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Fairy Tail's Hiro Mashima Launches Dead Rock Manga
posted on by Joanna Cayanan
The July issue of Kodansha's Monthly Shonen Magazine revealed on Tuesday that Hiro Mashima (Fairy Tail, Edens Zero) will launch a new manga titled DEAD ROCK in the magazine's August issue, which will release on July 6. Mashima revealed the manga on Twitter as a short-term serialization.
The dark fantasy manga's story centers on Dead Rock, a Demon King training institution towering in the depths of the demon world. To knock down the door of Dead Rock, a young demon named Yakuto takes on the challenge of the harsh entrance examination.
Mashima ended his Heros crossover manga mini-series in December 2019. The manga launched in Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine in October 2019.
Mashima launched his Edens Zero manga in Weekly Shōnen Magazine in June 2018, and the manga entered its final arc in December. Kodansha published the manga's 26th compiled book volume on April 17. North American publisher Kodansha USA Publishing is releasing the series simultaneously digitally, and Kodansha is releasing the manga on its K MANGA app. The 22nd English volume shipped in print on April 25, and the 23rd volume will ship on July 4. The manga's first anime season premiered in Japan in April 2021, and aired for 25 episodes. The second season premiered on April 1.
Mashima's Fairy Tail manga launched in 2006 and ended in July 2017. The final anime season based on the manga premiered in Japan in October 2018. The anime series ended in September 2019. Crunchyroll and Funimation streamed the anime with English subtitles. Funimation also streamed an English dub.
The manga has inspired two earlier television anime, two anime films, several original video anime projects, and spinoff manga. Kodansha USA Publishing publishes the original manga and a number of its spinoffs in North America.
Atsuo Ueda (Dr. Prisoner, Hajime Shachō Monogatari) launched the official sequel of Mashima's original Fairy Tail manga in Kodansha's Magazine Pocket manga app in July 2018. Mashima is providing the original storyboards for the manga, and Ueda is drawing the series. Kodansha published the 14th compiled book volume on April 7. Kodansha USA Publishing published the sequel manga's 12th volume in English on April 11. The manga is also inspiring a television anime adaptation.
Mashima is designing the characters for Marvelous' recently-announced game titled Project Magia.
Sources: Monthly Shonen Magazine's website (link 2), Hiro Mashima's Twitter account
