The convention is held at the Sheraton Meadowlands Hotel. It is interesting to note that the information booklet is printed Japanese manga-style: from left to right with tomare on the back page. Also, instead of stating the 5th year of the con, the booklet is lableled Volume 5. (I’m easily amused. This is my first year at MangaNEXT so if previous cons had the same style of printing, than I didn’t realize that.) The badge pickup was on the second floor of the hotel. Truly the con space is centered on the second and third floors.

They had a few badge designs which included A Bloody Kiss Tonight by Tateno-sensei and Black Sun Silver Moon by Maeda Tomo-sensei, the two main Japanese guests of the weekend. Those who pre-reg for the weekend received a choice of t-shirts which include Gundam Seed. Attendees were also given two extra badges to keep for themselves along with the shirt.

Next to the badge pickup was a table where they displayed some figure/model submissions. There was also the prize for the Gunpla building competition held at the con: a Unicorn Gundam.

Ezra Cudjoe, the con chair began the Opening Ceremonies with his awesome speech. Unfortunately, no guests were introduced but the intimate nature of the speech and laid back feeling of the connection with fans in this fandom really expressed the feeling of the whole con. MangaNext is small and intimate. Easy to recognize, meet and get to know people. There were no crowds to speak of anywhere and no clastrophic tendencies…unless you count the elevators. The opening ceremonies ended with a short description of the rules and schedules.

The Artist Alley opened first. It was just a bit smaller than the Dealer’s Room next door. The room boasted items that were original, beautiful and creative.

The Dearler’s Room was opened two hours early. The first booth on the right was Vertical Publishing with Yaoi Press next to it with it’s plethora of BL titles along with OEL publications.

Vertical Inc.
The first panel I hit was for Vertical. They had a plethora of titles that they are planning to release throughout the year, some a few surprises in comparison to the usual material that Vertical licenses.

Tateno Makoto and Maeda Tomo Friday Q&A
The panels for the two mangaka were listed back to back with a joint autograph session at the end. Robert Newman from JManga was heading the panel with Midori as the main interpreter. The first panel was for Tateno Makoto-sensei followed by Maeda Tomo-sensei.

a light evening..of stripping

Cosplay Burlesque appeared at several different cons already. The line for the Burlesque is usually insanely long and the rooms are so far back that we usually can’t see much. At least with a smaller con, there would be no lines and the view is far better.

I entered in time to see Madam Red from Black Butler take the stage. Though the cosplayer didn’t take off any clothes, the two half naked ladies on the stage supplied the skin the audience sought after. A favorite from the second half has to be ‘Angry Birds’ which had a piggy who stripped when getting hit with those giant Angry Birds pillow. The last act was of Shampoo from Ranma 1/2 which was beautifully done around a chair with some classy movements.

The show created a wonderful end to the evening.

Saturday, February 25

The morning began in the Artist Alley and Dealer’s Room giving me another opportunity to look around. Truly, even though there were obviously more people there on saturday, the rooms weren’t too crowded…though the Artist Alley needed a bit of maneuvering at times.

Maeda Tomo and Tateno Makoto Saturday Q&A
My only panels for the day was with Shinshokan’s wonderful mangaka. The panel began with Maeda Tomo-sensei followed by followed by Tateno Makoto-sensei.

Tateno Makoto Press Interview
I had the honor to personally interview Tateno Makoto-sensei. It was held in the afternoon on saturday. Robert Newman interpreted for me with Sunenaga Hironari-san, the Director of Production Section in Shinshokan in attendence. I believe her editor was probably there as well.

After the interview, I headed to the Dealer’s Room to find Felipe Smith signing for fans at the Vertical Booth. His action, comedy manga, Peepo Choo is also licensed in Japan.

Sunday, February 26

Besides the Manga Library which is one of the unique features that MangaNEXT has (and brings to other cons,) the other event would be the MangaNEXT Swap Meet that happens at various times throughout the con. 18+ material is of course shared in the evening. There was a regular swap meet in the morning. It was interesting where people show their manga that they want to get rid of in hopes to get something else.

State of the Manga Industry
The first panel for me was the State of the Manga Industry with representatives from various publishing companies. The topics ranged from scanlations, digital manga and an indepth discussion of the current infrastructure of manga releases. Everything that affects fans today.

Uke or Seme? Yaoi Game

Yaoi Press’ Yamila Abraham led the final panel of the con. It was a simple game of identifying whether the bishi on the screen was seme or uke. The ‘intro’ to the game with plugs and sockets was hilarious. ‘Well endowed seme’ was a 3 prong plug while ‘scared uke’ was a 3 prong socket. lol I will never look at them the same again. XD Some had ‘evidence’ to support her case, but there really isn’t a right answer. Although we started with people going up to the front to answer, by the end of the game, we were just shouting out the answer with her throwing little buttons and postcards at us. We went through the game twice for the newcomers and just had fun amongst ourselves.

Abraham also gave a bit of the ‘Yaoi You Need to Read’ panel that was held on Friday. She presented pics that was for that panel, introducing various manga. Of course, Finder was the first one introduced. There were other common ones including all the other Yamane Ayano-sensei’s manga, Maiden Rose, Under Grand Hotel and several Yaoi Press titles. It was interesting since we got to know a bit more about yaoi OEL. ‘Maelstrom’ had wonderful artwork and an interesting storyline.

MangaNEXT always had over 1000 attendees which is surprising since the con only took over two floors of the hotel. It’s considerably smaller than AnimeNEXT which limits the variety of panels and space, but there are many positives to a con of this size. Cons have always been a chance for fans to speak directly with creators, but with less crowds, the opportunity arises to really ask questions and share opinions. It is easy to take in everything within a few hours and truly enjoy what is there. The downside may be that the Dealer’s Room was extraordinarily small, but the Artist Alley became the spotlight of the con and much of my money went there which is a good thing (to support creators.) I had an awesome time at MangaNEXT and look forward to seeing what they have in store for next year.

Gen Manga, JManga, Vertical and ALC Publishing were in attendence. Marketing Director of Vertical Inc., Ed Chavez become the defacto moderator of the panel. President of ALC Publishing, Erica Friedman introduced herself next as a representative of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Robert Newman of JManga sat on Chavez’s left with Robert McGuire, Editor in Chief and President of Gen Manga at the end. The varied panelists opened the room to an interesting discussion that can be addressed from different points of view of the industry.

Chavez opened with a question about what each of them thought about the manga industry in the recent years. He himself felt that the manga industry didn’t take off until the last 10 years even with the 20 year history.

McGuire noted that he was a fan of manga before Tokyopop began while collecting thin issues of Fist of the North Star. He also worked in Japan before in the manga industry and could compare it to the ‘traditional route’ that the US took when he worked in a different company here. He felt that the change in the manga industry is based on the how manga is being produced currently. Readership is up, evidenced by fans at cons but sales are drastically decreasing every year. Scanlations are a major issue. He added an anecdote about a kid asking him at a con if the Gen Manga releases were on Mangafox. “‘You know that it’s not legal’ And they were like ‘Oh’ and they ran away.” McGuire understands that fans don’t want to wait for their series but it’s impossible to release Japanese manga in English immediately. Gen Manga releases indie/doujinshi series which are licensed directly from the creator. Due to their closer connection, Gen Manga is able receive new pages as the creator draws them out. With the quick turnover, there is simultaneous release which may address the issue about waiting.

Friedman brought up a wonderful analogy to how manga is being produced nowadays. “We are in a pre-Gutenburg press space.” She explained that in the past monks were the ones who reproduced books via writing or copying by hand. With the Gutenburg press, books were standarized. With the manga industry, we’re still in the pre-Gutenburg time where there are a variety of monks all trying to put out manga a certain way without a standard method.

At the same time, through the internet, readers are way ahead of the companies. Licensing is getting more and more expensive and while companies are trying to catch up and release something, “technology slams you in the face and everyone saids ‘we’re not doing that again’.” Even the digital model that is created may not be able to stand up to the evolving internets. The concept of “‘We just want our manga now for free’ which isn’t really an actionable item for those of us in the industry” isn’t a probable choice for companies even if they want to give to the fans.

Friedman also addresses the common knowledge that the audience (those who read) is much, much larger than the market (those who buy.) Those fans may feel that the audience equates the market, that is untrue. The number of yuri fans that say there are so many yuri fans does not equate the number of fans that will buy the manga.

McGuire quips that Japan already has a manga-buying culture. “You go to the convenience store and you buy onigiri, you buy tea and you buy manga.” Friedman adds that in that vein, distribution is difficult in the US since not many bookstores carry manga. Many retail stores and convenient stores do not physically have manga on their shelves. Japan already has a distribution model with a long history that works and it’s vastly different in the US. Chavez noted that in Japan, companies have the ability to put pressure on distributors and stores while in the US, distributors put the pressure on several retail stores like Walmart and Borders. Bigger companies like Random House may be able to influence stores, but the companies on the panel find difficulty doing something like that. Vertical had experience trying to talk to them with the basic reply of “We only want the books on the New York Times’ Best Seller’s List.”

Newman explains that Japan’s manga industry has always been strong since there already is an existing infrastructure for it. A wide variety of manga is found everywhere. “I work in Akihabara and I’ve literally tripped over manga on the street. There is manga everywhere.” In the US, there is a huge audience, but the infrastructure that is being built centers on scanlations. Benefits the reader but takes a toll on the industry. The infrastructure needs to be rebuilt.

Friedman also brings up the point of danger of breaking obscenity laws since content on the computer is not just your own property and an extension of the self. TSA and border guards have the right to search electronics to not just keep out terrorists but to keep out pornography and obscenity of various kinds. McGuire adds that the point isn’t about scaring kids, arresting them or “attacking scanlators” since fans just want to read manga. The point is to create a system that it makes it affordable and easier to provide to the fans.

