Death, Jr. gets reborn as a manga

If the graphic novel to video game path is pretty much a motorway, the game to comic book one is more a deserted path over a clifftop in the Orkney Islands, frequented by sullen teenagers writing poetry about their dark souls. In other words, we can't think of many who've passed that way (leaving aside the murky marketing-driven world of Pokémon and the like).

But this attractive artwork for the just-announced Death, Jr. manga series suggests the occasional detour might be acceptable.

Having began its life as a PSP game, Death, Jr. is already being reborn as a PSP sequel (Death, Jr. 2: Root of Evil) and a DS game (Death, Jr. and the Science Fair of Doom). Now a manga publication is on its way, courtesy of up-and-coming Western manga publisher, Seven Seas.

"We're excited to see DJ, Pandora, and all of the unforgettable Death, Jr. characters come to life in such a popular format," says Mike Mika, the man in the know at developer Backbone Entertainment. "Seven Seas has helped create a great visual concept and storyline for the manga."

Written and drawn by the enigmatically-named Hai (who previously created Blade for Barter), Seven Seas' Death, Jr.: Pandora manga shines the spotlight on the eponymous son of Death's girlfriend.

The plot, we're assured, sees Pandora discovers a secret portal that 'sends her to the future and into the body of her teenage self'. Besides having to grapple with teenage angst, she must save the future Death, Jr. a snake-haired foreign exchange student 'with a deadly gaze and even deadlier intentions'.

Don't ask us, we just tell it as we hear it.

"A big driving force behind manga is the female audience," claims Seven Seas' president Jason DeAngelis, who clearly frequents different comic shops to us.

"It's the perfect opportunity to put a manga spin on Death, Jr., " he continues. "The Death, Jr. universe is one of those unique sandboxes that's a blast to get in and play, and we'll be taking these characters along a wild ride the likes of which they've never seen."

Quite a boast considering one of those characters is the offspring of the Lord of the Underworld, but we'll reserve judgement until we've stained it with our sweaty hands.

The Death, Jr.: Pandora manga will be presented in the standard manga format: black and white, digest-sized, 192 pages. It's due in 2007.