New York Comic Con began today in Manhattan, and the convention started with quite a number of announcements from the manga and anime industry. Hot off the heels of Crunchyroll’s partnership with Funimation and the official unveiling of Anime NYC, October follows in the wake of a very good September for anime and manga fans. And today, Kodansha and Crunchyroll came out with a variety of major announcements for their fanbases. Here’s just a few highlights from the day:
Kodansha opened Thursday’s 11am block with a strong showing of upcoming stories. With over a dozen major announcements, the company discussed ten new releases for the coming year ahead. One title, Love & Lies, is a science-fiction romance and comedy manga about the complications that arise when a dystopian government forces 16-year olds into arranged marriages. The series certainly seems inspired by such classic works as Brave New World. There’s also Ahogaru: Clueless Girl, which follows the clumsy high school girl Yoshiko, whose friends are forced to watch out for her from falling into clumsy situations. Both series are planned for summer 2017.
Kodansha’s prized reveal was Land of the Lustrous, which features a race of gemstone girls who are forced to protect their race from moon people who plan to turn them into living decorations. Visually stunning, the animated trailer that Kodansha showed certainly emphasized the upcoming series’ style. Both releases are planned for summer 2017.
Kodansha also emphasized their rerelease news during the panel. In celebration of Ghost in the Shell‘s upcoming movie, Kodansha plans to republish the manga in a right-to-left format, with the original Japanese sound effects reinstated. For Akira‘s 35th anniversary, Kodansha has similar plans, too. The original manga will be released with Japanese sound effects added back in and panels in the traditional right-to-left fashion. Akira lands autumn 2017, with Ghost in the Shell slated for sometime in the next year. But with the live-action film planned for late March, it would only make sense for the manga rerelease to land sometime before the second quarter of the year.
Crunchyroll’s panel was largely dedicated to advertising the company’s current simulcast offerings. However, the company did unveil one major announcement during their panel: Children of Ether. Led by The Legend of Korra Artist and The Boondocks Co-Director DeSean Thomas, the series is Crunchyroll’s first entry into independent anime creation and development. The title, which features an all-star cast from such anime producers as Studio Ghibli and Madhouse, follows a teenage girl named Rhonda given extraordinary superpowers while living in a dystopian cityscape. Centering around representation for people of color, and taking place in a run-down city area reminiscent of New York City’s subway system and avenues, the series looks absolutely lively and gorgeous. Crunchyroll is excited to promote the anime, too, seeing how their free poster giveaway includes artwork marketing the series.
.@LeSeanThomas has announced he is working with @Crunchyroll on Children of Ether, a new animation collaboration pic.twitter.com/9cRf2F5djf
— Justin (@Kami_nomi) October 6, 2016
That’s all for Thursday’s news update. Stay tuned over the weekend as more panels arrive. Until then, brace you wallet: Next year looks like a strong showing for manga and anime!
