Danganronpa Manga Getting an English Translation from Dark Horse
David Gelmini
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I love Dark Horse Comics, who turn 30 this year, and I still feel bad for them for losing the Star Wars license (which Disney moved to Marvel, one of their subsidiaries, after obtaining the franchise), as it was by far their most successful property and played a huge part in helping them to become the third biggest comic publisher in the world.
So the news that they’ve obtained the rights to the English translation of the Danganronpa manga, based on the Japanese video game series of the same name, is great news indeed. And yes, it’s nowhere near as big as Star Wars, but if it introduces fans of the games to Dark Horse, then I’m in.
The series can best be described as being a little out there: it’s about an evil robot teddy bear who kidnaps high school students and forces them to participate in sick and twisted games for his own amusement. Yeah. An evil robot teddy bear.
The first part of the four-part volume will be available on April 5, 2016 And in keeping with the outright bizarre tone of the series, Dark Horse manga editor Carl Horn went ahead and released the equally puzzling press release below…
From the Press Release:
Look who’s smiling NOW! It’s Monokuma, robot bear headmaster of Hope’s Peak Academy…the involuntary boarding school for Japan’s most elite students—and the setting of Dark Horse’s latest manga series, Danganronpa: The Animation, which premieres this week when vol. 1 hits the stores. And how thoughtful…it seems that someone laid down a tarp before they murdered one of their fellow classmates! Eh? Who’s the guilty one, you ask? Sorry, Monokuma says figuring that out is YOUR problem. No…it really is your problem…
Welcome to Danganronpa, based on the game series by our friends at NIS America (they also release the boxed set of the Cardcaptor Sakura anime based on CLAMP’s manga), and just recently available on Steam! Danganronpa: The Animation, as the title SUGGESTS, is also an anime series from Funimation. And if you’ve been at any anime cons in the last few years, chances are you’ve run into not only Danganronpa cosplay meetups, but Danganronpa murder mystery events. Yes, getting back to murder…
In Danganronpa, the “Ultimate” students of Hope’s Peak (best in the nation at whatever they do, from baseball to fashion to fanfic) are trapped inside the school by Monokuma, who informs them the only way to escape is to kill another student…and then get away with it, as the survivors are then assembled at a tribunal to determine who among them is guilty. Monokuma knows, as he has the whole school under surveillance. But if the surviving students guess wrong, the killer will go free…and everyone else will be executed!
The evil bear declares his sole intent is to drive these students, Japan’s best, to utter despair. There’s a larger conspiracy here…but as one by one, the fifteen students are gradually found dead, the survivors depend on the so-called ordinary student among them, Makoto Naegi, ultimate only in his luck at being chosen at random to attend Hope’s Peak. Not only does Makoto have uncommon courage, he reveals himself to be a natural-born trial attorney…the skill he’ll need to uncover the mystery and save his fellow students—because if they identify the wrong killer even once, it’s over!
One more thing! Pick up the Danganronpa manga, and you’ll notice it has a fan section, “Despair Mail.” It’s a place to feature your thoughts, fan art, and cosplay photos for Danganronpa. Be a part of future volumes by sending in your contributions to danganronpa@darkhorse.com! Well, the class bell just rang, gotta go…wait, why is the floor so sticky…?
Categorized:News
