greendrugstore

[greendrugstore]

Attention: Drug & Drop volume 2 misprint

As you probably know Dark Horse’s release of Drug & Drop volume 2 premiered on May 26th. I ordered my copy online. When it arrived I discovered that my book was a misprint - first 8 pages of the comic were reprinted from the beginning of volume 1. Instead of scene where Kazahaya goes to Shuuichirou's place and meets Kohaku there was a scene of his dream with Kei.

Fortunately the bookstore I’ve ordered from agreed to send me a new copy for free. 

I know about at least three other tumblr users who got faulty copies. That’s why you might want to refrain from buying your copy online for the time being. And if you’re out to buy your copy in regular store check twice if you’re actually buying a proper copy. While you can’t tell the difference from the cover, the title page is a dead giveaway, as it states it’s volume 1 instead of 2:

Big thank you to tumblr user kazahayakudo, who let me know that proper copies exist at all.

[greendrugstore]

Since my copy just arrived I thought it will be a perfect time to remind you that English edition of Drug&Drop was released last Tuesday. I haven't read it yet, so I don't know how ashamed I should be with our releases, but here are some specs I thought you'd like to know:

Released: 20 January 2015 by Dark Horse Comics Number of pages: 182 Cover: softcover, no slipcover. It has a matte finish, just like Legal Drug from TokyoPop did, so you know it will get chipped on the edges from rubbing pretty easily. You'll want to plastic wrap it. Color pages: first three pages are in color. They're printed on regular paper, not poster paper like usual though. Translator: William Flanagan (translated most of recent CLAMP titles, like TRC, xxxHolic, Kobato and Gate 7) Honorifics: yes Japanese layout (right to left): yes Sound effects: Japanese with English translations Suggested price: $10.99 US | $11.99 CAN

All in all, it's a pretty standard Dark Horse release.

If you enjoyed our scanlation you should definitely get this release. You can buy it on Amazon or Book Depository (free shipping worldwide!).

Seriously, I want it flying off the shelves.

[greendrugstore]

It's 4 months shy of a year since the last post. I was wondering if there was any news, like if the series is in Hiatus Limbo Hell, or if GDS is too busy with work/school/family to continue scanlating.

Unfortunately, it's still in hiatus limbo hell.

To check for upcoming releases from CLAMP, one should visit clamp-net event calendar. It's in Japanese, but should you spot something like "『ドラッグ＆ドロップ』 ヤングエース X月号" ("DRUG&DROP Young Ace issue X"), that means there will be new chapter soon.

If you prefer your news in English, I recommend Chibi Yuuto's Chronicles and/or Clamp Now. Both of those sites post news regarding CLAMP series, events and goods, so if any information about Drug&Drop's return surface, they will post them first.

[greendrugstore]

Drug & Drop, volume 3, Previous - 2

Download here: [MF] | Raw: [MF]

Here are some translation notes on the Moon Boat (月の舟, Tsuki no Fune) from Laura (Psiten) - published with her permission:

What I found is that it definitely is an image within Japanese culture - the term also appears in a few other series (like Ultraman) and the titles of several songs (some of which specify that it's supposed to be a crescent moon) - but there's no well-known story that it's linked to. The most coherent idea I can link it to was presented in this paper: http://cogito.ucdc.ro/2012/vol4n2/en/9_a%20symbolic-usage-of-the-boat-in-japanese-mythology.pdf

[...]  The very last page makes a reference to Chinese mythology, which may have handed its imagery down to Japanese culture, associating the moon itself with the idea of a boat (the crescent of a waxing or waning moon being the hull of a boat in which you can ride).  The Moon Boat specifically was one that dead souls take to a realm where they can be reborn into a new life.

[...] I found the poem from which all of Japanese culture takes the idea of a "moon boat".  It's from the oldest collection of waka in Japan, a 7th century short poem called Tsuki no Man'you Uta (Man'you Poem on the Moon; the syllable set called "Man'yougana" [the poem is written with] is apparently named for this ancient poetry collection A Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves), written by a man named Kakinomoto no Hitomaro (柿本人麻呂).

月の万葉歌 (Man'you Poem on the Moon):

Here's the original man'yougana version: 

天海丹 雲之波立 月船 星之林丹 榜隠所見

Here's the standard "translation" into modern Japanese:

天の海に　雲の波立ち　月の舟　星の林に　漕ぎ隠る見ゆ

And here's a rough translation I did into English:

Within the heavenly sea Where the clouds are churning waves The moon is a boat Which through grove of the stars Appears to sail with hidden oars

[...]  What I've picked up so far from trawling through cultural references is that a lot of modern people use this image for love songs, classy restaurants, book clubs, and things like that because the idea of the "moon boat" has, in modern times at least, come to represent the ability to make connections between two people (I'd assume that people are stars at a distance to each other in this situation?)

