Fairy Tail, The Seven Deadly Sins, Land of the Lustrous … We here at Kodansha Comics think of ourselves as having one of the most diverse manga catalogs around, but if there’s a few genres we specialize in … well, one would think (besides science-fiction which we featured last week), fantasy is one of ’em! Sooooofor this week only, we’re hosting a Fantasy Digital Manga Sale at all of our digital retail partners: BookWalker, comiXology, Google Play, iBooks, Kindle, Kobo, and nook.
Here’s the deal
To start out with, volumes 1’s of all our fantasy manga on digital for only 99¢!
And if you like what you’re reading, keep going—because the all other volumes are up to50% off!
And to make it even easier for you, we’ve put some of the series available as a complete series bundles up to 60% off!
Pretty sweet deal huh? But you gotta hurry, because the sale will end on May 14!
~ Kodansha Comics Fantasy Manga Sale ~ May 8-14 Click on the link to read Chapter 1 for FREE!
To celebrate the release of the UQ HOLDER! anime, Kodansha Comics teamed with up Wacom in November for a special drawing giveaway contest! Contestants described what kind of original character they would create in the UQ HOLDER! universe, and the top entries were selected by UQ HOLDER! creator (and Wacom tablet user!) Ken Akamatsu himself.
Kodansha Comics and Wacom enjoyed all the great artwork submitted by the contestants, and offer our congratulations to the prize winners!
Grand Prize Danilo Baleva by Juno Lastimosa (Prize Awarded – Wacom Intuos Pro Paper Edition Tablet + Volumes 1 through 13 of UQ HOLDER! manga published by Kodansha Comics)
About the Character The newly-hired chef of the Senkyōkan, and the latest member of UQ HOLDER!
Before the grand opening, unemployed Danilo Baleva won the chance to be one of the first few people to climb the Orbital Station. Upon arriving at the top, an incident occurred, shattering the barrier between them and space. This had caused a nearly fatal open injury on the upper right side of Danilo’s body, and a parasite entered his body.
The parasite is the only one of its kind, and its powers include a healing/regeneration ability, defense mechanism (it produces spikes when Danilo’s heart rate increases), and adaptability to the cold. The parasite likes Yukihime because of her ice magic, but also hates her because she’s a blood-sucking vampire.
Comment from Ken Akamatsu:
He became immortal when microorganisms entered his body through injuries after an accident. That concept is outstanding and awesome. Plus, the parasite doesn’t like high temperatures and is attracted to the ice-wielding Yukihime, so high points for the romantic comedy setup. And the character design is good, too.
Second Prize Crimson Freyer by Kagetsu-13 (Prize Awarded – Wacom Intuos Pro Medium Tablet + Volumes 1 through 6 of UQ HOLDER! manga published by Kodansha Comics)
About the Character Known as the “Corpse Collector” in the underworld, Crimson is a zombie who roams the ruins of battles in search of “fresh corpses” to replace rotting body parts. As a zombie, he has the ability to control any severed body part through a thread linking to his main body.
Crimson couldn’t care less about human lives or emotions, and all he needs is to satisfy his eternal longing for fresh body parts. But what if he found a body that could never rot? An immortal body that would last forever and and wouldn’t have to be replaced, like Tōta’s… what would happen if these two ever met?
Comment from Ken Akamatsu:
The “zombie” thing makes him sound more like an enemy character, but with his ability to control his body parts using string and trade out rotten parts, it’s just begging to be made into a manga, which is fantastic. Story ideas are coming to me just from looking at your character illustration.
Third Prize Hoshimiya Yumeko by Neida Cabrera (Prize Awarded – Wacom Intuos Comic Pen & Touch Tablet + Volume 1 of UQ HOLDER! manga published by Kodansha Comics)
About the Character UQ HOLDER #77. She is born from an American mother and Japanese father (previously a member of the Magic Association). Yumeko is currently living in Kyoto as a part time magician for children, but is tasked to be a spy for Yukihime. She is not the strongest member of UQ HOLDER, but her immortality, combined with her clairvoyant abilities and quick healing abilities (Dream Restore) keep her in the Top 100 UQ HOLDERs. She is strong enough to defeat Tōta, but has a long way to go to beat Negi.
