VIZ MEDIA DEVELOPS A NEW ORIGINAL GRAPHIC NOVEL SERIES BASED ON THE HIT BOYS ANIMATED ACTION ADVENTURE SERIES MONSUNO, AIRING ON NICKTOONS

New VIZ Kids Series Debuts 2013

San Francisco, CA, October 15, 2012 – VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), the largest publisher, distributor and licensor of manga and anime in North America, continues to expand its library of original graphic novels as it announces the acquisition of the North American publishing rights for MONSUNO, an epic boys action adventure where kids discover, command and battle creatures with destructive potential. A race to harness the power of Monsuno ensues between this group of heroic kids and the evil forces focused on destroying the planet. The MONSUNO publishing series will debut with a graphic novel, written by Brian Smith with artwork by Erwin Prasetya, delivering all new, original adventures beginning late Spring 2013 under the company’s VIZ Kids imprint. MONSUNO Volume 1 is rated ‘A’ for All Ages, and will carry an MSRP of $7.99 U.S. / $9.99 CAN.

Like the animated series, the MONSUNO graphic novels will follow Chase Suno and his friends as they search for Chase’s father and discover the power of Monsuno. The first adventure introduces a new villain to the MONSUNO universe, and kicks off long before Chase had ever heard of Monsuno, when scientists experimented with Monsuno essence. One such scientist, Dr. Moto, tried to create her own Monsuno, but the experiments went horribly wrong. Trapped in an icy lab, Dr. Moto’s tests have continued, and now Chase, Bren and Jinja have stumbled upon the horrifying results!

“Being a teenager with access to controllable 15-foot-tall hybridized monsters is everything you’d want it to be and more in this action-packed new series coming next Spring from VIZ Kids,” says Beth Kawasaki, Senior Editorial Director. “Our MONSUNO graphic novel series will deliver original stories inspired by the hit animated program seen widely on Nicktoons, and offer inspirational characters, gripping action, and high-stakes adventure that combines with a dose of impromptu humor to produce a fun adventure with monstrous potential! Look for this new title coming soon in 2013!”

The Monsuno series, created by Jared Wolfson and Jeremy Padawer, is co-produced by Pacific Animation Partners LLC, a joint venture between JAKKS Pacific, Inc. and Dentsu Entertainment USA, Inc., with FremantleMedia Enterprises and The Topps Company, Inc. JAKKS Pacific is the creator of the underlying Monsuno property and master toymaker for the Monsuno toy line. The Topps Company produces Monsuno trading card games, confectioneries and related products.

For more information on MONSUNO or other VIZ Kids properties, please visit: VIZKids.com.

About VIZ Media, LLC

Headquartered in San Francisco, California, VIZ Media distributes, markets and licenses the best anime and manga titles direct from Japan.  Owned by three of Japan's largest manga and animation companies, Shueisha Inc., Shogakukan Inc., and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Co., Ltd., VIZ Media has the most extensive library of anime and manga for English speaking audiences in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland and South Africa. With its popular digital manga anthology WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA magazine and blockbuster properties like NARUTO, BLEACH and INUYASHA, VIZ Media offers cutting-edge action, romance and family friendly properties for anime, manga, science fiction and fantasy fans of all ages.  VIZ Media properties are available as graphic novels, DVDs, animated television series, feature films, downloadable and streaming video and a variety of consumer products.  Learn more about VIZ Media, anime and manga at www.VIZ.com.