Well, Hell...

[studioqt]

...Since people are actually wandering over here, check out this preview of Gunsmith Cats Burst vol. 1. Translated and lettered by Team Cutie:
http://www.popcultureshock.com/gunsmith-cats-burst-vol-1-preview/41554/2/

You KNOW you want a copy...

Comments

[lunatique_sf]

I've been so out of the manga/anime loop for the last several years. Are AMG and GSC still being published in Japan (new volumes, not reprints)?

[studioqt]

"Aa! Megami-sama!" (as editor Carl reminded me yesterday) will be celebrating 20 years of continuously running in Japan. Since Dark Horse bought the Studio Proteus/DH licenses (don't believe the internet--DH did NOT "buy SP"), DH has been re-releasing the entire run in unflipped, retouched format--meaning I've had to re-letter them. ALL of them. The idea has been to alternate releases between older volumes and more recent volumes. It looks like the current volume number in Japan is vol. 34.

Sonoda took a break from Gunsmith Cats and did Cannon God: Exaxxion. When he was done with that, he picked up GSC again and called it Gunsmith Cats Burst. In Japan, the first run of GSC has been collected into 4 fat "Omnibus" editions. Each volume is about 450pp. DH is also re-issuing these in unflipped, un-retouched (but with subtitled sfx) editions called "Revised" editions. DH is alternating the releases of GSC Revised and Burst. Burst vol.1 should be in comics stores tomorrow.

Probably more than you wanted to know. I blame coffee.

[lunatique_sf]

I love educational posts.

Redoing them unflipped is pretty extravagant. Would you have spent that money if you were the publisher?

OTOH, artists all know that we have biases, so a flipped picture can show proportional mistakes that wasn't evident originally.

[studioqt]

Oh my...you HAVE been gone for a while, haven't you?

This mayn-gah thing is really really big with the kids now. So much so that if it doesn't read R-L, it's not considered "authentic".

A lot of the newer fans have passed on buying OMG and GSCats because it was flipped. Both of these titles have been around so long, it doesn't hurt to re-release them to give new readers a point of entry.

You are of course absolutely right about mirror imaging showing flaws. The other thing the re-release corrects is the damned steering wheels on the right side of the cars in Sonoda's Chicago. Rally's Shelby Cobra is fetishized in GSCats and in the old editions the steering wheel is on the wrong side!

[marsmckay]

Sweet! I was a big fan of the GSC series and I've been wondering if he would ever do another series!

[studioqt]

Yay! It's nice to see somebody rediscover a favorite title. I'm glad my post helped!