Comics and graphic novel publisher ABLAZE dives into the tense and competitive world of chess as the setting for its new manga series launch – BLITZ – debuting on September 14th.
From the pages of Shonen Jump, BLITZ is a new shonen manga that immerses readers into the “game of kings,” where intuition and mental agility are precious assets on the way to victory! Chess grandmaster and World Chess Champion, Garry Kasparov, makes his manga debut in the series, written by Cédric Biscay and Harumo Sanazaki with artwork by Daitaro Nishihara.
BLITZ will be available in print and digitally in North America, Australia, and the UK. ABLAZE titles are distributed in-print by Diamond Comic and Diamond Book Distributors. Vol. 1 will be available in comic shops on September 14th, and in bookstores on September 27th.
ABLAZE describes the manga as follows:
Tom, a young high school student, has a crush on his classmate Harmony. When he learns about her passion for chess, Tom quickly decides to sign up for the school’s chess club. But he doesn’t even know the rules! To impress Harmony, he is left with no choice: he must learn quickly and train seriously.
Soon Tom discovers the existence of Garry Kasparov, the greatest player in the history of chess. He stumbles upon a virtual reality machine that promises to help him analyze the most legendary matches of the master!
In an unexpected twist of event, Tom soon is granted access to the highest echelons of the chess world…
Bonus material includes:
In each volume, chess strategy tips and a chess lexicon to turn every reader into a chess master!
“I’m extremely happy about this ABLAZE collaboration which brings the Blitz to the USA,” says Cédric Biscay. “Initiated by Garry Kasparov’s support between Monaco and Japan, this adventure never stops surprising me, in a positive way. With Daitaro Nishihara and Tsukasa Mori, we want to bring Blitz to the widest audience possible. I would like to thank ABLAZE co-founder Rich Young for this opportunity. I hope to meet all American readers as soon as possible!”
Garry Kasparov adds, “I have always dedicated myself to democratizing the game of chess in all possible ways, and it is a unique opportunity to be able to do it, especially in Japan, a country where it is not popular and where Shogi is the most known. If you want to communicate effectively, you must speak the language of your audience and manga is a kind of mother tongue for many young people. Therefore, the invitation from Cédric seemed to be the ideal opportunity to promote chess to a new audience, through a medium that is both visual and dynamic.”
Source: Press Release
