WEBTOON is expanding its manga-to-vertical-format offerings—this time with a specific focus on BIPOC authors.
On June 25, the leading webcomics platform announced a new partnership with digital comics brand Saturday AM to bring six of its titles to WEBTOON in a vertical scrolling format. These series will debut in the second half of the year:
- Clock Striker (Issaka Galadima and Frederick L. Jones)
- Apple Black (Odunze Oguguo (Whyt Manga))
- Hammer (JeyOdin)
- Gunhild (Fred Tornager)
- Massively Multiplayer World of Ghosts (Oscar Fong and Frederick L. Jones)
- Titan King (Tony Dawkins)
Clock Striker features the first Black female lead hero in shonen manga history. The story follows 12-year-old Cast, who dreams of becoming a SMITH—part-warrior, part-engineer, and all problem-solver.
A major hit across Africa, Apple Black centers on a young sorcerer named Sano who questions whether he truly is the savior foretold in a prophecy. Hammer follows 14-year-old Stud, who can transform parts of his arms into hammers—a power that unfortunately gets in the way of forming real friendships.
Clock Striker, Apple Black, and Hammer will launch this fall.
Frederick L. Jones, founder and publisher of Saturday AM, described the partnership as a chance to make their stories even more accessible and to “normalize diverse representation in manga.” He said, “As a Black man, I’ve long believed that manga is culture much like hip hop and benefits when it reflects the wide world around us. We deeply share WEBTOON’s efforts to bring more people to comics on a global scale and can’t wait for people to experience our joint plans.”
Jones founded MyFutprint Entertainment in 2013 and created the Saturday AM manga anthology magazine to develop and market new manga concepts from creators around the world. Several of their series have earned nominations or honors from YALSA, the TLA Mavericks list, the Children’s Book Council, Cybils, and the Japan International Manga Awards.
Ryan Lee, Head of US Content at WEBTOON Entertainment, called Saturday AM the “perfect partner to bring more incredible new voices” to the platform. “Their work has helped open doors for a new generation of creators, and we share their commitment to making comics more inclusive and reflective of the world around us,” he said.
WEBTOON will announce official launch dates for each series at a later time.
Source: WEBTOON
