The “New Edition” (新装版 Shinsōban) of Buronson and Tetsuro Hara’s classic Fist of the North Star manga series began its release last week in Japan, with the first two volumes hitting 13 September 2023, to be quickly followed by subsequent volumes in the coming weeks.
Alongside each new volume, the surrounding obi comes with a new comment from a contemporary/prominent manga artist, with volume one’s comment coming from none other than Dragon Ball‘s own Akira Toriyama himself:
The bold, catchy story! The detailed and impactful artwork! At the time, this manga was both my most reliable ally and my biggest rival with the Shōnen Jump editorial team.
The first volume of the new edition is available for purchase on Amazon Japan. Other manga authors already announced for comments on additional volumes include Hirohiko Araki (Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure) for volume two, Osamu Akimoto (KochiKame) for volume three, and Masanori Morita (Rokudenashi Blues) for volume four.
Viz is currently releasing premium hardcover editions of the original Fist of the North Star manga, with volume ten due out later this month.
Fist of the North Star predated Dragon Ball in Shueisha’s Weekly Shōnen Jump, debuting in 1983 and then running contemporary with Dragon Ball into 1988.
2 Comments
This looks like it’s roughly equivalent to the version Viz is putting out… and it’s probably going to finish before the Viz version does…
The new shinsoban are smaller than the new Viz versions, and they’re also softcover unlike the hardcover Viz versions. There’s likewise no new translation work and sound effect painting that needs to happen in the original because, well, it’s the original!