e-book publisher BookLive announced in late March that it has suspended distribution of the English version of the manga written and illustrated by Sousuke Touka, Ousama Ranking (Ranking of Kings), and is in the process of retranslating the series. BookLive began shipping the manga’s first seven volumes in English on February 18, but readers have pointed out typographical errors and improper translations. Customers who have already purchased the books in English will be able to download the retranslated version for free when it is reloaded.
This is how the situation was explained.”officially“, but in reality the suspension was carried out because it was exposed that they took the translations of the scanlators (groups of users who get manga scans and translate them), that is, they took what fans illegally translated and published it on paper. A specialized site explained in this regard:
«Once once more, we find a company that can easily afford to pay more for a quality product, but nevertheless decides to try to go the cheap way. By hiring an agency, BookLive certainly saved money. And you can be sure that the agency, Digital Dragon, did not pay the translator a good salary. It seems that the agency hires Indonesian talent. I have heard that agencies pay translators who live in first world countries 100 yen per page, which is basically nothing. And since the cost of living in Indonesia is extremely low, I wouldn’t be surprised if the agency paid their translator from the Republic of Korea a fraction of that. No wonder the translator didn’t give a shit regarding the job and was content to copy the already terrible scanlation. It’s a sad and pathetic situation overall».
Keep going: “BookLive might have hired a reputable translator who had a good page count and resume under their belt. Yes, it would have cost a lot more. But what is the real cost of BookLive’s poor decision? I’m willing to bet that most English manga readers have never heard of BookLive, and now their first encounter with the company is this embarrassing news. I think everyone should take a look at the document that Katrina Leonoudakis did comparing the BookLive versions and the scanlations line by line, because it really shows how badly the translator of this series did it.». The aforementioned translator Katrina Leonoudakiscommented on this:
«I have manually typed and examined all 826 lines of dialogue from volume 1 of Ousama Ranking to compare the official version with the one scanned above. 42% of all dialogue in chapter 1-3 of the official “translation” is directly extracted from the scanlation», thus confirming the “alleged plagiarism”. It is mentioned as alleged since the fan translation is done illegally, so it is not actually copyrighted.
On the other hand, Touka has been serializing the manga on the independent site Manga Hack and elsewhere since May 2017, while Kadokawa published the twelfth compiled volume on December 10. The manga inspired an anime adaptation that premiered in October 2021 and aired for two continuous arcs (quarters of the year). Funimation handled distribution in the West.
Synopsis of Ousama Ranking
The people of the kingdom despise the young prince Bojji, who cannot hear or speak. They call him “The Useless Prince” while making fun of his alleged stupidity. However, although Bojji may not be physically strong, he is not weak at heart. When a chance encounter with a shadow creature should have left him traumatized, he instead leads her to believe that he has found a friend among those who only choose to look at his flaws. He begins to meet with Kage, the shadow, regularly, to the point that even the otherwise abrasive creature begins to warm to him. Kage and Bojji’s unlikely friendship lays the foundation for the prince’s journey, in which he seeks to overcome his fears and insecurities. Despite the constant teasing he faces, Bojji is determined to fulfill his wish to become the best king he can be.
Source: ANN
© Tokachi Kusuke (author) / KADOKAWA