NEW YORK, NY – Digital manga platform and publisher Azuki has announced the release of Kodansha’s Young Magazine U.S. Special Issue on its platform, making the extensive collection of manga available for free to all users. The announcement was made at Anime NYC 2025.
This special English edition celebrates the 45th anniversary of Kodansha’s popular seinen manga magazine, known for serializing hits like Akira and Ghost in the Shell. It offers over 1,000 pages of new manga content from both established and emerging artists.
A Gateway to “Unfiltered Manga”
The Young Magazine U.S. Special Issue is designed to introduce American audiences to a curated selection of seinen manga, characterized by its “unfiltered” approach to storytelling. The issue features genres such as sci-fi, dark horror, and cyberpunk, often exploring the raw realities of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances.
Kodansha initially announced in July that Young Magazine would expand into the U.S. market with this new English-language edition, featuring 19 brand-new manga chapters exclusively for American readers.
Featured Creators and Fan Engagement
The special issue includes works from legendary manga creators, enhancing its appeal to a broad readership. Notable contributors include Shuzo Oshimi, known for The Flowers of Evil and Blood on the Tracks; Masaaki Nakayama, author of Fuan no Tane and PTSD Radio; and Shuichi Shigeno, creator of Initial D. Additionally, the special edition includes the first chapter of UNDER NINJA, a manga currently serialized in the Japanese Young Magazine, and the new series Subaru and Subaru by Shuichi Shigeno.
A significant interactive element of the release is a fan voting event. Readers can choose their favorite titles from 16 eligible manga, with the winning manga slated for serialization on Kodansha’s official manga app, K MANGA. Voting is open until November 10, 2025, on Kodansha’s official website and X (formerly Twitter) account, with final results to be revealed on December 15.
Availability and Azuki’s Role
The Young Magazine U.S. Special Issue is available digitally on the Azuki platform for free to all users. While the physical copies were distributed at Anime NYC 2025 at the Kinokuniya booth and at select Kinokuniya bookstores, the digital version offers widespread accessibility.
Azuki, a digital manga publishing and distribution service, aggregates English-translated manga from various publishers, including Kodansha. Launched in June 2021 by KiraKira Media Inc., Azuki provides thousands of chapters through monthly subscriptions or individual purchases, and also licenses and translates manga in-house. The platform is available on its website, iOS, and Android apps. Readers can access many titles for free with advertisements or upgrade to a Premium subscription for $4.99 a month for an ad-free experience and discounts on volumes.
The special issue will be available for free on Azuki until December 31, 2025. Users can permanently add the digital edition to their Azuki library during this period. This initiative by Azuki and Kodansha marks a notable effort to expand the reach and engagement of seinen manga in the U.S. market.
