Gee, Thanks for the More Expensive, Lower Quality Manga, Tokyopop

Back in April I was wondering what readers would get for the extra dollar they'd be spending on Tokyopop manga titles. At the time, I fantasized about Tokyopop following DC's example and having backup features in each book. I realized such a bonus was unlikely, writing: "I'm assuming the price increase won't be accompanied by any additions to the manga volumes, like better paper stock or color inserts." Boy, how right I was. In fact, not only are there no added perks to offset the price hike, but Tokyopop went the other direction and gave us shoddier production values that cost more.

Comparing Sgt. Frog 17 to the previous volume, I noticed the following declines in quality:

1. Cheaper, thinner paper stock.
2. No glossy color pages at the beginning.
3. No more shiny "metallic ink" cover.
4. Sloppy editing / quality control standards.

Item 2 isn't as big a deal as I first thought it was. Looking back, only half of the previous sixteen volumes had color inserts in the front; it probably felt like more because the previous two volumes had color pages, so my working impression was that all the earlier volumes did. The third reduction doesn't really matter to me: The shiny, metallic cover was missing on the previous volume as well and I never even noticed at the time. And I really only noticed one example of defect #4 that I remember, page number 57 occurring twice, once on the actual page 57 and again ten pages later on page 67.

For me, the first flaw is the most critical. Complaining about paper quality might seem nitpicky, but it was noticeable right away, as soon as I grabbed the book out of the shipping box. The book felt flimsy. It also felt thinner, something confirmed by placing it next to an earlier volume of the series:


The cheaper (ha!) paper also affected my reading experience: I noticed several spots where I was distracted by details from the opposite side visible through the page I was reading. The below scan gives a pretty good indication of what this looks like:


Compare that scan with one from the previous volume. (I generally touch up scans a bit to improve the contrast, but the scan from volume 17 was unsalvageable using my usual tweaks.)

I don't know if the combination of price increase plus decreased product quality will be enough to cause me to drop the book, but it's certainly not helping. Has anyone else noticed this with other Tokyopop titles? Is this a one time fluke or Tokyopop's new cost-cutting direction?

UPDATE: I always forget to use Google to see if others are noticing the same things I'm complaining about. Here's a thread at Anime News Network where several posters complain about the same problems with other Tokyopop series. And one poster quotes a Tokyopop rep as explaining:

I understand your concern. Paper, printing, freight has increased in price over the past ten plus years we have been in business. One of our competitors announced last week that they are raising prices higher than we did. We felt in order to keep the price of our manga down, we would change paper and only incease the average price by only 1 dollar. The other paper we used has not only increased in the cost but is getting harder to get. Sorry if there are spelling errors. I'm home sick and I'm usung my Bberry. Thanks, Allyson

I know what's she's trying to say and I feel like a jerk for mocking something someone wrote while sick, but I love the juxtaposition of "in order to keep the price of our manga down" ...we decided to raise prices. Oh, and print them on crappier paper. Corporate double-speak for the win!!

Another poster quotes something a TP Associate Publisher supposedly wrote over on Amazon:

I wanted to address a few of the comments on this thread. The paper we had been using prior to the stock you're discussing was only available from one mill, and suffice it to say, this didn't offer us a lot of flexibility with negotiating scheduling, pricing, etc., so we've been exploring other options. The new paper is different, of course, as you noted - our current printer let us know that other graphic novel publishers are inquiring about and using this paper, too. Now we are in the process of gathering feedback from consumers and other partners, and I appreciate all the candid comments as we assess its future. (BTW, our cover stock has not changed - it's still 10pt C1S - but perhaps the different paper gives it that impression.)

It also turns out that this was something the eagle-eyed Johanna Draper Carlson spotted in one of her reviews way back in February:

On another note, I haven’t checked out a Tokyopop volume in the past few months, and I was very surprised to note that the price of this volume has gone up (books this size used to be $9.99) while the quality has gone down. The newsprint-like paper feels cheap and unsubstantial, and it looks muddy. The resulting product seems unsubstantial and is unpleasant to read.

Reminder: Next time, do the Google research before wasting time writing your own redundant post.

