Forum - View topicNEWS: Mahjong Pros Licenses Crybaby Mermaid, Getter Robo High, Vermilion Stella Manga
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malvarez1
Posts: 2993 |
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Wait, so this company only licenses mahjong manga? That’s so specific.
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Lord Geo
Posts: 2998 Location: North Brunswick, New Jersey |
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They've been releasing physical mahjong sets for a few years prior, & apparently even got the license to produce hololive & Persona 5-themed sets. They're simply expanding out to also offering mahjong manga, and their first manga was a mahjong guide done by a top-ranking mahjong Vtuber. Personally, I think it's neat. Mahjong titles are an extreme niche, but that also makes them unique & intriguing, and the titles that Mahjong Pros has license (beyond the guide) probably don't wholly require instant knowledge of mahjong to enjoy, as Koizumi is more about the absurd political parodies featured within, Getter Robo High will appeal to fans of Getter, & the other two look to be more character dramas that just happen to be about mahjong players. Also, looking at their wares, I see that they seriously offer a transparent mahjong set, i.e. Washizu Mahjong from Akagi. Yeah, these people know 100% who their audience is. |
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GATSU
Posts: 16393 |
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It's called Getter Robo High, but doesn't take place in high school? Anyway, the Koizumi one will probably bomb here.
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Akcoll99
Posts: 451 |
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Mahjong is apparently becoming the next "it" game. It's popularity has been increasing quite a bit in the last couple of years. Even beyond the Asian communities that were its traditional base. Google quotes a 179% increase in popularity since 2023. NPR had an article about it back in January of this year: https://www.npr.org/2026/01/24/nx-s1-5678606/mahjong-tile-game-community-building |
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GATSU
Posts: 16393 |
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Akcoll: Yes, but that's mahjong, not Koizumi.
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Akcoll99
Posts: 451 |
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Which seems to be mahjong themed? I don't know what you're getting at. Yes, it seems a bit off-beat based on that description and I have no idea how many copies of these manga will sell, but my greater point still stands. That being that there is, at the very least, a potential audience for these titles, if even a niche one. Last edited by Akcoll99 on Tue Mar 24, 2026 11:17 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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BlueAlf
 Posts: 1768 |
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It took me awhile to realize that Getter Robo High was what I recognized as Getter Robo Hai and I also seriously thought it was a Getter Robo romcom spin off in a high school setting.
Anyway, does anyone here actually play mahjong? Is it easy to learn? |
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Lord Geo
Posts: 2998 Location: North Brunswick, New Jersey |
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The basic concept of riichi mahjong, which is the variant generally played in Japan (& is what's used in stuff like these manga), isn't hard to understand. The basic concept is that you want to be the first to have a "completed" hand made up various triplets (or even quads, if possible) and/or sequential tiles, as well as a pair of some sort, and you can do so either via your own draws or my claiming discards the other players make. There are some specific rules to also keep track of, like the dora/uradora (essentially specific tiles that award bonus points if your hand plays into them in some way) or the titular riichi (announcing that you're one tile away from completion by putting additional money down), but on a general level riichi mahjong isn't hard to understand & learn. The challenge comes in knowing what hands are actually worth something, so that you score big off of your opponents, and that's where things can get complicated in regard to reading or watching a story about people playing mahjong. Still, a good mahjong story should, at the very least, do a good job of setting up certain hands & letting the reader/viewer understand what kind of hand a specific player is aiming for, at least on a general level. Also, if someone cheats (& there will almost always be someone cheating, at some point) it should explain both how they're cheating & why the cheating is relevant. |
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BlueAlf
Posts: 1768 |
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The way you explain it makes it sound like poker. I'll try looking it up. |
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