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Wait… so not only is manga a revolution.. the revolution itself is now a cause? Where do they find these idiots that write their marketing? Ah, guess it’s just TokyoPop being TokyoPop.

Well, Gentosha is a decent sized publisher it seems. I certainly love Lament of the Lamb which TokyoPop already released. Then I see the bit about ” developing into feature films, television series, and web shows.” Well gee, sounds almost like TokyoPop is more interested in other mediums outside of comics and just wants to scoop up some properties.

Considering the little news I’ve read about their horrible ideas for their Lament of the Lamb film, I’m not looking forward to any films TokyoPop has to offer. They’re Americanizing and even turning to the trick of 3D effects. Only the concept sounds vaguely similar. Plus what horrible fan fiction did the find the protagonist’s name of Blake Edwards from? This is adaptation on the scale of LXG or Halle Berry as Catwoman. I thought we were beyond that.

On the bright side hopefully we’ll see more manga stateside from Gentosha Comics. Aside from the irony of TokyoPop who insists on calling their stuff manga turning to a Japanese publisher that has the word comics in their name, they have some interesting titles. They have a number listed on the English part of their site. They seem to have a couple more by Kei Tomei (Lament of the Lamb). Of course in particular I’m hoping they have the guts to publish the questionable blood and guts and sexually explicit series Tokyo Red Hood by Benkyou Tamaoki. They also seem to have a section for a number of shonen-ai / yaoi books too.

Xenoz beat me to it: this is dreadful, twee PR.

I wonder what money Genosha is investing in TP?

[…] Heidi McDonald has word of a list of fresh cancellations from TOKYOPOP– here are the series listed (check the link for the individual volumes): […]

I suppose I should be glad we got as many volumes of Kindaichi Case Files as we did, but that doesn’t make the cancellation of English language editions from TokyoPop any easier to swallow. *sigh* Fare well, Kindaichi.

Totally agree, Greg. I LOVED the Kindaichi series. Looks like I’ll have to find other ways…

[…] [via publishersweekly ] […]

If it’s any consolation, Kindaichi is originally a Kodansha title, maybe they will pick it up for their US venture.

Hmm… V.1 and V.2 covers can be seen on BN.com. The first doesn’t ring any of my retailer alarm bells, and the second, well, she could be wearing a bikini top of some sort. Probably they were more concerned with the content inside. I’ve special ordered other adult graphic novels thorugh my store, but we very rarely stock it. (And this is in the heart of Manhattan, one of the more accepting areas of the country.)

Too bad about the title being sent to manga limbo. I enjoyed his adult stories, as they seemed to have actual plot and characterization, as well as fantastic art.

That’s a lot of time and product just sitting there due to ToykoPop’s failing as a publisher. They are falling apart so that I think a lot of other people will get screwed too, at least they paid the creative teams for their work. I hope it sees the light of day with a new publisher or online where Austen owns the rights to it.

Chuck can take pride in knowing that he is now the only Google hit for “erotic baseball manga.”

In fairness, though, I recall that he’d done some fairly well received work along this sort of line before his unfortunate brush with superhero books. He’s probably right that this is a much better fit for his sensibilities.

“Too bad about the title being sent to manga limbo. I enjoyed his adult stories, as they seemed to have actual plot and characterization, as well as fantastic art.”

You can always count on Austen to have those things in his work (no matter what he’s writing about) along with endearing moments, thoughtful story lines, humor, and imagination. Why there was such an upsurge of fanboys with their panties in a bunch, that ran him out of super-hero comics is waaay beyond me. Anyway, it seems that the curse of the blacklist (not to be confused with The Black Lipstick Curse) is still dogging him until this very day. I’m very sad about this, because he is one of my biggest joys in comic book reading. I hope BOS is collected. I spend way to much time working and chatting on the computer to do my comic book reading there, too.

Not sure how the legalities of this works, but can a creator offer to purchase the publication rights to their own work from the owner, and then shop the book around?

Never mind, I read the article. Duh.

Anyway, good to hear foreign sales are good, but I don’t speak Hungarian or Russian. Must be frustrating to create work that is only available in a foreign language.

What if he just sold a little “Libretto/Baseball Program” booklet containing the English text?

Well, they’re still printing it in other countries, just not in English. As long as they’re doing that, Chuck in still under his contract. Thinking about the cover, though. I’ve seen way worse things in both Borders and Barns & Noble. I’ll have to stop by the T Pop booth at comic con and tell them that I really want to by BOS, and that they should print it. Maybe, if enough people do that, and write letters, we’ll get to read it after all.

Oops, we must have posted at the same time Al. I’m just waiting to see when the first haters will show up to start ripping on Austen. You know they must smell the blood in the water.

The first Volume of this did come out in comic stores.

DCBS sent me my copy of Vol 1 when it was solicited long time ago.

Mind you the book was properly sealed for an book obviously meant for mature audiences so I’ll never understand what Tokyopop’s problem was.

Just ticked off I’ll never be able to read the rest. It was actually pretty good.

wait!! let me get this straight…A manga was Stopped because it was TOO sexy?!??!? Is that right? Am I reading that article correctly? O.o

*flabberghasted*

Not a fan of Chuck Austin or this book by a long shot, but that is pretty rotten. Then again, if the later two single volumes don’t sell, it seems like a huger publishing blunder to sell a omnibus hardcover. So the idea was pretty dumb to begin with.

Anyone else remember another time he teamed with a manga-ka? Him and Kia Asamiya on X-men. The art was amazing. The story was simply awful. Not to mention the anti-religion rhetoric made Bill Maher seem like da freakin pope.

Also did Austin just say that his writing on this was like Naoki Urasawa’s work? Um.. excuse me?

“Anyone else remember another time he teamed with a manga-ka? Him and Kia Asamiya on X-men. The art was amazing. The story was simply awful. Not to mention the anti-religion rhetoric made Bill Maher seem like da freakin pope.”

That was a great story. The “anti-religion rhetoric” (and I am a Catholic) is a devise for building tension in a story. I give him marks for having the grapefruits to do it.

Xenos, you can’t say the other two volumes didn’t sell, they were never released.

I just laugh that parents groups found this objectionable but Battle Royale’s enjoyed by everyone.

I mean that book had its moments that creeped me out.

Why were they never released? Did the original not sell well, like many other ‘OEL manga’ from TokyoPop? Did TokyoPop never market the first one too well? TokyoPop’s oversized hardcover looked like it was for best selling series, yet this one oddly pops up with never having the second two volumes. No surprise it got canned. I’m still hoping Dramacon’s hardcover is still a go.

As for the anti-religion story, I found it dumb. Okay, not everything can be that good, but something like Preacher was a smartly done book looking at the downside of organized religion. Meanwhile Chuck Austin’s was an immature rant with one of the most absurd stawmen I’ve ever seen. Plus it was just an odd use of the X-men.

I bet some of Platinum’s investors would have loved to know that the guy who was running their websites and Drunk Duck wasn’t there for “months”. Just because they sure do talk up DrunkDuck a lot in their press releases and it seems from comments by creators there in the forums that there have been tons of bugs that nobody has attended to there.

I read this in another Beat story a few minutes ago: “Finally, on one level this is a little alarming and circle-jerky. It’s sad when who writes what about comics gets more play than the fact that Image’s publisher doesn’t know the name of his own books, but, you know, that’s how it goes. ”

I find it alarming Dylan doesn’t know what his contract with Platinum states, especially regarding what he can do once he leaves.

“MEANWHILE, over at TokyoPop, Benjamin Ong Pang Kean shows that Newsarama can do a good job when they try”

Doesn’t that violate your own decree against General Shitiness from yesterday?

