Viz Media has announced some of the new manga series it is launching later this year and two of them, Pokemon Black & White Vols. 1 & 2, and Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds are clearly based on the latest iteration of the Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh! game and anime franchises.
The Pokemon Black & White video games are launching this spring as is the Black & White Expansion for the Pokemon TCG (see “Pokemon TCG: Black & White”). Later this year a Pokemon Black & White Double Feature debuts in Japan (see “Pokemon Double Feature”). Viz Media is releasing both Volume 1 and Volume 2 of the Pokemon Black & White manga series in July. The Pokemon Black & White volumes will each carry a cover price $4.99. In May Viz Media is releasing a Pokemon Travel Activity Kit (MSRP $11.99), which features the latest new Pokemon from the Black & White series and also includes an activity pad, stickers, posters, stand-ups, and crayon.
Also out in July is Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds Vol.1 (MSRP $9.99), the first manga volume in a series that covers the same narrative ground as the Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds anime series, which of course relates to the 5Ds releases for the YGO TCG (see “Yu-Gi-Oh! Q1 Releases”).
Viz Media’s November launch is Tesoro, a collection of 14 seinen slice-of-life stories by Natsume Ono that should appeal to a wide range of mature readers including those who don’t normally read manga.
The final new manga that Viz Media is launching in 2011 is the shojo series Dawn of Arcana by Rei Toma, a drama-filled fantasy series with a strong female lead and loads of intrigue.