{"id":152880,"date":"2026-04-04T13:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T20:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/?p=152880"},"modified":"2026-04-06T08:43:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T15:43:01","slug":"manga-mavericks-books-licenses-oni-dawn-bakumatsu-high-school-girls-ball-chain-manga-series","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/2026\/04\/04\/manga-mavericks-books-licenses-oni-dawn-bakumatsu-high-school-girls-ball-chain-manga-series\/","title":{"rendered":"Manga Mavericks Books Licenses Oni &amp; Dawn: Bakumatsu High School Girls &amp; Ball &amp; Chain Manga Series"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/2026\/02\/26\/manga-mavericks-books-announce-distribution-deals-with-pathway-book-service-gazelle-book-services\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Manga Mavericks Books<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> announced the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/2026\/01\/10\/manga-mavericks-books-licenses-2-new-manga-series-at-anime-los-angeles-2026\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">licensing of two new manga series<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> at this year&#8217;s Anime Boston: <i>Oni &amp; Dawn: Bakumatsu High School Girls<\/i> and <i>Ball &amp; Chain<\/i>. Both titles which will be released in the last quarter of 2026 and early 2027.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\">Here are the details on the new licenses:<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 20px;color: #000000\"><b>Oni &amp; Dawn: Bakumatsu High School Girls<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_152884\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-152884\" style=\"width: 350px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"152884\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/2026\/04\/04\/manga-mavericks-books-licenses-oni-dawn-bakumatsu-high-school-girls-ball-chain-manga-series\/oni_and_dawn\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?fit=1055%2C1500&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1055,1500\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Oni_and_Dawn\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;\u00a9 2022 Ikuta Hana\/TWO VIRGINS Co., Ltd.&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?fit=211%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?fit=696%2C990&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-image-152884\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?resize=350%2C498&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Oni &amp; Dawn: Bakumatsu High School Girls manga volume one cover\" width=\"350\" height=\"498\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?resize=211%2C300&amp;ssl=1 211w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?resize=720%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 720w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?resize=768%2C1092&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?resize=696%2C990&amp;ssl=1 696w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?resize=295%2C420&amp;ssl=1 295w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn.jpg?w=1055&amp;ssl=1 1055w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-152884\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\">\u00a9 2022 Ikuta Hana\/TWO VIRGINS Co., Ltd.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Story and Art: <\/span><b>Hana Ikuta<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Release Date: <\/span><b>October 2026<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The manga series will be released in single volumes at A5 (5.83&#8243; x 8.27&#8243;) size. Print pre-orders for the first volume are available <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/store.mangamavericks.com\/products\/oni-dawn-bakumatsu-high-school-girls-volume-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">here<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><b>Synopsis<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">:\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Pack your bags and grab your sword, because class is now in session for this dramatic GL series.<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Somewhere in Japan, very special students have gathered at Koharu Girls\u2019 High School. What makes them special, you ask?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Sakamoto, Takasugi, Katsura, Katsu, Hijikata, Okita, Kondo\u2026<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">All these girls possess the souls of the great samurai from the Bakumatsu period! Living as teenage girls with their memories intact, they must navigate modern society, deal with messy historical baggage, and fight for love in a school that forbids romance.<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 20px;color: #000000\"><b>Ball &amp; Chain<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_152883\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-152883\" style=\"width: 350px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"152883\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/2026\/04\/04\/manga-mavericks-books-licenses-oni-dawn-bakumatsu-high-school-girls-ball-chain-manga-series\/version-1-0-0-38\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ball_and_Chain.jpg?fit=1000%2C1419&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1000,1419\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Version 1.0.0&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Version 1.0.0&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Ball &amp;amp; Chain manga volume one Japanese cover\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;\u00a9 2024 Qta Minami\/MAGAZINE HOUSE Co., Ltd&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ball_and_Chain.jpg?fit=211%2C300&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ball_and_Chain.jpg?fit=696%2C987&amp;ssl=1\" class=\" wp-image-152883\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ball_and_Chain.jpg?resize=350%2C498&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Ball &amp; Chain manga volume one Japanese cover\" width=\"350\" height=\"498\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ball_and_Chain.jpg?resize=211%2C300&amp;ssl=1 211w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ball_and_Chain.jpg?resize=768%2C1090&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ball_and_Chain.jpg?resize=696%2C988&amp;ssl=1 696w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ball_and_Chain.jpg?resize=296%2C420&amp;ssl=1 296w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ball_and_Chain.jpg?w=1000&amp;ssl=1 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-152883\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span style=\"font-size: 16px;font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">\u00a9 2024 Qta Minami\/MAGAZINE HOUSE Co., Ltd<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Story and Art: <\/span><b>Minami Q-ta\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Release Date: <\/span><b>March 2027\u00a0 <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The manga series will be released in a 2-in-1 omnibus format at A5 (5.83&#8243; x 8.27&#8243;) size. The first omnibus volume is now available for print pre-order <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/store.mangamavericks.com\/products\/ball-chain-omnibus-1-volumes-1-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">here<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\">The manga is also currently nominated for the 30th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><b>Synopsis<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">:\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">&#8220;Maybe I could have chosen something different&#8230;&#8221;\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Keito is a late-20s company employee who&#8217;s planning to get married as a &#8220;woman,&#8221; despite not feeling cemented into a specific gender or sexuality.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Meanwhile, Aya is a married woman in her 50s who continues playing out the role of &#8220;wife&#8221; despite being in a marriage that&#8217;s long since gone cold.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">They both struggle with a gender that was decided upon birth and the &#8220;wife&#8221; role that became nothing more than a pantomime at some point.<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This is a story of two queer people who harbor doubts about how they&#8217;ve been treated and shoved into a &#8220;normalized&#8221; box, and try to take back their true selves.<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 16px\"><b>Source<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">: press release<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Manga Mavericks Books announced the licensing of two new manga series at this year&#8217;s Anime Boston: Oni &amp; Dawn: Bakumatsu High School Girls and Ball &amp; Chain. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":152887,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[122,11239,11481],"class_list":["post-152880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-anime","tag-manga","tag-manga-mavericks","tag-manga-mavericks-books"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Oni_and_Dawn-1-e1775258288163.jpg?fit=1055%2C595&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8n4QV-DLO","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152880"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/39"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=152880"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152880\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":153082,"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152880\/revisions\/153082"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/152887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=152880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=152880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anitrendz.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=152880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}