Kodansha, Shueisha to join J-Comi website

Kodansha and Shueisha plan to collaborate with Ken Akamatsu’s J-Comi online manga website, Akimatsu reported Monday on his site.

The company plans for a second beta test before the end of the year. Shueisha will make available a 2007 unnamed Shonen Jum Series and a seinen series Kootsuu Jiko Kanteinin Tamaki Rinshirou by Kengo kagi, and Kodansha will bring a one-shot Shojo manga from Mayu Shinjo.

As of Tuesday, the site has had nearly 2 million downloads.

The full site will launch on Jan. 10, 2011. Akamatsu said in a press conference Monday that he feels free distribution of manga paid for by advertising is the only way to combat illegal distribution.

Anime adaptation announced for Sket Dance

Sket Dance, a mange series running in Shounen Jump since 2007, will be adapted into an anime series, according to a leaked ad in the next issue of popular manga anthology.

The comedy series Sket Dance received the 55th Shogakukan manga award in 2009. The series is about three high school students who form a support group club called “Sket-Dan” to help the student body with various problems.

The series is scheduled to premiere next spring.

Bleach live action movie likely

According to the Hollywood reporter, Warner Bros. is in talks to secure the rights to the Bleach franchise for the purpose of making a live action movie based on the Tite Kubo manga series. Peter Segal (Get Smart, Anger Management) would direct.

Among other properties already secured by Warner Bros. for remake rights are Death Note, Akira and Ninja Scroll.

Bleach has run in Shonen Jump since 2001 and already has over 260 anime episodes to its credit.

Bakuman anime official

Rumors on 2 channel have been confirmed, as an announcement in the latest issue of Shonen Weekly Jump announced an anime adaptation to the manga series Bakuman.

Drawn by Hikaru no Go artist Takeshi Obata, the series is about two boys who aspire to become a manga artist and writer.

The series is slated to release next fall.

Gintama movie likely

The 48th issue of Weekly Shonen Jump is likely to announce next week that a film adaptation of the manga series Gintama is in the works.

Earlier in the month, Warner Bros. registered the domain www.gintama-movie.com, though nothing in the way of content is featured on the site, which redirects users to Warner Bros. Japan page.

Gintama features an Edo period Edo (modern day Tokyo) taken over by aliens, and a group of freelancers struggling to find work and pay rent.

To see the opening for the anime series, click: Here!

Live action Gantz movies coming in 2011

The anime series Gantz will be made into a pair of live action movies, according to Nippon Cinema.

The films are based on the manga series, currently serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump. Gantz is about a pair of college students who are sent on missions to assassinate aliens, in which their own lives are expendable. The two earn points during missions, hoping to accumulate enough to win their freedom.

The first film is due out in set to release sometime in 2011, with the second to follow.

To Love Ru manga to end soon

The 39th volume of Weekly Shonen Jump magazine has announced that the manga To Love Ru will be ending with it’s Aug. 31 issue.

The sci-fi harem-style comedy was a fan favorite, with an anime series that aired last year and and OVA series which bundled with the manga’s last three tankoubon releases. In addition to comedy, the series featured a light ecchi edge, though that element was clearly subservient to its comedy value.  

No word yet on what To Love Ru creators Saki Hasemi and Kentaro Yabuki will be working on next. 

Shonen Jump adds first manga chapters free online

Ever wanted to check out the first few chapters of your favorite manga series without the terribly time-consuming process of downloading them illegally (or, yeah, buying them)? Check out Weekly Shonen Jump’s official website (Here!), where they’ve posted the first chapters, including: One Piece, Naruto, Bleach, Katekyō Hitman Reborn!, Gintama, Kochira Katsushika-ku Kamearikouen-mae Hashutsujo, To Love-Ru -Trouble-, Sket Dance, Psyren, Nurarihyon no Mago, Toriko, Bakuman., Inumarudashi, Kuroko no Baske, Beelzebub, Medaka Box, Akaboshi, Anedoki, Kagijin, Pyu to Fuku! Jaguar, Wasshoi! Wajimani, D.Gray-man

Some of these, like Kagijin, are brand new whereas others are older. Kochira Koenmae, for example (that’s the nickname for that ridiculously long title) is the longest running serialized manga (others like Golgo 13 have been around longer but did not publish continually). 

And if you want manga in English (the above are in Japanese, on the Japanese site) then check out U.S. Shonen Jump’s site (Here!) to get a large selection of their serialized regulars (there seems to be a lot).

To Love Ru OAV series announced

The latest issue of Shonen Weekly Jump to date has announced that a new To Love Ru OAV series is coming this fall.

The series will release with the manga volumes, specifically volumes 16, 17 and 18. 

The series tells the story of an average boy, Rito, in love with Sairenji, whose room an alien princess crashes through. After rescuing her from, apparently, her own bodyguards, she announces they are engaged and moe pandemonium ensues.

The first DVD, bundled with manga vol. 16, will be released on Nov. 4.