuki Satoyama, who joins a boxing gym to meet a girl Katsuki Mitzutani that is in his freshman class. After training a bit and sparring, he finds out that he has a latent talent for the game – and comes to discover that he is the son of a pro-boxer. The series features Adachi’s signature every-man main character and the feisty female co-lead who gives him headaches, but this time framed around the sport of boxing.

I’m sure that other people interested in Adachi would like to see his other major baseball series, H2, released in the USA, but I think that Katsu! is a much more reasonable series – like Cross Game, the series does not break 20 volumes (Katsu! is 16 volumes, Cross Game is 17). Both are more modern than H2, which ran for 34 volumes from 1992 to 1999, which isn’t necessarily a problem in art style, since Adachi has been pretty consistent with his art for the past 25 years, but I doubt that many publishers would want to start printing a 34-volume baseball epic that started print almost 20 years ago. Katsu! is a fine compromise and showcases Adachi’s ability to write about more than just baseball.

Part of what we doing an MMF is celebrate not only the story being told, but also the writer telling it. I think it is high time we let Adachi loose on American soil and get more of his manga translated into English. The stories are riveting, wonderful examples of how excellent comics can be, and Cross Game is only a taste of what he can offer to English-reading fans. Katsu! is a fine next step, and it is my hope that Cross Game does well enough to make other Adachi series viable for print in the US.

Rescue Me! The Secret Notes of Lady Kanoko

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Here at Manga Widget, we’re taking two solid months to look at abandoned licenses of great shojo and josei series from the late Tokyopop and CMX. Last week’s entry into the series was a feature on Stolen Hearts, a traditional shojo high school romance story from CMX with a lovely kimono twist.

Here’s the list of the series (and links back to previous articles in case you missed one).

  1. Stolen Hearts
  2. The Secret Notes of Lady Kanoko
  3. Skyshore Blue
  4. The Ginkacho Stellar Six
  5. Happy Café
  6. Argentis Apothecarium
  7. The Lapis Lazuli Crown
  8. Suppli

This week’s rescue request is The Secret Notes of Lady Kanoko (笑うかのこ様, Warau Kanoko-sama), which is a three volume series originally licensed by Tokyopop in a wave of really fun licenses in the Winter of 2010/Spring of 2011. Written and illustrated by Ririko Tsujita, the series was originally published in LaLa DX, a shojo anthology from Hakusensha, which is a bimonthly sister publication to their LaLa anthology. LaLa DX generally debuts new series or one shot stories which can be turned into series if they are popular. Such is the case with The Secret Notes of Lady Kanoko.

Hakusensha, as I have mentioned before, is now one of the mid-list major publishers who do not have any real publishing partners in the USA.

The Secret Notes of Lady Kanoko is critically lauded in the manga community in the USA for its spunky heroine, a girl much like Harriet from Nickelodeon’s Harriet the Spy or Nico from Sexy Voice and Robo, who declares that she is the impartial observer of all her classmates antics; she records activities and personalities, and unearths particular traits, forbidden relationships, and sour relationships with gusto. The catchline of “objective observer” is more of a running joke, however- Kanoko always manages to get herself dragged into problems and manages to bring justice (or her version of it) to those deserving using her particular skill set to its advantage.

One of the most interesting points to The Secret Notes of Lady Kanoko is its format; because LaLa DX is a bimonthly publication, most series have to reintroduce their running storyline in the first few pages of each chapter. While this could get tedious when transferred to the collected tankoban format, The Secret Notes of Lady Kanoko uses this reintroduction to its advantage, having Kanoko transfer school at each new chapter (friends from the first chapter pop back into the storyline from time to time and help her out). This allows her to revisit her “objective observer” ways and really let her start dissecting problems at each new school, allowing her to get messily involved.

Tokyopop managed to get two of the three volumes published before their sudden closure, so we get to see most of the series in print from them. Still, having read the first volume, I want to know how the series ends. Being so close to completion is really disappointing, and there are other Tokyopop series that are stuck in this “one and done” mode, so close to being finished, but never completed.

Another strong point for this license (besides its small size) is that it has an apparently successful sequel currently running in LaLa DX (恋だの愛だの, Koi Dano Ai Dano) which is currently at 2 collected volumes in length. One point regarding this sequel which a few bloggers have mentioned is the second volume of Koi Dano Ai Dano and its fairly steamy cover, so perhaps we will get to see Kanoko give up her school hopping and start making some real and lasting relationships.

Two series with a total of 5 volumes is really small and affordable, so it would be great to see this manga revisited; an omnibus from Yen Press might be just the thing for this fun and quirky little series.