[...] That said, I don't think we can completely throw out the Chinese idea of the moon boat taking souls for reincarnation.  The organization in Drug&Drop is quite the scary enterprise.  But this poem does seem to be the source of all the myriad references to a "Tsuki no Fune" in modern Japanese culture, and would be something the audience reading this in Japan would recognize.

[greendrugstore]

That would be great! That's why I wanted someone to confirm the translation. However, when it went on hiatus in the past, the information stated when it will be back and it's not the case this time.

We will see when Japanese scans are available.

Bad news, everyone. This note at the end of leaked Chinese chapter of Drug & Drop says

下期休刊. 盡請期待本篇連載!

which roughly translates to

The series goes on hiatus from this chapter on. Look forward to its return!

No return date was provided. I hope Japanese raws will reveal it, but it’s highly unlikely.

[greendrugstore]

Bad news, everyone. This note at the end of leaked Chinese chapter of Drug & Drop says

下期休刊. 盡請期待本篇連載!

which roughly translates to

The series goes on hiatus from this chapter on. Look forward to its return!

No return date was provided. I hope Japanese raws will reveal it, but it's highly unlikely.

[greendrugstore]

Guys, this is very important. If you're Drug&Drop fan (and if you're seeing this post there's a good chance that you are) support CLAMP by purchasing actual volumes, be it in Japanese, English or any other localization of your preference. Our scanlations are purely fan made. We're not professionals. We work with scans from magazines and they tend to have low quality print on a paper that bears uncanny resemblance to phone book. By purchasing actual volumes you get:

translation and editing done by actual professionals

various references and terms explained in translation notes

high quality print

hard copy of the manga that you can caress fondly before sleep

Remember that to publisher popularity of manga is measured in copies sold, not pageviews. 

We will continue scanlating Drug&Drop, but starting January 7, 2015 every chapter will contain a notice urging you to buy official release.

Legal Drug to be re-released in Omnibus form; Drug & Drop will have its first English release.

[greendrugstore]

Drug &Drop, volume 3, Previous - 1 

[MF]         Raw: [MF] 

And we're finally back with a brand new chapter. It's labelled Previous - 1 (and for a reason), so I'm not sure if next chapter will be marked as Drop 18 or 19 (or maybe Previous - 2), so I'm leaving the filename as it is for now. It seems there will be another chapter next month, so let's hope Drug&Drop is back on track. 

Translation was provided by Laura, our fantastic new translator.

[greendrugstore]

GUYS.

Drug & Drop will be in May’s Young Ace out 4/4.

[greendrugstore]

Hi there, is Drug and Drop still not back in Japan? Sorry if I bothered you.

It's still on hiatus, unfortunately.

[greendrugstore]

News

I've been browsing through posts on CLAMP's official twitter and it turns out that they've gone to a trip to Kyoto! They posted a bunch of pictures, one of which stated they have visited Toei Kyoto Studio Park. This means that

a) they DID have reason for extended Drug&Drop hiatus after all (still, I would much prefer if they've announced it beforehand) and

b) this is most likely another research trip for Gate 7 (they made their first trip before Gate 7 started and photos from that trip often served as backgrounds in manga panels)

I'm pretty sure that both manga will continue soon.

As always, I will keep you updated should anything new come up.

[greendrugstore]

Good news and bad news

Just a quick update: first, Green Drugstore is proud to announce that we have a new translator. I'm looking forward to working with you, Laura.

Unfortunately, Hawke confirmed a few days ago that Drug & Drop is still on hiatus. That's third month in a row and it's the second longest break since Drug & Drop renewed its serialization (the longest one is 4 months long break from last year that lasted from August to December). Unfortunately the next chapter isn't even listed in Schedule section of CLAMP's homepage, so for now I will have to assume that it's on permament hiatus, just like Gate 7, even though no announcement was given beforehand.

I will keep you updated if any new info surfaces.

[greendrugstore]

Drug & Drug still on hiatus

It seems the break will be longer than expected. New chapter was supposed to be released in this month's Young Ace, but it wasn't. It looks like CLAMP is working on some mysterious project they seem excited about, so maybe that's why.

