The debt-ridden Hayate Ayasaki looked good in the promotional video of the Hayate the Combat Butler anime. Motonobu Inoue, a manga artist known for his unique sense of style in works such as To-kon Yuma and Bijyu (Beautiful Beast) R, started a new series called Orubim in Akita Shoten's Champion Red (which went on sale January 19th). The protagonist of the new manga is a boy who has hundreds of millions of yen to pay back in loan.

The technique of having the protagonist be in debt for an incredible amount of money is one way to show him/her as an unlucky person, and this technique is used quite often to bring more drama into a the manga.

So who's the king of debt? Find out who is the most debt-ridden manga hero from a ranking compiled by the blog Shinpen Zakkan in "Who's the Loan King? Searching for the Most Debt-Ridden Manga Hero":

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From ICv2 comes the 2007 release schedule for DMP, June, and 801 Media:

June

DMP:
- Let's Draw Manga: Yaoi by Botan Yamada
June:
- Love Recipe Vol. 1 by Kirico Higashizato
- Picnic by Yugi Yamada
- Othello by Toui Hasumi
- Little Crybaby by Keiko Kinoshita
801 Media:
- Love is Like a Hurricane Vol. 1 by Tokiya Shimazaki

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HERNDON, VA ・March 9, 2007 - CuriousFactory today announced that DLSite.com, Japan's most notable distribution portal site for Doujin and Indy products, is accepting works from outside of Japan.

DLSite.com carries thousands of Doujin products such as Doujinshi, CG collection, game, novel, music, and utility tool. Due to the increasing interest from the creators and users outside of Japan, CuriousFactory and DLSite.com is now working together to accept works from outside of Japan.

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After the bankruptcy of distributor Publishers Group West (PGW), former PGW client Dark Horse and Broccoli Books' have now found new distributors: Dark Horse distributions will now be handled by Diamond Book Distributors, while Broccoli Books will have its distribution handled by Perseus.

Source: ICv2

Responding to the popularity of their course "Manga & Anime Explosion: What, Why, How & Wow," UC Irvine Extension is now offering a follow-up course called "Manga & Anime Explosion: Story Development, Marketing and Adaptation." According to the press release, "course work will focus on putting characters into compelling story arcs and creating the visually dynamic imagery for which anime and manga are famous. The course, held Tuesday evenings from May 8-June 5, 7-10p.m., supports a growing demand for courses that assist budding manga and anime creators."

TOKYOPOP Rising Stars of Manga People's Choice Online Voting Underway Talent Competition Offers New Genre-Based Format

TOKYOPOP announces the online voting portion of the Rising Stars of Manga 7 competition. Due to a voluminous flood of participant feedback, we've reinstated the People's Choice Award for this seventh running of TOKYOPOP's manga talent competition. All manga fans are encouraged to visit the TOKYOPOP website between March 6 and March 12, 2007 to place their vote and choose their next Rising Stars of Manga.

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Celebrating International Women's Day, MangaBlog posts a comment from manga scholar Matt Thorn, which explains the truth behind Viz Media's short-lived manga Four Shoujo Stories.

MangaBlog's Brigid Alverson interviews Stephen Robson of Fanfare, who explains "the difference between Fanfare and Ponent Mon, why his books are so expensive, and what it's like being on the ground floor of the nouvelle manga revolution."

The new comic release list for March 7 2007 from ComicList, compiled by MangaCast.

Kodansha has confirmed that Koji Kumeta's Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei will be adapted into an anime. More information can be found on Kodansha's anime adaptation page.

According to AoD, Dark Horse has confirmed that the release dates of Octopus Girl and Museum of Terror have been postponed indefinitely.

Manga top 10 according to Tohan.

1. One Piece Vol.45
2. Gintama Vol.17
3. Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Vol.14
4. Mushishi Vol.8
5. Shin Say Hello to Black Jack Vol.1
6. The Prince of Tennis Vol.37
7. Keroro Gunso Vol.14
8. Oishinbo Vol.98
9. Nodame Cantabile Vol.17
10. Steel Ball Run Vol.11

Wholesale distributor Cold Cut announced that it has added yaoi manga publisher DramaQueen to its lineup:

This week, we have added a new publisher to our lineup: Dramaqueen Books! Formed in 2004, Dramaqueen has primarily focused on publishing yaoi and b/l manga, but has also published all-ages fantasy as well as heterosexual adult manga. With several books already published, Dramaqueen has an ambitious publishing schedule for 2007. Cold Cut has recently added a dozen new books from Dramaqueen to our catalog, and we will be adding several more in the months to come!

