Manga Mavericks

[LumRanmaYasha]

Our Yusei Matsui discussion is out just in time for his appearance at NYCC! That's right, no news this week - we dedicate all our time to the discussion. We're joined by special guest Bomber D Rufi, translator of the Gintama manga, as we dive into a two-hour long retrospective of his works and career. We had a blast talking about them and we hope you guys have just as much fun listening!

But we're not done talking about Matsui just yet! We have another special episode that should be out over the weekend that'll be a lot of fun, especially if you're a fan of a certain movie debate show, so stay tuned. 

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Unfortunately I'll have to sit the Gintama discussion out since I don't want to spoil myself on anything. I'm currently on episode 17 of the anime and have a long way to go before I catch up with the series. In fact, I won't be surprised to see the manga finish before I actually even finish what the anime covers, since apparently it could very likely end before the year is over, from what I hear.

[LumRanmaYasha]

There's no Gintama discussion in this episode.  Bomber translates the manga, but the reason we brought him on for this episode because he had a storied history with Yusei Matsui's series, having translated both his one-shots, part of Neuro, and almost doing Assassination Classroom as well before another scan group stole his thunder. 

If anyone does want to hear Bomber's thoughts on Gintama, he recently appeared on Life Lessons and Just a Gintama Podcast. I especially recommend the latter because he provides a lot of interesting insight into the process of scanlation and how it works on it.

Either way, hope you enjoy Gintama! It's quite the ride.

[Spark Of Spirit]

If you're watching Gintama, I highly recommend watching the best material, then doubling back and watching the stuff you missed later. That was how I managed to catch up when the last season was airing and then still had stuff to watch when it ended. It also takes far less time when you don't have to sit through some of the more boring stuff.

Hopefully I'll get to listen to it tonight. But if not, then tomorrow for sure.

[LumRanmaYasha]

I disagree on on the point that anything in Gintama is boring. 

But yeah, if you're more interested in it for the story than the comedy, I made a list of essential story arcs/character development episodes a while back you can follow if you want to catch up faster. Though I will say that Gintama is one of the funniest anime ever made and that list doesn't include some of it's funniest episodes, so you'd be missing out on some good stuff by skiping eps. 

[LumRanmaYasha]

A while back, we discussed how cool it would be to do a Movie Fights-style show on anime and manga based topics. Well, I'm proud to unveil to unveil the inaugural episode of our new monthly podcast, Manga Fights! Or as I'm apparently contractually obligated to call it, All-Comic Presents: Manga Mavericks Presents: Manga Fights (Sponsored By Geoff Martin Art Sales)!

In the same vein as Movie Fights, Manga Fights pits passionate manga fans against each other debating it out over several topics both intriguing and insane! In our premiere episode, we continue off our Yusei Matsui discussion with Colton and Bomber debating out several Matsui-related topics in the Debate Round, and the winner facing off against me in the speed round. Since this was the first time we did this, rest assured, a lot of things didn't go quite as expected and hilarity very much ensued!

Our next Manga Fight will be centered on InuYasha to commemorate it's 20th anniversary. We'll be recording the episode later this month and plan to release it on Sunday, November 13th. If you guys want to suggest any InuYaha-related debate topics for us to duke it out over on the show, or even any other topics, series, or mangaka you want us to center an episode on, comment or PM-me here or send an e-mail to mangamavericks@gmail.com. Also, if you want to appear as a guest on a future Manga Fights episode, PM me and I'll see when we can have you on! 

Hope you guys enjoy this new show! It's definitely my favorite podcast that we've recorded so far and I'm really looking forward to doing more of these.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

It would be interesting to hear a few-minutes-worth of yours and Colton's thoughts on the Dragon Ball Room tidbit from Shueisha and what that means for the future of the franchise on the next episode that you guys record, since it's news related to a manga-publishing company, and thus fits in line with the usual subject matter of this podcast.

Just a suggestion.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Oh we're definitely going to talk about it. Good thing I checked the thread since we're actually just about to record. 

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Looking forward to hearing your guys thoughts on it!

[LumRanmaYasha]

Episode 19 is out! It's another long one considering we haven't talked about news in a month, and there was a lot to get through, but we still spend plenty of time giving our thoughts on Amalgam of Distortion, New York Comic Con, and Dragon Ball Room!

[Spark Of Spirit]

Glad you had so much fun (and got so much material) from the con.

I think there are only a few mangaka that I would go out of my way to a con to see a panel in person or get a signing. Nightow, Urasawa, Fujita, Togashi, Horikoshi, and Toriyama, would be at the top of the list. I would see others, some I would really like to see in person almost as much, but I would drop everything to be able to see those six in particular.

Amalgam was alright. I need to see more before I can fully judge it. But if Red Sprite doesn't last then I hope Viz picks Kimetsu no Yaiba instead. It's clearly sticking around, sales and rankings are increasing, and it's well liked. Amalgam is alright, but there's no indication yet that it'll stick around.

