Additional Spring 2027 Print Licenses Revealed at Comic-Con in San Diego
Kodansha Reveals Spring 2027 Line-up of New Print Manga Licenses at Comic-Con International in San Diego
Just announced at Comic-Con International in San Diego 2026, Kodansha reveals even more print manga licenses set to debut this Spring 2027. The newly announced series for Spring include Subaru and Subaru, the next gear of the street racing saga that started with Initial D, and continued with MF Ghost; The POOL, the xenomorph battling sci-fi thriller from the author of Ajin: Demi-human; Meaheim, a fantasy epic with shades of cosmic horror; I Love You, Please Dump Me, a teasing yuri rom-com one-shot, and more!
These newly announced print manga licenses from Kodansha join the already tremendous slate of new print licenses announced at Anime Expo 2026.
The new print licenses announced at Comic-Con in San Diego and set to debut in Spring 2027 will be available for purchase at physical and online book stores like Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Amazon, and more, while select digital editions will be available upon release across all our participating vendors, including Bookwalker, Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, Google Play, Nook, Kobo, and more! Fans can also purchase and read all Kodansha digital manga directly on kodansha.us.
Full details of each new print license announced at Anime Expo can be read below:
In Case You Missed It:
The POOL
By Gamon Sakurai
JP Title: ＴＨＥ ＰＯＯＬ
Debut Date: Spring 2027
Gamon Sakurai, author of the hugely popular sci-fi manga Ajin, hits us with an all-new sci-fi thriller! Dropped thirty miles from home base on an alien planet, Chief Yugi Oishi must lead her men and the exploratory excavation crew they find stranded in an abandoned mine to safety as alien monsters close in on them from both sides. But not all is what it seems, and there may be more than one danger lurking in the dark.
Twenty years ago, a wormhole suddenly appeared above Earth’s orbit and opened a passageway to an alien planet full of untapped resources and mysterious life forms. Two decades later, Team Sierra, a small military squad of security specialists working for the Tiberius Coke Corporation, are thirty miles away from home base on that planet when their leader, Chief Yugi Oishi, spots an SOS flare coming from a theoretically abandoned mine. Despite the danger, she leads her four-man team to the facility to see who’d called for help, only for it to be attacked by a horde of powerful creatures almost as soon as the doors close behind them. Now, she and the stranded exploratory excavation crew Team Sierra finds inside must traverse the treacherous mine to reach the only vehicle that could get them to safety—without waking the terrifying monster that’s been picking off the researchers one by one.
Rated: 16+
Box Set:
The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity Manga Box Set 1
By Saka Mikami
JP Title: 犬又と猫又の一生
Debut Date: Spring 2027
The sweet romance manga that inspired the hit anime reaches full bloom in this premium box set edition featuring exclusive artwork from the author!
Includes manga volumes 1-6 of The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity and an exclusive set of 10 art cards, all inside a pastry box-inspired package with magnetic closure!
Chidori High is a boys’ school that takes in the dregs of society with the lowest grades. Next door stands Kikyo Girls’ High, where the wealthy, high-class families send their precious daughters. Chidori second-year Rintaro, who has a fierce face but a gentle heart, is helping at his family’s patisserie when he meets a girl named Kaoruko. The two hit it off right away…but this blissful peace is quickly disturbed when Rintaro discovers that Kaoruko is actually a student at Kikyo. Worse, she doesn’t seem to realize what a huge problem this really is! Will these two be able to forge a path for themselves, and sidestep the traps (metaphorical and literal) laid by their classmates?
Rated: 13+
All-Ages:
The Cat and Dog’s Nine-Tailed Lives
Story by Maki and Art by Hamuhamu
JP Title: 犬又と猫又の一生
Debut Date: Spring 2027
What if your pets could live forever? When an aging cat and dog named Buchi and Kotaro wake up one day as immortal yokai, they’re overjoyed at the chance to spend more years with their beloved owner. But time waits for no man, as Buchi and Kotaro soon learn… A heartfelt fantasy one-shot manga for animal lovers young and old!