Comment from Ken Akamatsu:
Yumeko-chan gets third place because she’s adorable (ha ha). Characters that take supportive roles because they aren’t the strongest fighters are in high demand in manga, and are often more popular than those power players. Smart approach.
Here’s the full gallery of entries, from grand prize to runners up!
Please visit www.wacom.com for the latest information on Wacom creative pen displays and pen tablets. The advanced technology of Wacom’s intuitive digital input devices provide professional and enthusiast designers and artists with the ability to explore digital content creation in a comfortable and natural way.
We would once again like to congratulate all the winners, and thank you to everyone who submitted to our # #UQHOLDERContest. To see all the winning entries, and a special, exclusive interview with Ken Akamatsu, be sure to pick up UQ HOLDER volume 13 – out March 13!
For one week only, we're showcasing series that were originally a manga then adapted into an anime during The All-Time Manga-to-Anime Sale! Check out the list of series that's 50% off at all our digital retail partners: BookWalker, comiXology, Google Play, iBooks, Kindle, Kobo, and nook. Sale runs through January 22!
—All-Time Manga-to-Anime Sale — all volumes up to 50% off through January 22!
Kodansha Comics brought some serious heat to the Fall 2017 anime season—in particular Welcome to the Ballroom, Inuyashiki, and Land of the Lustrous raised the bar of CGI anime, for one thing, and actualized the imaginative world of manga.
This week's Fall Anime Season Finale Sale features those most recently anime-ated series and puts them at a 50% discount at all of our digital retail channels: BookWalker, comiXology, Google Play, iBooks, Kindle, Kobo, and nook. Sale ends December 25!
2017 Summer Anime Season Finale Sale — Read free full Chapter 1s at the links —
We love Fantasy Manga! An awesome supernatural power? Check. Steampunk technology? Check. Mythological creatures that tries to eat you? Check! Yes, we all love the world of fantasy where anything and everything goes!
And to celebrate further, we're opening up the vault and unleashing a host of Kodansha Comics' best fantasy series with our I Love Fantasy digital manga sale—where you get up to 50% offf at all our digital retail partners: BookWalker, comiXology, Google Play, iBooks, Kindle, Kobo, and nook. Sale runs through December 11!
— I Love Fantasy Sale — all volumes up to 50% off through December 11
Ken Akamatsu has been the king of rom-com shonen manga since the 2000s. You know his hit manga and anime Love Hinaand his even bigger follow-up series Negmia! But Akamatsu-sensei's hit-manga-maker career doesn't stop there! His current series, UQ Holder, is a sequel to Negima! and debuted as a new anime this season on Amazon Anime Strike!
To celebrate all things Akamatsu, we're showcasing all of this manga master's works, with every digital volume up to 50% off at all our digital retail partners: BookWalker, comiXology, Crunchyroll, Google Play, iBooks, Kindle, Kobo, and nook. Sale runs through November 20.
— Ken Akamatsu digital sale — all volumes and chapters up to 50% off through November 20
Enter Kodansha Comics and Wacom’s UQ HOLDER! Drawing Contest for a chance to win a Wacom digital drawing tablet and UQ HOLDER! manga!
Get your pens, pencils, or drawing tablets ready—to celebrate the debut of the UQ HOLDER! anime, Kodansha Comics is teaming up with Wacom for a special drawing giveaway contest!
We want to see you get creative and show us what kind of original character you would create in the UQ HOLDER! universe. What kind of UQ HOLDER would they be? What kind of original powers or abilities would your character have? Are they strong enough to take on Tōta or Neji? Show us your original drawing for a chance to win a Wacom graphic tablet and UQ HOLDER! manga and also a chance to have your drawing printed inside volume 13 of UQ HOLDER!—to be released March 2018 from Kodansha Comics.
