This might not be “news” so much as a history piece, but I didn’t really know what else to tag it.

If you have only recently started reading manga, then you might not have any idea who or what Tokyopop is. However, for a good while, they were one of the only, and best sources for translated manga in North America. They published series like Fruits Basket, Sailor Moon, Chobits, Planetes, and many others.

This article goes a bit into some of the events leading to the end of Tokyopop, from the Great Recession, Borders Bookstores closing, and losing some valuable licenses. However, it focuses specifically on a reality TV show Tokyopop produced in an effort to reinvigorate the brand, but was such a disaster that it ended up just heralding its demise.

It is a really interesting bit of the story that I was not at all familiar with.