Reporting on what’s going on in and around the Anime Community.   

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Announced:  07/31/10

Otakon’s Convention Center Evacuated Due to Fire Alarm

   The Baltimore Convention Center, the site of the ongoing Otakon event, was evacuated a little before 2:00 p.m. EDT due to a fire alarm. Although fire fighters and police officers were called to the scene, ANN has not witnessed any signs of an actual fire.  Read full article [ANN].

Update 3: As of 12:05 p.m. EDT, the convention are allowing regular attendees back into the center.

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Announced:  07/30/10

Funimation Acquisitions at Otakon 2010

 

 

 

At Otakon 2010, Funimation acquired:

• Hetalia Movie: Paint It, White
• Summer Wars
• Evangelion 2.0 You Can (Not) Advance
• Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakama-tachi
• Shukufuku no Campanella
• Strike Witches 2
• Hetalia World Series

Will be watching boards, forums and posts to see what else has been acquired at Otakon 2010 this year. K? 

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Announced:  07/28/10

Kodansha Fined 550,000 Yen for Manga’s Use of Real Person

     The Tokyo District Cout ruled that Atsushi Kase’s Zero-sen manga infringed on a man’s rights and defamed him by using his likeness, and the court ordered the manga’s publisher Kodansha to pay a fine of 550,000 yen (about US$6,300) on Wednesday. The plaintiff had originally sued for 4.4 million yen (US$50,000).  Read full article [ANN].

NisiOisin’s Kizumonogatari Light Novel Gets Anime

   A flyer included with NisiOisin’s Nekomonogatari light novel has announced on Wednesday that production on a third NisiOisin anime project, Kizumonogatari, has been green-lit. This will be the latest NisiOisin work to be animated  after Bakemonogatari and Katanagatari. The one-volume Kizumonogatari story is a prequel to the Bakemonogatari light novel series.  Read full article [ANN].

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Announced:  07/27/10

U.S. Kinokuniya Bookstores Stop Selling 5 Bishōjo Mags

    The seven American branches of Kinokuniya Bookstores have confirmed with ANN that they no longer carry five bishōjo magazines as of this month due to their “inappropriate content.” The five magazines are Gakken’s Megami Magazine and Megami Magazine Deluxe, Kadokawa Shoten’s Nyantype, and ASCII Media Works’ Dengeki Hime and Dengeki Moeoh. 

*Sigh… and Porn is still around and kicking… sheesh…

Read full article [ANN].

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Announced:  07/26/10

Cowboy Bebop Writer: Anime Will Die Out in Few Decades

  

The Otaku Encyclopedia author Patrick W. Galbraith reports that Cowboy Bebop writer Dai Sato said he was “frustrated” with the anime industry during a July 4 roundtable discussion titled “Living in the City: Hip Hop, Anime, Housing Projects.”

According to Galbraith’s Otaku2 web report on the discussion at the Cultural Typhoon conference, Sato dismissed the idea of “Cool Japan” and complained that much of the in-between animation work in anime is outsourced to people in other countries, who may not be aware of or invested in the work itself. Similar to director Hayao Miyazaki, Sato critcized politicians and other who promoted the image of Cool Japan for their own purposes.

He suggested that manga was “the last hold out,” and that if manga was lost,  then anime would not last without it.

Read full article [ANN].

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Announced:  07/23/10

Yen Press adds High School of the Dead, UraBoku and others

 
 

The North American manga publisher Yen Press has announced at its Comic-Con International panel on Friday that it licensed Daisuke Satō and Shoji Sato’s Highschool of the Dead, Hotaru Odagiri’s Betrayal Knows My Name (Uragiri wa Boku no Namae o Shitteiru/Uraboku), Kaoru Mori’s Otoyome-Gatari (The Bride’s Stories), and En Kitou’s Higurashi: When They Cry Demon Exposing Arc (Higurashi no Naku Koro ni: Onisarashi-Hen).  Read full article [ANN].

