Broken Frontier

TOKYOPOP Inc., the country’s leading manga publisher, will release a full-length series entitled Van Von Hunter from Mike Schwark and Ron Kaulfersch of Pseudomé Studio, noted prizewinners of TOKYOPOP’s first Rising Stars of Manga™ competition. Fans of the Pseudomé Studio web comic Van Von Hunter (www.vanvonhunter.com), a highly popular resource and gathering-place for the best and brightest of the American manga-ka community, will recognize the laugh-out-loud blend of hilarity and adventure of legendary Van Von Hunter, hunter of all things evil!  Along with an amnesiac sidekick, the renowned Von Hunter nobly strives to kick some butt and return harmony to the peaceful land of Dikay. Readers will experience all of the silliness in manga form when Van Von Hunter releases in May 2005.

When asked about the Van Von Hunter project and their whole Rising Stars of Manga experience, both wacky creators responded simultaneously in a droning chant, "It is good to work with TOKYOPOP. Why not become one of us? One of us! One of us!"

Editor Lillian Diaz-Przybyl champions the dynamic duo of Schwark and Kaulfersch and their first major release: "Van Von Hunter is a riotously funny spoof of the clichés of both the American and Japanese fantasy traditions.  Nothing is safe in this world of witches, menacing strangers, giant spiders and mysterious magical objects.  Pseudomé Studio has done a terrific job of cleverly puncturing some of the over-inflated sacred cows of the genre with sharp, witty wordplay and dry humor."

Based in Cleveland, Ohio, Mike Schwark and Ron Kaulfersch began their creative endeavors back in the mid-90's with their work on the indie anime project, II: Prologue. With such a large project hanging over their heads, they created Pseudomé Studio to help house it, and future projects. Afterwards, the studio produced a fully animated talk show entitled THE Show, which was designed as an informative yet fun take on the how-to of making animation and comics.