Official Press Release
San Francisco, Calif, April 28, 2004 – VIZ, LLC, one of the leading publishers and distributors of manga and anime content for North American audiences, announced today that the manga editions of NARUTO, vol. 3, Bridge of Courage and RUROUNI KENSHIN vol. 4, Dual Conclusions are the first graphic novels to ever appear on USA Today’s Top 150 list of best selling books. Both NARUTO and RUROUNI KENSHIN appear on the Top 150 list for the week of April 18th.
The list (viewable on USA Today’s website at
www.usatoday.com) is based on an objective computer analysis of retail sales from 4,700 independent, chain, discount and online booksellers nationwide. This latest USA Today literary sales report follows a similar one issued in February 2004 from Nielsen BookScan that gave the previous edition of RUROUNI KENSHIN – vol. 3 – the number one spot on BookScan’s list of best selling graphic novels nationwide, as well as entry into its Overall Adult Fiction Top 100 list. Since its release on April 7th, vol. 4 of the popular samurai graphic novel has sold 8,351 copies.
NARUTO, by Masashi Kishimoto, tells the adventures and coming of age of twelve-year-old Uzumaki Naruto, a mischievous and troubled boy attending Ninja Academy. The boy desires only to be the best ninja in all Japan, but is secretly possessed by the spirit of Kyuubi no Youko, a cunning but evil nine tailed fox that is the real reason behind Naruto’s incorrigible behavior. The manga depicts the boy’s battles against both himself and those around him who wish to use the fox’s spirit for their own dastardly ends. NARUTO vol. 3 has sold 7,570 copies since its release on April 7th.
The wildly popular manga series, RUROUNI KENSHIN, written by Nobuhiro Watsuki, is about the adventures of a wandering swordsman who helps those in trouble. RUROUNI KENSHIN is set in Japan during the second half of the 19th century during the Meiji era, a time of enormous change in Japanese society. Volume 4 finds main character Kenshin facing down an ice-cold assassin.
“We are proud that two of our graphic novels are the first in the genre to make such a prestigious list,” states Hyoe Narita, VIZ executive vice president. “NARUTO and RUROUNI KENSHIN are both fine examples of finely crafted adventure stories and also present some of the best artwork in comics today. I look forward to both series continuing to grow in popularity and to new fans discovering these unique and fantastic tales.”