Newsarama forgot to include Return to Labyrinth, which IS continuing after very strong sales. The third volume is far along in production and looking great, volume 4 is in early stages.

I think Dylan DOES know what his contract says, and it probably says “don’t talk about the contract!” Ha! So his “admission” that he doesn’t know whether he’s allowed to start a competing site or not, is just his way of talking around the non-disclosure BS.

In fact, I bet Platinum probably specifically reminded him about that, considering there’s been a flying poop storm about creators leaking the “we promise to pay, don’t leak this letter” letter, as seen in Rich Jonston’s Lying in the Gutters.

Platinum has also decided not to relinquish (or at leas has threatened to not give) Hero By Night rights back to DJ Coffman because he blogged about his non-payment (apparently non-disclosure clauses are more important than payment clauses)– despite the fact that he said nothing but POSITIVE things about Plat in said blog (well except the bit about not getting paid)!

So… I think we can excuse Dylan for a little tiptoeing around this issue.

Being ignorant of the origins and meaning of the name, let me ask this question:

Who in their right mind thought it was a good idea to name a COMICS website “Drunk Duck” ?

I am really curious to know…

If they’re reverting OELs then they should return the rights to ‘The Abandoned’ to Ross Campbell.

I’ve gotta say I think these events are all signs of the manga bubble burst. It is a very devoted, energetic, and enthusiastic fan base, but it’s small even in comparisons to the funny book world in general. Whether the commodity be real estate or manga, speculation is still speculation. That’s my read on it all.

Jonathan — there is no Manga “bubble” — the best selling manga books outsell the best selling superhero or indie graphic novels by a WIDE WIDE WIDE margin. Narutoe alone has sold millions of copies.

Yaoi is a niche, no question. Manga is not.

What I was trying to say that I realize now didn’t come across in my first post is that my prediction is that manga sales will start to decline in the very near future. I think there is a bubble and it’s bursting. Obviously it’ll take sales numbers over the next few years to figure out if my prediction holds true or not, but I think that’s what’s going to happen. I’d like to see this vibrant and energetic segment of comicdom hold strong, but my prediction is that it won’t.

More than a bubble, I think the issue is that not every manga title is a blockbuster monster; and western publishers have been acting as if they were. Not every one of those books sells like Naruto,even in their home country.

…wait, that’s what a bubble is, isn’t it? nevermind…

“Rich Johnston backs up what we’ve been told: Tokyopop is giving back the rights to some OEL to its creators:”

As far as I know, this rumor has no base; I’ve asked every creator I know and so far nobody has said Tokyopop has been willing to give them back the rights to their works, only to negotiate on giving back certain print rights, and only self-publishing print rights at that.

Was cleaning the apartment this weekend, and discovered some manga/anime promo DVDs. What made me wonder is this… the English translation copyrights are owned by the English publisher. Can these rights be repurchased by the original, foreign publisher? Or are the rights actually part of the licensing agreement, that they automatically revert if the title goes out of print or the company goes out of business?

[…] Update: Brigid Alverson has word that the sixth volume of Shutterbox is still heading for print, while the fate of Psy-Comm is unclear. Heidi MacDonald, meanwhile, reports the third volume of My Cat Loki didn’t make the cut.   […]

[…] Ooohweee! Tokyopop is burning up the blogosphere, swheeet!! Watch my feet, wa watch my feet! Even though I’m about a week late, and a virtual nobody in the big scheme of things (my real name isn’t even on my latest work) let’s start by linking to this, this, and now this. According to that last link, some of the SCHM-OEL titles will survive the aftermath, or the afterbirth or whatever.. here’s an excerpt: Contrary to what all the manga and anime news sites are reporting not EVERY OEL from TokyoPop is canceled/direct to web. I’m happy to say that RE: Play made the cut and that the 3rd volume will be coming out in print, on schedule, as planned! […]

[…] Here’s a quick update: I checked with Tokyopop today and they told me that Fruits Basket and Gakuen Alice will definitely continue—I know, duh on Fruits Basket, but Gakuen Alice is a newer series. They couldn’t give me definite answers on anything else, but Dan Hipp noted on his blog that volume 3 of Gyakushu would be online only. At The Beat, Heidi had this to say: In other developments, we’ve heard from a couple of good sources that Tokyopop is releasing several creators from their contracts, and negotiating with others for their publishing rights. Expect to see some movement there over the next month or so. […]

It’s like a Katamari rolling up marketing BS. From TokyoPop and now to these yahoos.

“Big Tent will represent the master brand as well as their sub-brands of highly popular manga publishing titles including PRINCESS AI, BIZENGHAST, I LUV HALLOWEEN, DRAMACON and VAN VON HUNTER.”

Okay, I question the terms sub-brands, popular, and manga in that damn statement. I like a couple of those, but they’re not THAT popular compared to the sales actual manga. I wish they were. I wish kids were buying OEL ‘manga’ (OGN original graphic novels), but most are hooked on books direct from Japan. Plus, sub-brand? TokyoPop owns them lock stock and barrel? What about the damn authors.

I was looking through the dollar manga clearance bin at a local comic store. I saw a number of good titles and especially saw many ‘OEL manga’.

“Manga has become one of the most important cultural phenomena to hit the U.S. market this decade. From television and film to high-end couture fashion brands, manga has proven to be the creative inspiration behind some of today’s hottest brands including the highly-anticipated Steven Spielberg flick GHOST IN THE SHELL, Prada, Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton.”

Well television and film would be anime. There’s a whole system of companies and studios behind that. TokyoPop has only ever licensed a couple of anime and don’t get me started on that failure. I liked GTO, Initial D, and even Reign. I can’t even find most of those in discount bins today. Hell, that’s how I found the few DVD volumes I did find. TokyoPop anime is dead. Same with their soundtrack division. Plus I know I shouldn’t be surprised, but it’s amazing how they name drop Speilberg and Ghost in the Shell, just because of the word manga. Just because their product manga was produced in the same country as the same country as the GitS manga. Oh wait. It wasn’t even since these are Amerimanga or whatever they want to call it now.

And Louis Vutton? I don’t think it’s James Jean, but artist Takashi Murakami they’re talking about. (Funny, I saw a woman today with one of those Vutton bags with Murakami’s color scheme.) I saw the guy speak and almost got his autograph at an art museum. TokyoPop’s products don’t even come close to being similar to what he’s been doing. TokyoPop is jerking themselves off more than his sculpture My Lonesome Cowboy. (Google it, just not at work.)

This has got to be one of the worst BS press releases I’ve seen since.. well.. since TokyoPop’s. It’s like their BS multiplied with Hollywood glam. Guh.

I’m so pissed. Dammit, I have as closer six-degrees connection to Louis Vuitton than they do. I have a Murakami print framed and hanging in my room. I can draw some big eyed big characters standing on mushrooms if you want. Bah.

Oh and then this quote.
“We plan to leverage the TOKYOPOP brand name, their array of popular characters and titles, and the upward trends in manga consumption to take the brand into exciting derivative products and new merchandising concepts.”

What? All half dozen of them? Like was posted, they’re releasing some creators from their contracts. Points to them for that. Still, what does TokyoPop bring to the table? Maybe they should have made themselves a better publisher first. Bah. Poor DramaCon. I honestly would love to see that as a film. It’s Mallrats for the manga crowd. (You can quote me on that Big Tent. Okay, Mallrats wasn’t a hit when it first was released . Yet it has since proven to be the greatest cinematic achievement of our time. Okay, you may want to toss in some Chasing Amy comparisons for more cred. Joking aside, I do think Drama Con is their best bet and I look forward to it. I just hope its creator maintains control.

