Slam Dunk Survival Game

I read Slam Dunk, Vol. 16 (Slam Dunk (Viz))

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has FREE smart phone apps).

Bleach Higher than the Moon

I read Bleach, Vol. 35

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has FREE smart phone apps).

Vampire Knight: Yuki Cross Will Go Kervorkian on Your Ass

I read Vampire Knight, Vol. 12

I  posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has FREE smart phone apps).

X-Men: First Class Film Gets Reviewed

I saw X-Men: First Class yesterday, and I loved it.  If you're curious, you can read my review at my blog, Negromancer.

Valiant Entertainment Announces Return of Valiant Comics

VALIANT COMICS TO RETURN; FORMER MARVEL CEO BECOMES CHAIRMAN

Company Announces Investment and Expansion of Management Team

New York, NY – June 2, 2011 – Valiant Entertainment, the character-based entertainment company with more than 1,500 characters in its library, announced it will reintroduce the critically acclaimed Valiant Universe in print and digital comics in 2012. Valiant has hired accomplished industry executives and creative talent to expand its management team. The first announcement is that former Marvel CEO and Vice Chairman Peter Cuneo has assumed the role of Chairman of Valiant.

Valiant Entertainment, co-founded by Jason Kothari and Dinesh Shamdasani, has received a capital infusion from private investment company Cuneo & Company, LLC. Peter Cuneo, Managing Principal of Cuneo & Co., recently concluded ten years of leadership at Marvel Entertainment, which achieved one of the most extraordinary turnarounds in entertainment history during that period. His tenure with Marvel concluded with Marvel’s sale at the end of 2009 to The Walt Disney Company for over $4 billion. Gavin Cuneo, Principal of Cuneo & Co., was an investment banker with Bank of America Merrill Lynch prior to the founding of Cuneo & Co. He has spent over ten years working in investment banking and investment management and has been appointed to Valiant’s Board of Directors. Peter and Gavin Cuneo are working closely with Valiant’s expanded management team to usher in the new era of Valiant.

“I am excited to be partnering with Peter and Gavin,” said CEO Jason Kothari. “Peter’s decade of leadership at Marvel, Gavin’s decade of experience on Wall Street, and their highly active roles with Valiant will be integral to our expansion.”

“The strength of the management team which Jason has created and the quality of the characters owned and controlled by the company have made this an extremely attractive and exciting investment,” said Peter Cuneo.

“We see a great opportunity in today’s comic book industry for the emergence of a brand that combines the power of a strong legacy with a first-class creative and business team,” said Gavin Cuneo.

Originally founded in 1989, Valiant Comics quickly became one of the most successful comic book publishers by creating unique and compelling heroes and villains and focusing on storytelling. Valiant characters have been written and illustrated by many of the industry’s most famous creative talents, including Jim Shooter, Bob Layton, Barry Windsor Smith, Joe Quesada, Jim Lee, Frank Miller, Garth Ennis, Warren Ellis, Bryan Hitch, Steve Ditko, Mike Mignola and Neal Adams, among many others. Previously named Publisher of the Year by Diamond Comics Distributors, Valiant characters have sold over 80 million comic books. After creating some of the most popular comic book characters, Valiant was acquired by video game company Acclaim Entertainment. Acclaim used the characters as the basis for a number of successful video game franchises. Acclaim went out of business in 2005 due to issues unrelated to Valiant, including the loss of key sports video game licenses. This enabled Valiant Entertainment to acquire all the rights to the Valiant Comics library at the end of 2007. Valiant Entertainment began operations in 2008 and has made significant progress in the licensing and development of major motion pictures that will be communicated in the coming months. Valiant now expands into publishing.

“We have been planning the reintroduction of the Valiant titles for some time and I’m excited to announce our scheduled launch for 2012,” said Director Dinesh Shamdasani. “Cutting-edge characters and stories were the core tenants of the original Valiant and are the core tenants of the new Valiant.”

“Valiant owns and controls a universe of some of the most recognizable characters in the comic world,” added Peter Cuneo. “To this day, despite interruptions in its history, Valiant has retained an extremely passionate fan base. We are keenly focused on bringing the original Valiant Universe back for these fans as well as introducing these powerful characters and stories to new readers.”


About Valiant Entertainment
Valiant Entertainment is a character-based entertainment company that owns and controls some of the most cherished comic characters ever created across all media, including film, television, video games, new media, publishing, and consumer products. Since their creation in 1989, Valiant characters have sold 80 million comic books and have been the basis of a number of successful video game franchises. Valiant’s extensive library includes over 1,500 characters, such as X-O Manowar, Bloodshot, Harbinger, Shadowman, and Ninjak. Visit http://www.valiantentertainment.com/.

Sakura Hime, Why Did You Choose Me?

I read Sakura Hime: The Legend of Princess Sakura, Vol. 2

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has some FREE smart phone apps).

VIZ Media Fights Illiteracy and Fosters Manga Love

VIZ MEDIA OFFERS LIBRARIANS FREE HEROES OF MANGA LIBRARY KITS

New Kits Highlight Popular VIZ Media Manga Properties And Help Foster Literacy And A Love Of Japanese Pop Culture Among Library Patrons Of All Ages

San Francisco, CA, June 2, 2011 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, gives librarians across the country a useful new tool to promote reading, literacy and love of manga (graphic novels). The company has made available Heroes of Manga Library Kits, full of items to entice patrons to explore the exciting world of Japanese pop culture and comics.

Manga is one of the most requested categories in libraries today. The Heroes of Manga Library Kit features some of VIZ Media’s most popular properties, such as NARUTO, FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, NURA: RISE OF THE YOKAI CLAN and POKÉMON, designed for a range of readers from All Ages to Young Adult. Each library kit contains 50 book covers, 300 bookmarks, 50 buttons, 5 assorted VIZ Media bags, and a full-color poster featuring NARUTO, and is available for FREE to library professionals. For more information, or to receive a kit, please submit information here before June 8, 2011. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery.

“VIZ Media celebrates its 25th Anniversary this year and throughout our history, we have made it our mission to help fans of all ages foster a love of reading through manga,” says Candice Uyloan, Director of Marketing. “Our latest campaign provides librarians with a free Heroes of Manga Library Kit that contains a variety of fun premiums that highlight some of our most popular properties. Our first efforts to promote the kits resulted in such an enthusiastic response that we have decided to extend the program and increase the number of kits produced. We invite librarians to send in for their free kit today and use the goodies exclusively created for them to inspire their patrons to explore the exciting world of comics from Japan!”

VIZ Media manga titles are regularly recognized by leading library associations for their imaginative stories and high quality. The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) recently recognized several notable VIZ Media manga titles recommended for those ages 12-18, meet the criteria of both good quality literature and appealing reading for teen readers. For more than 50 years, YALSA has been the U.S. leader in selecting books, videos, and audio books for teens.

For more information on VIZ Media manga titles, please visit www.viz.com/manga.