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Announced:  07/22/10 

Manga Scan Site Says It Will Remove Manga

 

One Manga, a site with unauthorized, translated scans of manga (scanlations), has posted a Thursday notice to say that “this is the last week of manga reading” on the site. The site cited what it describes as a recent change in the manga publishers’ “stance on manga scanlations.” According to the notice, all content will be gone from the site by early next week.  Read full article [ANN] or OneManga.com forum. 

Section 23 adds Canaan and KimiKiss

    

The North American anime distributor Section23 has announced on Thursday that it will release the CANAAN* television  anime series from licensor Sentai Filmworks in one complete collection on DVD and Blu-ray on October 26. It will also release the first Kimikiss* pure rouge DVD collection on October 5, the second Tytania DVD collection on October 12, and the complete Tears to Tiara collection on DVD and Blu-ray October 19. [Source:  ANN] 

*Have to confirm.  Showing no records that Sentai Filmworks licensed these two series.  Confirmed.  Sentail Filmworks has acquired CANAAN and KimiKiss.

Yumekui Merry Action Fantasy Manga Gets TV Anime

   The September issue of Houbunsha’s Manga Time Kirara Forward magazine is announcing on Saturday that a television anime adaptation of Yoshitaka Ushiki’s Yumekui Merry manga has been green-lit. The action fantary revolves around a high school boy named Yumeji Fujiwara who has the mysterious power to see other people’s dreams or nightmares. One day, he meets Merry, a beautiful girl who came from the world of dreams.  [Source:  ANN]

Viz Adds Live-Action Manga-Based Detroit Metal City

  The North American manga and video distributor Viz Media has announced on Thursday that it licensed Toshio Lee’s live-action film adaptation of Kiminori Wakasugi’s Detroit Metal City manga. Ken’ichi Matsuyama (Death Note, NANA) stars as Sōichi Negishi, a mild-mannered singer who is transformed into Johannes Krauser II — the frontman for a death metal band. Real-life rockers Gene Simmons of Kiss and Marty Friedman of Megadeth make cameo appearances. Details on a DVD release will be announced later. Viz is already publishing the original manga.  [Source:  ANN]

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Announced:  07/21/10 

Tokyo Residency Program for Foreign Animators Launched

   The Japan Image Council (JAPIC) and the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs have launched the Animation Artist in Residence program, which will offer three applicants room and board for 75 days in Tokyo for education, training, and workshops, with the goal of creating all or part of a new work by the end of their stay. The program is open to all participants ages 20-35 who have screened at least one work at any international film festival, are from a country other than Japan, and speak Japanese or English well enough to get by in Tokyo. The deadline for applications is September 10, 2010, and the program itself will run for 75 days between January and March 2011.  Read full article.  [ANN] 

Otakon Hosts Japanese Musicians from Its Anime Opening

   Otakon has announced that three new musical guests — Hiroaki Yura, Hiroki Kikuta, and Shihori — will appear at the July 30-August 1 convention in Baltimore. All three have worked on Otakon 2010′s new opening animation, which is being produced by the Production I.G anime studio.  Read full article [ANN]. 

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Announced:  07/20/10 

Kyō, Koi o Hajimemasu Gets 2nd Anime DVD Green-Lit

   A second anime DVD version of Kanan Minami’s Kyō, Koi o Hajimemasu shōjo romance manga has been green-lit for release this fall. The new anime DVD will be bundled with limited special editions of the 10th manga volume, and it will have the same cast and production team at J.C. Staff (Nodame Cantabile, Honey and Clover) as the first anime DVD. More information about the new anime DVD’s story will be announced in future issues of Shogakukan’s Sho-Comi magazine.  Read full article.  [ANN] 

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Announced:  07/15/10 

Kamisama Dolls Manga Gets Anime Green-Lit

  Shogakukan’s Monthly Sunday GX magazine is confirming on Saturday that an anime adaptation of Hajime Yamamura’s Kamisama Dolls supernatural action manga has been green-lit.  Read full article… [ANN] 

Announced:  07/15/10 

Speed Racer Voice Actor Peter Fernandez Passes Away

   William Winckler has informed ANN that Peter Fernandez, the actor and voice director best known as the title character in the animated Speed Racer series, passed away this morning due to lung cancer. He was 83.  Read full article… [ANN] 

