Anime Expo 2008

CMX Manga

CMX Manga – panel report

Representatives:
Asako Suzuki
Larry Berry
Sarah Farber
Ed Chavez
Jim Chadwick

CMX's panel began with announcements for current titles. The Batman: Death Mask manga by Yoshinori Natsume will first be serialized in floppy comic format and will then be compiled as a graphic novel volume later in the year. Kaoru Mori's Emma is currently "on hiatus" as the series is at the stopping point of a story arc, but will resume in 2009 with three new volumes. Crayon Shin-chan is currently on its third volume of release, while Flat Earth Exchange has just debuted.

Upcoming titles for 2008 and early 2009 include: Shirley, a short story collection by Emma creator Kaoru Mori; The Girl Who Runs Through Time by Yasutaka Tsutsui and Gaku Tsugano; Go West! by Yu Yagami; Astral Project by Garon Tsuchiya (author of Old Boy); Classical Medley by Sanae Kana and Suihelibe! by Naomi Azuma (both from CMX partner FlexComix); Fire Investigator Nanase by Izō Hashimoto and Tomoshige Ichikawa; Jihai by Toshimi Nigoshi; Venus Capriccio by Mai Nishikata; Ballad of a Shinigami by Asuka Izumi; and The Name of the Flower by Ken Saitō.

CMX has also launched a newsletter called CMXtra, which comes out once a month to inform readers about new releases.

After the announcements and a prize giveaway, the panel was opened up to questions. The release schedule for the final volumes of Emma in 2009 is expected to be every 4 months. Also, the marketing of Shin-chan has raised some interesting issues, due to cultural references and various differences from the Adult Swim version.

An attendee asked about the possibility of Tenjho Tenge in "uncut" format, but there are no plans at this time. The issue was discussed in detail at the panel, and CMX has learned from the "Tenjho Tenge incident," admitting that the censorship was a mistake. Since then, the company has become more careful about keeping content unedited, and chooses to apply age ratings instead as a guideline.