Rescue Me! – Stolen Hearts

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It is hard to for me to think about Tokyopop’s closure with any sense of finality, although their gigantic yard-sale has already come and gone. The company has been a part of the manga publishing market for as long as I have been reading comics on a weekly basis, so Tokyopop’s abrupt disappearance from the market is a bit unsettling. Tokyopop, for all its faults, was a champion of comics from some of the “mid-list majors,” manga publishers that don’t have an international imprint like Viz Media or Kodansha USA, but still publish plenty of manga in Japan. Another one of these “mid-list majors” champions was CMX (part of the parent company DC Comics), and now that both are gone, there are some excellent shojo titles that are both in limbo and deserving of continued publication.

When I originally started reading Tokyopop manga, I was reading harem comedy (aka Love Hina, Ai Yori Aoshi) which is essentially for guys, but once I stopped reading Tokyopop content in 2008, I stayed away from their shonen manga until picking up the first volume of Deadman Wonderland in December of 2010. I was disappointed with the series they were releasing, and wasn’t willing to pay money for the sleezy junk they were putting out for guys. What I did keep on reading was their shojo content, which, especially recently, has been quite a bit of fun. Here are some shojo and josei series that are currently unfinished from Tokyopop (and CMX) that I would love to see completed here in the USA.

1. Stolen Hearts
2. The Secret Notes of Lady Kanoko
3. Skyshore Blue
4. The Ginkacho Stellar Six
5. Happy Café
6. Argentis Apothecarium
7. The Lapis Lazuli Crown
8. Suppli

Each week, for the next eight weeks (or more if I come up with more entries to add to my list), I will feature the series, and talk about my experience with the title and why I think it deserves to see completion.

1. Stolen Hearts

Stolen Hearts has been on my reading list for a while, but I never managed to track down both volumes of the series until my silent month of April when they sprung up on eBay. Although I had to pay higher than retail price for the books, I was happy to get copies to read. The story of Stolen Hearts features two high-schoolers, one, a towering behemoth that everyone is afraid of (Koguma) and a petite 4’10” girl named Shinobu who accidentally spills milk on a kimono in his backpack. Koguma’s grandmother is a dealer in antique kimonos, and to pay back Koguma, Shinobu agrees to model the kimonos and pass out fliers to get more business.

Along the way, the two become a couple and go through the little missteps and awkwardness of a new relationship. Koguma’s brothers interfere with their relationship, which is a simple, sweet, and not too complex love affair that buds in these first two volumes, and appears as though it will bloom into the third or fourth volume. What makes Stolen Hearts stand out (since this is a fairly ordinary shojo story) is the setting in which the events take place – mostly, in a kimono shop. The historic and complex formal dress of the Japanese woman is drawn in beautiful detail, and make the comic, in its black and white dressing, look positively stunning with cute, fun patterns and well designed outfits. The kimonos and the detail about Japanese dress add flair to a well-worn path, and to be honest, it feels as though this addition makes the “first love” shojo cliche into a whole new story.

Additionally, Stolen Hearts is a great shojo comic because not only does it reuse the shojo cliche events like the school festival, it does so without pretension, and I would say celebrates the genre with solid writing, undeniable charm, and a bit of a kimono twist. Not many books can do that, and for that reason, I feel that everyone who likes shojo should be able to read Stolen Hearts.

One of the saddest things about Stolen Hearts is the second volume – not the story, but the back-page insert, advertising a third volume of the series in October of 2010 (CMX was shuttered in the summer of 2010). I was more than willing to pay a little extra to get both volume 1 and 2 together and in good condition, and I am glad I did – the series has stolen my heart.

At 6 volumes total, Stolen Hearts is an easy rescue. It is a nice, small series that has charm in spades, and its short length makes it less costly to pick up and release. Stolen Hearts has a lot going for it, and definitely needs to be completed here in the USA. A smaller company like Digital Manga Publishing (EDIT: or JManga!) could pick this up without much difficulty and finish it here in the USA. I would even be happy with a digital-only release. This is a great series! Someone please rescue Stolen Hearts!

Manga Widget Investigates: Oishii Kankei

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One of the series I’ve really been enjoying lately is DMP’s Itazura na Kiss, which is one of the manga I associate with the beginning of shojo as we know it in the USA. The series, although only recently licensed for release, has flavored and influenced multiple series released in the US, and forms part of a background of almost “required reading” if you are interested in the progression of shojo as a genre. It also happens to be a wonderful series, so it isn’t a drag or a purely academic read either.

