Father Geek here, attempting to get this post up before I have to leave on a roadtrip with Harry to Seguin, Texas for the early morning memorial service for longtime family friend Robert A.(Bob) Burns who died this past Monday.

Bob was the Art Director on several popular live-action genre films including: THE HILLS HAVE EYES... THE HOWLING... RE-ANIMATOR... MICROWAVE MASSACRE... KILLER DOG... and of course the original TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE among others. He also worked in various positions (not always credited) on cult flicks like: Tourist Trap... Mausoleum... Time Walker... Confessions of a Serial Killer... The Substitute Wife... The Stars Fell on Henrietta... Future-Kill... Mongrel... Ballad of a Sad Cafe... Macabra... Mohammed's Radio... annnnd the first POLTERGEIST flick along with several others.

Well, I've got to post this so I can go say "goodbye" to a talented free-spirit, and all around fun-tastic guy...

AnimAICN

by Scott Green

Anime Preview: Fighting Spirit

To be released by Geneon July 6th

Now that shoujo (girl's) anime has begun to take off (though not the next of the shoujo manga/comics), sports anime is the genre that many, especially those within the industry, hope will be next to gain a foothold in the American consciousness.

Boxing stories have always been highly regarded within the genre, especially since the 70's tragic saga Ashita no Joe (Tomorrow's Joe), which some (probably incorrectly) insist inspired the later American classic Rocky. Fighting Spirit (Hajime no Ippo in Japan), is the first lengthy sports anime, to the extent that Geneon hasn't it found it useful to quantify the complete volume length, to be brought over to the domestic market, is a lighter take on the sport than its legendary predecessor.

It follow a boxing career from its inception, as it opens its lead, high school student Ippo Makinouchi, has no interest in boxing or any involved in any corollary activities. He's begun attending a new school where he is socially isolated by his compulsion to assist his mother run her fishing boat rental business and made a target of the school's thugs by submissiveness.

Ippo receives his first encounter with boxing when one of his beatings is interrupted by local boxing star Takamura. Ippo becomes captivated by the boxing videos Takamura lends him, and after proving his desire to Takamura, Ippo is taken back to the gym for his introduction to the sport. His next is test is being thrown into the deep end with a match against the gym's young wunderkind Miyata, pitting Ippo's physical attitude against Miyata's sharp mind for the sport.

Though an act of bullying ostensibly sets Ippo's boxing career into motion, self defense doesn't weigh his motivations as much as something more existential. To him, boxing is an ends and an identity beyond being his mother's assistant rather than a means. The series begins with Ippo's conscious decision to shape himself into a boxer.

Through natural gifts, previous physical activity (lugging fishing gear), or a combination of both, Ippo is physically predisposed to the activity. As a result, his physical journey is one of incremental steps to condition and refine himself. His mental journey is more dynamic. Fighting Spirit is exactly what Ippo lacks. Many of his initial problems boil down to a passive streak, which is his first obstacle on his path to becoming a boxer.

Unlikely the more angst intensive entries in the boxing story tradition, Fighting Spirit is a bit of a light take on the sport. The characters and their endeavors are taken seriously, but not too seriously. It takes time to revel in their quirks and down movements. There is plenty to exploit in the over eager Ippo, or the hammy lug Takamura that offsets the heavier aspects of the sport and their passion. The broad, cartoonishly expressive character design used is effectively for both the serious and lighter exploits, and readily able to shift between the two.

In the series' depiction of boxing, it is more the product of an observer than a participant. A knowledge of the sport, such as the results of being hit on a slack jaw are included, is evident but to a degree, it is missing a granularity of experience. Especially in a collection of firsts, it seems like attentions to reactions such the first time in a ring, or the first time wearing heavy gloves would have added more depth.

A sports fan, of boxing in particular, will see that the series isn't a perfect depiction of the sport, but it is a good one. It captures the physical and strategic give and take that inspires a love for the endeavor. It may slightly over use repetition of movement, but the impact, the clash of styles and the characteristics of participant and movements are all evident.

