NYCC 2010: Bandai Entertainment announces new Blu-ray/DVD versions of Gundam, Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Solid State Society

Bandai Entertainment's Marketing Director Robert Napton was on hand at the New York Comic Con/Anime Festival to announce a number of new re-releases of previously licensed Bandai properties. The first was the original Mobile Suit Gundam series (often called "First Gundam"), which will see a two-part DVD release in 2011 under the Anime Legends label with both the English dub and original Japanese. The Japanese track was conspicuously absent in Bandai's first North American release of the series (also from Bandai), drawing widespread ire from Gundam fans looking for the original audio.

Speaking of Gundam, Bandai will also be bringing Gundam Unicorn to DVD, with two episodes per DVD in a three-part release. Each DVD will retail at $29.98. Until now the series has only been released in Blu-ray format. Meanwhile, the Gundam 00 movie will be released with both Japanese and English dubs, though Bandai had no further details on the release plans. The film will see its American premiere at the New York Anime Festival this Sunday, October 10 at 2:00 PM.

Napton brought Cristina Vee (voice of Mio in K-ON!) on stage during the panel to announce two new additions to the cast for K-ON!: Cassandra Lee as Rittsu and Shelby Lindley as Mugi. Finally, Bandai will release Mamoru Hosoda's critically acclaimed anime film The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and Kenji Kamiyama's Ghost in the Shell: Solid State Society on Blu-ray. No details yet on date/price.

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Otakon 2010: Bandai acquires SoraKakeShojo, My Otome o~S.ifr~, reveals K-ON! cast [EDIT 1]

I apologize for the lateness of this article, but I've had limited Internet while on vacation.

North American anime distributor Bandai Entertainment was out in full force at Otakon 2010 in Baltimore, packing their panel room to capacity (something only achieved by a select few panels all weekend) and drawing a large group of anime press.

Bandai's two big acquisitions were Sora Kakeru Shōjo (The Girl Who Leapt Through Space, a.k.a. "SoraKake Girl") and My Otome o~S.ifr~ (the 3-episode OAV prequel to My Otome), both of which seem a little too unmarketable to be honest choices from Bandai's North American division. The most likely explanation is that both series were forced on BEA by their Japanese parent company or sold in a package deal.

Meanwhile, Bandai also fleshed out two of their existing licenses: Gundam Unicorn and K-ON! The second volume of the 6-episode Gundam OAV series (entitled "The Second Coming of Char") will run slightly longer than the first episode at 59 minutes, and the Blu-ray will also feature 29 minutes of bonus footage. It will be available November 2010 in the Bandai Store (street date price $44.99, pre-order $39.98). At other online retailers it will sell for an SRP of $59.98 (barring those stores' individual markdowns).

On the moé front, K-ON! — the slice-of-life series about a group of high school girls in a light music club — will be receiving an English dub from Bandai's mainstays at Bang Zoom Entertainment, including Stephanie Sheh (who was present at the panel) as Yui and EDIT: Cristina Vee* (who showed up in-costume to sing a batch of K-ON!'s songs) as Mio.

* We originally referred to voice actor Cristina Valenzuela (also known as "Cristina Vee") as "Christina Zee." We apologize for the error.

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Review: Royal Space Force – The Wings of Honneamise (Sub)

Medium: Anime Film (125 minutes)
Genres: Drama, Science Fiction
Director: Hiroyuki Yamaga
Studio: Gainax
Release Date: Mar. 14, 1987 (Japan), Sep. 11, 2007 (Bandai Ent./Honneamise – N.America)
Rated: Not Rated (contains an attempted rape scene)

Before Gurren Lagann (2007), before FLCL (2000), and even before Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995), now-famous anime studio Gainax created a film that served as their explosive debut into the anime world. Ironically, however, the film is far from explosive, with its quiet, contemplative look at space travel that shatters common perceptions of anime science fiction as action-heavy fare. Gainax has come very far since Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise (1987), but it's clear that the trails of the studio's science fiction lineage spring from this film.

Wings of Honneamise takes place in a brilliantly imagined science fiction world where manned spaceflight is nothing but a pipe dream for the people of Earth. Shirotsugh Lhadatt (a fascinating combination of different languages) is a lazy member of the "Royal Space Force" of his home country of Honneamise. Ironically, the Space Force doesn't actually do anything but pose around in silly costumes and talk about the possibility of space flight, thus drawing the ire of both the people and the government of Honneamise.

But all of that changes when Shiro meets a girl named Riquinni Nonderaiko on a street corner as she hands out pamphlets about her religion, begging people to believe in God during these turbulent times. After discussing space travel and what it might feel like to leave the sins of Earth behind, Shiro is inspired to volunteer as the world's first astronaut. Unfortunately, as the rocket nears completion, the government begins to twist the original intentions of the project, attempting to use it to start a war with a rival nation.

Wings of Honneamise consistently ranks among one of the most beloved classic films in anime history — to the point that Bandai Entertainment America's top-quality DVD label is called "Honneamise." It's not a surprising position to hold, since the film is definitely a very poignant rumination on humanity and our relationship with technology and each other. Unfortunately, Honneamise is also the first major project from a brand-new studio, and it shows.

