News

Comic Bunch to Adapt Hit Korean/Chinese/Japanese Novels (Updated)

The next two issues of Coamix's Weekly Comic Bunch magazine will launch manga based on hit novels from South Korea, China, and Japan. Artist Mizu Sahara (The Voices of a Distant Star, The Place Promised in Our Early Days manga versions) will adapt the Korean novel Our Happy Time (Watashi-tachi no Shiawase na Jikan) in this year's 17th issue (on sale on March 28). South Korea's most popular female novelist, Gong Ji-Young, wrote this story about the relationship between a woman and a death row inmate. The limited manga mini-series (pictured at top right) will have the English subtitle Our Happy Hours. The original novel has already been translated into Japanese and adapted into a popular Korean live-action movie (Maundy Thursday). Sahara drew the Same Cell Organism and The Day I Become a Butterfly boys-love manga (both adapted by Digital Manga Publishing) under the name Sumomo Yumeka.

Kazumasa Kawamura will draw Ranjin: Sangokushi Ryofu Ibun (Ranjin: Romance of the Three Kingdoms: The Strange Tales of Lü Bu, pictured at top left) in the same issue. Ryofu or Lü Bu is one of the main warrior characters in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Luo Guanzhong's novel classic about China's Three Kingdoms era. The same novel inspired countless Japanese manga, anime, and games of varying historical accuracy, including Sangokushi, Ikki Tousen, New Tale of Three Kingdoms, Yawaraka Sangokushi Tsukisase!! Ryofuko-chan, and SD Gundam BB Warriors: Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Dynasty Warriors, and Koihime†Musō. The 17th issue will also publish the end of New Violence Jack, the remake of Gō Nagai and Dynamic Pro's post-apocalyptic adventure manga.

Hiroto Ōishi will adapt Miyuki Miyabe's Snark Gari (The Hunting of the Snark) suspense novel in the 18th issue, which will ship on April 4. The title is a reference to "The Hunting of the Snark (An Agony in 8 Fits)" poem from Lewis Carroll of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland fame. Miyabe wrote the modern fantasy novel Brave Story which Viz Media released in North America. Tokyopop has been publishing Yoichiro Ono's manga version. Eiji Hashimoto and Takashi Arashita will also start the Tokyo 23 manga in the same issue.

Source: Ultimatum

Update: Ōishi and Snack Gari's spellings corrected. Thanks, tenkado-shujin.