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Author Archive for Lissa Pattillo

PR: Comedy, Rock an’ Roll and Romance in Viz Media’s Ai Ore!

By Lissa Pattillo on Tuesday, April 26, 2011

COMEDY, ROCK ‘n’ ROLL AND ROMANCE SET THE STAGE FOR THE DEBUT OF VIZ MEDIA’S NEWEST SHOJO MANGA SERIES AI ORE!

The Boy (Who Looks Like A Girl) Meets Girl (Who Looks Like A Boy) Romance From The Creator Of SENSUAL PHRASE

San Francisco, CA, April 26, 2011 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry’s most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, expands its extensive catalog of shojo manga (graphic novels for girls) titles with the launch of AI ORE! on May 3rd. The new series, created by Mayu Shinjo, will be published under the Shojo Beat imprint, is rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens, and will carry an MSRP of $12.99 U.S. / $14.99 CAN.

Mizuki is the female “prince” of her all-girls school and the lead guitarist in an all-girl rock band. Akira is the male “princess” of his all-boys school and wants to join her band. Love may be on his mind, but romance is difficult when everyone keeps mistaking Mizuki for a boy and Akira for a girl!

“Cool rocker Mizuki, who has worked hard to cultivate her “princely” reputation, meets her match in Akira, a boy who isn’t afraid to use his “feminine wiles” to get what he wants in this fun romp by Mayu Shinjo,” says Nancy Thistlethwaite, Editor. “AI ORE! has the hallmarks that readers love about master creator Mayu Shinjo’s work—great characters and passionate romance—but this series also reveals Shinjo’s irrepressible sense of humor. Fans have been waiting for a new release by the creator of the hit series SENSUAL PHRASE, and we are pleased to bring this manga to North America.”

AI ORE! creator Mayu Shinjo hails from the city of Nagasaki and debuted as a manga artist in 1994 with I Want to be Dyed in Your Color in the pages of Shogakukan’s Shojo Comic magazine. She has been a prolific creator with over fifteen titles to her name.

For more information on AI ORE! and other VIZ Media shojo manga titles, please visit www.ShojoBeat.com.

About VIZ Media, LLC
Headquartered in San Francisco, CA, VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), is one of the most comprehensive and innovative companies in the field of manga (graphic novel) publishing, animation and entertainment licensing of Japanese content. Owned by three of Japan’s largest creators and licensors of manga and animation, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media is a leader in the publishing and distribution of Japanese manga for English speaking audiences in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and South Africa and is a global ex-Asia licensor of Japanese manga and animation. The company offers an integrated product line including the popular monthly manga anthology SHONEN JUMP magazine, graphic novels, and DVDs, and develops, markets, licenses, and distributes animated entertainment for audiences and consumers of all ages. Contact VIZ Media at 295 Bay Street, San Francisco, CA 94133; Phone (415) 546-7073; Fax (415) 546-7086; and website at www.VIZ.com.

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ANN Review: Dengeki Daisy (Vol. 04)

By Lissa Pattillo on Monday, April 25, 2011

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For my most recently posted review over at AnimeNewsNetwork, I revisted a series I’d previously reviewed over there – Dengeki Daisy (Vol. 04).

“Amusing as they may be, Teru and Kurosaki are still facing the same problems they were one, two and three volumes ago. These stories have their charm but don’t feel worth the postponed plot.”

It’s such a relief to have the big secret finally completely out in the open! Then again… it hasn’t changed much. Teru knows who her hacker-protector DAISY is at least yet no one’s really talking about it. Everyone’s still doing the same thing they were before! At least there’s some subplot working its way to the surface and I look forward to seeing how these more sinister story directions play themselves out.

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Publisher Websites Come, Go and Update

By Lissa Pattillo on Sunday, April 24, 2011

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Some website news today and I don’t mean regarding Kuriousity (though a reminder you can get to the site from the more easily remembered kuriousity.ca!).

First up is Kodansha Comics which after months of using their website KodanshaComics.com to list their press releases, has uploaded their actual website It’s simple and neatly laid out, which is great to see on a publisher site. Very easily navigated so yay for that! You can see covers for several of their upcoming books on the Release Dates page. The search and title info is unfortunately just linked to Random House’s page instead of housing its own internal sources but at least it’s something. A note that if you’re not using a screen resolution higher than 1200pixels wide, I’d recommend zooming out to 83% viewing. It’s a fixed width site that doesn’t seem designed to support smaller screens.

