Sponsored.  Emphasizing quality over quantity, the LOVE x LOVE imprint from TOKYOPOP has been bringing high quality romance manga to fans since 2020, with much more to come.

TOKYOPOP has been a mainstay in the manga publishing scene since 1997, before western interest in Japanese pop culture and media boomed in the early 2000s.  No one knew back then that manga would come to be such a popular and respected part of the comics publishing world, but now fans are so spoiled for choice it can be hard to find the titles that are right for them.

Romance readers in general have proven to be incredibly flexible when it comes to picking up new authors and series, and TOKYOPOP had already seen some success testing a few new titles since its return to publishing back in 2016.  Noting that LGBTQ+ romance titles – predominantly Boys Love (male/male pairings AKA yaoi) and Girls Love (female/female pairings AKA yuri) – were often shelved separately from other similar stories, TOKYOPOP staff decided to create a new imprint just for romance, but with all titles grouped together to allow fans to select whichever pairing, genre, overall tone and art style they were in the mood for.  And not every reader wants something that’s raunchy enough to be rated 18+, so emphasis was placed on having a wide variety of reading ages.

With this knowledge in mind the LOVE x LOVE imprint was launched In early 2020.  The timing was unfortunate but unintentional, lining up almost perfectly with the worldwide pandemic shutdown.  With Dekoboko Sugar Days crowned the first official launch title under this new branding, it was deemed an almost overnight success and has continued to expand ever since.

Quality over quantity is the motto when it comes to selecting these titles, and finding stories that resonate with fans and with the team at TOKYOPOP is key.  "We want to present manga that we personally enjoy or believe in," says Kae Winters, Marketing Associate.  "We all have different preferences and life experiences, and that results in a great variety of books that, we hope, will appeal to a wide range of tastes.  And with much appreciated feedback and suggestions from fans and retailers, we intend to continue to expand what we have on offer."

Some of the latest releases from LOVE x LOVE include Loved Circus, a standalone title focusing on an exhausted salaryman at the end of his limit and ready to give up.  Rescued by the men of Loved Circus, a male-only brothel, the story focuses on the hardships, struggles, positives and negatives of working in the red light district while supported by found family.  A mature but surprisingly wholesome 18+ Boys Love title given the subject matter, Loved Circus is by prolific BL author Nemui Asada and debuted in December 2022.

The fourth volume of Her Royal Highness Seems to Be Angry hit shelves in January 2023, a manga adaptation of a light novel series by Neko Yotsuba, Kou Yatsuhashi, and Mito Nagashiro.  An isekai romance, this series follows a powerful princess who is adored by her subjects and has the ability to wield powerful magic.  However the kingdom is besieged and she loses her life, only to awaken in a different body, in a different time and place, but this time with no powers.  There’s as much fantasy action and political intrigue as there is romance in this ongoing 16+ rated series, racing towards the thrilling finale in volume 5.

Another ongoing series that updated in January 2023 is Mone Sorai’s Our Not-So-Lonely Planet Travel Guide, a 13+ slice of life story about a gay couple who’ve made a vow to travel the world and once they return to Japan, they’ll get married.  With traveling comes some hesitation about public displays of affection, who they feel comfortable outing themselves too, and a heartwarming and wholesome dose of relatability and acceptance as they meet locals, run into old friends, and enjoy the local cuisine of the countries they visit.

As more and more people decide to give manga a try and branch out beyond western graphic novels and traditional books, TOKYOPOP intends to keep LOVE x LOVE at the forefront of romance fans’ minds.  With new and continuing series, new IP partnerships, convention appearances and more, 2023 is shaping up to be the year of love.

Click on Gallery below to see full-sized images of various titles.