Humble Bundle has teamed up with Fantagraphics Books for a new bundle! Get comics like Dementia 21 Vol. 1, Okinawa, and Comet Club. Expand your horizons with this bundle of comics by East Asian authors and illustrators published by Fantagraphics! Experience a heartbreaking classic translated into English for the first time in Susumu Higa’s Okinawa. Dive into the twisted body horror and dark humor of artist Shintaro Kago’s Brain Damage. Follow a group of children trying to appease a legendary beast in acclaimed illustrator Inio Asano’s Nijigahara Holograph. From historical dramas to unique and terrifying tales of horror and mystery, there’s something for everyone in this bundle! Grab these comics now at the price of your choosing, and support the Freedom of the Press Foundation with your purchase!
An elegiac manga about gender, community, family, control, class, love, and what makes life worth living at the end of the world.
In Akane Torikai’s Wandering Cat’s Cage, it is the near future. Only a few women are still able to menstruate, and even fewer men will be born to them. Reproduction is limited to medical intervention controlled from on high, and the structures and lives of the past hold no weight: they are only hinted at through the remaining scraps of a world that no longer exists. Life can be good, though, if you fall in line, and the women of The City live bright, happy, tightly controlled lives. But complete obedience isn’t for everyone. For the women across the river, who live in a rundown shantytown, viewing the opulence of the city from afar each night, life is different. It is humble, and often dangerous, but it is free. It is here that Sanada, a young acupuncturist, lives with the mysterious Reiho, the only male she’s ever met, and who sells himself to the rich women who sneak across the river for something they’ve never experienced …The two form a small “family,” taking in other young women ousted from the city. But a real, living, breathing male might be too precious to leave to the shabby streets. When Reiho is kidnapped at gunpoint and taken to the breeding program in the city, Sanada must join with the other outcasts to try and rescue him, and learn the difficult truths of love, self-actualization, society, community, safety, and the future itself.
Master manga-ka Akane Torikai (Sensei’s Pious Lie) has produced a stunning work of relational SF through a gender-bent looking glass. Torikai pulls no punches examining the deeply messy subjects of our day — sexuality, gender dynamics, romantic love, familial trauma, freedom, and control, through immaculately realized settings and character-rich, emotive body language. Produced in partnership with MSX: Mangasplaining Extra.
A group of teenagers searching for UFOs find much more than they bargained for in this coming-of-age story rife with mystery, suspense, and danger.
Besties Yang Kuaikuai and Li Yu are nearing the end of their time in middle school and must face a familiar decision: stick around their small Chinese mountain town or set their sights to the big city. On a lark, they join their school’s Comet Club, a ragtag band of nerds obsessed with what lies beyond the reaches of the stars. When one day the group spies strange glowing lights in the mountains and hikes out to investigate, what they find will forever change their lives. The English language debut of Chinese cartoonist Yi Yang, Comet Club is a gripping coming-of-age story rendered in a kinetic, hyper-detailed style. Amidst the tantalizing mystery and suspense, Yang interweaves her story with hard-hitting themes of broken families, the bonds of friendship, and the need to carve out one’s path in life.
Story: Yi Yang Art: Yi Yang Translation: Jamie Richards
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South Korea, 1929. Arisa Jo, the daughter of a wealthy merchant, is the most eligible bachelorette in all of Gyeongsung (the capital city). With her Western dresses, movie star hairstyle, and assertive attitude, she embodies bold “Modern” values. Meet her opposite, Jun Seomoon, a young man from the countryside deeply rooted in tradition. When Jun is charged by Arisa’s father to be her escort in the big city, these opposing forces create sparks. Through this unlikely connection, these teenagers open their eyes to new perspectives amidst the rapidly changing world they live in.
Coming off the heels of her acclaimed Raging Clouds, Lovers of the Empire proves Yudori to be a comic artist at the height of her creative powers. On the surface a sweet and funny will they, won’t they romance, this story garners depth from its depiction of Korea at a crossroads: a city occupied by Japan, molded by Western influences, and facing a modernity that stirs inner conflicts within its citizens. Rendered in gorgeous full color, this period piece portrays a fascinating city in a tumultuous time, with two winsome characters at its heart.
Story: Yudori Art: Yudori
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Takumigraphics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links and make a purchase, we’ll receive a percentage of the sale. Graphic Policy does purchase items from this site. Making purchases through these links helps support the site
Set in the atmospheric Korean capital in the 1920s, this dynamic manhwa period piece follows two teenagers from different social strata thrown together ― and their unlikely connection leads to comedic, emotional, and eye-opening experiences of discovery.