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Announced:  07/05/10 

Crunchyroll to Simulcast Occult Academy and Tono to Issho

   

The media-distribution website Crunchyroll has announced on Monday that it will stream the Occult Academy (Seikimatsu Occult Gakuin) and Tono to Issho television anime series within one hour of each episode’s premiere in Japan… read full article. [ANN] 

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Announced:  07/05/10 

Strawberry 100% Streaming via Viz Anime, Hulu

  The television anime adaptation of Mizuki Kawashita‘s Strawberry 100% (Ichigo 100%) comedy manga is now streaming with English subtitles on the Viz Anime and Hulu websites in the United States. Out of 26 episodes from the show, five are already live on both sites… read full article [ANN] 

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Announced: 07/04/10 

Fullmetal Alchemist:  Brotherhood Movie  Green-Lit

The 64th and final episode of the Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood television anime series ended in Japan on Sunday with an announcement that production on a theatrical version has been green-lit. [ANN] 

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Announced:  07/02/10 

B Gata H Kei Studio, Writers Get Multiple Threat Letters

  The official website for the B Gata H Kei television anime series has posted an “important notice” from the anime’s production committee about multiple threatening letters that the anime’s studio and writers have received. The letters ask for changes in the anime’s content and presentation, and threaten the studio and writers with harm if they do not respond… read full article [ANN] 

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Announced:  June 8, 2010 

Japanese, U.S. Manga Publishers Unite to Fight Scanlations

An international coalition of Japanese and American-based manga publishers have joined together to combat what they call the “rampant and growing problem” of scanlations, the practice of posting scanned and translated editions of Japanese comics online without permission of the copyright holders. The group is threatening legal action against 30 scanlation sites… read full article [Publishers Weekly] 

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Announced:  June 2, 2010 

Crunchyroll to Simulcast Bleach TV

  The Crunchyroll media-distribution website has announced on Wednesday that it will simulcast Studio Pierrot and TV Tokyo‘s television anime adaptation of Tite Kubo‘s Bleach manga. The simulcast will start with the latest episode, #274, next Tuesday at 2:30 a.m. PDT. Episodes 266 to 273 will also be streamed next Tuesday, and information about the planned release of the remaining older episodes “will be provided at a later date.”… read full article [ANN] 

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Announced: February 2, 2010 

 Funimation Acquires Dragonball Kai

  Navarre has revealed during its Q3 2010 earnings conference call on Tuesday morning that its North American anime distributor Funimation has licensed the Dragon Ball Kai fighting anime series for release in the “latter part of the upcoming fiscal year.” Funimation has confirmed the license with ANN, and it hopes to provide more details soon.” 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork [ANN] 

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Announced:  January 25, 2010 

Bandai acquires The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (2009)

     The North American anime distributor Bandai Entertainment has posted a new video on its ASOS Brigade website, the official unofficial site for the Haruhi Suzumiya franchise. In the “Episode 0.8888″ video, which is also posted on Bandai Entertainment’s Youtube channel and in this article below, the producer of the English version of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya said that “the contract has been signed,” and added that he’s going to “shoot a series of videos to promote the second season DVDs. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork [ANN]  

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Announced: January 16, 2010 

Retailer to Stop Imports of Funimation BD/DVDs into Japan

  The Japanese online retailer DVD Fantasium has announced on Saturday that it will no longer import products made by the American distributor Funimation into Japan. DVD Fantasium notes that    Funimation releases anime on DVD and Blu-ray Disc for the American market, and says that these releases cannot be sold at retail overseas due to licensing agreements.  

Read Full Article:  Animenewnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced: January 15, 2010 

Media Blasters Acquires Kanokon

The North American anime distributor Media Blasters lists a “AnimeWorks Kanokon – The Girl Who Cried Fox: : Sexy Like a Fox Vol. 1, Eps. 1-4″ release among its April solicitations. The 2008 Kanokon television anime series adapted Katsumi Nishino and Koin’s romantic comedy light novels about an ordinary boy with two female schoolmates — who happen to be fox and wolf deities. 