Scanlations were the only way in the past. Friedman mentions starting out in scanlations and providing translations to rare series: having to read text while looking at the Japanese raws. Although she supports that and don’t wish to attack the fans, there is still the risk that fans should be aware of. Arrested last year in Canada, US Citizen ‘Brandon’ was found with obscene manga on his computer and faces at minimum 1 year in prison.

McGuire believes that fans who feel that scanlations are of a certain quality are willing to pay a reasonable price for good quality manga. (I for one, agree.)

Newman points out that scanlations are sometimes just a way for fans to share something they love. “The artist may hear word of it and the artist will be so happy that some person in another country had enough passion to recreate it another language.” Although there are some scanlators that just want to get revenue for their site, there are others that just do it for the love of the series. He felt that good quality scanlations are rare.

The manga industry is at the point where the music industry was several years before itunes became popular. Friedman compared sites like MangaFox to Napster. The way to find a better method to let fans buy manga is made more complicated since the companies have to deal with Japanese companies which have an already pre-established infrastructure that was hinted at before. ALC Publishing and Gen Manga have an easier time with asking the creators directly for releasing their doujinshi in the US while licensed manga requires speaking with more “suits”. Money is needed to address all the different layers of “suits” and even then, the creators and editors might not get much out of the deal.

The subject of what doujinshi means to the industry was thrown about. Newman mentioned that in Japan, doujinshi is an integral part of the fandom, a way of expression. Doujinshi could consist of original story or ‘parodies’ and Friedman noted that fans usually prefer the ‘parodies’. (Although major cons like Anime Expo would have more original work.) The manga industry to Friedman feels more like short cycles of 5 years where a method is tried for production and than another. “It’s like two miscarriage and a baby.” The audience laughed and groaned at the analogy.

The conversation turned to merchandising. Publishing doesn’t make alot of money in general. Gen Manga releasing popular doujins that no one could possibly get otherwise in English may sell well, but it’s never that big. Larger companies with popular series like Naruto may sell many copies, but the money is in marketing the product and selling other things. Friedman further explains that the fanbase likes visuals so a series connected with an anime like Soul Eater will sell better than one without a visual component. She provides an example from Japan:

“I walk into the convenience store and I see an Ax body spray that is One Piece branded. I than buy a nikuman-a bun-with a One Piece brand and I walk out and there is Chopper selling me ladies purses. I go into a sneaker store and I can get a sneaker with every single character except for the one I wanted, Nico Robin…You want to know why it sells that much? Because if you’re a person that has eyes that are open and ears that hear in Japan, you have seen One Piece branded goods.”

Newman agreed that if there was this type of marketing infrastructure in the US, “where you have to wear a blindfold in order to avoid seeing manga”, than obviously the market would be better. McGuire also addresses the literacy level in Japan. It is difficult to explain to the Japanese that there is illteracy in the world, people who don’t read since they have a society that reads. It is difficult to imagine in following their infrastructure since the public is vastly different from the US. He turns the attention back to the fans. “What do the fans want to see?” There are already brand related products in the market, the DC market is filled with them.

Friedman brought up an idea that if the fans could identify the creators, they would be able to contact them and suggest ideas. The ideas would bring things to motion and allow the flow of money to be more evenly distributed than if the licensing company made the decision. Direct marketing to the creators would eliminate most of the ‘middle men’.

Chavez bought up the question of what do the others think of the shift into the digital platform. JManga who works with many different companies explained that the Japanese companies like the paper medium as does Newman personally. Newman does feel that the digital medium cut costs and brings down the risks. JManga is able to release niche titles that would be very difficult to release in print. Chavez added that even if everyone had the capability to download manga into the brain, the concept of books would be very much ingrained into our minds since we grew up in that generation. McGuire supplied that since Gen Manga released in both print and digital with the print price being more expensive, he thought that the print copies wouldn’t sell as well. However, the sales is about 50% for each medium. Friedman added that she felt the current generation’s attachment to print stems from us growing up with it, a sense of nostalgia. However, she felt that it would faze out and the younger generation would be more drawn to digital media. (I agree to a point. Many people have reasons for choosing the digital medium over print. One is simply shelf space. Another is the ability to enlarge pictures to see details. However, like they say, I am very much attached to the print medium and doesn’t feel that digital copies hold the same hypothetical weight and value as books.)

McGuire addressed the magazines that are released in Japan. They’re the forerunners of the tankouban, an advertisement of sorts. They get the word out about a series and than when the tankouban are released, the fans will buy them which allows merch to be made. They noted that the one of the reasons why fans will buy the magazines are simply because of the things that come with it. Keychain, purses, phone straps. (It is true since the majority of the time I buy the magazines, it’s because I want the shitajiki or because I want the mail order limited edition item.)

The panelists agree that though the medium is moving towards digital releases, print releases are still a good idea. Friedman agreed with Gen Manga that releasing digital manga DRM free is important to keep restrictions from the consumer. The ability to read a particular chapter on any platform should be a given.

The panel closed with a open discussion on finding a shop to buy all sorts of manga rather than the digital component now of going to Viz to read Viz titles and the rest separated by the publisher. Friedman also expressed her indignation over restrictions over user content and the lack of consumer response especially with Apple’s declaration of ‘No porn on the ipad, get your yaoi on the Android.’ “When Jobs put the ipad out…he said ‘I’m going to protect the world from porn.’ He said that and none of you said ‘Hey, do not do that!’”

A funny comment from Chavez was that he pictured a future of digital manga with ability to release it in print for people’s personal museum/library. He himself would be in a jar with a bot flipping the pages “and telling me how nice the paper feels”. *audience laughs* He also hopes that there would be a central location for manga (which JManga hopes to achieve) with lots of information and suggestions for other manga leading to different publishers. Unfortunately, although Amazon provides a location to purchase manga, it is unable to provide proper suggestions in the same storyline or even genre.

It was a wonderful afternoon when I had the rare honor to interview Tateno Makoto-sensei. Present was Robert Newman of JManga, Shinshokan publishing staff including Director of Production Section, Suenaga Hironari-san. Newman assisted with the interpretation. We introduced ourselves and settled into the usual Q&A with a bit of fangirling on the side.

IL: What is your work schedule like?
Tateno: I wake up between 8am-10am. I sleep around 2am-3am. I am working all the time in between, but I do get in three meals a day.

IL: I know you use Maru-pens to draw but how much is your work on the computer right now?
Tateno: I do all my coloring on the computer. Occasionally, if there is a scene that needs to be on the computer, I will create it on the computer, print it out and paste it in with the rest of the work.

IL: You say you do the screentones by hand, so none of it is on the computer?
Tateno: None on the computer. I enjoy doing it all by hand. *laughs*

IL: Many fans love the fashion designs that you have in your work, for example in Red Angel and in Yokan. So what kinds of magazines do you consult to create your designs?
Tateno: Thank you, I’m happy that you like them. I use visual kei and goth loli magazines.

IL: You were an assistant to a mangaka before. Which mangaka was it?
Tateno: I was an assistant to Muchi Suzue-sensei. She is a very popular mangaka in Japan and her most famous work is Glass no Kamen.
IL: I know that one!
Tateno: I helped on it.

IL: What is your favorite drink?
Tateno: Beer…though I like all alcohol. *laughs*

IL: When you were working on How to Control a Sidecar, did you drink alot of cocktails to get inspiration for your Sidecar [the drink]?
Tateno: I drank alot. *laughs* For Sidecar and Martini, I went to five or six different bars to get inspiration.

IL: How did you get your inspiration to create ‘Cherry’ [the last drink in Sidecar]?
Tateno: For the martini, I came up with various recipes on my own.

IL: What is the name of your pet hamster? You may have mentioned it on your blog, but unfortunately, I can’t read it.
Tateno: Saizo.

IL: Only one hamster?
Tateno: Yes.

IL: No other pets?
Tateno: None. *in English* Only hamster desu.
IL: You posted a lot of cute pictures of your hamster on your blog.
Tateno: Thank you!
IL: Some fans can’t read Japanese, but with so many pictures, they really enjoy your blog.
Tateno: Really? I will keep working hard!
IL: Thank you very much.

IL: You only released two artbooks, ‘Prince Sapphire’ and ‘Princess Ruby’. Do you have plans to release another artbook?
Tateno: I don’t have any plans currently.
IL: Many fans would like more artbooks since your illustrations are so gorgeous.
Tateno: I’m so happy to hear that.

IL: How do you name some of your characters? In Steal Moon, the seme is called Coyote. Do you have a naming style for your characters?
Tateno: I choose the names based on the theme of the manga. So for Steal Moon, I chose the character names that are related to the moon and same for Michael, Mika, Eru in Red Angel.

IL: For your deadlines, do you have any interesting experiences of running away from your editor?
Tateno: Generally speaking now, I’m very good about deadlines. But in the past when I debut, there were several times that I couldn’t make it when I was doing serializations. *laughs* I actually tried to postpone the process by calling the editor but it doesn’t work out too well.
IL: Ah sensei, ganbatte kudasai! *laughs*

IL: When Blue Sheep Reverie was released, it was in Hakusensha which is a shoujo magazine. Did you have plans for it to be a BL?
Tateno: This is kind of confidential information. Through Hakusensha, there was only one book licensed, but I wanted to continue the series. I waited for the contract to terminate so I could release it through another BL magazine.
IL: If you don’t want me to include this, I can take it out of the interview.
Tateno: It’s not a problem.

IL: Thank you. So even though it was released as a shoujo manga, you were not planning for Kai and Maria to be together?
Tateno: No, Kai was always planned to be with Lahti. Even if it was a shoujo manga, the outcome would have been the same.

IL: In Yellow, does Taki’s parents have a back story about why they were killed? It was never expanded upon.
Tateno: I’m thinking about writing that so it’s still a secret.
IL: We will look forward to it!

IL: Volume 5 of Blue Sheep Reverie will be released in March in the US. Is there something in volume 5 we should look forward to?
Tateno: Volume 5…there are lots of dead bodies, lots of blood flying around. *pause* Lots of yaoi.
IL: Yes! In volume 4, there wasn’t so much yaoi since Lahti and Kai were separated.
Tateno: There will be lots of yaoi.
IL: That’s good. Thank you very much!