Now Gainax has always been known for their acute sense of aesthetics, and Honneamise is no exception. Despite the fact that this was their first project, the cityscapes and visions of civil unrest are at times comparable to scenes from Akira (1988), a film that was released a year later by the larger, more established Tokyo Movie Shinsha. When nothing exciting is happening on screen, there can be a noticeable drop in the framerate, but whenever an exquisitely animated piece of technology shows up, it's hard not to pick up on the love that the animators put into this project.

Such an attitude carries over to nearly every facet of this film. It is, without a doubt, a sci-fi flick made by fans for fans, with its lingering shots of engines and planes, and meticulously thought-out alternate universe (spoons are triangular, books open upwards, etc.). An unfortunate symptom of this inordinate time spent on presentation is that Honneamise is just too slow. It plods along, throwing some genuinely funny little moments between Shiro and his friends, but rarely shows anything — besides a botched assassination attempt — that gets the blood pumping.

Nevertheless, once it all comes to its powerful climax during the launch sequence, the entire first part of the movie is forgotten. This is what everybody has been waiting for — the characters, the audience, and yes, even the animators. The launch has a feeling of release, as the dreams of not only Shiro and Riquinni, but also humanity itself, are fulfilled. It’s a soaring, achingly beautiful climax, reminiscent in certain ways of many of Hayao Miyazaki’s most brilliant flying scenes. (1992's Porco Rosso being the most immediate comparison.)

In that moment, Honneamise is a surprisingly powerful film. If you ever dreamed of going to space as a kid, dreamed of staring back at Earth from hundreds of miles above the surface, Honneamise is a movie that is built for you. It is made by people who feel a childlike excitement at the thought of space travel, and their love for the subject shines through in every line of dialogue and every cel of animation. While not always a confirmation of technical skill or directorial vision, Wings of Honneamise stands among the few animated films that truly deserve the cliché of being called “triumphs of the imagination.”

[Recommended]

---

This review is based on a DVD borrowed from the Rensselaer Sci-Fi Assn. anime library.

---

Related Links:

• Gerald Rathkolb's review of the film on the Anime World Order podcast
• Jeff Tatarek's Wings of Honneamise AMV, featuring Pink Floyd's "Learning To Fly"

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Review: Code Geass – Lelouch of the Rebellion (Hyb)

Medium: TV Anime (25 episodes)
Genres: Action, Mecha, Political, Science Fiction
Director: Goro Taniguchi
Studio: Sunrise
Original Run: Oct. 5, 2006 – Jul. 28, 2007 (MBS–Japan)
Release Date: Apr. 27, 2008 (Bandai Entertainment–N.America)
Rated: PG-13

Sunrise's 2006 anime series Code Geass, in addition to being about a revolution, happens to be a prime representation of a real-world revolution in anime fandom — namely, a merge of the demographics for shōjo and mecha anime. It's a revolution that has been in progress at least since the '90s, when Mobile Suit Gundam Wing provided male fans with explosive robot battles and female fans with attractive, possibly homosexual robot pilots. Sunrise (the studio behind the Gundam franchise) has once again brought these two aesthetics together in a show that combines the studio's experience with giant robots and the character designs of shōjo superstars CLAMP (Cardcaptor Sakura, Chobits, Tsubasa). The revolution is under way, for better or for worse.

Code Geass's melodramatic protagonist is Lelouch vi Britannia, a former prince of the Britannian Empire who escaped with his younger sister Nunnally after witnessing his mother's still-unsolved murder. The siblings now live a fake life as students in Area 11 (the conquered province formerly known as Japan) with childhood friend and Britannian soldier Suzaku Kururugi.

But Area 11 has some problems of its own, in particular a populace forced into Britannian rule and brutally discriminated against, causing a variety of fringe groups to crop up and oppose the occupying force. After an unfortunate run-in with one of these terrorist groups, Lelouch meets a strange, green-haired girl named C.C. who grants him the power of "Geass" — the ability to command the actions of anyone via eye contact. With his newfound power, the prince rises up under the masked persona of "Zero" and leads the revolution of Japan, with the intention of uncovering the truth of his mother's death and making a new world for his sister.

Indeed, that IS a mouthful! In reality, the story can be summed up in a simple comparison: Code Geass is what happens when you smash the original Mobile Suit Gundam together with Death Note. Zero is essentially Gundam's Char Aznable (a son of royalty who wears a mask to protect his identity) mixed with Death Note's Light Yagami (a teen gifted with a strange, highly manipulative power). All three shows also examine the idea of justice attained through a personal vendetta, and the consequences therein.

With such a strange combination of influences, Code Geass is one of those modern anime that can appeal to a broad range of fans. Girls can ogle CLAMP's tall, thin pretty-boys, while fans of the intricate plotting of Death Note will find more than enough to love. Unfortunately, mecha fans will find that, despite the number of robots in Code Geass, the show is not really about them. Kenji Teraoka's (Ghost in the Shell, Gundam 00) mechanical designs for the "Knightmare Frames" are certainly interesting, but their battles are often fought with overpowered one-hit-kill weapons or by no-name redshirts, so they lack the gravity and personal investment of most fights in the Gundam series.

Don't get fooled by the presence of robots, though. Like an anime version of 24, Code Geass is all about the twists and turns. The entire fate of Japan can hinge on the momentary impulse of its viceroy or a carefully thought out move by Zero, and that inevitable modification of the status quo is what makes the show so compelling. I found myself feverishly watching episode after episode, just to see what Lelouch would do next to extricate himself from situations in which failure is nearly guaranteed. Naturally, the constant stream of twists can get tiring, and lend the series a sizable air of absurdity, but they sure do manage to keep it interesting episode after episode.