On the other hand I'm yet to receive a single application for the position of translator, so if you'll willing to help be sure to check this post. The clock is ticking, only two weeks before new Young Ace is released.

[greendrugstore]

Green Drugstore is looking for a new Japanese to English translator.

Series details: Name: Drug&Drop Author: CLAMP Genre: Supernatural, ESP, Shonen-Ai Magazine: Monthly Young Ace Average page count: 16-20 pages per chapter

Potential candidates should take the test and send it over to hydreg [at] gmail [dot] com.

Furthermore, applicants should meet following requirements:

translation needs to be done within a week (2 weeks at the very most), though God knows I am pretty lenient with deadlines

you will have to provide means of contact (e-mail, facebook, twitter, tumblr, skype, whatever works for you) that you actually check frequently

knowledge regarding other CLAMP works would be a plus, but it's not necessary

You will be provided with Japanese script like the one included in the test file (unless you don't really need it, in which case please notify me). 

And that's it! If you have any questions don't hestitate to contact me. 

Even if you cannot help us directly, it would be awesome if you could signal boost this post. Thanks in advance :)

[greendrugstore]

Drug &Drop, volume 2 Drop no. 17

[DB]         Raw: [DB] 

Man, everything that could go wrong with releasing a chapter went wrong all at once with this one. I really apologize for such a terrible delay.

Some announcements:

this is most likely the last chapter of volume 2, seeing as it didn't have any color spread and the fact that volume 2 was recently released

volume 2 was released along volume 1 of xxxHolic: Rei. To commemorate this event, a special hotsite was launched. Animate shops had a campaign, where postcards featuring cover illustrations of Drug&Drop vol. 2 and xxxHolic: Rei vol.1 were added to every purchase. Additionally, Clamp News twitter account had a set of matching icons with protagonists of those series

during October CLAMP posted a bunch of Halloween-themed illustrations featuring Drug&Drop chracters

last but not the least, Kimberley stepped down as our translator for personal reasons. She will, however, remain a member of our staff - as proofreader. That means the position of translator is now open. Recruitment details will be given in my next post,  but informations provided in my last recruitment post still apply.

[greendrugstore]

Heeeey, sorry to be a bother; but I noticed on the site I read Drug & Drop on, they've got chapter 17 up in Spanish, but you guys haven't released it yet. (Spanish ch17 was uploaded... 2 weeks ago.) I've seen a few other mangas that have regular updates that appear in Spanish usually a week before the English. I was just wondering why there's a delay/when to expect chapter 17. (And if you maybe need help getting the chapter/future chapters out.)

There are a  few factors contributing to late releases. First would be the fact that me and our translator both have jobs now. Until around May our system was to get raws, edit, translate and release a chapter, all in span of 1-3 days. Now I have a job that requires me to code for 8 hours a day and I really don’t feel like spending another 8 sitting in front of the computer editing raws when I get home, so I edit them in batches. This way edition takes about 4-5 days. Same goes with translator, so translating and typesetting takes up to another 5-7 days. 

I receive raws between 10th and 15th each month, add around two weeks of editing/translating to that and the final release ends up at the end of a month.

This month is even worse, cause I can’t seem to get in touch with our scanner. I waited extra week for the scans and then e-mailed her asking what’s wrong, but she won’t reply. I guess something must’ve happened but I have no way to check on her. 

Right now I’m editing low quality scans available online, but it takes a lot of time to make them look presentable.

Actually, I think it would be better for me to give up and pass this project to some other scanlation group, but it’s my baby and I am determined to work on it until the end. 

As for Spanish scanlators, I guess they used Chinese scans which are pre-edited and they either translated the chapter from Chinese/Japanese or used rough Chinese to English translation available on-line. I don’t want to do any of that, because I value quality over quantity. Otherwise, they just might have their own scan provider/time/manpower that I unfortunately don’t have.

I should have the scans ready until Saturday and then everything will depend on how fast translator can get them done. Besides, Drug will be on break until November, so there really isn’t that much of a hurry.

Considering that there is no real bottleneck slowing things down, just delays on every stage of scanlation, I don’t think there’s anything that can be done. Unless you know where to get hq scans soon after Young Ace issue is released, in which case let me know.

Either way, feel free to read the chapters in Spanish if they are released earlier. I can release chapters only this fast, given available resources and the quality I want to maitain. 

[greendrugstore]

Drug &Drop, volume 2 Drop no. 16

[DB]         Raw: [DB]