DC Universe Infinite Adds Kodansha Titles, Manga-Style Reader
DC and Kodansha’s superhero manga series have officially been made available for DC Universe Infinite‘s paid subscribers.
In 2020, DC entered an agreement with Japanese publisher Kodansha, allowing the latter to put out manga series based on DC’s characters. Earlier this year, DC announced plans to release English-language, manga-style collected editions of three Kodansha titles: Joker: One Operation Joker, Superman vs. Meshi, and Batman: Justice Buster. These titles were also announced for the DC Universe Infinite (DCUI) digital subscription service.
Per DC, the first English print volumes of Joker: One Operation Joker, Superman vs. Meshi, and Batman: Justice Buster are set to hit comic shops, bookstores, and online retailers on Tuesday, Sept. 5. In the meantime, the three manga series are now available as weekly chapters for DCUI’s paid subscribers.
Additionally, DCUI has implemented a new feature allowing readers to read these stories in the traditional, right-to-left manga style. Pre-existing DC manga titles on DCUI have also been updated to be compatible with the new manga-style reader. These include Batman: The Jiro Kuwata Batmanga, Batman and the Justice League, and Batman: Death Mask.
“We want everyone to have an opportunity to read DC’s new manga titles, so we’ve upgraded DCUI with a new reader so that our valued DCUI subscribers will be able to experience the books in the traditional manga format,” DC exec Anne DePies said. “The digital chapters will read right to left, the same as the physical collections that will publish later this year, giving everyone the same authentic experience. We’re so grateful to the DCUI team, and to DC’s partnership with Kodansha, for helping us bring these books to the North American market.”
What are DC and Kodansha’s manga series about?
Written by Satoshi Miyagawa and illustrated by Keisuke Gotou, Joker: One Operation Joker turns the Clown Prince of Crime into a dad. In the series, Batman falls into a vat of acid during a battle with his arch-nemesis. The acid turns the Dark Knight into the baby, leaving the Joker to raise the boy as his own.
Meanwhile, Superman vs. Meshi is written by Miyagawa and illustrated by Kai Kitago. The manga follows Clark Kent/Superman as he takes a culinary tour of Japan. Finally, Batman: Justice Buster is written by Eiichi Shimizu and illustrated by Tomohiro Shimoguchi. It follows the Dark Knight as he implements bleeding-edge tech to combat Gotham’s increasingly brazen and destructive criminals.
