What I Got Out of an ICv2 Guide After Finding The One I Got

Over two months ago, I was curious about what was inside a paper copy of those guides ICv2 issues on a quarterly/bi-monthly basis so I ordered ICv2 Guide #60: Graphic Novels & DVDs for $14 including shipping. I got it a week later, flipped through it, and planned to read it more thoroughly later for a post about its contents. But I misplaced it and couldn’t find it until a bit of cleaning last week yielded a white envelope and the guide contained within. So now, here is what I gleaned about their editorial perspective among other things after reading through the Guide.

In the second half of the Q3 2008 Market Report, Vampire Knight is called “the most likely successor to the shojo crown” that Fruits Basket will vacate following the release of its 23rd and final volume in July. The staff said that VK has done well without having an anime adaptation broadcast on television “in strong contrast” to Viz’s big three shonen franchises – Bleach, Naruto, and Death Note. I would surmise the general rise in popularity of vampire fare, particularly Stephanie Meyer’s novels, is also a factor in its success along with the actual content of the manga, namely the love triangle.

They then say that those shonen anime airings “were largely responsible for huge jumps in sales of those manga series” and that “[Cartoon Network's] dismantling of its Saturday night anime-dominated Toonami block, and the reduction in the number of anime slots in the network’s late night Adult Swim block will not do the North American anime or manga market any good.” A few pages later, it is remarked that CN’s smaller anime footprint “could affect the potential of future shonen manga series such as Rosario & Vampire” and “whether or not [the anime] receives a decent run on the Cartoon Network could make a huge difference in how successful the manga will be in the North American market”. Finally, while talking about Naoki Urasawa, it is said that the Monster manga “might really take off” if the anime can “get any sort of decent airplay”.

Though I agree that getting on television helps increase overall awareness of a franchise, its impact has been lessened by the community fostering opportunities offered by the Internet. I personally doubt ecchi comedy romance series like Rosario would make it onto basic cable though a more action-oriented title like Soul Eater might have a chance. Monster might work well on domestic television with its serial format – the only question is on which channel it would air: A&E?

According to a chart of Manga Pick Hits, volume 1 of the Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei manga (Del Rey) was supposed to come out in January but that date has since been pushed back to February 24th. I didn’t even know it had even been licensed but I must have not been paying attention last April.

In the Comic Art Books section, two upcoming manga-related novels from Tokyopop are mentioned: .hack//G.U. Novel #1: Terror of Death “that should follow in the path of previous .hack// novels, which have sold better than 90% of all manga releases” (i.e. .hack//Legend of the Twilight) and one based on The Tarot Cafe, “one of the most popular manwha releases in the North American market”.

The Anime Market Report entitled “Downward Trends Continue” starts off with old news — Gonzo’s financial losses and its experimentation with digital delivery methods, Viz putting its big-name series on Hulu and Joost — before returning to the subject of Cartoon Network and this time, there is elaboration on the point. They remind their readers that anime showings on other cable networks like SciFi “have not demonstrated the same effect on sales of DVDs and related manga” that Toonami and Adult Swim airings did and back that with the following evidence: Naruto became the top-selling manga in America immediately after it began airing on CN (perspective: its TV debut was September 20, 2005 – the first seven volumes had been released by then); both Bleach and Death Note jumped to “top five status” following their appearances on Adult Swim (debuts: September 9, 2006 and October 20, 2007, respectively); and Adult Swim mainstay Cowboy Bebop remains “the most popular TV anime of all time in the U.S. market with over a million units sold”.

They do indicate some positive signs leading into 2009 – remember this was published in November – such as Funimation aggressively engaging in Blu-ray releases and Ponyo on a Cliff‘s pending release stateside, which “should energize the market (and the Miyazaki backlist)”. On the topic of anime feature films, they “remain a bright spot” since they lack “the same pricing issues that plague anime TV series” such as licensing and development costs and since Hollywood continues to fund such features, like Batman: Gotham Knight, and use anime as “source material for live action blockbusters that should pique interest in the original source material if and when the Hollywood version gets made”. So expect such a rise for Cowboy Bebop as the Keanu-starring project gets closer to release or in Battle Angel Alita whenever James Cameron finishes his pet project around 2011.

Following that is a look at which anime are airing on American TV and I didn’t know that both Starz/Encore and G4 were airing Black Lagoon sometime in October.

In the back is a reviews section that operates on a five-star scale and whose contributors are librarians. The anime reviewed were Claymore Vol. 1 (**** – “animation is very good, and the story intriguing”) and Ouran Host Club Vol. 1 (**** 1/2 – “enough general humor to keep even novices [of shojo tropes] entertained”); the manga reviewed were Gankutsuou Vol. 1 (**** – “storyling is a great mixture of science fiction and historical fiction”), Kyo Kara MAOH! Vol. 1 (*** – “quite fun and entertaining”), and Mao-Chan Vol. 1 (*** – “heavy on the cuteness, but a bit weak in concept”).

The Guides ICv2 produces are written for retailers and booksellers and the language used and the lists of Pick Hits in various categories make that apparent. The cost was sort of redeemed by the learning about the writing style – I may or may not order the latest Anime/Manga one (#62) under the same curiosity that caused me to get issue #60, depending on my mood. But that money could be put toward literature I might enjoy more, like a paperback book or manga volume.