Tokyopop announced two new acquisitions at the recently concluded Anime Expo (see 'Growing Pains at Anime Expo').  The first was the Lupin III (pronounced 'Lupin the Third') manga by renowned creator Monkey Punch (Kazuhiko Kato).  The manga series began in 1967 and spawned several TV series and movies over the subsequent decades.  The lead character is an international master thief with a heart of gold who steals from the rich for personal wealth.  FUNimation has the US rights to the Lupin III movies (see 'FUNimation Signs Lupin III'); Pioneer announced the acquisition of the TV anime at the same show (see 'Pioneer Announces New Acquisitions').  Like other recent Tokyopop releases, Lupin III will be published in right to left format.

 

The Akira 'film comic,' or 'Cine-manga' as Tokyopop calls it, will feature screen shots from the film as the art with word balloons, etc. superimposed.  The Dark Horse trade paperback collections of the original Akira manga have been among the best-selling comic collections of the past year; the new Tokyopop releases will adapt the movie based on the manga.  Tokyopop has previously published several Cardcaptors 'Cine-manga' using the same techniques.  The Tokyopop Akira will appear in five volumes, beginning in Q4, at a price to be determined.