Geass's art and animation are sharp, brightly colored, and stunningly clean, and the the robot fights — animated in CGI with cel-shading — are surprisingly well-integrated into the 2-D environments. Still, where the show really shines, technically, is in its depiction of CLAMP's character designs. Their distinctive aesthetic provides for some wacky hair colors and costumes, but Sunrise's more angular approach to the designs creates powerful depictions of emotion (usually anger) when the need arises. Lelouch and Suzaku in particular manage to look distinctive yet believable, a difficult feat in a show where two lead female characters have pink and green hair, respectively.

Of course, don't miss out on Bang Zoom!'s (EDIT: Animaze's) fantastic dub, which utilizes the series' Western cultural aesthetic to implement English dialogue that fits its context much better than the Japanese. The dub also happens to be quite sonically accurate to the Japanese, thanks in no small part to an appropriately dramatic performance by Johnny Yong Bosch as Lelouch and an irritatingly high-pitched, yet accurate, depiction of Princess Euphemia from Michelle Ruff.

When it comes down to it, the glue that holds the show together is the three-way relationship between Lelouch, Suzaku, and Nunnally. Lelouch's desire to create a new world for his sister puts him in direct conflict with his childhood friend (albeit anonymously), and since both of them care deeply for Nunnally, this secret war between friends creates some truly affective melodrama. Lelouch is the main character, but his haughtiness and willingness to sacrifice almost anyone for his goals make him a villain, making Suzaku a hero and mucking up the show's moral thermometer. Such bold moves on the part of series writer Ichiro Okouchi (RahXephon, Stellvia, Turn A Gundam) are commendable despite many of Geass's other failings.

Through all of the rebellions and back-door dealings, Code Geass is ultimately a show that see-saws between bursts of genuine quality and entire episodes of unbelievable silliness (i.e. every comedic episode that takes place at Lelouch's school). At its best, it is a dark moral and political drama that emphasizes the consequences of war and asks if and when good ends can justify evil means. At its worst, it is a dumb sitcom about a superhero and super-villain who happen to go to school together.

Available now on Bandai Entertainment's YouTube channel, the first season of Code Geass is an enjoyable ride overall, despite quite a few frustrating bumps along the way. Fans of fast-paced political dramas who enjoy some interesting moral questions in their anime should find much to love here, though the occasionally inane plot twists and weak mecha tie-in might set a few people off.

---

This review is based on Bandai Entertainment's YouTube stream of the series.



good.

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Gundam Unicorn Blu-ray in March, older Gundam series streaming in February

A Bandai Entertainment press release yesterday announced the North American Blu-ray release of Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn, Sunrise's newest anime series in the long-running Mobile Suit Gundam franchise. The first Blu-ray disc, which is exclusively available for pre-order on Amazon.com right now, will hit retailers on March 12, 2010 (the same day as the Japanese release), and will feature TrueHD 5.1 and Dolby Digital 2.0 sound on both the English and Japanese audio tracks, a 16:9, 1080p video transfer, and ... just one episode of the six-episode OAV. The disc will go for a SRP of $49.98.

Furthermore, to "celebrate" the release of Gundam Unicorn, Bandai Entertainment will be providing six older Gundam series in streaming video format through the Anime News Network, Crunchyroll, and YouTube, starting on February 1. The six series that will be available are Mobile Suit Gundam (the original), Z (Zeta) Gundam, Gundam Wing, Gundam SEED, Gundam SEED Destiny, and Gundam 00. The first season of Gundam 00 is already available on Bandai's YouTube channel, so this announcement might signal a streaming release for the second season, which has only been available so far on the SyFy channel's Ani-Monday block.

Unicorn takes place in the "Universal Century" (UC), the same time period as the original Mobile Suit Gundam, and it is the first UC series since the 2004 CGI project MS IGLOO. The events depicted in Gundam Unicorn are based on the novel of the same name by Harutoshi Fukui, and take place three years after the events of the 1988 film Char's Counterattack.

I'm as excited as the next guy (actually, way more excited than the next guy) about Bandai streaming old Gundam shows, especially since I'm currently playing catch-up, trying to watch a bunch of the old UC Gundam series. Nevertheless, the release strategy for the Unicorn Blu-ray is simply unforgivable. $50 for a single OAV episode means that the entire show (whose six 50-minute episodes bring its runtime to around that of a 13-episode series) will cost an American a whopping $300 for the Blu-ray release. For what amounts to a 13-episode anime!

Bandai's Unicorn release is following the same strategy of most Japanese anime DVD releases: very few episodes on a disc with a criminally high price point. Because of Bandai's notorious fear of "reverse importation" (Japanese buying the significantly cheaper American discs), they are simultaneously releasing identical Blu-rays, which will certainly stop the few Japanese fans who actually reverse import anime DVDs. Coincidentally, it will also stop most American fans from purchasing this release, which completely defeats the purpose, as it were.

Details regarding the standard DVD release of Unicorn (if any) and more information on the streaming shows have not been released yet, but I will get in contact with Bandai PR to try to iron out some of the finer points of the announcement.

