2008 Manga Report Cards ~ Dark Horse

Dark Horse– 20+ years of manga excellence and 2008 might have been their best yet. In the last 5 years I have seen DH evolve from a pub that was fighting to keep readers as they were slow to transition in the tankobon revolution and now they are partnered with CLAMP to release Mangettes (which I don’t believe will be very tank like at all).

I’ll say this right now in case the write up behind the cut is too long…

Dark Horse was my pick for Publisher of the Year for 2008. Like Del Rey and Viz in the past, DH took care of business in 2008 by releasing great titles with good production values. By reinforcing their foundation of high quality seinen manga, DH not only did a fine job maintaining its core audience, with new A-level properties they reached out to new readers at a time when other pubs were struggling to find readers for their catalogs. Best of all DH continues to bring out challenging and unique titles to a market that needs to see more diversity.

Before I wrote this up I thought Dark Horse had a quiet 2008, but after looking back at what they accomplished and what they have announced for the near future there is no doubt DH had a good year scoring well on all categories. And the future should be even better.

Dark Horse Manga
10956 SE Main Street
Milwaukie, OR 97222

website: http://www.darkhorse.com/Zones/Manga
Founded: 1986
President: Mike Richardson
Imprints: Dark Horse Manhwa

DOMINION 0,1
Path of the Assassin 8,9,10,11,12,13
Oh My Goddess! 8,9,10,28,29,30
Trigun Maximum 12,13
Berserk 21,22,23,24,25,26
Translucent 3
Gunsmith Cats BURST 3
Blade of the Immortal 18,19,20
Blood+ 1,2,3,4
Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service 6,7
ORION
MPD Psycho 4,5,6,7
Dirty Pair (novel) 2 *
Blood+ (novel) 1,2,3
Vampire Hunter D (novel) 10,11
Black Magic
EDEN 10
Color of Rage
Appleseed 2,3
Gantz 1,2
Ghost Talker’s Daydream 1,2
AstroBoy **
Hellsing 9

Hanami 3,4
Chunchu 3
Bride of the Water God 2
Shaman Warrior 6

Red String 2,3
Empowered 3,4

Style School 2,3

68 volumes from 30 series (23 manga, 4 manhwa, 2 global, 1 mook)
3 series completed
5 series launched
2 licenses in limbo: Dame Dame Saitou Nikki, Shin Lone Wolf and Cub, Blood+: Yakou Joushi

* : only two volumes of the Dirty Pair novel were announced by DH.
** : I don’t believe DH announced they would re-release all of Astro Boy in omnibus form

Content:

It’s difficult for me to cover DH’s content because I am a huge fan of their titles. At many points in my life I have felt DH has released titles specifically with me in mind (Gunsmith Cats, Endo Hiroki’s Tanpenshuu, MAIL). But in 2008 year DH showed that they had more than just manly man manga for manly men, they had a little bit more range and a little more finesse than what their back catalog has shown.

DH has always been willing to take chances with their licenses. They tried out manhwa in the past and while I still think Korean comics have a long way to go, they figured out which titles worked and stuck with them (Hanami). A few years back they also tried to ride the horror trend.  Maybe that first wave didn’t pan out but they kept some of the same suspense and added some mystery with titles like MPD Psycho and Kurosagi Corpse and I feel they’ve created a base for more suspenseful titles (Japanese horror is big in the josei market, so I’d assume creating an audience will take some time over here).

Where DH showed off their stuff is by picking up titles that are not only known among manga fans but also titles that challenge readers. Now I will say I am not a fan of media mixing (picking up manga because they have anime), but I’ll make an exception for these picks. Ghost Talker’s Daydream is not your standard manga. A collection of stories involving a dominatrix who can talk to the dead is not what you’d see from Del Rey or Viz. (Heck I wonder if even long dead ComicsOne would be this bold.) Follow that up with Gantz, a title that was on too many manga wishlists for the longest time from Viz’s parent company Shueisha, and you’ve got a little bit of what I like to call manga SHOCK and AWE. The Blood+ license does not inspire me much, but I can say that I have seen these books almost everywhere. And if Blood+ sales help other titles like EDEN live on, then I’d be happy to support Dark Horse and Production IG.

Titles like Berserk, Oh My Goddess, Trigun, Blade of the Immortal and Hellsing will continue to bring in readers. Vampire Hunter D must be one of the, if not the most successful light novels translated. And why not toss in a classic like AstroBoy or Dominion for good measure.

Looking at quality of titles, DH has the highest concentration of A level titles. Now that doesn’t mean they will be popular. On a popularity scale their they might rank a C+. What hurts them is their lack of crossover appeal with many titles.

