Viz Media’s Anime Expo Announcements: Nier Automata, Junji Ito And More
Today during Anime Expo, Viz Media took to the stage and announced three titles they were localizing for the US market. One was Nier Automata….the manga, we mean.
Nier Automata, a video game released by Square last year, was popular enough in Japan to get its own manga collections, released in two volumes. The first of these, Long Story Short, was already announced for US release earlier, and will arrive this October. Today Viz revealed it’ll be followed by Short Story Long, another novella collection. The game is just as popular here as in its home country if not more, so the manga should find a receptive audience. Short Story Long is due out in 2019.
Viz also announced they’d be localizing more twisted tales from the warped mind of Junji Ito! Smashed: Junji Ito Story Collection wraps together thirteen new stories of horror. Viz was not specific as to what the stories were about (perhaps they’re too afraid to even talk about them). All we have is this; make of it what you will.
Try not to be noticed when you eat the secret nectar, otherwise you’ll get smashed… What horrific events happened to create the earthbound—people tied to a certain place for the rest of their short lives? Then, a strange haunted house comes to town, but no one expects it to lead to a real hell… Welcome to Junji Ito’s world, a world with no escape from endless nightmares.
And there’s more! Before Viz shut their mike off, they revealed they’re bringing the anime MEGALOBOX to the States! The series is a variation of the classic manga Tomorrow’s Joe, about an orphan who becomes a champion boxer. We should know more about MEGALOBOX in the coming months; for now, check out Viz’s trailer, embedded in this tweet.