Tracing the incredible roots of an international collaboration!   New Series “The Grim Reaper Can Love, Too” In 2016, a 13 page silent manga took the world by storm. “Thirty and a Half Minutes” by Vietnamese artist Snippy MJ won the 4^th SILENT MANGA AUDITION® Grand Prix sponsored by Coamix, and garnered significant worldwide attention, including the top spot on English news site 9gag.com. Now adapted into the series “The Grim Reaper Can Love, Too” by Urata Izumi (“Kasukano-cho District ½ Detective Agency”) and up-and-coming scriptwriter Mayuko Yoshida, this spectacular new series will be gracing the pages of this month’s issue of Comic Zenon. A unique and intriguing manga concept which sprouted in a small corner of the world and is now blooming beautifully in Japan, the spiritual home of manga!     Visual storytelling brought two incredible manga talents together!!! The simple message “The fundamental enjoyment of manga is in the performance” is at the very heart of The Zenon Manga Award “Manga Audition”. The ability to successfully weave an engaging, wordless story requires skill and creativity which are shared by both Urata Izumi, runner-up of the Manga Audition grand prix and creator of “The Twin Awakening Nova” and “Kasukano-cho District ½ Detective Agency”, and Snippy MJ, the creator of the original piece. They have both captured the hearts of the global manga community through their incredible ability to perfectly capture human emotion through visual storytelling. Now these two incredible talents have teamed up to produce a spellbinding manga that can be enjoyed the world over. No matter your language, age or gender, this manga will delight and enthral through harnessing the very essence of wordless, visual storytelling.    

• About Snippy MJ

Winner of the fourth SILENT MANGA AUDITION® grand prix, Snippy MJ earned the respect and high acclaim from the judges for her skill in wordlessly expressing a unique and creative worldview. Born in Vietnam and currently studying art in New York, Snippy MJ manages to regularly publish her unique work on webcomic and social media platforms to the delight of her legion of fans around the world. –“Thirty and a Half Minutes”: A woman in the throws of childbirth barely hangs onto life. What will the enigmatic Grim Reaper do…? The wordless story that captured the hearts of manga fans and now adapted into “The Grim Reaper Can Love, Too”.   –“With Love from my Heart”: Published on the creator submission site Tapas, this short story tells the tale of a couple blessed with new life, and their preparation in welcoming a new child into the world.    

• About Urata Izumi

Born in Mie Prefecture, Japan, Urata Izumi caught the attention of the judges and earned herself the runner up prize in the Fifth Comic Zenon Manga Audition grand prix. Eager to build on this success, Izumi worked tirelessly to produce and publish two outstanding manga, “The Twin Awakening Nova” in 2013 and “Kasukano-cho District ½ Detective Agency” in 2016. In collaboration with Mayuko Yoshida, “The Grim Reaper Can Love, Too” is her third contribution to Zenon and promises to expand on the original silent manga entry much to the delight of Zenon’s loyal readership. –“The Twin Awakening Nova”: Twin “Nova’s” embrace their supernatural powers and embark on a world changing adventure! Volume 1 (2013, Tokuma Shoten)   –“Kasukano-cho District ½ Detective Agency”: A brilliant paranormal investigative duo on a mission to prove the existence of the spirit world and a high school girl plagued with ghostly visions team up to solve mysterious and bizarre cases. Volume 1 + 2 (2017, Tokuma Shoten)    

• About SILENT MANGA AUDITION®

Founded in 2012, SILENT MANGA AUDITION® is the much coveted international manga award born from the “Comic Zenon Manga Audition”. With over 4000 applications from 104 countries, the award has become the gateway to success for the global manga community. Currently in it’s ninth round, SMAC will be accepting entries worldwide beginning October 2017.   Every winning entry is published in a hugely popular anthology for sale in Japan, including interviews and exclusive illustrations by renowned manga artists such as Go Nagai and Tetsuya Chiba! All silent manga entries can be viewed for free on the official website, on the new WORLD MAP page!    

• Grab your popcorn, Silent Manga hits the BIG screen!!

Spellbinding manga isn’t the only outlet for silent manga creators, many have been adapted into amazing live action movies! To find out more, check out the official Youtube channel! “Thirty and a Half Minutes” by Snippy MJ; starring Hirofumi Arai in the role of the Grim Reaper. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BOJu8F0TU8&t=73s   “Drawing a Smile Out” by dee Juusan; co-staring Seishiro Kato and his younger brother Kenshiro.

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“The Grim Reaper Can Love, Too” is now published on Comic Zenon! We are working on its translation! The English version will be uploaded VERY SOON!!!