Labels: Companies in Trouble, Complaints, Manga, Sgt. Frog, Tokyopop

12:18 AM | |

I'd Buy THAT For Dollar More

I'm not sure how widely known this is, but it looks like Tokyopop has recently raised the standard price of its manga from $9.99 to $10.99. Gia Manry mentioned this way back on Dec. 11, 2008 but I couldn't find any other coverage of this. Granted, the increase is only a dollar and many other companies already charge this much for their manga, so perhaps many fans simply don't care. I was surprised I didn't see any sites like ICv2 asking Tokyopop about the price jump, though. After all, Tokyopop used to tout the $9.99 price point as an important element in their formula for success. (Perhaps now that business isn't as good the psychologically appealing $10 price point is no longer so important to maintain.)

I'm not sure exactly when the price increase went into effect. Based on this listing on AAA Anime, it looks like the price hike started with titles released in late March and early April. Gia mentioned in her post that she thought Fruits Basket 22 (released 3/17/2009) would be unaffected by the price increase, but Amazon shows the list price as $10.99. I noticed the price increase when searching for Sgt. Frog 17 (release date 5/5/2009). Since Sgt. Frog is the only Tokyopop series I'm following, this doesn't impact me much, but I wonder how other fans feel? Is a dollar price increase in this economy enough to cause readers to reconsider purchasing one of their favorite manga series?

I'm assuming the price increase won't be accompanied by any additions to the manga volumes, like better paper stock or color inserts. It would be interesting if Tokyopop followed a page from DC's recent playbook and offset the price increase with backup features. Like DC, Tokyopop could use the price increase as an opportunity to publish fan favorites that don't sell well enough to justify individual publication. It'd be especially interesting if Tokyopop used such backups to complete the many OEL series stuck in publishing limbo. Of course, you'd run the risk of fans complaining about charging more for series they don't want to read, but if the prices were going to go up anyway, I assume most fans would rather get something additional rather than nothing at all. (So far this seems to be the general reaction from DC fans on message boards.) With manga fans there's the additional worry that some manga purists would object to mixing non-Japanese comics with "authentic" Japanese manga, but perhaps this concern could be lessened by (1) downplaying the "OEL manga" label, positioning the backups as bonus comics material that might appeal to fans of the main manga; and (2) making sure that the backup matched the main series in tone and themes. For example, I wouldn't mind seeing Brandon Scott Graham's King City as a backup for Sgt. Frog, and I think it would make a good fit given the shared sci-fi elements and exaggerated but detailed art styles.

How about you? If you were an editor at Tokyopop, which unfinished series would you give new life as backup strips, and what books would you run them in?

Labels: Fantasy Editorial Moves, Manga, Price Increases, Tokyopop

11:04 AM | |

Feeling Frugal: The 99-Cent Tokyopop Store

Lori Henderson has spotted a great sale on Tokyopop manga over at BookCloseouts: Each book is only 99 cents! I haven't read a whole lot of Tokyopop manga so I'm not sure if there's much that's worthwhile, but I here are some of their books that I've enjoyed:

• Sgt Frog vols. 1, 2, 9, 11, 13*
• Planetes vol. 1

The sale ends March 26th, so hurry on over. I don't see any shipping offers at the moment, so those costs might eat into your savings. I added five books to my cart and the charge for standard shipping was only $3.25, which doesn't seem too bad.

* As I was writing this, volume 13 vanished from the list, so it looks like their warning that "inventory is limited" is accurate. I didn't notice at first that the detail page for each book lists the quantity remaining. As of this writing, there are only three copies of Sgt. Frog volume 11 left, for example.

UPDATE: I wasn't able to find any shipping coupons for BookCloseouts, but here's a code good for $5 off orders $35+ if you're really planning on stocking up on three dozen or more Tokyopop manga.

Coupon Code: BookSale-5
password: bookcloseouts.com

There's also a sale on gardening books and today is the first day of Spring, so maybe that could help you fill out your order.

