Tokyopop® Reveals its First Wave of Japanese Manga Licenses

3 New Series -- Konohana Kitan, Futaribeya & Hanger To Be ​Launched in 2018

Los Angeles, CA —TOKYOPOP®, a POP Media Holdings company and global manga leader, announces its initial plans for moving back into Japanese manga English-language licenses with three new series.

KONOHANA KITAN is the first title in the publisher's newest licenses, a slice of life fantasy story adapted into a hit anime currently streaming on Crunchyroll and Funimation. Created by Sakuya Amano, KONOHANA KITAN is the heartwarming story of a new apprentice named Yuzu, and the other fox girls who work at a hot spring hotel called Konohatei. The staff at Konohatei live by one belief: no matter who one may truly be, no matter what, anyone who is a guest is a god. Of course, that includes you. Let the hospitality of Yuzu and the Konohatei heal your tired soul.

Also debuting is FUTARIBEYA, a slice of life yonkoma (four-panel vertical comic strip) manga series by Yukiko. About to start her first year of high school, Sakurako Kawawa settles into her new lodgings. But when she meets her new roommate -- the beautiful Kasumi Yamabuki -- everything changes! From day one the responsible, level-headed Sakurako and lazy, easygoing Kasumi find themselves at odds with one another, but with their matching mugs and one bed to share, Sakurako and Kasumi's friendship is just beginning!

The third new title is Hirotaka Kisaragi's HANGER, an action-packed Boys Love series set in a crime-ridden future version of Tokyo. In Neo-Tokyo, crime is rising rapidly in the wake of a new generation of super-drugs capable of enhancing the user's physical and mental abilities. Hajime Tsukomo is a new recruit on a federal task force trained to go after these powered-up criminals. Now he must team up with Zeroichi, a so-called Hanger looking to reduce his own jail sentence in exchange for helping to take down these chemically-boosted bad guys.

"20 years ago, TOKYOPOP began publishing with its first English-language adaptations of Japanese manga such as Sailor Moon, Magical Knight Rayearth and Parasyte,” said TOKYOPOP founder Stu Levy. "The fandom for manga and anime has grown spectacularly since that time, and we couldn't be more excited to reconnect with fans by publishing Japanese manga again. These three titles are a perfect example of how diverse and nuanced manga can cross cultural bridges and reach a wide English-speaking audience -- we're excited to relaunch our manga licensing with Konohana Kitan, Futaribeya and Hanger."

Details on the upcoming 2018 TOKYOPOP manga releases are as follows:


Title: Konohana Kitan, Vol. 1
Story/Art: Sakuya Amano
ISBN: 978-1-4278-5946-4
Rating: Teen
SRP: $12.99
eSRP: $9.99
Trim: 5"x7.5"
Pages: 176
Cover: Softcover
Interiors: B&W
​Release date: 6/19/2018

Title: Konohana Kitan, Vol. 2
Story/Art: Sakuya Amano
ISBN: 978-1-4278-5950-1
Rating: Teen
SRP: $12.99
eSRP: $9.99
Trim: 5"x7.5"
Pages: 176
Cover: Softcover
Interiors: B&W
​Release date: 8/21/2018

Title: Konohana Kitan, Vol. 3
Story/Art: Sakuya Amano
ISBN: 978-1-4278-5954-9
Rating: Teen
SRP: $12.99
eSRP: $9.99
Trim: 5"x7.5"
Pages: 176
Cover: Softcover
Interiors: B&W
​Release date: 10/23/2018

Title: Konohana Kitan, Vol. 4
Story/Art: Sakuya Amano
ISBN: 978-1-4278-5978-5
Rating: Teen
SRP: $12.99
eSRP: $9.99
Trim: 5"x7.5"
Pages: 176
Cover: Softcover
Interiors: B&W
​Release date: 12/4/2018

Title: Futaribeya, Vol. 1
Story/Art: Yukiko
ISBN: 978-1-4278-5982-2
Rating: Teen
SRP: $12.99
eSRP: $9.99
Trim: 5"x7.5"
Pages: 160
Cover: Softcover
Interiors: B&W
​Release date: 9/4/2018

Title: Futaribeya, Vol. 2
Story/Art: Yukiko
ISBN: 978-1-4278-5986-0
Rating: Teen
SRP: $12.99
eSRP: $9.99
Trim: 5"x7.5"
Pages: 160
Cover: Softcover
Interiors: B&W
​Release date: 11/6/2018

itle: Hanger, Vol. 1
Story/Art: Hirotaka Kisaragi
ISBN: 978-1-4278-5958-7
Rating: Older teen
SRP: $12.99
eSRP: $9.99
Trim: 5"x7.5"
Pages: 192
Cover: Softcover
Interiors: B&W
​Release date: 7/18/2018

Title: Hanger, Vol. 2
Story/Art: Hirotaka Kisaragi
ISBN: 978-1-4278-5962-4
Rating: Older teen
SRP: $12.99
eSRP: $9.99
Trim: 5"x7.5"
Pages: 208
Cover: Softcover
Interiors: B&W
​Release date: 9/4/2018


About POP Media Holdings
Founded in 1997 by media entrepreneur Stu Levy, POP Media Holdings brings Asian Pop Culture to Hollywood and beyond. Its publishing company TOKYOPOP® established the market for manga in North America, introducing the term to the English language in the process. Over its history, POP has published thousands of books, distributed anime and Asian films on home video and television, licensed merchandise to consumer goods companies, created graphic novels of major brands and led the way digitally in social media, e-commerce and user-generated content, including the mobile publishing platform POP Comics®. POP expanded internationally with offices in Europe and Japan and a network of over 160 partners in more than 50 countries and 30 languages. Its production arm has produced live-action and animated film and television content based on its extensive intellectual property library, including Priest, America's Greatest Otaku, Van Von Hunter, and a slate of projects currently in development. Visit POP at TOKYOPOP.com, TOKYOPOP.de, POPcomics.com, and subscribe to TOKYOPOP TV for original web series and shows.