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Column by Scott Green
With far too many reviews produced, the content that would have comprised this column has been divided into three segments that will be posted throughout the course of this week.
Also, keep an eye out for a Serial Experiments Lain contest that should interest those who have and those have yet to see the anime.
Episodes 1-3 To be released by Manga Video October 17, 2006
In works like Arjuna, Macross Zero and arguably Escaflowne, mecha designer turned director Shoji Kawamori mixed sci-fi with an almost shamanistoc spirituality. Noein is the Shoji Kawamori work that Kawamori largely skipped. Instead, it's largely Kazuki Akane's (Heat Guy J, Geneshaft) work with the studio Satelight (who worked on a number of Kawamori projects) The series has grabbed some ideas from quantum physics with which it will presumably build its cosmology. Projected from the first couple of episodes, revelations concerning the workings of this central idea seem to be the fuel for the series' momentum. Consequently, the success of the series depends on how well it integrates building a story with maintaining an idea that will not cause the viewer to ignore it or rebel against it. The former happened with Escaflowne, where a complex web of characters in a not-quite fantasy world were lost to oblique concept of controlled destiny. The latter happened with Arjuna where the inconvenient truth was bent into an assault of dogmatic faith held beliefs rather than scientific environmentalism. The series' concepts are worked out over a landscape of teen angst. The male lead in particular is already being built as a heavy existentially burdened character, put under great amounts of pressure to conform and perform academically. Moments of the character being bombarded by maternal hectoring and cracking under the weight of events outside the realm of normal experience already demonstrate an inclination towards being overwrought. Ironically, these early episodes take comical jabs at a character who over-dramatizes the events in her life, as if to point one finger at how superficial she is while maintaining its own habit of playing up heavey emotions. The series' animation makes a habit of subtly diverging from the expected. Noein isn't a series that immediately looks experimental, but it does shift from the conventionally in order to tell its own story more effectively. For example, it shifts character design to a slight degree, integrating moments of more flexibly stylized looks for additional expressionism without going to the noticable extremes that a shoujo anime like Paradise Kiss might. While the series' action is full of motion, including a character whose look and movement is an interesting homage to Gatchaman, the action the supports tone rather than being traditionally driving the experience in its own right. Noein is the kind of series that typically could be considered or become an action work, but the action is integrated in such as way that the action builds the scenario rather than the scenario creating the space for the action. The CGI effects are similarly inventively distinctive in jarring the presentation just enough that the work establishes itself as a different spin. Effects like the tether lines holding travelers between dimensions or ghost of overlapping world aren't explosive spectacles, but they do establish the feel of what is going on in the series.
Released by Manga Video
Directed by the revered Hayao Miyazaki in 1979, Lupin III stands up as a masterpiece of stylized action. As Aeon Flux and Ultra Violet proved, while technology has bridged the effects capabilities of animation and live action, live action is still largely restricted in how well it can convincingly carry radically stylized action. At one point, Mamoru Oshii was going to follow-up Castle of Cagliostro with a movie in which Lupin III appears as a discussed presence rather than a visibly physical participant. Obliviously this met with great reluctance and the idea was shelved, later working its way into the first Patlabor movie. But, it wasn't a bad idea for addressing the problem of following up Hayao Miyazaki's kinetic wonder, Castle of Cagliostro. After seeing the character move as his does in Castle of Cagliostro presenting the character as an intangible force of rumor might have made for a nice counterbalance in the progression of the franchise. As animation director Yasuo Otsuka suggests in an interview included as a bonus feature on the disc, the movie is a product of a system that no longer exists. Similar to what Peter Bogdanovich suggests of modern American movie directors, animators are not given the depth of experience that they once were, and as a result, their mastery of the craft is to a less degree than those that built the tradition being inherited. Beyond the experience criticism, the economics of the production studios have meant that those looking to make a solid living have gone elsewhere (into video games) and that those still willing to work in the field are given far less freedom. That Castle of Cagliostro exhibits the strengths of cell based animation (as opposed to digital), that it was made by talented, vetran creators and that those people where given the space to create the work that they envisioned adds up to the unfortunate condition that another work as captivating as Cagliostro will likely be a long time coming. Lupin III was initially a Mad Magazine take on pop-literature characters crossed with James Bond globe trotting adventures. In the interview with Otsuka, Mort Drucker is credited