AnimeNation Anime News Blog

American readers are, by now, familiar with manga and, naturally, familiar with the personal essay. But a combination of the two is something unusual and unfamiliar. New York and Japan based One Peace Books hopes to change that situation by introducing American readers to the popular contemporary Japanese “manga format essay” with Shiho Torii’s book So I Need to Lose 15 Pounds. The “manga essay” format that’s gaining popularity in Japan isn’t strictly educational manga like Shotaro Ishinomori’s Japan, Inc.: Introduction to Japanese Economics that first saw release in America in 1988. Nor is it exactly like the conventional narrative manga that American readers are most used to. The difference, however, is subtle.

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We’ve been working on adding more figures lately, and today they’re finally up. Over 400 anime figures added to the site today and marked at 10% off! Girls, Mecha, Final Fantasy, and much more. Whew… It’s time for a well-deserved drink. Cheers!

Japan Publications Trading’s 97 page glossy guide book The Akiba: A Manga Guide to Akihabara, much like Tokyo’s compact Akihabara district itself, packs much more into its small area than expected. Readers will find The Akiba informative, and prospective tourists will find it invaluable.

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Curious to know what other anime fans are collecting? Here’s our best selling mainstream and adult anime DVDs of the year so far. See what sells. Find out what other fans consider worth their funds.

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I’m not a cosplayer myself, but even I’m impressed by the debut volume of Cosmode USA. Despite being solicited as a domestic magazine, the premier volume of Cosmode USA is actually an archival photo collection and reference manual – 200 glossy full color pages in hardcover edition that will last a lifetime! If you’ve ever wanted to see what anime characters would look like if they were real people, an extensive photo gallery of Japan’s best costumers will show you. These folks get every detail exact, from the hair to the shoes, including even colored contact lenses! Photos profile costumers representing Gurren Lagann, Five Star Stories, Violinst of Hameln, Code Geass, Tsubasa Chronicle, Dino Crisis, Dragon Quest, Odin Sphere, and more!

But don’t feel left out! American cosplayers also get photographs and profiles. And aspiring & active cosplayers will appreciate this volume’s extensive illustrated guides to designing anime character wigs and hair styles, patterns and guides for creating anime footwear and form-fitting bodysuits, and even detailed instructions for the proper way to put on a traditional Japanese kimono!

This is a lot more than a mere monthly magazine. Cosmode volume 1 is a stunning, archival book that you’ll appreciate having on your shelf for years and years!

One of the pleasant perks of working for an anime store is always being surrounded by cool and fun stuff. But occasional something turns up that’s especially nice, and deserving of extra special mention. The new Okami Official Complete Works book from Udon is one such item that just arrived in stock yesterday.

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It’s lamentable that the 2006 American television broadcast of Sav! the World Productions and Hal Film Maker’s 26 episode Oban Star Racers animated series earned the respect of only a small cult following rather than the significant success and popularity it deserves. Now, hopefully, the release of the complete series on a pair of admirably crafted American DVD sets will bring more attention to this excellent show.
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Saving the best for last, the fourth of the four erotic anime DVDs that Adult Source Media provided for me to sample was Night Shift Nurses kranke 1, or, in its original Japanese title, “Yakin Byoutou: kranke Kodama Hikaru.”

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The next title up in my small stack of Adult Source Media sample DVDs to review is The Harvest Night volume 1; a title that turned out to be a qualified positive, but puzzling show.

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Sorry for the boring title. I couldn’t think of anything that would make a pun with the word “Dyogrammaton.”

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The folks over at Adult Source Media sent over a couple sample copies from their catalog of erotic anime for me to review. The first disc from the stack to get a spin was Night When Evil Falls volume 1. After watching it, I can’t call it flawless, but it’s not difficult to understand why it’s one of AnimeNation’s best selling adult anime titles.

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It feels like Christmas every two weeks here at AnimeNation when new shipments from our suppliers in Tokyo arrive. It’s always fun to see what neat new products turn up which we haven’t ever had in stock before. Our latest shipment arrived a few days ago; a smaller than normal one, but still one with some neat stuff.

The May issues of Megami and Asuka magazines are here. Megami includes an exclusive double-sided Fate/stay night & Nanoha StrikerS shitajiki and a double-sided Clannad/Shana II wall poster! The May issue of Asuka includes a great looking, exclusive Code Geass clear file!

The double disc Devil May Cry 4 OST and Negima Best Album CDs turned up. I don’t think we’ve seen them before. And one new ero manga came in, but every copy that arrived went right back out to fill customer pre-orders. A bunch of the Appleseed Ex Machina OST with DVD combos came in and went out also, so if you’ve had one of them on order, it’s probably on its way to you now.

All of our new import stuff should turn up on the retail section of the site shortly.