DH titles are not strictly for guys or Ame-comi readers, but many of them are pretty darn close. In the past that would have hurt DH, because the market was still growing. Now with a little bit of contraction finding a niche might be a good thing. DH has their readership pretty much figured out. They can and have tried to grow their market. In 2008 their new big name A-level popular titles have helped reach out to new readers making them look a little more appealing than ever.

Would it be cool to have more shoujo from DH? Yeah. They are working on it. But there are plenty of other pubs that provide that type of content. DH has their content and it’s damn good stuff.

If DH does lose points it is because a few titles were put on hiatus till 2009. DH Manhwa titles needed to find a new translator. Not sure what the hold up was on Translucent, but I am glad it should be back this summer. A number of pubs changed schedules in 2008, but most of DH’s changes came long before major economic and publishing industry concerns started to hurt companies.

Content: A-

Communication:

Dark Horse’s communication system has long confused me. But now that I worked with major publishers (on both sides of the Pacific) I am starting to understand their logic. DH’s communication appears poor. Like every major business they have a website where they list their products and occasionally post news. But if not for an online message board and great convention presence they’d be a joke.

As manga is only one piece of the greater Dark Horse Comic’s pie manga doesn’t feature prominently on the DH website. On DH’s new site, readers have to figure out to go to the “Zones” tab to be sent to the DH Manga section. Once there fans are often treated to a few words from DH staff (most likely Director of Asian Licensing Michael Gombos or Editor Philip Simon) and banners to DH’s most popular manga properties - Berserk, Gantz, Blood+, and OMG!. They also have links to their eComic titles - Banya and Shaman Warrior.

Unfortunately the new DH site appears to be in transition as a number of features are not working properly. Going to the “New Releases” page does not yield any useful info. According to this page DH has not released a volume of manga since October 2008 when they released volume 1 of Gantz. ONLY! Nothing was released prior to that either… Hmm. Clicking on the “Upcoming” page only reveals info on Gantz also… That isn’t good news for fans of Blood+. The “Browse” page, which should have info on all of DH’s manga titles, only has links to Gantz (again), Gunsmith Cats, Star Wars and Super Manga Blast releases. Curious. Now obviously anyone can just do a search for Bride of the Water God and find some info, links to buy the books at Things from Another World and maybe even a short preview of the manga, but I wish site designers/maintainers would consider functionality and logic when making sites, instead of just focusing on design and making sure people can Digg, Stumble, or facebook their favorite pages…

Using DH’s message boards though is a breeze. The activity isn’t particularly heavy but a number of DH staff tend to frequent the boards and they have not been shy about answering questions. Actually this has been the best place to find news on EDEN anywhere.

And that’s about it for DH’s promotional machine… Well not really. DH does send out review copies to websites and publications (though, I have never received a book from them despite having been in contact with one of their marketing people). I haven’t seen this happen much lately but the DH’s staff have been known to comment on blogs and forums before. Press releases tend to only be sent out for new significant releases. I noticed that these are generally sent to prominent websites also. The last press release I received was for Dayan way back in April.

DH staff have been very good about doing interviews to promote their titles. Though, once again outside of heavy traffic sites like PW’s Comics Week and Manga.About.com I don’t really see them actively promoting their content. And as they will relaunch their manhwa titles and move into more shoujo titles in 2009, I think it will be very important for them to pick up their communication especially since they have long been known as a manly man’s manga publisher that does their work in mancaves… I mean comic shops.

Cons are where DH do their best work. At events like AX, SDCC, NYCC and others along the west coast, DH editors do their darndest to not only sell their content but they also make a very strong case to inform the public about why they are releasing specific titles. Whether it is Carl Horn breaking down the finer details of Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service or Gombos sharing details about his love for Reiko the Zombie Shop, fans can easily feel the genuine pride these editors have for the stories they want to share with readers. Now if they could only share that passion with more fans on the net, they’d be golden. Why? Well given how they reacted to the EDEN confusion of 2007, there is no doubt in my mind that readers would listen to what they have to say. A short essay on Ghost Talker’s Daydream might not guarantee 4 digit unit sales in the first month (or quarter), but it might create more exposure to titles that need it most (not to say Gantz didn’t need write-ups and previews but World Embryo will need all the help it can get next year). But if readers understood that passion they possibly wouldn’t worry about cancellations or price points as much. They would focus on the great content DH is releasing every month, instead.

It’s easy to get a hold of DH editors through email. But then again, I don’t know if that route will work for just anyone. My experiences with their marketing person have been poor, and given that these guys are a major comics publisher that is kinda disappointing.

Grade: C+

Distribution:

As a major comic publisher Dark Horse’s distribution is handled through Diamond. The publisher is a major part of the Diamond Previews catalog, promoting their books as well as merchandise (ie: Domu-kun) monthly. Their Diamond dealings have given Dark Horse a strong direct market presence and at least one member of their staff has admitted that in the past they have tried to find titles to cater to the comic shop market.

