Ikkitousen Xtreme Xecutor Preview
In case you haven’t heard, a promotional video (108 seconds) for Ikkitousen Xtreme Xecutor is currently being streamed on the anime’s Japanese website. The actual premiere is set for April 11.
The Anime Beat
Viz Anime: A New Web Community
Yep, this is social networking anime-style!
Bleach (Manga) Volumes 29 & 30
Anyway, it’s Bleach. You know you love it. Just go buy it!
Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple 2
A total knockout! Kenichi is about one thing and one thing only: the sweet science of fighting.
The Anime Beat Tokyo & San Francisco
And depending on how my Friday and Saturday goes – this is Tokyo, after all –, I might even try some live blogging; bring you some images and a report or two straight from the source. Hell, maybe I’ll even get a twitter and blow smoke up the rear of my mundane wait in the airport.
Evangelion 1.11.
Evangelion 1.11 is essentially the same movie as 1.01. And as we all know by now, this reboot is a creative recycling of the first six episodes of the original anime. Why release the same movie again? That is the question.
Nozomi Announces Release of Ninja Nonsense DVD Collection
The word is, once the show starts, the hilarity never stops!
FUNimation Streams Baka and Test and Dance in the Vampire Bund
I haven’t sat down with either yet. But the artwork for Dance in the Vampire Bund is damn sexy!
Japan Society Announces Hiroki Otsuka as Mangaka Artist-in-Residence
As an artist-in-residence, Otsuka will create an original manga inspired by the work of Utagawa Kuniyoshi. He will also be conducting illustration workshops open to the general public.
US Premiere of Mobile Suit Gundam UC
If you’re in San Francisco, or can at least get there anytime from March 19th to the 25th, then you’re in luck. Viz Cinema will debut Mobile Suit Gundam UC, and this is roughly one month after its debut in Japan!
Dragon Ball Z: Dragon Box 2
Dragon Ball does what Dragon Ball always does; it’s pure pugilistic indulgence! Even for the disinterested like myself, I have to give the tip of my hat.
Dante’s Inferno: An Animated Epic
Dante’s Inferno is as devoted to its video game origins as a reality show cast is to the camera phones loitering on Sunset.
Nozomi Announces Limited-Edition CLANNAD Lithograph
This lithograph is on high-quality paper (archival in fact), priced at $49.99, and includes a certificate of authenticity. Only 250 prints will be made.
Soul Eater, Part 1
Pure weapon-wielding fun! Soul Eater does what a lot of recent anime should do: it doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Dorohedoro: 01
Visionary is not an adjective I predicate often. But Q. Hayashida’s vision disturbingly invigorates our optical senses.
Crunchyroll Honors Makoto Shinkai
Shinkai simply reminds us of how anime’s kanji-inscribed vision miraculously penetrates the eyes and ears of the gaijin, as if some midnight doctor from the X-Files had sewn a translator chip into our cerebral flesh. We just know we get it. We know we love it.
Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment Giveaway
RPG fans listen up! Are you ready to join Tobias Martin and his comrades for free? That’s right, I’ve got ten pass codes for Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment to give away. These codes are good for both the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live.
Sands of Destruction, Complete Series
What can I say about Sands of Destruction? They get an A for effort. This anime ain’t too shabby. And I think this has a lot to do with its RPG origins.
Spike Spencer and Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment
So, I’m not exactly the RPG type. And I haven’t played the game yet. But I did happen to grab a few minutes with Spike Spencer. A notable voice actor in the anime and gaming worlds, Spike lends his vocal talents to the characters Connor Ganson and Menicks Rence.
20th Century Boys 1: Beginning of the End
Based on the manga of Naoki Urasawa, which became a national phenomenon in Japan, 20th Century Boys is a comic book ride worthy of any Hollywood-licensed DC series.
Midnight Sun
Don’t get me wrong. A film like this can’t avoid some cliché and sentimentality. But Midnight Sun is surprisingly human.
Nozomi Announces Release of Junjo Romantica
On May 4th 2010, the anime version of Shungiku Nakamura’s best-selling yaoi (boy’s love) manga will be available. This DVD collection contains the entire 12-episode first season, video extras, and a 24-page booklet with character bios and artwork.
Viz Releases Bokurano: Ours
Dubbed a “sci-fi manga,” Bokurano initiates the tale of fifteen kids whose lives are altered by a chance meeting. A strange man in a seaside cave invites them to play a cutting-edge video game that pits giant robots against alien invaders. But they have to sign a contract first. And when the purpose of their agreement is revealed, the game stops being fun.
Cartoon Network to Air Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
Essentially a recasting of the original story found in the manga of Hiromu Arakawa, the Elric brothers are back on the journey to find a magical artifact that will heal their bodies. Remember, their first experiment with alchemy, a failed bid to revive their dead mother, left Edward with deformed limbs and Alphonse’s soul permanently inhabiting a suit of armor.
Nana Uncut Box Set 2
If you couldn’t tell, we’ve got an odd couple here worthy of a network sitcom, complete with laugh track. But what I like about this anime adaptation is not simply its loyalty to the manga (no filler), but Yazawa’s ability to create a captivatingly feminine coming-of-age, one unburdened by rampant cliché.