---

FULL PRESS RELEASE:

AMAZON.COM TO EXCLUSIVELY DISTRIBUTE MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM UNICORN V. 1 BLU-RAY; OTHER GUNDAM SERIES AVAILABLE FOR STREAMING

January 14, 2010 – Bandai Visual Japan announced today that Amazon.com will release the Mobile Suit Gundam UC(Unicorn) Vol.1 Blu-ray with a two-month exclusive window in North America under the “Honneamise” label. Amazon.com will be taking pre-orders starting on January 10 with a street date of March 12, 2010 at a SRP of $49.98. Bandai Entertainment Inc. distributes this Blu-ray product for Bandai Visual Japan.

Since its inception in 1979, the Gundam franchise is considered the introduction of the giant robot or “Mecha” genre in the U.S. Mobile Suit Gundam UC is a series of popular novels by Harutoshi Fukui, which was originally serialized from 2006 to June 2009 in the monthly Gundam Ace magazine by Kadokawa. Ten volumes of the novel have sold over 2 million copies. The story is set in Universal Century, three years after the events of the film Char’s Counterattack. The series will be comprised of six 50-minute episodes directed by Kazuhiro Furuhashi.

The Blu-ray will feature Episode One with Japanese and English TrueHD 5.1 and Japanese and English Dolby Digital 2.0 audio with a 16:9 / 1080P High Definition transfer. Subtitle tracks will include Japanese, English, French, Spanish, and Chinese (in both Cantonese and Mandarin). The English voice cast features the talents of Steve Cannon, Stephanie Sheh, Rachael Lillis, Tara Platt, and others.

Additionally, to celebrate Gundam UC's Blu-ray release, Bandai Channel will begin streaming classic Gundam series starting February 1. This is a long-awaited opportunity for existing fans to revisit their favorites or for newer fans to become familiar with the world of Gundam before watching Gundam UC. Six TV series of Gundam (Mobile Suit Gundam, Mobile Suit Z Gundam, Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny, and Mobile Suit Gundam 00) are planned for free streaming in North America and Europe for limited time only on AnimeNewsNetwork (www.animenewsnetwork.com), Crunchyroll (www.crunchyroll.com) and YouTube (www.youtube.com/AnimeChannel). More series are to be added later.

For streaming schedule and more information, visit Gundam UC's official site: http://www.gundam-unicorn.net/en

*streaming information will be available on February 1.

For more information on Bandai Entertainment please visit: www.bandai-ent.com
For more information on Amazon.com please visit: www.amazon.com

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Secret Santa Review: Kannagi - Crazy Shrine Maidens (Sub)

Medium: TV Anime
Number of episodes: 13
Genres: Humor, Romance
Director: Yutaka Yamamoto
Studio: A-1 Pictures
Version reviewed: Anime News Network video stream (also available in Bandai Ent. box set)
Release date: October 4 thru December 27, 2008 (JPN), July 16, 2009 (NA)
Rated: Unrated (appropriate for 13+)

To be entirely honest, I was not the least bit excited about watching Kannagi. It was one of three choices provided to me through the Reverse Thieves' "Anime Secret Santa" project, the other two being Air and True Tears, but seeing as I am generally not a fan of the "moé" subculture of anime fandom, I was not expecting to enjoy this series.

And would you look at that! I didn't.

The plot, laid out by Hideyuki Kurata (Now and Then, Here and There, Read or Die) follows our mostly cookie-cutter protagonist Jin Mikuriya, who is living alone while his parents are away on a business trip. On the day that he completes his wooden carving of a local goddess, the statue breaks apart, revealing a teenage girl inside! The petulant girl explains that she is Nagi, the goddess that Jin was carving a likeness of. Naturally, she ends up staying with Jin, pretending to be his "long lost sister" to explain it to friends. (Can you count the clichés?) As the story drags on, the cast is filled out with Jin's art club friends (the otaku Akiba and the shy, tall Daitetsu), childhood friend Tsugumi (who has a crush on Jin), and Nagi's goddess sister "Zange-chan" (who – surprise surprise! – also likes Jin).

So how about the conflict? What drives these characters to do what they do, and keeps the viewer interested enough to move from episode to episode? Well, nothing! The first few episodes feature Nagi and Jin trying to capture and destroy "impurities," evil spirits (or something like that) in the shape of black insects. What are the impurities and why does Nagi need to destroy them? It's not really explained, but the show sure does make a big deal about these things at the beginning.

Later the show focuses on Nagi and Zange trying to outdo each other at being teenage idols. The reason for that conflict is weak as well, with the only explanation being that the two need to gain followers to increase their powers as goddesses. Curiously, though, their "powers" never seem to manifest into anything remotely useful. This arc in particular highlights the show's obsession with the otaku subculture, especially its uncomfortable tendency to pander to its audience at every single turn with teen idols, magical girls, and maid cafés.

The middle of Kannagi forgets about BOTH of these conflicts and lapses into pure comedy, with a few episodes about Nagi locking herself in a closet, a karaoke trip, and other silliness. Here the show really shines, as it takes its very simple, one-dimensional cast and uses their comedic strengths – much like 2006's enjoyable The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – to pull off some surprisingly funny scenes.

Finally, it all comes back to a dramatic trio of episodes at the end that seems like a half-hearted attempt to transform the characters of the previous ten episodes into real human beings that the audience should care about. However, when Kannagi's excuse for character introduction is a girl listing off the archetypes that each character fits into, it's only natural that an attempt at real development meets with some massive cognitive dissonance. A few moments in the final episode or two might provoke some real emotion, but mostly you will just want to punch Jin for turning into Shinji Ikari at the last moment.