One day, a pet cat and dog named Buchi and Kotaro wake up to find that they have become yokai, supernatural beings blessed with eternal life. Now, not only do they get to spend more time with their beloved owner, they can stick around to befriend his children, and his children’s children! But even as Buchi and Kotaro remain the same, their owner slowly begins to gray… A heartwarming tale about the importance of life and all its little joys.
Rated: 8+
Action & Adventure:
Kraken Mare
Story by IZU and Art by Hagane
Debut Date: Spring 2027
This gritty space opera manga pits morally gray heroes against both each other—and a leviathan beyond human imagination, lurking on the other side of a tear in space.
Kraken Mare is a unique collaboration between Japan’s top publisher, an acclaimed French science fiction author, and an Italian manga artist that blends the gritty solar system sci-fi of The Expanse, the magitech of Battle Angel Alita and AKIRA, and the sweeping scale and massive monsters of Dune. In a universe overrun by the dark primordial beasts known as Krakens, the remnants of humanity contend for black ether, a fearsome energy source harvested from black holes. Amid the wreckage of war, a spy named Oriale ends up on a critical mission…
“Robust both in its worldbuilding and sci-fi storytelling. This is science fiction befitting Monthly Afternoon [the magazine that serialized BLAME! and Knights of Sidonia].” –legendary manga artist Tsutomu Nihei
In the distant, far-flung future, humanity’s pursuit of a vital energy source known as “Black Ether” has awakened monsters called Krakens, which lay dormant within black holes. These horrors brought humanity to the brink of extinction. A thousand years later, the Krakens are worshiped as gods by a church that exploits them to spread fear and control the remnants of humanity.
Brave smugglers known as scavengers defy the iron fist of the clergy, risking their lives to mine black ether in secret for profit. The crew of the space ship Pulsar, led by Captain Paze, is tasked with extracting black ether from an extremely dangerous black hole at the request of the Mars-based pirate group Red Sand.
Oriale, a church agent and skilled Atomancer, lurks amongst the crew, pretending to be the innocent cook “Eden.” But when the Pulsar is discovered by a terrifying Abyssal Kraken, she must reveal herself in order to save the crew.
A full-fledged science fiction story in which a heroine with wild power and cunning spycraft collides with a world swirling with revolution and conspiracy.
Rated: 16+
Meaheim
Story by Kenji Tsurubuchi and Art by Konata
JP Title: メアヘイム
Debut Date: Spring 2027
Meaheim—where fallen, rotting fruit returns to the tree, lakes roil with flame, and gold flows like water.
Meaheim—where reality itself unravels and only specialized Guides can navigate the dangers.
Meaheim—a realm untouched by God.
Firechasers come to the Dark Lands seeking impossible treasure, but what they find instead is untold danger…and few return to enjoy the spoils. Now a young scholar named Ren must brave the journey to retrieve the panacea that is her ailing brother’s only hope…
A young scholar named Ren makes her way to Meaheim, the last town on the border of the Dark Lands—a bizarre place where horrifying monsters run amok, and reality itself is all but unrecognizable. With the aid of a Guide named Tobia, Ren sets off on a journey into the very maw of chaos, where she must overcome monsters known as “Witches,” traitorous adventurers, and the godforsaken land itself to retrieve the panacea and save her brother…
Powered by impeccable art, a clean premise, and excellent storytelling, this ominous, surreal fantasy is a cut above the crowd. With a female protagonist worthy of Le Guin and a dark style that will instantly hook fans of Tower Dungeon and Attack on Titan alike, Meaheim is poised to be the next powerhouse fantasy series.
Rated: 13+
Rega in the Sleeping Forest
By yoruhashi
JP Title: 眠れる森のレガ
Debut Date: Spring 2027
Sleeping Beauty is downright beastly in this action-packed dark fantasy manga, which reimagines classic fairy tales with horrific monsters and gripping drama, perfect for fans of Beauty and the Beast of Paradise Lost, ONE’s Versus, or the Fables graphic novel series.
