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Mar 26 – Site Update - Posted By Hisaishi
Anime News of the Week (3/18 - 3/24)
GAINAX Reveals New Projects
All of Studio GAINAX's recently announced projects are in the shoji genre.The first, a Hokago no Pleiades film, is based on a recent magical girl series that was originally developed by GAINAX and car-manufacturer Subaru. The second, Akubi o Suru ni wa Wake ga Aru, is about a young girl living in the distant future where her rural town is now completely underwater. Finally, there’s Sadon-Desu, a comedy surrounding a high school tea-ceremony club. Link 1 | Link 2 | Link 3
Hikaru Utada Makes Return to Radio
Entertainment personality Hikaru Utada will make her official return to the entertainment industry with the radio show "Kuma Power Hour." Utada announced a career hiatus in early 2011 and hasn’t hosted a radio show in thirteen years, focusing heavily on successful singing and acting careers since 1999. The show premieres April 16 on InterFM. Link
GTO Special Premieres in April
Great Teacher Onizuka returns to television in a live-action two hour special titled Farewell Onizuka! Graduation Special. The special will explore the decisions of Onizuka’s students and how they will live in a future without their mentor. Link
High Fashion is Over The Moon
Japanese fashion magazine TOKYOViVi included two special anime characters on the front cover of their third volume. Usagi and Chibi-Usagi of Sailor Moon both appear with model Lena Fujii. The magazine’s artistic director attributed their appearance to her being a fan of the original manga. Link
Time for One Hell of a Production
The anime Black Butler has inspired a second original live-action musical, entitled BLACK BUTLER: The Most Beautiful Death in the World. Voice actor Yuya Matsushita reprises his role as Sebastian Michaelis; with Taketo Tanaka as Ciel, Takeuya Urehara as Grell Sutcliff, and Shinji Rachi as Eric Slingby. Link
Famous Character Designer Brings Back A Classic
Toshihiro Kawamoto, the lead character designer for both Sunrise Studio and Studio BONES, stopped by the BONES booth at the Tokyo International Anime Fair to sketch his most beloved characters. Over the course of a Thursday, he sketched the five main characters of Cowboy Bebop on a canvas. The final product can be seen on Sunrise Studio’s Twitter feed. Link
Wolf Children, Momo Films To Receive Screenings in Santa Monica
Mamoru Hosoda’s Wolf Children and Hiroyuki Okiura’s A Letter to Momo will both premiere in Santa Monica on April 26-27. While buzz is building for Wolf Children, little is known about A Letter to Momo. Momo tells the story of a girl who struggles with the death of her father. After she moves to the countryside, she is comforted by a supernatural force. The creator, Hiroyuki Okiura, hasn’t directed since 2000, his last film being the critically acclaimed Jin-Roh. Link
You Too Can Turn Invisible
In promotion of the upcoming Ghost in the Shell Arise anime, Production I.G. showed off two actors in “optical camouflage” with a low-tech twist. Cosplaying as Matoko Kusanagi and Batou, the two actors blended into the scenery while on-lookers stood on a target to get the full effect.
Anime Releases
- Corpse Princess - The Complete Series DVD (English)
- Fate Stay/Night - Complete Collection Part 1 DVD (English)
- Mobile Suit Gundam UC Part 6 Blu-Ray (English)
- New Hurricane Polymar DVD (English)
- One Piece Season 4 Part 4 DVD (English)
- Persona 4: The Animation DVD/Blu-Ray (English)
- Toriko Part 3 DVD (English)
- Vampire Princess Miyu - Complete Collection DVD (English)
- House of Five Leaves - Standard Edition DVD (Japanese)
- Nichijou: My Ordinary Life - Collection 1 DVD (Japanese)
- Shin Getter Robo vs. Neo-Getter DVD (Japanese)
Manga Releases
- 21st Century Boys Volume 2
- Blood-C Volume 1
- Genshiken: Second Season Volume 2
- Sailor Moon Volume 10
- The Limit Volume 4
- Vagabond Volume 34