IL: Though you end any of your series, years later, there may be a sequel. Many fans and I really enjoy those surprise continuations. Though you don’t have to name the title, is there a series you’re thinking about giving a sequel to?
Tateno: Right now, I don’t have anything in particular planned. But Yellow will continue.

IL: Concerning Bill 156 [Youth Ordinance] that was passed in Japan last year, what are your thoughts on it? Many of your works are already 18+ so they’re already set apart from what the media addressed in the bill. What do you think about the bill itself?
Tateno: From the perspective of a mangaka, I feel that it is very strict. But from my own personal opinion as a human, I feel that there are alot of content that shouldn’t be in full view of children. Like having the higher rated content be placed higher away from their eyes. I think that is a good thing.

IL: Instead of anime, when BL manga goes into the video media right now, they can be turned into Animix or Comix. What do you think about those other mediums?
Tateno: I think it’s good and interesting.
IL: Many fans are disappointed since we’re hoping for more animation in anime rather than just animated manga.
Tateno: I see. I haven’t seen too much of animix but probably anime is more enjoyable for the reader. In Japan, there are many fans of different seiyuu. For those fans, they’re [other mediums] are very good.

IL: Are there any of your manga that you would like to be animated in the future?
Tateno: I can’t say concretely, but there are various titles that I would like to have animated, but it’s not something that I can decide or bring to fruition on my own.
IL: When there are, the fans are looking forward to it.
Tateno: If all goes well, something will be made.

IL: Is there a manga that has not been released in English yet that you would like us to read?
Tateno: There aren’t that many of my shoujo titles released in English so I hope to have more shoujo titles in English so that readers can enjoy them. Especially the titles released in Hakusensha. I hope they’ll be released one day in English.

IL: You have many fans in the US. Do you have a message you would like to share with us?
Tateno: I’m so happy to have readers from other countries read my work. I’m happy to have my work be out there. Recently, I had more opportunities to participate in events and more chances to interact with fans directly. It makes me very happy and inspired.

IL: How are you liking New York so far?
Tateno: It’s wonderful. I like New York and the alcohol.

IL: If I may ask, what have you been doing these past few days in New York?
Tateno: I’ve been eating, taking in the sights around town. I went to Strawberry Fields.
IL: *puzzled* Strawberry Fields?
Shinshokan staff: Central Park.
IL: Really? I live in NY and I don’t even know it! *laughs* Thank you so much joining me today and taking the time out to share with me your thoughts and your work. *bows*
Tateno: Same here, thank you very much. *bows*

For ignorant NYers like me, Strawberry Fields is a memorial to John Lennon. It’s located in Central Park West and has a centerpiece, a circular mosaic stone with the words ‘Imagine’ on it. Truly inspirational.

The panel continued with Robert Newman from JManga reintroducing Tateno Makoto-sensei. Other titles that Tateno-sensei are known for in the shoujo genre include King of Cards, Red Angel, Happy Boys and in the BL genre is Blue Sheep Reverie, Steal Moon and the first volume of RomeoxRomeo which can be found digitally on JManga. They are also planning to release volume 2 in the future.

Something new in the introduction was that Tateno-sensei enjoys cooking as well. Newman noted there was wonderful curry that he was trying to get the recipe for. Than the Q&A began.

Q: Can we have your curry recipe?
A: Sorry, it’s a secret recipe. *laughs*


Q: How many assistants do you have currently and how many have you had over the years?
A: Currently, I have 3-4 assistants. Including all the assistants that I’ve had (with those that graduated and others who unfortunately had to quit,) I had about 10 assistants.


Q: Is there something you get excited and enjoy about drawing in your manga?
A: I don’t have anything specific that I like to draw but I like cutting and pasting in the [screen]tones.


Q: Have you ever had writer’s block and how did you get over it?
A: I drink. *gestures drinking* *audience laughs*


Q: Is there anything you have difficulty drawing? How did you overcome the situation of actually drawing it?
A: I like drawing action scenes alot but due to lack of information, I wasn’t able to do certain poses that I wanted to draw. So that was something very difficult to get out. To overcome that, I pause animation and use that as reference to draw poses more.


Q: Do you use live models?
A: I actually had a series that I needed live models for. For Happy Boys and Night Head.


Q: How were you exposed to manga?
A: Since I was younger, I was exposed to magazines with manga in them and anime that I love to watch.


Q: You wanted to become a mangaka when you were in junior high. Prior to that, was there another profession that you wanted to go into?
A: There isn’t. I used to like drawing on the side of my notes. From when I was young, I knew I wanted to be a mangaka.


Q: How did you get into the BL genre? Was it something you wanted to do?
A: When I debuted, the magazine that I was drawing for had me specifically working for them. After that, I became a freelance artist and the offers that I were given were from BL magazines which was the reason how I entered the BL genre.
Fan: And we’re really thankful for that. *audience laughs*


Q: Are there any mangaka or artists that you admire and respect?
A: There are many mangaka that I like and draw inspiration from. One of my favorites is Nagai Go-sensei of Devilman.


Q: Which is your favorite genre to create?
A: BL. *audience applauds*


Q: Was there ever a storyline that you wanted to write but your editor thought differently?
A: Yes there were some. I wanted to draw something like Vocaloid but I was told no.
Newman: Were you going to be do a BL version of Vocaloid?
A: No, I wanted to do shoujo version.
Newman: Maybe you should suggest the BL version. *audience laughs*


Q: When you look at clouds, do you see pictures that are different from others?
A: It may depend on the shape of the cloud, but I most often see animals or food. *audience laughs*


Newman: Do you see BL in the clouds?
A: I don’t see BL in there…sorry. *audience laughs*

Q: What is your favorite character to draw personality-wise or artistically?
A: I really love to draw characters that are evil or bad as many people may agree. *audience laughs*


Q: Do you listen to music while working? Which band or composer do you like?
A: I listen to visual kei bands, Vocaloid, anime songs. One of my favorite bands is actually L’arc~en~ciel.


Q: How did you come up with the penname, Shinjuku Tango? Why is your doujin circle EGGS’N THINGS?
A: Shinjuku Tango is actually my doujinshi name. My friend is actually Asakasa Samba and another friend who is Shinagawa Mambo. We were collaborating stations and a type of dance. We actually picked the names from a box. *audience laughs* We just randomly picked the name [EGGS'N THINGS].


Q: How do you like your visit to America? Any inspiration for your future manga?
A: This is actually my third time here. The first time was Otakon [2006] and next was Yaoi-Con [2009]. This is my third time and I’m enjoying it very much. The drinks are awesome. *audience laughs*


Q: Out of all the characters that you have created, is there one who is your favorite?
A: All my characters are very cute and I adore them very much. The characters from Yellow are very special to me.


Q: Does your family know that you draw BL? *audience laughs*
A: It’s a secret and they’ll never find out! *audience laughs*

During the following drawing session, Tateno-sensei drew Shiva aka. Segawa Kyoichi from Happy Boys. It was obvious from the hair and the outfit that he wore. What a cute smile!

There were more things to raffle off: more manga and eco tote bags including the first volume of RomeoxRomeo, How to Capture a Sidecar, Takatsukasake no Ninja by Tateno-sensei and Madoi no Tobira, Black Sun Silver Moon and Beyond my Touch by Maeda-sensei.

Due to the small audience, practically everyone got something. Everyone was allowed to participate in a mass jankenpon game for the two art pieces.

During the autograph session, I approached Newman to ask him a few questions concerning JManga. I confirmed with him that the 2nd volume of RomeoxRomeo will be released in the future. I also relayed that many fans wanted higher resolutions for the digital manga which he understood since many people currently have large HD monitors.

The panel opened up with JManga Robert Newman’s introduction. Maeda Tomo-sensei debuted with Honey Blood in Wings magazine in 2000. Other manga include Black Sun Silver Moon, Me ni ha Sayaka ni Mie ne domo, Tsukuroi-ya and her ongoing series, Kesshou Monogatari which began in 2008 and Kamitsuki which began in 2011. Black Sun Silver Moon was released by Go Comi! initially and the first volume can currently be found on JManga.

The Q&A session began with an interesting question that stems from an age old belief of Creators vs. Muse….

Q: Does your stories have a tendency to write it’s own plot? Do your characters take a life of it’s own? Did you ever get into a fight with your characters over plot?
A: I come up with the storyline and I have to submit a plot. At times, the character moves on it’s own. Unless it’s a huge change, I let it move freely. Other than that, I make the storyline and the characters.


Midori: Maeda-sensei would like to ask a question of the audience. How many of you want to become a mangaka? *audience raises hands* Thank you.


Q: When did you want to become a mangaka and what are your influences growing up?
A: I actually wanted to become a mangaka after my debut. While growing up, I was influenced by everything I saw when I was younger.
Newman: She said before that while growing up, she always drew manga which was a part of her everyday life. After her debut, that was when she decided to become a mangaka.


Q: In Asian society, yaoi and yuri are very odd. How do your family feel about what you draw?
A: *laughs* I never really asked them about their opinions about that. Considering the age range from my parents, they may not know that such genres exist. They must be thinking that I am drawing something interesting.
Fan: I understand completely.

Q: How do traveling affect your work?
A: Traveling within Japan is very different between the north and the south. The houses could be constructed differently or the traditional clothing is very different. Taking in that and making them my own ideas. How spread out the houses are very different so I make the emphasis to put that in my work.


Q: What is your typical workday like? When do you wake up?
A: I usually wake up around 7-8am. During the day, it’s the same as everybody. At night I try not to stay up too late, but I stay up until 3am but no overnights. For meals and such, I have meals at home like everyone else.


Q: Do you have a favorite story that you created?
A: Of my works, the one most precious to me is Black Sun Silver Moon. I personally have alot of fun creating that so it means alot to me.