Labels: Bargains, Manga, Shopping, Tokyopop

9:54 AM | |

Making a Mountain out of a Manhole Molehill

This may be a moot issue by now, but I have a process question spinning out of the whole Tokyopop kerfuffle for other bloggers: How do you handle corrections to factual errors in your posts? Perhaps I'm worrying about this too much, but I'm concerned that leaving statements such as these [all emphasis added] out there could continue to give the wrong impression about Tokyopop's Manga Pilot contract:

• "Contracts like this one that secure all rights to a property in exchange for some modest amount of cash..." (Tom Spurgeon)
• "As is typical of their efforts, they’re counting on starry-eyed kids not paying attention to the details and winding up signing away all their rights." (Johanna Draper Carlson)
• "...it disgustingly strips you of the right to your creations..." (Heidi MacDonald)

Maybe I'm the only one who was confused by those statements, but to me they suggested that the Manga Pilot contracts gave Tokyopop complete ownership over a creator's entire intellectual property. However, as Brigid Alverson noted,

The Manga Pilot contract may be deeply flawed, but it only applies to the Manga Pilot. As people are starting to realize, Tokyopop isn’t taking all future development rights with this contract. All subsequent projects, such as a full-length manga series or a movie, are negotiated separately, presumably with your lawyer and agent looking over all the legalese.

As Lea Hernadez and Bryan Lee O’Malley have detailed, there are plenty of reasons why the contract as it specifically relates to the Manga Pilot alone could give a creator pause (ties up your property for one to two years even if Tokyopop doesn't actually own the rights; costs associated with arbitration and/or defending your work against possible legal action could be prohibitive; etc.), but I think some commentators have amplified Lea's and Bryan's concerns beyond what is actually at stake in the Manga Pilot contract. One reason I think this could be problematic is because someone considering the Manga Pilot program could look at all the warnings out there, see that some detail is inaccurate, and then dismiss the whole discussion as mistaken.

Again, this might all be a moot point. As Johanna notes, people seem to have moved on (or at least slowed down) in their discussion about this, so perhaps there's nothing to be gained by making the changes now. But I'm still curious to hear from other bloggers (and readers) about how they think matters like this should be handled. Should the details in the original posts be corrected? Should a separate correction be issued? Is it something that you don't really think matters one way or the other, especially once the controversy seems to have died down?

(For my own part, when I realize I've made a mistake, my policy is to strike out the original, incorrect text but still leave it in place to be read and then issue a correction or retraction of some sort, either in the original entry or a separate post.)

Labels: Meta-Blogging, Retractions, Tokyopop, Wonky Process Stuff

10:40 AM | |

Ooops.

OK, having now read the actual contract in full, I think a boycott on Tokyopop is unwarranted. Based on the accounts I'd read online, I was under the impression that Tokyopop's Manga Pilot pact gave Tokyopop rights over a creator's entire intellectual property (i.e., the characters, concepts, etc. — what Tokyopop calls the capital-P "Project") but the "pact" is specifically limited to the work produced for the Pilot — that is, the one-time 24-36 page one-shot (what Tokyopop calls the "Manga Pilot"). If Tokyopop wants to do anything with the creator's intellectual property (i.e., the "Project") beyond the scope of the Manga Pilot and its one year Exclusive Period (which is only entered once the Pilot has been formally accepted/approved), that would require new negotiations and a separate contract on Tokyopop's part. (Yes, Tokyopop does say it retains the rights to publish the Manga Pilot in any format forever and ever amen, but again this only applies to the 24-36 page one-shot, and it also allows the creator to publish it simultaneously in whatever format he or she sees fit. So theoretically speaking, if you let Tokyopop publish the Manga Pilot but then decide you want to publish your Project on your own once the Exclusive Period ends, you could include the Manga Pilot as an introductory chapter in the trade paperback collection of your self-published comic book series.)

I still think the whole thing is stupidly written (as many have pointed out, the efforts at striking up a chummy tone have the opposite effect), and I still don't see why Tokyopop can't give creator credit in almost all circumstances (in almost every graphic for Bleach that Viz runs, no matter how small, I always recall seeing the notice "BLEACH © 2001 by Tite Kubo/SHUEISHA Inc"), but it's not what I initially thought it was. So I apologize for jumping to conclusions and suggesting a boycott without first investigating the matter in greater depth. As an act of penance, I suggest boycotting this blog for a couple weeks.

(On a positive note, this means I can use those Sgt. Frog scans I already did. Plus, now I won't be sad come Dec. 16th.)