Sports anime is likely to face high hurtles in gaining domestic acceptance. Other than fans of the medium looking for a new genre to explore, it faces competition that most other genres don't. Unlike science fiction, the anime brand of action, shounen adventures, or shoujo, while there are few animated or comic sports stories, domestic media is saturated with sports. In addition to an abundance of events (between the ESPN channels, there is a live or classic boxing match on most days), there is a worn out fictional genre of persevering underdog.

Part of what sets sports anime and manga apart is their serial nature. Rather than a quick and oblivious three act story, there is plenty of time to develop an attachment to the characters and see their careers develop. From its first step, Fighting Spirit is an engaging and often humorous drama. The particular framework of boxing maybe a turnoff because of disinterest in the sport, or its overexposure, but fans anime's style of story telling with find its construction on Fighting Spirit to their liking.

Manga Preview: Apocalypse Meow Volume 1 of 3 by Motofumi Kobayashi

Based on uncorrected gallery proof to be released by ADV Manga July 27th

Apocalype Meow is set to find a position one of the best fiction based comics to the tell story of Vietnam. There are a small number of excellent comics about the war, Will Eisner's Last Day in Vietnam, and Harvey Pekar and David Collier's American Splendor: Unsung Hero come to mind, but they are created fully or partially from personal accounts. Apocalypse Meow follows a squad of American soldiers fighting in the jungles of Vietnam through stories that intersect the events of the history books Arc Light, the Tet Offensive, major terrorist attacks on Saigon, and more fictionalized encounters.

As the title implies, the twist that the series operates under is that American are drawn as rabbits and the Vietnamese as cats (Russians as bears, Chinese as pandas, Koreans as dogs, French as pigs, Japanese as chimps), but contrary to what the name suggests, there is little cheekiness, or even parable overtones by using anthropomorphic animals. To this extent, the original title, "Cat Shit One", which was a play on "Dog Shit One", the term for West Point lowerclassmen, is a better is less marketable match.

The short mission based stories build a sober, informative, and exceedingly well research snap shot of the war. It isn't a depiction of war as a form of entertainment, or a tool of making a statement. Instead, it aims to give a detailed sense of the factors operating on a jungle mission down to terrain, movements, strategy and weapons. Extensive foot notes explain the military terminology and slang. Maps lay out the scope of the conflict. Through text pieces and a conversation that matches the extended Apocalypse Now's plantation scene Apocalypse Meow aims to describe the historical context of the conflict within the history of Vietnam, and the cold war.

The level of detail in Apocalypse Meow make it fascinating read, even for those who have given the war some study, but the those with a greater level of familiarity might not find an abundance of value added. It depicts the war with very little commentary or analysis. The volume is included with chapter of Dog Shit One, Apocalypse Meow's human populated prototype, which is a bit more pointed, but Apocalypse Meow questions both the America and Communist positions without being especially not probing or pointing politically.

The use of rabbits and cats have little bearing on the quality of the series. It seems that the creator found them easier to work with. The design is expressive and not cute or distracting.

Apocalypse Meow gained some notice in the US in the late 90's under its original name Cat Shit One, thanks to an English language online introduction (the Japanese language version is still online here, but beware that it uses a planet of the apes framing devise that doesn't fit well with the series itself).

It is great to see a series that not just sits outside the bounds of shoujo and shounen, but shows the successful use of comics to depict history. Its ability to tell the story of an important chapter in history sets in an engaging and information manner sets it apart from the majority of disposable entertainment manga series.

Manga (Manhwa) Spotlight: Ruler of the Land Written by Jeon Keuk-Jin Illustrated by Yang Jae-Hyun

Released by ADV Manga

Ruler of the Land is one of the first Korean comics, known as manhwa, releases by ADV Films. It is a pulp martial arts and swordplay epic, focusing on Bi-Kwang Han, a loutish swordsman who stumbles into two conflicts too many and find himself on the path of towards inheriting an aged warlord's dream of uniting his land.

