So I don't often cover licensed manga or even properties with media tie-ins for this publication. I'm not opposed to sharing my thoughts on popular titles, but other people might do a better job of that. Besides the magazine would fail you all as an …Read more »
The following statement may or may not be fully supported by this magazine's editorial staff, but given my years of manga experience I wholeheartedly believe it to be true-- "Manga are comics; comics are manga." The differences between the two are so insignificant that in …Read more »
Last summer I turned 31 and as soon as I entered my second trimester of life I realized how limited my options were now that my youth was behind me. Mind you, I have lived a decent life so far. I've visited five continents. Had …Read more »
So you've seen the Gurren Lagann anime and if you were lucky like me you might have had a chance to screen the first motion picture. You possibly enjoyed the dynamic relationship shared by the series heroes Kamina and Simon. Watching the Gunmen take each …Read more »
Second stop on our express ride through Shogakukan's IKKI train titles will drop me off on what has to be the most popular train comic ever made. Sure, given how train manga is deep in niche territory this is not a bold statement. Nevertheless, Tetsuko …Read more »
If anything has significant meaning in Japanese culture it is bound to be immortalized in a manga. Trains have been a part of the Japanese comics scene since its beginning. You can see them play a pivotal role in Tatsumi's gekiga classic the Pushman . …Read more »
As I sit in a Jimbocho donut house drinking iced coffee, noshing on a cream cheese donut the last thing that should be on my mind should be Fyodor Dostoevsky... right? According to Futabasha's Manga Action magazine maybe I and other students of manga culture …Read more »
I am of the conviction that manga magazines have personalities. These characteristics are derived from the editorial staff (primarily the editor-in-chief) and the readership. Therefore, if I were to analyze a periodical solely based on the content featured within - everything from the manga to …Read more »
Despite all the hype and international press Comiket gets, the summer Japanese con season does not start nor end with Comic Market. A week later in the same venue thousands gathered to participate in a comic convention that had much greater relevance to the world …Read more »
I don't have to remind OtakuUSA readers of how in business, even within the confines of the wild and unpredictable world of manga publishing, there is one precept that can be applied to practically every form of marketin— sex sells. Adult content can be found …Read more »
Despite the odds, the latest edition of Comic Market persevered possibly bigger and stronger than ever! The semi-annual doujin convention continues to be the world's largest comic convention displaying the creative and economic force that fandom possesses in Japan. In what might be an era …Read more »
In the wild world of manga, every age group and every social class has their own genre and magazine that defines them. For the elementary school kid there are video game based properties like the ones that dominate Shogakukan's Coro Coro magazine. Nothing says office …Read more »
Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, but does that apply to manga? There is a belief among Western manga readers and critics that there is a specific look and design to Japanese comics. If there is a standard it comes from the layout …Read more »
I started reading manga back in the 80s. Most of the manga I initially read came from mainstream publishers - Shogakukan, Shueisha, and Kodansha. You could say that the first decade or so of my otaku-life only knew of Shonen Jump , Shonen Sunday , …Read more »
[Excerpted from the October 2007 issue of Otaku USA Magazine] It is Friday night in Kansai (the eastern side of Japan) and whether you are a furita or a salaryman there is only one thing on your mind -a good place to have a drink. …Read more »
Ed Chavez
