Kodansha and US comics publisher DSTLRY have announced a partnership that will see artists from both publishers regularly contribute to each other’s covers in an exciting exchange. The first of these is headed by mangaka Shuzo Oshimi, who was nominated for the 2022 Harvey Award for Best Manga alongside Blue Lock, Spy x Family and eventual winner Chainsaw Man. Oshimi has designed a variant cover for Somna #3 – the final issue of Becky Cloonan and Tula Lotay’s erotic folk-horror series, out March 27. Readers can check out the Somna cover # 3 by Oshimi below.
Commenting on the exchange, Oshimi said: “I was drawn to Somna’s story, where dreams and reality intertwine, and how it is expressed through different artistic styles. Drawing the variant cover was so much fun!” The second issue of Somna releases on January 31, 2024 on DSTLRY. Meanwhile, the standard and Oshimi variant covers for the third issue will launch on March 27. Cloonan shared that Oshimi is one of her favorite manga artists of all time and co-created Lotay added: “It is an honor to have such an author. Clever and iconic as Shūzō Oshimi illustrates our characters. Oshimi-san has a deft talent for creating an atmosphere of fear and fleeting hope—a perfect complement to the world Becky and I have built in Somna.”
Fans can already read the first issue of Somna, which DSTLRY describes as: Set against the backdrop of the horrors of witch hunts in a quiet English village in the 1600s, Somna follows a woman escape from the confines of her pure world. Ingrid is unhappily married to Roland, the town’s bailiff and chief witch hunter, who has embarked on a singular mission to purge ‘heretics’ in their midst. After a famous town leader is found murdered, accusations mount and no one can escape blame for Roland’s deadly crusade. Ingrid suspects who the real murderer is, but even as she searches for the truth, she is pursued by a shadowy figure. Ingrid is drawn to the foreboding ghost in ways that she cannot resist; Does this otherworldly charm hold the key to the mystery? Or will he banish Ingrid’s soul to the darkest circles of Hell?
Kodansha and DSTLRY’s exchange program is another example of how art has no borders. This is not just limited to comics and manga, but even Korean comics are growing rapidly. Story Inc., the makers of the popular Japanese anime Suzume and Weathering with You, recently announced that they will launch a Matrix-inspired webtoon Red Pill Blue Gazer. Bones’ anime Metallic Rouge has similarly announced a webtoon adaptation coming in March. For fans wanting to explore the medium further, Anime Corner’s Andrea Tran recently offered her thoughts of Goodbye, In-Law! in her review.
Source: Press Release© Becky Cloonan, Tula Lotay, DSTLRY, Shūzō Oshimi