Read Full Article:  Animenetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced: January 7, 2010 

Funimation Adds Hetalia and The Sacred Blacksmith

   

The North American anime distributor Funimation has announced on Friday that it licensed 52 episodes of the Hetalia – Axis Powers historical comedy anime and The Sacred Blacksmith fantasy adventure anime. Hetalia will ship in two parts starting in late 2010, while The Sacred Blacksmith will ship in one DVD set in Fall of 2010. 

Read Full Article Animenewsnetwork [ANN] 

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Announced: January 7, 2010 

Funimation Adds Hero Tales and Master of Martial Arts

   

The North American anime distributor Funimation has announced on Thursday that it is releasing the Jyūshin Enbu – Hero Tales television anime series and the Master of Martial Hearts (Zettai Shougeki ~Platonic Heart~) video anime series. Jyūshin Enbu – Hero Tales will ship in half-season sets starting this fall, while Master of Martial Hearts will ship in one DVD set in spring of 2011. 

Read Full Article Animenewsnetwork [ANN]. 

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Announced:  December 22, 2009 

Sentai Filmworks Aquires You’re Under Arrest:  Full Throttle, Yozakura Quartet, Tayutama ~Kiss on my Deity~ and Neo Angelique Abyss ~Second Age~

 
   

The North American anime distributor Section23 Films has announced on Tuesday that Sentai Filmworks licensed the You’re Under Arrest: Full Throttle, Yozakura Quartet, and Tayutama: Kiss On My Deity anime series.  Section23 has also announced that the DVD collection of the Neo Angelique Abyss anime’s second season, Neo Angelique Abyss -Second Age-, will ship on March 30.  

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork [ANN]. 

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Announced:  December 4, 2009 

Sentai Filmworks Acquires The Skullman and Maria Holic

    

The North American anime distributor Section23 Films has announced on Friday that Sentai Filmworks has licensed The Skull Man and Maria Holic anime series. Section23 will ship the complete DVD sets for these two anime on February 2 and February 23, respectively. 

Read full article:  AnimeNewsNetwork [Ann] 

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Announced:  November 22, 2009 

Funimation Acquires Sekirei, Tetsuwan Birdy Decode  & Tetsuwan Birdy Decode 02

   

   

The North American anime distributor Funimation has announced at the Anime USA convention on Saturday that it has licensed the home entertainment, broadcast, and digital rights to the first 12-episode Sekirei anime series and both 13-episode seasons of Tetsuwan Birdy Decode from Aniplex. Funimation plans to release both projects on DVD in 2010. Funimation also acquired the home entertainment, broadcast, digital, and merchandise rights to the first 24-episode Full Metal Panic! anime series and its 12-episode Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu”sequel. 

Read full article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced:  November 5, 2009 

Media Blasters acquires Queen’s Blade and Ikkitousen:  Great Guardians

   Media Blasters CEO John Sirabella has revealed on the Anime on DVD forums on Thursday that his company has acquired the Queen’s Blade and Ikkitousen: Great Guardians anime series for North America. He also added that each of the anime will “get a dub,” and that both Queen’s Blade seasons are scheduled for release before next summer.   

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced:  October 29, 2009 

Sentai Filmworks acquires Glass Mask, Hidamari Sketch and Neo Angelique Abyss

  The North American anime distributor Section23 Films has announced today that Sentai Filmworks has licensed the Hidamari Sketch, Glass Mask,   and Neo Angelique Abyss anime series.   Section23 will ship the first English-subtitled DVD sets for these three anime on January 12, January 19, and January 26, respectively. 

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Announced:  October 27, 2009 

Yahoo! closes down GeoCities

   

SAN FRANCISCO, USA: Yahoo! said it has closed GeoCities, a free Web hosting service with which Yahoo! used to host websites created by its users all over the world. 

Yahoo! had purchased GeoCities for over three billion dollars during the dot-com boom. 

“We have decided to focus on helping our customers explore and build relationships online in other ways. Beginning on October 26, 2009, you will no longer be able to use GeoCities to maintain a free presence online — but we’re excited about the other services we have designed to help you connect with friends and family and share your activities and interests,” Yahoo! said on its website. 