The first encounter was saving The Lord of the Thousand Horses, after which Bi-Kwang Han refused an offer to become the master's disciple. After rejecting the lord's elite Black Winds, he stumbled into granddaughter of one of the legendary Five White Spirits, Hwa-Rin, disguised as a man while searching for her grandfather. Seeing a scroll depicting Hwa-Rin, Bi-Kwang Han decide his will marry the woman. However even after being driven together by waves of assassins, and seeing her chest, Bi-Kwang Han can't figure out who is companion is (he figures she is a hermaphrodite.)

The series features a Jackie Chan tongue-in-cheek approach to martial arts action, with the big budget aesthetic of Crouching Tiger or Hero. It isn't quite the Tick meets Musa - The Warrior, and the jokes are mostly low brow sex gags, but the action is frequently dynamic, well choreographed and comically odd.

The trouble with Ruler of the Land is that the illustrations frequently uses a style of abstracted character design better suited to comic strips. The story is meant to be light, but it comes across as feather weight. Hardly a page goes by without some character mugging or further deformed into a goofier rendering for the pane. Even at its most dramatic movements of mortal combat the story is only half serious, but the frequent use of goofy caricatures and a few rare cartoonish taps against the forth wall work against establishes the characters as the as epic heroes. It also undermines the perceived quality of the illustration in general. The composition isn't substantially less complex than many action series, and its often quiet effective, but the pervasiveness of gag design gives the series an almost amateurish look.

The attention grabber in Ruler of the Land is its length. Ruler of the Land runs 31 volumes, with is plenty of times to evolve. There are many excellent manga series with rough first volumes that are little indication of how engaging the series will be would later become. The fact that the series ran so long (for comparison, DragonBall run 42 volumes which was adapted into 444 anime episode , One Piece has collected 32 volumes so far translated into 193 episodes of anime, Ruruoni Kenshin ran 28 volumes) seems to attest to that the series caught reader's attention.

Anime Spotlight: Geistars

Release by Anime Crash

Geistars is the first anime release from retailer turned distributor Anime Crash. The series is a bit of an over achiever. Produced by TV Osaka, who has been involved in some recognizable productions (Fancy Lala, the latter series of Galaxy Angel) and Korean Frame Entertainment, with a mix of 2D and 3D animation far behind the state of Japanese the industry, it had the makings of a B or C list title. It isn't as well constructed as many anime series, but an interesting military-political sci-fi story, and some well executed CGI effects make Geisters an engaging experience.

The titular Geisters are a squad of bio-armor wearing (think Guyver or Tekkaman Blade/Technoman) bug hunting soldiers. 300 years after a comet strike caused an end of the dinosaur style extinction event, humanity has returned to Earth to rebuild civilization, but found itself contending with monstrous creatures dubbed Siliconian.

The relationship between the Geistars members is a familiar angst laden dynamic, more complex than the classic 80's entries in the genre, but potentially overwrought material that has subsequently been seen many times. More captivating is the detailed social state and history revolving around a system of ruling families working with the context of the Siliconian for there of benefit as much as the greater good. The Geistars are not well liked by ruling class, foot soldiers or common people, but seen as necessary or usable, and along with the direction of technical advancement and the Siliconians themselves pieces in the game of the ruling houses.

No one concept is particularly interesting or, so far, well developed, but the flow of ideas elevates it into a series entices you to see the next episode will yield. The use of war and scientific development in particular seems to have the potential to grow into an interesting discourse. Sci-fi fans will find many aspects familiar, but not redundant. For example, there are enough names and plot elements that suggest a Dune influence (along with more commonly used source material like Alien). A number of threads need to be developed or explained, such as the source of Earth's new, unusual fauna, before the series can be credited with some weight, but the evolving nature of conflict in the first five episodes seems to promise an abundance of interesting material.

The CGI images in the series are often imaginative and powerful, especially in when minimal movement is required. Backgrounds and establishing shots for example are often the quite attractive and unusual sites that sustain science fiction. Trouble is experienced with moving entities such as Siliconians, which look more B movie campy with sustained screen time.

