AnimeNation Anime News Blog

The official website for Production I.G’s upcoming television series Higashi no Eden ~ Eden of the East now opens with a streaming trailer. The slightly sci-fi drama features character designs by Honey & Clover creator Chika Umino and direction by Kenji Kamiyama (Ghost in the Shell TV, Seirei no Moribito). The series is scheduled to premiere on April 9.

The song “Dig Out Your Soul” performed by English rock band Oasis will be used as the series’ opening theme.

Wow! This looks great!

Source: Anime News Network

Galge now hosts a downloadable sample version of the opening anime movie for the upcoming Playstation 2 shooting game Trigger Heart Exelica Enhanced. The 2:43 video clip is in 480×270 resolution WMV format as a 25.1mb zip file. The game is scheduled for release on the 26th.

Source: Moon Phase

Watch EVA_2.0__YOU_CAN__NOT__ADVANCE__trailer in Animation  |  View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

A poor quality handicam recording of the 93 second long first trailer for this summer’s Evangelion 2.0 You Can [Not] Advance motion picture has turned up online. The movie is scheduled for Japanese release on June 27th.

Source: New Akiba Link features adult content

The official Japanese homepage for the Hellsing OVA series (known in America as “Hellsing Ultimate”) now hosts the new 2009 Tokyo Anime Fair trailer for episode 6, which is scheduled for Japanese release this summer.

Source: Anime News Network

Crunchyroll has announced plans for the internet broadcast of two new anime titles. Gonzo’s newest television series, Shangri-La, will premiere on April 6. Crunchyroll subscribers will have access to weekly episodes within an hour of Japanese broadcast. The 25 episode Kiniro no Corda La Corda D’Oro ~primo passo~ television series from 2005 will premiere on Crunchyroll on March 20, followed by the Kiniro no Corda La Corda D’Oro ~secondo passo~ TV special on March 26, again, available to subscribers an hour after Japanese television broadcast.

Ten year old Japanese adult PC game development company Studio e.go! may be no more. Reportedly the company’s Representative Director and most visible character designer Yamamoto Kazue, resigned on March 17th, and the remainder of the Studio e.go! staff is likewise quiting. Yamamoto will reportedly launch a new game development company named “Debo no Suseisakujo.”

Studio e.go! has been responsible for the creation of adult computer games including Castle Fantasia, Wind of Ebenbourg, Izumo, and Angel’s Feather.

Source: Canned Dogs

On Saturday, March 28, 2009 the Freer Gallery located in Washington, D.C. will host the seventh annual National Cherry Blossom Anime Marathon in cooperation with the Japan Information and Culture Center and Otakorp Inc. The daylong event, beginning at 11 a.m. will feature a costume show, exhibition and dancers. Anime scholar Frederik Schodt will be in attendance. Animal Treasure Island, Evangelion 1.0: You Are (Not) Alone, Vexille, and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time will be screened. Admission is free. Tickets for the movie screenings will be distributed the day of the event.

The DC Anime Club in collaboration with the Japan Information and Culture Center, Embassy of Japan will screen Naruto The Movie on Friday March 27 at 6:30 pm. The screening is free and open to the public but reservations are required. Please RSVP. Seating is limited and granted on a first come, first served basis.

Although not specifically anime or manga related, this is just too cool to ignore. The official website for director Kaz Kiriya’s upcoming historical fantasy action film Goemon has updated with an amazing looking new, second theatrical trailer. Click the third button from the left, beneath the main image, to view the new trailer. The movie is scheduled to open on May 1st.

Source: Twitch

Question:
In Dragonball Z, Chichi is an unrelenting annoying b*tch. She does not stop yelling, she does not cut the damn umbilical cord with Gohan, and she’s so blinded by her own maternal instinct that she doesn’t listen to the voice of reason when everyone around her is telling her that her son could save the world. Does Akria Toriyama hate his mom or something? Every time we see Chichi, she is just the most annoying person on the show. [This] really got me wondering about the familial relationships between mothers and sons in Japanese culture. The only point of reference I have is anime, which we all know is way off. But still, the way that interaction is presented in anime, by way of Chichi in DBZ, or even the mother-son incest hentai, there seems to be an almost persistent portrayal of the overly aggressive female.

Is there any sort of rational basis for all the hyperbolic characters I see in anime? Or am I just taking things too literally?

(more…)

Crunchyroll has announced its acquisition of internet distribution rights to six additional anime titles:

Black Jack Special: The 4 Miracles of Life
Catman
Chi’s Sweet Home
Crystal Blaze (under the title “Glass Maiden”)
Mainichi Kaasan
Saki

Source: Anime News Network

A not-yet-formally-released theatrical trailer for next month’s Eureka Seven: Pocket Full of Rainbows motion picture has been discovered lurking within the film’s official homepage. The movie is scheduled to premiere on April 25th.

Source: AHT

The official Princess Lover TV series homepage now features a streaming trailer (which exhibits some impressive animation quality and plenty of fan service). The trailer may also be available in narrowband and broadband resolutions from Animate.tv. (Wouldn’t load when I tried it.)

Source: Moon Phase Diary

The official homepage for the upcoming Bakemonogatari television series, based on the light novel series by author NisiOisin, now hosts a streaming teaser trailer. (The trailer is DRM encoded for compatibility with Windows Media Player only.) Director Akiyuki Shinbo (Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei, Mariaholic) will helm the project for anime production studio Shaft. The series will premiere in July.

Source: Anime News Network

Japanese genre news site Gigazine now offers a handicam recording of the just released Tokyo Anime Fair trailer for the first Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha motion picture.

Source: Rakugakidou