From Deb Aoki at About.com, DC Comics has announced today that the company's manga imprint, CMX, will cease publication as of July 1, 2010. This news comes on the heels of speculation about the demise of Go!Comi and news of layoffs at Viz Media, leaving North American manga fans to wonder just how much blood might be shed in the industry before year's end.
Co-publishers Dan Didio and Jim Lee cite difficulties in the marketplace in an official statement available at About.com. Though original English-language comic Megatokyo is named as exempt from cancellation, the fate of the imprint's other unfinished series (including long-running shojo classic Swan and nearly-finished titles such as Venus Capriccio) remains unaddressed.
Once known for a willingness to publish economically risky multi-volume classics, such as Reiko Shimizu's cracktastic science-fiction epic Moon Child and Yasuko Aoike's flamboyant 1970s romp From Eroica With Love, CMX's recent licenses have included a number of short, all-ages titles (The Lizard Prince, The Lapis Lazuli Crown).
Boston-area critics have reacted to the news with sadness and a general consensus that lack of attention from DC and changes in direction/executive staff have hastened the imprint's demise. For more from local critics, check out these posts at Robot 6, MangaBlog, and Mania.com, or follow the ongoing conversation via Twitter.
Update: more thoughts from local critics
The Manga Critic & Again (Katherine Dacey)
Good Comics for Kids (Brigid Alverson, Katherine Dacey, Robin Brenner)
More Robot 6 (Brigid Alverson)
Manga Bookshelf (Melinda Beasi)
Comments