Press Release
May 18, 2007

Readers, most of the time, as a manga editor, I'm obliged to take manga very, very seriously. But don't be fooled by my cool professional demeanor and boringly business-like talk of sales figures and marketing deals: I'm actually just a crazy fangirl at heart. So maybe I can't show off my lunatic fandom by cosplaying at the office—for some reason, carrying around a 6-foot-long styrofoam sword isn't allowed by our dress code—but I do get to sound off every month in this newsletter about all the things I'm obsessed with. And this month, I'm happy to begin with an announcement that had me doing the dance of joy in my cubicle:

THE WALLFLOWER ANIME—COMING SOON FROM ADV!

Long before I became a Del Rey Manga editor, I was just one of Tomoko Hayakawa's millions of groupies: The Wallflower has always been one of my favorite manga. Now The Wallflower's maniacal humor and goth chic has been brought to anime! ADV will be releasing the DVDs later this year, but until then, you can lurk in the shadows of your room with Sunako and read (and re-read, and re-read) the manga!

COSPLAY CONTEST AT SAN DIEGO!

There's one place in the world where it's not only socially acceptable to publicly display your psychotic obsession with your favorite manga—it's encouraged, celebrated, and very nearly mandatory—and that's San Diego Comic Con. Are you planning on going? And in costume, as your favorite Del Rey Manga character? If so, stop by the Del Rey Manga booth for our first-ever Cosplay Contest! Details will be spilled in a forthcoming newsletter, but fanboys and fangirls, you've been warned. It's time to start sewing that Mahora Academy uniform! And speaking of all you wonderful Negima nerds (hey, I'm one, too):

FUNIMATION'S NEGIMA GIVEAWAY!

It may be summer break for Negima, but FUNimation's been busy...You could win over $4,500 in prizes by entering the Negima giveaway! Four Grand Prize winners will receive the entire Negima DVD set, including the Limited Edition Collector's Box, the first ten volumes of the Negima manga by Del Rey, and fabulous Negima merchandise from Great Eastern! And it gets even better!!! There will be six Second Prize winners and twenty Third Prize winners. That's as many winners as there are girls in Class 2-A! (Not counting the ghost.) To get in on the magical mishaps and claim your piece of the madness, head over to www.negima.tv.

FLIPPING FOR AVRIL!

Hey, Avril Lavigne fans! Thanks for making the new album The Best Damned Thing a chart-topping success and her new book Make 5 Wishes one of the most talked-about graphic novels in recent memory. The good folks at www.flip.com are celebrating with a new contest. Go to their site, make a flipbook about your heart's desires—about your 5 wishes—and you can win a one-of-a-kind protrait of yourself done by artist Camilla d'Errcio and signed by Avril Lavigne! Visit here for details!

UNFURLING THE YAGYU NINJA SCROLLS

As you know, Futaro Yamada and Masaki Segawa are the genius creators behind our fan-favorite manga Basilisk, the tale of star-crossed lovers and warring ninjas that inspired not only a breathtaking anime but also a brilliant live-action movie. Del Rey Manga is delighted to announce that we'll be publishing another fantastic series from these creators: The Yagyu Ninja Scrolls: Revenge of the Hori Clan.

A rebellion in Aizu Territory is brutally crushed, leaving most of the nuns in a local convent slaightered. Most of them. The surviving nuns will have their vengeance and for that purpose have dedicated themsleves to the study of the deadliest of ninja arts. Pity those who stand against them now.

Look for the first volume of this tale of ninjitsu and nunnery in November!

MY HEAVENLY HOCKEY CLUB—New Series and Giveaway

I don't know about you, but I'm pretty much a typical geek in every way—let's not even get into my experiences in high school gym class. That's one reason that I love Ai Morinaga's My Heavenly Hockey Club: this book is a true anti-sports manga! It chronicles the adventures of the world's worst high school field hockey team. But then again, what girl wouldn't want to join the Heavenly Hockey Club—with the exception of the sublimely lazy Hana, all the members are super-hot bishonen!