Q: Are there people you know who inspired you in creating your characters?
A: There aren’t anyone who is exactly the same. However, I do put in habits of certain people I know.


Q: Do you have any assistants? What is the average number of pages you draw?
A: I only use assistants when I really need them. I draw about 5-6 pages a day which is a bit slow.

Q: There are stories of mangaka and authors who run away from their editors when they come close to their deadlines. Are there any funny experiences of running away from your editor or explaining yourself to them?
A: *laughs* My editor is actually over there…. *points* If asked if I was an honor student, she would say yes. *laughs* ‘She is an honor student for her deadlines.’


Q: When you submit a storyline, how often are you asked to change a major aspect?
A: I am not held back much by my editor. I am pretty free in my writing though I do receive requests to write in a certain genre. Like drawing something in yuri, but other than that, I’m pretty much free to do as I want.


Q: Since you like to travel, is there a specific place that you’re drawn to that inspires your story?
A: I draw alot of inspiration from being in places that are very different from where I live, different from my regular surroundings. Last night, I went out to New York City. Seeing that kind of environment and backgrounds are very inspirational to me.
Midori: Maeda-sensei has added that when she sees the beautiful ocean and staring at it with a blank mind, a lot of inspiration comes.


Q: How do you think of a storyline and make it interesting?
A: Often times I come up with the story from things I see around me. There isn’t a certain process to keep the storyline interesting so if you’re interested in it, I’m very grateful.


Q: What series or artists do you like?
A: There are many artists that I like. I’m inspired by Fujiko-sensei from Doraemon and many mangaka from Shonen Jump. I like older ones and there are so many mangaka in Japan that I’m sure there are more that I have never read.

During the drawing session that followed, Maeda-sensei drew Taki again from Black Sun Silver Moon. No color this time, but the lines are clear as is the sweetness in his expression. Next to him is Agi, the silver dog that he adopted.

Similar to Tateno-sensei, Robert Newman of Jmanga opened the panel by introducing Maeda Tomo-sensei. Maeda-sensei also wrote in a variety of genres including shoujo, BL and yuri. She is known for Beyond My Touch as well as Black Sun Silver Moon which is also on JManga. She is currently working on Kesshou Monogatari and Kamitsuki as well as several oneshot yuri titles. She enjoys traveling to quiet places and traditional Japan.

Felipe Smith begane the Q&A with the same question as with Tateno-sensei:

Q: When did Maeda-sensei decide that she wants to be a mangaka?
A: I felt I wanted to become a mangaka when I debuted at 27 years old. Please note that even at a late age, it is still possible.


Q: Where do you draw your inspiration from?
A: I actually take walks in my neighborhood and see flowers at the side of the street and think it’s pretty. I take my inspiration from that and from looking at a branch and seeing it looks like something or reading an interesting book and feeling that it’s very good.


Q: What are some of your favorite artists?
A: I have many favorite artists. One of the most influencial was the mangaka for Doraemon, Fujiko F. Fujio-sensei. Also, I like alot of artists from Shonen Jump.


Q: How long did it take you to find your voice or style?
A: I actually had my point of view prior to my debut. I was actually reading and drawing manga at a young age. Even then, I felt that I had my own point of view. Once I felt that I wanted to make this my job was once my debut was decided.


Q: When you’re creating, do you have a particular place you like to work in the house?
A: I like working in my own room alone. I like very quiet enviornments. Sometimes I listen to music and at times, I would even put the tv on at very low volumes.

Q: What kind of pens do you use to draw? Since many mangaka use computers now, how much of the work do you do on the computer? What software programs do you use?
A: I actually do most of my art analog [on paper] except for the color which is digital. For sketching, I use a blue lead pencil which is best for erasing as well as a Maru-pen. For digital color, I’m not too familiar with the programs so I use Photoshop and another which is the most basic ones to use.


Q: Since you’re fond of traditional Japan, how much of that is influenced in your manga in contrast to modern Japan? What is the balance between the two in your work?
A: Regarding traditional Japan, it’s not just Japan that I like. I look at old buildings and study the aging of the buildings so it very much influences my work.
Newman: She said that she also likes to imagine how the people inside the buildings lived when they were first built.
A: Obviously now, I live in Modern Japan so I get influenced by it. But even in a short amount of time, things change often so I draw inspiration from that.


Q: On the covers of Black Sun Silver Moon and Beyond My Touch, there are flowers. Do you just see a flower and say ‘I want that on my cover’ or a story comes up? Do you have a favorite flower?
A: When I do draw flowers, they are usually my favorite. I try to match the flowers with the background. My favorite flowers are the cherry blossoms but they’re really hard to draw.

Q: In Beyond My Touch there is a line that saids *paraphrasing* ‘If you possess a dead body, it will be erect’. Is there a Japanese tradition that has this belief or where did the inspiration come from that line?
A: It might be a translation mistake because I’m not sure where it comes from. It might be from the 49th day after death in Japan, shiju kunichi which is 49 days after someone passes away. In the Buddhist tradition, you have to wait 49 days to do something special in the family. On that day, their spirits rise up to heaven. That might be what it was supposed to be…. *confusion*


Q: If you can go back in time and rewrite any story in history, which one would it be?
A: It would be a traditional Japanese story. It isn’t something specific that I want to write, but something like the old stories in Japan because I love kimonos which is the main reason why.


Q: When you create stories, do you start out with the message that you want to convey or do you start with the characters and the situation?
A: It’s a combination of both. It doesn’t often happen that I have the characters first. I usually think of the story and throughout the time, I come up with the message that I want to convey to the audience.


Q: If you had a chance to collaborate with another artist, who will it be and what will it be about?
Midori: Usually in Japan, two mangaka don’t usually collaborate in art. There would be an original writer and an original mangaka to match with the writer.
A: I don’t have a specific artist that I want to work with. But I would like to work with another mangaka regarding the character and not so much with the story. In coversation with other mangaka, I get lots of different ideas and I could come up with a character that I wouldn’t usually create.

The Q&A ended with Maeda-sensei taking the seat in front of the camera. She also drew with pencil first before inking the lines. The eyes were brillantly blue. Another Taki…only this time, it’s from Black Sun Silver Moon. Smiling and cheerful.

They raffled off a series of books and eco bags, starting first with Tateno-sensei’s Can You Capture a Martini and her Happy Boys eco tote bags. Later, it was Kesshou Monogatari vol. 1 by Maeda-sensei followed by some Kesshou Monogatari eco tote bags.

The last two prizes were the art pieces drawn by the two mangaka. We were competing with cheers from next door of the movie Gantz, so Bryon, the staffer in charge of the Japanese guests encouraged everyone to cheer their hardest.

Tateno Makoto debuted with Yurarete Egg Boys in 1986. Tateno-sensei currently creates works for magazines such as Dear+ (Shinshokan), Bessatsu Hana to Yume (Hakusensha) and BE×BOY (Libre Publishing). Her most popular title in the US is Yellow and she is currently working on Blue Sheep Reverie which will be released in a few weeks. RomeoxRomeo and A Bloody Kiss Tonight can be found digitally on JManga.

Robert Newman from JManga introduced Tateno Makoto-sensei. He also pointed out that publishing company, Shinshokan was also in the audience. Shinshokan released several of the manga by Maeda-sensei and Tateno-sensei and is the main representing company for bringing the two creators to the US via JManga.

Newman noted that Tateno-sensei was fond of drinking and usually drinks to match the title she is working on: if it’s romantic than it’s red wine, if it’s something more violent, she drinks beer and whiskey. *audience laughs*

A raffle was announced to be held after both panels with the mangaka. The floor opened for questions with Felipe Smith asking the first question.

Q: When did Tateno-sensei know she wanted to be a mangaka?
A: I wanted to become a mangaka when I was in junior high school. I actually started submitting in junior high and high school, but unfortunately, no one picked me up. At that time when I graduated, I started to become an assistant to other sensei. From there, I actually started out.


Q: How long before you got your first piece of work published?
A: I actually got an award first in shoujo manga. It took a long time before I actually received the award. But once I received the award, it actually moved things from there.


Q: Is there anything in particular that motivated you to keep on writing?
A: The biggest drive is when someone actually sends me their opinions from things they’ve read and how they felt. When people comes to see me at events such as this.


Q: Do you have tips for any inspiring manga artists who wants to go into the business?
A: There are many different styles. Especially in Japan, there are many different styles of manga so you can actually choose which magazine you want to submit to and work towards that style. But in America, maybe you should try to put up a website first and find a way to express your ideas.


Q: Do you have any common character types that you are fond of using or any characters that you favor aboves all?
A: Bishonen. *laughs* I totally love pretty boys so I obviously push them above other characters. The thing is, they have pretty faces but they have very strong wills inside.

Q: Many BL mangaka don’t usually have female characters, but in many of your stories, you have a strong female character. What do you think is the role or purpose of female characters in BL?
A: Just because it’s a BL manga, it’s unnatural just to have guy characters and no girl characters. Also I get tired of having just guys. Having a female role shows the hard love story that they’re going through and she could actually become the reason why they realize things.
Fan: In BL manga, fans don’t usually like the female characters in the story. But the ones that you create are so likeable, strong that we don’t mind them being in the story. They’re a strong part of the story.
Tateno: I don’t usually aim for that since I focus on the story. However, I’m very happy to hear that comment.


Q: Out of all the works that you have done, which is your favorite work personally?
A: I have a lot of memories of each one of my works. But the reason why I am able to come to America and overseas is due to the series Yellow so that has a lot of memories for me.


Q: Alot of times Japanese manga is always translated or revised. I was wondering if the revision was acceptable to you? [In terms of standarization or revising to explain the culture.]
A: I’m sorry but I can’t read English so I don’t know what changes were made. I receive a lot of comments from readers all over the world. Judging from those comments, I feel that the readers are getting the original meaning that I was trying to convey.


