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Seven Seas Offers New Editions of Classroom of the Elite #7, Mushoku Tensei #1-2 Light Novels
posted on by Kim Morrissy
Seven Seas Entertainment reports on its website that a new digital version of the Classroom of the Elite volume 7 light novel has been issued on all digital platforms as of March 2. In addition, the publisher has been re-editing Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation volumes 1 and 2 this month for a new edition on digital platforms.
The new paperback editions of the books will ship from the printer in the following timeframes:
- Classroom of the Elite vol. 7: mid-April
- Mushoku Tensei vol. 1: early May
- Mushoku Tensei vol. 2: early April
Seven Seas advises customers who bought the earlier printing to return or exchange it at the retailers from which they purchased it (subject to each retailer's return policy). Retailers will have access to the new edition reprints in about May or June.
The new versions address complaints of omitted or rewritten text in the English releases. Seven Seas acknowledged the issues in a statement last month, announcing that it would reissue Classroom of the Elite volume 7, and that it is "re-evaluating" its editorial choices on Mushoku Tensei.
According to text comparisons posted on Reddit, the original Seven Seas release of Classroom of the Elite volume 7 omitted entire paragraphs of descriptive prose and dialogue from the original Japanese novel. Readers complained that the changes made it harder to understand what was happening in the story.
Similar cases of omissions were also noted for the first two volumes of Mushoku Tensei. Several controversial changes also involve rewritten characterization. In chapter 3 of volume 2, a scene which depicted the protagonist Rudeus groping and attempting to pull off the panties of a sleeping girl was replaced with him trying to pull her shirt over her stomach to prevent her from catching a cold. The scene in its original form was depicted in episode 6 of the television anime adaptation.
Another notable change from volume 1 involved removing references to rape. When Lilia described her past sexual history with Paul to Rudeus in chapter 9, he mentally referred to Paul's actions as "rape and adultery." This was changed in English to "cheater and womanizer." In another section earlier in the same chapter, Lilia recalls an incident where Paul snuck into her bedroom at night for sex, describing the initial act as "forced." The reference to force was removed in the English version.
Last Friday, Seven Seas announced that the ebook version of I'm in Love with the Villainess volume 1 would be revised "within the next few weeks," after readers raised concerns over omitted paragraphs dealing with the protagonist's thoughts on LGBTQ+ media representations. The revision will also be in future printings of the paperback. Seven Seas added that "we have since changed how we edit these books to make sure important lines are not lost."
I'm in Love with the Villainess author Inori responded to fans on Twitter in light of the recent discovery that parts from the first novel were omitted from the English release. Inori, who often writes tweets in English, Japanese, and Korean, responded to fan concerns that she felt there must have been an "unavoidable reason" for the change but that she's "still a little sad." She further clarified that she hopes the novel readers will act "calmly and rationally" involving the issue and thanked fans for their support.
Source: Seven Seas Entertainment (lnk 2, (link 3)