The biggest central conflict that Kannagi has going for it is the romantic relationship developing between Jin and Nagi, but it falls flat in this as well. Unlike Haruhi Suzumiya (also directed by Yutaka Yamamoto), which had a similarly subdued romantic conflict between a deadpan guy and an impatient, immature girl, Kannagi doesn't have a romantic payoff (the kiss scene in Haruhi). Admittedly this is because Kannagi is based on a manga that has not finished, and the show was intended to have a second season, so it is hard to fault the folks at A-1 Pictures for the weakness in the narrative. However, it undoubtedly weakens the first (and only) season as a stand-alone show.

With all of this negative talk, you might think that I hated everything about Kannagi, but that is certainly not the case. The animation, for one, is beautiful, and it is clear that animating the character's movements – Nagi's in particular – got a lot of focus from the team. The show might not look as beautiful as Haruhi, which was particularly noticeable for its stellar animation, but it's one of the closest things you can find out there in terms of both animation and art direction.

Oddly enough, the background music at the beginning is impressive, using a lot of interesting electronic instrumentation rarely found in anime background music, but later episodes cut back on the use of Satoru Kousaki's fascinating, emotive music in favor of uninspired instrumental versions of the opening and ending themes.

Despite its technical high points, when it comes down to it Kannagi is a waste of time. The show features characters defined only by the archetypes they fit into, but instead of consistently using this potential weakness to the show's comedic benefit, Kurata spends an inordinate amount of time on poorly executed drama and an unsatisfying romantic plot. Still, the most pressing issue that I have with Kannagi is that it simply has nothing to say. At the end of the experience, I was left with only a feeling of, "well yes, that happened." A goddess moved in with a boy, they did some silly stuff that sometimes made me laugh, and they both sort of like each other. Behind all of the big-eyed teenage girls and the half-baked attempts at romantic comedy, Kannagi has no substance, and that is ultimately its greatest failure.

weak.

Continue reading... | Write a comment

NYAF09: Bandai Entertainment panel report [EDIT 1]

Bandai's NYAF panel, staffed by Marketing Director Robert Napton, Loy Fruel, and Bandai Entertainment President and CEO Ken Iyadomi, was unfortunately lacking in any major new announcements. The three simply went over their current lineup of anime and manga, including Kannagi, Kurokami, Code Geass (anime, manga, and light novels), Gurren Lagann (anime and manga), Gundam 00, (anime, and both the 00 and 00F manga) and Eureka Seven (anime and manga). However, Mr. Iyadomi briefly interrupted the show to let Napton know that it was okay to announce the only new information that the company brought with them to the convention: the home video release of the Eureka Seven -good night, sleep tight young lovers- movie will hit stores on January 26, 2010 for $24.19 (DVD) or $39.98 (Blu-Ray).

Not to be discouraged by the relative lack of announcements, some other manga journalists and I spoke with Robert Napton (who also heads Bandai's manga division) in a little mini manga summit in the NYAF press room shortly after the panel. I don't have the time to transcribe the whole thing just yet, but I'll be sure to post the high points of the discussion as soon as I'm done listening to my recording.

EDIT 1: Fixed some typos and added more clarification of Bandai's lineup of titles.

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Otakon 09: Bandai Entertainment panel report

The Bandai Entertainment panel at Otakon 2009 was unfortunately without any licensing announcements, though the huge crowd in the room and the tremendous energy and charisma commanded by Bandai's marketing director, Robert Napton would have led one to believe that a brand new license was coming up. The panel, held late Friday night, was defused in part by Bandai's surprise announcement the day before of the license for Kannagi: Crazy Shrine Maidens.

There was an interesting dub-sub question that came up during the panel. Napton announced that Kurokami, which was streamed and dubbed near-simultaneously with the Japanese version, will see a bilingual release on both DVD and Blu-Ray on an unspecified date. However, Kannagi, which released on Friday, a mere day after the licensing announcement, will not have a dub at all. This was surprising to me, since Bandai had more time to dub Kannagi, and since Bandai dubbed the other two Yutaka Yamamoto-directed shows that they released – The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Lucky Star.

However, when asked about the reason for not dubbing the series, Napton had this to say: "It's a different situation [...] Because if you're talking about making something exclusively not at the retail level [...] Obviously, when you're dubbing, it's a much more expensive process, so it has to be more of a mass situation. We're doing something a little more focused." From the looks of it, Bandai looked at similar shows like Haruhi and Lucky Star, and realized that depsite their huge fanbases, they just didn't sell. It makes sense, then, that they decided to focus the release of Kannagi and save money on a dub that would be widely panned by the hardcore otaku fanbase of the show. That would explain not only why there is no dub, but also why the DVDs are releasing exclusively at online retailers for the time being.

On a side note, however, the Bandai press release regarding their Otakon panel had a quote from Napton regarding the potential for Kannagi moving to brick-and-morter retailers later on: "Furthermore, when we do make this sub only version available to the mass retailers at some point down the line it will be the same product for a HIGHER SRP – not less expensive as being speculated, so the obvious inference is to get it for less, get it NOW." It sounds like Bandai is planning to ease Kannagi into the mainstream market instead of shoving it out there and crossing their fingers as they did with Haruhi and Lucky Star.

