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Archive for November, 2009

PR: Yen to publish James Patterson’s DANIEL X in manga series

By Lissa Pattillo on Friday, November 6, 2009

YEN PRESS TO PUBLISH MANGA ADAPTATION OF INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING NOVELIST JAMES PATTERSON’S DANIEL X

NEW YORK, November 6, 2009 — Yen Press announced today that it will adapt the first three novels in international bestselling novelist James Patterson’s DANIEL X series into manga with Korean artist Seung-hui Kye. Kye has published extensively in his native Korea with 13 manhwa books (Korean manga) to his name that have been translated and published in over 10 countries.

The first volume of Yen’s previous adaptation of Patterson’s work, MAXIMUM RIDE, spent 31 weeks on Nielsen BookScan’s graphic novel bestseller list and was named one of the top 25 manga properties in both the first and second quarters of 2009.

Like MAXIMUM RIDE, the DANIEL X manga will appear in Yen Press’s manga anthology YEN PLUS before the book is collected into a trade paperback format in summer 2010.

Kurt Hassler, Publishing Director, Yen Press, says: “The MAXIMUM RIDE manga adaptation has been a stellar success since its release earlier this year which is a real testament to James Patterson’s versatility as a great storyteller in any medium. Yen Press is incredibly excited to be a part of helping to bring DANIEL X into the comics world for existing fans of the series and new readers alike.”

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Review: Love Roma (Vol. 04)

By Shannon Fay on Thursday, November 5, 2009

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Reviewer: Shannon Fay

Manga-ka: Minoru Toyoda
Publisher: Del Rey
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: October 2006

Synopsis: “Hoshino’s never been afraid to tell Negishi just how he feels about her. Hoshino loves Negishi heart and soul–after all, she’s his very first love. But suddenly it’s gotten harder to share his feelings, because now he’s feeling something he’s never felt before: jealousy! The new boy at school, Wakaba, has a major crush on Negishi. And when Wakaba and Negishi become friends, Hoshino gets worried. Is Negishi pulling away from him? And will Hoshino’s silence only make things worse?”

Love Roma is basically a one-trick pony, but if you like the trick then it’s still pretty entertaining. Much of the humour in the series comes from the characters being painfully straightforward, especially the male lead Hoshino. Hoshino isn’t mean-spirited in his bluntness, in fact he’s usually just trying to tell his girlfriend Negishi how much he loves her. Sometimes she gets the message, other times she whacks him over the head for being an idiot. Rinse, wash and repeat and you have Love Roma.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Del Rey, Manga

Release List: November 2009

By Lissa Pattillo on Wednesday, November 4, 2009

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Monthly Release List: November

Halloween month is behind us but with the chilly Autumn weather kicking in full force (or in some places even snow!), there’s still lots of reasons to wrap up in a warm blanket and relax at home – and of course how better than with a big stack of manga?

This month offers up lots of great titles including many of my favourites. Tokyopop offers up the newest volume of Pet Shop of Horrors: Tokyo, which features Count D wearing some of the cuteness outfits you’ll ever see the ageless shopkeep in, and bookshelves will see the next volume of the cluttered but highly energized Zone-00. A new Hinako Takanaga title, Liberty Liberty, makes up their BLU offering for the month.

Viz Media takes home the many-much-manga prize yet again with tons of amazing new volumes, from Ikigami to Fushigi Yugi: Genbu Kaiden, and from Pluto to Kaze Hikaru. Del Rey offers up a healthy assortment this month as well including the next volume of the charming Yokaiden and the first volume of You Higuri’s Night Head Genesis.

Toss in a great assortment of charming manhwa from Yen Press and a new volume of Black Jack from Vertical and you have just some of the awesomeness that is November 2009! What books have dibs on your paychecks this month?

You can check out the full list of November 2009’s currently scheduled manga releases under the cut:

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Categories: Release Lists
Tags: 07 Ghost, Black Jack, Fullmetal Alchemist, Fushigi Yugi, Hinako Takanaga, Shoujo Beat, Vampire Knight

Review: An Ideal World

By Andre Paploo on Tuesday, November 3, 2009

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Reviewer: Andre

Manhua-ka: Chao Peng, Weidong Chen
Publisher: Yen Press
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: March 2009

Synopsis: “Time and again, A You finds himself chasing a mysterious rabbit through his dreams. But before he can reach out and grab it…his mother is shaking him awake for another day of work. A You’s not exactly thrilled with his job at the factory, so when a persistent streak of bad luck leaves him unemployed, it seems like a great opportunity to start over. The trouble is, A You doesn’t have anything to move on to. With no goals or aspirations, A You roams the city searching for direction. Deep in thought on one of his strolls, A You suddenly rouses himself only to discover he’s lost in the woods. He catches sight of a rabbit, and in desperation follows it through the forest. But this scene seems familiar…Is it a dream? Or could there truly be An Ideal World within the darkness?”

Chinese comics have been imported to the English comics market since the 80’s, but those were primarily Hong Kong action comics. Now, we’re beginning to see a larger variety, including some titles from mainland China, such as this title – Yen Press’s release of An Ideal World. A mixture of European, Hong Kong and manga aesthetics, An Ideal World offers a change in pace from normal asian comics fare, with vivid colours and a self-contained, single volume story.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Manhua, Yen Press

PR: VIZ Media manga releases for Q4 2009!

By Lissa Pattillo on Monday, November 2, 2009

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VIZ MEDIA SERVES UP SCIENCE FICTION, ACTION FANTASY, ROMANCE AND JAPANESE CUISINE FOR NEW FOURTH QUARTER MANGA RELEASES

New Titles Span A Variety Of Genres To Delight Fans Of All Ages And Interests

San Francisco, CA, November 2, 2009 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry’s most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, has previewed an array of new manga (graphic novel) releases scheduled to debut throughout the Fourth Quarter of 2009. The new titles span a diverse range of genres everywhere from science fiction, fantasy/adventure, and crime thrillers to shojo (comics for girls) and teenage coming-of-age stories.

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Categories: Press Releases
Tags: Rumiko Takahashi, Viz Media

Tokyopop Webinar – Guest-Starring Creator of Domo

By Lissa Pattillo on Monday, November 2, 2009

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This past Thursday, Tokyopop held another of its webinars – an open to the public live video feed where they announce new information and take Q & A from attendees.

This week they had a special guest – Goda-san – the creator of the popular, Domo. The Tokyopop representatives, Cindy Suzuki and Lillian Diaz-Pryzbyl, were there to speak with him about creating Domo while Tokyopop rep Vy Nguyen collected questions from the virtual audience.

If you ever wanted to learn more about Domo, then this Domo-nar was certainly your chance!

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Categories: Misc
Tags: Tokyopop

Review: Ludwig II (Vol. 02)

By Lissa Pattillo on Sunday, November 1, 2009

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Reviewer: Lissa Pattillo

Manga-ka: You Higuri
Publisher: June
Rating: Older Teen (16+)
Release Date: September 2009

Synopsis: “The kingdom of Bavaria was absorbed into the German Empire during the latter half of the 19th century. The stunningly handsome king of Bavaria— who never married and who would have operas and plays privately staged for him—wandered between fantasy and reality, alone in his extravagant crystal palace, Neuschwanstein. “I want to remain an eternal mystery to myself and others,” Ludwig II once said, and now we reach the final act of his drama.”

Bringing to a close the tragic life of Ludwig II, You Higuri’s loosely-based historical take on the reign of Bavaria’s King continues to view his life from a personal perspective – following the sordid romance between Ludwig and his consort Hornrig while madness continues to nip at his majesty’s heels.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: Boys' Love/Yaoi, June, Manga