Entry Period Entries will be accepted between November 6, 2017 and November 26, 2017.
How to Enter Email us your submission with a brief description about your original character (Name, abilities, etc.) to contest@kodanshacomics.com or post your entry to Twitter or Instagram. Be sure to tag us and include the hashtag #UQHOLDERContest to make sure we see your entry!
(Attending Anime NYC? You can always stop by our booth and hand in your entry there!)
Prize Details
Grand PrizeWacom Intuos Pro Paper Tablet ($399.95 retail value) + one set (Volumes 1 through 12) of UQ HOLDER! manga published by Kodansha Comics
Second Prize Wacom Intuos Pro Medium Tablet ($349.95 retail value) + Volumes 1 through 6 of UQ HOLDER! manga published by Kodansha Comics
Long time no stream, KC Anime Clubbers! The fall anime season has kicked off in full swing, and this season offers a stellar line up of Kodansha Comics manga-turned-anime. To celebrate, this season’s KC Anime Club we’ll be live streaming not one, but three awesome titles!
This season’s Kodansha Comics Anime Club titles are Inuyashiki, Land of the Lustrous, and UQ HOLDER!. Check out our streaming schedule below, then read how the stories started with Chapter 1 previews of all the manga at the cover links. And don’t forget—we also want you to watch the anime with us! Be sure to join us on Twitter and follow our livetweets at 4 p.m. Eastern Time on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays, or share your own reactions to the episodes using #KCAnimeClub.
INUYASHIKI
MANGA Volumes 1-9 available in print and digital now ANIME new episode streaming on Anime Strike every Friday
ANIME RECAP: Inuyashiki: Last Hero episodes 1-4 First of all, we have to mention how awesome the opening animation this show is. Elaborate pinball-machine CG animation sequence set to hype music by MAN WITH A MISSION? SOLD. An all-time classic anime opening.
One of the signature styles about this show is Hiroya Oku's writing and portrayal of very realistic "average-Joe" type of people, such as the main character, Ichiro Inuyashiki . In contrast, there's the portrayal of delinquents, as you've seen in Oku's previous work, GANTZ. What's even scarier about his latest work is the presence of the second main character, Hiro Shishigami. He appears to be (again) an average high school student, who enjoys reading manga for fun and takes care of his shut-in friend. But gradually we find out how he really has no humanity left in him and therefore what he is capable of.
Seeing all these things actualized in CG makes the series convincingly real. Hang tight to see what happens when the fighting and flying scenes happen. (Check out our Hiroya Oku's Interview about how he used a drone to draw the flying scene in Inuyashiki.)
The two main characters have only just met in the anime series. Catch up to see the buildup to the Inuyashiki vs. Shishigami's showdown!
#KCAnimeClub for Inuyashiki meets Fridays at 4 p.m. EST!
Inuyashiki episodes 1 through 4 covers Volumes 1 through 3 of the manga. See where the story all began in the Inuyashiki manga—Volumes 1 through 9 are available in print and digital now.
LAND OF THE LUSTROUS
MANGA Volumes 1-3 available in print and digital now ANIME new episode streaming on Anime Strike every Monday
ANIME RECAP: Land of the Lustrous episodes 1-5 In a world inhabited by crystalline lifeforms called The Lustrous, every unique gem must fight for their life against the threat of Lunarians, who long to capture the Lustrous and turn them into jewelry. Phosphophyllite, the most fragile and brittle of gems, longs to join the battle, but can barely stand their own against a strong gust of wind—let alone a Lunarian attack.
