Forum - View topicA Chat with Lena Atanassova, Editor-in-Chief of TOKYOPOP
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mdo7
 Posts: 6715 Location: Katy, Texas, USA |
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So I got chance to read the interview, and I like to remind people on this:
I like her response to that. I want to remind people that the the anti-OEL backlash that was targeted toward Tokyopop (& other publishers that were doing it like Seven Seas Entertainment) is not there today like it was back in 2000's and early 2010's, the hatred toward OEL manga also unfortunately targeted manhwa/webtoons, and manhua. So I'm a bit baffled even to this day why this backlash just stopped and without a full explanation. But I don't think Tokyopop would face any backlash over OEL today compared to 2000's, and this environment is different compared to 2 decades ago, and anime/manga is more mainstream compared to decades ago when it was still considered nerdy and only limited to niche audiences. I like to know if Tokyopop will handle OEL manga better when it comes to creators rights? That's what I didn't see being ask regarding that. |
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Blanchimont
 Posts: 3612 Location: Finland |
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At least it should be on the same level as in Japan where creators usually retain significant control/rights over their own works. An approach which TokyoPop's last attempt...definitely wasn't. |
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Alan45
 Village Elder Posts: 10067 Location: Virginia |
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Tokyo Pop 2.0?? Yeah, no! The end of Tokyo Pop 1.0 poisoned that well so thoroughly that I will not be dealing with them. Company is still owned by the same "person" that mucked it up before as far as I can tell. I will not say never, but it would have to be a series that was absolutely a must have.
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Tenebrae
Posts: 494 |
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Yeaah, nope. Tokyopop can go and... As long as certain character is involved with the company in any shape or form, officially or otherwise, I am going to treat their releases as if they were the Plague. Their past has been well documented by ANN so interested parties can dig up the relevant articles.
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Sakagami Tomoyo
 Posts: 952 Location: Melbourne, VIC, Australia |
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I don't doubt that Ms Atanassova and most of the people working at Tokyopop are earnestly doing good work and doing their level best to get things right and do right by everyone. But what Tokyopop 1.0 got up to was so bad and its collapse so disastrous that it just left too bad a taste in my mouth. As long as that individual is still associated with the company, I cannot have any trust in it. I will not purchase any Tokyopop title as long as that individual is still associated with the company. And frankly even if he leaves I'd want some really ironclad solid basis for it being impossible for him to come back for me to even consider picking up another Tokyopop title.
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Rosiero
Posts: 130 |
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Has that stopped being the case? Could've fooled me. |
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lys
Encyclopedia Editor
 Posts: 1020 Location: mitten-state |
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I collected a lot of Tokyopop series from the "old" days. I defended them regularly (not unilaterally but when I felt the complaints were too broad or unjustified) because I liked a lot of the series they licensed and knew they worked with some skilled translators and adapters whose work I admired. Blanket criticism isn't helpful for anyone. In the '00s to early '10s, a lot of approaches to manga were up in the air (translations, lettering, even licensing choices) and as an enthusiastic fan I felt a lot of times that I would take whatever I could get and be glad for the wins.
Now, the market and customer awareness has grown and I think many publishers are more sensitive to handling manga as real art forms and giving them translations and lettering that respect the creators' visions. But I need to say it, Tokyopop's lettering stands out as a source of disappointment to me, with flat, unconsidered font styles and clashing sfx treatments that take me out of the artwork and storytelling. I bought one book since Tokyopop's return and I found this lettering style so jarring I couldn't finish it, so I've held off on buying any others since. There are many other publishers with titles competing for my attention, so I prioritize those that give me the best experience. I know this is something I'm particularly sensitive to (I work as a professional letterer myself and I've grown up with manga, analyzing the choices and shifting trends over 2 1/2 decades) but there are so many talented letterers doing beautiful creative work and lifting up the amazing artists being published, it disappoints me when publishers don't show they value this part of the presentation, even when they seem to make thoughtful choices in other areas--licensing unique and important works, and finding capable translators. I want to recognize and express gratitude to publishers that are looking at what types of stories readers seek out and helping artists reach fans across languages, and I think this is something Tokyopop is making strides to do. But I feel the manga reading experience depends so much on the cohesion of all these elements, and dropping the ball on a major visual focus unfortunately detracts from everyone else's contributions... |
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mdo7
Posts: 6715 Location: Katy, Texas, USA |
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I do see some animosity and distrust amongst yourselves when it comes to Tokyopop, and I can understand that when it comes to Stu Levy, the way Tokyopop handled Initial D manga and anime at the beginning (although this was in early 2000's, way before anime/manga became mainstream in the US), and the treatment they gave to OEL manga artists/creators.