Other than all the industry inside baseball, there were a few small announcements, mostly pertaining to the many events that Bandai has been heavily promoting. One of their biggest new events is the theatrical screening of the Eureka Seven 'good night, sleep tight, young lovers' movie, which will be seen in "approximately 432" theaters on September 24, 2009. Additionally, if fans show up in cosplay at the event and send pictures of themselves in costume to Anime Cosplay Paradise, they can win prizes from Bandai. The distributor will also hold a "Eureka Seven Day" to celebrate the film's release on September 20th at Kinokuniya Bookstores, in conjunction with the New York Anime Festival, as always.

And as a final note, when Mr. Napton asked members of the audience to "raise your hands if you bought Kannagi in the Dealer's Room today," the crowd of screaming and cheering Nagi fans all dropped their flailing hands. One guy sort of half-raised his hand before he realized that he was the only one. How's that for a visual representation of the pirating problem with otaku?

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Bandai surprise-announces Kannagi: Crazy Shrine Maidens

Bandai Entertainment, one of the leading distributors in the North American anime industry, just pulled what some gaming fans might call a "Saturn." For the past few days, advertisements on the sidebar of the Anime News Network linked to a website called omgitscoming.com, which contained nothing but a simple countdown. As of the completion of said countdown at 3:00 pm yesterday, Bandai (who we now know is the creator of the countdown) put up a new page featuring the official announcement of the release plans for Kannagi: Crazy Shrine Maidens. The shonen romantic comedy was a smash hit with Japanese otaku, and is commonly seen as one of the successors of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Lucky Star. (Interestingly, all three were directed by this weekend's Otakon guest Yutaka Yamamoto.)

But a license for Kannagi is not surprising in itself, since the show has a lot of fan support if Internet discussions are to be believed. What is surprising is Bandai's release plan. Their announcement page includes an embedded video of episode 1 from Anime News Network's video service, which is currently hosting the first two episodes and which will presumably host all future episodes. Most importantly, however, Bandai claims that the Kannagi DVDs will be available in stores "immediately." SEGA famously attempted a similar strategy for the 1995 release of the Sega Saturn, but their too-good-to-be-true announcement that the console was already out resulted in severely disappointed sales. I'm not expecting a similar outcome, since anime DVDs and video game consoles occupy entirely different sphere. The distributor hasn't given us the details about the DVD release, but according to the Amazon listing, it looks like 7 episodes per $26 DVD. We'll be sure to press Bandai for more details at their industry panel today (Friday) at Otakon.

And on that note, I just want to say that this is a terrible time to make this announcement. I was unable to post about the announcement when it came out because I was sitting on a charter bus that was thens speeding me toward Baltimore. For countless other bloggers and journalists who were also either on their way to Otakon or checking into their Baltimore hotel rooms, this announcement only got to them later in the night at the earliest. Bandai probably would have gotten a veritable explosion of publicity had they announced this at 3:00 on Wednesday, but instead, they've caught a significant portion of the anime press world by surprise.

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion now available on CrunchyRoll

According to today's press release from Bandai Entertainment, the hit television anime series Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion is now streaming on website CrunchyRoll, the quickly-growing provider of online, streaming video anime distribution.

For those unaware, CrunchyRoll began its life in 2006 as a provider of primarily Asian user-submitted videos. When questions of copyright infringement started to come up regarding the high number of fansubbed (and even licensed) titles on the service, Bandai Entertainment expressed particular concern with the popular website. After the introduction of licensed titles on the video service, CrunchyRoll made it an official policy that users would no longer be able to submit video content.

Bandai has been slow on the draw in terms of digital distribution of their (typically very popular) titles, but announced in February their plans to stream some of their anime titles – including Code Geass – on YouTube. The move to CrunchyRoll represents a natural transition for the fan favorite anime, and can only signal Bandai's willingness to stream even more shows on the service in the future. Is that, perchance, the smell of Haruhi season two in the air, my friends?

[via Anime News Network]

Continue reading... | Write a comment

NYCC09: Bandai Entertainment / FUNimation panel reports

Yeah, these panel reports are late, but I had a few things that I wanted to say in relation to them. First up are the actual announcements. After that I'll have my little analysis.

Bandai Entertainment
Bandai is one of the few anime companies holding on in the struggling anime industry, thanks in no small part to licenses for fan-favorite shows like Gurren Lagann, Code Geass, and Gundam 00. On that topic, the only big announcement made by Bandai at the New York Comic Con was their license of the Gundam 00 and Gundam 00F manga, as well as the light novels based on the series.

One of the more interesting things that Bandai rep Robert Napton let slip was that the first presses of the Akira Blu-ray release have already sold out to retailers, and the next presses will be in "a couple months." Also, Robert confirmed that Bandai will NOT be distributing Makoto Shinkai's award-winning 2007 film 5 Centimeters Per Second, previously licensed by ADV before they went under. Who's going to pick it up then? The only possibility seems to be FUNimation, but if they wait too long, the buzz might completely wear off. (it already has to some degree) I'd hate to see 5cm/s come out years late and experience terrible sales numbers.

FUNimation
FUNimation also only felt the need to send one representative, the ever-charismatic Adam Sheehan. He began his presentation by showing some charts to illustrate FUNi's growth in a bad economy, hoping to reassure anime fans who fear that our little niche will be crushed under a failing global economy. (I don't blame them, we're all scared.)

