Viz Media has announced the cancellation of Shojo Beat, and at the same time, the launch of a new online publication called Ikki.
Shojo Beat is a three-year-old manga fan magazine that doubled as a marketing vehicle for Viz manga titles; the July issue will be its last. Announcing the magazine’s death, Director of Publicity Evelyn Dubocq said “no layoffs have been announced at this time,” but that the magazine was a victim of economic downturn. “The magazine developed quite a fan base but unfortunately in today’s difficult economic climate we felt the need to place our resources elsewhere.” She also said subscribers will receive a free copy of the August Shonen Jump that will also include information on refund options.
The launch of Ikki in English is currently a beta launch. Viz Media calls it “a brand new collaboration to bring comics the likes of which American audiences have never seen to these shores.” Ikki is a six-year-old monthly magazine published in Japan, which publishes a range of genres.
Now, in partnership with Viz Media and its “Viz Signature” line of graphic novels, Ikki will publish the works of some of its top creators in English as an online monthly manga magazine. The first series they’ll be publishing is Children of the Sea by Daisuke Igarashi. New chapters will appear monthly, and after the serialization is completed, the book will be offered as a Viz Signature graphic novel. Future titles they expect to publish this way include: Bokurano: Ours by Mohiro Kitoh; House of Five Leaves by Natsume Ono; Dorohedoro by Q Hayashida; and I’ll Give It My All… Tomorrow by Shunju Aono. In addition to the manga serializations, Ikki will offer interviews, feature articles, news, and giveaways.
The first chapter of Children of the Sea is now available. It tells the story of Ruka, who, when she was younger, “saw a ghost in the water at the aquarium where her dad works. Now she feels drawn toward the aquarium and the two mysterious boys she meets there, Umi and Sora. They were raised by dugongs and hear the same strange calls from the sea as she does.
“Ruka’s dad and the other adults who work at the aquarium are only distantly aware of what the children are experiencing as they get caught up in the mystery of the worldwide disappearance of the oceans’ fish.”