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ADV Manga Wakes Up Date: 10/2/2007 |
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Despite layoffs, cutbacks and long delays between some volume releases, ADV Manga, the book publishing unit of ADV Film, one of the largest distributors of anime DVDs in the U.S., has managed to persevere and regain some of its footing in the marketplace this past summer. In July, ADV released volume four of Gunslinger Girl, Yu Aida?s series about prepubescent cyborg assassins working for the Italian government, and volume four of the all-ages manga Yotsuba&! The Houston-based company is sticking to a modest rollout of two volumes a month with the possibility of increasing output to three?four volumes monthly. At the end of the month, ADV Manga will also publish a new title, Once Upon a Glashma by Kumiko Suekane, a slapstick Ghostbuster-styled manga, as well as an omnibus edition of the popular comedy series Azumanga Daioh, which will collect all four volumes released so far into one oversized, 800-plus-page volume that will retail for about $25. "We introduced the English-speaking market to Kiyohiko Azuma, and we?re proud of that achievement,? said ADV Manga?s Chris Oarr. The company also has plans for a book on cosplay called Everybody Cosplay, which will collect photos, essays and how-to details from ADV Film?s own anime and manga magazine NewType USA. Cosplay is the practice of fans dressing up as their favorite anime, manga or video game character at anime and manga conventions. Costumes are often self-made, with fans referring to fan magazines such as NewTypeUSA for do-it-yourself tips. "This book has a built-in fan base,? said Oarr, referring to NewType USA's circulation of 100,000. ADV Films launched ADV Manga in 2003 to a receptive audience in a newly growing manga market. But by late 2004, ADV Manga was laying off staff and cut back its publishing output for 2005 by almost 80%. In an effort to compete more effectively in a crowded market, ADV dropped less lucrative titles, cut back on its publishing schedule and moved to align its book publishing pursuits with its DVD operation. The company began pursuing manga licenses that tied into its DVD releases, keeping manga licenses without DVD tie-ins only if the series performed well in the book market. Likewise, instead of having a separate division for publishing, ADV outsourced some of its manga workload. "It doesn't make sense for us to have a whole separate sales and marketing force for our manga,? said Oarr, who spends most of his time marketing ADV's DVD list. "We?re still contending with the implications of pulling back,? Oarr explained. ?That's not what we set out to do.? But ADV has stuck with it, releasing 12 volumes of Cromartie High, a high school comedy-thug series that recently concluded in Japan this past May. Cromartie High vol. 4 was nominated for an Eisner in 2006 for Best U.S. Edition of Foreign Material, but has yet to achieve commercial success. Oarr describes ADV?s dedication to the series as "a labor of love,? and said Volume 12 will be published later this month. ADV has also licensed a number of anime series based on popular manga such as Sgt. Frog (which appeared over the summer) and Welcome to the NHK (out this fall), both published for the book market in the U.S. by Tokyopop. ADV is also working with Dark Horse on cross-promoting the Gantz property (ADV has the anime, Dark Horse has the manga) and with Broccoli Books to promote the Venus vs. Virus manga (ADV has the anime). ADV?s publishing schedule is locked in for the next two years, Oarr says. ?We?re much more careful about what we license. We're going to follow through with [the series] we commit to. We?re like a sleeping giant that's just woken up from a long nap?and we're hungry.? |
| Source: Publishers Weekly |