Torsten Adair said, “Can these rights be repurchased by the original, foreign publisher? Or are the rights actually part of the licensing agreement, that they automatically revert if the title goes out of print or the company goes out of business?”

They can and they have. I know of two TokyoPop books that have gone out of print and whose license is up. Clover is an old TP book that has now been announced in a new edition from Dark Horse with a new translation. Parasyte has been out of print at TokyoPop and I think Viz is now publishing it. Those are two examples off the top of my head.

The English translation and, for anime, dub may be still owned by the US company, but the Japanese company obviously always keeps the rights to the original work. As soon as their contract is up, they can resell the rights to another company.

Newsarama has a new look?

While the posting at Newsarama is different now…

Posting at Blog@Newsarama in non-existent. Readers cannot reply to any article. Why have a blog if no replies are allowed?

Someone somewhere is working to fix that.

“Why have a blog if no replies are allowed?”

Why indeed?

Answer the question, Tom!

Wow, fired TP emplyees have to sign paperwork to get their severance pay. Is that even legal?

Mike Kiley uses the word “rightsizing.”

I didn’t need any more proof that TP is a bad citizen in the comics community, but for the two people left out there who did, there it is.

Lea, that’s pretty much SOP everywhere in corporate America.

Why have a blog if nobody will even comment on it?

I hope something happens with WWChi. That town deserves better than that travesty of a show (I guess that applies to all the WW show towns). The final straw was showing up last year and realizing Quimby’s didn’t have a booth! Chicago needs a MOCCA, APE, SPX or at least a show that isn’t overtly hostile to the people who attend those shows. If Reed can do for Chicago what they did for NYC then many, many fans and creators will be very happy.

“Wow, fired TP emplyees have to sign paperwork to get their severance pay. Is that even legal?”

Yes.

It also could have been far worse. Instead of an NDA, it could have been a 2-year non-compete…

I know I used to work there and all, so you can take this with a grain of salt, but I don’t think WW Philly was that poorly attended, particularly considering the fact that I’ve been at almost every Wizard show for the past 3 years.

Yes, Friday was dead, dead, DEAD, but things picked up Saturday and Sunday was surprisingly lively. It was nothing like an NYCC or SDCC, but for a regional show, it seemed to have a decent number of fans.

Now, whether they were there to buy comics from retailers and artists or whether they were there just to get Starbuck’s autograph is an entirely different story.

I would love for Reed to take over hosting a con in Chicago. Like actually in downtown Chicago and not by the airport in the burbs.

In Chicago with all the great museums, restaurants, bars, clubs, hotels, parks, beaches…not out in Rosemont with hotels and corporates offices.

As a Chicago resident and comic creator I attend WWC every year and was blown away by NYCC. A great con in a great city.

The city, fans, and creators deserve better.

Heidi,

I’ve attend WWP every year and the 2008 show was larger than the past few years and the attendance seemed about normal. Unfortunately the WW shows are starting to become a bit of “same old, same old”. With respect to the creators and celebrities that did attend there wasn’t that “must see” personality this year (Kevin Smith where are you when we need you ??) . As for the vendor who only made $14.00 on Saturday, what were you selling ? Artist alley is always hit or miss and most of the discount trades and back issues I searched through were the same overstocks that every other vendor had.

“Lea, that’s pretty much SOP everywhere in corporate America.”

Which doesn’t mean it’s okay, or shouldn’t be commented on, as you know. I fight and comment where my expertise is.
I am excited by how comics has changed in the past five years, which makes TP’s sins all the more obvious.
As other companies begin to publish graphic novels and don’t require surrender of rights, TP will become pleasingly irrelevant. Yeah, the very Platinum of manga.

Yeah, I’m another biased former Wizard dude, but WW Philly *felt* well-attended and well-organized to me. It wasn’t NYCC or SDCC, but frankly, I wouldn’t want it to be.

That said, I’m pretty much a meat and potatoes super hero guy, so I can’t speak to whether or not the show satisfied the criteria outside of my very specific demo. That said, I had fun (and am not under contract to say so).

Wizard World Chicago , […] arguably the second biggest comics show in the US,

Honestly, is anyone still arguing this?

NYCC passed it in Year Two, if not their inaugural. Heck, Heidi doesn’t go anymore- how relevant can it be?

Because of economics, WWC is the only “big” show I can attend. Until last year I’d gone every year since ‘96. Last year, I passed but my friends went. They said it was no different than the previous year. Maybe worse - the loss of Knockers/Sluggers/KickersInc. (whatever that Hyatt sports bar was called) took away a central point in the evening activities.

This year? Who knows? The move away from SDCC doesn’t seem to have drawn a greater number of guests. The line-up is fair-to-middling. A couple of creative types I’d like to see, but otherwise not my cuppa’. The celebrity list is weak - excepting George the Animal Steele and The Iron Sheik - and yes, I’m counting Todd MacFarlane in that group. Even now, the only programming they list is about Batman Gotham Knight, not that “strong” and “WWC programming” have ever been credible in a sentence together. Add to these factors the rising cost of travel, and you’ve got a big expense for a little return.

Why should anyone be excited about it?

“From our standpoint, anything that makes Newsarama posters have to think just a bit more before they post may be a very good thing indeed.”

POW! BAM! BIFF! That’s the best line I’ve heard all day!

Lea, after a couple of downsizes (they didn’t attend the “rightsizing” seminar Heidi was talking about), I can vouch that that’s the way of the corporate world.

I spoke to a store owner in Jersey on Saturday and he also had the same negative comments to make about WWP.

I did hear a funny story, from someone else that attended, that the image of the show was seeing Kevin Nash chatting some HeroClix players in one of the hotel bars Saturday night.

i think the 14 buck dealer is in need of having some product…what did he have, a kissing booth?

the con had a ton of people sat and a decent sunday and the few dealers i know more than made their money back. friday out of the gate was decent…but nowhere as good as the weekend.

can you let us know what this dealer was selling?? really curious here.

i did three panels that were standing room only , not a seat to be had. thats a pretty good showing…makes me think people came to the con for the right reasons.

jimmy

“Lea, after a couple of downsizes (they didn’t attend the “rightsizing” seminar Heidi was talking about), I can vouch that that’s the way of the corporate world.”

Magoo, I don’t live under a rock or in a bubble. I’ve likewise been in the corporate world and seen how fast management will throw people under the bus to keep their jobs.

Again, just because this is standard behavior still doesn’t make it right. Or, for that matter, good business. I’m failing entirely to see the point of telling me “this is SOP.”
Maybe you can explain to me.

Excusing this as standard assists the other side and normalizes bad business, and suggests that it’s not worth commenting on.
Or did you miss Tom Spurgeon saying the same thing?

Any plans to post the April sales columns any time soon? At this rate, the May charts will be out before the Apr columns…

While I can’t really speak to the status of my OEL title “Mail Order Ninja,” I can confirm that Tokyopop’s “StarCraft” and “WarCraft” books will be continuing on as planned.

Which I’m certainly glad to hear as I’ve got stories in quite a few of them… (and I’ve seen all the art for the first book and it’s going to be incredible. The best licensed book TPop has ever done by far).

[…] As the hubbub of this week starts to die down, people are sorting themselves out a bit. Tokyopop publisher Mike Kiley sent a letter to creators, reassuring them that they will be paid and they should continue working on their projects. That’s at The Beat, where Heidi also rounds up the creators’ reactions to everything that has been going on. Kethylia takes a look at the bigger picture and possible fallout. One former employee condemns Tokyopop for the way they went about letting people go. David Welsh reaches out to those who were laid off, looking to talk to them about their work and their hopes for the future. (Image from a headier time pulled from the archives of Kevin Melrose’s Thought Balloons blog; in the post he points out the typo in the bottom line, which in retrospect could have been a harbinger of things to come: Good ideas, sloppy follow-through.) […]

Heidi, I know that blogs don’t have to adhere to any kind of real journalistic standard, but I do expect a little better both from you and from something written under the Publishers Weekly banner. To make a snide insinuation that Paul and Hope lost their jobs either because of anything to do with the Pilot Program — or worse that they somehow deserved it — is incredibly insulting and flat-out wrong.

