Tuesday, October 21, 2003
More Asian expansion
CPM goes Yaoi: Wow, I think it is difficult to overstate this. According to articles from anime-tourist and ANN, it looks like manga/anime company CPM is going to create two lines devoted to Yaoi comics. The American definition of Yaoi is generally stories of guys falling in love with each other, written by and for ladies, but with stronger sexual content than Shonen Ai (boys love) titles. One of the lines will be for people aged 14-18, while the other will be 18+. So far, they've mentioned four new titles that they've licensed in conjunction with Yaoi anthologies Be-Boys and Be-Boys Gold in Japan. They are Kizuna, Kin no Cain, Kunshu-sama no koi no oaite, and Kunshu-sama no koi katte. Thanks to lux for starting the thread on AoDVD that caught my attention.
Why do I think this is a big deal? Well for one thing, it continues to show just how strong the female market is in manga if titles like these are being licensed. No one would have imagined these coming out a couple of years ago. The other thing is that between these titles just announced, titles already out (Fake, Gravitation), and other titles not out yet (My Sexual Harassment), that makes at least seven manga titles out with gay male protagonists. The argument can be made that these stories tend to portray idealized gay relationships as seen from a lady's perspective, but I still can't help thinking it is a whole lot better than the stupidity of Rawhide Kid, and something a bit different from serious stories which use the concept as social commentary and/or advocacy.
Anime to MTV: Another interesting development is that apparently the anime series Heat Guy J will be airing on MTV pretty soon. It is already out on DVD (reviews for disc 1 and disc 2). It sounds pretty good, and the character designs are similar to those from Escaflowne (think pointy noses), which I enjoy. If I decide to get extended cable again (right now I just have local channels and premium digital..heh), it could be fun to check out...
DigiCharat manga: Also, today Dirk mentions the official announcement of Brocolli's foray into manga. I can't help thinking the series will meet with somewhat limited success, but I guess we'll see...
Dirk, your blogging is a part time job in itself. I hope TCJ is paying you well. =)
Why do I think this is a big deal? Well for one thing, it continues to show just how strong the female market is in manga if titles like these are being licensed. No one would have imagined these coming out a couple of years ago. The other thing is that between these titles just announced, titles already out (Fake, Gravitation), and other titles not out yet (My Sexual Harassment), that makes at least seven manga titles out with gay male protagonists. The argument can be made that these stories tend to portray idealized gay relationships as seen from a lady's perspective, but I still can't help thinking it is a whole lot better than the stupidity of Rawhide Kid, and something a bit different from serious stories which use the concept as social commentary and/or advocacy.
Anime to MTV: Another interesting development is that apparently the anime series Heat Guy J will be airing on MTV pretty soon. It is already out on DVD (reviews for disc 1 and disc 2). It sounds pretty good, and the character designs are similar to those from Escaflowne (think pointy noses), which I enjoy. If I decide to get extended cable again (right now I just have local channels and premium digital..heh), it could be fun to check out...
DigiCharat manga: Also, today Dirk mentions the official announcement of Brocolli's foray into manga. I can't help thinking the series will meet with somewhat limited success, but I guess we'll see...
Dirk, your blogging is a part time job in itself. I hope TCJ is paying you well. =)