Elsewhere Dark Horse has made some huge changes to their website and I must say it looks and works great! It has a sharp new look, a retooled search function and an easy to use Browse function that allows you to call up any or all of their books in a specified period of time and ordered in a variety of ways. Each individual page even has a link to Comic Book finder so you can find a location nearest to you to purchase the goods. This site update comes just in time for their upcoming Digital Store launch which will include manga-epic Lone Wolf and Cub. My kudos to the design and programming team – the new site is fantastic!

On a less positive note, Tokyopop (which recently announced its shutdown of the company’s publishing division) is gearing up for a complete tear down of its website. With a community heavy in participation including blog posts, forums and media uploads, they’ve sent out a few e-mails to remind folks to save what they want now because as of “early next week” it’s all going to be gone.

“As we’ve previously stated in our newsletter, TOKYOPOP.com will go offline early next week. We know that you probably have kept copies of everything you’ve uploaded (photos, videos, drawings etc.), but we just want to be extra-sure and give you this last reminder so that you can pull anything down from TOKYOPOP.com that you still need. The last chance to pull your uploads is THIS WEEKEND! After this weekend, you will not have access to material on TOKYOPOP.com. If you’re concerned about losing any data, please act right away! Don’t forget to tell your friends about this too, if you think that they’re unaware of this.”

And as a bit of weird final note – the old URL for now defunct manga publisher GoComi! has been resurrected and now has the bare basics of a WordPress installation. There’s a teeny tiny bit of info regarding GoComi and a couple of their titles but I wouldn’t see this as any sign of a return. Most likely it’s a more creative than usual domain park seeing as how it uses old cached information and images from Amazon (plus a bunch of ads to take advantage of visitors who might be curious enough to click on the Google Ads). Still a little weird though, hmm? [Thanks go to Ryu Sheng for noticing this one]

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Categories: News
Tags: Dark Horse, GoComi, Kodansha Comics, Manga

CLAMP’s Gate 7 Manga Coming From Dark Horse in 2011

By Lissa Pattillo on Saturday, April 23, 2011

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The CLAMP fan-community, clamp_now, has translated new information from the manga team’s website about the international release schedule for their new series, Gate 7.

Gate 7 has already been serialized for a few issues in Japan and France, with tankouban (graphic novel length) editions set to come out in a number of countries around the world, including in North America from Dark Horse. The release date for this edition is summer 2011 – not too far away!

Originally Dark Horse comics had said that they’d be simultaneously releasing Gate 7 in small single-issue format. That was a few years ago and there’s been little news from Dark Horse since about it – granted they haven’t let up on the CLAMP releases with a bunch of omnibus editions of the group’s titles. While it seems safe to say we’re not going to get the serialized edition as originally thought, it’s still nice to see the series itself remains on the agenda one way or another.

I’m really excited to have this book in hand. I’m a huge CLAMP fan and must own everything they’ve done, for one, and the art looks gorgeous. Though Dark Horse has yet to comment on this news, hearing it come directly from CLAMP seems like a pretty good sign. Fingers crossed!

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Categories: Licensing, News
Tags: CLAMP, Dark Horse, Gate 7, Manga

PR: Viz Media Summer Time Reading with 3-in-1 Omnibus

By Lissa Pattillo on Friday, April 22, 2011

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VIZ MEDIA DELIVERS SUMMER READING FUN WITH NEW 3-IN-1 MANGA EDITIONS

New Omnibus Releases Announced For BLEACH, FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, KEKKAISHI And NARUTO

San Francisco, CA, April 21, 2011 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry’s most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, kicks off the summer reading season with the release of new 3-in-1 omnibus editions for several best-loved manga (graphic novels) series. NARUTO and KEKKAISHI both launch on May 3rd, and BLEACH and FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST go on sale June 7th. Each of the new omnibus releases bundles 3 complete manga volumes into a handy summertime reading companion.

NARUTO 3-in-1 Edition Vol. 1  Rated ‘T’ for Teens 
MSRP: $14.99 U.S. / $16.99 CAN  Available May 3rd
Naruto is a young shinobi with an incorrigible knack for mischief. He’s got a wild sense of humor, but Naruto is completely serious about his mission to be the world’s greatest ninja! It’s training day and no one takes Naruto seriously at Ninja Academy. Especially not the other students, who all are competing to be the best ninja ever and some day lead Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Naruto and his classmates are about to embark on an adventure that takes them far beyond Ninja Academy, beyond Konoha, beyond anything they ever imagined. What is Naruto’s true destiny? The epic story that has sold millions worldwide begins now! For more information, please visit the official NARUTO website at www.Naruto.com.