I doubt she’s making any kind of connection, other than how completely unexpected the restructuring this must have been to many within Tokyopop. Few would stick their necks out for their boss if they knew they would be let go three days later…

Jim, I didn’t read it that way. I interpreted it that TPop just fired the two people left in the room to defend Manga Pilot and now there won’t be anybody else to do it.

I doubt she’s making any kind of connection, other than how completely unexpected the restructuring must have been to many within Tokyopop. Few would stick their necks out for their boss if they knew they would be let go three days later…

Wow, that’s a lot of talent. Tim in particular was not only a good editor, he was one of the few who embraced the website and used it to talk about the books he was working on. I always enjoyed his blog posts, and I hope he finds another job soon.

Susie, I’m with you. It’s more like, these people went to bat for their company during a tough time—and were promptly thrown under the bus. Classy move, Tokyopop.

Jim, I appreciate your defense of Morrissey and Donovan — I don’t know either of them but I’ve heard consistently good things bout most of the editorial staff at Tokyopop so to see so many good people gone is sad indeed.

However, I think you’re guilty of projecting things that weren’t said here. I didn’t insinuate ANY of the things you suggest, aside from the general irony that two people who just days ago were putting their reps on the line to defend an unpopular programme by the company have now been let go as a reward for their hard work.

Someone named “Cthulhu” comments over in Christopher Butcher’s blog about Kodansha setting up its own manga publishing biz over here and that this was announced at BEA….do you know anything about this?

http://comics212.net/2008/06/03/thoughts-on-tokyopop/#comments (comment #11).

I’m just really, insanely curious about this…

JIm, I didn’t read Heidi’s enrty in that way at all.

This has always been a site combining reporting and opinion — and it’s been always clear which was which. In this story, she never stated or implied there was a cause and effect. The only personal comment she made was “Oops”, which I took as nothing more than an ironic aside — a sort of ‘that’s show biz’, if you will. One week Paul and Hope were the very public face of TokyoPop — and the very next week they were gone.

I don’t see a characterzation of why they were fired in there.

This is exactly why I HAD been staying out of all this online discussion — because I’m emotionally (and otherwise) investing in this matter, and therefore prone to not seeing things clearly. Please accept my apology, H. … I’ll crawl back to my hole and keep writing.

Aw, I know Tim — he’s a good guy. The comics industry can be disheartening enough without losing your job, too. This has to be tough on all the former Tokyopop employees. I hope the best for them.

Jim, don’t crawl anywhere. Hold your head up high for defending good people.

As for that Kodansha rumor that’s rocketing around the net tonight…haven’t found ANY corroboration yet and believe me, if it had been “announced” at BEA, smeone would have commented on it.

That said, Kodansha did have a booth there….hm.

Kodansha Intl. is and has been an English language publisher for quite some time; notable recent releases include “A Geisha’s Journey: My Life as a Kyoto Apprentice” by Kodomo (a nome de plume) and “Izakaya: The Japanese Pub Cookbook” — along with a slate of Japanese Language titles (as in, learning the language), a number of drool-worthy coffee-table-grade art books, and the “Draw Your Own Manga” series of art how-to books (which may be the source of the error and rumor; though the first volume is 4 years old… nothing new here)

http://www.kodansha-intl.com/

The deal between Kodansha and Del Rey/Random House is a strategic alliance, and also a two-way street if my hazy memory of old press releases can be taken at face value — I don’t know which RH titles have been translated into Japanese, but if they’re out there at all then Kodansha is publishing them.

Whatever the deal with Del Rey, Kodansha seems to have kept noted educational and cultural titles off the table, and reserved them for their own imprint. Gacha Gacha, though, is Del Rey’s for as long as they can stomach to publish it.

Kodansha Intl. titles are distributed in the US by Oxford University Press.

Any specifics yet on which books will be dropped? I’m waiting to hear about the fate of King City 2, by Brandon Graham.

Matt, this has nothing to do with KodanInt. Kodansha apparently announced at BEA that it is starting a brand-new Viz-type vertically integrated *manga publishing* operation and is actively exercising their rights with current US manga licensors to terminate publishing rights to previously licensed manga titles and take over publication themselves. Based on the details of the individual contracts, some publishers will clearly have only a short time to liquidate stock. If Gatcha Gatcha has been licensed in perpetuity, that would be an…unusual…contractual arrangement. I suspect most termination clauses average 6 to 12 months from notification.
Anyway, this has *nothing* to do with Kodansha International which has always been a completely separate operation in NY, reporting to a different division within Kodansha in Japan, and looks to remain that way.

“apparently announced”

Link?

One cannot link to a presentation made orally in a conference room at a convention. I had heard from Japan of this move by Kodansha several weeks ago but had been asked to keep quiet. However, an attendee at BEA emailed me in shock with news of the announcement, which dovetailed precisely with the info I had and to which the reporting party was not privy. There seemed to be no point in my remaining quiet. As I was not present at the presentation, and no PR of any kind seems to have yet been issued, I chose the word “apparently.” It’s quite reasonable on your part to exercise skepticism until a linkable PR hits the web. However, I have my very excellent sources here and in Japan and it all fits. I am quite interested in the details, however, especially how aggressive they plan to be in transferring titles to themselves. It is not unusual for a Japanese company to make a co-operative agreement with a foreign company, learn the ropes, then strike out on their own. Being the largest publisher in Japan, they certainly do not lack for resources. And they could pick up some knowledgeable, trained, and talented US manga publishing people quite easily right now, couldn’t they?
Most interesting.

Could one perhaps link to the blogs of others who also attended the oral presentation of, what one must assume, was a public announcement?

I hate to be the guy arguing on the internet at midnight (local time) but

strike that. I hate to be that guy. You win.

–and now, an aside that has no bearing on this now past and as far as I’m concerned absolutely dead discussion of K. and manga and the like.

The production lead time on books has certainly shrunk in the past decade, but even if one has a finished, typeset manuscript (or, if one one posits a graphic novel, a set of PSD of XCF files, perhaps) but given the current publishing and retail model, there is still a 6-9 month lead time on new books

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/03/books/review/Donadio-t.html?ex=1359867600&en=4b581eac827b59ad&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

From the above linked Times article:

“Chain stores like Barnes & Noble and Borders generally buy books at least six months before the publication date and know about particular titles even farther in advance. Much to the anxiety of midlist writers clamoring for attention, chain stores determine how many copies of a title to buy based on the expected media attention and the author’s previous sales record.”

So if one had a new manga line (and as noted above, I give: you have your new manga line and it is all that, a bag of chips, and a side of fried chicken) and you were perhaps looking for placement in the major chain stores (I’d call that a given, but you can figure out your own business models) then I’m guessing, it wouldn’t be an “oh by the way” announcement at a trade fair, your would have potentially shopped the idea around at B&N and Borders (combined book sales of around $8 billion last year, and estimated sales of $98 Million in manga — assuming the % of manga sold through B&N/Borders is a constant fraction that directly relates to overall book sales)

So, just looking at the prospect from a publishing perspective:

Either Kodansha has been planning this in secret for at least 6 months and has convinced the B&N and Borders buyers to sign on to a brand new company, sight unseen with no sales record, just because it’s ‘manga’

Or they’re going to screw their current American partners, look for new manufacturers (unless they’ve been printing English manga on Japanese presses in anticipation of this announcement) *and* are willing to wait a half-a-year for the shakedown, whiplash, possible court case, and in the mean time lost sales….