Q: What is the most challenging when working on a series? Take the most time?
A: The most challenging part is looking at the story as a whole. Obviously the most important part is the final outcome of the story and trying to bring everyone to that point without boring people out while expressing my storyline.
Newman: Especially trying to keep a long series entertaining throughout the entire series is a very difficult part of creating manga.


Q: Have you ever gotten writer’s block and how did you overcome it?
A: I drink alot when I have writer’s block. *audience laughs*
Newman: She just likes drinking.


Q: Have you ever put any personal experiences or people you have met into the story?
A: Nothing specific concerning experiences like that. I do blend in my experiences. When I saw something or felt something, I would blend it into the manga to express that feeling.
Newman: She may use her own experiences as a base in the story but she wouldn’t use that directly or in that context. So there are bits and pieces in the story.


Q: Have you ever created a character that was a projection of yourself in the story?
A: No. *laughs* I hope I’m drawing all characters who are different from myself.

Q: When creating drama cds, some mangaka usually spend alot of time recording or picking out seiyuus. Can you share one of your experiences while recording a BL drama cd? What kind of seiyuus are you usually looking for? Popularity or something else?
A: When it’s becoming another media format, there is always certain choices of voice characters that we get. There are times when we do get choices or we can make a request. The main point is obviously focusing on the character images themselves. We select the voice actors that we would like to use if their schedules are open, than we use that voice actor.
Newman: There are candidates that are proposed to her, other times there are specific ones she would like to use. More than anything, it is finding the right voice that fits the character and the character personality.
Tateno: There are no drama cds released over here right?
Fan: None unfortunately. I listen to the ones I bought in Japan.
Tateno: Did you enjoy them?
Fan: Yes. Are there any stories that you could share when they were recording in the booth? I must imagine the recording session to be very interesting.
A: This doesn’t happen often. For the recording of Yellow, there was an after party. The voice actor for Taki and Goh actually started doing an adlib of a sumo BL. It was so like ‘Oh, master!’ *laughs* That was really, really funny.
Newman: I think Tateno-sensei should take this up and write a sumo BL. *audience laughs*
Tateno: *makes a face* No…I wouldn’t be able to draw it. *audience laughs*


Q: When you come up with the design for each frame or each page, do you concentrate more on the facial expression or body posture?
A: It’s different in each panel. When there is alot more action and movement, I focus more on the body. When the emotions are stronger, I focus on facial expressions more.

Tateno-sensei was than asked to draw. It was projected on the screen. She used pencil first followed by her own pens, than finally coloring in with sharpies. It was wonderful to see Taki appear on the screen. His expression is cool and and calm. With just a few simple strokes, his strong personality is revealed.

There was a slight delay at the start of the panel due to techical difficulties. Ed Chavez of Vertical Inc. seemed to be doing a video recording of the panel with the webcam directed at the power point presentation. After all the tech was set up, we were on our way to new announcements.

He first show that they have released GTO: 14 Days in Shonan vol. 1 in January which is almost like a gaiden series (happening in the same timeline as the main series.) The original GTO was initially released by Tokyopop which is OOP but it’s awesome that Vertical picked up the new series. It’s described as “GTO takes a summer break and ends up back home to Shonan. During this trip (which is kinda forced on him,) he ends up in more trouble. There are more troublesome teens but Onizuka takes things in stride.” Many of the same things that fans expect from the main series including smoking, reading porn but all in fun with some “heart to heart moments”. Chavez describes the main character Onizuka as “not your average educator that teaches life lessons not with textbooks”. Vol. 2 is being released in March and another volume being released every two months.

Following up with in the GTO-universe, the next release is GTO: The Early Years vol. 11 which picks up where Tokyopop discontinued. There are 31 tankoubans in the series with the English versions being 2 tankoubans per volume. Vertical wants to see this series continue and the fans of course agree. Interesting take on the release is that in keeping up with the ‘Vertical’ designs on their books, the cover is updated with a color swap. Due to the standard page counts of the manga, there won’t be much space for bonus materials but fans can find the character bios and notes on the Vertical website. Vol. 12 will be in April with Vol. 13 in June 2012.

A continuing title, Chi’s Sweet Home vol. 8 was released in February. With this release, the English publication has caught up to the Japanese so Chavez forewarns fans that the next release would be once a year in matching with the next volume in Japan. We might even see the English version of volume 9 by the end of this year since the Japanese release is around April (as noted from the schedule of previous years.)

An interesting tidbit was that Vertical and Ed Chavez himself was featured as an omake in the Japanese edition…but Chavez was shy and didn’t want to be in there so he removed it from the English edition.

Promo materials that will be released at other cons were shown making me have con-envy since I won’t be there to pick them up. The pic on the right features a postcard that will be given at SDCC with the poster on the left. The second animated series, Chi’s Sweet Home: Chi’s New Address is featured on Crunchyroll. The main website will include fun things including paper crafts and info on the series.

No Longer Human part 3 by Furuya Usamaru was released in early January. It’s a manga adapation of the famed novel by Dazai Osamu-sensei and Chavez notes that Furuya-sensei “really adds another layer of depth visually”. The novel reads almost like an autobiography and the manga takes it from a reader’s perspective. Be prepared to be blown away by the ending.

The last volume in the series, Twin Spica vol. 12 will be released in March 2012. Starting with volume 7, there were about 1.5 tankoubans in each though vol 11 and 12 are 2 tankoubans each with 400 pages.

2009 Eisner Award Winner, Dororo by Tezuka Osamu-sensei will be released on 3/20/2012. It contains all three tankoubans into one 880 page volume for a retail price of $24.95. Chavez lamented not getting early copies to bring to the con. “It’s about a samurai who is trying to get his life back together and the young ninja he runs into along the way.” Due to the sheer size of the volume, the paper quality will be similar to the releases for Drops of God rather than Black Jack. When asked if it was going to be a hardcover (due to fear of the spine cracking,) Chavez reassured fans that the softcover will suffice as the spine would be well made.

Drops of God vol. 3 by Agi Tadashi-sensei will reveal the First Apostle. Chavez commented on the earlier announcement that Vertical will only be releasing 5 volumes (10 tankoubans) in English due to falling sales. The promo materials that they had was a postcard at the right with a special catalogue on the left. Future catalogues will be digital. TheDropsofGod.net will have the list of wines named in the books as well as preview essays that were in the Japanese editions. The prices for the wine have been updated as the essays were written since 2004. Vol. 4 with the Second Apostle will be released in June with the last volume in English in September.

The winner of the 2011 Golden Elephant Award for International Genre Fiction, Enma the Immortal novel by Nakamura Fumi-sensei will be released in April 2012. (Due to Vertical’s connection with the selection process, whenever a book wins, they’re obliged to publish it.) “Fantasy tale set in Japan…has some elements of the shinsengumi with some themes leading up to modern Tokyo.” Dark Horse will adapting the comic.

Mr. Reaper by Miyanishi Tatsuya is Vertical’s second children’s title. The hardcover edition is $16.95, being released in April 2012. “Mr. Reaper follows a hungry wolf who bumps into a sickly piglet. The wolf tries to nurse the piglet back to health.” The reaper is the narrator and is present everywhere so it’s a game to find it on every page. “Very fun art and touching story.”

Edge by Suzuki Koji-sensei is a story about an earthquake. Chavez notes that the story was written before the events in Tohaku last year. “Mother Nature is frustrated with mankind since they have failed to find last digit of pi. Until the number is located, earthquakes will ravage the planet.”

The Flowers of Evil vol. 1 by Oshimi Shuzo-sensei is a “modern-day twist on romance inspired by the poetry of Baudelaire.” It’s nominated for the 2012 Manga Grand Prix and was selected as one of the top manga of 2011 by Takarajima Co’s “Kono Manga wa Sugoi”. “A tale of a young teen living in rural Japan who doesn’t have much of an outlook on life outside of reading books. A classmate ends up shaking him out of that and ends up opening up a new world.” Vol. 1 will be released in May, vol. 2 in July and vol. 3 in October 2012.

Also released in May, the novel Pro Bono by Matsumoto Seicho-sensei is a mystery novel that reveals the culprit at the beginning. Then we follow the person who knew the culprit as he “try to frame someone else for the crime.” It has been adapted into movies about 8 times since it’s conception.

Aside from mysteries, we have A Guru is Born which is a comedy by Kitano Takeshi-sensei.

Chavez introduced ’10 Minute Bento’ as one of their few cookbooks which was not something filled with cute characters but “very tasty, very quick and hearty meals for people like me who just don’t have time to cook and can’t go out for lunch everyday.” Recipe previews are on the Vertical site with more info on their Facebook.

Shinkai Makoto-san’s 5 Centimeters per Second manga, illustrated by Yukiko Seiki is going to be released on June 2012 as a 560 page omnibus for $18.95. The cover features Akari in the front and Takaki in the back with cherry blossoms. Definitely will be a breathtaking manga adaptation to a breathtaking movie (anime on Crunchyroll.) Chavez warns fans that they will be in tears…since everyone in their office were in tears.

Sakuran by Anno Moyoco will be out in July 2012 in time for SDCC, featuring hundreds of pages in color as they were in the Japanese edition. The cover that is very striking is still not final, but Chavez promised that the design team hopes to not change much. The promo postcard they initially wanted to feature turned out to be fanart so they will change it.

Message to Adolf part 1 by Tezuka Osamu-sensei will be released in August 2012. There will be two parts, each 614 pages and priced at $26.95.

Limit by Suenobu Keiko is “a modern-day shojo tale of high school bullying with a Lord of the Flies twist.” Vol. 1 will be released in September with vol. 2 in November.

Body by Nonami Asa-sensei has short stories each focusing on a different body part and “how we look at ourselves and our bodies represent our sin.” This horror collection will be relased in October.

One of the most surprising titles is Heroman by Stan Lee and illustrated by Ohta Tamon. Chavez notes that the manga is not just a “smart introduction” to manga reading and traditional Japanese sci-fi tropes of kaiju and giant monsters, but a fun introduction to American superheroes. This is a great manga for kids going into manga and comics at ages 10 and up. The setting is in Los Angeles with a young teenager who wants to become a hero. He finds a toy and that is where the story begins…. Vol. 1 will be out in October with vol. 2 in December.