Read Full Article:  CIOL News Report 

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Announced:  October 17, 2009 

Do You Remember Love?’ Composer Kazuhiko Katoh Found Hanged

   Kazuhiko Katoh, the co-founder of two musical bands and the composer of the main theme songs for The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love? and Windaria, was found hanged in his hotel room in Nagano Prefecture on Saturday. He was 62. The local authorities believe he had committed suicide, due to two copies of a last will that he reportedly had left in his room. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced:  October 16, 2009 

Hello Kitty Turns 35!

Hello Kitty was launched 35 years ago November 1st with a coin purse bearing her image. Now the character generates billions of dollars a year in sales. 

Upper Deck has obtained a multi-year license from Sanrio Global Consumer Products to produce a Hello Kitty collectible game. The game will include collectible miniatures and stickers, and will be marketed as a trading card game beginning next March. 

Article Source:  AnimeNation.com 

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Announced:  October 10, 2009 

Boku, Otaryman. Manga Gets Anime DVD Green-Lit

     

The manga author Yoshitani has announced in an Saturday blog entry that an anime DVD based on his Boku, Otaryman. (I, Otaryman.) autobiographical essay manga has been green-lit. The DVD will ship in January and will feature Mamoru Miyano as Yoshitani himself, Rie Kugimiya, and others in the cast. 

The manga began as a comic on Yoshitani’s web page about his life as a 28-year-old bachelor systems engineer with no girlfriend. Since he admits he is “somewhat Otaku,” he considers himself an “otaryman” (Otaku na salaryman). Since 2007, 1 million copies have been published of the four manga volumes. 

Source:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced:  October 9, 2009 

Crunchyroll Adds White Album

   The Crunchyroll media-distribution website has announced that it will begin simulcasting Seven Arcs’ anime adaptation of AQUAPLUS and Leaf’s White Album romance visual novel game this fall. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced:  October 8, 2009 

Winny File-Sharing Software Developer Kaneko Acquitted

   Isamu Kaneko, the 39-year-old developer of the Winny peer-to-peer file-sharing software, has won an appeal that overturned his conviction for creating Winny on Thursday. The Osaka High Court overturned Kaneko’s 2006 conviction, in which the Kyoto District Court had ruled that he distributed software that he knew would be widely used for illegal purposes. However, Osaka High Court Chief Judge Masazo Ogura said that Kaneko did not encourage people to use Winny for illegally distributing copyrighted material. Kaneko’s defense had argued that technological development would be hampered if programmers were held responsible for the actions of their software’s users. His legal defense was supported by donations. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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The Disappearnce of Haruhi Suzumiya Film Announced for 2010

  The final episode of the “renewed” airing of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya anime series ended on Friday with a teaser of The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (Suzumiya Haruhi no Shōshitsu) film. The film will open in Japanese theaters in the spring of 2010. More details will be provided on the anime franchise’s official homepage at a later date. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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  Viz Media Now Accepting Original Comic Proposals

Viz Media is now accepting submissions for original comic proposals.  Submissions must be accompanied by a signed released form. 

Source:  Viz Media.com – Comic Pitch Guidelines 

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Announced:  October 7, 2009 

Maryland School Library to Remove Dragon Ball Manga

   Maryland’s Wicomico County Public Schools plan to remove the first volume of the Dragon Ball manga from Pittsville Elementary and Middle School’s library this week after a county council member showed what he described as “sexual” content in the volume. According to council member Joe Holloway, a mother told him that her nine-year-old fourth-grader borrowed the book from the Pittsville Elementary and Middle School’s library. During Tuesday’s council meeting, Halloway said, “In cartoon format, [the manga volume] depicts nudity, sexual contact between children and sexual innuendo among adults and children.” 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Gantz Sci-Fi Manga Made Into 2 Live-Action Films in 2011