Well Sure. Makes all kind of sense.

And while I’m “not arguing things on the internet” — an announcement, almost by definition, is public: again, where’s the link?

“Kodansha apparently announced at BEA that it is starting a brand-new Viz-type vertically integrated *manga publishing* operation and is actively exercising their rights with current US manga licensors to terminate publishing rights to previously licensed manga titles and take over publication themselves.”

Everything old is new again. I was talking about Ko and their alliance with DR/RH, and wondering if this was like Shogakukan and Eclipse. Shogakukan published with Eclipse, then broke off and opened Viz, which was always the plan.
I wonder if the Ko/DR/RH was the same sort of plan?

Cthulu, you’re right. Now plenty of people with TP experience looking for jobs.

I’m not privy to the news “Cthulu” describes, but it does make total sense, and while not a cause of Tokyopop’s woes (they haven’t had any strong new Kodansha titles in years), this rumor is intrinsically tied to Tokyopop’s woes. Manga licensees (like Tokyopop, Del Rey, Dark Horse) are effectively powerless to shape the content. They are wholly at the mercy of licensors to create content that will resonate with the American aftermarket for a Japanese product. Savvy licensing can lead to a stronger catalog, but after 8+ years working in manga, I’m convinced that licensees can’t make a hit. Awareness of the Japanese market via the more hardcore fandom generates the buzz that determines the majority of hits in the US. Most of the hits in the US were hits in Japan (although popularity in Japan sure as hell doesn’t ensure popularity here), and it was the Japanese publishers who built the hit series into what they became. For a while there, the content void made manga licensing a virtual license to print money, but if you can’t control the content, and with the market becoming ever more volatile, being a licensee is not a position for growth. I can understand the motivations for Tokyopop’s schizophrenic changes, even if I don’t always agree with the company’s actions. Through ups and downs, I’ve always tried to support my former employer and current publisher, but damn, if they don’t make it hard at times like this.

A lot of good friends lost their jobs yesterday, and I wish them all a the best.

Dear Matt: Veracity of this rumour aside, you should recognize that not everything that happens happens on the internet.

I just checked the websites for San Diego and Anime Expo and neither list Tokyopop as an exhibitor. The NY Anime Fest still lists them as a sponsor.

Tokyopop is what we in the legal profession call a “French comic book publisher”.

Tokyopop are what we, in the legal profession, call “a French comicbook publisher”. And by French, we mean they go around on push bikes with a chain of onions around their necks, wearing berets.

[…] Holy crap Filed under: Linkblogging, Tokyopop — davidpwelsh @ 4:50 pm You go offline for a freaking day because you don’t feel like giving a downer hotel one more red cent than you have to, and this happens. In addition to Brigid’s excellent coverage and link-tracking, I’d point with particular admiration at Chris Butcher’s analysis, and note that Heidi MacDonald succinctly underlines Tokyopop’s hyperactive unveiling of initiatives. And then there’s Tom Spurgeon: “In fact, you could look at Tokyopop as another specialty publisher having to make changes or risk dying off altogether, and not much of a unique news story at all.” […]

A good friend and former comics pro calls TP “clown shoes.”

I am reminded of the waning days of Disney comics, when production staff was cut to two people and everyone in marketing kept their jobs. Production then had to do everything, and they were miserable. Disney Comics was shuttered within the year.

David Welsh summed up Tom Spurgeon’s post well: “In fact, you could look at Tokyopop as another specialty publisher having to make changes or risk dying off altogether, and not much of a unique news story at all.”

Ayup, been, done, t-shirt.

No matter where this goes, I will be standing by my books and finishing Steady Beat: http://lilrivkah.livejournal.com/249489.html

If you look at the people who were invited to the Facebook group but haven’t replied yet, two names jump out, Tim Beedle and Paul Morrissey. They are editors, not sure what lines Tim runs but Paul was one of the Manga Pilot editors, according to TP’s response to last week’s blowup…

I am just shocked that talented hardworking, and charismatic people were let go just like that. It’s not like they were even “cutting the fat” , these people seemed like really important pieces of Tokyopop…if anything I think they should stop trying to make a movie buisness, and produce product ( OEL, Korean, Manga Ect, ect ) at a steady pace with high quality standards without so much glitz and glamour.

But hey I’m just a comic artist, what the hell do I know, right?

Rivkah, I just checked out the pencils you posted on your journal. Very nice work!

Just shows, treating your talent (both new and old) like crap often is horrible business in the long run.

I’m really bummed out about this. One person missing that I had to add:
was Mandy Willingham Author and Artist Relations Associate. She had the thankless task of corralling us all over the country and making sure that the artists were getting what they needed and hooked up at conventions and such. She took over and made things super rock. I will miss working with her.

As far as the other editors, I always wanted to do a book with Luis (in addition to my way cool editor Bryce), and I really liked Paul and Tim. My heart goes out to them. I’ve been through many layoffs in the games industry, many of them handled like this one. It is crap. I hope that they land on their feet. There is a lot of talent in the list of 39, I hope they find somewhere that appreciates their talent.

[…] At The Beat, Heidi MacDonald takes a long look at the whole thing and concludes that it may not be the worst contract out there, although the possibility of exploiting the young and the enthusiastic is still troubling. […]

The first story I ever published, I ended up getting paid more than initially agreed upon because the magazine came into some unexpected revenue and decided to pass the good news along to contributors.

I guess I shouldn’t expect that in the future.

Yeah, but. But, but, but. Craptacular page rate aside, shameful hucksterism passing as a “warm, caring contract” aside, the part that still sticks in my craw–the clause that is utterly unjustifiable on any level whatsoever–is the “we reserve the right to not actually credit you” part. That’s heinous. That’s repulsive. That’s an audacious attempt to drive new media traffic to believe that Tokyopop and only Tokyopop is the sole author of the material. The rest of this “pact” still makes my skin crawl, but that’s the clause that makes me actively want to open up a Pitchforks & Rakes store right next to TP. Would you agree to write or direct a movie if there were no guarantee any creative credits would ever appear on screen? Then why would you agree to do a TP project under the caveat that, particulaly on (but NOT LIMITED TO!) new media, they might (translation: are planning to) leave your name off and claim sole authorship? What, they can’t find room on the iPhone screen to put the artist’s name? If they can can find the room to put the fucking Tokyopop logo, they can find room to bill the creator.

Maybe I’m missing something here, but if the limitations of space are so severe that it’s impossible to include a legible credit, how is anyone going to read the speech balloons?

I’m sorry to disagree, but it is that bad. The contract is faux-informal, and prevents creators from making an informed decision about whether to accept its terms. The real problem isn’t that it’s adhesive, it’s that it pretends to not be.

The point of using ‘plain English’ in transactional contracts is to ensure that the other side has a clear understanding of its rights, responsibilities and obligations if it chooses to enter into the agreement. It’s a tool that is particularly useful when at least one of the parties is not sophisticated, and is not an attorney.

This contract does not use ‘plain English’. Tokyopop is using this agreement as a tool of persuasion, without giving creators the benefit of any alternative perspective. It’s appalling.

As Mark says, the key moral right that is respected even here in the US is the right to be recognized as the creator of a work.

You can bet TP will be placing their logo and copyright notice on any work in any media. I’d be happy if TP tied the use of credits to the use of their own branding — if it is truly impossible to fit any logos or credits in there, then it should apply to both the publisher and creator.

This is a bad bad contract any way you cut it.