Winner of the 2012 Golden Elephant Award for International Genre Fiction, Grey Man by Ishikawa Tomotake-sensei will be released in late 2012 or early 2013. Very recent acquisition since the winner was only annouced on 2/23 in Japan. “A young man in a deadend job at a jewelry store…one day a guy in grey came into his shop and while the main character contemplates suicide, the grey man-who seems to be there to rob the place-gives him another opportunity in life. He gives him an opportunity to join him in biggest heist in Japanese history: to rob the Japanese mint.”

The most surprising announcement is undoubtedly the Perfect Visual Collection for Queens Blade. The artbook will be in hardcover featuring character art, bios, world guide and endings for the original game. Released in November 2012 at $35.95. When questioned about why they would release Queens Blade, Chavez remarked ‘Why not?’ and notes that it will challenge the market. Vertical will be releasing other artbooks in the future.

Vertical also has plans to release an origami book with hundres of folding patterns for everyday accessories…to the delight of origami fans everywhere. After the announcements, the floor was opened for Q&A.

Q: How did you end up with the Queens Blade artbook?
A: *laughs* I’m not even sure we paid for it yet…. *fans laugh* Contracts have already been exchanged. Alcohol was not involved…not that I know of. A variety of titles are being released by Vertical, manga and not. Some titles are suggestions from publishers we associate with. In the case of Queens Blade, although it is not a clear favorite amongst the staff, we know people would want to get this book. *holds up the Japanese edition* If some of you want to look at it, put some plastic on it and don’t get it dirty. *fans laugh*


Q: Is Grey Man a simultaneous release worldwide?
A: That’s what we’re hoping for. It will be released in Japan a little bit earlier and there are still translation issues. We’re trying to do a global simultaneous release with France, hopefully Taiwan. Korea is about the same schedule was Japan.


Q: Has sales for Lychee Light Club and No Longer Human been justified for bringing more Furuya-sensei titles?
A: Numbers for Lychee Light Club has been okay. I knew that No Longer Human would be highly favored for the academic market which it is, but that market is very limited. Retailers saw Lychee from us and they sort of compared this new series with that although it is a bit older. Booksamillion didn’t give it much of a chance. It does okay on Amazon. That said, we’re looking for other Furuya-sensei titles, like the Lychee prequel which was released not too long ago in Japan. Vol. 2 was just released this week. It’s only a 2 volume prequel. We are looking at more Furuya titles but it may be more up to him than anyone else.


Q: Concerning Limit and the extent of bullying….
A: The bullying element is something I hung on to for marketing potential. The reason we picked it up is because it was a shoujo title that us old guys at Vertical could understand. Usually shoujo is too visual-heavy and the panels go crazy with sparkles and flowers. Limit doesn’t do any of that. Once you get through the half-way point in the first volume, it’s literally a surival story with highschool girls.


Q: Any titles with happy endings coming out soon? *audience laughs* Besides GTO….
A: Obviously Heroman has a happy ending. *pause* There are plenty of happy endings in Queens Blade! *audience laughs* You can choose your ending…. *laughs*

Chavez lists the the panels that he has for the weekend with a promise of chest hair for the ‘Manly Manga’ segment.

After the panel, I approached Chavez to ask about Drops of God which he mentioned wouldn’t be completed since the sales numbers weren’t up to what they were suppose to be. Upon inquiry, Chavez stated that the number of people who bought vol. 1 was about 8000. However, only about 2000 books were sold for vol. 2. He believes that people picked up vol. 1 because of wine and sex, the two things that many media articles focused on from vol. 1…which truly wasn’t the focus of the series at all. However, after reading vol. 2, the audience realized that it wasn’t about sex and the subject of wine can even be considered laughable to Western audiences. I stated that it was surprising since this manga series is still a best selling manga in Asia today which contrasts the dwindling sales in the US. There was even a drama series in Japan and wine sales have notably increased in Asia due to the series. Chavez explained that people in Asia are not as familiar with the concept of wine as in the West. The subject is new so the points mentioned in the series are novice ideas which are interesting. However, Western readers may find the subject material to be too simple since drinking wine in the States isn’t such a big deal and people already know alot about it. For such an awesome series, it is unfortunate that only 10 volumes of the Japanese edition would be released though I completely understand the marketing decision.

I arrived at the Jacob Javits (home for tens of thousands for the next four days) around 3:30pm. I picked up my press badge and walked around a bit upstairs where people were already lining up for the showroom. There were many people in suits around and noted that there was another convention going on, Satcon. Thankfully, it was concluding that day at 5pm so we had free reign of the convention center.

As usual, I was drawn to the Gundam booth and stayed there for quite some time.

At the anime and manga booths, I inquired about booth events held throughout the weekend. There were many events going on at many times, but no signings. However, the events promoted the highlighted series of the weekend: Fairy Tail at the Funimation booth. The Funi booth had a character scavenger hunt, meaning we had to hunt down cosplayers of the series to get their ribbons. Difficult when they walk around. Event start the next day. There were also cosplay events like for Madoka Magica at the Aniplex booth.

Last year, the large dance booth was for the game ‘Michael Jackson: The Experience’. This year, it was ‘Black Eyed Peas’ as well as ‘Just Dance’. The draw to the booth was the same as well with a large stage which people can just go up and dance.

They upped the attraction a bit with ‘Just Dance’ happening on several different sides so that at any time, two different types of music will be blaring through the loudspeakers. Surprisingly, they used the speakers very well so that the two didn’t crossover each other and that they didn’t overlap each other so that the players can concentrate on their own steps and beat. Also, the booth wasn’t as noisy as I imagined it would be.

At the Square Enix booth, they were promoting FFXIII-2 with a brand new outfit for Serah. She went from cute and sweet to badass in no time with that new outfit!

There was a booth with a box where attendees could step in and scream. The machine would then rate their screams or their ‘rage’. It made for some interesting moments as people used all their strength in one shot…only to come up with a measely 75. I wonder if anyone got above 95.

There was a booth that had a ‘working’ contraption that the GhostBusters used to suck in the ghost. Of course, it would be ‘working’ if it had batteries and there were ghosts to suck in.

Near the end of the day, I met my friends at the Optimus Prime. It towered above everything and made for a wonderful meeting spot during the con.

Friday, October 14

Friday morning marked the beginning of my sleepless convention. I woke up early to get to the Takeuchi Junko autograph ticket pickup at 6am. I was able to get my ticket and grab breakfast at McDonald’s nearby. It was either that or trek back to 8th Ave. for a decent meal. The restaurant was filled with congoers with the same idea.

The convention didn’t officially open until 10am when the Showroom opens. I spent the morning exploring the rest of the showroom. It can be divided into 3 halls. The hall at the very right houses the Comic Con Artist Alley. Although the con doesn’t have a video game room, there are opportunities for you to play games from the latest Final Fantasy at the Square Enix booth to MMOs and the newest game from Capcom. (And there is also that giant dance booth….)

A very rare cosplay, Candy from the classic manga Candy Candy by Mizuki Kyoko-sensei.

Since my next panel will soon begin, I headed to the Anime hall at 1A. Surprisingly, the cosplay star of the weekend, Bumblebee was heading that way too. After I took the escalators down, I discover a clamor at level 2: Bumblebee was coming down as well!

Of course, it moved slowly and blocked everyone from behind, but it was awesome to see it move! (Con mentality: no one minds road blocks, not when it makes room for something this awesome. ^_^) Everyone cheered when Bumblebee got off safely with flashing lights and voice booming.

a morning of panels
The first panel of the con was for Aniplex with the President of Aniplex himself, Natsume Koichiro and the Executive Vice President of Planning and Production, Katsumata Hideo.

It was followed by the Takeuchi Junko-san panel, the seiyuu for a certain brash, orange jumpsuit-wearing ninja. Surprise after surprise filled the room in terms of content, swag and fan service (not the perverted kind.) Viz wanted to reward the fans and they succeeded.

autographs
Takeuchi Junko-san had a stack of autographs ready to personalize: a gold signature on a thick paper with Naruto’s pic from the Bonds movie. Besides the date, Takeuchi-san added his signature phrase, ‘dattebayo!’

After the signing, I rushed off to the autograph area for the DragonBall Z signing.

The autograph area is new hall added to the center. Thankfully, it is away from the showroom (unlike last year) and the waiting lines (located in it’s own area) do not obstruct traffic. It’s housed with the events for children and table games so it offers more space then the rest of the con. It also gave NYAF and NYCC congoers a chance to see guests of other fields and genres. Like the very next line over was the signing for Mark Hamill (with it’s not photograph policy. XD)

I got on the line around 3:30pm and it was already quite long. Thankfully, it was the last signing for that line so the VAs agreed to stay so that everyone could receive an autograph. On the line, I met someone who will be attending the Naruto movie premiere.

Around 5:30pm, I finally got to meet Chris Sabat (Vegeta/Piccolo,) Sean Schemmel (Goku) and Justin Cook (Super Majin Buu.)

Afterwards, I was able to take a quick look around the showroom before my next panel.

Mashima Hiro and Kodansha Panel
My one and only displeasure about the Mashima-sensei panel was the size of the room. It was smaller than the one for the Takeuchi Junko-san panel and it’s surprising considering that the previous panel was for Vocaloid and it’s currently for Mashima-sensei, both creators of very popular franchises.

Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva premiere
There was no word of the movie screening in the program, nor was it in the schedule. Access to the screening was on a first-come first-serve basis with press needing to RSVP to the event. Since it was an exclusive event, the room was exclusively small. The line for the event was already very long when I arrived around 7:30pm (rushing over from the Kodansha panel.) Those who saw the line could not miss seeing the event. Everyone was given a tall brown foam hat of the famous Professor Layton.

