DrMaster

DrMaster, formally DrMaster Publications Inc., was an American publishing and distribution company focused primarily on translated manga and manhua. The company was headquartered in Fremont, California, and maintained offices in the United States, the Republic of China, and Japan. Its catalog also included a smaller number of novel adaptations and related prose publications. The company initially operated strictly as a printer of manga. It later expanded into publishing after taking over most of the manga and manhua titles associated with ComicsOne. This transition gave DrMaster a broad licensed-translation catalog spanning Japanese comics, Chinese comics, anime-related properties, and works connected with video games and other popular-media franchises. Its manga list included titles such as Dark Edge, High School Girls, Infinite Ryvius, Iron Wok Jan, Junk Force, Onegai Twins, Stellvia, Stray Little Devil, and Tsukihime: Lunar Legend. Its manhua offerings included The King of Fighters, SNK vs. Capcom, Chinese Hero: Tales of the Blood Sword, Divine Melody, and Feng Shui Academy. The company also published novel editions related to Junk Force, Onegai Twins, and RahXephon. DrMaster occupied a niche within the English-language market for translated Asian comics during a period when specialist publishers were expanding the availability of manga, manhua, and media tie-ins in North America. Its catalog combined relatively conventional genre material with titles aimed at established fans of anime, games, and imported comics. The company's corporate footprint remained closely associated with its Fremont headquarters and its cross-border publishing and distribution activity. DrMaster Publications Inc. went out of business around 2009. Its Fremont offices subsequently disappeared, and the building was later occupied by Sunesys Telecommunications. No reliable information in the supplied reference material establishes a precise founding year, founder, ownership structure, final financial position, or a successor company. DrMaster is therefore best understood as a defunct specialist publisher whose principal legacy is its catalog of manga, manhua, and related novels rather than a continuing consumer brand.

DrMaster Publications Inc. was an American company active in the manga and manhua publishing and distribution sector. Its headquarters were in Fremont, California, and the company also had offices in the United States, the Republic of China, and Japan. The available historical record does not identify a precise founding year or a named founder. DrMaster began as a printer rather than as a conventional publishing house. Its original activity was the physical production of manga. The company later changed its role in the market by entering publishing and acquiring most of ComicsOne's manga and manhua titles. That transaction or catalog takeover appears to have been the central turning point in DrMaster's development, providing it with a substantial portfolio of licensed Asian comics and allowing it to act as a publisher and distributor rather than only as a production supplier. The resulting catalog covered a wide range of genres and formats. Manga releases included works such as 888, Category: Freaks, Cosplay Koromo-chan, Dark Edge, High School Girls, Hinadori Girl, Imperfect Hero, Indian Summer, Infinite Ryvius, Iron Wok Jan, Maniac Road, Metro Survive, Pretty Maniacs, Premature Priest, Red Prowling Devil, Junk Force, Junk: Record of the Last Hero, Onegai Twins, Tori Koro, Stellvia, Stray Little Devil, and Tsukihime: Lunar Legend. The company also distributed or published manhua including Chronicles of the Vampire Hunter: Claws of Darkness, The Four Constables, The King of Fighters, Real Fake Princess, SNK vs. Capcom, Chinese Hero: Tales of the Blood Sword, Divine Melody, and Feng Shui Academy. In addition, its associated novel catalog included Junk Force, Onegai Twins, and RahXephon. This catalog placed DrMaster within the specialist English-language market for translated comics and media-related publications. Several titles were connected to anime, games, or established entertainment properties, while others represented genre manga and Chinese comics less widely available through mainstream publishers. The company's offices in multiple Asian and North American locations reflected the international licensing, production, and distribution relationships required by this business model. DrMaster Publications Inc. went out of business around 2009. The Fremont offices were no longer operating afterward, and the building was later occupied by Sunesys Telecommunications. The supplied reference material does not establish whether all of DrMaster's licenses were transferred, whether another company formally succeeded it, or what happened to its publishing rights after closure. Consequently, DrMaster's documented history ends with its withdrawal from business around 2009.

• 2009

  Company goes out of business

  [1]DrMasteren.wikipedia.org

  DrMaster Publications Inc. ceased operations around 2009, and its former Fremont offices were later occupied by another company.

• Begins as a manga printer

  [1]DrMasteren.wikipedia.org

  DrMaster initially operated as a printer of manga rather than as a publisher.

• Enters publishing through the ComicsOne catalog

  [1]DrMasteren.wikipedia.org

  The company entered the publishing business after taking over most of ComicsOne's manga and manhua titles.

A specialist publisher and distributor of translated Japanese manga, Chinese manhua, and related anime, video-game, and prose tie-in titles.

• Manga publishing

  Manga catalog

  DrMaster's manga catalog covered action, comedy, fantasy, science fiction, school-life, and other genre titles. Documented examples include Dark Edge, High School Girls, Infinite Ryvius, Iron Wok Jan, Junk Force, Onegai Twins, Stellvia, Stray Little Devil, and Tsukihime: Lunar Legend. The catalog also included shorter or niche works such as 888, Category: Freaks, Cosplay Koromo-chan, Hinadori Girl, Metro Survive, Pretty Maniacs, and Tori Koro.

• Manhua publishing

  Manhua catalog

  The company's manhua offerings represented Chinese-language comics and included Chronicles of the Vampire Hunter: Claws of Darkness, The Four Constables, The King of Fighters, Real Fake Princess, SNK vs. Capcom, Chinese Hero: Tales of the Blood Sword, Divine Melody, and Feng Shui Academy. These releases formed an important part of the catalog inherited or obtained through DrMaster's expansion beyond printing.

• Novel publishing

  Related novels

  DrMaster's documented prose publications included novel editions connected with Junk Force, Onegai Twins, and RahXephon. These titles extended the company's activity beyond comics into licensed or media-related fiction associated with anime and manga properties.

• 2009

  Cease operationsOther

  Background

  DrMaster Publications Inc. was no longer operating around 2009.

  Action taken

  The company went out of business and its Fremont offices were vacated.

  Aftermath

  The former building was later occupied by Sunesys Telecommunications. The disposition of DrMaster's catalog and publishing rights is not established in the supplied sources.

  Source

• Expand from printing into publishingStrategy

  Background

  DrMaster began as a manga printer and later sought a more direct role in the comics market.

  Action taken

  The company entered publishing after taking over most of ComicsOne's manga and manhua titles.

  Aftermath

  The move gave DrMaster a broad catalog of translated manga and manhua and established it as a publisher and distributor rather than solely a printer.

  Source

1. 1DrMasteren.wikipedia.org