Other than that, Sheehan just went over FUNi's new releases and answered some questions. Among his answers to those questions was word that the FUNimation podcast has been put on hiatus until "things get better," Baccano will probably be released in a 13-episode boxset, and FUNimation hasn't licensed Hellsing Ultimate yet because it quite simply "hasn't been offered to us."

---

What really struck me about both of these panels was a single quote, spoken word for word by both Adam and Robert: "Single-volume releases have gone the way of the dodo." Hearing this exact same sentiment said in the exact same way from the two biggest names in anime got me thinking about what that says about the anime industry. Dare I say it?: the New York Comic Con 2009 was the site of the official death of the single-volume release. And you know what?

Good riddance.

The single-volume release has always been one of my biggest problems with anime releases. Yes, I understand that people want their anime quickly, but even if you released DVD Volume 1 of some show on the same day as it was released on Japanese television, what are the odds that the average otaku will buy that $20 DVD instead of watching an HD-quality fansub? Exactly.

The box set release is where the real purchases come in. If anime companies like FUNimation released shows in cheap boxsets and scrapped the single-volume releases entirely, they would save quite a lot of money on DVDs that are probably not selling very quickly during their first few runs. Luckily, this seems to be happening, so hopefully FUNi and Bandai should see the improvements immediately – Bandai especially, since the combination of Code Geass on TV and boxsets in stores is exactly the kind of model that has worked for American television for so long.

I will admit that I don't have the sales numbers for any of these companies, so I don't know how single-volume releases sold when they used to be all over the market. Still, I can say from personal experience that the average 15-year-old otaku will not buy six $20 DVDs, so the strategy is inherently flawed.

It is said that necessity is the mother of invention, and this recession just might be the very necessity to spur the kind of invention that our industry needs right now.

Continue reading... | Write a comment

NYAF08: Bandai/FUNimation panel reports

Today, on the first day of the New York Anime Festival, two of the American anime industry's biggest heavyweights, Bandai Entertainment and FUNimation, controlled a single panel room for a whopping three hours. Uncle Yo and I tag-teamed on the panels to get all of the big announcements.

Bandai Entertainment

The representatives from Bandai Entertainment and their Honneamise line (formerly Bandai Visual) started their panel with what they called an "un-announcement": Sola and True Tears, originally slated to be released by Honneamise, have, in fact, been cancelled. Then they spent around forty-five minutes discussing their new titles, including Code Geass R2 (on Adult Swim in October), Gurren Lagann, Gundam 00, Ghost Slayers (Ayashi), and Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence.

Bandai manga will be releasing the Gurren Lagann manga series as a companion to the very popular anime title. Honneamise also announced (arguably) their biggest license yet: Akira. It will be rereleased under the Honneamise line for 49.98 on Blu-ray with 24bit Japanese audio and the English dub included in the Geneon release.

The final announcement came from Bandai Entertainment, who let us know that THEY would be releasing Sola and True Tears under their Anime Legends label. No price or release date was given.

Honneamise plans to release anime simultaneously in the US and Japan with lower US prices. When I asked Honneamise’s rep, Loy Fruel about the possibility this creates for "reverse importation" of American DVDs to Japan, he seemed unconcerned. "If it happens, it happens. We just want Americans not to import from Japan."

FUNimation

(Karl "Uncle Yo" Custer compiled the information for this panel)

While FUNimation has a lot to discuss thanks to their sweeping acquisition of former ADV and Geneon titles, there was very little new information to be had. The representative Adam Sheehan obviously talked about Hellsing Ultimate, Negima, Claymore, Ouran High School Host Club, and even some Dragonball Z (I know, right?). Darker than Black opened up the panel, with an energetic trailer featuring Yoko Kanno's prominent musical talents in center stage.

The biggest announcement of the panel was FUNimation's license of the Japanese Mushi-shi live action movie. On another note, Adam also hinted that Ouran might be available at AnimeUSA before it’s street date. After opening up the floor to questions, Sheehan finally moved on to a whole separate panel regarding the FUNimation Channel.

FUNimation Channel

Continuing with his very candid style, Sheehan went into details of the channel's growing penetration into American television. His main point was that anime fans should be bothering their local cable companies to add the FUNimation Channel, even going to such lengths as requesting that people make threats like, "If you don't add the FUNimation Channel, I'll drown your dog." He also briefly discussed that Video-On-Demand services, currently only on Verizon FiOs, will soon be coming to other providers, like Comcast.

Sheehan also announced some brand new titles to the channel, including Burst Angel, Jyu-oh-sei, Black Blood Brothers, Solty Rei, and Negima!? (season 2). Of course, an entire series of Powerpoint slides was dedicated to the announcement of Ouran High School Host Club on the FUNimation Channel. There is "no date yet" for the show's premiere, but Sheehan estimates it to be sometime this fall.

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Gundam 00 trailer, Meister cast released

Just days ago, BANDAI Entertainment, American distributor of Mobile Suit Gundam 00, launched the official website for the aforementioned series. The new site features a trailer (embedded above), news, and plot, character, and mecha information. According to the featured news items, BANDAI Entertainment has reached an agreement with Starz Media to televise Gundam 00 on the SciFi Channel's AniMonday block over a 2-episode-a-week, 13-week run.

