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 Full
Circle: The Unofficial History of MixxZine
By Adam "OMEGA"
Arnold
Part One: "100%
Pure Motionless Picture Entertainment"
A Moon Star Is
Born
Victor Chin, who is currently the
Director of Distribution for Mixx Entertainment, and Ron Scovil
Jr., translator of Central Park Media's anime The Tale of
Genji, had a company called Studio Phoenix that focuses on
multimedia anime and manga projects. They met Stuart Levy, of the
multimedia firm Japan Online, at an AOL entrepreneur trade show
in 1996 and he expressed interest in wanting to do manga, as did
Ron and Victor. One thing led to another, and they soon decided
to combine their efforts with aid from the University of Southern
California Annenberg Incubator Project. The initial site called
Phoenix Atrium never saw a full launch. But, "MixxZine, or
"CoMixx" as it was then, launched in its place on paper
(ANN: An Interview with Ronald Scovil, Jr.)."
However, to compete with Viz's Manga
Vision monthly anthology magazine they needed a series that
would not only give Viz a run for their money, but blow them out
of the water. In the Manga Scene section of Wizard #67 the
announcement came "that a licensed, English-translated
version of Naoko Takeuchi's original Sailor Moon manga
will soon be available in the United Stated--one of four
different manga titles (the other three to be announced shortly)
which will be serialized in an upcoming American manga magazine, Mixx
Zine."
When all the features were
hammered out it was clear Mixx-Zine was something truly different.
The magazine would follow a broad reader-base strategy with a
magazine that sported glossy color covers and news print
interiors that were, in Stu's words, "Thick and Cheap."
The magazine's thickness came from the four full-paged manga
titles; Tsutomu Takahashi's hard hitting homicide cop drama Ice
Blade (Jiraishin), Hitosi Iwaaki's ultra-violent alien
invasion story Parasyte (Kiseiju), CLAMP's fan-favorite
RPG-themed Magic Knight Rayearth, and Naoko Takeuchi's
much-loved Sailor Moon. That's two manga for Shonen Otaku
and two manga for Shoujo Otaku, though from the beginning it was
planned to split the magazine into two separate magazines, this
was impossible at the time due to cost restraints. This "broad
base" approach was patterned after the effects Sailor
Moon had on the anime market. It was a given that the
American readers would buy the magazine for Sailor Moon
and then "discover the appeal of different manga styles in
one comic series (Wizard #68)."
Carl Gustav Horn summarized the
situation best with, "There's no doubt that Mixx Zine
is an extremely ambitious--and risky, venture. […] But,
there's no denying that the manga so much anime is based upon has
lagged behind here thus far. Mixx Zine definitely means to
change that."
 Mixx-Zine 1-1 (August 1997) first saw the light of
day as a special print run to coincide with a trade show as a
promotional item. The VIP one year subscribers who signed up via
Mixx-Zine's phone lines were rewarded with a special edition Mixx-Zine
1-1 which was planned to feature a gold boarder, but due to
restraints it shipped with a grey boarder in March of 1997. Two
months later, in May of 1997, the general market version was
shipped to video game, comic book, and book stores. Rather good
timing for on June 9, 1997, at 8:30 AM, Sailor Moon was
revived on USA Network as a part of the USA Action Extreme
Team line-up. The Mixx revolution had begun.
Building a Better
Magazine
The survey that appeared in the
pages of Mixx-Zine 1-1 filled two purposes. The first was
clearly to get a reader reaction to having Sailor Moon
with two male oriented stories that were no more violent than the
average video game. The second was to give readers their chance
at collecting ‘MixxMoney' for which they could trade their
dollars in for merchandise and goods, such as the graphic novel
collections that would appear in the future. The first chance to
earn 100 MixxMoney, or MMs, was in the form of a survey that
appeared on page 208 of the first issue, right on the back of the
final page of the first Sailor Moon story. Readers who
sent it in were entered into a database with the VIP subscribers,
who also received MMs for joining, so the dollars earned could be
tracked and used at a later date.
The survey provided a forum for
Mixx Publications, Inc. to gauge who was reading Mixx-Zine
and what the readers were looking for. The questions covered the
basic info of name and address, to hobbies and occupation,
personal information like allowance and salary, and merchandising
questions about the planned graphic novels and MixxGames as well
as the possibility of an anime division.
 The second batch of Toy's ‘R' Us
exclusive Sailor Moon videos came packaged with Mixx-Zine
subscription cards that could be redeemed for a free issue with
no obligation of having to subscribe. Depending on when the card was
mailed, the date Mixx-Zine received the card determined
which issue would be sent, for it took a while for it to be
processed. So if the card was mailed when Mixx-Zine 1-1
was being shipped the free issue would of been 1-2 when it was
shipped. But, in some instances the free issue turned out to be
issue 1-3, even if two cards were mailed at once. Interestingly,
the invoice request for subscription read like a bill with the
body featuring: "Thank you for subscribing to MixxZine --
100% Pure Motionless Picture Entertainment featuring Sailor
Moon, Parasyte, Rayearth, and Ice Blade.