Get picked first for the My Heavenly Hockey Club team by taking part in our contest. E-mail us, and ten (10) lucky winners will be chosen at random to receive a free copy of Volume One!

Send your emails to delreymanga@randomhouse.com with MY HEAVENLY HOCKEY CLUB in the subject line, including your full name and address in the body of the e-mail (NOTE: your personal information will not be used for any purpose other than this contest). Ten (10) lucky winners will be selected at random and will receive a copy of the book when it is published. All submissions must be received by Wednesday, June 6, 2007.

PARASYTE/PRINCESS RESURRECTION CONTEST WINNERS

Read on to meet ten very happy otaku: the winners of our Parasyte/Princess Resurrection double-bonus contest. Just picture yourself in their place next month—it really can happen!

Amber Barnes, Watauga, TX
Frances Liao, Tempe, AZ
Marvin Vinluan, Vestal, NY
Marcoo Zamora, Dallas, TX
Christian Rodriguez, Willingboro, NJ
Tawny Wagner, Grand Rapids, MI
Cody Glover, Kensington, OH
Nijel Peoples, Bowie, MD
JoRan Shin, San Gabriel, CA
Phoenix Vie, Berkeley, CA

Now that it's almost five o'clock, it's time to stop working on manga, go home, and um…read some more manga. I have my very own copy of My Heavenly Hockey Club right here—kyaa!!

Tricia Narwani
delreymanga@randomhouse.com

NEW IN STORES

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Air Gear 4
by Oh!Great

Without a doubt, Ikki is the most fearsome skater around. Too bad he's lost the super high-tech skates that helped him succeed. Worse yet, Ikki's a far better skater than he is a student. He's failing in class and must clean up his act fast in order to compete in the next Parts War!

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Free Collars Kingdom 2
by Takuya Fujima

Young catboy Cyan has found himself on one side of a huge territorial catfight against the beautiful Siam and her endless supply of gorgeous generals. Luckily, Cyan's not alone: He's allied with a cool cat gang called the Free Collars, and together they'll face terrifying car chases, bikini-filled beach brawls, and automated death in an unmanned sushi factory.

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Guru Guru Pon-Chan 8
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Ponta the Labrador retriever is no ordinary dog. With the magic Guru Guru bone, she can turn into a human girl at will. In her human form, she has fallen in love with Mirai Ikawa—and the couple has developed an unconventional but powerful relationship. But what would happen if Mirai transformed instead?

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Kitchen Princess 2
by Natsumi Ando, Miyuki Kobayashi

It seems that nobody wants Najika at the college–except two cute brothers, Sora and Daichi, who befriend her right away. But the super-popular teen model Akane will do anything to drive Najika out of the school, and her plans might just succeed!

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Nodame Cantabile 9
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Nodame's grueling lessons with her teacher have paid off: At last she agrees to play in a piano competition. Too bad there’s not enough time for Nodame to learn all the required pieces. Meanwhile, Shinichi has mysteriously overcome his fear of flying and finally decided to go to Europe. But why?

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Parasyte 1
by Hitoshi Iwaaki

Parasites, alien creatures who must invade—and take control of—human hosts have come to the earth. Most have chosen to conceal their lethal purpose behind ordinary human faces. So no one knows their secret–except an ordinary high school student. Shin is battling for control of his own body against an alien parasite, but can he find a way to warn humanity of the horrors to come?

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Pichi Pichi Pitch 5: Mermaid Melody
by Pink Hanamori, Michiko Yokote

After the battle with the madman Gackto, Lucia Nanami has learned that Kaito, her true love, is actually a prince. But now he's vanished during a surfing competition. Can Lucia find him?

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Princess Resurrection 1
by Yasunori Mitsunaga

Werewolves, demons, monsters, vampires. All these ferocious creatures are afraid of the same thing: the beautiful Princess Hime, an awesome warrior who fights off the forces off evil with a chainsaw and a smile.