Literary return to school | Manga galore

The year promises to be full of manga releases. Here is a selection of titles translated into French which will hit the shelves over the coming months, in the first half of the year. Basketball, Noh theater and cannabis are notably on the menu, as well as a new title from the Naruto universe, long awaited by aficionados.

Adult side

The origins of noh

In this biographical manga, we follow the life of Zeami Motokiyo, founder of Noh theater – a highly codified dramatic performing art, with costumes, masks and gestures. In six volumes, the first of which should appear in Quebec in February, we discover the journey of a young man questioning the designs of the human body, reaching the conclusion that it was designed to dance. The publisher announces that the educational side will be coated in popular culture, which should make the manga more attractive than a simple art history lesson.

The World Is Dancing

Kazuto Mihara

Vega Dupuis

Release scheduled for February

Everything goes up in smoke

In this breaking Bad in the Japanese style, we discover the vicissitudes of a passionate horticulturist whose shop is quickly fading. Faced with financial difficulties, made worse by his wife’s illness, he was launched against his will onto the path of clandestine production of cannabis – a product still illegal in the archipelago. A lover of botany, he set himself the goal of making the best weed in the country.

Tokyo Cannabis

Yuto Inai

Big Kana

Release scheduled for March

Before Miyazaki

Here, another life journey is offered to us, but in the form of an autobiography, signed by Rintarô, a pillar of animated cinema. From the post-war period to the creation of Metropolis Passing by Astro Or Albatorwe learn from the tape how this discipline, which has become one of the spearheads of Japanese culture, has developed over the decades.

My life in 24 frames per second

Rintarô

Dargaud

Release scheduled for February-March

Dark hero

Funny title for this manga, which is steeped in fantasy, with an antihero and an offbeat universe. The story ? That of a writer in distress who attempts a double suicide in love. But when it doesn’t, it doesn’t: here he is instead propelled into a fantastic world that he will have to save. Small problem: contrary to what should have happened, the scribe has not inherited any powers and is even very vulnerable. Will he find his beloved?

Isekai Shikkaku

Hiroshi Noda (screenplay) and Takahiro Wakamatsu (drawing)

Kana

Release scheduled for April

Teen side

A new Naruto!

Published between 2002 and 2016 for its French version, the cult series was completed in 72 volumes; but the fans are asking for more. They will be delighted to learn that this derivative story will be published in two parts, the first of which is expected around May-June on our shores. To find out more about the illness from which Naruto suffers, his sidekicks Sasuke and Sakura must explore the corridors of an institute. Adapted from a novel, this new adventure will bring freshness to the franchise.

Naruto – Sasuke Retsuden

Shingo Kimura, after Masashi Kishimoto and Jun Esaka

Kana

Release of the first volume planned for May-June

In the basket

Another cult series will be given a makeover, with the release in 2024 of a Deluxe edition of Slam Dunk, a very big success featuring Sakuragi, who takes up basketball to win Hakuro’s heart… before taking up the game. In 24 volumes, the reissue will present a large format and color pages. Not to be confused with the more modest 2019 Star edition. An art book is also announced.

Slam DunkDeluxe Edition

Inoue Takehiko

Kana

Release scheduled for February

Taboo drama

In the shojo style (oriented towards teenage girls), here is a title which will really not be sentimental, even wanting to be preventive. This manga addresses the theme of early pregnancy, a subject very rarely treated by authors, by presenting the story of Sachi and Takara, two teenagers in love who face an ordeal for which they were not prepared. How will they handle this unintentional pregnancy?

The child in me

Aoi Mamoru

Kana

Release scheduled for February

Anti-princess

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess who was to marry the prince of the neighboring kingdom. From this point on, everything else will be a parody story. Myrtis refuses to play the model wife and flees this ready-made future to end up in the unknown, forced to fend for herself. What if she became a witch, just to regain some social standing? The publisher announces a rehash of princess stories tinged with humor, signed by a French author.

Myrtis

Elsa Brants

Kana

Release planned for April-May