Diamond also handles their distribution to the retail sector. This has had mixed results as they carry a number of 18+ titles. Some of those books are not labeled that way but as a rule of thumb mature titles are almost always shrink-wrapped. It’s not uncommon to see DH books at Borders. In my part of the country all of their titles always seem to make their way to Borders at some point or another. I cannot say every volume of every series will be stocked but at least first and second volumes along with the most recent usually get stocked. Trigun, Blood+ and Hellsing have made their way to B&N stores in my neighborhood. Their manhwa also seems to slip through, but B&N’s manga stacks have always been small in the Bay Area and 18+ content are usually not stocked unless they are in high demand (hence Hellsing making the cut). Still given how much of their catalog is 18+ it’s still impressive how much of their content is relatively easy to find in malls.

Online Dark Horse has a strong presence through their sister company the pop culture webshop Things from Another World. TfAW is not only a good place to shop for DH titles (many of which can be found at a discount before shipping) but they also sell books from Del Rey, CMX, Tokyopop and Viz (they even had a book from Studio Ironcat… Literally from another world of comics).

Relying on Diamond to handle everything is tough. Sure being a major account for the comics distribution monopoly helps, but I wonder what DH Manga would be like if they had PGW handle part of their distribution in the States. Maybe some more of those 18+ books would find their way to more stores. Maybe they’d have more presence at events like BookExpo and such.

Grade: B

Production:

Let me say this now… Dark Horse has the best production from a major publisher. Leagues above Viz and TP in terms of overall print quality and translation quality. When DH does translation notes, they blow Del Rey’s away. And as the editors and translators often have good to great appreciations for their titles their adaptations read much more fluidly than Yen’s do.

Dark Horse titles look better than the rest. Even when Broccoli was around their covers and paper stock were the closest to Japanese styles in the business (with DrMaster being the only publisher that can match that). Their books often keep Japanese designs, down to the logo and kanji on the spines; only changing enough to help English readers understand what they are reading.

Prints are extremely sharp. In the past their releases of Berserk were cropped very tightly, but as of late their pages have been close to spot on. In certain titles DH provided color pages, often while keeping costs down (as with Hanami and MPD Psycho).

I love DH adaptations. They are smart, witty and do a fine job maintaining the context of the original text. Sometimes I feel certain adaptations are almost too personal, though. Carl Horn titles while fine adaptations always remind me they are from Carl Horn. His tone and style of speaking is always present (and I don’t have to read his translator notes to get that feeling). By the way, CGH’s translator notes are so impressive they sometimes are more memorable than the stories they are pulled from.

DH isn’t opposed to releasing omnibus releases or bunko prints. I wonder if they will ever consider releasing a series as an omnibus when one is not available in Japan or Korea. Licenses don’t usually work that way, but given their titles maybe experimenting with new trims and formats might help series that don’t have the billing as Gantz or MPD Psycho have.

Evaluation for 2008:

Dark Horse has been a personal favorite of mine for years now. They have been in the business for 20+ years and their experience shows in the quality of titles they have, the quality of people they employ and their production standards. Being a major comic company helps, but CMX is a part of a major comic company and as much as I love them, even as an employee, I’d say DH has got them beat on almost all levels - from an overall catalog to production and distribution. (I think CMX titles have broader appeal but that’s for another post).

What has kept DH from reaching the top of the manga heap in the past was simple - distribution. As I noted above, relying on Diamond is tricky. Orders can go missing. Diamond’s priority is in the direct market, so you might notice some books don’t get to chains on-time. And I have always wondered if that is why DH titles don’t make their way into the BookScan charts often. I know that the readership is different, but given how many DH titles have solid Diamond numbers, I wonder why that doesn’t translate to Borders. I mean at least 20% of those Diamond pre-orders for Path of the Assassin would be significant, and should place that title among the BookScan top 150 manga titles (but that’s not happening). And in many ways 2009 might be even harder given the new benchmarks books have to make.

Prior to 2008 DH also had trouble releasing their books on time. Which lead to distribution issues and lead to a confused message whenever they did communicate with readers.

2008 saw a big change on many levels. Their books were always on time. Quality seemed to have improved across the board. And while their communication has dropped, their content has improved significantly. DH was no longer a dark horse in the manga industry looking up at publishers like Del Rey, Tokyopop and Viz. In 2008 Dark Horse was the publisher of the year and this was evident by a nice margin over second place Viz.

