Gutsoon! Entertainment, publishers of the weekly Raijin manga anthology, announced a wave of graphic novels collecting episodes from Raijin that will hit retail stores in June.  With the exception of one full color book priced at $17.95, all the other Gutsoon! releases will be published in black-and-white at the increasingly standardized manga price point of $9.95. 

Since Raijin is known for its two-fisted action stories it is only fitting that two of the first releases feature Hara Tetsuo's Fist of the North Star and Fist of the Blue Sky.  Vol. #4 of Fist of the North Star bows in June in full color for $17.95, while the first volume of its exciting 'prequel,' Fist of the Blue Sky, arrives simultaneously in black-and-white at $9.95.  Volumes #2 and #3 of Fist of the Blue Sky will follow in August and November respectively.

Also arriving in June are first volumes of the crime action thriller City Hunter, the popular sports manga Slam Dunk, and the political thriller First President of Japan.  Three additional volumes of each of these popular Raijin series will be out before the end of the year.  Gutsoon also plans to publish trade paperback collections of Baki the Grappler (July, October, December) and Bomber Girl (October).  The entry of Gutsoon! Entertainment into the American marketplace is just one of many reasons for the proliferation of manga titles (see 'ICv2 Estimates 1000 Anime Releases in '03') in 2003.