We heard a lot of buzz over the weekend about the graphic novel presence at Book Expo America. ICv2 has a wrapup report that notes that the big manga players (Tokyopop, Viz) didn’t have booths on the floor, although I happen to know that both sent representatives to the show.
Manga seemed particularly affected, with Dark Horse, Hachette’s Yen Press, and Japanime the only manga publishers we saw on the floor. But Diamond Book Distributors’ Kuo-Yu Liang assured us that manga was still an important part of the business. “The market for manga is still there,” he said, noting that the number of titles had gotten out of hand relative to the demand, and was coming back in line.
Yen Press, of course, is based in New York, so their people didn’t have to travel, which may have been a factor.
Jonathan Clements has an interesting piece on the manga of Kenshi Hirokane, who features older characters in his stories, at The Official Schoolgirl Milky Crisis Blog.
Sean Rogers looks at a classic underground manga, Nejishiki (“Screw-Style”), at The Walrus Magazine blog.
Tom Baker writes about a common theme in manga: The hand or arm that takes on a life of its own (Parasyte) or becomes a deadly weapon (Berserk).
Lissa Pattillo finds some possible new Tokyopop titles on Amazon and speculates about some older announcements as well at Kuriousity.
Shojo Flash lists the shoujo manga coming out in August, gleaned from the latest Previews.
Erica Friedman has some excellent advice for artists and writers as well as a week’s worth of yuri news at Okazu.
At The Guardian, LaToya Peterson looks at the Marvel Divas and realizes why she likes manga better than capes-and-tights comics.
Japanator’s Brad Rice has some new license suggestions for Vertical, and his readers chime in with more.
News from Japan: Great Teacher Onizuka is returning to the pages of Kodansha’s Weekly Shonen Magazine with a new name: GTO Shonan 14 Days. And Saiyuki Reload is coming to an end, but
Reviews: I’m a bit late to this party, but Derik Badman has been reviewing Osamu Tezuka’s Phoenix, one volume at a time, at his blog, Madinkbeard. His most recent review, of vol. 9, is just up, and he also discusses Lone Wolf and Cub and Akira. Over at Manga Recon, the staff turns in another sheaf of Manga Minis.
A Library Girl on vol. 3 of Antique Bakery (A Library Girl’s Familiar Diversions)
Connie on vol. 1 of Audition (Slightly Biased Manga)
D.M. Evans on vol. 1 of B.Ichi (Manga Jouhou)
John Thomas on vol. 4 of Black Jack (Comics Village)
Connie on vol. 5 of Black Lagoon (Slightly Biased Manga)
Emily on Cherries Fight (Emily’s Random Shoujo Manga Page)
Marc Mason on The Color of Earth (Comics Waiting Room)
Tangognat on vol. 1 of Cy-Believers (Tangognat)
Julie on Dogs Prelude 0 (Manga Maniac Cafe)
Julie on Double Trouble (MangaCast)
Danielle Leigh on vol. 4 of Flower of Life (Comics Should Be Good)
Connie on vol. 1 of Gakuen Prince (Manga Recon)
Melinda Beasi on vol. 1 of Gestalt (There it is, Plain as Daylight)
Erin on vols. 9-11 of Hayate the Combat Butler (Manga Recon)
Azizul Rahman on vol. 1 of Higurashi When They Cry: Abducted by Demons (The Star of Malaysia)
Julie on Idol Pleasures (Manga Maniac Cafe)
Lissa Pattillo on vol. 1 of Kasumi (Kuriousity)
Michelle Smith on vols. 1 and 2 of Kaze Hikaru (Comics Should Be Good)
Lissa Pattillo on vol. 9 of The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (Kuriousity)
Laura on Land of the Blindfolded (Heart of Manga)
David Brothers on vol. 2 of Lone Wolf and Cub (4thletter!)
Connie on vol. 2 of Magic Touch (Slightly Biased Manga)
Lori Henderson on vol. 1 of Ninja Baseball Kyuma (Manga Xanadu)
Sam Kusek on vol. 21 of One Piece (Manga Recon)
Connie on vol. 6 of Parasyte (Slightly Biased Manga)
Melinda Beasi on vol. 1 of Pig Bride (Manga Recon)
Sandy Bilus on vol. 1 of Pluto (I Love Rob Liefeld)
David Brothers on vols. 1-3 of Pluto (4thletter!)
Julie on vol. 5 of Sand Chronicles (Manga Maniac Cafe)
Brad Rice on Sundome (Japanator)
Sabrina Fritz on vol. 1 of Tsubasa: Those with Wings and vol. 1 of Fruits Basket (Good Comics for Kids)