The 2D aspect of the equation is the series' most troubling aspect, not just that it isn't well integrated with the CGI animation, but that the design is frequently poor. The Geistars themselves have a generic quality that often looks slightly malformed rather than stylized. Faces, hair or weapons often look a little off, which makes the marketing point of the offering collectable figures with the series a little strange. The appearance of the Geistars themselves is hardly among the series' merits, and while the series as a whole is enjoyablr, figures of these characters isn't entirely enticing.

Geistars has the trappings of a rough, slightly inexperienced work. It often flawed and unsuccessful in its technique, but based on the early episode, if the series doesn't get too bogged down in the emotional lives of the Geistars squads, it could prove to a surprisingly strong addition to sci-fi anime.

This Week's Releases

Anime

• Cosplay Complex
• Geisters - Fractions of the Earth (Vol. 1)
• Inu-Yasha - Shattered Memories (Vol. 17)
• Inu-Yasha Vol 18:Demon Within
• Knights of the Zodiac Vol 4
• Megazone 23 - Part 1
• Orphen 2:Revelations Vol 5
• Pokemon - Jirachi Wish Maker
• Sonic X:Super Sonic Hero Vol 1
• Sonic X:Chaos Factor Vol 2
• Space Pirate Captain Herlock - Decimated Planet (Vol. 3)
• Steel Angel Kurumi Complete Collection
• Tenchi Muyo GXP Vol. #3

Manga

• Full Metal Panic Manga Vol 5 Tp
• Nadesico Book Three Tp New
• Oh My Goddess #109
• Sky Blade Sword Of The Heavens Manga Vol 1
• Steel Angel Kurumi Manga Vol 5 Tp
• Sweet & Sensitive Manga Vol 1 Tp
• Those Who Hunt Elves Manga Vol 4 Tp
• Your & My Secret Manga Vol 1 Tp

ADV Licenses

Anime News Network reports that ADV announced the following licenses at the Pacific Media Expo

Anime

• Rockman (Megaman): Wishing upon a Star
• UFO Princess Valkyrie

Japanese Live Action

• Dark Water

Korean Live Action

• 2009 Lost Memories
• Conduct Zero
• Yesterday

Trouble For Japanese Anime Companies and Animators

Asahi Shimbun detailed the trouble faced by Japanese anime companies as budgets have been cut and outsource to South Korea and China for lower labor cost despite healthy merchandising profits.

The salaries of Japanese animators is dropped to a point where an animator "might be fortunate to pull in just 50,000 yen ($500) a mounth".

Oh Production President Koichi Murata says'Unless something is done, Japanese anime will be ruined.'

Much of the recent interest in, and the money for, Japanese animation, popularly known as anime, comes from abroad, notes Kiyokazu Matsumoto, president of Dream Ranch Inc., a Sony Music Group company.

Matsumoto said one U.S. toy manufacturer offered his company about $10 million (about 1.1 billion yen) for the rights to market merchandise featuring the characters of an animated cartoon his company hadn't even completed. The figure was particularly eye-popping for Matsumoto because it was 100 times what animated films earn on average from broadcasting rights in Japan

Dark Horse Previews and Contest

Manga Previews:

Blade of the Immortal #90

Oh My Goddess! #109

Hellsing Volume 3 TPB

Also

Usagi Yojimbo: Travels with Jotaro TPB

Dark Horse's Trigun Maximum contest, which ends June 14th can be seen here

FUNimation Singles

FUNimation will be releasing 3" single episode DVDs for their anime titles and 4Kids Enterainment's starting on June 15th. The first releases include Dragon Ball GT, Yu-Gi-Oh, Sonic the Hedgehog, and

Summer CPM Anime Release

Central Park Media announced the first volume of ShootFighter Tekken (release in Japan as kentoushi) and Odin: Starlight Mutiny will be released August 24th.