So when Phos is instead assigned to complete a natural history of their world, it sounds like a dull and pointless task. But this new job brings Phos into contact with Cinnabar, a poisonous gem forced to live in isolation and fight by themselves at night. Despite Cinnabar’s desire to remain alone, Phos vows to find a more suitable job for them—and to finally allow them to live among the rest of the Lustrous.
Through their research and their quest to help Cinnabar, Phos begins to learn more about not only the fellow members of the Lustrous, but the very Lunarians threatening to capture them. After a few dangerous encounters with the Lunarians, Phos shatters into pieces—and later, has their legs completely compromised. With their legs lost in the battle, along with some of their memories, Phos receives new legs made from some agate shards. With their new, more powerful legs, is Phos now ready to join the battle against the Lunarians, or will their new appendages bring them even more difficult challenges … ?
#KCAnimeClub for Land of the Lustrous meets Mondays at 4 p.m. EST!
Land of the Lustrous episodes 1 through 5 covers Volumes 1 and 2 of the manga. See where the story all began in the Land of the Lustrous manga—Volumes 1 through 3 are available in print and digital now.
UQ HOLDER!
MANGA Volumes 1-12 available in print and digital now ANIME new episode streaming on Anime Strike every Tuesday
ANIME RECAP: episodes 1-5 Tōta Konoe dreams of going to the big city to make his mark on the world. But before he can set off on his journey, the village elder has given Tōta the task of defeating Yukihime, the master mage who raised him. But after an attack from a bounty hunter leaves Tōta mortally wounded, Yukihime reveals her true identity as an immortal vampire, and saves Tōta’s life by transforming him into one of her kind! Tōta then discovers that Yukihime is none other than the legendary vampire and magician Evangeline A.K. McDowell, and joins her covenant of immortal beings—the secret society known as "UQ HOLDER".
Through his travels with Yukihime, Tōta meets Kurōmaru, an immortal hunter, as well as other members of UQ HOLDER, such as Karin, one of Yukihime’s most devote followers. But after being sent on a mission to protect some innocent townsfolk, Tōta, Kurōmaru, and Karin come under fierce attack by powerful enemies who specialize in hunting down and killing immortals. After taking a nasty blow, the odds seem to be against Tōta and Kurōmaru … until a mysterious, dark power suddenly awakens in Tōta …
#KCAnimeClub for UQ HOLDER! meets Tuesdays at 4 p.m. EST!
UQ HOLDER! episodes 1 through 5 covers Volume 1 through 3 of the manga. See where the story all began in the UQ HOLDER! manga—Volumes 1 through 12 are available in print and digital now.
There's MORE KC Anime!
— continued from the previous season —
WELCOME TO THE BALLROOM MANGA Volumes 1-7 available in print and digital ANIME streaming on AnimeStrike every Wednesday
ELEGANT YOKAI APARTMENT LIFE MANGA Volumes 1-2 available in digital ANIME streaming on Crunchyroll every Monday
ALTAIR: A RECORD OF BATTLES MANGA Volumes 1-5 available in digital ANIME streaming on Anime Strike every Tuesday
Are you looking for the perfect gift for your manga loving friends and family? It can be hard to choose in a sea of series, but this year we’ve got you covered with curated selections for everyone on your list!
Part IV: Your New Favorite Shonen
Shonen – action filled, fist-pumping adventures full of friendship, fighting, and fun – are almost the daily bread of manga. Even strangers to the otaku world probably have some familiarity with powerhouses like Dragonball. These series can go on…and on, which is amazing for fans, but can leave a huge hole when they do end! Do you have a friend mourning the end of Naruto or Bleach? Do you have a reader in your life who yearns to go on an epic journey? Look no further!
Fire Force (Age 13+)
What’s it about: In an alternate Tokyo, the population lives in fear of a horrifying and seemingly arbitrary phenomenon: spontaneous combustion! When people become “infernals,” the hope of combating the outbreak are firefighters with supernatural gifts, including one rookie, Shinra, with a mysterious power.
