Thursday, August 26, 2010

SHINTARO KAGO MANGA FOR YR KINDLE

A minor release of note, but perhaps of interest to folks with a Kindle. Shintaro Kago announced on his site that he contributed a manga to a new manga eMagazine called COMICLOUD, which just launched in Japan:



The first issue of COMICLOUD is available (in English) for fans for $4.99 digital download!

It's not clear yet how frequently new issues will be coming out, or exactly what type of stories this anthology will specialize in... but it is definitely unique in terms of a Japanese-created digital magazine made for English consumers. Other cartoonists involved in this first issue include Takeshi Okamoto, Shizuka Nanami, Taro Matsumoto, and our friend Shintaro Kago.

I don't have a Kindle myself, but I am curious about the Kago comic... if someone checks this out, let us know about it in the comments!

UPDATE: Okay, DUH... you don't need a Kindle to read the magazine; as JRBrown has noted in the comments, you can download software to read Kindle books on any device.

I actually just read it, the first issue is a little weak in my opinion-- stiff production/lettering and the quality of the Kindle images is not super high. That said, it is awesome to see Shintaro Kago officially available in English. I think readers can skip this first one but it sounds like Issue 2 will be quite interesting!

From Brian about the issue:
The mag has four one-panel gag manga from Kago (one of which is about toilet paper). I didn't get the first one, "Ultra high level endgame," but I think that's because it alludes to a Japanese TV show I haven't seen.

The preview for the second issue is tempting with even more Kago: "Shintaro Kago is pushing into a new frontier: an authentic mystery story! The out-of-this-world manga artist has attempted his first genuine work in the genre. Can you solve the puzzle?!"

The mag is also on Twitter - @comicloud (mostly Japanese) and @bookloud (English).

UPDATE #2: Jiro Nemoto, one of the editors of COMICLOUD stopped by and left a comment! He notes:
[Shintaro Kago's] new shot is a comical mystery (??) with 24 pages. I'll post the news about Shintaro Kago and our e-magazine via @bookloud in Twitter. Stay tuned for COMICLOUD No.2, please!

6 comments:

JRBrown said...

You don't need a Kindle files; go to the application page and you can download a free app for PC, Mac, and various handheld devices.

JRBrown said...

Aaak. That should be "You don't need a Kindle to view Kindle files"...

Brian Ruh said...

The mag has four one-panel gag manga from Kago (one of which is about toilet paper). I didn't get the first one, "Ultra high level endgame," but I think that's because it alludes to a Japanese TV show I haven't seen.

The preview for the second issue is tempting with even more Kago: "Shintaro Kago is pushing into a new frontier: an authentic mystery story! The out-of-this-world manga artist has attempted his first genuine work in the genre. Can you solve the puzzle?!"

The mag is also on Twitter - @comicloud (mostly Japanese) and @bookloud (English).

COMICLOUD said...

Hi! Thank you so much for introducing Shintaro's new art and our magazine. Due to the limitation of Kindle platform, the quality of picture may not be enough for Shintaro's artwork.

The next issue will be out at the later half of September. But Shintaro's work is slightly late for the schedule, hee, hee.

His new shot is a comical mystery (??) with 24 pages. I'll post the news about Shintaro Kago and our e-magazine via @bookloud in Twitter. Stay tuned for COMICLOUD No.2, please!

Ryan S said...

Thanks for stopping by Jiro-san! We are very interested in this new project, and with the business model of bilingual e-manga. I'm excited to see the Kago manga of course, and will definitely post again when the new issue is released!

Good luck!
Ryan

Luca said...

Hey, do you know anyone who bought the Kago print sets? I`m wondering if they are nicely printed.

thanks!!