Most powerful people in manga, Comipedia, Brits humiliate Yanks 1-0

ICv2 has compiled a top-10 list of the most powerful people in the North American manga industry, and they are:

1. Kurt Hassler, Graphic Novel Buyer, Borders Group
2. Hidemi Fukuhara, Chief Executive Officer, Viz Media
3. Stuart Levy, Founder, CEO, Chief Creative Officer Tokyopop
4. Dallas Middaugh, Associate Publisher of Manga, Del Rey
5. Jim Killen, Graphic Novel Buyer, Barnes & Noble
6. Mike Richardson, CEO & Publisher, Dark Horse
7. Mike Kiley, Publisher, Tokyopop
8. Yumi Hoashi,  EIC & VP of Magazine Division, Viz Media
9. Hikaru Sasahara, CEO, Digital Manga Publishing
10. Masashi Kishimoto, Creator of Naruto

First interesting thing that pops out is the inclusion of Masashi Kishimoto, the only creator on the list.  (Well, technically Kurt Hassler and Mike Kiley Stuart Levy are also “creators,” but that’s not why they’re on the list.)  While I’m kinda iffy on his admittance to this list of most “powerful”…I’m not sure if he actually exerts any direct power over the industry in the U.S…. but the importance of Naruto simply cannot be overstated.  This one title was essentially 1/10th of the entire manga market in 2006.  Believe it!

The other immediately noticeable thing is just how bookstore-centric the list is.  Kurt Hassler takes top spot in his role as book buyer for Borders, and Jim Killen, buyer for Barns and Noble, comes in 5th.  Missing in action is any mention of Diamond Comics, or say, people like Kuo-Yu Liang of Diamond Books.  And ICv2 is a news site geared towards DM retailers, mind you.

ICv2 explains their picks in their Retailer’s Guide to Anime/Manga #16, and they also reveal the next 10 runner-ups, so there’s a good reason to pick up a copy.  Then again, how much faith can you place in the accuracy of this publication, when they neglected to mention… me on their list!?  Huh, huh!?

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From the people behind Comipress and Mangacast comes something that could be very cool… ComiPedia, a directory of information and links to Japanese publishers and magazines of all varieties.  Should be very handy for fans, and even publishers looking for Japanese companies with whom to build a relationship.

Edit: Here’s an introduction to the project by Ed Chavez, Basque Separatist manga reviewer.

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America lost an embarrassing amount of face today when Tanoshimi, a U.K. division of Random House, announced they will release Air Gear without the crack-phobic edits that marred the cover of the American Del Rey edition.  British guy David Taylor, who will soon be enjoying Air Gear in all of its cheeky glory, has more on this ignominious defeat.  Oh America, where did she go wrong?