Why is it good? If you know a fan of author Atsushi Ohkubo’s breakout hit, Souleater, then Fire Force is a no-brainer. It has the mix of charm, humor, and dark fantasy that made his prior work a new shonen classic. But beyond that, Fire Force is one of the most exciting new shonen titles on the market. Its steampunk-infused world is drawn in stunning detail, and there’s a lot to love, from the quirky dynamics of the firefighting team to learning the secrets of the (very creepy) infernals.
What’s it about: In medieval Japan, a bell hanging on the collar is a sign that a cat has a master. Norachiyo's bell hangs from his katana sheath, but he is nonetheless a stray – a ronin. This one-eyed cat samurai travels across a dishonest world, cutting through pretense and deception with his blade.
Why is it good?Nekogahara is a fresh take on the classic samurai action genre from Shaman King’s Hiroyuki Takei. Fans of Rurouni Kenshin and wandering warrior stories will feel right at home with Norachiyo…he just happens to be a cat! The feline world of the series adds flair and humor to the story, but it never takes away from the gritty action rendered in a beautiful, brushwork style (including some gorgeous color pages). Nekogahara is perfect for your favorite samurai lover.
What’s it about: Tota Konoe, a normal teenager, is turned into an immortal vampire by his guardian after he is wounding saving her life. She introduces him to UQ Holder, a team of powerful immortals who aim to save the world from a dangerous power.
Why is it good? UQ Holder!, set in the same universe of Ken Akamatsu’s previous hit, Negima!, brings back many of the universe’s lovable characters, and cranks up the action! Akamatsu’s clean design and attention to detail is there, but UQ Holder! pulls out all the stops of a shonen battle manga. It’s a sure bet for fans of Akamatsu and supernatural action, and your lucky giftee will want to devour this series before the anime adaption hits!
What’s it about: In the medieval world of Britannia, there is a legend about a group of powerful knights named the Seven Deadly Sins who were defeated years ago. Following rumors that they may be alive, the princess Elizabeth sets out to find these warriors and enlist their help in taking back her kingdom from the corrupt Holy Knights.
Why is it good? The Seven Deadly Sins is one of the best options for someone looking for a new, long-running adventure to sink into. The series puts a spin on Arthurian fantasy with its group of rowdy, smart talking knights who don’t act like your average hero. The camaraderie between protagonist Meliodas and his gang provides plenty of humor on top an epic story full of drama, betrayal, romance, and magic.
What’s it about: Teenage wizard Lucy wants to join the most famous (or infamous) guild in the Kingdom of Fiore: Fairy Tail. But this rambunctious and unconventional group may be more than she bargained for! Join Lucy, hot-headed fire wizard Natsu, stoic knight Erza, and a huge cast of eccentric characters as they deal with magical problems their own way.
Why is it good?Fairy Tail has held its place in the shonen pantheon for 10 years now, racking up almost 60 volumes, a hit anime, and plenty of spin-offs. It’s a wildly fun and satisfying series for any adventure and fantasy lover, but it can be intimidating to jump into such a big pool! That’s why we have a big book that makes the perfect starting point and gift: the Fairy Tail Master’s Edition contains five volumes in one large omnibus – at a small price.
Now that you have plenty of magical ideas to send your friends and family on new adventures, what do get for the reader who prefers a little more real-life drama? Next week, we’ll share titles about love, life, and coming-of-age that will satisfy anyone in need of some feels. You might want to give a tissue box alongside some of these!
What's new for 2016? This winter, we're holding a blowout 99-cent sale on Volume 1s of selected Digital Editions. It's going on at every one of our digital retail partners: comiXology, iBooks, Kindle, Kobo, and nook. Now—whether you're goin' on an exotic trip or an exotic staycation—you can be on a manga vacation!
On sale for a limited time only. This season's "Manga Vacation" promotions, where we offer select digital volumes for sale for 99-cents, end January 21. Check back soon for future "Vacations" though!