What set DH apart from the rest was quality. With titles like Berserk, Hellsing, MPD Pycho, OMG!, Gantz and, Blade of the Immortal, Dark Horse has a lineup that blows away all other manga publishers their size. Titles like EDEN, Kurosagi Corpse, Empowered, Hanami and Ghost Talker’s Daydream show Dark Horse’s range and their ability to take chances with titles that are not in the mainstream. Got to give them love for their ability to bring back the classics like the Masamune Shirow titles, AstroBoy and the Path of the Assassin. So what if their catalog lacks “range.” Women do read OMG and Hellsing. And DH is working on that with more Bride of the Water God, Red String and their new Blood+ releases.

It’s hard to beat a DH production. From translation to printing, their books are grade A looking material that are worth a little more than the median $10 price point (though I have a hard time paying $14 for Berserk and $15 for 150pgs of Dominion).

DH’s staff is knowledgeable. They respect the titles they work on. And they are not afraid of taking chances. Which is why 2009 looks even better. The Mangettes project is possibly one of the most exciting events in American manga history. It’s going to test DH’s capabilities a bit as CLAMP’s audience has not been DH’s audience. But if DH can get the word out once the first releases come out in August they’ll find themselves in a very strong position for their brand. Add a growing catalog that will cater to a broader audience (though I will admit a slightly more media mix audience) and DH should find their way into even more stores and to new readers.

What more can you ask for? High quality content and production, market growth, and innovation are more than enough to make them my publisher of the year for 2008.

Overall Grade for 2008: A

Outlook for 2009:

2009 has the potential to be a huge year for DH. There is also the possibility of a slight let down from the publisher as a number of titles will wrap up next year. Expect to have another 5-6 volumes of hit series Berserk and Oh My Goddess. These series have been around for ages and in the case of Berserk sales have been picking up as it reached double digit volumes (a rarity in the manga biz). Newer licenses MPD Psycho, GANTZ and Ghost Talker’s Daydream will all continue through most of 2009 as well.

2009 should have plenty more BLOOD+ for readers to enjoy. While the original manga series will wrap up relatively soon (with volume 5 due in February), Dark Horse will launch Blood+: Adagio in April. This is a slightly new direction for DH as this is a shoujo side-story of sorts. Whether shoujo readers are going to go to comic shops to pick this series up is uncertain, but if they do they might want to sample the next Blood+ novel series - Russian Rose. DH has not announced the BL Blood+, but I expect them to start that series up once Adagio wraps up (so maybe late fall at the earliest).

DH’s Carl Gustav Horn is the editor of Viz’s Evangelion, and he will be handling the Ikari Shinji Raising Project this year. This retelling of the NGE property puts the cast in a high school setting full time. Imagine Misato, Gendo and Ritsuko as educators… Yeah, it sounds like a doujinshi gone bad.

CLAMP’s new collaboration with DH is possibly one of the most anticipated events ever in North American manga history. This spring Dark Horse will kick things off with an omnibus release of the CLAMP classic CLOVER. All four volumes will be collected in the release. And after almost two years in development DH will launch their Mangettes program. An original story from the manga team will have a global simultaneous release. I’m hoping CLAMP will use this opportunity to finish CLOVER, but that might be wishful thinking.

Manhwa might not be on the minds of many manga fans, but Shaman Warrior, XS, Bride of the Water God and Chunchu should be back in 2009. This will end up boosting the number of series DH will release this year by a decent number.
Now DH a number of DH titles will end in 2009 and even more will be caught up with Japan, but if projections are correct (and you never know with DH) they should be at around the same output, of around 60 books. Through August they are in line for 40+ books (5+ books a month). They have caught up with Gunsmith Cats BURST. There is only one volume left for Appleseed, Hellsing, Translucent and Trigun Maximum. Path of the Assassin will wrap up by late spring (with volume 15). Dark Horse announced the options for two more volumes of EDEN. Volume 11 is scheduled for Feb and 12 should be out in August, so pre-order your copy now. DH will be slowing down their releases of Blade of the Immortal with only two volumes projected for 2009. This is mainly because they have practically caught up with the monthly serialized title. Expect the same from Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service and maybe even MPD Psycho. DH will catch up with Kurosagi this summer and the magazine that title runs in just got killed off in Japan leaving the title on hold until it moves to another magazine. MPD Psycho was in the same magazine, but DH is 6 volumes behind, so readers should know what will happen to this series by this time next year when DH would have caught up with that property.

On paper 2009 should be huge for DH. They have the titles but with their distribution issues getting into chains and the new PO thresholds for Diamond things could go sour for specific titles (I’m looking at all those manhwa titles that will return in 2009).

New licenses for 2009: CLOVER, Mangettes, NGE: Ikari Shinji Raising Project, Oh My Goddess COLORS, Thumbelina, World Embryo

Grade: A

Wrap up:

• Content: A-
• Production: A
• Communication: C+
• Distribution: B
• Outlook: A+
• Overall: A