Pokémon Adventures to return to Vietnam

First two volumes to be released this month

Friday, April 3, 2015

Reported on Bulbanews by Zesty Cactus

This local article reports on an event in a specific geographical location. It may not be relevant for all readers.

After a long hiatus in the country, the Pokémon Adventures manga is returning to Vietnam. The manga, known as Pokémon Đặc Biệt in Vietnamese, will be published by Kim Đồng Publishing House, one of the largest manga publishers in Vietnam. The new Vietnamese releases will begin on April 6 with the release of Volume 1, followed by Volume 2 on April 20. Following this, new volumes are expected to be released on Mondays every two weeks.

Pokémon Đặc Biệt Volume 1 cover artwork

In the early 2000s, Kim Đồng Publishing House previously released the first twelve volumes of Pokémon Adventures in Vietnamese, but the series was discontinued when the publisher's Japanese partner cancelled their contract. These volumes were published in a left-to-right format with reversed artwork; the new 2015 releases will retain their original right-to-left reading format. In late 2014, Kim Đồng Publishing House regained the rights to publish Pokémon Adventures in Vietnam. The new releases were originally projected for a January 2015 release, but numerous delays involving the co-ownership of the rights to the Pokémon franchise in Vietnam have pushed the release back to April.

The Vietnamese translation of the manga will use the trademarked romanizations of Japanese names for characters, Pokémon and locations, but will translate the names of moves (and likely Abilities) into Vietnamese. Unlike the Japanese releases, the Vietnamese volumes will not include a dust jacket.

Kim Đồng Publishing House has hosted several promotions and contests to celebrate the release of the series, including an event named Selfie cùng Pikachu, which will be held in Ho Chi Minh City on April 5, the day before Volume 1 is to be released. Attendees will be able to purchase the volume early and have their photo taken with a Pikachu mascot. Attendees arriving between 8 am and 11 am will have the chance to pick up special gift items including Pikachu balloons, paper hats and stamps. Attendees who email their photos with the Pikachu mascot will be entered into a special contest on Kim Đồng Publishing House's Facebook page; five winners will receive a Pokémon figure and a free copy of Volume 2. The photos must be submitted on April 5—submissions after this date will not be accepted.

External links

Official announcement by Kim Đồng Publisher (Vietnamese)