License Line: More More Moyoco

Hataraki Man (働きマン)

What is License Line? Put simply, it's a semi-regular feature on Nagareboshi Reviews in which yours truly posts about a certain anime/manga series that truly, desperately needs to be licensed and put on my shelves ASAP - from the obscure but well-deserving manga to the stream worthy but not yet DVD licensed anime.

Recently, we have the Manga Moveable Feast centered around josei manga-ka Moyoco Anno and it was wonderful and a bunch of great posts were generated because of it but it got me thinking: why is so little of her works available in English? Why is the only one I can easily buy Sakuran? And why is most of that work now out of print? Despite the josei (ladies' comics) genre being historically low-selling in North America, I think the current manga market can make Anno's work - which is mostly josei - viable again. 

Below the read more jump are three titles by Anno that would be great for release (or re-release) in English. And they're all under ten volumes - so they are affordable licenses to boot!

(Psst: Viz Media? She married Hideaki Anno. You know, the guy behind Neon Genesis Evangelion. Instant cross-promotion opportunity!)

Manga Review: Sakuran

Sakuran

Author: Moyoco Anno 

Vertical Inc.

308 pages

In Sakuran, Moyoco Anno lifts the veil on life in the Edo period pleasure quarter, Yoshiwara. The story follows Kiyoha, sold into a brothel as a child and forced to work as a maid and her rise to prominence as one of the top-ranking courtesans in Yoshiwara. The allure of the “flower and willow world“ as it was called by artists in the day is underscored by the very real tragedy, heartbreak and difficult lives led by those seemingly glamorous courtesans. Will Kiyoha’s fox-like wiles give her a chance to break free of her gilded cage? Or will her fighting spirit ruin her chances of ever escaping the brothel? (Source: Vertical Inc.)

Content warning: The manga Sakuran is centered around Edo-era sex workers. It contains graphic descriptions of life in the pleasure quarter, including scenes of sex and violence. Recommended for readers in the M/18+ age range of manga.

I have this faint memory of reading the first volume of Flowers & Bees by Moyoco Anno a couple of years ago. It did not make much of an impression, not because it was bad but probably because I only had the one volume and I tend to forget about a series if I don't read more of it. Sakuran therefore became my official introduction to the work of Moyoco Anno and it has me asking: where are the rest of her work in English? Because this woman, clearly, has skills in art and storytelling and deserves to be widely read. No wonder she's the focus of the latest Manga Moveable Feast.

Signal Boost: Moyoco Anno Manga Moveable Feast

Sugar Sugar Rune (シュガシュガルーン)

The Manga Moveable Feasts just keep on coming, don't they? Although, I have to admit I haven't had time to participate in any of them since the Osamu Tezuka one. But still!

The latest one is being hosted by the Experiments In Manga blog (by the way, you should follow it!) and they are hosting the January 2013 MMF, dedicated to Moyoco Anno. The best part is that they are calling for participants!

From the blog post:

January 2013's Manga Moveable Feast will be held from January 20 through January 26. This month's Feast will feature mangaka Moyoco Anno and her work (Flowers & Bees, Happy Mania, Sakuran, Sugar Sugar Rune, etc.).

More details can be found at the Experiments In Manga blog. Twitter folks, keep an eye on the hashtag #AnnoMMF, where this month's Feast will be discussed. And keep an eye out on this very blog for my own participating post(s)!