Famitsu Magazine’s website now hosts a streaming Flash trailer for the upcoming World Destruction fantasy adventure anime television series from Sega and animation studio Production IG. The series is scheduled to premier on July 7th.
The page hosts a trailer for the upcoming World Destruction Nintendo DS RPG and, lower down the page, the trailer for the anime TV series.
Source: Moon Phase Diary
The June issue of Newtype Magazine (page 60) reveals that Madhouse is now developing its long delayed anime adaptation of Hiromoto Sin-Ichi & Yasushi Nirasawa’s 2003 comedy/horror/adventure manga series Hells Angels. Madhouse first revealed plans to produce an anime version of Hells Angels in 2005. The Madhouse homepage reveals that the Hells Angels anime will be OVA format.
More great news! I’ve been looking forward to this literally for years.
The “obi” advertising wrap found on the latest volume of the “Junai Cosmetic Comic: Bihada Ichizoku” (Pure Love Cosmetic Comic: Beautiful Skin Family) manga series announces that the story will be adapted into an anime television series.
Viz Media yesterday revealed plans for English language releases of Inio Asano’s “Solanin,” and Kazunari Kakei’s “Nora: The Last Chronicle of Devildom” manga series.
The Solanin comedy/drama about young adults living in contemporary Japan will be released as a single 400+ page volume retailing at $17.99.
The supernatural adventure comedy Nora: The Last Chronicle of Devildom will be released as part of the Shonen Jump Advanced line with individual volumes retailing at $7.99 each.
Source: ICv2
The 2005 comedy manga series “Yasuko to Kenji” (Yasuko & Kenji), by artist “Aruko,” will reportedly debut as a live action television series on the NTV network in July.
The story revolves around Kenji, who will be played by Masahiro Matsuoka of the pop band TOKIO, a man that works as a shoujo manga creator to support himself and his orphaned sister Yasuko. Kenji was once a gang leader, so while he appears to be a polite and gentle artist that draws girls’ comics, he takes off his glasses and reverts to his aggressive, violent nature to protect Yasuko from harm.
Source: Tokyograph
Question:
What are “MAD” video parodies? I see them on fan video streaming sites but have no idea what they are or who makes them.
SukuPara Club, a Japanese social network service for parents raising children, and printer manufacturing company Epson now sponsor a series of Flash animation shorts based on Kuma Shiroi’s online 4-koma series “Shirokuma Oyako” (Mother White Bear and Her Children). The first two 30 second episodes are available for free online viewing now.
Since they’re sponsored by Epson, these little episodes seem more like animated commercials for Epson photo printers than original anime.
Source: Anime News Network
Kadokawa Group Holdings and YouTube have announced a plan to begin placing advertising around select video clips featuring Kadokawa owned footage uploaded to the Japanese version of YouTube. Kadokawa has previously requested that all videos uploaded to YouTube that use Kadokawa copyrighted footage without authorization be removed. Under this new arrangement, Kadokawa will permit some user uploaded videos to remain online with supplementary advertising in order to legitimize user-generated content and publicize Kadokawa’s original works worldwide. Revenue generated by the advertising will be shared between Kadokawa and the original video uploader. The plan to authorize and add advertising to select videos will begin in June and initially concentrate on “MAD movies,” a distinct form of Japanese fan created parody video.
Guess this is another example of “if you can’t beat ‘um, work around ‘um.”
Source: Anime News Network
Question:
I have heard that production values change over the course of a series but I have never really noticed until now. For example, Macross Frontier is one of the most visually impressive series in recent memory and yet as the show moves on I find the characters’ faces and bodies lacking the depth and manners they had in earlier episodes to the point that they almost look like wholly different people now. So my question is, why do production values sometimes change in the middle of an anime series?
Japan’s Bandai Namco Holdings has announced plans to dissolve its American Bandai Visual USA subsidiary company by merging the company into American anime distribution company Bandai Entertainment. Bandai Visual USA was established on January 5, 2005 to distribute Japanese produced collector’s editions of anime DVDs localized for the American market. The company faced heavy resistance from American consumers due to its Japanese style retail pricing policy. During the company’s accounting period that ended in December 2007, Bandai Visual USA had lost $595,000 before taxes. Bandai Visual USA is expected to be fully liquidated by September 2008. The future availability of Bandai Visual USA’s anime titles and licenses, which included Gunbuster, Galaxy Angel Rune, Kissdum -Engage Planet-, True Tears, Super Robot Wars Original Generation, and more, has not been clarified yet.
Source: Anime News Network
At this past weekend’s Fanime Con convention held in San Jose, California, Bandai Entertainment formally announced its acquisition of distribution rights to the 2007 samurai action anime movie Stranger -Mukou Hadan-. The film will be distributed in America under its official English language title, “Sword of the Stranger” beginning with a July 18 subtitled theatrical release at the ImaginAsian theaters in Los Angeles and New York. The film will eventually be released on bilingual American DVD and Blu-ray.
Great news, as Stranger is one of the best anime action films in years!
Source: Anime on DVD
Anime News Network has learned that Gainax is presently developing an anime adaptation of Yoshiichi Akahito bloody action/horror manga series Shikabane Hime (”Corpse Princess”).
Can’t wait for this! I said publicly last summer that Shikabane Hime would be great in animated form. Combine the atmosphere of Tsukihime with Hellsing then add the intense action from Soul Eater, and the result is Shikabane Hime.
Bandai’s Dot Anime promotional site for the upcoming Mobile Suit Gundam: MS Igloo 2 Juuryoku Sensen OVA series now hosts a streaming trailer available in two different versions and multiple connection speeds. The animation footage is the same in both versions of the trailer, only the on-screen text differs. The trailer is DRM protected and will only play with a version of Windows Media Player capable of supporting digital rights management.
The first episode of the new MS Igloo full CG anime series is scheduled for Japanese DVD and Blu-ray release on October 24th.
Source: Moon Phase
Reportedly Mahou Sensei Negima creator Ken Akamatsu has revealed that a Negima anime feature film or third television series could be greenlit if sales of the upcoming Negima Ala Alba OVA series are strong enough.
If the first “Ala Alba” OVA sells more than 50,000 copies, a Negima anime movie may become possible. Sales of over 100,000 copies may warrant the production of a third Negima television series. However, these sales goals may be difficult or impossible to reach. According to the Negima Ala Alba website, there are only just over 10,000 pre-orders for all three Ala Alba OVAs combined, and the only anime DVD to sell more than 100,000 copies last year was Studio Ghibli’s Ged Senki.
Ganbatte! Negi-sensei!
Source: Canned Dogs
Question:
What is the motivation for the Japanese anime industry to broadcast series like The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Rental Magica out of chronological order? Do these shows make more sense chronologically or in broadcast order, or is that entirely subjective? Is this a “vision of the artist” issue?