I’m very afraid the “kinder, gentler” approach they use, which also is very effective in glossing over all those annoying legal clauses that benefit and protect the creator, will dupe a naive kid just chomping at the bit to break into comics.

They do their darnest to make the informal “pact”, a mere formality really on your road to comic stardom, seem like anything but the legally binding agreement it is.

We have a good review of the contract over at Unscrewed.

http://www.unscrewedcomic.com/article.php?story=tokyopop

I’d like to clarify and/or correct something Heidi wrote.

Oni Press does not retain the trademark of ANY book we have ever published. Similarly, we have NEVER retained or even shared copyright on ANY project we have EVER published.

Quoting Heidi: “We actually received private communiques from people we respect who pointed out that contracts offered by DC, Dark Horse, Oni and so on are just as restrictive at the end of the day, retaining trademarks, co-owning copyrights, holding onto ancillary rights and so on. (That’s a blanket overview and not a universal analysis of any one company’s contracts.) The sad bottom line, as we read it, is that in comics, it is still standard operating procedure to exploit IP in a way that is vastly more favorable to the publisher.”

And here I feel compelled to defend my employer. While Dark Horse, like any company, does have its flaws, respecting creators’ rights is NOT one of them: The copyrights and trademarks to any creator-owned properties are retained by the folks who create the work (see: Sin City, Hellboy, Concrete, Samurai: Heaven and Earth, etc.), and it’s the central issue the company was founded on back in 1986. While most of our creator-owned contracts do stipulate that media and digital rights will be under Dark Horse’s stewardship, even those deals aren’t cut without the involvement and consent of the copyright and trademark holders.

We do publish a lot of licensed properties, and often publish Dark Horse-owned properties, so work on those books will necessarily be work-for-hire, as will most coloring and lettering jobs. But whomever has claim to the copyright and trademark will always be stated as such in the indicia, and we try to be diligent about including copyright and trademark lines in promotional materials. It’s never our intention to come across as owning any IP– creator-owned, licensed, or otherwise– that we don’t actually own outright.

It’s a privilege to work with the creators we attract, and it’s in our interest to do right by them legally– else they’ll stop coming around. That’s certainly drilled into those of us in Editorial from the start.

Respectfully submitted.
Katie Moody
Associate Editor

Dear DC, Marvel, Dark Horse, etc.,

Take a proactive stance regarding bringing in ACTUAL new talent.

Thank you.

Mmm. I’ve heard rebuttals at the Tokyopop outrage, but I’m personally going to go with Hernandez, Stillwell, Waid, O’Malley, and Oni Press & Dark Horse on this ‘un, as I’m assuming they’re in a position to know this stuff.

And I’m laughing at Manga Blog’s “ooer, there are people who hate Tokyopop for reasons of their own!” comment. Laughing a LOT.

Might be worth pointing out that Rikki Simons wasn’t writing to defend the pact, and her full post is actually very critical of and concerned about it: “So I conclude, Tokyopop, my Tokyopop, you would benefit, and I say this as someone who wants to see you make good, who wants to see you prosper under a system of justice — dump this Pilot Program and instead issue real contracts like the one you gave Tavisha and I in February of 2003.”

Erratum: “his full post.” Apologies to RS.

I’ve been a bit surprised at the level of vitriol spat out over this contract. I’m no cartooning professional, and I freely admit that I never got around to parlaying my top-10-percent LSAT score into an actual law degree. But the terms of this contract aren’t as mercenary as they’ve been made out to be, and they certainly aren’t as fraught with peril as (for example) the “creator-owned” contract Marvel was offering for Epic a few years ago. I wouldn’t ask a lawyer to illustrate one of my scripts, and this tempest in a teacup is why I wouldn’t turn to a cartoonist (or myself) for legal advice.

I don’t think it matters if other contracts are worse. That’s the old “two wrongs” argument and doesn’t wash. A bad contract is still a bad contract.

The credit problem Mark Waid points out is heinous, but corporate ownership of someone else’s creations is almost as bad.

If someone wants to sign up with Marvel or DC to work on Spider-Man or Batman, that’s great. But in all other cases, you should own what you create. Some creators have had their characters and stories taken away from them due to the stipulations of this contract… or one with less BS folksy worded nonsense meant to lull you into signing away ownership of your own work. That they signed- that others throughout the history of comics in America have signed even worse contracts- doesn’t make it anywhere near okay.

Work for hire needs to stop. Corporate authorship needs to stop. There’s still plenty of money to be made without scamming creators out of ownership of their intellectual properties.

But I’m not surprised at the vitriol. The cutesy-pie wording of this contract is unconscionable. It’s playing on the idea that would-be creators think “Anyone who makes such a chatty li’l contract like that must be looking out for my best interest… they’d never take my ideas and then shut me out of the loop.” It’s a raw and blatant attempt to shuck and jive the naive. Disgustingly cynical.

That’s what people are reacting to. It’s like getting a razor blade wrapped in cotton candy.

Excuse me, Todd, you don’t have to be a lawyer (nor have a top-10% LSAT) to know this contract stinks.

A few years in comics will teach you. I parlayed my bottom-quarter high school GPA into “smart enough to know better.”

I still remember the conflagration that erupted thirty years ago when Pocket Books came up with a new “standard contract” that (as i recall), among other things, had an options clause that essentially meant that once they bought your book, you couldn’t show the next thing you wrote - even if it was a totally unrelated work - to any other publisher until they decided not to pick up their option on it… and gave them like a year (or possibly up to a year to decide after publication of the first work, which they could *also* delay doing for up to a year…) to make the decision, during which time, you couldn’t sell anything else to anyone else.

[…] Heidi MacDonald: We’re hearing that editorial cuts at Tokyopop include Rob Tokar, Luis Reyes, Paul Morrissey, Hope Donovan and Tim Beedle. Which means the two editors in charge of the Manga PIlot Program. who were defending it just last week are now gone. Oops. […]

I discuss much of this in my blog located here
http://readingbookwatchingmoviesandmore.blogspot.com/2008/05/tokeyopops-contracts.html

Vile. But it doesn’t surprise me in the slightest.

Wow. Shooting themselves in the foot, right before Book Expo and the convention season.

I liked the “Rising Stars of Manga” series, feeling that it gave new talent great visibility. Other companies would be wise to offer similar programs, with better contracts.

And that cellphone provision? Geez… I read this blog on my cell phone! If adult sites can post the 2257 notice on a cellphone, a company can DEFINITELY post a copyright notice and credit. You can be sure Tokyopop will post their copyright, and make it visible. To not do so for the creators is either stupid or unethical.

Question: Are there similar contracts in Japan? How is the Japanese talent search run? Are the Japanese less concerned with copyright? I know the publishers are rather forgiving with the fan fiction. Do the creators feel the same way, using WFH as a sacrfice to the manga gods in return for fame and riches later?

I am neither shocked nor surprised. Tokyopo’s virtually criminal behaviour has not just been in the room for a long time, it was chewing up the carpets, pissing over the buffet and generally behaving like a poorly trained poodle that tried to hump your leg.

Just nobody talks about it out of fear of being branded and blacklisted as a “troublemaker”. You know, those troublemakers who would like to get paid on time (horrible thing), who like to have a say in what they have created (are you fucking nuts?) and actually see themselves as professionals (you are a professional, when you kissed my ass long enough boy-o!) And don’t make the mistake that these lists don’t exist. I know people who were (and some of them still are) on those lists.

What is more saddening is that – just a few weeks ago, and after a struggle of decades, Jerry Siegel’s heirs got the rights to Superman back And here we are. Nothing has changed. The comic book industry’s 3.11 version (and all of us old farts well-versed in Microsoft KNOW that nothing works properly until it hits version 3.11) is still very often run by crooks and liars, thieves and extortionists.

Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss, indeed. Maybe Stuart Levy thinks that this way he might create a media empire or at the very least sell his pitiful shingle to one.

It always amuses me that people expect corporations to behave in a moral fashion. Once people start acting as a group it’s far to easy for morality to go out the window, it’s just a matter of degree. Before you sign any contract you decide how much you’re prepared to be screwed over, and if the answer’s “not at all” then you self publish or web publish or you do mini comics or whatever but you do it yourself.

The main thing is, being starstruck guarantees you’ll get taken to the cleaners, so if you’re offered a contract, spend a few quid on getting it looked over before you sign.

It always amuses me that people expect corporations to behave in a moral fashion. Once people start acting as a group it’s far to easy for morality to go out the window, it’s just a matter of degree. Before you sign any contract you decide how much you’re prepared to be screwed over, and if the answer’s “not at all” then you self publish or web publish or you do mini comics or whatever but you do it yourself.

The main thing is, being starstruck guarantees you’ll get taken to the cleaners, so if you’re offered a contract, spend a few quid on getting it looked over before you sign.

I’m really happy to see so many creators and commentators taking Tokyopop to task for this garbage, but at the same time I’m wondering if it will really make any difference.

Sure, the fact that there’s a large peer group of 20-something creators who have worked across the comics industry talking about this and tearing it apart is great for the future of that 20-something peer group. I don’t doubt that such discussion will turn away folks like (to pick a name at random) Becky Cloonan from signing future deals with Tpop, but many of those creators already know about companies like Oni or SLG or web comics initiatives.

The people that Tokyopop is really writing this contract for are teenagers whose only exposure to comics of any kind has been the manga that they already publish. They’re much more likely to be susceptible to the “cool dude” tone of this POS and have big stars in their eyes about making it big in manga. And those kids don’t know who Bryan Lee O’Malley is or read comics news sites or know about any alternative forms of publishing outside the big three of Tokyopop, Viz and Del Rey.

Example: I was at a family reunion this weekend and my 15-year-old cousin is a text book example of the modern manga reader/next generation girl nerd. She spent every spare minute when we weren’t taking pictures and what not on a laptop with a Wacom tablet drawing manga characters and magic foxes and the like, and when the fam went to see the new Indy movie, she squealed out loud when there was a trailer for the “Twilight” movie before. I don’t doubt that in three years, this girl will be enrolling into a school like SCAD or SVA to make manga, and I am telling you right now, she doesn’t have a care or a clue about any of what we’re talking about here.

And Tokyopop knows this. Hell, they’re banking on it. I doubt that we’ll see any kind of retraction, apology or explanation for this terrible contract because to Tokyopop, the traditional comics press and traditional comic creators are a non-entity. We have no impact on their fanbase or their bottom line, and they have no reason to explain themselves to us or play ball when they’re raising a new generation of talent who has tunnel vision for working with them.

And in a way, we aide this whole setup as the major comics press still hasn’t found a way to understand manga or its readership at all. There are barely any manga related stories at sites like Newsarama and CBR, and when that material is written about, the hook is always “Here’s how Bleach is like Spider-Man” or a throwaway 5 question interview with an OEL creator who’s either already made it in sales or has some connection to indie comics. I’m not sure where most young manga readers and aspiring artists get their info on the books they buy, but the traditional comics press certainly ain’t it (does anybody know if there’s a manga equivalent to Newsarama?). The only person that I read with any regularity that “gets” manga is Brigid Alverson, and from the looks of the posts above, she’s the person who’s getting anywhere near giving this contract a pass.

Until we start covering this material with more frequency and depth all of this debate is going to fall on deaf ears and more and more young creators will screw themselves over by signing away their rights.

Wow, very insightful post, Kiel. You should be writing professionally about comics!

More seriously, you are entirely right. There is a whole generation of kids who are the American dojinshi circles. And some of them will fall for this, alas. We could go on their message boards and warn them but it would be a “grown-ups don’t understand! thing.” In fact, I remember that very reaction on The Engine discussion of this topic last time out. Of course, most of the young’uns who were saying that then are now singing a different tune, but that’s what age and wisdom and experience are all about.

What I think it does show is just how ethically reprehensible Toykopop really is. And while Pete Bangs is right, and expecting ethical behavior from corporations is a fool’s errand, we can at least choose whether to not to patronize corporations that have more or less ethical behavior.

In response to Kiel’s comments about how this isn’t going to reach the TP readers:
It’s already been posted on the Tokyopop boards in a variety of threads, none of which have gotten the “you don’t understand” response.
http://messageboard.tokyopop.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11709&page=12
Take note of the first post of page 13: hopefully we’ll be getting an official response to this soon.

If you really want the Tokyopop site visitors to notice, then it’s easy to register and post here, on the individual pilot pages.
http://www.tokyopop.com/life/features/1529620.html
Sounds like the most successful option to me.

Besides teenagers, I’m also guessing this megashitty contract is targeting folks who have never had anything published and have little experience working with art editors, etc. who place very little value on their own work. They may not think that rights are important or may even believe that if they get paid, $500 or whatever low amount is “a lot of money” for their property.

This contract is the equivalent of all those “vanity publishers” who used to advertise in the back of Writer’s Digest.

I am so disgusted and so happy at the same time. Disgusted because it’s TokyoPop’s shady business deals and happy to hear some of my favorite creators and blogs are condemning them. I’ve been questioning TokyoPop’s business deals and creators rights for some time. I even once half jokingly compared Stu Levy to Osama Bin Laden on my blog. (Hopefully it’s funnier and makes a good point in context.) I’m glad people are seeing Levy for the con man he is.

Can I take off my tinfoil hat now? I’ve been noting that Levy and his company have had questionable practices for a while. They switched from actual manga to OEL ‘manga’ graphic novels. One of the big benefits is that they can own the rights. Lock, stock, and barrel. This new contract sounds even worse. They’re so busy shouting and marketing ‘manga’ and most of their young fans don’t even think about creators rights. Meanwhile people who know the comics industry know better and think about those things. It is so good to hear these creators having issue with TokyoPop’s crap.

Kiel:
(does anybody know if there’s a manga equivalent to Newsarama?).

Yep, it’s called Anime News Network, and according to those posts at the Tokyopop board, they’re preparing a feature on this very subject. Given how they thoroughly took fansubbing website Crunchroll to the woodshed just a few months ago (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interview/2008-03-25/vu-nguyen), I would say they’re going to do a pretty dang good job at dissecting this issue in a manga/anime industry context.

This contract is just….staggering to me.

[…] -Well, it wasn’t like I was ever going to pitch something to Tokyopop anyway… Be sure to click through and read all those links. […]

I was thinking more or less the same thing as Kiel. Most manga fans have no use for superhero web stuff (and vice versa, really). Hopefully, people who can voice their concerns with this contract better than I will register at the TokyoPop forum and shed insight to the people looking at submission.

Yeesh. There’s bad contracts, and then there’s *insulting* contracts.

I worked for a lawyer once. He was real estate rather than intellectual property, but still, any contract written or structured like that, he’d have wiped his ass with.

“Kiel:
(does anybody know if there’s a manga equivalent to Newsarama?).

Yep, it’s called Anime News Network, and according to those posts at the Tokyopop board, they’re preparing a feature on this very subject.”

Also, the guys behing Anime News Network are also the folks behind the anime/manga/J-pop print mangazine Protoculture Addicts, which has recently run some interesting articles about the behind-the-scenes aspects of their worlds of fandom. For example, the most recent issue has a good story “How Not to Run an Anime Convention” covering some of the malfeasant or incompetent moves made by convention promoters. (It doesn’t seem to have the article online, or else I’d post a link…) I don’t doubt that they could turn an equally interesting spotlight on manga and things like this contract.