ShootFighter Tekken: Round 1

High school student Kiichi is on the fast track to martial arts super-stardom. An expert in the deadly Nanshin Shadow Style, he faces the challenge of his life: the long-awaited grudge match with his father's arch-nemesis, the champion of World Pro-Wrestling. Fists fly and blood spills as a new breed of fighter takes to the ring. Catch the cool ShootFighter Tekken: Round 1 trailer at www.ShootFightertekken.com. Running time: 46 minutes... SRP: $19.99

Odin: Starlight Mutiny

From Yoshinobu Nishizaki (producer of Star Blazers). The year is 2099, and reckless space cadet Akira Tsukuba has landed his dream job as the pilot of the spaceship Starlight. He's in for the adventure of his life when the crew rescues a beautiful amnesiac. Lured by the psychic call of a paradise planet, she leads the Starlight into a realm of genocidal robots. Now, Akira must face his worst nightmare for the chance to find paradise itself. Running time: 96 minutes... SRP: $19.99

New Nihei Series

An Anime on DVD forum poster points out that Nihei Tsutomu, creator of intense cyber-horror Blame, and the Marvel Wolverine Snikt mini series will began his new series Biomega in Kodansha´s Young Magazine No. 29, which goes on sale June 14th.

His previous series Deadheads ended prematurely when its host periodical, Afternoon Special, was cancelled.

re: Cutey Honey Trailer

The site for re: Cutey Honey, Gainax's anime follow-up to the upcoming live action movie, has a posted a 2 minute trailer here

Geneon Title Debuts

Geneon will be releasing the first volumes of Gregory Horror Show, now Gregory Horror House and Stellvia on September 21st.

Anime Game Images

From The Magic Box Screenshots of Bandai's Bandai's Gundam Seed for Nintendo DS and Full Metal Alchemist: Sonata of Memory for the GameBoy Advance can be seen here and here respectively.

Tomy's Naruto RPG for the GameBoy Advance can be seen here

New Onegai Follow Up

A third Onegai series following Onegai/Please Teacher and Onegai Twins, entitled Onegai Friends is in development.

July ADV Manga Releases

ADV Manga will be releasing the following titles on July 27th

Apocalypse Meow, Volume 1 of 3

Yes, you read that right. Apocalypse Meow is a manga unlike any other, where you'll find animals playing soldiers. The characters of this pseudo-historical account of the Vietnam War are rabbits, cats, and other beasts representing various nationalities involved in the conflict. A remarkable synthesis of gritty realism and fable-like characters, Apocalypse Meow is a unique masterpiece. Written and illustrated by Motofumi Kobayashi, he was the first manga artist to draw an American comic book series-Marvel Comic's Psychonaut.

Aria, Volume 2 of 3

Akari Mizunashi has made her home on the planet Aqua, in the charming little town of Neo-Venezia, a Venetian imitation of the ancient Earth city. She is determined to become an undine and as her training continues, she finds herself in the middle of her first Neo-Venezia winter! She will soon see an entirely different, but equally magical side of the town. Playing with snowbugs and going to hot springs with her friends are novel experiences, but nothing can compare to an encounter with a trio of Gnomes, the underground dwellers responsible for maintaining Aqua's artificial gravity. They will take Akari on an adventure of unseen places, but they won't have to travel far!

Gadirok, Volume 1 of 8

Will turmoil crush the Jew-Shin Empire? General Hae-Mo-Soo, in his merciless pursuit for power, conspires against the ruling Hwan-Woong dynasty, forcing Prince Chi-Woo to abdicate. With all odds against him, the vanquished and melancholy Prince has nowhere or nobody to turn to-except his peasant confidant, Gat. With a treacherous tyrant hot on their trail, Chi-Woo and Gat must courageously endure heartache and bloodshed along their perilous journey to retake the throne and return the Empire to glory. Will the Prince and the peasant escape the clutches of the General and his cohorts? Only time will tell in the historic epic saga of Gadirok!

Author and Illustrator: Hwang Jeong-Ho

Jinki: Extend, Volume 1 of 3

A mysterious explosion rocks La Gran Sabana, Venezuela. This marks the beginning of the "lost life phenomenon," a series of strange occurrences ranging from random murders to sudden disappearances of entire populations of villages. Three years later, heroine Akao Hiiragi suddenly finds herself piloting a jinki, a form of gigantic battle robot. But even as this young girl seeks to use the power of the jinki for good, a group of mysterious masked villains is after her, determined to take her captive.