South Korea, 1929. Arisa Jo, the daughter of a wealthy merchant, is the most eligible bachelorette in all of Gyeongsung (the capital city). With her Western dresses, movie star hairstyle, and assertive attitude, she embodies bold “Modern” values. Meet her opposite, Jun Seomoon, a young man from the countryside deeply rooted in tradition. When Jun is charged by Arisa’s father to be her escort in the big city, these opposing forces create sparks. Through this unlikely connection, these teenagers open their eyes to new perspectives amidst the rapidly changing world they live in. Coming off the heels of her acclaimed Raging Clouds, Lovers of the Empire proves Yudori to be a comic artist at the height of her creative powers. On the surface a sweet and funny will they, won’t they romance, this story garners depth from its depiction of Korea at a crossroads: a city occupied by Japan, molded by Western influences, and facing a modernity that stirs inner conflicts within its citizens. Rendered in gorgeous full color, this period piece portrays a fascinating city in a tumultuous time, with two winsome characters at its heart.
Today, Takumigraphics – an imprint of Fantagraphics specializing in the art and craft of East Asian comics – debuts with Lovers of the Empire Volume 1, a new full-color graphic novel from Yudori, the world renowned cartoonist behind 2024’s acclaimed Raging Clouds. Set in 1920s South Korea, this dynamic manhwa romance is a funny, heartfelt exploration of class, colonialism, and love. As the first Takumigraphics publication, Lovers of the Empire introduces a new, curated slate of international comics from more of the world’s greatest cartoonists.
Lovers of the Empire follows two teenagers from different social strata who are thrown together. Arisa Jo, the daughter of a wealthy merchant, is the most eligible bachelorette in all of Gyeongsung (the capital city). With her Western dresses, movie star hairstyle, and assertive attitude, she embodies bold “Modern” values. Jun Seomoon is her opposite, a young man from the countryside deeply rooted in tradition. When Arisa’s father tasks Jun with escorting her to the big city, their personalities clash and sparks fly. Their unlikely connection opens these teenagers’ eyes to new perspectives amidst the rapidly changing world they find themselves in. On the surface a sweet and funny “will they, won’t they” romance, this story garners depth from its depiction of Korea at a crossroads: a city occupied by Japan, molded by Western influences, and facing a modernity that stirs inner conflicts within its citizens. Rendered in gorgeous full color, this period piece portrays a fascinating city in a tumultuous time, with two winsome characters at its heart.
Coming off the heels of her lauded debut Raging Clouds,Lovers of the Empire proves Yudori to be a comic artist at the height of her creative powers. This beautifully drawn, nuanced graphic novel is emblematic of the work the Takumigraphics imprint will champion. “Takumi” comes from the Japanese kanji meaning “excellence,” skillfulness,” and “ingeniousness.” This character exemplifies the aesthetic caliber of the books that will comprise this imprint — works of mastery and vision which will include Marina Lisa Komiya’s On Their Frontlines: The Lives of Japanese War Brides, Shimura Takako Wandering Son, Akane Torikai’s Wandering Cat’s Cage and many more masterpieces from across East Asia.
Fantagraphics has announced a new imprint, Takumigraphics, devoted exclusively to East Asian Comics. This new imprint will feature comics, manga, manhwa, and more from Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and other countries. The launch is part of the publisher’s 50th Anniversary celebration taking place in 2026.
Ever since Fantagraphics was founded in 1976, they’ve sought out graphic works that are imaginative, daring, and aesthetically compelling. For the first 30 years, the focus was primarily on English language cartoonists, with forays into definitive translations of exceptional European and South American works. 2010 marked the publisher’s first serious entry into literary manga with the publication of A Drunken Dream and Other Stories by the pioneering shojo manga creator Moto Hagio. Since then they continued to publish manga by Atsushi Kaneko, Kago, Inio Asano, Susumu Higa, Gengoroh Tagame and others.
Takumi is a double-bottomed meaning encapsulating the imprint’s editorial goals: it refers to “excellence,” skillfulness,” “adroitness,” “ingeniousness” — as well as a person who embodies those qualities. It’s a term they feel exemplifies the aesthetic caliber of the books that will comprise this imprint — works of mastery and vision.
While the initial focus of Takumigraphics will be on Japanese comics, future titles will include comics by authors from Korea, China, Singapore, Taiwan, the Philippines, and other Asian countries. While this represents a wide range of nuanced cultures and backgrounds, comics from these countries often share an aesthetic and visual language that they believe readers will recognize and appreciate.
