Crunchyroll, FUNimation, and Big Time Partnerships

Kami_nomi: In case you avoided the internet for a good month and decided to drop in at NYCC, Crunchyroll and FUNimation are now working together to bring you anime that you can consume either dubbed in English (from Funimation), or subtitled (from Crunchyroll). They made sure to remind us of that at every opportunity.

After attending the panels, it became clear that partnerships are something which would soon be shaping the anime industry. For Crunchyroll and Funimation, in addition to collaborating with each other, they both will be featured on an upcoming channel called VRV, along with companies such as RoosterTeeth, Nerdist, College Humor, and more. It’s still very much uncertain how this will affect the industry, but chances are it’ll either be a genius decision, or one no one’s going to care about.

For Crunchyroll, their decision to team up with Western Animation Producer LeSean Thomas and Yapiko Animation on Children of Ether, which features talented Japanese staff such as Hiroshi Shimizu (Michiko to Hatchin), Shingo Natsume (One Punch Man), Mitsuo Iso (Neon Genesis Evangelion) and Yuuichi Takahashi (Gatchaman Crowds), heavily suggests they’re intent on investing more in anime suited for a Western audience. If Space Dandy was the initial collaboration that gave people ideas, Children of Ether is the sign that partnerships will be the way to go to ensure fans will get soon have access to new sources of entertainment.

Even Weekly Shonen Jump and Rooster Teeth are partnering up to an extent, as RWBY the manga, which is serialized in Shueisha’s Ultra Jump and drawn by Dogs creator Shirow Miwa, will appear in the English WSJ. So if at some point in the future we get a wacky partnership that would allow the licensing of more titles from different Japanese publishers, remember; this was the year it started.

As Lauren Moore of FUNimation put it: "The theme of the year is everyone partnering together."

Littoface: Crunchyroll and FUNimation joining forces means watching anime in the US and worldwide is becoming easier -- and faster. The two companies are putting their resources into presenting simultcasts, pubs, and even dubs into the hands of the eager masses. FUNimation has cut its dub time down from months to an impressive two weeks. People are literally working round the clock so you can watch the latest anime, hot from Japan.

To call the two companies giants is an understatement. Adam Sheehan of Crunchyroll joked during the panel: "We're in 105 countries. That's more countries than the UN recognizes. We're ahead of global politics!" He might say it jokingly, but there are some hidden implications behind the union of two of the biggest names in the streaming and publishing industry. For instance, the competition.

If you asked "what competition?" you've hit the nail on the head. There are other publishers and other streamers out there, but they're eclipsed by FUNi and Crunchy. And now that the two are one big happy family, it will make things easier for them to acquire rights to anime… and harder for the smaller competitors.

During a quick Live Talk session, the representatives from both companies were asked about the competition and admitted that sure, there's still some. "Until you combine with them too?" The implication was brushed off with a smirk and a knowing retort: "Whatever's best for the fans."

Just remember that while you rejoice over a move that's received nearly unanimous positive feedback.

2017 Is The Year of Manga for Girls

Koi to Uso & Harumatsu Bokura

Kami_nomi: While some announcements from the major companies weren’t surprises (Viz Media bringing more hits like Boruto and Tokyo Ghoul: RE, Yen Press bringing the newest versions of Spice and Wolf), some definitely were. Golden Kamuy, which revolves around Ainu culture, was a surprise announcement, while Kodansha brought Doujin Work creator Hiroyuki back to the states by announcing the license of Aho Girl.

The big news was Kodansha announcing 7 titles, with 5 of them serialized in shoujo/josei magazines (Kigurumi Guardians, Gozen 0-ji, Kiss shi ni Kite yo, Ohayou, Ibarahime, Harumatsu Bokura, Frau Faust), and two with female leads (Koi to Uso, Houseki no Kuni). With Associate Director of Kodansha USA Ben Applegate saying how successful Princess Jellyfish was, along with Viz announcing their shoujo titles (Vampire Knight: Memories, Fukumenkei Noise), 2017 is shaping up to be a huge year for women.

Manga Delves More and More into Serious Issues

Littoface: Despite manga going more and more mainstream, the medium is also being used more often to depict serious issues and themes. Between the fluff, a few titles were highlighted for tackling tough topics (like the older work A Silent Voice, which has the "best portrayal of the emotion of shame" the Kodansha editors have seen in a long time).

Speaking as a guest at Kodansha's panel was long-time editor Yasayuki Mimura, who also stressed manga's ability to reach a more mature audience. "In Japan, manga is not just for boys and girls," he said. "Seinen manga in Japan are almost like the frontiers of manga." In the coming years, expect more manga that push the boundaries and explore the taboos of society.

Artists Will be Artists

Littoface: Finally, no matter what the state of the anime or manga industry is, one thing remains the same: artists. During his guest speaking time at Kodansha's panel, editor Yasayuki Mimura shared some anecdotes about what it's like to work with certain artists. It's… probably not exactly what you expected.

Mimura likens creating manga to pregnancy. "It's the artist's job to give birth to the manga, and the editor's job to help them do it." Except Mimura's job often also requires him to track down said "pregnant" artists when they disappear, like Vagabond mangaka Takehiko Inoue. Inoue has a tendency to go missing while working, and a frustrated Mimura often has to travel to his hometown and trawl around cafes in search of the MIA artist. If he's not working in a local cafe, he's probably sleeping at home. When that happens, Inoue's wife lets Mimura in and the editor waits until he wakes up… around lunch-time.

Once the artist is located and accounted for, he and the editor spend some time brainstorming ideas for the manga. Or rather, Mimura comes up with ideas and Inoue shoots them down. Over. And over. Until Mimura runs out of ideas and the two just stare blankly at each other. Mimura says: "We call it a 'meeting' but really what we're doing is sitting in a room for two hours in silence."

Not every artist is difficult in the same way. Sakuran creator Moyoco Anno has fantastic rough sketches, according to Mimura. But as soon as she begins working on the first draft, she rips up her previous sketches; a perfectionist until the end. The concern is not entirely unfounded. Mimura quotes Inoue: "Every chapter of a manga has to be more interesting than the last, otherwise it will die."

And that is how your favorite manga is created: some poor editor has to put up with the artists' quirks and idiosyncrasies.