Author and Illustrator: Sirou Tunasima

Sky Blade: Sword of the Heavens, Volume 2 of 13

Steel Angel Kurumi, Volume 6 of 9

The Boss, Volume 1 of 30

Sang-Tae is a typical high school student, with a girlfriend on his arm and a bully close behind him.a very fearsome bully. The dangerous Guk-Do Jun has been suspended for a year, and with his blood brother Chung-Ki Na, he is scheming to take control of the school. In their effort to get to Sang-Tae, the two miscreants decide to kidnap his girlfriend. There's a problem though-the girl they abduct is not his girlfriend! Feeling responsible for the mistaken identity, Sang-Tae rushes to rescue the innocent girl, only to step right into Chung-Ki's trap. Find out how far Sang-Tae can be pushed before he strikes back. There's no telling who will win this battle, or who will eventually become The Boss.

The Ruler of the Land, Volume 3 of 31

Those Who Hunt Elves, Volume 5 of 21

To Heart, Volume 2 of 3

Late August Geneon Releases

Geneon will be releasing the following anime titles on August 24th:

Ikki-Tousen - Legendary Fighter (V.1) DVD

Once again blood flows in the streets of Kanto. The eternal fate that has been handed down for over 1800 years is now being fought by ancient warriors who have been reincarnated into the students of the seven top schools. One such student, Hakufu Sonsaku, arrives on the scene and is rumored to be the legendary Shou Haou (The one who is said to be the one to defeat many in battle). But can this blonde air-head with the overly-endowed assets actually be the legendary Shou-Haou?

Animation by J.C. Staff (Ai Yori Aoshi, R.O.D the TV, Somedays Dreamer, Rune Soldier Louie, Azumanga Daioh)

Ikki-Tousen - LE Collectors' Box

Texhnolyze - Retaliation (V.3) DVD

The "Spectacle" has started and the city of Lukuss has become a battleground between the city's major gangs, the Organo, the Racan and the Salvation Union. All the while Yoshii, the anarchist from the surface world, continues to bring even more chaos and destruction to the city. Onishi, Ichise and Ran all must now fight to stay alive in a world that's starting to crumble around them. Treachery and betrayal lie in store for all of them, but will any of them be able to realize the greater danger that is rapidly approaching?

From the creators and producers of "serial experiments lain" "Haibane-Renmei" and "Hellsing" A new hard-boiled style of science fiction animation/ An adventure in a dark dystopian world that reveals the depths of human nature and heights of technological achievement. Character design by: Yoshitoshi ABe/ Packages feature original drawing of Yoshitoshi Abe

August Bandai Releases

8/10

• Angel Tales - Life with Angels (V.2)
• Infinite Ryvius - Absolution (V.6)
• Kaze no Yojimbo - Tip of the Iceberg (V.3)
• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED - Grim Reality (V.1)
• Mobile Suit Gundam SEED - Grim Reality (V.1)
• Witch Hunter Robin - Vengeance (V.6, Final Volumes)

8/24

• Stratos 4 - Turbulence (V.2)
• Wolf's Rain - Blood and Flowers (V.2)

Gundam SEED

Year 70 of the Cosmic Era, the economic friction between genetically enhanced Coordinators and unmodified Naturals has erupted into a full-scale conflict. The Natural-dominated Earth Alliance struggles to catch up with the Coordinators' superior technology and has secretly developed five Gundam mobile suits at a neutral space colony. Through a twist of fate, a young Coordinator named Kira Yamato becomes the pilot of the Alliance's prototype Strike Gundam and finds himself forced to fight his own people in order to protect his friends.

New Media Blasters Manga Titles

From the announcment on Anime on DVD's firum

Apocolypse Zero (Kakugo No Sasume) - this is the EXTREME manga that the anime was based on. It's bizarre and grotesque and is truly a commentary on how ugly people can really be. Takayuki Yamaguchi

Baron Gong Battle - This action title really caught John Sirabella's eye. It's got alien babies, Nazis, and over-the-top action! It's a really cool sci-fi title with unusual character designs. Masayuki Taguchi the same Manga-ka as Battle Royale!

