My love/hate relationship with Viz continues with another mass release of books to catch a series up with the Japanese releases, this time One Piece. And they way they are going about it is as outrageous as the manga itself!
VIZ
MEDIA DELIGHTS FANS WITH ANNOUNCEMENT OF ACCELERATED PUBLISHING
SCHEDULE FOR
HIT PIRATE MANGA SERIES ONE PIECE
Company
Rolls Out Most Aggressive Manga Publishing Schedule Yet With 5 New
Volumes Of
High Seas Action/Adventure Saga To Debut Each Month Throughout The
First Half
Of 2010
San
Francisco, CA, JULY 6, 2009 –
As first detailed this past weekend at Anime
Expo® 2009,
VIZ
Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of
the entertainment industry's most innovative and comprehensive
publishing,
animation and licensing companies, announced a significantly increased
publication schedule for the hit pirate manga series – ONE PIECE –
delighting fans everywhere. Beginning in January 2010 and continuing
through
June 2010, five new ONE PIECE manga volumes will be published
each
month, for a total of 30 new volumes. The new schedule will launch
with
volumes 24-28.
To
further complement these releases, VIZ Media has launched a brand new,
dedicated ONE PIECE web site at OnePiece.VIZ.com that will be updated
regularly
with plot and character information, and will also provide special free
manga
chapters.
ONE
PIECE Rated ‘T’ for Teens takes readers to a world populated by
pirates and filled with adventure. As a child,
Monkey D. Luffy dreamed of becoming the King of the
Pirates. But his life changed when he accidentally gained the power to
stretch
like rubber…at the cost of never being able to swim again! Now Luffy,
with the help of a motley collection of pirate wannabes, is setting off
in
search of the "One Piece," said to be the greatest treasure in the
world.
The
manga ONE PIECE was created by Eichiro Oda, a comic creator and artist,
and debuted in
Japan’s
Weekly Shonen Jump in 1997. One of the most popular comic artists in
Japan
today, Oda started out by winning the Hop Step Award (a monthly award
given by
Shonen Jump for amateur artists) as well as the esteemed Tezuka Award.
His art
style is reminiscent of Akira Toriyama, Sergio Aragones, and the movie Yellow
Submarine.
"This
will be our most ambitious accelerated manga publishing schedule for
any
property thus far, and we are confident it will be a huge success, as
ONE PIECE
is an exciting series that enjoys a large and very dedicated following
in North
America," says Gonzalo Ferreyra, Vice President Sales & Marketing
for
VIZ Media. "Pirate stories are known and loved the world over and ONE
PIECE, with its zany cast of characters and high seas action, enjoys
more than
177 million copies in-print in Japan alone. We look forward to new and
old fans
alike exploring these fun adventures as each month Luffy and his
cohorts search
for the elusive One Piece treasure."
For
more information please visit the dedicated website at www.onepiece.viz.com.
About
VIZ Media, LLC
Headquartered
in San Francisco, CA, VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), is
one of the most comprehensive and innovative companies in the field of
manga
(graphic novel) publishing, animation and entertainment licensing of
Japanese
content. Owned by three of Japan’s largest creators and licensors of
manga and animation, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and
Shogakukan-Shueisha
Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media is a leader in the publishing and
distribution of Japanese manga for English speaking audiences in North
America,
the United Kingdom, Ireland, and South Africa and is a global ex-Asia
licensor
of Japanese manga and animation. The company offers an integrated
product line
including magazines such as SHONEN JUMP and SHOJO BEAT, graphic novels,
and
DVDs, and develops, markets, licenses, and distributes animated
entertainment
for audiences and consumers of all ages. Contact VIZ Media at 295 Bay
Street,
San Francisco, CA 94133; Phone (415) 546-7073; Fax (415) 546-7086; and
web site
at www.VIZ.com.
Lori Henderson