I was surprised to see Black Clover so high since it is so new. But I agree that the hate behind it is beyond strange. It's a Naruto rip-off? Naruto wasn't exactly all that original, guys. Other than the set up in chapter 1, the series has pretty much been doing its own thing. To call it one of the worst manga currently running? It's not even the worst thing in the magazine it's running in. On the other hand, I expect it to shoot up in sales (I expect the same for MHA) when an anime is released and aired on TV. So the hate will probably only increase. I just like the fact that it's a fantasy series without blatant video game trappings and is not Fairy Tail.

Nice to see Berserk selling. But I would sure like Dark Horse to continue releasing Blood Blockade Battlefront like they said they were going to. Sales can only increase now.

I kind of wish Watsuki would let go of Kenshin and start on something completely new again. Sure his last three series weren't great, but they did have potential. I still have faith he can make something great again.

The Dragon Ball Room doesn't really affect me. I'm a big fan, especially of the first sixteen volumes, and I also really like the first half of the "Z" stuff, but I'm not exactly craving more. But I can also ignore it and shrug off whatever they make like I did with GT. I still have the original stuff to go back to when I want to. I would be more interested in Toriyama making a new monthly or quarterly series, honestly. He would clearly have carte blanche like Akimoto does and could do anything he wanted with it. I know he won't because he isn't interested, but it would still be exciting.

I said it before but I wish they would push their other legacy properties hard too. Why aren't Fist of the North Star, Ring ni Kakero, Dr. Slump, Ginga, Kimagure Orange Road, Bastard!, Rokudenashi Blues/Rookies, Yu Yu Hakusho, Slam Dunk, or City Hunter, pushed nearly as hard despite how huge they were and how much they did for Jump? New anime, live action shows, or spin-off manga would make a lot of sense for these. They still push Kinnikuman, Captain Tsubasa, JoJo, Saint Seiya, and Cobra, but there are other series that can be given more.

But it isn't just Shueisha. Shogakukan and Kodansha should do the same with their legacy titles. It is a way to keep their brand alive while still pursuing new properties and keeping old material selling and in print. The Ushio & Tora anime was a great example of that. There's really no loss here.

Another great podcast.

[VLordGTZ]

Nice to see Berserk selling. But I would sure like Dark Horse to continue releasing Blood Blockade Battlefront like they said they were going to. Sales can only increase now.

I think what's probably taking Dark Horse so long with releasing more BBB is the fact that it's a Shueisha title and Dark Horse doesn't deal with them often.  In retrospect, I kind of wish Viz had gotten the license to the series since they would have been able to release it more consistently like other Jump SQ19 titles such as Ultimo.

I said it before but I wish they would push their other legacy properties hard too. Why aren't Fist of the North Star, Ring ni Kakero, Dr. Slump, Ginga, Kimagure Orange Road, Bastard!, Rokudenashi Blues/Rookies, Yu Yu Hakusho, Slam Dunk, or City Hunter, pushed nearly as hard despite how huge they were and how much they did for Jump? New anime, live action shows, or spin-off manga would make a lot of sense for these. They still push Kinnikuman, Captain Tsubasa, JoJo, Saint Seiya, and Cobra, but there are other series that can be given more.

Bastard! is an especially strange one to not do anything with, since it's pretty much the HxH among Shueisha's seinen titles (in that it's constantly on hiatus but still has crazy high merchandise sales).  You'd think that they'd try to adapt the manga beyond a 6-episode OVA series.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

That was a good discussion on Dragon Ball Room. I agree with most of what you guys covered, though I would personally like to point out that for anyone not keeping up with the multimedia stuff (video games, other merchandise, etc.) we actually had nearly a decade of no new Dragon Ball content officially released in the United States since the anime (including GT) had finished airing by 2005, and the manga was fully released around the same time, give or take a year or two, and then we didn't get Battle of Gods until 2014, a year after it aired in Japan. So I'd personally say that we had a pretty sizable chunk of time with a big break from Dragon Ball.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Glad you had so much fun (and got so much material) from the con.

I think there are only a few mangaka that I would go out of my way to a con to see a panel in person or get a signing. Nightow, Urasawa, Fujita, Togashi, Horikoshi, and Toriyama, would be at the top of the list. I would see others, some I would really like to see in person almost as much, but I would drop everything to be able to see those six in particular.

I probably wouldn't ever traverse the country to go to a Con or signing, because there's too many financial and logistical complications to consider, but if it's nearby and I have the opportunity I'll always jump at the chance. I'm glad I live in NYC and was able to go to NYCC this year so I could attend Matsui's events.

Amalgam was alright. I need to see more before I can fully judge it. But if Red Sprite doesn't last then I hope Viz picks Kimetsu no Yaiba instead. It's clearly sticking around, sales and rankings are increasing, and it's well liked. Amalgam is alright, but there's no indication yet that it'll stick around.

I would prefer KnY being added to the lineup for sure. But I think Amalgam has promise so far, so if it picks up and a spot opens, I wouldn't mind it joining the lineup.

