AnimeNation Anime News Blog

It’s been previously reported that FUNimation’s release of Dragonball Z movie 4: Lord Slug will employ new music provided by popular rock bands including The Deftones, Disturbed, Boy Hits Car, Dust for Life, Finger Eleven, American Pearl and Broken. AnimeNation has been informed by our FUNimation home video distributor that the DVD version will have identical music to the uncut VHS version. We interpret this to mean that the DVD version will only include the new American soundtrack and not the original Japanese background and vocal music.

Beginning Monday, July 2nd through the 6th, Toonami.com will allow site visitors to vote on which animated series should be re-broadcast on Toonami beginning on the 16th. This is not a vote for brand new series. Only series that have already aired on Toonami at least once are eligible.

According to Toonami Revolution, “Pilot Candidate,” the American version of the 13 episodes sci-fi/mecha action series Megami Kohousei, will premier on Toonami in September.

The Frieza: Revealed DVD will be available on July 10th. The World Tournament “The Draw” and “Blackout” DVDs will be available on July 31st. The Garlic Jr. DVDs should be available soon. The Z Warriors Prepare DVD has been delayed to an unspecified date.

The World Tournament “The Draw” and “Blackout” VHS tapes will be available on July 17th. The fourth theatrical movie, Lord Slug, will be released on VHS and DVD on August 7th. Babidi: Descent and Babidi: Battle Royal will be available on VHS on August 28th, and Babidi: The Dark Prince Returns and Babidi: Showdown will debut on September 25th. The Babidi story arc is the beginning of the Majin Buu saga, the final, long Dragonball Z story arc.

Dragonball Z movie 5 is now tentatively scheduled for release in January 2002.

The official Dragonball Z site has posted a list of the 125 cards to be included in the upcoming Androids expansion of the Dragonball Z Collectable Card Game.

The Japan Technical Events Consortium, based in Los Angeles, California, is now accepting final reservations for package tours to Comic Market and the Autumn Tokyo Game Show.

Comic Market, or “Comiket,” for short, is one of the world’s largest anime and doujinshi conventions, simply dwarfing even the largest comic book coventions in America. Over 22,000 fan and professional exhibitors are expected to serve over 300,000 anticipated attendees!

The Tokyo Game Show is world famous as the place to be for the latest in console gaming news and announcements. The three day event is limited only to credentialed industry professionals the first day, then open to the public the second and third day.

Prices for travel and accommodations will be determined based on the total number of people registering for the tours, but package tours are usually significantly less expensive than individually booking travel arrangements separately.

FUNimation has opened their official Blue Gender website. The site currently includes news, teasers, and links.

Source: Right Stuf International

Generation of Chaos, the Playstation 2 sequel to the two Playstation Spectral Force strategy RPG games, will be released in Japan on August 2nd in a 6800 yen game only edition and an 8800 yen limited edition version. The limited edition version, similar to the Z.O.E. limited edition, will include a bonus DVD of the new Generation of Chaos anime OAV.

Although neither of the original Spectral Force games has ever made it to the US, AD Vision does own the English language distribution rights to the original Spectral Force anime OAV series from 1999.

Source: The Magic Box

The Gaming Intelligence Agency has published screen shots, character images, and a detailed preview of the upcoming Gameboy Advance RPG Magical Vacation. Produced by Nintendo, Magical Vacation is the first game from production studio Brownie Brown, a company largely made up of former Squaresoft employees, most of whom worked on the Seiken Densetsu (Secret/Legend of Mana) games. Nintendo has confirmed that Magical Vacation will be coming to America, but no release date has been established yet.

Question:
I was wondering if you had heard any rumors that “Kodocha” would be getting a U.S. release or not? If not, how come no one wants to pick up this awesome series?

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Tezuka Productions and Osaka based Internet production firm Contents Japan have joined forces to bring the late Osamu Tezuka’s classic manga and anime creations to the web, officially starting in August. Right now the Japanese Black Jack site already has a trailer for the internet Black Jack movie available in Macromedia Flash. Popular J-pop vocalist Utada Hikaru has been announced to pay the voice role of Dr. Black Jack’s daughter Pinoko.

Source: Japan Today

For those keeping track of such things, according to Newtype Magazine:

Comic Party aired its thirteenth and final TV episode on the 24th.

Gear Fighter Dendoh ended on episode 38 and Shin Shirayukihime Densetsu Pretear and Soul Taker ended their 13 episode broadcasts all on the 27th.

Gene Shaft concludes its 13 episode run on June 28th. Anime Complex Night, featuring Kotetsu Tenshi Kurumi 2 Shiki and Hanaukyo Maid Tai, ends both series on episode 12, also on the 28th.

Zoids Zero will conclude with episode 26, airing on June 30th, and G Dangaioh will conclude with episode 13 on July 5th. Meanwhile Pocket Monsters is still going strong, with episode 210 scheduled to air on July 5th.

Coming as no surprise, Working Designs has delayed the release of the Arc the Lad Collection. The domestic collection, now scheduled for release late this fall, will include American versions of all three original Playstation Arc the Lad strategy role-playing games.

Source: Gaming Intelligence Agency

Seiko has announced that they will begin retailing a domestic replica of the wristwatch worn by Aki Ross in the Final Fantasy movie this summer. The Final Fantasy movie watch will be produced in limited number, and each piece will be serially numbered. The wristwatch will retail for $299 in Canada and $199 in the US.

Source: The Magic Box

Director Paul Anderson explains in an interview with Shivers Magazine why the Resident Evil: Ground Zero movie seems to be so far removed from the story contained in the video games. “To be scary you have to be unpredictable and that’s why I felt completely free to reinvent the story and use my own set of fresh characters…The suspense dynamic of who is going to live, who is going to die and what people’s allegiances are was only going to work with new characters.” Anderson states, ” “I’m a huge fan of the game and as a die-hard fan I wanted a movie version that is respectful of it, builds on its premise and delivers on its promise.” The excerpted interview posted online also reveals more detail on the movie’s story and goals.

Source: Anime News Service

Question:
I see the words “mecha,” “mech,” “mechas” and “mechs” all used in different ways. What is correct? I thought that “mecha” was singular and plural, but if that’s true, where and when and why did all of these other words come into play? Can you explain what is correct and how and why these other words were introduced?

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AD Vision’s David Williams has confirmed for Anime on DVD that Robotech DVD volumes 5 & 6, and the third Robotech Legacy boxed set will be released on September 18th. Robotech DVD 6 will conclude the 36 episode Macross Saga.

Robotech DVD volumes 3 & 4, “Homecoming” and “Battlefront,” will be available on August 7th, along with the second Robotech Legacy boxed set. DVD volumes 3 & 4 will both contain 6 episodes each.