You should be receiving your first issue soon if you have not
received it already. In order to receive the remaining issues of
your MixxZine subscription (6 issues per year), you must
complete the above payment coupon and return it in the envelope
provide. The next issue will be mailing soon, so please act now
in order to avoid missing an issue. Please disregard this invoice
if payment has already been sent."
 When Mixx-Zine 1-2 (October 1997) hit the
stands it was clear that the magazine had made another evolution
based on readers reaction. The paper stock went from a high-grade
newsprint to glossy stock paper which many of the top comic books
and magazines were using. This change instantly increased the
sharpness of the lines but also made the background page colors
much darker, a small price to pay to get an anthology magazine
that rivaled the original Japanese version in paper quality. The
magazine's actual dimensions changed as well. The second issue
was one centimeter smaller in height, making it the same size as a
normal comic book. Along with these changes, the company itself
also underwent a change as it transformed from Mixx Publications,
Inc to Mixx Entertainment, Inc. and moved from Olympic Blvd to W.
Adams Blvd in Los Angeles, California.
For many readers, issue one was
excellent, but the Postal Service was not kind to the magazine
causing it to become torn, bent, and ragged. Reader letters
pointing out this fact pushed Mixx to decide that Periodical Poly-bagging
was needed to keep the issues safe. This helped ensure that a
higher number of issues would survive the long trek from Mixx to
the reader's mailbox. But, nothing is ever sacred to the postal
service. On a side note, the second issue of Mixx-Zine
literally shipped to the newsstands before it was shipped to the
subscribers. In issue three's case, the opposite was true.
MixxGames Failed
Attempt at the Market
 As Mixx-Zine 1-1 was hooking readers, Mixx
Entertainment's software division, MixxGames, was hard at work
finishing up localization of the lifesim Graduation for
Windows 95. Though originally advertised to be released July 15,
1997, the game was not "100% complete, packaged and shipping"
until the first week of August. Though this was a typical delay
which virtually all games go through, Graduation did not
see a domestic release because most large-scale stores do not
trust games of Graduation's sim-like nature to sell. This
fact doomed the game to be a web-only commodity.
The English release of Graduation
is actually the second game in the series from which the original
game spawned a Graduation anime, an alternative-universe Sailor
Victory series, and a sequel series called Marriage,
all of which are 2-part OVA series. In many ways the sequel took
the original concept and made a new game which was true to the
original but gave enough innovations for gamers to be satisfied.
The MixxGames' packaging is, in
all practically, a waste of space in that the game comes in a
single white CD envelope contained inside of a gigantic empty box
with no other documentation (the documentation is on the CD). The
box has several screen captures taken from the game at various
points, though none of them show the actual school portion where
the majority of the game takes place. But, the game is an
exceptionally entertaining game for its time. Though it won't
give you "Over 100 hours of game play" like the box
says, it will give a challenging and fun romp that should not be
overlooked. [For more information on the story and actual game
play behind Graduation, be sure to visit Charles Don Hall's Graduation Webpage.]
Other programs that were made
include the Sailor Moon, Ah My Goddess!, and You're
Under Arrest U-Print CD-Roms which are anime-themed graphic
programs with allow the user to print their own stationery,
postcards, posters, and calendars. The Japanese division also
produced a series of U-Print CD-Roms as well as over 20 Japanese
edutainment CD-Roms.
"I Want My Mixx-Zine!"
 The September 1997
Previews solicitation for Mixx-Zine 1-3 (December 1997)
unwittingly caused a slight stir on mailing list and message
boards on the Internet as comments about the cover which has a
photo of the SM Dancers taken at Altanta's video game convention
E3. The controversy steamed from the fact that the costumes had
been modified to show bare mid-rifts and for some reason the
photo showed Sailor Moon as having ‘wings' which she
shouldn't have at that time. Overall, a rather silly stir which
was swept under the rug because the actual issue featured the
Naoko Takeuchi cover from the second Sailor Moon graphic
novel with a different shot of the SM Dancers to the right of the
MixxZine logo.
 The third issue of Mixx-Zine did
expand on the MixxMoney concept and gave another chance for
readers to fill out a survey. A new section called Mixx Hot Pix
was added right after the masthead which featured various clips
of manga edited to showcase items such as video games, trading
cards, and cosmetics. At the same time, the issue let the cat out
of the bag that Mixx-Zine was planning on starting another
magazine and asked for help to make it successful. The hush-hush
announcement asked readers to send in favorite pictures so they
could be published in the new magazine. The announcement also
gave word that, "In the next Mixx, we will tell you more
about the new mag." Something new was definitely brewing in
the air.
 February 1998's Mixx-Zine 1-4 unveiled the
MixxMall where the full details of the MixxMoney was finally
hammered out. In order to earn or burn MMs, you had to be a Mixx
Subscriber, but anyone could order products from the MixxMall.
The two items available were the computer games The 3D
Adventures of Sailor Moon by 3VR and MixxGames' Graduation,
but subscribers could also burn their MMs on exclusive MixxZine T-shirts
(300 MMs), Authentic Rayearth and Sailor Moon
Animation Cells (1500 MMs), and an Exclusive Naoko Takeuchi
Authentic Signboard (3000 MMs). The issue also moved the Reader
Art and Letters Pages to the front of the book and made them full
color.