UPDATE: Right after posting this, this post from Brigid at MangaBlog showed up in my feedreader. In it, "the TOKYOPOP Pilot Program Team, Paul Morrissey & Hope Donovan!" responds to the controversy surrounding the Pilot Pact, and they confirm that the contract only applies to the Pilot material. There's one part that's awkwardly phrased, however: "For any Pilot that doesn’t pan out, the rights to the project are returned to the creator after the one-year Exclusive Period ends." [Emphasis added] According to how I read the contract, however, creators never sign away any rights to the Project (remember, that's the overall intellectual property); they only agree not to give the rights to the Project to anyone else besides Tokyopop during the one-year Exclusive Period. ("Remember, you’re not giving us those rights, but you’re promising you won’t use or give anyone else those rights before the Exclusive Period ends.")

Oh, and I'd also disagree with their assessment that the contract is "accessible." Given that so many people came away with the wrong impressions about this contract, I'd say there's something very inaccessible about the way it's written. I think it'd be better to go back and clean up all the attempts at "cutesy" conversational lingo and just set out the details straightforwardly.

Labels: Let's Call The Whole Thing Off, Retractions, Tokyopop

11:17 PM | |

Who Writes Their Contracts? Kururu???

NOTE: This entire post was written under some flawed assumptions. See my retraction for an update. Any other ideas for a comic company we can legitimately boycott?

I was planning on writing up some thoughts on the latest volume of Sgt. Frog last night (with hilarious scans and everything!), but the latest round of shady dealings from Tokyopop has dampened my enthusiasm for their works. Like Johanna, I really don't want to be promoting a company that engages in (let's phrase this charitably) extremely questionable business practices at the expense of creators. In fact, I'll take it a step further and suggest it's time for a general boycott of Tokyopop until they get this contract mess straightened out so it's more equitable for creators:

1. If you're a reviewer, stop reviewing their books.
2. If you're a reader, stop buying and reading their books.
3. If you're a fan, stop discussing Tokyopop (other than to explain why you're no longer discussing them)
4. In any case, send Tokyopop a note to let them know why you're no longer a customer of theirs.

A Tokyopop boycott isn't really that painful for me since, with the conclusion of Dragon Head, Sgt. Frog is the only series of theirs that I'm following (and it only comes out once or twice a year) but I'd strongly encourage anyone who thinks this is an important issue to stick it to Tokyopop where it hurts and let them know why you're dropping their books.

UPDATE: Tom Spurgeon handily demolishes arguments that Tokyopop's contract is just standard operating procedure.

UPDATE #2: Heidi MacDonald weighs in and ties the recent mess into a larger discussion of Tokyopop's OEL program and its treatment of newer, younger creators.

Labels: Boycotts, Corporate Shenanigans, Sgt. Frog, Tokyopop

9:35 AM | |

Cosplaying for Keroro

Hey, did you know I was taking the rest of 2007 off from blogging? Neither did I! Oops, sorry about that. Assuming I don't drop off the face of the earth for another long stretch, I'm hoping to have my own "Best of 2007" list up soon. That is, if something I discovered just today doesn't eat up all of my free time. I'm talking, of course, about Tokyopop's Sgt. Frog Cosplay Contest! Now, normally I just point at cosplayers and laugh, but considering the prizes Tokyopop is offering for first place I might just have to swallow my pride and learn how to humiliate myself through sewing. Just look at this swag:

The first-place winner will capture an autographed Sgt. Frog Bind-up (Vols 1-3) by its famous creator Mine Yoshizaki, along with $100 worth of Sgt. Frog merchandise straight from Japan!

A hundred bucks of Sgt. Frog merchandise sounds nice until you realize that given the price of Japanese imports, that probably amounts to one little figurine (and one of a lame side character like Sumomo, at that). No, what really has me excited is the prospect of winning an autographed Sgt. Frog book by series creator Mine Yoshizaki. That's a really nice incentive.

So, any suggestions for which character I should be? Do you think I could get away with submitting the following photo and saying it's me?

Labels: Keroro Gunso, Tokyopop, Unexpected Blogging Hiatuses

12:39 PM | |

So Much for 24/7

It figures: the one time I want to look something up on Tokyopop's site (actually, on ChunHyang72's blog), I get this:


I'll be curious to see (1) if the site's usability improves any, and (2) how many of the redone links end up broken all over again. (But u guys will do our beta testing 4 us, right?)

UPDATE 6/29: Well, the original relaunch date of 6/27 has come and gone and now it's anyone's guess (including Toyopop's) when the new site will go live:

Labels: Publisher Website Problems, Tokyopop

9:56 PM | |