Shojo Beat

Shojo Beat

Shojo Beat Volume 1, Issue 1, cover dated July 2005
Editor-in-Chief	Hyoe Narita
Former editors	Yumi Hoashi Marc Weidenbaum
Categories	shōjo manga
Frequency	Monthly
Circulation	38,000 (2007)
Publisher	Hyoe Narita
First issue	July 2005
Final issue — Number	July 2009 Volume 5, Issue 7
Company	Viz Media
Country	United States
Based in	San Francisco, California
Language	English
Website	http://shojobeat.com/
ISSN	1932-1600

Shojo Beat is a shōjo manga magazine formerly published in North America by Viz Media. Released in June 2005 as a sister magazine to Shonen Jump, it featured serialized chapters from six manga series, as well as articles on Japanese culture, manga, anime, fashion and beauty. After its initial launch, Shojo Beat underwent two redesigns, becoming the first English anthology to use the cyan and magenta ink tones common to Japanese manga anthologies. Viz launched related "Shojo Beat" imprints in its manga, Japanese light novel, and anime divisions to coordinate with the magazine's contents.

Targeted at women ages 16–18, the first issue of Shojo Beat launched with a circulation of 20,000. By 2007, the average circulation was approximately 38,000 copies, with half coming from subscriptions rather than store sales. It was well received by critics, who praised its mix of manga series and the inclusion of articles on Japanese culture, though some critics found the early issues boring and poorly written. In May 2009, Viz announced that it was discontinuing the magazine; the July 2009 issue was the last released. Fans were disappointed at the sudden news. Industry experts felt its loss would leave female comic fans without a magazine of their own, but praised Viz for its choice to continue using the "Shojo Beat" imprint and branding for its shōjo manga and anime releases.

In February 2005, Viz Media announced the creation of a new manga anthology, Shojo Beat. Marketed as a sister publication of Viz's existing Shonen Jump, the magazine started with six manga titles: Crimson Hero, Kaze Hikaru, Baby & Me, Godchild, Nana, and Absolute Boyfriend. Of the six titles, two each came from Japanese publishers Shueisha, Shogakukan, and Hakusensha. The first issue, released in June 2005, featured Nana Komatsu of Nana on its July cover.