One of the things that sets Itazura na Kiss apart from most shojo that is being published currently is its art style, which some might say is dated or old-fashioned. The art is fully set in the 1990′s, with all of its clothing and hair trends, but it also has a sort of angular quality that looks very different from something like, say Fruits Basket. While some readers dislike this style, I find it quite attractive. 1990′s manga like Itazura na Kiss, and Boys Over Flowers are some of my favorite series; it comes as no surprise then that I’m interested in another 90′s manga – Oishii Kankei (A Delicious Relationship) written by Satoru Makimura and originally published in Shueisha‘s Young You anthology. The series is 16 volumes long, and began its run in 1993.

Oishii Kankei is a story about a college age woman who loves gourmet food named Fujiwara Momoe. Her father, a wealthy businessman, loves to indulge his tastes for classy cooking, and she has spent her entire life eating the most delectable meals prepared by the best chefs in Japan. On the day of the celebration of Fujiwara’s graduation, her father dies of a heart attack, presumably due to his overeating. In one moment, Fujiwara’s life is forever changed. Now she and her mother are alone, and must now make a living. Fujiwara manages to walk into a small French restaurant and impress the manager and head chef, Oda-san, to hire her.

This is, just like Itazura na Kiss, a shojo tale of grumpy, handsome love interest vs. spunky, relentless lead, but it is complicated and embellished with food and cooking. I’m not shy about asking for cooking manga, and the list of cooking manga we have licensed in English is woefully short. To take cooking and add the irresistible strengths of Itazura na Kiss just seems like a winning combination to me.

The rest of the world seems to agree. Oishii Kankei has been made into an 11-part drama show as well as a 20-part Taiwanese drama titled Sweet Relationship which ran from Fall 2007 to Winter 2008.

Of particular note, Satoru Makimura is an author we haven’t seen anything from in the US, but she produces some seemingly spectacular dance, clothing, and sport-related josei and shojo manga. She made her debut in 1973 with “Shiroi Tsuioku,” and her latest series, Real Clothes, serialized in YOU, has made it to the BookScan comic lists for Japan on multiple occasions.

Do I think that Oishii Kankei is a good license? Probably not. The series’ “outdated” artwork is probably a limiting factor for its publication because of the tastes of the current US manga reading population, but that doesn’t make it any less wonderful. Certainly though, it is a possible license – books like Boys over Flowers and Oishinbo have been published, so it isn’t out of the realm of possibility. Regardless of discussions of financial viability though, I can’t think of a series that meets more of my “squee” criteria besides perhaps The Drops of God (coming soon from Vertical Inc.!!!) so I guess a guy can dream.

My Reaction to the Princess Knight, Kami no Shizuku Licenses

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Last night, during the Anime News Network’s podcast, Ed Chavez announced that Vertical Inc. had acquired the licenses to translate and publish two manga that have been on many fans’ license request lists. The two series announced last night were:

Princess Knight, by Osamu Tezuka

Princess Knight is probably the manga that was the genesis for what we now know as shojo manga, and was printed three different collections in Japan. The series is three volumes long, which seems fairly standard for Vertical‘s boutique size and schedule. Amazon already has a preorder page up for the first volume, which says it will be released in October of 2011.

and;

Kami no Shizuku (The Drops of God), by Yuko and Shin Kibayashi (under the pseudonym of Tadashi Agi).

Kami no Shizuku merges my two favorite hobbies, wine making and manga, so I have been anxious to read and own this manga since I learned about it three years ago. Because of its subject matter (wine in general, but more importantly, its wine suggestions and evaluations) Kami no Shizuku has been used to increase sales of wine in Japan and has already been published in France. Vertical will release the 25+ volume series in two-volume ominbuses which will retail for around $14.95 apiece, a good value for manga. This publishing structure is similar to that of other omnibus style published series like Cross Game.

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I have become more impressed with boutique publishing in recent months; big publications companies, like Viz Media and Kodansha are linked to a specific parent company and have to serve a higher power concerned with margins and turnover. While this is important for any publisher, small boutique publishing has more creative liberty to develop and publish unique, sometimes niche content. Vertical Inc. has shown that it is willing to take a chance on Drops of God, and that is something I never really expected one of the larger publishers to release. Because of their unique stance on publishing, they have released manga that other publishers probably wouldn’t touch, which is overall a positive thing for readers and fans.

Last night, when the license announcements were made, I literally jumped for joy. I have been waiting and requesting these series from publishers since the earliest parts of my blogging experience.  Vertical Inc. is a company that knows its products, and is very intent on creating books that have a good niche appeal. Taking what I thought would always just be a pipe dream of a manga and turning it into an actual English title has me extremely impressed, and ultimately, extremely appreciative to Vertical for taking the time to listen to readers. Their dedication to their product and fans will hopefully be rightfully rewarded.