 Crammed between the fourth installments of Ice
Blade and Parasyte was the third Mixx page featuring
some of the most important announcements the magazine has seen
thus far. The Mixx Pocket Manga were announced at the starting
price of $11.99, a price cheaper than other publishers graphic
novels. The first release would turn out to be Magic Knight
Rayearth Vol.1 at the same time issue 1-5 would be released. Sailor
Moon would soon follow afterwards. Further announcements
called for the creation of a Web Board on the Mixx-Zine site as
well as more site updates and the possibility of a pen-pal or
bulletin board area in Mixx-Zine.
The Biggest surprise of all came
from the full page advertisement for the new magazine SMILE.
"Coming soon from Mixx Entertainment. A hot new photo/style
magazine for the fashionably gifted- SMILE." The ad
went on to give a run-down of the magazine's features; street
fashion, photo stickers, shopping spree, accessories, fun fotos,
guy watch, hangouts, love Q&A, available bachelors, and
fiction. Later in the magazine, page 103 featured the Important
Announcements where the full information of the magazine was
reviled:
"Mixx Entertainment's new
fashion & foto magazine, SMILE!
Did u notice kewl-looking ad for our new magazine Smile?
Well, we've finished the prototype, which looks very stylin'. Now
we're starting to collect fotos and other stuff for the Premiere
issue. It will be released this Spring or early Summer. So, for
those of u who are into Smile, it will be emphasizing
fotos of your friends, kind of like a school yearbook, as well as
street fashion, fiction, illustrations, boys, and other stuff.
The magazine's pretty much for girls, but since a lot of cute
girls' photos will be published, guys should consider checking it
out 2...u might find a cute girl. Anywayz, we're looking for
Mixxers who want to help us gather info and fotos. If you're
interested, please e-mail to smile@mixxonline.com. It'll be tons
of fun, and u can be located anywhere in North America. If you're
a student (Junior High, High School or College), that's ideal. E-mail
us!"
"The Mixx
Revolution continues!"
 The good news just kept on coming. Mixx-Zine 1-5
(April 1998) heralded the announcement of the 5th Mixx Story,
Harlem Beat, a sport manga by Yuriko Nishiyama which is
serialized in one of Japan's most popular manga magazines, Shonen
Magazine. The new manga would make its dramatic debut in
issue 1-6, but this very issue featured the cover of the graphic
novel as a teaser as well as a MM Contest in which contestants
could fill in dialogue for a page of Harlem Beat, he two
winners dialogue entries would go on to appear in issue 2-1.
 The MixxStore page
had been expanded with pre-order info on not two, but three Mixx
Pocket Manga Books; Magic Knight Rayearth Vol.1, Sailor
Moon Vol.1, and Parasyte Vol.1. The books were to be
released in April and in the ad featured their original covers,
though the actual releases of Sailor Moon Vol.1 and Parasyte
Vol.1 featured drastically different covers upon their
release, much to the dismay of fans. The MixxMoney burn section
was also expanded to offer a P-Anime Ryo-Ohki Mouse Pad (150 MMs).
On the web, Mixx-Zine's site
featured a extended gateway page that presented to dawning of the
Mixx Revolution before going to a core page where visitors could
click on an image map featuring links to the main Mixx page as
well as manga info pages. The main Mixx page in April 1998
presented info on the Harlem Beat and long term plans for Ice
Blade that hadn't made it into magazine; "Our next title
is HARLEM BEAT!! If you've never heard of it, don't worry,
it's a basketball title and it's really cool. We'll be putting Ice
Blade on vacation for an issue or two, but we'll bring it
back to finish up the current story. Some of you love Ice
Blade and some don't, but we'll definitely be finishing up
the current story. But for now, enjoy Harlem Beat!"
The rest of the page went on to
discuss the Pocket Manga books, give a link to the web board
registration page, a banner page so people can link to Mixx, the
company statement, as well as Stu's words, a place for Stuart
Levy to talk directly with readers about the latest happenings in
his life and with Mixx. Pretty much your basic, down-to-earth web
site.
 To round out the first year of Mixx-Zine,
Issue 1-6 (June 1998) was a shining example of how far Mixx-Zine
had come. They had gone from four advertisers to a full range of
advertisers, and this would be the last time B.U.M. Equipment
would dominate the back cover on a regular basis. The issue also
featured Stafford Smith's Atom Girl on the contents page
with a caption of "‘Why is this here?!' Is that what
you are thinking? ‘Cause it's phun art done by Stafford
Smith, who lives in Japan! Tell us what u think!!" Besides
that, the issue's major announcements consisted of expoundings of
previous announcements, but they were all dominated by word that
Naoko Takeuchi, the creator Sailor Moon would appear at the 1998
Comic-Con in San Diego. Definitely not a bad way to wrap up a
years worth of the Mixx experience.
Next Chapter: Entertainment
For The New Millenium -->
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