    The NTV News 25 program and Sports Hochi newspaper report on Thursday that Hiroya Oku’s Gantz science-fiction action manga will be adapted into two live-action films starring Kazunari Ninomiya (Tekkonkinkreet, Letters from Iwo Jima) of the Arashi musical group and award-winning actor Ken’ichi Matsuyama (Death Note, Detroit Metal City, NANA, The Legend of Kamui). Shinsuke Sato (The Princess Blade, Suna-dokei, Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror) is directing. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Crunchyroll Confirms Streaming of Shin Koihime Musou

   Crunchyroll has confirmed that it will stream the Shin Koihime†Musō: Otome Ryōran Sangokushi Engi anime series worldwide, except for Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and French-speaking Europe. Crunchyroll’s subscribed Anime Members can see each episode early, while other users can see the same episode in standard definition for free one week later. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced:  October 6, 2009 

Funimation Confirms Strike Witches DVD to be Unedited

    The North American anime distributor Funimation has confirmed with ANN on Tuesday that it will release the Strike Witches anime series in its uncut form on DVD “and any subsequent subscription or download-to-own digital platforms.” 

Earlier this week, Funimation had streamed the unedited version of anime episodes 3 and 4 on its website as well. However, Funimation said that “due to the mature content contained within the series Strike Witches and the feedback we received from some of our fans following its streaming launch on www.funimation.com, we have replaced the originally posted unedited episodes with their edited versions.” 

Source:  Animenewsnetwork.com 

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Loups-Garous Virtual Reality Werewolf Anime Film Green-Lit

  The Japanese production company Bandai Visual has green-lit a theatrical anime film adaptation of the Loups-Garous Kihi Subeki Ōkami virtual reality werewolf novel by Requiem from the Darkness’ Natsuhiko Kyogoku. The film is slated to open in 2010. Blood+ director Jun’ichi Fujisaku is directing the animators at Production I.G and Transarts on this new project. Midori Gotou (Blood+, Otogi Zoshi, Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE The Movie: Princess of the Birdcage Kingdom) and Sayaka Harada are writing the screenplay. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Crunchyroll adds 11eyes TV Anime

  The Crunchyroll media-distribution website has announced that it will begin simulcasting the 11eyes anime adaptation of Lass’ 11eyes -Tsumi to Batsu to Aganai no Shōjo- fantasy adult computer game this fall. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com  [ANN] 

  

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 Sentai Filmworks, Section23 Add To Love-Ru Anime

  The North American anime distributor Section23 has announced that it will release Sentai Filmworks’ first DVD collection of the To Love-Ru science-fiction romantic comedy anime series on December 15. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork  [ANN] 

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Announced:  October 5, 2009 

Crunchyroll gets Fairy Tail and Sasameki Koto

        The Crunchyroll media-distribution website has confirmed that it will begin simulcasting the Fairy Tail fantasy adventure anime series and the Sasameki Koto yuri slice-of-life anime series this fall. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Discotek New Acquisitions

Discotek has announced new acquisitions: 

Fist of the North Star TV series
Lupin the Third Episode 0 First Contact
Sea Prince and the Fire Child (Sirius no Densetsu)
Oresama 

Read Full Articles: 

AnimeNation News 

[Announced 10/02/09  Mania Forum Thread] 

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Announced:  October 2, 2009 

Crunchyroll Adds Miracle Train and Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu 2

  The Crunchyroll media-distribution website has confirmed that it will begin simulcasting Aniplex and Yumeta Company’s Miracle Train ~Ōedo-sen e Yōkoso~ television anime series this Sunday, October 4. 

  The website has also confirmed that it will begin simulcasting YTV and Diomedea’s Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu: Purezza television anime sequel this Monday, October 5. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced:  October 1, 2009 

Crunchyroll Gets Sora no Otoshimono,  Book of Bantorra

   The Crunchyroll media-distribution website has announced that it will begin simulcasting Kadokawa Pictures and AIC A.S.T.A.’s  Sora no Otoshimono fantasy television anime series on Monday, October 5 at 8:00 a.m. PDT. 