In addition, the voice actors set to play the four central Gundam Meisters are Brad Swaile as Setsuna F. Seiei, Alex Zahara as Lockon Stratos, Richard Ian Cox as Allelujah Haptism, and Sam Vincent as Tieria Erde. Brad Swaile, an actor in various Gundam series since his role as Quatre Raberba Winner in Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, was interviewed on the Ani-Gamers Podcast just this week. Unfortunately, the interview took place before the announcement, so Ani-Gamers was unable to question the actor on his new role.

[via Gundam 00 Official Site]

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence Rereleased Under Bandai

Well, as it goes for any good anime movie released in America, otakus have found something wrong with the release. This prompts other companies to take the opportunity to ride the beaten horse for another round. Bandai Entertainment, while undergoing site maintenance, released the news that they would be handling a dub of Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, previously released by Dreamworks. It will feature a brand-new voice cast, proper subtitling (which was a major issue with the previous release), and the biggest news is that it will be also released on Blu-Ray. Quite exciting! Now you can watch anime on that PS3 of yours in slightly better quality! That's sure to give some people closure for buying it! No other details have been released at this time, but news will be posted as it comes.

[via Bandai Entertainment]

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Code Geass on Adult Swim in April

Code Geass, the popular Sunrise anime featuring character designs by CLAMP, is finally making its way to America. Under the licensing of Bandai Entertainment (dubbed trailer above), Code Geass will premiere on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block this April, on a currently unannounced date. I sadly missed out on Code Geass when it was fansubbed, so I'll definitely try to catch it on Adult Swim. Anyone here a fan of the show?

[via ICv2]

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Two Anime Dub Trailers Released

For those who don't know, two anime dubs had trailers released. The first is Gurren Lagaan, and the other is Lucky Star. They were given out to the general anime public about two weeks ago, and have been a hot topic for us crazy otakus.

First, the Gurren Lagaan trailer. It doesn't take itself seriously at all, which is actually fitting for the anime. It's quite funny actually, especially because they advertise the "Gainax Bounce." For any who don't know, you should, and it's the fact that girls in Gainax anime have extra bouncy chests. Sadly no actual voice-acting was shown, so it's just basically an announcement.

Next, it's the Lucky Star trailer, which actually has voice-acting. Wendee Lee takes up the voice of Konata, and Kari Walghren is the voice actress of Kagami. The dub is not looking to be as great as Bandai's previous dub, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, but hopes are not crushed just yet. Updates for these two shows will be posted probably 2 weeks later than they were announced.

[via ADV Films,Bandai Entertainment]

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Girl Who Leapt Through Time subbed trailer on IGN

After announcing their license of the title at the New York Anime Festival back in December, Bandai Entertainment released a trailer for The Girl Who Leapt Through Time yesterday. The subtitled trailer is currently streaming on IGN, and I have to say that it's a really nicely made video, worth a watch for anyone interested in the film.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (based on Yasutaka Tsutsui's novels) follows the day-to-day story of a high school girl who finds that she can move through time at will, but must eventually face the consequences of her powers.

Bandai Entertainment is currently planning a limited theatrical release for the international award-winning film. It will play in New York City, Los Angeles, and possibly other cities on an undisclosed date.
[via Anime News Network]

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Bandai Acquires Lucky Star

Bandai snuck a teaser trailer into their Haruhi volume 4 DVD that reveals the not-so-surprising news that Bandai Entertainment has acquired the licensing rights to the school life comedy Lucky Star. The extremely popular series, created by Kyoto Animation (of Haruhi fame), was a natural fit for Bandai, whose license of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya has achieved fairly marked success in the States.

Aaaand in related news, Bandai reveals their secret plan to milk rabid KyoAni fanboys of every cent left in their pockets. Their secret weapon of mass fanstruction is of course their addictive J-pop dances.
[via AnimeNation]

Continue reading... | Write a comment

Funimation Takes Blu-Ray, Bandai HD-DVD, Geneon Unsure

IGN posted an article in their DVD section outlining the plans for high-def DVD formats in anime companies. In the first part of the special, they speak to FUNimation, Bandai, and Geneon about what format they plan to support, HD-DVD or Blu-Ray.

FUNimation's Senior VP of Sales and Operations, Ward Thomas, explained that FUNi has currently chosen Blu-Ray as their format. This is partially influenced by the more interactive functions of the format, but is also rooted in their fans being "very much trailblazers on the technology side." The use of Blu-Ray in the PS3 also prompted the decision. Finally, Blockbuster, who FUNi has a retail deal with, has also decided to support Sony's disc, further reinforcing FUNimation's decision. Thomas also hinted that Comic-Con was coming up soon, and FUNimation might reveal information about their Blu-Ray releases at the con.

Bandai, on the other hand, released their first in a string of HD-DVD anime releases a few weeks ago, the 6-episode OAV "Freedom." They plan on following this up with an ever-growing lineup of HD releases, including classics like "Wings of Honneamise" and "Patlabor."

Finally, Geneon has not yet determined the direction they will move with their high-def anime releases. As Chad Kime, Manager, Marketing and Corporate Planning for Geneon tells IGN, "Plans for high-def are on hold. We are waiting for the consumer demand to be high enough to make anime high-def profitable."
[via IGN]

Save This Page   Slashdot It!   |Share on Facebook|

Continue reading... | Write a comment