For our last release of 2017, we have Moyashimon chapters 123, 124 and 125 from volume 11, which we just barely managed to get done before the end of the month. We would have liked to have gotten this out sooner, but then back when we started this series, we didn't really think we'd already be on volume 11 by the end of the year, so all in all, our pacing hasn't been that bad, even considering a few breaks we've had to take between volumes here and there. This is still one of the most difficult projects we've ever done, though, so naturally it takes a long time to get through even a single volume, but it's more than worth it for an incredible series such as this one.
All in all, this was a pretty interesting year for us. We saw the release of Ayumi Komura's Taiyou x Ten BL one-shot after waiting for it for a couple of years, we decided to pick up Moyashimon in one of our most ambitious projects to date, and we even finally finished Kuragehime after working on it for over seven years. Add to that picking up a new gender bender series by Ayumi Komura (Kamieko), completing another gender bender series by Fumiko Fumi (Josou Danshi to Menhera Oji-san), Nisekoi Boyfriend getting a second volume, and completing Ookami Shounen, and this year had a lot of great moments to remember. The only other series we picked up this year was LiLy by Mayo Ebisawa, but it went on hiatus almost immediately afterwards.
This also was the year that we saw two of our previous projects get licensed, both by Seven Seas Entertainment: Nanashi no Asterism and Hanayome wa Motodanshi. So it's good to see them getting official releases so that perhaps more people will read them, as well as Kuragehime, the only other one of our projects to get licensed. So yeah, in seven years, only three of our dozens of projects have been licensed, which just goes to show you that despite there being more opportunities for gender bender series to get licensed nowadays, the vast majority of gender bender series will still never get licensed, and that is exactly why we do what we do, and we hope you continue to enjoy our releases in the future. Despite there not being that many series we picked up this year, there are always new series on the horizon, and we're always looking to pick up some good ones to share.
Now for the year-end update for all of our projects. First of all, we'll be working on Moyashimon v11 for the time being until it's complete, and then we will work on Kamieko v03 that just came out a few days ago. The only volumes that have projected release periods are Mizutama Honey Boy v08 around March or April, and Shiomi-chan v04 around May or June. Although we completed Ookami Shounen, we're still waiting for volume 5 to come out to complete it with those raws, and that'll be out sometime early next year, perhaps February or March. And Seito Kaichou will continue on a monthly basis.
Our other three projects are a lot harder to pin down. Shimanami Tasogare is still ongoing, but we don't know when volume 4 will be released, although we can be reasonably sure that it won't be out until late 2018.
Shounen Oujo has been on hiatus since June with currently 3 chapters not in a volume, so when it does return, it probably won't take that long until volume 6 comes out. However, we don't know when it will continue, so we're hoping that volume 6 will come out sometime in 2018. The longest hiatus for Shounen Oujo to date has been 2 years, so six months into this most recent hiatus, we just hope we don't have to wait that long for the next volume, as this is now our oldest ongoing project from when we released the first chapter 6 years ago today on December 31, 2011. But we're still hopeful that we'll see it completed someday.
Speaking of hiatuses, as mentioned above, LiLy has been on hiatus since March due to the author's maternity leave. We had assumed that the manga would continue sometime in late 2017, but now that that hasn't happened, we're not really sure what's going on with this series. Mayo Ebisawa might still be on maternity leave, but it's been quite a long time already for that. The manga is still on Ura Sunday's website, though, so we assume that means it hasn't been canceled. All we can do at this point is wait and see if it comes back or not, but there's no way of knowing when that will be.
But for now, we'll be working on Moyashimon as we inch ever closer to its eventual conclusion. We hope 2017 had been a good year for you, and that perhaps some of our releases gave you some enjoyment. Come back again in 2018 for another gender bender-filled year as we wish all of you a Happy New Year!
Moyashimon ch. 123: Mediafire, Dropbox
Moyashimon ch. 124: Mediafire, Dropbox
Moyashimon ch. 125: Mediafire, Dropbox
