Viz Announces New ‘Pokemon’ Manga For 2013

It looks like Viz has solidified its Pokémon plans for 2013 as three new all-ages volumes continuing established pocket monster narratives are set to arrive along the course of this spring and summer. First up is Momota Inoue's manga adaptation of the recently localized Pokémon The Movie: Kyurem Vs. The Sword of Justice on March 5, followed by the videogame-based Pokémon Adventures: Black & White Vol. 1 and Pokémon Adventures: HeartGold and SoulSilver Vol. 1.Written by Hidenori Kusaka and illustrated by the artist known as Mato, along with Satoshi Yamamoto, the long-running Pokémon Adventures series has served as something of an alternative to the long-running PKMN anime by focusing on new characters and plots per each generation of video game rather than following Ash and Pikachu through heavily-modified narratives reflecting each new game's lore. The newest volumes are being released a little bit out of chronological order as the Pokémon Black and White videogames were released in 2011 and Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver (themselves enhanced remakes of the 2000 Gold and Silver games) debuted in 2010, but considering their essentially standalone nature, most fans will probably welcome the material in any order.

Pokémon the Movie: Kyurem vs. the Sword of Justice is the 14th and most recent PKMN animated feature, debuting on Cartoon Network this past December before being released digitally and on physical home video formats. It's manga adaptation is a done-in-one and delivers the film's full story in a single volume.

From Viz's official solicitation info:

POKÉMON THE MOVIE: KYUREM VS. THE SWORD OF JUSTICE Manga

Rated "A" for All Ages · MANGA MSRP: $9.99 U.S. / $12.99 CAN ·

Available March 5th

Keldeo is determined to become a Sword of Justice, but to do so he must defeat Kyurem, one of the most powerful Dragon-type Pokémon in the world. Keldeo challenges Kyurem, unleashing a destructive force even Ash and Pikachu may be powerless to stop!

POKÉMON ADVENTURES: BLACK & WHITE MANGA, Vol. 1

Rated "A" for All Ages · MSRP: $9.99 U.S. / $12.99 CAN ·

Available July 2nd

Meet Pokémon Trainers Black and White in this new full-size graphic novel edition of the popular series previously published in a special edition format. His entire life, Black has dreamed of winning the Pokémon League! Now he embarks on a journey to explore the Unova region and fill a Pokédex for Professor Juniper. White has an exciting career as the Trainer of a talented troupe of performing Pokémon. She dreams of making her Tepig Gigi a star! Together, Black and White continue on their journey... What surprising new Pokémon – and people – will they meet next?!

POKÉMON ADVENTURES: HEARTGOLD AND SOULSILVER MANGA, Vol. 1

Rated "A" for All Ages · MSRP: $9.99 U.S. / $12.99 CAN ·

Available August 6th

Your favorite Pokémon Trainers Gold and Silver are back! Crystal too! And so is Team Rocket... In this two-volume thriller, troublemaker Gold and feisty Silver must team up again to find their old enemy Lance and the Legendary Pokémon Arceus. Meanwhile, Team Rocket is on the rampage: digging up, stealing, and collecting 16 mysterious plates for some nefarious purpose known only to them... What is the hidden power of the 16 plates, and what do they symbolize...?