Fans Cheer Return of Fairy Tail's Hiro Mashima at Kodansha Comics NYCC Panel
New York (October 11, 2018)—For more than a decade, Fairy Tail has been one of the best-loved manga series in the world. When the curtain finally lowered on the series with its 63rd manga volume, released in English in early 2018, its popularity was at its peak. But fans won't have to wait long for more from its dynamic and prolific creator Hiro Mashima, whose brand new manga, Edens Zero, will see its first volume released in print in November 2018.
The Kodansha Comics industry panel at New York Comic Con 2018 at the Jacob Javits Convention Center included details of the release plan. The series, which brings Mashima's epic storytelling to bear on a galaxy-spanning sci-fi adventure, has already seen a digital release, but the print volumes are highly anticipated.
Mashima's readers were also excited to hear about new releases from the acclaimed artist's past, coming to English for the first time. Hiro Mashima's Playground, clocking in at nearly 400 pages, will contain a variety of fantastical short stories. What makes it a “must have” is the inclusion of the original short story that would become the juggernaut Fairy Tail. A rare look at the artistic process of one of the world's top comics artists as well as a fun and funny collection in its own right, Hiro Mashima's Playground will be released Oct. 30 in print and digital formats.
Also coming to print Oct. 23 is Fairy Tail: Lightning Gods, a single-volume spinoff about fan-favorite dragon slayer Laxus. This standalone volume concludes a series of character-focused spinoffs that has included Fairy Tail: Twin Dragons of Saber Tooth and Fairy Tail: Rhodonite.
“We're thrilled to be the home for Mashima-sensei's new series, and we look forward to it bringing readers together just like Fairy Tail did for so many years,” said Naho Yamada, general manager of Kodansha USA Publishing.
Expecting more than 180,000 attendees this year over its four-day run from Oct. 4-7, New York Comic Con is the largest gathering of pop culture fans in North America. It is the hometown show for New York City-based Kodansha Comics, and the publisher is operating a 30-foot booth (#2109) on the Jacob Javits Convention Center exhibit floor featuring exclusive merchandise, giveaways, and events for series including The Ghost in the Shell, Attack on Titan, BECK, and Sailor Moon.
About Kodansha USA Publishing, LLC
Kodansha USA Publishing (KUP) is a subsidiary of Kodansha, Japan's largest publisher. Since it began publishing under its Kodansha Comics imprint in 2019, KUP has grown into one of the world's top graphic novel publishers, thanks to classics such as Akira, The Ghost in the Shell, and Sailor Moon, as well as hit new titles including Attack on Titan, Fairy Tail, and Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card. Kodansha Comics is distributed by Penguin Random House Publisher Services.
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