ACF 1079: VIZ Media bringing Mameshiba to North America on July 5th

(C) 2011 VIZ Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Mameshiba characters licensed from Dentsu, Inc.
(C) DENTSU INC. All Rights Reserved.

IT’S A BEAN! IT’S A DOG! IT’S BOTH?!!
VIZ MEDIA BRINGS THE CUTE AND FUN
CHARACTERS OF MAMESHIBA TO NORTH AMERICA

Adorable Japanese Character Sensations Make Their Debut
In New Graphic Novel Adventure And Character Guide This Summer

VIZ Media has announced the release of its first titles for MAMESHIBA. The cute Japanese sensations will be introduced in a character guide called MEET MAMESHIBA! and star in their first-ever graphic novel, MAMESHIBA: ON THE LOOSE!, both to be released in July in the U.S. and Canada under the company’s VIZ Kids imprint.

It's a BEAN! It's a DOG! It's... BOTH?! Are they beans? Are they dogs? Not quite either one – they're Mameshiba! Though they all love to share weird facts, each has its own quirky personality.

“With their unique personalities, adorable faces, and love of trivia, MAMESHIBA will capture hearts both young and old,” says Traci Todd, Senior Editor of Children’s Publishing. “Readers will learn all they need to know about Edamame, Cranberry Bean, Tiger Bean and Black-Eyed-Pea in the MEET MAMESHIBA! character guide. And readers will be amazed as the beans boldly go where no beans have gone before in MAMESHIBA: ON THE LOOSE!, their first graphic novel adventure.”

MAMESHIBA: ON THE LOOSE! • Rated ‘A’ for All Ages • MSRP: $6.99 U.S. / $7.99 CAN Available July 5th

Meet Mameshiba! The Japanese sensations are coming to the U.S. in their first-ever graphic novel series! Now that these irresistibly cute, irrepressibly curious characters have been unleashed, there’s no telling where they’ll turn up!

Mameshiba are the cute little bean dogs with bite! Starring in their first-ever adventures, they rescue friends, explore outer space and offer interesting bits of trivia when you least expect it! Hold on tight – Mameshiba are on the LOOSE!

MEET MAMESHIBA! CHARACTER GUIDE • Rated ‘A’ for All Ages • MSRP: $6.99 U.S. / $7.99 CAN • Available July 5th

Did you know? Every Mameshiba character has its own quirky personality! Meet Edamame, Tiger Bean, Soybean, Chili Bean and all their friends in this guide packed with trivia, quizzes, comics and fun! Plus, meet three brand-new beans: Cranberry Bean, Lima Bean and Black-Eyed-Pea!

For more information on MAMESHIBA and other VIZ Kids properties, visit www.VIZKids.com.

ACF 1057: VIZ Media announces release of Hero 108 on multiple leading online outlets

VIZ MEDIA BRINGS THE ANIMATED ANIMAL KIDS ADVENTURE OF HERO 108 TO MUTLIPLE LEADING ONLINE CONTENT OUTLETS

Join The Battle For Peace In The Hidden Kingdom With The Launch
Of This Highly Rated Series From Cartoon Network!

VIZ Media has just announced the release of their newest action adventure animation, Hero 108, on iTunes® (www.iTunes.com), Playstation®Network, Amazon Instant Video, and the Zune Marketplace on Xbox Live. The first half of Season 1 (episodes 1-13) are available for purchase now. To celebrate the launch of this popular series, which aired on Cartoon Network, fans can download the first full episode for FREE through July 4th on all platforms. Subsequent episodes are available for only $1.99 each.

Long ago in The Hidden Kingdom, animals and humans lived together in peace… until the evil HighRoller tricked the animals into believing that the humans were their enemies. HighRoller convinced his animal armies to attack the humans and drive them from their homes. Most humans were so downtrodden that they gave up all hope for better days.

That is until Commander ApeTrully created a base of strategic operations in a giant abandoned turtle shell, submerged in a seemingly quiet lake. He called upon rebel humans and animals to fight the villainous HighRoller and dubbed his rebel force “Big Green.” Their mission? Restore peace to the land. Big Green’s most elite team of warriors is called First Squad and consists of Lin Chung, Mighty Ray, Mystique Sonia and Jumpy GhostFace. Together they face off against all manner of fierce creatures, like fire-breathing Ligers and magic lantern-wielding Zebras.

For more information on HERO 108 or other VIZ Kids properties, visit www.VIZKids.com.

ACF 1014: Pokemon Travel Activity Kit for those ages 5 and up available May 31st

© 2011 Pokémon. © 1995-2011 Nintendo/Creatures Inc./GAME FREAK inc.
TM, ®, and character names are trademarks of Nintendo.