The screening closed a wonderful first day to the con.

Saturday, October 15

Fairy Tail autographs

The line for the 6am autograph pickup was longer than for Takeuchi-san the day before. (As in, more people got there earlier.) When the con doors opened, I headed straight for the autograph area. As mentioned from the Mashima-sensei and Kodansha panel, there were items that people can pick from at the signing. Of course, they’re in limited supply which is why only the people from the front of the line will be able to receive the items.

The autograph signing began a bit after 11am. Mashima-sensei personalized the Fairy Tail shikishi along with his autograph. I told Mashima-san in Japanese that I always look forward to Fairy Tail. From the table to gifts to fans, I chose a shitajiki board with the Fairy Tail cast.

I rushed to the autograph hall where the English Fairy Tail cast will be signing at 12pm. The signing began on time but Todd Haberkorn (Natsu) still didn’t appear. However, Tyler Walker (Vijeeter,) Cherami Leigh (Lucy,) Newton Pittman (Gray) and Collen Clinkenbeard (Ezra) greeted the fans.

Artist Alley

I had time so I decided to hit the NY Anime Festival Artist Alley held at the top floor. It’s also where the anime stage is located. When I got there, I could hear Mario Bueno singing in the back. The Artist Alley had alot of wide aisles and wonderful bright lighting (perfect for photos). One of the artists caught my eye with her own computer game (not BL) featuring her beautiful artwork. ‘Novantes Harmana’ by Widelia (on deviantart) as well as an upcoming original online graphic novel in Dec. 2012. I look forward to seeing what she will be putting out.

Makoto Shinkai in Conversation
After about an hour in the area, I made my way to the next panel which was for Shinkai Makoto-sensei. While waiting in line to get in, an impromptu balloon volleyball game commenced on the line. At least the fans can entertain themselves.

Showroom Break

I browsed the Dealer’s room which was packed. I knew saturday would be busy, but the sheer amount of people in those halls surprised me. Even with wide aisles, the halls were simply a steady stream of people going in one direction…and squeezing through to go another way required alot of manuevering. More than once, there were comments from friends and companions noting that they were glad they did their shopping on thursday.

I stayed until 5:30pm when I tried to get into the Guilty Crown episode 2 premiere. There were no press seating due to new policy and the line was long. (Didn’t realize until the next day when I saw the size of the room. Less than HALF of the one they used to hold the Takeuchi-san panel. These exclusive events are totally exclusive!)

Instead, I headed up to meet with my photographer friend who was doing a Batman photoshoot with the ladies of Batman. They shot in the business center which were like little closests with a computer. The perfect setting for Harley Quinn. The shots of Poison Ivy and Catwoman were sexy.

masquerade waiting
The lines for the masquerade went through two empty halls in the lower level. Not that people filled the entire hall, it was that the staff held half the line in one area before bringing them in to another area. Though the masquerade was scheduled to start at 8:30, we weren’t able to get in until 9:30pm.

One complaint I had for the staff was that the end of the line wasn’t clear. They directed people ‘around the corner’ which was really didn’t lead anywhere. Was there really another way into the hall? In either case, there was some confusion which isn’t the best for an event of that size. However, I do compliment the staff on handling so many people. Though the fans around me were amiable and we amused ourselves, I’m sure there were irritable tempers and impatient individuals in every crowd.

Naturally, as many waited over 3 hours for this. At the end, I felt that we were well rewarded for the wait.

This Boy Can Fight Aliens

There were no Hetalia and Naruto skits. Not that they were all bad…but with Uncle Yo mentioning that, it sounds like we’re better off for it. As usual, Uncle Yo was the host. He created an awesome spiel for the opening and of course, plugging Gaia online who were watching live (and voting.) Then came a surprise animated short that I’m thrilled that I didn’t miss.

NYCC/NYAF Masquerade 2011

The masquerade was awesome for being unique and well done. There were minimal dance skits (which has been taking over many a masquerade…heavy on the word masquerade now) and those that were dances were honestly interesting like ‘Choose Your Final Fantasy’ (A performance that proves Asians can dance) and a Marvel vs. Capcom 3 solo called ‘Phoenix Dance of Fire’ which was amazing, though sadly didn’t win any awards (at least I don’t think so.) Some other highlights include a Scott Pilgrim’s ‘Can’t Be Tamed’, ‘Planet Otaku’ which is what happens when Star Trek meets Haruhi as well as Gaia Online Viewers Award of ‘Moonlight Destiny’.

Best in Show was obvious from the moment they stepped on stage. Transformers, ‘Float Like a Butterfly Dance Like a Bumblebee’ was a hit. The lights went out…and out came Bumblebee.

The fans were screaming but it got deafening when we all realized that…he was turning into a car on stage. When something this awesome happens, there are no words to describe it. (Some people spotted this transformation during the day. Lucky people.)

The halftime show featured Mario Bueno and his exhibition skit. It continues in the style of Scott Pigrim last year only this time, he is Phoenix Wright. You can see the Trial of the Century Part 1 and Part 2 on his youtube site. Another epic performance. Every year, this becomes bigger and bigger.

Since it was already getting late, the judges appeared on stage to announce the rewards very quickly bringing the end to another wonderful though tiring con day.

Sunday, October 16

Guilty Crown Screening and Q&A
I got to the con around 9am and headed straight to Hall A so I can wait for the 11:15am Guilty Crown screening and Q&A. I had other plans (like the Viz Media panel or the Hoshi o Ou Kodomo movie but since I missed the screening the day before, I wanted to attend this one especially since it included the Q&A.

Guilty Crown autograph signing
The Guilty Crown signing was definitely not part of my schedule since I wasn’t aware of it. But now that I knew, it was my next task. I quickly headed to the autograph hall. While I waited, the signing that was currently taking place was for Caroll Spinney, the puppeteer for Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch.

Yamamoto Kouji was first followed by Oyama Ryu and George Wada. The three of them signed the Guilty Crown poster. I told them in Japanese that I was looking forward to next week’s episode…though they quickly corrected me saying in two weeks to which I agreed. I happily thanked them and went on my way.

last rounds of the con
Sunday is Kids Day at NYCC. Even before the con began, the Sunday tickets were already sold out. With children getting in free, the parents who brought them would need tickets. (Genius marketing strategy right there!) Of course, all the children were giving their Halloween costumes a test run. I found a kid Yoshi playing but didn’t see any parents nearby. I really hate taking photos of children without parents permission…but this was too cute to let up.

I stopped by the ‘Iron Man’ booth which had a bunch of products sold from the movie before heading back to the Dealer’s Room to do some last minute shopping.

I caught sight of this screen at the Funimation booth which was signed by all the English VAs.

A strange sight greeted me as people stopped and pointed. At one corner of the hall (the Honda booth,) a car was floating off the ground. It went up and down, tilted a bit and righted up. It didn’t go upside down, but the view was certainly eye catching. I still don’t know what was going on though I did see the floating fake car safely on the ground when I passed by the booth later. Was Honda trying to say your car is so light that it flew? We wish!

Although I didn’t attend the Viz Media panel, I soon learned that they obtained the license for Loveless, a series that I was interested in. (aka. Obsessed Fan) I went to the VizMedia booth and asked the staff some questions. They will be releasing from vol. 9 (since Tokyopop put out 1-8 already.) Volume 9 is coming out in June 2012 and volume 10 in October. They will be single volumes and they have no answer as to whether or not they’ll be color pages. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for more news concerning this.

I returned to the autograph hall to meet with friends and take more pictures. Cute story: Transformers Kree-O had these two robots taking pics with children. One kid wanted to get a pic with Optimus Prime. Hurt that he was excluded from the pic, Bumblebee started crying to which the staff comforted him. Then with fickle feelings, the kid then took a pic with Bumblebee to which Optimus started crying. It was too cute for words.

I was also able to grab pics of the Delorean and Batmobile. (For a monetary fee, attendees could sit in all the cars and have their pictures taken.

At 5pm, the convention staff asked everyone to leave and closed it’s doors. The record attendence is at 105,000 people, an increase from 96,000 in 2010. There was a cap on badges sold (thankfully,) and even with the increase from last year, we were granted the entire con center with the inclusion of the 4th level for NYCC Artist Alley and Anime Stage. The place was crowded, but I heard it was an improvement from last year. (I didn’t necessary felt the improvement-surrounded by people on saturday-but I’ll take their word for it.) The dates for next year are set for October 11-14, 2012, same location, same insanity. I’ll see you there!

They screened the first two episodes of the new Fall series, Guilty Crown. The 2nd episode was scheduled to air on Oct. 21, that friday so it was a rare treat to see something that even Japanese viewers have not viewed.

We were introduced to a post-apocalyptic world of 2029. The government in power is the GHQ, a foreign power similar in feel to the world of Code Geass. Absolute power always meets with opposition and we have Funeral Parlor, a underground resistance force that is coming to the forefront of society. Politics aside, the main character Shu is a shy highschool boy who runs from confrontation and never speaks his thoughts aloud. In a way, he is fighting himself as the world is fighting against the virus and the State. Shu meets the mysterious singer, the injured Inori and is immediately pulled into string of events that he has no control over, yet is a necessary participant.

It’s a basic premise that definitely echoes of Code Geass. Especially with the granting of a new power from the Void Genome and fighting against the government. And especially at the end of episode 2, we’re getting hints of slice-of-life school comedy in the mix. However, the animation style is definitely very unlike Code Geass. It’s darker and at times grungy. Sort of like the Ghost in the Shell style so familiar in Production IG works. Since it’s set in 2029 (later 2039,) the technology used is also familiar and again wildly different. The inclusion of viruses and Void Genome research brings the elements of medical background which seems to be a plot device in many recent series. (Another noitaminA show which ended with this summer season, No. 6, was a dystopian society with a deadly bee epidemic.)

