Kodansha USA has announced thelicense acquisition of several new manga titlesfor English print release in spring 2027 at San Diego Comic-Con 2026. The new licenses includeKraken MareandSubaru and Subaru,among others, as well as a box set release of<a href="https://anitrendz.net/news/2026/03/21/the-fragrant-flower-blooms-with-dignity-proves-old-school-romance-isnt-dead-wins-couple-or-ship-of-the-year-at-the-12th-anime-trending-awards/” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank”>The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity.
The publisher previouslyannounced a slate of manga licensesduring its industry panel at Anime Expo 2026 earlier in the month.
Here are the details on Kodansha USA’s latest licenses:
The POOL
From the creator of the sci-fi manga seriesAjin: Demi-Human.
Kodansha USA previously listed a spring 2025 release date for the manga in a prior announcement in July 2024.
Twenty years ago, a wormhole suddenly appeared above Earth’s orbit and opened a passageway to an alien planet full of untapped resources and mysterious life forms. Two decades later, Team Sierra, a small military squad of security specialists working for the Tiberius Coke Corporation, are thirty miles away from home base on that planet when their leader, Chief Yugi Oishi, spots an SOS flare coming from a theoretically abandoned mine. Despite the danger, she leads her four-man team to the facility to see who’d called for help, only for it to be attacked by a horde of powerful creatures almost as soon as the doors close behind them. Now, she and the stranded exploratory excavation crew Team Sierra finds inside must traverse the treacherous mine to reach the only vehicle that could get them to safety—without waking the terrifying monster that’s been picking off the researchers one by one.
The Cat and Dog’s Nine-Tailed Lives
One day, a pet cat and dog named Buchi and Kotaro wake up to find that they have become yokai, supernatural beings blessed with eternal life. Now, not only do they get to spend more time with their beloved owner, they can stick around to befriend his children, and his children’s children! But even as Buchi and Kotaro remain the same, their owner slowly begins to gray… A heartwarming tale about the importance of life and all its little joys.
Kraken Mare
In the distant, far-flung future, humanity’s pursuit of a vital energy source known as “Black Ether” has awakened monsters called Krakens, which lay dormant within black holes. These horrors brought humanity to the brink of extinction. A thousand years later, the Krakens are worshiped as gods by a church that exploits them to spread fear and control the remnants of humanity. Brave smugglers known as scavengers defy the iron fist of the clergy, risking their lives to mine black ether in secret for profit. The crew of the space ship Pulsar, led by Captain Paze, is tasked with extracting black ether from an extremely dangerous black hole at the request of the Mars-based pirate group Red Sand.
Oriale, a church agent and skilled Atomancer, lurks amongst the crew, pretending to be the innocent cook “Eden.” But when the Pulsar is discovered by a terrifying Abyssal Kraken, she must reveal herself in order to save the crew.
A full-fledged science fiction story in which a heroine with wild power and cunning spycraft collides with a world swirling with revolution and conspiracy.
Meaheim
A young scholar named Ren makes her way to Meaheim, the last town on the border of the Dark Lands—a bizarre place where horrifying monsters run amok, and reality itself is all but unrecognizable. With the aid of a Guide named Tobia, Ren sets off on a journey into the very maw of chaos, where she must overcome monsters known as “Witches,” traitorous adventurers, and the godforsaken land itself to retrieve the panacea and save her brother…
Rega in the Sleeping Forest
To save Princess Lorana from a sleeping curse cast by an evil dragon, Rega, captain of the kingdom’s knights, faces down a wicked wyrm within an ancient forest. Drawing upon his devotion to the princess, who rescued him from a life of slavery many years ago, Rega slays the monster, freeing the princess from her sleep. But the moment she awakens, the girl begins casting wicked magic, slaying Rega’s fellow knights and cursing the land, creating a “sleeping forest” which corrupts familiar figures into dark, monstrous forms. Stunned at this horrific sight, Rega looks up to see a crooked, crescent-moon smile in the night sky. Could this be the mastermind behind the corruption? And were those tears Rega saw in the princess’s eyes as she gleefully destroyed the kingdom she called home?
I Love You, Please Dump Me
A single-volume comedy manga and Torii’s first work in English.
“Love makes people go crazy.”
Hikaru’s always been told to be wary of love—it can make you do stupid things. Like abandon your dreams, or worse, fail your exams! Which is exactly what happens when she falls in love at first sight with the gorgeous Kairi Kira. The problem is, Hikaru’s dream of one day living it up in an expensive penthouse apartment relies on her first achieving academic success. Which is why she’s going to have to nip this little love problem in the bud. If Kairi rejects her and breaks her heart, she’ll be able to get over her feelings and focus on her grades. Except Kairi insists on becoming her girlfriend, which is definitely not part of the plan! But this should be fine, right? She just has to get used to splitting her time and attention. Or…she could, if Kairi would let her!
I Loved Him First!
A single volume Boys’ Love comedy manga.
Makoto, an ex-yazuka, has harbored feelings for his best friend Ayato since high school but has always been afraid to confess his love and risk ruining their friendship. Instead, he resigns himself to the role of best friend to the bitter end…that is, until Ayato tells him he’s dating—a guy. Makoto does a total 180 and vows to win over Ayato’s heart by any means necessary—after all, he thinks, “I loved him first!”
Subaru and Subaru
A sequel manga to Shigeno’sInitial DandMF Ghostmanga series that was previously previewed in Young Magazine USA.
The manga is also being published digitally on the K Manga app service.
One year after Takumi Fujiwara’s student Kanata Rivington tore it up on Japan’s mega-popular MFG street racing circuit, two new drivers are itching to try their luck at the event. Their names: Subaru Sato, from Gunma Prefecture, and Subaru Kudo, from Kanagawa. The worlds of Initial D and MF Ghost meld into one as these two Subarus join together to weave the ultimate street racing legend!
The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity Manga Box Set 1
A premium box set edition ofThe Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignitythat includes the first six volumes of the manga series and 10 exclusive art cards.
The manga inspired a 13-episodeTV anime seriesfromCloverWorksthat was released in 2025. Netflixstreamed the animein select countries and territories worldwide.
Chidori High is a boys’ school that takes in the dregs of society with the lowest grades. Next door stands Kikyo Girls’ High, where the wealthy, high-class families send their precious daughters. Chidori second-year Rintaro, who has a fierce face but a gentle heart, is helping at his family’s patisserie when he meets a girl named Kaoruko. The two hit it off right away…but this blissful peace is quickly disturbed when Rintaro discovers that Kaoruko is actually a student at Kikyo. Worse, she doesn’t seem to realize what a huge problem this really is! Will these two be able to forge a path for themselves, and sidestep the traps (metaphorical and literal) laid by their classmates?
