Train Man (Densha Otoko) manga release

[xris]

Viz has announced the release dates for Train Man (Densha Otoko).

Train_Man: DENSHA OTOKO • MSRP: $9.99 • Available October 2006
From Densha Otoko a story of a hopeless geek, a beautiful woman, and a fast connection—could the Internet be his ticket onto the express train to romance? A real-life thread on a Japanese Internet forum sparks a nationwide phenomenon! A nerdy otaku meets a girl on a train and posts an urgent query on the Web—how the heck do you talk to girls? What should he wear on their date? Where should they go? The forum's response was amazing, and the thread continued to grow along with their relationship. Eventually published in book format to become a best seller, the thread spawned a blockbuster movie and hit TV series, as well as this heartwarming manga adaptation of an entire Internet community rooting for love and romance.

Amazon also list (as pre-orders) the first two volumes.
Volume 1 17th October 2006
Volume 2 19th December 2006

I also notice the following on Amazom

Densha Otoko: Volume 1
Release date of 11th October 2006 by CMX (i.e. DC Comics). Is this the novel or a mistake by Amazon? This is listed as by Hitori Nakano, Wataru Watanabe (Illustrator) while the Viz release is by Hitori Nakano, Hidenori Hara (Illustrator).

Update:
How odd, CMX is also reporting the release of the manga. CMX News.

CMX obtains the rights to two popular manga titles
By Heidi MacDonald, PW Comics Week
May 24, 2006

DC's CMX line of manga will introduce two new titles this October: Densha Otoko (Train Man) by Hitori Nakano and Wataru Watanabe and Penguin Revolution by Sakura Tsukuba.

The story of the "Train Man" created a sensation in Japan, and has been adapted into a movie and a TV show as well as four different manga serials. Supposedly based on a real incident, it's the story of a shy otaku who spots a beautiful girl on the subway, and then saves her from a drunken attacker. After he posts his experiences on a popular Internet bulletin board, the girl contacts him and he begins a "straight eye for the otaku guy" transformation into a self-confident man who can actually date a real woman.

More on PublishersWeekly.com

Well, they do mention there are four different manga serials, so it seems we get two of them.

[NeoSam]

There are 4 Densha Otoko manga; 3 seinen manga and 1 shoujo manga.

Here they are:

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電車男 ～ ネット発、各駅停車のラブ・ストーリー ～
Densha Otoko ~ Net Hatsu, Kakueki Teisha no Love Story ~

Seinen manga
Serialized in: Young Sunday

Covers of volumes:



By: Hidenori Hara

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電車男　でも、俺旅立つよ。
Densha Otoko ~Demo, Ore Tabidatsu yo~

Seinen manga
Serialized in: Champion RED

Covers of volumes:



By: Hitori Nakano and Wataru Watanabe

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電車男　がんばれ毒男！
Densha Otoko - Ganbare Doku Otoko!

Seinen manga
Serialized in: Young Champion

Covers of volumes:



By: Hitori Nakano and Daisuke Douke

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電車男　美女と純情ヲタク青年のネット発ラ
Densha Otoko - Bijo to Junjou Otaku Seinen no Net Hatsu Love Story

Shoujo manga
Serialized in: Dessert

Cover of volume: (only one volume and finished)



By: Michiko Ocha

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Densha Otoko ~ Net Hatsu, Kakueki Teisha no Love Story ~ is licensed by Viz Media.
Densha Otoko ~Demo, Ore Tabidatsu yo~ is licensed by CMX.

[xris]

Thanks for that. Are there any opinions or comments on the two versions planned for English release? I assume that since both are written by Hitori Nakano we'll have the same basic story in the different version, so I would expect that much of a difference in the written word. From the artwork (and please bear in mind this is based only from the cover artwork supplied by the NeoSam in the above post), I have a prefence for the CMX release, Densha Otoko ~Demo, Ore Tabidatsu yo~, art by Wataru Watanabe.

[ShikaShika]

Hmm... if I had to judge given those covers, I would say that I much prefer Douke Daisuke's artwork. Watanabe's character designs look a bit too bland, and the characters look like they're in junior high. If I didn't know anything about any of the mangas, Douke's is the only one I would even consider picking up, the others just didn't fit my taste. Plus doku otoko is such a funny word.

[vampireyuki18]

omg! i love Train Man! its a cute and funni story! i wish that could happen to me.

[LeaD36]

this is actually a pretty fun read, though a slim resemblance to a fairy tale, but then again close to reality aswell.

[MrTerrorist]

Sometimes i wonder if the story of Train Man is true in the first place. If it is then how come i haven't seen a picture of the real Train Man and his girlfriend?

[2H-Dragon]

Originally Posted by MrTerrorist

Sometimes i wonder if the story of Train Man is true in the first place. If it is then how come i haven't seen a picture of the real Train Man and his girlfriend?

Well they said the original novel was based on true situation. It's very plausible so I'm willing to believe it's probably somewhat true, but the novel and the adaptions are probably overly dramatized. Unlike Koizora which I think is 100% bullshit.

[Mykas]

In the dvd version of train man they discuss it in the commentary and based on thier investigation they believe it is either made up or a collection of things that happened to many people.

[KimmyChan]

I think I may have to invest in all 4 volumes of this manga series as I think the live-action movie version of this story is really good

[Telcalipoca]

i own Hidenori Hara's version of train man and i absolutely loved it. usually when i buy a manga i wont buy the next volume til a week later but as soon as i finished volume 1 i went for volume 2 and the next day i bought volume 3.Some times people find things they could relate to in their anime/books/movies/manga and this was the first time i was able to relate to my medium of entertainment.I spend my days in an internet grp where we all share our day to day lives so reading train man reminded me of my internet community .