AnimeNation Anime News Blog

Exhibitor notes for next month’s Tokyo International Anime Fair reveal that animation studio Production Reed has plans to revive its classic 1980s magical girl anime series Fairy Princess Minky Momo. Production Reed produced the Minky Momo beginning with the 1991 second television series. The new work will serve as a “prologue” to the 30th anniversary of the original 1982-1983 television series. The most recent major new Minky Momo anime was Production Reed’s 1994 Minky Momo in Station of Embarkation (“Minky Momo in Tabidachi no Eki”) OVA.

Source: Anime News Network

Exhibitor notes for next month’s Tokyo International Anime Fair reveal that Sanrio will produce a third series in the continuing Sugar Bunnies anime television series franchise. The first Sugar Bunnies TV series aired in 2007 and was followed by 2008′s Sugar Bunnies Chocola. The story will continue in Sugar Bunnies Fleur.

Source: Anime News Network

The official homepage for AIC’s Tenchi Muyo spin-off anime series Isekai no Seikishi Monogatari reports that the series’ first episode will also be available as a pay-per-view special on the Animax television network from March 20 to 31. The first of 13 episodes will be released on rental DVD on April 22, and sale DVD and Blu-ray in May.

Source: Saishin Anime Jouhou

Twitch now hosts an exclusive interview with Takeshi Miike, director of the new live action Yatterman movie, an adaptation of Tatsunoko’s 1977 anime TV series.

Dark Horse has announced its acquisition of English language translation rights to the “POP Wonderland” series of Japanese picture book adaptations of famous fairy tales. The children’s book series features illustrations by character designer POP, best known as the character designer for Moetan. The first book, Thumbelina, will replicate the original Japanese publication’s hardcover 10 1/8″ x 8 1/4″ format. The book will retail at $16.95 beginning June 24. The ongoing Japanese line of POP Wonderland books also includes Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, Alice in Wonderland, and, most recently released, The Little Mermaid.

I already own Japanese versions of 4 of these 5 books

Source: Anime News Network

Nozomi Entertainment yesterday announced its acquisition of translation and distribution rights to “season four” of the Maria Watches Over Us anime series. The fourth season of Maria-sama ga Miteru as Japan’s presently airing third “MariMite” television series. Nozomi announced its acquisition of the first three MariMite “seasons,” the first two TV series and the OVA series, last March.

Japanese anime news site AnimeAnime reports that Gonzo Digimation Holdings will restructure its Gonzo anime production studio subsidiary by reducing staff from 130 present employees to just 30 over a five year period. GDH hopes that the reduction will return Gonzo to profitability. Meanwhile, GDH will shift its business priority away from anime production to its online game development operations.

Gonzo has faced financial instability for some time. Last September, GDH received a 1 billion yen investment from Iwakaze Capital. Two months later, Gonzo announced plans to half its planned number of anime productions. Last December, GDH asked for 50 employees to voluntarily retire.

Source: Anime News Network

Viewers that expected to see the first episode of the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya-chan web anime series during its scheduled premiere on YouTube last night instead found a 46 second sunset montage with the message, “It was not finished.” (Dekiagarimasen deshita.”)

Although not quite the same, the stand-in video clip, with its shots of sailboats, does recall the infamous replacement scenery montage aired by the TV Kanagawa network in September 2007 in place of School Days episode 12. One shot in the video clip that was captioned “nice boat” by an anonymous online fan, became an internationally recognized anime catch-phrase.

Ironically, just yesterday Newtype Magazine published a report on the dialogue recording for the Haruhi-chan and Churuya-san anime that reported everything was “going well” for a Friday the 13th premiere.

A new broadcast start date for the Haruhi-chan and Nyoron Churuya-san web anime has not been announced yet.

Source: Anime News Network

Dengeki Online now streams the 2:45 promotional trailer for the Trigger Heart Exelica Enhanced Playstation 2 shooting game. The trailer includes several seconds of footage from the game’s anime opening movie.

The game is scheduled for release on March 26 in a standard edition and a limited edition that includes an exclusive Nendoroid figure.

Studio Ghibli has confirmed that the studio, under director Yoshiyuki Momose, has produced an anime music video for vocalist Yui Aragaki’s third single “piece.” Momose also illustrated one of the variant cover illustrations for the CD single. Aragaki also illustrated one of the covers for the single. The song “piece” also has a live action promotional video. The CD single will go on sale in Japan on the 25th.

Source: Anime News Network

Popular American anime voice actor Greg Ayres has released a public statement after having suffered a mild heart attack last weekend.

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MTV now hosts the first trailer for the Watchmen movie supplemental animated short film Tales Of The Black Freighter.

Source: Ain’t It Cool News

Question:
Now that its been confirmed that the highly-anticipated new series of Haruhi will not be hitting Japan in April as hoped, do you think the creators have missed the boat? Three years is a long time to wait for somthing that you would expect to have been sped into a fast, high-budget release to take advantage of the original’s collossal success!

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Japanese media and advertising company Dentsu has announced plans to develop an animated series based on the Chub City line of collectible toys produced by California based company Jada Toys. The project will originate at, and be supervised from Dentsu’s Los Angeles office while animation production may be done in Japan. Dentsu’s goal is “to create animation for a global market by working with intellectual properties and development partners in North America while designing characters and animating through studios in Japan.”

Source: Anime News Network

The new March issue of Model Graphix magazine has announced that its April issue will include the first half of a two part serialization titled “Kaze Tachinu” (The Wind Rises) about Jiro Horikoshi, the designer of Japan’s famous WWII era Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter plane.

Miyazaki’s periodic Zasso Note (Daydream Data Notes) short manga stories and illustrated essays about vintage aircraft and military machines were published in Model Graphix magazine from 1984 to 1992.

Source: Nausicaa.net