Level C - It's a Yaoi fan favorite. The manga that the anime was based on. Aoi Futaba, Kurenai Mitsuba

The cover for our Flesh for the Beast graphic novel will be posted soon too. Becky Cloonan is working on sketches for me and we're just about done.

New Fushigi Yugi

Natsume Maya reports that the Japanese Shoujo Comic magazine will be releasing "Watase Yuu Perfect World Fushigi Yuugi Vol. 1", which will feature 101 pages of the Fushigi Yuugi Genbu Kaiden manga, "all star" poster, three trading cards and "Shijin Tenchi Sho World Map" map of the world.

Live Action Cutie Honey Premiers in 7th Place

From Anime News Network, the top box office takes in Japan last week were:

• 1 Crying Out For Love, In The Center Of The World (2 last week)
• 2 Troy USA (1 last week)
• 3 Crimson Rivers 2: Angels of the Apocalypse
• 4 Shimotsuma Story
• 5 The Haunted Mansion (3 last week)
• 6 Big Fish (4 last week)
• 7 Cutie Honey
• 8 The Scandal ( 8 last week)
• 9 Dawn Of The Dead (5 last week)
• 10 The Ladykillers (6 last week)

Ninja Scroll Soundtrack on iTunes

Anime News Network points out Apple iTunes is now carrying the entire Ninja Scroll TV soundtrack in their music catalog.

TOKYOPOP Talks Courtney Love's Princess Ai

TOKYOPOP will be releasing the first volume of Princess Ai, by Courtney Love & D.J. Milky on July 6th.

What do fashion, fantasy and rock-n-roll have in common? They're all essential elements found in Princess Ai, TOKYOPOP's hotter-than-hot manga (Japanese influenced graphic novels) debuting this summer from Courtney Love and D.J. Milky. In this true 'East meets West' creative fusion, the leading U.S. publisher of manga has tapped two of Japan's most renowned artists to bring life to Love's story -- a spirited fantasy based loosely on the singer's own experiences in Tokyo. The famed Ai Yazawa (Paradise Kiss) created the character designs and up-and-comer Misaho Kujiradou (Private Troops) has illustrated the series. Add music producer and writer D.J. Milky to the project and the result is a wildly entertaining manga trilogy poised to attract music fans, manga devotees and everyone in between.

"With Princess Ai, we've meshed music, fantasy and gothic fashion, thrown it all into the crazy streets of Tokyo and mixed in a little adventure and Love... literally," said series editor Rob Tokar.

Princess Ai chronicles the amazing journey of a mysterious young woman searching for identity and salvation in this world and beyond. After finding herself lost on the cold, hard streets of Tokyo, Ai must piece together clues about who she is, why she's on Earth and the secret of the heart-shaped box she carries. What the princess experiences along the way is an adventure filled with love, chaos and unexpected fame.

"I have always loved the Japanese culture and the people. Princess Ai is a great character because she feels like my alter ego, but in a fantasy setting," said Love. "I'm very excited to work with TOKYOPOP, a company that is truly innovative in its approach towards crossing creative boundaries."

Princess Ai Volume 1 (Destitution) will be available at major book, comic, video, specialty and music stores nationwide at $9.99 (SRP). The series has already debuted in Japan-earlier this year its chapters began appearing in the popular shojo manga anthology Wings and fashion magazine Kera.

TOKYOPOP'a Fourth Rising Stars Of Manga Competition

TOKYOPOP has announced that their fourth Rising Star of Manga talent competition will run June 1st to August 16th. Aspiring artists and writers may submit their 15-to-20-page manga--along with completed entry forms--to TOKYOPOP for the chance to join the next generation of nationally published manga-ka. The top 10 talented winners will score cash prizes and have their winning entries presented in the next Rising Stars anthology.

For more information see here