In 2006, Austen wrote "Boys of Summer", an Original English Language (OEL), adult-themed manga illustrated by Hiroki Otsuka through TokyoPop. Copies of the first volume were pulled from a number of bookstores in May that year due to its graphic content. Publishers Weekly named "The Boys of Summer" of the Top Ten manga/manhwa of 2006, calling it both "a titillating and edgy reading experience." Subsequently, news reports indicated that the series had been cancelled even though the other two volumes were written and drawn, and both Austen and Otsuka had been paid. The first volume is available in English and Austen stated that all three would likely see print in other languages, if not in English. He also stated that doing the series was such maturing experience for him as a creator that he would never go back to superheroes or work-for-hire again. A 600-page hardcover edition collecting all three volumes, "The Boys of Summer: The Complete Season", was scheduled for August 2008, but Austen reported it cancelled in a July 2008 interview.