VIZ MEDIA TO PARTICIPATE IN 2013 FREE COMIC BOOK DAY WITH 2 FREE COMICS SHOWCASING TOP KIDS AND TEEN SERIES

Readers Encouraged To Support & Visit Local Retailers To Receive Special Giveaway Comics Featuring UGLYDOLL, HELLO KITTY, DRAGON BALL And RUROUNI KENSHIN: RESTORATION

VIZ Media delights comic book and manga (graphic novel) fans as it announces its participation in this year’s Free Comic Book Day. Scheduled for May 4^th, Free Comic Book Day is an annual promotional campaign in the North American comic book industry to help bring new readers into independent comic book stores nationwide. Free Comic Book Day began in 2002 and is coordinated by the industry's single largest distributor, Diamond Comic Distributors. Readers should visit freecomicbookday.com to find a local participating retailer. VIZ Media will participate this year as a Gold Level Sponsor and will offer two FREE releases (available while supplies last) – a VIZ Kids comic sampler and a VIZ Media manga sampler.

The VIZ Kids Free Comic Book Day sampler (rated ‘A’ for All Ages) includes an excerpt from GOIN’ PLACES!, the first volume of the forthcoming UGLYDOLLS graphic novel series. Featuring the work of Uglydoll creators Sun-Min Kim and David Horvath, artists Ian McGinty and Phillip Jacobson, and writer Travis Nichols, among others. UGLYDOLL Vol. 1 will debut on July 2^nd under the VIZ Kids imprint, with an MSRP of $7.99 U.S. / $9.99 CAN.

VIZ Media’s all-ages Free Comic Book Day sampler will also include a HELLO KITTY short written and illustrated by Jacob Chabot from HELLO KITTY: HERE WE GO!, an excerpt from MAMESHIBA: ENCHANTED, written by James Turner and illustrated by Jorge Monlongo, and an excerpt from the forthcoming POKÉMON POCKET COMICS. HELLO KITTY: HERE WE GO! is scheduled for release in October 2013, MAMESHIBA: ENCHANTED will be available SEPTEMBER 2013 and POKÉMON POCKET COMICS will be released in October 2013.

To promote the all-ages Free Comic, VIZ Media created a fun video featuring Horvath, McGinty, Jacobson, Nichols, Chabot and Monlongo, discussing their love for comics. The video can be viewed at http://youtu.be/Td2fDoxOzqY

The VIZ Media Free Comic Book Day manga sampler is aimed at teen and older readers and will offer excerpts from RUROUNI KENSHIN: RESTORATION and DRAGON BALL. The sampler also includes an exclusive RUROUNI KENSHIN: RESTORATION poster.

RUROUNI KENSHIN: RESTORATION (rated ‘T’ for Teens) is the new samurai action adventure from creator Nobuhiro Watsuki that debuts on June 4^th. During the violent upheaval of Japan’s Bakumatsu era, Hitokiri Battosai was a feared and ruthless assassin. But now that the Meiji Restoration has begun to heal the wounds of civil war, Battosai has taken up a new name... and a new calling! He is now Himura Kenshin, a wandering samurai who has vowed to only draw his sword to protect those in need. But not everyone is pleased with Kenshin's new direction, and enemies from his dark past have vowed to bring him down!

DRAGON BALL is the classic fantasy adventure series created by Akira Toriyama. To celebrate the launch of a new DRAGON BALL 3-in-1 omnibus (rated ‘T’ for Teens) on June 4^th, an excerpt in the VIZ Media FREE Comic Book Day manga sampler will showcase the seminal series. DRAGON BALL is a wry update on the Chinese "Monkey King" myth, and introduces readers to Son Goku, a young monkey-tailed boy whose quiet life is turned upside-down when he meets Bulma, a girl determined to collect the seven "Dragon Balls." If she gathers them all, an incredibly powerful dragon will appear and grant her one wish. But the precious orbs are scattered all over the world, and to get them she needs the help of a certain super-strong boy.

For information on other titles available from the VIZ Kids imprint, please visit www.vizkids.com.

For more information on other manga titles available from VIZ Media, please visit www.viz.com.

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