Flipped!: David Welsh On Ten Books Scheduled For 2009 Release



By David P. Welsh

As 2008 comes to an end and industries of every stripe, comics included, seem to be in flux or actual crisis, it might be difficult to be optimistic about the year to come. So for some year-end spirit lifting, here are ten books slated for release in 2009 that should help any comics fan look on the bright side.

Ooku, by Fumi Yoshinaga (Viz), release slated for August 18, 2009, ISBN: 1-4215-2747-2, $12.99. Yoshinaga is already well known and much loved by English-reading manga fans for general-audience works like Antique Bakery and Flower of Life (Digital Manga) and yaoi titles like Gerard & Jacques (Blu) and Ichigenme: The First Class Is Civil Law (801). Ooku is a period fantasy about a woman shogun in a world where men are in short supply. Yoshinaga has a knack for turning predictable material on its head and infusing any story with a blend of narrative power and heartfelt charm. To be honest, I'd be excited by any announced license from this creator, but all early word indicates that Ooku is her most ambitious work to date.

Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka (Viz), release slated for February 17, 2009, ISBN: 1-4215-1918-6, $12.99; and 20th Century Boys, release slated for February 17, 2009, ISBN: 1-59116-922-4, $12.99. These two titles by Naoki Urasawa have been in Viz's hands for some time, but the publisher complied with the creator's request to schedule English-language release his work in the same order that it appeared in Japan. As a result, Viz completed its run of Urasawa's complex thriller, Monster, before rolling out these two titles. Given the ever-increasing level of craft on display in Monster over its 18-volume run, Pluto and 20th Century Boys should certainly be highlights of 2009.

Moyashimon: Tales of Agriculture, by Masayuki Ishikawa, (Del Rey), release slated for Fall 2009. Moyashimon won the Best General Manga category of the 32nd Kodansha Manga Awards and the Manga Grand Prize at the 12th Tezuka Cultural Prize program. Even before those developments, there was significant interest in this wacky tale of microbes and the agricultural student who can communicate with them. More manga for grown-ups is always welcome, but funny, award-winning manga for grown-ups is even moreso.

Oishinbo, by (Viz), release slated for January 20, 2009, ISBN: 1-4215-2139-3, $12.99. I'm of the opinion that a focus on food can make just about any manga better, and Oishinbo sounds like the heavyweight of the category. It follows a culinary journalist as he tries to assemble the "ultimate menu" for his publisher. Viz is cherry-picking from the series' 100-plus volumes to present collections dedicated to a specific culinary theme such as sake, sushi and pub food.

Ax (Top Shelf), release slated for Fall 2009. I've mentioned this sampler of work from the legendary bimonthly manga anthology before, but it bears repeating. Sean Michael Wilson will be editing the book for Top Shelf, and he talks about the project in this interview with Kai-Ming Cha at Publishers Weekly Comics Week.

Red Blinds the Foolish, by est em (Deux), release slated for January 3, 2009, ISBN: 1-9344-9628-6, $12.95: em's Seduce Me After the Show was one of the most pleasant surprises of 2008, offering richly drawn characters and angular, unconventionally attractive art. Red Blinds the Foolish is another collection of em's short stories, with the added bonus that translation and adaptation duties have been handled by manga scholar Matt Thorn. Thorn has always demonstrated an encyclopedic knowledge and abiding love of Japanese comics for girls and women, as demonstrated in this interview with ground-breaking creator Moto Hagio that appeared in The Comics Journal.

The Color of Earth, by Kim Dong Hwa (First Second), release slated for April 2009, ISBN: 1-59643-458-5, $16.95. There's always something eye-catching in a new catalog from First Second, and the highlight for me is this slice-of-life comic from Korea. It's a coming-of-age story about the daughter of a widowed tavern-keeper in the Korean countryside. First Second has demonstrated excellent taste in international comics, so this should be a treat.

Orange, by Benjamin (Tokyopop), release slated for February 10, 2009, ISBN: 1-4278-1463-5, $14.99. Tokyopop launches its full-color line of international comics with this tale of a young woman in crisis by Chinese creator Benjamin. You can see an extensive preview of the comic at MangaBlog.

A Drifting Life, by Yoshihiro Tatsumi (Drawn & Quarterly), release slated for April 2009, ISBN: 1-897299-74-6, $29.95. Drawn & Quarterly has already delivered three volumes of Tatsumi's highly regarded short stories, and it will up the ante with Tatsumi's 840-page autobiography.

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David P. Welsh has loved comics since his parents first used Archie and Casper to sedate him during long trips in the family station wagon.

He's worked as a reporter and editor for daily and weekly newspapers, and later sold out for the glamorous world of public relations. Prior to relocating to The Comics Reporter, he wrote his Flipped column for Comic World News for just over three years. He's written articles on comics for print outlets and a variety of other web sites.

He lives in West Virginia, which he says has gotten a lot easier since the Starbucks and Barnes & Noble opened up.

You may e-mail David with questions or commentary You can write to this site about David's columns

Please bookmark his site, Precocious Curmudgeon.

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