KEKKAISHI 3-in-1 Edition Vol. 1  Rated ‘T’ for Teens 
MSRP: $14.99 U.S. / $16.99 CAN  Available May 3rd
By night, teenager Yoshimori Sumimura is a “kekkaishi”–a demon-hunter who specializes in creating magical barriers around his prey. By day, Yoshimori’s got other demons to battle: an addiction to sweets and a seriously crotchety grandfather! Yoshimori’s pretty neighbor and childhood friend, Tokine Yukimura, is also a kekkaishi, but their families are feuding over who is the true practitioner of the art. Now the two rival kekkaishi must do battle with amphibious demons, the ghost of a pastry chef, charming demon-charmer Yomi and her pet demon Yoki, embittered demon-dog Koya – and more! More information on KEKKAISHI is available at: www.viz.com/kekkaishi.

BLEACH 3-in-1 Edition Vol. 1  Rated ‘T’ for Teens 
MSRP: $14.99 U.S. / $16.99 CAN  Available June 7th
Ichigo Kurosaki has always been able to see ghosts, but this ability doesn’t change his life nearly as much as his close encounter with Rukia Kuchiki, a Soul Reaper and member of the mysterious Soul Society. While fighting a Hollow, an evil spirit that preys on humans who display psychic energy, Rukia attempts to lend Ichigo some of her powers so that he can save his family; but much to her surprise, Ichigo absorbs every last drop of her energy. Now a full-fledged Soul Reaper himself, Ichigo quickly learns that the world he inhabits is one full of dangerous spirits, and along with Rukia – who is slowly regaining her powers – it’s Ichigo’s job to protect the innocent from Hollows and help the spirits themselves find peace. The paranormal action-adventure begins now! More information on BLEACH is available at Bleach.viz.com.

FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST 3-in-1 Edition Vol. 1  Rated ‘T’ for Teens 
MSRP: $14.99 U.S. / $16.99 CAN  Available June 7th
Alchemy: the mystical power to alter the natural world, somewhere between magic, art and science. When two brothers, Edward and Alphonse Elric, dabbled in these powers to grant their dearest wish, one of them lost an arm and a leg…and the other became nothing but a soul locked into a body of living iron. Now they are agents of the government, slaves of the military-alchemical complex, using their unique powers to obey their orders…even to kill. But their powers aren’t unique. The world crawls with evil alchemists. And in pursuit of the ultimate alchemical treasure, the Philosopher’s Stone, their enemies are even more ruthless than they are! More information on FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST is available at: www.viz.com/fullmetal-alchemist.

Read more…

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Categories: Press Releases
Tags: Fullmetal Alchemist, Viz Media

Pop Vultures – Talking Tokyopop on ANNCast

By Lissa Pattillo on Friday, April 22, 2011

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There’s a new ANNCast posted this week over at AnimeNewsNetwork where I joined host Zac Bertschy and Erica Friedman from Yuricon.com to discuss the recent Tokyopop shutdown.

We talk about Tokyopop’s shakier business decisions, Stu Levy’s (the company’s CEO) big role to play in its demise and public opinion as well as their Manga Pilot Program. It was a great conversation full of optimism and not-so-optimistic hard truths – I’m thankful I had the opportunity to participate and hope people enjoy the listen.

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Categories: Editorials
Tags: Manga, Tokyopop

Swag Bag: Bittersweet, Baseball and Butlers

By Lissa Pattillo on Wednesday, April 20, 2011

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Another week, another round of shiny new manga purchases! Hard to believe it’s already nearing the end of April, especially with chilly days like today. The rain at least I was expecting. My thanks as always to my phenomenal local comic shop, Strange Adventures, for always having the newest books rain or shine.

My two bittersweet purchases of the week were Shinobi Life (Vol. 07) and Silver Diamond (Vol. 09) – two series that still have a number of volumes until their completion and now we’re unlikely to ever see them in English. It comforts me a little that I’ve found Silver Diamond severely lacking for the last few volumes but I’m still really curious how it manages to go for another 15+ volumes. This volume of Shinobi Life left me a bit disappointed too but it’s still one of the most enjoyable shoujos I’ve read in a long while – time-travelling ninjas in love!