Source: Icarus Blog

According to Kodansha's Weekly Young Magazine wbesite, Yukipon No O Shigoto by Kazuhiro Azuma will be adapted into a drama, and will debut on April 1st. Yukipon No O Shigoto won the 31st Japanese Cartoonists' Association Award New Face Award in 2002.

Banbix has announced a new line of toilet paper featuring manga drawings and 4 panel comics by manga artist Mitsuru Yaku. The toilet paper, called "Food Toipe", is available in sets 50 rolls from the Banbix website for 8,500 yen (approximately $74).

Source: animeOnline

Soon after celebrating MangaBlog's 2nd anniversary, Brigid Alverson finds herself featured in Digital Strip's latest comic strip.

Las Vegas, NV, March 7, 2007 – Yaoi Press announces Dark Dreams and Dark Prince, two new titles debuting in fall.

Yaoi Press has announced the second title to their new line of art books. Dark Dreams will showcase the work of Italian studio Dany&Dany. The 64 page book will focus on beautiful men and male/male romance. Unlike Yaoi Press' explicit Yaoi Gothic art book, Dark Dreams will have a 16+ rating. This is the fourth book Yaoi Press will publish by Dany&Dany in 2007.

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Monthly comics top 10 in the U.S. according to PWCW.

1. Bleach, Volume 17
2. Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, Volume 2
3. Absolute Boyfriend, Volume 3
4. Tsubasa, Volume 12
5. Bone: Rockjaw Master of the Eastern Border.
6. Loveless, Volume 4
7. Astonishing X-Men: Torn, Volume 3
8. Buso Renkin!, Volume 4
9. Full Metal Alchemist, Volume 11
10. Fables: Wolves, Volume 8

Zassosha's manga magazine PUFF is known by many fans as one of the definite study guides for those who appreciate manga. Every year, PUFF holds a special manga award feature called "Manga Best Ten," where readers vote for their favorite manga of the year, some even call this award the "Manga Oscar."

The winners of the 2006 Manga Best Ten were announced in the April issue of PUFF (2/28). Below are the winners of the long/short stories award:

Long Stories

1. Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya [Hana to Yume / Hakusensha]
2. Gintama by Hideaki Sorachi - [Weekly Shonen Jump / Shueisha]
3. Bleach by Tite Kubo - [Weekly Shonen Jump / Shueisha]
4. Fullmetal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa - [Monthly Shonen Gangan / Square Enix]
5. xxxHOLiC by CLAMP - [Weekly Young Magazine / Kodansha]
6. Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto - [Weekly Shonen Jump / Shueisha]
7. D.Gray-man by Katsura Hoshino - [Weekly Shonen Jump / Shueisha]
8. Kyo Kara Maoh! by Temari Matsumoto - [Asuka / Kadokawa Shoten]
9. Honey and Clover by Chika Umino - [Chorus / Shueisha]
10. Saiyuki Reload by Kazuya Minekura - [Comic Zero Sum / Ichijinsha]

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The Suginami Animation Museum announced on March 4th that over 100,000 admission tickets have been sold since its opening in March 2005, proving proving itself to be a special tourist spot representing the anime and manga world. The museum also celebrated its 2nd anniversary on the same day.

According to a page from a Kodansha sales order, Koji Kumeta's Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei will be be adapted into an anime TV series. *Note that there has been no official announcement of an anime adaption from Kodansha as of now.

Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, which began serialization in Weekly Shonen Magazine in 2005, is about a depressed teacher whose attempts to commit suicide are constantly foiled by his 32 equally troubled students.

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According to AoD, several Media Blasters manga, including Apocalypse Zero and Baron Gong, will most likely be discontinued:

From the look of it, Apocalypse Zero, Baron Gong Battle, Pilgrim Jager and Kamunagara all appear to be dead titles with no new movement forward on new volumes. Eiken, which is selling well and getting reprints, is in limbo with no new volumes acquired. Their yaoi titles appear to be where the movement will be going forward but they also indicate to expect news on other non-yaoi titles as well.

RICHMOND, CA ­ March 5, 2007 ­ Infinity Studios, LLC announced today that it has entered into an agreement to license acclaimed artist Miyabi Fujieda's highly acclaimed yuri manga IONO-SAMA FANATICS Vol. 1 (ISBN:978-1-59697-015-1) from Mediaworks. Miyabi Fujieda is a highly popular and recognized manga artist who has created numerous hit titles in Japan including NOVA, ALICE QUARTET, KOTONOHA NO MIKO TO KOTODAMA NO MAIO TO and has also been a guest artist for a few chapters in the extremely popular manga hit DI GI CHARAT.

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