NEW POKÉMON TRAVEL ACTIVITY KIT FROM VIZ MEDIA
GIVES KIDS HOURS OF FUN THIS SUMMER

Just in time for summer, VIZ Media delivers hours of Pokémon fun with the POKÉMON TRAVEL ACTIVITY KIT. Featuring Snivy, Tepig, Oshawott and other new Pokémon from the Unova region, the POKÉMON TRAVEL ACTIVITY KIT includes an activity pad, poster, stickers and six chunky crayons, all packaged in a suitcase-style case! Recommended for ages 5 and up, the POKÉMON TRAVEL ACTIVITY KIT also makes a wonderful gift.

The POKÉMON TRAVEL ACTIVITY KIT will be available on May 31st from the VIZKIDS imprint for the suggested retail price of $11.99 U.S. / $13.99 CAN, and includes:

• One 64-page POKÉMON activity pad (featuring word finds, mazes and other puzzle activities)
• Two full-color POKÉMON sticker sheets
• One double-sided poster for POKÉMON sticker play
• Six POKÉMON crayons
• Don’t forget to pull out the divider for bonus Legendary Reshiram and Zekrom standees!

The POKÉMON TRAVEL ACTIVITY KIT is one of several Pokémon releases from the VIZKIDS imprint. Look for POKÉMON BLACK & WHITE, the manga series inspired by the most recent POKÉMON video game releases, Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version for the Nintendo DS™ family of systems. Meet all-new Pokémon from the fastest-selling Pokémon video games in history. VIZ Media will launch the POKÉMON BLACK & WHITE series in July 2011.

For more information on VIZ Media’s POKÉMON manga and anime titles, please visit www.VIZ.com/Pokemon/.

ACF 983: VIZ Kids slate expands with full slate of new acquisitions

VIZ MEDIA EXPANDS VIZ KIDS IMPRINT
WITH A FULL SLATE OF NEW ACQUISITIONS

New Titles Include Global Blockbuster Franchises
MR. MEN AND LITTLE MISS, POKÉMON And VOLTRON FORCE,
And Rising Stars MAMESHIBA and HERO 108

VIZ Media, the largest distributor of anime and manga in the United States, has announced a full slate of acquisitions for its kids imprint, VIZ Kids. The acquisitions include DVD, Download-To-Own, and graphic novel licenses for a wide range of well-established global franchises.

“VIZ Media is excited to expand our kids imprint to include a variety of fun new properties,” said Elizabeth Kawasaki, Senior Editorial Director of VIZ Media. “These new titles use strong storytelling, eye-popping graphics and empowering themes to engage a younger generation of fans.”

• HERO 108 – VIZ Kids will be distributing DVDs of this popular series which airs on Cartoon Network. HERO 108 chronicles the battle for peace in the Hidden Kingdom. In addition, VIZ Kids will make the episodes available for download through iTunes. DVDs will be available in May 2011 while downloadable episodes will launch in June 2011.

• MAMESHIBA – The irresistibly cute and irrepressibly curious Mameshiba are not quite beans, not quite dogs--they’re a hybrid of both! VIZ Kids will release a graphic novel, MAMESHIBA: ON THE LOOSE!, and a character guide, MEET MAMESHIBA, in July 2011.

• POKÉMON BLACK AND WHITE: VIZ Kids will release manga, a travel activity kit, and other select merchandise based on the most recent incarnation of the juggernaut POKÉMON™ video game franchise, Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version. Meet all-new Pokémon from the fastest-selling Pokémon video games in history. The travel activity kit will be available in May 2011; Volumes 1 and 2 of the manga will be available in July 2011.

• MR. MEN AND LITTLE MISS – Mr. Happy, Little Miss Sunshine and all their Dillydale friends are about to take the graphic novel world by storm! Under the VIZ Kids imprint, VIZ Media will create and distribute original graphic novels starring the lovable MR. MEN and LITTLE MISSES. Little Miss Sunshine, Mr. Bump, Mr. Strong and Little Miss Daredevil books will be available in Spring 2012.

• VOLTRON FORCE – Voltron®, the ultimate space adventure from the 1980s, is ready to take the world by storm again! VIZ Kids will produce and distribute original graphic novels based on the all-new animated series VOLTRON FORCE, set to debut on Nicktoons this summer. VOLTRON FORCE reignites the story of five brave space explorers who pilot mighty robot lions that combine to form Voltron, Defender of the Universe. Joining the team are three new cadets, who have the opportunity of a lifetime to fight alongside their heroes and unlock incredible new powers. Let’s Voltron!

The books will be available in Spring 2012. HERO 108, MAMESHIBA, MR. MEN, and VOLTRON FORCE are unique acquisitions because they are properties not owned by any of VIZ Media’s parent companies, Shueisha, Shogakukan and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions.

These acquisitions join an already robust manga and anime VIZ Kids library, which includes THE LEGEND OF ZELDA, PANDA MAN, TARO, BEYBLADE and DINOSAUR KING.

For more information on VIZ Kids, visit www.VIZKids.com.