I was surprised to see Black Clover so high since it is so new. But I agree that the hate behind it is beyond strange. It's a Naruto rip-off? Naruto wasn't exactly all that original, guys. Other than the set up in chapter 1, the series has pretty much been doing its own thing. To call it one of the worst manga currently running? It's not even the worst thing in the magazine it's running in. On the other hand, I expect it to shoot up in sales (I expect the same for MHA) when an anime is released and aired on TV. So the hate will probably only increase. I just like the fact that it's a fantasy series without blatant video game trappings and is not Fairy Tail.

I have had problems with Black Clover through it's run, but I really think the hatred it gets in certain communities is baffling and undeserved. At the same time, I find it kind of interesting why Black Clover of all series is getting this kind of backlash from the western community when previous and arguably worse series in it's vein have never received the same kind of vitriol. I really want to do a frank and honest discussion on Black Clover as a series on the podcast sometime and get to the root of why it's getting so much criticism from people and why I think a lot of that is unfair. Actually, If Josh loses our InuYasha Manga Fight I was thinking of making him read all of Black Clover as a penalty and then try and get Colton caught up so we can do a legitimate discussion of it on the show. That, or I was planning to reach out to a certain person who I know really loves the series to come on and talk about why they love it. But that's probably something we won't do until next year, maybe around the series' 100th chapter.

The Dragon Ball Room doesn't really affect me. I'm a big fan, especially of the first sixteen volumes, and I also really like the first half of the "Z" stuff, but I'm not exactly craving more. But I can also ignore it and shrug off whatever they make like I did with GT. I still have the original stuff to go back to when I want to. I would be more interested in Toriyama making a new monthly or quarterly series, honestly. He would clearly have carte blanche like Akimoto does and could do anything he wanted with it. I know he won't because he isn't interested, but it would still be exciting.

Toriyama did announce he was planning to make a new manga with Masakazu Katsura earlier this year, but we really haven't heard anything about it in a while so I don't know if they're still doing it.

I said it before but I wish they would push their other legacy properties hard too. Why aren't Fist of the North Star, Ring ni Kakero, Dr. Slump, Ginga, Kimagure Orange Road, Bastard!, Rokudenashi Blues/Rookies, Yu Yu Hakusho, Slam Dunk, or City Hunter, pushed nearly as hard despite how huge they were and how much they did for Jump? New anime, live action shows, or spin-off manga would make a lot of sense for these. They still push Kinnikuman, Captain Tsubasa, JoJo, Saint Seiya, and Cobra, but there are other series that can be given more.

But it isn't just Shueisha. Shogakukan and Kodansha should do the same with their legacy titles. It is a way to keep their brand alive while still pursuing new properties and keeping old material selling and in print. The Ushio & Tora anime was a great example of that. There's really no loss here.

FOTNS has a bunch of spin-off series that still run that get anime adaptions every now and then, and City Hunter at least got an OVA last year for it's 30th anniversary and has a new live-action film coming out...in China. But yeah, I think there are a lot of classic Jump, Sunday, and Magazine titles that could be revitalized or kept relevant in the public eye with new manga or anime content. But I think we'll see more revivals of classic properties in coming years thanks to the success of new anime adaptions of JoJo's and U&T as well as re-inventions like Mr. Osomatsu and the like.

That was a good discussion on Dragon Ball Room. I agree with most of what you guys covered, though I would personally like to point out that for anyone not keeping up with the multimedia stuff (video games, other merchandise, etc.) we actually had nearly a decade of no new Dragon Ball content officially released in the United States since the anime (including GT) had finished airing by 2005, and the manga was fully released around the same time, give or take a year or two, and then we didn't get Battle of Gods until 2014, a year after it aired in Japan. So I'd personally say that we had a pretty sizable chunk of time with a big break from Dragon Ball.

Well, I suppose that depends on your definitions of new content and availability. Viz finished the manga and FUNi finished off the films in 2006, but we got Kai in 2010, and I consider that new content since it was and has always been promoted and treated by licensors and the fan community as a whole as a separate show and, like in Japan, attracted a new generation of fans to the franchise from it's airings on Nicktoons and Toonzai. Not to mention that even if something isn't legally licensed, the western fanbase still seeks out and consumes any new content that comes out in Japan. So even though stuff like "Son Goku and His Friends Return" wasn't legally released over here, it was still fansubbed and watched by fans, new content that savvy people could seek out. But even if we're only talking about the casual fans who only keep up with legal releases of stuff, the longest gap we've had for new DB anime content in the U.S. is still really only 2007-2009. Western fans have never really had to wait that long to see something new out of Dragon Ball compared to japanese fans, who didn't have any new anime or manga content from the series for twelve years between 1996-2008, unless you count that three-episode arc of the 1997 Dr. Slump anime remake that retold the crossover from the RRA arc.

[LumRanmaYasha]

We'll be recording our InuYasha Manga Fight with Josh Dunham tonight at 7pm EST. If you guys have any suggestions for debate topics or questions about the series you want us to discuss on the show, make sure to let us know!