  The website has also announced that it will begin simulcasting Shueisha and David Production’s Tatakau Shisho – The Book of Bantorra on this Friday at 7:30 a.m. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com 

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Announced:  September 30, 2009 

Crunchyroll Adds Natsu no Arashi 2

  The Crunchyroll media-distribution website has announced that it will begin simulcasting the Natsu no Arashi! 2 anime sequel series on Sunday, October 4 at 11:00 a.m. PDT. Natsu no Arashi! Akinai-chū is TV Tokyo and King Records’ second television anime adaptation of Jin Kobayashi’s Natsu no Arashi! science-fiction romance manga. 

Read full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com 

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Announced:  September 29, 2009 

Crunchyroll.com to Simulcast Asura Cryin’  and Asura Cryin’ 2

  The Crunchyroll media-distribution website has announced that it will begin simulcasting the Asura Cryin’ 2 anime sequel series on Wednesday, September 30 at 7:00 p.m. PDT. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com 

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Announced:  September 28, 2009 

Kadokawa Pictures USA Licensing Unit Shuts Down

The Kadokawa Pictures production company confirmed on its website that its Kadokawa Pictures USA subsidiary has closed down as of August 31. Kadokawa Pictures USA licensed several anime titles with the intent of having other companies handle their release and distribution outside Japan. 

Read Full Article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced:  September 28, 2009 

Crunchyroll to Simulcast Letter Bee

  The Crunchyroll media-distribution website has announced that it will begin simulcasting the Tegami Bachi: Letter Bee anime series on Saturday, October 3 at 8:30 a.m. PDT. This anime adaptation of Hiroyuki Asada’s manga will be available from Crunchyroll everywhere except Japan. 

Read full article:  Animenewsnetwork.com [ANN] 

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Announced:  September 17, 2009 

Crunchyroll Adds Sketchbook ~full color’S~

  The media-distribution website Crunchyroll has announced on Thursday that it will start streaming the Sketchbook ~full color’S~ high-school slice-of-life anime series at 6:00 p.m. PDT. 

Read full article:  Animenewsnetwork.com 

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Announced:  September 12, 2009 

Marvelous Entertainment and Crunchyroll to Stream First Four Subbed Episodes of Koihime Musou

  San Francisco, CA (September 12, 2009) — Enter the world of the Han Dynasty as up and coming Japanese Anime distribution company, Marvelous Entertainment Inc., and the number one (1) online destination for Anime and Asian Entertainment, Crunchyroll, are set to stream the action packed/comedic/fantasy fan-favorite KOIHIME MUSOU (episodes 1-4; subbed) to Crunchyroll Anime Members and fans worldwide starting today, Saturday; September 12, 2009 at 5:00 pm PDT. More information can be found at www.Crunchyroll.com . 

Source:  ANN for the complete article. 

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Announced:  September 10, 2009 

Viz Media Teams with Disney XD to Present Naruto Shippuden

Source:  ENewsI.com 

 

In a landmark agreement, VIZ Media, LLC (VIZ Media), one of the entertainment industry’s most innovative and comprehensive publishing, animation and licensing companies, has announced that its animated series NARUTO Shippuden has been acquired by Disney-ABC Cable Networks Group for debut on Disney XD (www.DisneyXD.com) television channel beginning in October. 

Disney XD is a new basic cable channel and multi-platform brand that showcases a compelling mix of live-action and animated programming for kids age 6-14, hyper-targeting boys and their quest for discovery, accomplishment, sports, adventure and humor. New dubbed episodes of NARUTO Shippuden will premiere on the network. 

“Disney XD is a growing destination for our key demographic, boys 6-14, and we’re looking forward to bringing the adventures of NARUTO Shippuden to our lineup,” says Tracy McAndrew, Director, Acquisitions and Co-Productions, Disney-ABC Cable Networks Group. 

Created by Masashi Kishimoto, NARUTO was first introduced in Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in Japan in 1999 and quickly became that country’s most popular ninja manga targeting tweens and teens and has sold more than 92 million copies to-date. The manga series (rated ‘T’ for Teens) and animated counterpart (NARUTO rated ‘T’ for teens, and NARUTO Shippuden rated ‘T+’ for older teens), is one of VIZ Media’s most successful properties and has captivated millions of fans across North America, Europe and South America. NARUTO is a co-production of TV TOKYO, VIZ Media parent company Shueisha Inc., and Pierrot Co., Ltd. 