as the influence for Lupin III creator Monkey Punch's style. Lupin III himself is the grandson of French gentleman thief Arsène Lupin, except Lupin III is almost a genetic throwback, a hairy, animalistic man with little control over his lust or adverice. For fans of the manga's half feral rogue the representation of Lupin III in Castle of Cagliostro thief with a heart of gold rather than an id driven antihero might present at something of a betrayal of the characters' fundamental. Still, the character has been around four decades and like any long running franchise, presentations evolve. The periodically changing color of Lupin III's jacket is often used to tie creators and personality shifts to the characters. Four characters (or some subset of the four) accompany Lupin in his capers: Daisuke Jigen, a scruffy, gun toting gangster, Goemon Ishikawa XIII, descendant of the legendary swordman/bandit, Fujiko Mine a freelance thief/spy and feme fatale (whose name is a Bond style pun for her large chest) and Inspector Zenigata,the Interpol agent, perpetually and unsuccessfully chasing Lupin based of fictional, coin throwing lawman Zenigata Heiji. Castle of Cagliostro is more about set pieces than plot. The simplistic story launches from Lupin and his cohorts (including Zenigata) thwarting the villainous Count from marrying and stealing the inheritance of Clarisse, a young woman with the look and heart of a Miyazaki heroine. Miyazaki's pre-Ghibli work, Puss in Boots in particular built up an idea that was fully realized in Castle of Cagliostro: to take a building, a castle, and utilize the full structure for a host of highly physical sequences. The results are grand leaps from the turrets, huge melees in the halls, processions through cathedral arcs, Modern Times comedy in the machinary of the water works and descents into the dungeons. Lupin's associates are drawn into the scuffles, but for the most part it is his show. Monkey Punch's Lupin III design emphasized a character whose motions were an outgrowth of his appetites. Almost monkeyish with his spindly limbs, he seemed always ready to leap on a woman or climb a wall in search of loot. Standing still, slouched, with his hands in his pockets, he still seemed poise to swing from a rope or start running. The anime incarnation latched on to this with the characters and gave his movements a contradictory mix of grace and jerkiness, taking the motion using it to capture the essence an emotion of the action rather than natural movement. When Lupin is fleeing Zenigata, his high kneed bolts don't look like a real sprinter running, they look like the idea of a tuned flight mechanism sprung into action. Transplanting this brand of motion to the surface of a gothic castle yields some of anime's most memorable action sequences. Lupin meticulously making his way to a high point, planning to use a gadget to secure a line to the right tower. When the trajectory goes wrong, mid action being forced to run for his life. In near-fall, the character seems to decide to defy physics, and his animal side takes over. That this character is not going to fall to his death is known. That this character routinely moves in impossible fashion is known. Still, the viewer is invited to loose themselves in the velocity of the sequence. Miyazaki composes the scenes in such as way as to establish the height to which castle rises above its surrounding lake. He sets that layout of turrets. And then, bang, the music kicks up and the characters start moving, and exhilaration lock in. There is an in the moment glee captured in the danger and the ability to rise above sane limitations. The strength of the feeling conveyed in these moments is so strong that Castle of Cagliostro clicks as an instant classic for anyone who sees it. Leading up to the movie's legendary clock tower climax, there is a fight between Lupin and the Count in the gear house of the tower. The sheer quantity and range of motion, with all the moving parts of the machinery and Lupin and Count moving all the parts is an amazing accomplishment in animation. Putting aside its influences of near-contemporary work (Great Mouse Detective) and homages, there have been scenes that recall this, and in that, the similar constructs offer an interesting point of comparison to other high profile anime works. Compared to the CGI clock work in Rintaro's adaptation of Osamu Tezuka's Metropolis, the limitations of Rintaro's scene become starkly apparent. Rintaro's textures and colors where more naturalistic, but Rintaro gained nothing in scale and lost plenty in freedom. Where Metropolis had to stage its composure around the animated backdrop, Miyazaki uses angle as a launching point for propelling the characters dynamics though the complex pattern of the machinery. While Castle of Cagliostro is established in these grand strokes, it is almost a culmination of more subtle things done well. These establish the characters, such as the detail of an overflowing ash tray in Lupin's car or contrast Clarisse's gown against the night sky. The music by Yuji Ohno, whose primary contribution to anime was the soundtracks of many Lupin III works (and the Captain Future anime) adapts his jazzy style to the needs of the movie. There are up-tempo pieces that set the rhythm for frantic moments, but Ohno also offers more melodic tones to capture the feel of a grand castle that imposes its own mood despite the madness in and around its walls. Miyazaki also displays the confidence to halt the music and let the moment completely speak for itself. The movie is rewatchable in the sense that it is such