AnimeNation Anime News Blog

The official Tales of Symphonia anime homepage has announced that a Tales of Symphonia: Teseara Chapter OVA series will launch next spring.

Source: Moon Phase

The official homepage for last year’s Kuroshitsuji television series has announced that a second series has been green-lit for production.

Source: Anime News Network

Rikiya Koyama, the voice actor behind Mamoru Takamura in the current Hajime no Ippo: New Challenger television series, has written on his blog that, “Of course, a sequel is also being planned!!” The 26th and final episode of the current “New Challenger” television series is scheduled for Japanese broadcast on the 30th.

Source: Anime News Network

Last Gasp has acquired translation and distribution rights to award winning underground manga artist Suehiro Maruo’s 2008 manga The Strange Tale of Panorama Island (Panorama-tou Kitan). The manga is an adaptation of Edogawa Rampo’s 1926 novella about a failed sci-fi author who assumes the identity of the deceased son of a rich industrialist in the early 1920s. The English language publication will be released next spring.

Source: Same Hat! Same Hat!

FUNimation has announced plans to screen the Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone motion picture on at least 77 screens throughout North America this summer. After a premiere screening at Anime Expo, the film will have limited engagements in Seattle, Washington; Houston, Texas; Phoenix, Arizona; San Diego & Riverside, California; and Boston, Massachusetts. Then the film will open in 67 theaters across Canada on September 30. FUNimation has not clarified whether the theatrical screenings will be dubbed or subtitled.

Source: Anime News Network

The official homepage for Japanese pop group Stereopony has announced that the Okinawan girl group’s fourth single will be used as the theme song for the Yatterman: Shin Yattermecha Osu gou! Omocha no Kuni de Dai Ketsudan da Koron movie. Furthermore, the as-yet-untitled song will get an anime music video featuring Yatterman characters and anime renditions of the three members of Stereopony. The Yatterman anime movie will open on August 22. The theme song single and video will be released in late August.

Stereopony’s previous singles have included “Hitohira no Hanabira,” the 17th ending theme for the Bleach TV series, and “Namida no Mukou,” the second opening theme for the Gundam OO television series.

Source: Anime News Network

The DC Anime Club in collaboration with the Japan Information and Culture Center, Embassy of Japan will screen Sky Crawlers on June 26 at 6:30 pm. The screening is free and open to the public, but reservations are required.

As a result of new Japanese PC game industry self-imposed restrictions on the content of erotic games, development studio Norn has reported that adult PC games featuring non-human characters (robots, elves, cat girls, monster girls, etc.) may be prohibited from sale through major Japanese retail outlets. Apparently there’s anxiety that the use of non-human characters may be used as a loophole to work around restrictions on the depiction of sexual exploitation.

This proposed restriction should not directly affect the inclusion of non-human characters in mainstream, non-erotic works, but it certainly could affect the larger anime industry in the regard that many anime are based on erotic games which are impacted by such restrictions.

Source: Canned Dogs

Bloody Disgusting reports that Ruairi Robinson is no longer attached to direct the two American live action Akira movies, and the entire production is now “dead as a doornail.” Appian Way and Warner Bros. Pictures first announced plans to produce a live action American film franchise adaptation of Katsuhiro Otomo’s manga in early 2008.

Assembly of the life sized RX-78 Gundam constructed in Odaiba, Tokyo to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Gundam franchise has been completed, and there’s now video coverage of the 18 meter tall (59 feet) mecha in action, emitting sounds and mist, and turning its head. The statue will officially go on display for two months beginning July 11.

Source: Danny Choo

Media Blasters CEO John Sirabella has confirmed acquisition of distribution rights to the 2008 Blade of the Immortal (Mugen no Jyunin) television series. Media Blasters does plan to produce an English dub for the 13 episode series.

Koichi Mashimo (Noir, Phantom) directed the adaptation of Hiroaki Samura’s samurai action manga for studio Bee Train (.Hack, Murder Princess). The Blade of the Immortal story revolves around wandering warrior Manji, a man cursed to live until he executes 1,000 evil men to atone for his own past wrongdoings.

Source: Mania Forum

Madhouse has revealed plans to develop a feature film tentatively titled Tibetan Dog (Tibet Inu Monogatari). The film will be based on a popular Chinese coming-of-age novel about a city boy who finds himself living in rural Tibet. Masayuki Kojima (Monster, Piano Forest) will helm the adaptation. Shigeru Fujita (Monster) will handle animation character design based on conceptual character designs drawn by manga-ka Naoki Urasawa (Yawara, Monster). The film, which Kojima has promised will be a “creative milestone in international cultural exchange,” will tentatively premiere next year.

Madhouse certainly has been on a roll of producing eclectic productions lately.

Source: Anime News Network

Kadokawa Pictures has revealed plans to develop an anime feature based on Yuji Iwahara’s science-fiction action manga King of Thorn. Kazuyoshi Katayama (Appleseed OVA, The Big O) will serve as director and co-screenwriter with Hiroshi Yamaguchi (Bastard!!, Yukikaze). Hidenori Matsubara (Ah! My Goddess, Gankutsuou) will provide character design while Kenji Andou (Brigadoon, Karas) will provide monster designs. The movie will tentatively premiere next year.

King of Thorn is the story of a teen girl placed in suspended animation along with 160 other selected people infected by a mysterious pandemic virus. They wake in a post-apocalyptic world inhabited by man-eating monsters, and the survivors struggle to learn what has happened.

The original manga was published in Monthly Comic Beam magazine from 2002 to 2005. The complete series is distributed in English by Tokyopop.

Source: Anime News Network

Kadokawa Pictures has confirmed development of a fifth Sgt. Frog (Keroro Gunso) motion picture. Television series director Junichi Sato will supervise production while Susumu Yamaguchi, who also directed the second Keroro movie, will direct. Keroro TV series screenwriter Hiroshi Yamaguchi is responsible for the movie’s script. The movie will hit Japanese theaters next year.

Source: Anime News Network

Kotaku has scored the first two promotional stills from director Gordon Chan’s currently in production live action King of Fighters motion picture.

Just keep repeating to yourself, “It’s only a movie. It’s only a movie.” Hey, it’s got to be better than the “Tekken movie” Avenging Fist, right?

Article provided by Daniel Zelter