Kodansha announced new licenses for Spring 2022, in a new episode of their Kodansha Live show. Among the announced titles are some new series, as well as some classics and sequels.
Kodansha Live’s 6th episode of the 2nd season aired on June 30th, 2021. Misaki Kido, Marketing Director for the company, hosted the episode. All of the titles below will release in Spring of 2022. The Kodansha covers are not finalized, so the list includes Japanese covers as well.
The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse
The Seven Deadly Sins sequel manga by Nakaba Suzuki was also a part of Kodansha’s Spring 2022 license announcements, even though it;s already available as simulpub. If you want to own a physical copy you’re going to have to wait until Spring 2022.
In the world of The Seven Deadly Sins: Four Knights of the Apocalypse, Percival has always lived with his grandfather on the idyllic, remote God’s Finger. And though Percival loves the simple life, he longs for adventure. That is, until adventure comes knocking at his door, tearing away everything he’s ever known and leaving him alone in the world. Now Percival has no choice but to go out into the world and see what it holds…after all, it’s his destiny!
Island in a Puddle
Kei Sanbe, the author of Erased, has a new manga. The story apparently features time travel and focuses on a young boy who fights to keep his younger sister alive.
The tiny apartment where Minato lives may as well be an isolated island in the middle of the ocean. Despite still being in elementary school, it falls on his shoulders to care for his little sister Nagisa, who never stops asking when their mother will make one of her infrequent visits home. On one of those visits, their mother takes them to an amusement park, only to give Minato some cash and leave them on a Ferris wheel… but as the wheel reaches the top, lightning strikes, and, instead of his sister, Minato sees the corpse of a woman… and, reflected in the glass looking back at him, an unfamiliar and menacing face!
Galaxy Next Door
From Sweetness and Lightning author comes Galaxy Next Door. Gido Amagakure’s new seinen series focuses on a manga author who falls on hard times. While he struggles to get back on his feet, he gets a new assistant – a mysterious young girl.
Since his parents died, manga artist Ichiro has barely scraped by, forced to support his two younger siblings on just a middle school education. He doesn’t even have time to learn how to use a computer, which forces him to keep wrestling with pen and paper. When his art assistants quit to strike out on their own, on top of juggling deadlines, family, and the constant fear of losing his job, Ichiro feel close to a total breakdown. But then a new assistant pops into Ichiro’s life, and his prospects immediately start to brighten! She’s an incredible artist, she always finishes on time, and she’s beautiful, to boot! But she also seems to know an awful lot about him, and, soon, she makes a confession that bends Ichiro’s mind beyond the confines of Earth…
Phantom of the Idol
According to Kodansha’s stream, this manga is a perfect choice for Horimiya, My Dress-Up Darling, and Kiss Him, Not Me! fans. This josei manga is Hijiki Isoflavone’s first major work.
Yuuya, one half of the boy pop duo ZINGS, may be the laziest performer in the Japanese music industry. His partner is out there giving 110% every night (and, thankfully, he’s quite popular), but Yuuya’s half-assed, sloppy dancing, and his frankly hostile attitude toward the audience, has the fans hating him and his agent looking for any excuse to cut him loose. The career of a pop idol just isn’t the path of easy leisure and adulation Yuuya expected…
After a particularly lifeless concert appearance, Yuuya meets a girl backstage. She’s dressed to the nines in a colorful outfit, she’s full of vim and vigor, and all she wants from life is to perform. There’s just one problem: She’s been dead for a year. This is the ghost of Asahi Mogami, the beloved singer whose time on the stage was tragically cut short, unless… If ghosts are real, is spirit possession really that much of a stretch?
Wondance
New seinen manga by Coffee will find its place in hearts of those who enjoy music, dance and coming-of-age stories.
Kaboku has always just gone with the flow, marching in step to the drumbeat of the expectations of those around him: parents, school, plans for the future. It feels predictable, safe, and… empty. But one night, Kaboku’s at school late, and he happens on a girl alone, moving wildly, turning a blank space of concrete into a canvas. This is Hikari Wanda, a member of the hip-hop dance club. Kaboku is immediately smitten, but the road to stepping out of his shell is a long one. The club is almost entirely girls, and they’re all, well, way better than him. What’s ahead is unknown, and that’s terrifying, but it also means, for the first time in Kaboku’s life… a taste of freedom.
Welcome Back, Alice
Shuzo Oshimi’s newest work Welcome Back, Alice is another dark, psychological drama centered around high-school students. It explores some LGBT themes, while keeping an eye on the relationships between main characters.
Yohei, Kei and Yui are childhood friends and things get complicated when Yohei witnesses Kei and Yui in an intimate moment. But when Kei unexpectedly moves away and returns a few years later to reunite in high school, he seems to be a bit different.
Devil Ecstasy
If you’re familiar with Shuzo Oshimi’s older work, Devil Ecstasy will be a familiar title. Even though this ecchi-drama fantasy was first serialized in 2005, it’s only getting an English release now. One of the new Kodansha’s Spring 2022 licenses will be a perfect addition for Oshimi’s fans.
Noboru Kusakabe is an 18-year-old virgin college student who developed a trauma for big breasts. Desperately wanting to lose his virginity, Noboru and his friend discover a mysterious brothel called “Devil Ecstasy”. Although he was nervous about his first experience, Noboru is thrilled by a beautiful girl with small breasts named Meruru who holds a scary secret about the brothel!
Sensei’s Pious Lie
Sensei’s Pious Life is a seinen manga by Akane Torikai. Drama, centered around a teacher whose life changes after she meets her friend’s fiancé, was serialized from 2013 to 2017 and has 49 chapters.
Misuzu Hara is a 24-year-old high school teacher. Her peaceful days of instructing her students begin to change with the advent of her friend Minako’s fiancé, Hayafuji. What happened between them? A dramatic story about sexual inequalities that lie between men and women.
Blackguard
Ryo Hanada is back with a new Sci-Fi manga: Blackguard. After success of Devils’ Line, the new story will surely have an easier time getting through to the fans.
The world is suddenly overrun by monsters called “shojo” and anyone who is bit by one is infected with a mysterious virus, which turns them into the same being. To defeat the shojo, humans live in “aerial cities” and formed units called “guards”. Nanao Minami, also known as the Blackguard, fights but without regard for his own life. What is his motivation and why does he want to die so readily?
The Shining Sea
Koji Suzuki, creator of The Ring series, has a new novel. The Shining Sea offers an insight into a interesting mystery.
A young woman who attempted suicide by drowning has lost her memory. Her lover, a young man, is on a pelagic tuna fishing boat. What happened between them?
Akira: Art of Wall and Tezuka New Omnibus Editions
In addition to these licenses, new omnibus editions of Apollo’s Song, Princess Knight, and Ode to Kirihito by Osamu Tezuku will also be released. Akira fans will be pleased as well – a special limited-edition AKIRA: Art of Wall will be available. The box-set will include a unique artifact and a rare collectible.
Kodansha Live: Spring 2022 licenses
You can learn more about Kodansha Spring 2022 licenses in the Kodansha Live episode below:
Source: Kodansha
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