New York Comic Con 2013 manga licensing round-up

The advent of New York Comic Con is always a good opportunity for manga publishers to unveil some of their latest license acquisition, and yesterday saw a number of the major players in the industry lift the lid on their latest wares.

Unsurprisingly, Attack on Titan was the focal point of many of these announcements, beginning with Vertical, who revealed that they will be publishing the Before The Fall light novel series which takes place 70 years prior to the original manga.  The first volume will be released in summer 2014.

In turn, Kodansha Comics USA will be releasing the manga adaptation of Before The Fall starting next spring, as well as a number of other Attack on Titan spin-off manga - No Regrets, focusing on the past of Captain Levi which will begin in summer 2014, and Junior High, a comedy reimagining of the cast as students and teachers which will see its first volume released next spring.

Also to be released by Kodansha Comics is the Attack on Titan Guidebook: Inside & Outside, which will also be released next summer.

If Attack on Titan isn't your cup of tea, there were a number of other licenses revealed however - sticking with Kodansha Comics first, the company also revealed their plans to release UQ Holder!, the latest series from Ken Akamatsu (of Love Hina and Negima fame), from spring 2014, as well as Nabaka Suzuki's The Seven Deadly Sins, which will also debut next spring.

Vertical also announced their plans to release single volume series In The Clothes Named Fat, the story of an overweight office worker who vows to lose weight no matter what it takes in the face of bullying and losing her boyfriend.

Last but not least we have Viz Media, who had no shortage of new licenses to parade, including sci-fi series Terra Formers; romantic comedy My Love Story!! (aka Ore Monogatari!!); vampire series Black Rose Alice and Seraph of the End: Vampire Reign; Battle Royale: Angel's Border, from the author of the original Battle Royale novel; and Time Killers, a collection of short stories from Kazue Katou (of Blue Exorcist fame).

Also announced by Viz Media is their plans to release The Art of The Wind Rises, an art book for Hayao Miyazaki's latest (and last) Studio Ghibli feature film.

Are you excited by any of these announcements?  Let us know in the comments section, and we'll be keeping our eyes peeled for any further New York Comic Con news over the course of the weekend!