During a panel at New York Comic Con 2025, Kodama Tales announced via its social media that it has secured the licensing for Boichi’s Sun-Ken Rock and Yuzuko Hoshimi’s MAGICA manga series for English release.
Here are the specifics regarding the publisher’s latest licenses:
Sun-Ken Rock
Story and Art: Boichi
Release Date: April 1, 2026
Kodama Tales will issue the series in omnibus format as the “Perfect Edition.” Each volume will feature newly designed covers exclusive to the English release and will combine about two of the original Japanese tankobon volumes.
The publisher also revealed that the new English editions will showcase revised dialogue and draw from both the original Japanese volumes and the newer Korean Perfect Editions.
Sun-Ken Rock was initially serialized in Shonengahosha’s Young King magazine from April 24, 2006, to February 22, 2016, resulting in a total of 25 tankobon volumes in Japan. The manga was previously accessible in English digitally via JManga, Crunchyroll, BookWalker, and Manga Planet.
The main synopsis of Sun-Ken Rock is outlined by Kodama Tales (via Amazon) as:
Ken Kitano has lost everything. He’s lost his family, his dreams, and even his first crush, Yumin, who suddenly left for Korea to pursue her dream of becoming a police officer. He spends his days embroiled in one meaningless fight after another, but one day, upon discovering Yumin has actually achieved her dream, he decides to follow in her footsteps and travel to Seoul. Only, instead of becoming a cop, he captures the attention of a street gang and becomes their boss! Suddenly, his strength, values, and beliefs are challenged as he navigates a new life that he’s determined to keep a secret from Yumin, a cop to her very core. Sun-Ken Rock is a gritty and raw action-drama by Boichi, the acclaimed artist behind Dr. STONE! This cult classic blends explosive artwork with powerful storytelling and makes its English debut in a must-have edition.
MAGICA
Story and Art: Yuzuko Hoshimi
Release Date: March 1, 2026
MAGICA will be released in two full-color volumes that will include “beautiful foil treatments.” It is a short story manga anthology comprised of six distinct tales. Daiwa Shobo published the manga in two volumes in Japan between 2020 and 2021.
The main synopsis of MAGICA is described by Kodama Tales (via Amazon) as:
Each and every being has a wondrous story to tell, if you’ll listen. Long, long ago, there once lived a beautiful mage. The mage possessed but one spell: the peculiar ability to transform the twinkle of life into gems. This magic held no power to save anyone, but the mage believed in it, witnessing all the comedies and tragedies throughout the universe and weaving them into tales of wondrous luster. And thus, the curtain rises on a heart-stirring fairy-tale fantasy!
Kodama Tales also confirmed at its New York Comic Con panel that it will initiate the release of Mitei Hattori’s Smile! manga series in January 2026 and Miyashita Hiroki’s Me and the Alien MuMu manga in February 2026.
Sources: Kodama Tales Official Twitter, Anime News Network, press release, MangaAlerts Twitter Account
- Used Book in Good Condition
- George Trombley (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 376 Pages - 08/22/2014 (Publication Date) - Learn From Zero (Publisher)
- Ken Fukuyama, Yuki Fukuyama (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 246 Pages - 10/11/2022 (Publication Date) - Independently published (Publisher)
- Used Book in Good Condition
- Sumiko Uo (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 6 Pages - 01/01/2005 (Publication Date) - QuickStudy (Publisher)