However, unlike some of you except Iys (which I like the user assessment), I'm going to give Tokyopop a 2nd chance to prove to themselves that they can be on the level as other publishers in the US. Why am I giving Tokyopop another chance while some of you on here express doubts and skepticism? If you've compared the environment for anime/manga back in 2000's, and today. Let me compare:
I don't expect Tokyopop to be licensing anything from Kodansha given that we already have Kodansha USA division. But I think Tokyopop today probably would act a bit similar to Seven Seas Entertainment, and Yen Press when it comes to picking up more obscure titles out there. But yeah teaming up with Disney and Mattel might be a small but simple start for them. Like I said, I'm giving Tokyopop a 2nd chance, and to see how they can hold up in today's market. So I agree with Iys's assessment and the user's thought on Tokyopop. What Tokyopop did back then was a different era, and let's just focus on the current/present state of manga. |
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leetailor
 Posts: 24 |
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I don't know that much about BL so I won't speak on it, but yuri manga is not freely interchangeable with "romance". We do not live in a world that treats heterosexual and non-heterosexual relationships as equally valuable, so melting a queer genre like yuri into a unified label with heterosexuality ignores the struggles of the people that care the most about this kind of media (i.e. queer people, the demographic you're supposedly trying to signal support to). It also obscures the inconvenient fact that the straight romance market is *a lot* bigger than the yuri market; with far higher revenue, output, and prestige. And for what? Will the application of this nebulous "inclusivity" stop anyone from viewing heterosexuality as the most natural?
A category like yuri exists because it's necessary. Even in a society where heterosexuality is enforced not just through bloody violence but cultural tools (mass media) as well, there are people scattered all over the planet who believe that stories about relationships between women are important. These people (again, mostly queer people) who want to create, absorb, and discuss these stories, find each other, form communities, and create a category to facilitate this cultural production. Depending on the medium the category might be called F/F, lesbian, GL, yuri, etc. but they emerge from the same desire to carve out a space for this type of story. That's why maintaining a legible and easily searchable category specifically for yuri is respectful to readers and honors the creators (once again, mostly queer in both cases). Melting yuri manga into a "love is love uwu" category at best lets people continue to ignore that relationships between women are treated as worthless across mainstream media, and at worst destroys discoverability of yuri manga! (You'd think that would be obvious, but apparently not.) The way to do right by yuri manga is to acquire licenses with an eye to quality and with a variety of genres and themes, then properly advertise and promote those works so customers know about them. By the way, I just checked their website, and it's even worse than I thought. TokyoPop's storefront has no tag system at all. They offer literally no means of filtering for yuri manga (or even queer/LGBT+ titles)! (Which conveniently means there is no way to easily count them, so I can't even check how few yuri titles they have in their catalogue.) Any poor soul possessed by the -apparently unreasonable- idea to look for yuri manga on TokyoPop's website is forced to weed through over 300 items of almost nothing but het and BL. It's crazy that this interview tries to put a positive spin on this! It does not make the publisher look queer-friendly; if anything, it makes me feel like they are ashamed of carrying yuri manga in their catalogue at all. As a bonus: with great difficulty I found a yuri title in the "LoveLove" category (Alter Ego by Ana C. Sanchez, which I own a copy of), and guess what. There exists no indication next to thumbnail that would make it stand out as a yuri/GL title. (The only reason I managed to spot it in the sea of het and BL was because I recognized the cover.) When I click on the thumbnail, the product page also does not inform you that it's a yuri/GL title; not even in the Details tab. And what does the "you may also like" carousel recommend at the bottom? Five BL titles! This is hilarious. |
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