AnimeNation Anime News Blog

The September issue of Newtype Magazine, which officially goes on sale in Japan next week, will formally announce the debut of a new anime production titled .hack//Quantum. This latest installment in the .Hack franchise will be a spin-off from last year’s PSP game .hack//Link. The .hack//Quantum anime will initially (exclusively?) screen at the touring Anime Fes. ‘VS’ presented by Bandai Visual publicity event that will hit Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka, Kyoto, and Nagoya starting November 27.

Source: Anime News Network

The September issue of Newtype Magazine, which officially goes on sale in Japan next week, will formally announce the development of an original anime television series titled Fractle. The fantasy series is set on a barrier island where the “Fractle System” is on the brink of collapse. A boy named Kurain sets off to find the missing girl Furyune. On his journey, Kurain will learn the secrets of the “Fractle System.”

A-1 Pictures (Kannagi, Working!!) & Ordet (Black Rock Shooter) will co-animate. Kannagi director Yutaka “Yamakan” Yamamoto will direct. “Mandelbrot Engine,” speculated to be the collective name of the Yutaka Yamamoto, otaku scholar Hiroki Azuma, and Kannagi producer Tomonori Ochikoshi creative team, created the concept. Hiroki Azuma is credited as “story developer.” Light novel illustrator Hidari will provide the original character designs. The television series will air in the Fuji TV network’s Noitamina timeslot beginning in January 2011.

Source: Anime News Network

Popular and successful 30 year-old Japanese pop vocalist Rina Aiuchi has unexpectedly announced plans to retire from the entertainment business, partially for health reasons. Aiuchi will give her final concert performance Amagasaki City, Hyogo Prefecture on September 26. Aiuchi made her professional singing debut in 2000. Five of her seven albums have broken into the Oricon top ten with two reaching number one. Her eight and final album, Last Scene will be released on September 15. Aiuchi has performed five theme songs for the Detective Conan anime franchise, along with theme songs for the Fighting Beauty Wulong, MÄR, Monster Rancher, Souten no Ken, and Tsuri Baka Nisshi anime TV series.

Source: Tokyograph

To refresh your memory or introduce you to an interesting opening animation sequence, I offer the interesting fourth opening of the 1989 Ranma ½ television series. The theme song is “Zettai! Part 2″ performed by Yoshie Hayasaka.

Question:
Do you think the “It’s A Rumik World” DVD will see a future U.S. release? With the popularity of Rumiko Takahashi’s works, plus the fact that all 3 titles contained within the DVD have been released in the U.S. before (Urusei Yatsura, Ranma ½ and Inuyasha), do you think that a U.S. distributor will release this DVD stateside?

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My GS Mikami production cel

Sentai Filmworks has announced its acquisition of domestic distribution rights to the 45 episode Ghost Sweeper Mikami television series from 1993. Manga Entertainment has previously released the GS Mikami motion picture on American DVD, but the television series has never been officially released in the US.

Personally, I’m happy to see more older anime getting licensed for domestic release, although I must admit that this is a series I would never, ever have predicted to get a new US license.

To refresh your memory or introduce you to an interesting opening animation sequence, I offer the opening of the 2008 Minamike Okawari television series. The theme song is “Kokoro no Tsubasa” (Wings of Heart) performed by Rina Satou, Marina Inoue & Minori Chihara.

The official Twitter account for Manta Aisora’s “high-tension, chaotic comedy” light novel series Haiyore! Nyaruko-san has announced that the series is getting a TV anime. The H.P. Lovecraft inspired comedy about the ancient cosmic god Nyarlathotep who takes the form of a cute girl and hangs around with an ordinary human teen boy debuted in April 2009. The Haiyoru! Nyaru-Ani collection of short Flash anime episodes was released last March.

Yeah! Fork stabbings for everyone!

Source: Anime News Network

Limited edition copies of the 10th collected volume of Tamiki Wakaki’s romantic comedy manga Kami Nomi zo Shiru Sekai (The World God Only Knows) will include a bonus “Flag 0″ (“flag” referring to trigger events in video games) anime DVD prologue to the upcoming television series. The 10th manga volume will hit Japanese bookstores on September 17.

The “KamiNomi” story revolves around an expert romantic simulation game player ordered by the Devil to apply his digital dating skills to real life girls in order to extract the stray devils hiding in the girls’ hearts.

Source: Anime News Network

Geneon Universal Entertainment has begun streaming two commercials that use Osamu Tezuka’s famed unlicensed surgeon character Black Jack to promote the Japanese DVD release of the fourth season of American medical drama television series House. The adds depict Black Jack and his assistant Pinoko coming to America to assist Dr. House. The trailer is available in its 30 second broadcast edit and a 73 second web edit.

Source: Anime News Network

Watchmen movie producer Lloyd Levin has acquired the rights to film a movie adaptation of comic artist/writer Matt Wagner’s acclaimed 1984-1986 comic mini-series Mage: The Hero Discovered. Levin called the story, “One of the great untapped comic books from the ’80s renaissance that also spawned Watchmen and Batman: Dark Knight.” The comic series is a heartfelt Authurian tale set in modern day. Levin plans to follow the production model that director Matthew Vaughn used to produce the Kick-ass movie: independently finance and produce the film before seeking a major studio to handle distribution. That strategy allows for filming with more creative freedom and less studio oversight/interference. Wagner’s Mage franchise has been optioned for movie development before but has never been filmed.

I just had to report this, as I’ve been a Mage fan since the late 80′s.

Source: ICv2

To refresh your memory or introduce you to an interesting opening animation sequence, I offer the first opening of the 1988 racing anime television series F. The theme song is “F” performed by The Burst.

Question:
Amnesiac characters in anime are a genre staple, and many characters have their entire personality built around this one trope. What do you think are the best examples of this storytelling device being used properly?

P.S. Please don’t forget to answer my question.

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FUNimation has launched a new survey seeking consumer input on domestic DVD release format preferences.

The Gakko no Kowai Uwasa: Shin Hanako-san ga Kita!! anime television series will premiere on the 13th. The series is a new version of the 35 episode Gakkou no Kowai Uwasa: Hanako-san ga Kita!! anime TV series that aired in 1994. The new series will again star “Hanako of the Toilet” the female ghost and her floating fuzzy companion “Howahowa.” As in other anime including the 1996 Toire no Hanako-San movie, 1997 Haunted Junction television series, and 2008 Fushigi Tsuushin Toilet no Hanako-san anime, the Hanako-san in this new anime will appear to help troubled school children.

AKB48 member Rie Kitahara will make her voice acting debut playing Howahowa in the new series.

Source: Anime News Network