“We’re very pleased to partner with Disney-ABC Cable Networks Group to bring NARUTO Shippuden to U.S. television audiences this fall,” says Bill Germain, Director of Programming Sales, VIZ Media. “With Disney XD as its new broadcast home base, NARUTO Shippuden is poised to take viewers, both new and old, to unprecedented levels of ninja-excitement!” 

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Announced:  September 7, 2009 

Man Arrested for Stalking Voice Actress Haruna Ikezawa

Suspect allegedly wrote defamatory posts, sent 16 emails requesting meeting 

 

On July 10, Japanese police arrested a 27-year-old unemployed man named Jun Sasaki on suspicion of defaming and stalking the voice actress Haruna Ikezawa (Sgt. Frog, Futari wa Pretty Cure). The man, who comes from Morioka City in the northeastern Japanese prefecture of Iwate, allegedly wrote defamatory posts on the bulletin board system on Ikezawa’s homepage and sent email messages to request a personal meeting. The man was indicted on July 30, but his arrest and indictment were only made public on Monday. 

According to the indictment documents, the suspect defamed Ikezawa with messages written on her bulletin board system in February. From February to April, the suspect allegedly sent 16 email messages via mobile phone that said, among other things, “Come by yourself to Morioka, since it’s only two hours by shinkansen ['bullet train'].” 

Ikezawa revealed on her official website in February that she has an restraining order against a stalker who, among other acts, had pursued her on the street at night. Neither the authorities nor Ikezawa has identified Sasaki as the same alleged stalker or a different person. 

Source: AnimeNewsNetwork [ANN] 

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Announced:  September 4, 2009 

 

1 Episode of Sora no Otoshimono “Too Dangerous for TV”

Only 13 of 14 produced episodes will be aired starting on October 4

The official website of the Sora no Otoshimono anime series has announced that a total of 14 episodes is being produced, but one episode has been deemed “too dangerous.” As a result, only 13 will be broadcasted on television. The website has not announced how or if the 14th episode will be released, although the series will premiere on October 4 in Japan. 

The anime adapts Suu Minazuki’s Sora no Otoshimono manga about Tomoki Sakurai, an ordinary middle school boy whose motto is “Peace is the #1 priority.” However, a strange girl often appears in his dream to ask for his help — only he cannot remember her face when he wakes up. Then, his life gets more complicated when an unidentified mysterious animal (UMA) falls out of the skies. The “animal” turns out to be Ikaros, an angel. 

Source:  Animenewsnetwork [ANN] 

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 Announced:  September 4, 2009 

 

Crunchyroll to simulcast Kemono no Sou-ja Erin

The media-distribution website Crunchyroll has announced on Friday that it will start streaming the first four English-subtitled episodes of The Beast Player Erin (Kemono no Sou-ja Erin) anime series. 

Source:  AnimeNewsNetwork [ANN] 

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Announced:  July 30, 2009 

 

Deadman Wonderland Manga gets Green-Lit

An anonymous post on Japan’s 2channel message board also claims that a retailer solicitation has revealed development of an anime adaptation of Jinsei Kataoka and Kazuma Kondou’s dramatic sci-fi adventure manga series Deadman Wonderland. Reportedly the anime production will be formally announced to the public when it’s mentioned on the advertising obi found on copies of manga volume 6, scheduled for release in Japan on August 26. 

Tokyopop will release its first English translated volume of Deadman Wonderland next February. 

Source: ANN 

Summary
Middle schooler Ganta witnesses the slaughter of all of his classmates, and as the sole survivor gets pinned with the blame. He receives the death sentence and is sent to the prison/amusement park Deadman Wonderland, there he tries to avoid “accidental” deaths as he works to uncover the identity of the true killer, “the Red Man”. 

Ganta Igarashi has been convicted of a crime that he hasn’t committed, and sent to a new, privately owned and operated prison, where the inmates are the main attraction in a modern day twist to the gladiatorial coliseums of ancient times. Throw in a healthy dose of weird little girl, some new-found super powers, and a little conspiracy theory, and you have Deadman Wonderland.