To save Princess Lorana from a sleeping curse cast by an evil dragon, Rega, captain of the kingdom’s knights, faces down a wicked wyrm within an ancient forest. Drawing upon his devotion to the princess, who rescued him from a life of slavery many years ago, Rega slays the monster, freeing the princess from her sleep. But the moment she awakens, the girl begins casting wicked magic, slaying Rega’s fellow knights and cursing the land, creating a “sleeping forest” which corrupts familiar figures into dark, monstrous forms. Stunned at this horrific sight, Rega looks up to see a crooked, crescent-moon smile in the night sky. Could this be the mastermind behind the corruption? And were those tears Rega saw in the princess’s eyes as she gleefully destroyed the kingdom she called home?
Rated: 16+
Yuri & BL:
I Love You, Please Dump Me
By Shizuku Torii
JP Title: 夢と恋ではつり合わない
Debut Date: Spring 2027
Resisting temptation isn’t so easy in this funny, cute coming-of-age one-shot yuri manga where the class’s top student has a plan to control her feelings—that’s doomed to backfire! Torn between the intense feeling of first love and dreams of a grand future, can she find romance and success in equal measure?
Fans of the new wave of heartfelt, hilarious sapphic comedies like There’s No Freaking Way I’ll be Your Lover! Unless… and I Can’t Say No to the Lonely Girl will love I Love You, Please Dump Me.
“Love makes people go crazy.”
Hikaru’s always been told to be wary of love—it can make you do stupid things. Like abandon your dreams, or worse, fail your exams! Which is exactly what happens when she falls in love at first sight with the gorgeous Kairi Kira. The problem is, Hikaru’s dream of one day living it up in an expensive penthouse apartment relies on her first achieving academic success. Which is why she’s going to have to nip this little love problem in the bud. If Kairi rejects her and breaks her heart, she’ll be able to get over her feelings and focus on her grades. Except Kairi insists on becoming her girlfriend, which is definitely not part of the plan! But this should be fine, right? She just has to get used to splitting her time and attention. Or…she could, if Kairi would let her!
A single-volume comedy and Shizuku Torii’s English debut!
Rated: 13+
I Loved Him First!
By toreta
JP Title: 俺が先に好きだった！
Debut Date: Spring 2027
A charming and funny friends-to-lovers BL one-shot manga about an ex-yakuza member who won’t let anything stand in the way of winning over his best friend’s heart—including that best friend’s boyfriend!
Makoto, an ex-yazuka, has harbored feelings for his best friend Ayato since high school but has always been afraid to confess his love and risk ruining their friendship. Instead, he resigns himself to the role of best friend to the bitter end…that is, until Ayato tells him he’s dating—a guy. Makoto does a total 180 and vows to win over Ayato’s heart by any means necessary—after all, he thinks, “I loved him first!”
A sweet and turbulent BL comedy—complete in one volume—perfect for fans of My Instructor Won’t Yield and Honey Bee & Lemon Balm.
Rated: 18+
One Final Reveal:
Subaru and Subaru
By Shuichi Shigeno
JP Title: 昴と彗星
Debut Date: Spring 2027
A new entry in the world of legendary street-racing manga Initial D! It’s the modern era, and the next generation of heroes take the wheel on terrain made famous by the tofu delivery boy-turned-GOAT driver Takumi Fujiwara. Premiering in Young Magazine USA, Subaru and Subaru is what you’ve been waiting for, if you feel the need for speed.
One year after Takumi Fujiwara’s student Kanata Rivington tore it up on Japan’s mega-popular MFG street racing circuit, two new drivers are itching to try their luck at the event. Their names: Subaru Sato, from Gunma Prefecture, and Subaru Kudo, from Kanagawa. The worlds of Initial D and MF Ghost meld into one as these two Subarus join together to weave the ultimate street racing legend!
Rated: 16+