Kodansha Invests in Vertical

A few months back, I was really bitchy somewhat critical of the titles Kodansha announced after they assumed control of Del Rey’s line.  It’s not that any of those titles sounded bad, just that there didn’t seem to be any targeted to me to a more mature readership.  Flash forward to earlier this week and it turns out that there was a reason for that.  Instead of trying to do it themselves, the people at Kodansha (and Dai Nippon) have done something far more straightforward:  Buy someone who already does.

Marketing director Ed Chavez lays out the specifics with Brigid Alverson at “Robot 6” and I’m very encouraged by what he has to say.  Kodansha won’t be dictating terms to the staff at Vertical, though the connections and capital they’ve acquired from the two companies will not only make it easier for them to acquire new titles, but to ease the strains of publishing and day-to-day operations as well.  To me, the setup sounds like Kodansha has acquired their equivalent of Viz’s “Signature” imprint and is going to let them continue to cater to their established audience.  The end result is a bigger, badder Vertical and I’m looking forward to seeing them flex their muscle as the year goes on.