Kayano Ai (Milia, Last Exile) is the seiyuu for Inori, Kaji Yuuki (Shion, No. 6) for Shu and Nakamura Yuichi (Hatori Yoshiyuki, Sekai Ichi Hatsukoi). *fangirls over the guys* You may also recognize Kaji-san as Finny in Black Butler and Nakamura-san as Greed in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. The songs in the series are done by supercell with the ED by EGOIST. Gorgeous melodies that speak of a darker age. The character designs are unique and beautiful.

After the screening, the host announced that Funimation and Nico Nico will be streaming the series every thursday. Licensing manager of Aniplex introduced the guests: George Wada (right) from Production IG, Yamamoto Kouji (middle) from Fuji TV and Oyama Ryu (left) from Aniplex. They starte the discussion by showing some of the official art for the series, starting with the poster.

Wada: The concept of creating these two characters is to create a natural 17 year highschool boy and girl. It’s the usual boy meets girl but really it’s boy meets unusual girl and it’s quite interesting. Shu met with Inori. I hope that you like these two characters.

Oyama: *on concept art of Shu and Inori* This is the concept art from redjuice who belongs to supercell in Japan. Like the previous concept art that was shown, the basic concept is boys meets girl.


Yamamoto: *on concept art of Inori* This is a very cute picture of Inori.
Oyama: Inori is a actually diva within the internet society like Youtube and Niconico Douga with many fans who are teenagers.

Wada: *on concept art of Shu and Gai* The main story of Guilty Crown is based on these two characters, Shu and Gai. They are also the two main candidates for who will have the power of Guilty Crown. To make the story more deep, more thrill and action, we made them opposite of each other. First, Gai is the leader of the organization called Funeral Parlor. He is talanted and has charisma with alot of followers at Funeral Parlor. On the otherhand, Shu is a first year highschool boy, living a normal life. The setting is very different for these two. Within the first two episodes, there are many clues tha lead to the next/future episodes so please enjoy the show.


Oyama: *on concept art of Ayase* Ayase pilots the robot called Endlave. As you can see, she is wearing the pilot suit like the Evangelion suits. It follows the shape of the body. We asked the character designer, redjuice to have the sexy body types. *audience laughs*

Oyama: *on characters in the school setting* There is alot of battle and action scenes which is the major factor in this show. On the otherhand, they’re only 17 years old. So highschool life and daily life is also very important for this show. For these childrens, friendship, relationship between friends and boyfriend/girlfriend is also very important. I like to show this side besides the battle scenes.


Wada: *on Funnell* Actually, the white robot might be the most important character or might be the hero of the show! *audience applaud* He has alot of appearances so please look forward to his talented abilities.


Wada: *on location art* This is the place where Shu met Inori the first time which is within the school district. This refrences the stage to Shu’s image of Inori as part of Egoist’s vocal.
Host: Since we’re on the subject of Inori as the vocalist of Egoist, can you explian the significance of the band in the show?
Wada: The band, Egoist which Inori is singing for is formed by certain teenagers. There is also Funeral Parlor that acts against the current government, GHQ. To express their opinion, Egoist is their opinionist while Funeral Parlor acts out their opinions.


Oyama: *setting of the city* This story takes place in 2039 in Tokyo. To place reality in the show, we have the concept setting very close to the current Tokyo of 2011. The city is futuristic. Besides having future equipment, we also have a natural settings like this which reflects 2011 Tokyo.


Oyama: *on Tokyo Tower in the series* The building with the light is Tokyo Tower. The first two episodes take place around this area which is Roppongi. The tall buildings in the area is called Roppongi Hills, which is where they attacked. Actually, I live around this area and I think my house was attacked. *audience laughs*


Oyama: *on concept art sketches* This is setting of the breach connected to the main building of GHQ. The basic concept of this is trying to take control of GHQ. Tokyo currently has 23 districts. However, GHQ formed a Ward 24. This is where Ward 24 is located.

Wada: *on concept art of the opening scene* This is the drawing of the very first scene when Inori is running away from GHQ with Funnell.


Wada: *on concept art of a structure* This tower is a monument in Ward 24. It is designed by Takeda [Yusuke] who worked on Ghost in the Shell: SAC and Eden of the East. This tower will be the main stage for the battle for GHQ and Funeral Parlor will try to get this tower.

The ground opened for questions from the audience.

Q: Will there be a tv broadcast
A: This is airing currently on Japanese tv. There are plans for an English dub, but for now, it is available streaming with subtitles.


Q: How many episodes are planned?
A: We have 22 episodes.


Q: Aside from Ghost in the Shell and Eden of the East that you mentioned, what other works led to the concepts of Guilty Crown? What other series influenced the setting and plot?
Wada: The original creator of Guilty Crown watched Ghost in the Shell in their youth and they wanted to create this type of title. Although similar, this will become their version of this type of story.


Q: Before coming to Guilty Crown, what other works have you worked on?
Oyama: I was the producer for Fullmetal Alchemist and Darker than Black. In Fullmetal Alchemist, there are nonhumans called homunculus. During the production of the series, I wanted to focus on their story in particular. In the US, there are titles like ‘X-Men’ and ‘Dark Knight’ who has a conflict between those who have special abilities and those who don’t. I wanted to bring that into Guilty Crown.
Wada: The director, Araki Tetsuro also directed Death Note. As you can see in the promotional video of Inori scene, there is a gothic atmosphere similar to Death Note. As Oyama mentioned, he would like to bring a more darker tone to the series.
Yamamoto: I worked on Eden of the East along with director, Kamiyama [Kenji]] who is also part of Production IG as well.


Q: 22 episodes is an odd number. Is there an OVA or movie planned
Yamamoto: The reason why it’s different from other shows is due to the broadcasting timeslot on Fuji TV. We would like to have a movie or OVA so please support the show so that we can create more.


Q: Why is the supreme power called ‘Guilty Crown?’
Oyama: One of the central themes of the show is ‘Who will become the next generation’s king?’ On the otherhand, the other theme is about the growth of the Genom. To use the Genom produces guilty feelings. We selected the name ‘Guilty Crown’ because it talks about the Genom and selecting the king. In order to create the weapon, Shu has to have a relationship with the person. Without the relationship, Shu cannot bring out the weapon from his friends. That is another reason why Shu feels guilty since he is using his friends to make a weapon.
Q: *follow up question* In the second episode, didn’t he take the Void from Daryl? However, there was no relationship between them.
Oyama: That’s a very good question. *audience laughs* When Shu brings out the Void, has has to make eye contact with him. Thats one of the necessary factor to bring out the Void from the person. For the Captain, they had eye contact so Shu can bring out the weapon from him. But having a stronger relationship with each other, the weapon will get stronger and stronger.


Q: They mentioned in the series that Daryl was the Kaleidoscope. When Shu brought out the Void, that was what it was. How did they know kind of Void he had?
Oyama: Another good question.
Wada: That’ll be explain in episode 3. *audience laughs*


Q: How long have you been developing the anime even before you were making the episodes?
Oyama: Since this is an original series, we first started with only 2 or 3 people including the director. From that stage, we spent about 2 years in character development.


Q: *on the short message* At the end of the first episode, there was an eyecatch about being the art director from the game. Is there anything coming out for that?
Wada: At the end of episode 1, you saw a message by Nitro+, a PC game company. Will have a PC game produced by them.


Q: It looks like it’s a very shonen type of show. Because of the influence from Ghost in the Shell, will it become more seinen?
Wada: It may seem like the story is more shonen, but in depth, it’s actually seinen. In the next few episodes, you’ll see more seinen factors.


Q: Music is playing a major role in the story. Will supercell continue to have a major role on the series? Is all the music produced by supercell? How is supercell involved?
Oyama: The main message in Egoist and Funeral Parlor is the same, but Egoist does not have to represent Funeral Parlor. They don’t have to have the same goal. Egoist is already famous and they don’t necessarily have to involve themselves in a political issue. Supercell will keep on producing the songs for Egoist.


Q: When the original soundtrack will be available?
Oyama: We haven’t announced the soundtrack in Japan…but we are planning to release the soundtrack in early 2012. Please keep an eye on the news.


Q: The settings and backgrounds are very similar to Code Geass….
Yamamoto: Comparing to Guilty Crown to Code Geass, the setting of Code Geass is way different from current Japan because Japan is controlled by other worlds. On the otherhand, in Guilty Crown, although it’s runned by GHQ, it’s more modern. Like the situation after World World II, it is a more current setting. There are similarities since some staff worked on Code Geass., we think it’s different. Similar to Ghost in the Shell and Eden of the East, the seting is more normal. It is more similar to Ghost than Code Geass.


Q: In the first episode, did Shu obtain the Void Genom from Funnell or Gai?
Wada: That will be revealed in future episodes.
Yamamoto: Many type of those questions will be revealed in future episodes though there are many clues in the episodes themselves.


Q: Ghost in the Shell had a set story pacing. Should we expect the same kind of pacing in Guilty Crown?
Oyama: As you can see in the first two episodes, there are alot of action and friendship. There is alot of information in them and already with just 2 episodes, you have alot of questions. Within 22 episodes, we will answer all the questions. You will find the answers in future episodes.

The host thanked the guests and plugged the streaming site and forum for the series. There are some points to note about the series itself. The noitaminA broadcasting timeslot on Fuji tv was initially geared towards a heavily male based audience. Of course, it soon developed a strong female following as well. Since it’s conception in 2005, it developed a reputation for showcasing wide range of anime from all studios that challenge the norm and through the years, it garnered a strong fanbase. Paradise Kiss, Antique Bakery and most recently Usagi Drop and No. 6 has been shown in that timeslot. Due to the broadcasting schedule, the majority of these series are 11 episodes. It starts later in the anime season and ends earlier. Even with only 11 episodes, each of the aired anime seem to carry fans deeper into their world. Higashi no Eden was a perfect example and it gave room for two movies. Planned for 2 seasons, Guilty Crown has a strong beginning and promises to introduce a story that will immerse viewers visually via the art designs and music.

It is little wonder that I couldn’t get into the screening the previous day.