As to what Kiel Phegley said;

its not that I at the time of 14 (now just turned 20 in decem) did know of this, but by 11th grade, this became something I wanted to do. So what did I do? I researched and not jump into things.

Even my brother read the contract on his own and laughed at it (he’s 16 today) so I dont think its age or weather you regularly view this sites, it’s just something that happens a lot in society. Thats what I call laziness. Laziness to learn and investigate and thats what they are hoping for.

The 750$ isn’t my problem, its everything else.
I’m a new creator, I haven’t been published, but I sure dont want to be an invisible slave.

[…] Tokyopop: Hey, dude, totally bad contract! from THE BEAT […]

As an aside, I believe people under 18 are not allowed to sign contracts without their parents consent. It’s this “protection” thing we have in our society.

Jason and Tommy: thanks for the info! I’ll definitely bookmark ANN for future reference.

Laurie: Sorry if I made it sound as though I thought teenagers themselves would be swindled or aren’t smart enough to see the flaws in this kind of thing. I think you’re 100% correct that given the contract in context a lot of young people would see it for the piece of garbage it is and that those that don’t are lazy/have little business sense. The Beat is also right in that teens can’t sign away their lives and ideas without parental involvement (and honestly, I don’t think that Tpop is trying to market this specifically to teens, per se. Although I bet they would if they could get away with it).

The real worry I have here is that a large number of young people who get way into the manga that Tokyopop publishes will get stars in their eyes and talk themselves out of the concerns they have about such a contract for the temporary benefit of being published by the company they grew up loving. This has been happening with superhero comics for years where folks will sign away any and all rights because it’s their childhood dream to draw Superman if just for a minute.

When I was coming up as a teenage comics fan, I was lucky enough to have creative role models like Jeff Smith and some of the superhero artists of Image who would all rave about the importance of owning their own creations in almost every interview they gave. I worry that right now, young people who love reading manga aren’t hearing that message within their own fan communities and it might cause them similar growing pains that the superhero folks are still digging themselves out of.

[…] If you’re in Toronto tonight, there’s an interesting-sounding signing at the Beguiling — Svetlana Chmakova and Faith Erin Hicks will both sign. And I don’t know whether they’ve noticed this, but both can also be found in the pages of 24 Hour Comics Highlights 2005! For Faith, I think this was her first commercially-distributed comics in print, well before her new book Zombies Calling; for Svetlana, it came out the same month as Dramacon volume 1. But if you want to get them both to sign the same book, bring your copy of 24 Hour Comics Highlights 2005 to the signing! […]

Mmmmmmmm One more title I can use to seduce the innocent!

Very nice! Pride & Prejudice is one of my wife’s favorite books, so I wonder if this could be the project that finally wins her over to the wonders of sequential art? (She finds it difficult to process the words and images in comics simultaneously.) More likely, she’ll wonder, “Why are everyone’s eyes so big?”

NICE!!!
Dramacon 2 was one of my favorite reads this year.
Just all out funny and enjoyable all the way the through.

Yay! I’m looking forward to this. Both 1 and 2 were excellent.

Gotta agree. This series has been a lot of fun, and I’ve been recommending it to librarians.

I’m very excited to see the third volume come out, especially after reading the online preview of the first chapter a couple of weeks ago. I had the opportunity to meet Ms. Chmakova at SDCCI earlier this year and she was SO nice and absolutely deserves all the accolades she’s getting for Dramacon. This book is HIGHLY recommended for anyone new to manga or otaku culture, or looking for a few rom-com laughs!

SQUEEEEEEEEE!

I don’t squee for just anyone.

I’m so excited! I think it will be good, like all of them.

I absolutely LOVE this series. The wit and huor in it just kills me. Something like dramacon is very hard to come by, and it really deserves all of the attention it’s getting ^^ it’s really wonderful, and i recommend it to everyone. every page makes you crack up laughing.

Yay!!!
I can´t wait to see the new volume!!!

TP’s top-10 list appears in Variety, so keep in mind the intended audience. Marketing-wise, it’s a very well-constructed list.

I believe that the TPop folks also took out a big add in Variety the week of SDCC to herald their signing with a Hollywood agency. It was a back cover or some other such big piece of real estate and featured a composite of many of the characters they had enough stake in to sell to studios, so lobbying for more editorial coverage comes as no surprise.

If I may blow my own proverbial horn a bit, a number of very big-name producers have approached Tokyopop regarding my series “Mail Order Ninja” as well. I can’t really talk about it at this stage, but we do have plenty of “heat” to use the vernacular.

Plus the first volume is already in its second printing and we’re going strong on number three.

what’s the controversy?

I believe the reference is to Alex’s comments on the V-Hive board about her experience of pitching to Vertigo, which were somewhat bridge-burning in nature.

Love the video. Good to see good things happenin’ to Alex. She’s a good gal, creative, and really dedicated to what she does.

Wow, I really liked that song and video. I assume that’s Alex as the director. Very cool. It has a certain Steely Dan vibe to me. Which is actually a very good thing in my book.

I’ve read her stuff and it was Meh. She does however strike me as a girl who loves to be the centre of attention. Her early site posts were very ‘Look at me! Aren’t I great and cool!’.

My biggest problem with her is the fact that she’ll use any medium to selflessly self promote herself, no matter what it costs. The video in point - she takes the singer and effectively puts him to the side with her own ‘cameos’ that once more push her more than the talent. And I hear that the guy at the end - the ‘next big thing’? Is her boyfriend, a struggling musico himself.

Come on, De Campi - If you’re going to make a video for someone, promote THEM, don’t use it as a tool to put you and your boyfriend over. That’s unprofessional. We want to see the performer, not you. Brand yourself by all means but ‘hired to do a job’ is just that.

But then we all know how you just hate towing the line - well, Vertigo and Marvel do, anyway…

But, I’d love to see De Campi put a book out on self publicity, as she seems to get every blog on the planet following her every whim…

Hmmm. That’s interesting.

Hrm, I could easily see your Battle of the Bands being a good summer comedy bit.

Though maybe without the Duran Duran homages…

HA! I really need to blog about the whole “Duran Duran” thing, cuz this probably is not the best place to get into it!

Suffice to say that it was a total coincidence, that WAS pointed out to me while I was drawing it, and that I embraced whole-heartedly!

Hope you liked BOTB, in any case!

I did, but my wife, who blogs under Miranda, did the review for it. And she was major Duran Duran fan and noticed that.

We do the Prospero’s Manga review blog (www.prosperosmanga.com) along with other freelance writing/reporting, and your luck of the draw got her to do the review. I did the one for the CBG Xtra website. Let me know if you want the link for it.

I guess we’re having our own private conversation here, Bill! I did read your wife’s review, but I did not see yours. I’d LOVE to get that link from you! Please follow the link to my blog & contact me!

OTHER PEOPLE: Please feel free to ignore us and comment on the subject of Heidi’s actual post!

As an aside, this will be an interesting pair-up. With Marvel producing their own stuff now, DC being captive to Warner and Viz simply not having the ability to make deals on Japanese properties, TP has a good position, and WMA has a wide enough stable to talent to package together properties (as in getting together IP, writer, director and actors) into a single package for studios.

The downside the studios may be expecting something more comic-booky from them, for lack of a better term, shared superhero universes and all…

If Tokyopop’s experience at WMA is anything like mine, this will be the last we hear of Tokyopop.

Old joke:

Why couldn’t they find Patty Hearst?
She signed with Morris.