A History of Manga Entertainment (Part 1)

A look back at the company responsible for the UK's introduction to the world of Japanese animation

Manga Entertainment was originally founded in the United Kingdom in 1987. It is famous, infamous in some cases (yes, I’m looking at you, Mad Bull 34) for introducing Anime to the United Kingdom. As of 2023, Manga as a brand no longer exists following its acquisition by, and is now known as, Crunchyroll. But we’ll get to that. Nevertheless, Manga UK’s legacy will always have its mark in entertainment history and so, let us recount theirs, as much as we continue to relive it on our screens today.

In the late 1980s, a new subsidiary of Island Records was created, with marketing director Andy Frain placed in charge. By 1991, the company purchased the distribution rights to Akira. It was subsequently released into cinemas and was a success. Its acclaim would grow even further as Akira would be shown on UK national television shortly after. Suddenly, a huge window of opportunity and potential opened; the western world was ready for Anime.

From Akira’s success came the creation of the Manga Video label later that year. Managed by Laurence Guinness day to day, Laurence went on to become executive producer on almost every Manga Video release throughout the 90’s. Timing was everything; Manga Video acquired many of the big licenses, and the partnership with American publisher Central Park Media allowed the English dub costs to be shared. This gave Manga the tools to hit the UK market with many releases in the nineties VHS generation.

This ‘Manga Video’ brand would become synonymous with anime throughout the 1990s, dominating the world cinema sections of HMV’s and Virgin Megastores (remember those?) across the country. As the world outside of Japan grew to appreciate anime as a medium it is, as opposed to the misconception that it was just another genre, anime quickly grew to have a home of its own as other Western-based publishers and distributers burst onto the Anime scene.

As the UK’s first anime outlet, Manga distributed and produced some of the best (and worst) the medium has to offer. By the time Manga’s first collector’s catalogue was published for in 1995, there were 74 titles logged within it, with many more on the horizon. Retail success came from monthly OVA episode releases (e.g. The Guyver, Giant Robo), collections that were made very affordable in the short term due to the cost spread of around £5.99 - £9.99 per volume. Perfect for any student’s pockets.

As the catalogue grew and grew, Akira had continued success in the home market, as it remained at the forefront of the Manga Video label. It came at a time when dark science fiction (Robocop, Aliens, and Escape from New York) was at its peak in Hollywood. Early releases such as Venus Wars, Lensman and Doomed Megalopolis gave Manga a clear target audience, that being young men, and quickly became the label's marketing strategy. Manga’s regular release schedule of edgy, dark and often very violent productions soon became the bulk of its catalogue. The same can be said of Manga’s advertising strategy also; dark, edgy, and almost grotesque, risqué imagery designed to appeal to the “beer and curry” were bold yet flawed, given their placement were within video game magazines such as Super Play that appealed more to the teenage generation. Either way, intentional or not, it certainly worked on me as a thirteen year old of the time.

Part of Manga Video’s strategy to appeal to its intended targets was dubbing over the original Japanese dialogue. These English dub tracks were often scripted to include extra, often unnecessary yet hilarious, profanity to increase the age rating classification (a process known as ‘fifteening’) to keep in line with this target demographic. Some releases had their soundtrack score compositions completely replaced, with mixed results (Cyber City Oedo 808 is a prime example of both methods). Over time however, the lack of subtitled releases, which would not largely arrive until the DVD line materialised, would be a constant source of complaint from the growing UK Anime fan-base.

Despite Manga Video’s VHS success for at least half a decade, the success of Akira could never be replicated. Seeing potential in a new feature, Mamoru Oshii’s Ghost in the Shell, Andy Frain was instilled as co-executive producer. This allowed Manga to release the movie on a worldwide scale. This ultimately led to a US-relationship, expanding the Manga Video catalogue even further. When Ghost in the Shell arrived in 1995, it performed well but not to the levels Akira reached, with many of its new direct-to-video releases, such as Ninja Scroll, faring better for sales. The direct investment into GitS did not lead to a return in profits, which ultimately led to Andy Frain stepping down from the company. And thus began troubling times for the label that began so well….

Join me next time as I explore what becomes a difficult, transitional period for Manga Video, as it aims to carry its legacy into the DVD market under a new, US-led leadership. Ta ta for now!