Viz Media dominated my purchase bag this week with four new books. First and quickest to my bag was Cross Game (Vol. 03). Having already read it, I can attest to the fact it’s fantastic. I was a little let down by volume two, but volume three completely renewed the faith I had in the series after finishing the first book. Amazing stuff. 20th Century Boys (Vol. 14) was also a given. The series is dragging on a bit long for my tastes but each volume is still a real page-turner.

To add another relaxing read to the pile (which goes comfortably next to Cross Game in that regard), I picked up House of Five Leaves (Vol. 05). I also bought Itsuwaribito (Vol. 02) after finding the first volume enjoyable, though not overly exciting. I always try to give those not-sure titles at least two volumes however so we’ll see how that goes!

Last, but certainly not least, there’s Black Butler (Vol. 05)! Flipping through makes a little annoyed to see more of those gosh-awful background characters who ‘tend’ to Ceil’s estate but I’ll do my best to ignore them for more of Sebastien’s fantastically swoon-worthy butler-ness.

What made up your swag bag this week?

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Categories: Features, Swag Bag
Tags: 20th Century Boys, Black Butler, Manga, Tokyopop, Viz Media, Viz Signature, Yen Press

ANN Review: Clean Freak – Fully Equipped (Vol. 01)

By Lissa Pattillo on Tuesday, April 19, 2011

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A rather unfortunately timed review of mine was posted over on AnimeNewsNetwork this weekend for Clean Freak – Fully Equipped (Vol. 01).

“A quirky plot will only get you so far and Clean Freak may keep up the ethanol-enthusiasm to the end, but it does so at the expense of developing characters readers will truly care about.”

Overall, I didn’t really like this book – I didn’t dislike it per say but it was a total throw away once done (er, donate or sell but you know!). I did like the lead’s over the top problem with germs and cleanliness because it was pretty entertaining but the unpolished artwork and multitude of underdeveloped characters being rushed in and out the whole time made it really hard to give a care. Kudos though to the graphic designer for the lovely packaging! That was the entire reason I picked it up in the first place.

Gengerally unless I find it heinous or incapable of finishing, I always try to give a new series two books to prove themselves to me. It’s too bad however that with Tokyopop’s sudden shutdown it’s very unlikely Clean Freak will have a chance to prove itself again.

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Categories: Reviews
Tags: ANN Reviews, Manga, Tokyopop

Review: Skip Beat! (Vol. 23)

By Lissa Pattillo on Monday, April 18, 2011

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Reviewer: Shannon Fay

Manga-ka: Yoshiki Nakamura
Publisher: viz Media
Rating: Teen (13+)
Release Date: April 2011

Synopsis: “Chiori’s rage threatens the whole production when she lashes out and hurts Kyoko. Kyoko is used to overcoming obstacles, and she uses her injury as an excuse to push Chiori into exploring her acting. But Chiori has a traumatic past. Will focusing on the dark side of her character bring it all rushing back?!”

My favourite parts of Skip Beat are when the characters talk about acting and examine their craft. Unfortunately, this volume takes that aspect too far. There’s long stretches of the book where the characters just go on and on, explaining their machinations and motivations. At certain points it seems more like a volume of Death Note than Skip Beat.

PR: VIZ Media Welcomes Natsume Ono At Kinokuniya NY

By Lissa Pattillo on Monday, April 18, 2011

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VIZ MEDIA AND KINOKUNIYA BOOKSTORE PRESENT MANGA ARTIST NATSUME ONO FOR A RARE LIVE APPEARANCE IN NEW YORK CITY

Special Event Celebrates The Creator Of RISTORANTE PARADISO And HOUSE OF FIVE LEAVES; Raffle Contest To Award Grand Prize Original Artwork

San Francisco, CA, April 18, 2011– VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry’s most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, together with Japanese licensor Ohta Shuppan, welcomes renowned manga (graphic novel) artist Natsume Ono for a personal appearance and special event celebrating her work, hosted by the Kinokuniya Bookstores of America Company (Kinokuniya Bookstore) in New York City on Tuesday, May 10th starting at 7:00pm.

Kinokuniya Bookstore is located at 1073 Avenue of the Americas, between 40th St. & 41st St., New York City.

The event will feature commentary from Ono on her past and present works and her continued evolution as one of the foremost manga artists and graphic novel storytellers, hosted by Megumi Sato of Samurai Beat Radio. An audience Q&A session will follow. A raffle contest (open to all attendees, one raffle ticket per person) also will award one lucky Grand Prize winner an original Natsume Ono artwork, signed in-person by the artist; 2 additional runner-up winners will get a Natsume Ono print. Each winner will also have the opportunity to have Ono sign one personal item at the event.