an enjoyable experience that it will leave a desire to revisit the work from time to time. Beyond recapturing the feel of seeing the movie, for a classic, it is somewhat surprising how little discovery subsequent viewings offer. There may be small things to pick up in its presentation, such as where it has edges: Zenigata's troops editing ramen while the aristocracy feast or irony worked into the ending: seeing the INTERPOL troops parashoot in, looking like petals falling on the castle or Lupin, a thief and occasional killer describing those pursing him as "bad men". And the animation is interesting to dissection, such as noting its occasional use of panning still shots. By in large, it's possible to keep a fairly complete picture of Castle of Cagliostro in your memory. It is work that calls to be included in an anime collection, but unlike Ghibli Miyazaki works, perception of the movie and what is taken from it is likely to remain static over the long term. The most serious flaw with the DVD release is that the opening credits use still images with English text. Manga has stated that this was done by licensor TMS, which is certainly credible since TMS has been known this of making this sort of change to their content. What isn't credible is that TMS honestly thinks this is the best way to represent the artists who worked on the project. The background to the credits is a dusk toned view of Lupin and Jigen movie through the European continent and it offers a melancholy bucolic beauty. Motion is minimal, but present. Lack of animation does not ruin the sequence especially in that it is possible to see it and not know that it was originally animated, but it does lessen it. That the classic was preserved in an otherwise admirable edition marred by what is hard to classify as anything other than a short cut is unfortunate, even if it doesn't invalidate the release Manga's new Special Edition DVD features a B side of bonus material. In addition to storyboards timed to the movie an played with its soundtrack this includes an interview with animation director Yasuo Otsuka, which is and isn't a great interview. There are many thing, particularly pertaining to the movie, its production and the Lupin III franchise that Otsuka had absolutely no interest in discussing, and for which, when feeling talkative, mentioned a superficial or obvious point. He reveals it wasn't a grand production. It was a four month concerted effort, and one that seemed to be considered unexceptional in his long career. Yet, the interview is essential for an audience with an interest in the state of anime in that it is a holistic indictment of the current Japanese environment. While the impulse to write off what is said as the as the dissatisfaction of a 70 year old man who isn't fond of the current state of the industry, Otsuka was a veteran by the time he started working on Castle (he was an animator on 1960's Alakazam the Great) and knows the industry and its history. What he says about the economic and creative constrictions at work have been iterated elsewhere. While he does not touch on the technical side of the changes in the industry, what he says about the studio environment an buisness model does explain the character of the anime being produced. One comment that Otsuka does make, and repeats about Lupin III is that he likes the ensemble nature of the cast. Which is odd, because while Lupin III features only 5 re-occurring characters, calling them an "ensemble" seems very imprecise. The group is hard to classify as a real esamble due to its limitation mixing the five. Lupin can freely put into scenes with the others, except for Goemon. Goemon as a visual gag can appear almost anywhere, but due to his laconic, stand-offish nature, plot machinations are needed to work Goemon into a scene as a character. In Castle of Cagliostro, Goemon's implausibly quick arrival is treated almost as a meta-joke. He just seems to turn up. The characters note the quickness and he responds "what's the job." He's treated to one personality shift moment at the movie's conclusion. Usually the point of these scenes if for him to momentary break his stone face. Mixed of Fujiko, Jigen and Zenigata are possible, but limited. Jigen tends to be less useful to Fujiko than Lupin and at the same time, he doesn't trust her or let his hormones guide his dealing with her. Zenigata is after Fujiko and Jigen, but they are lower priorities than Lupin. Consequently, scenes between pairs from this trio, are likely to be comprised mostly of hard looks, threats or slander. Inspired follow-ups, such as Cowboy Bebop have generally been more successful in figuring out ways to make their characters act more freely in conjunction with each other.
Resource Spotlight: Making Comics: Storytelling Secrets of Comics, Manga and Graphic Novels by Scott McCloud
Released by Harper Paperbacks
Long before the manga boom, when the material was present in the North American comics market on the periphery, Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics was the work that went beneath the stylistic differences. It gave a substantive explanation of how managa's approaches to the mechanisms of storytelling different from those prevalent in North American works. Over a decade later, after the radical increase to how much manga exposure readers have received, Understanding Comics still shapes how the form is discussed. McCloud's ability to take a subject as large as the medium, break it down into processable components and insightfully speak to those components was what made Understanding Comics such a significant work. In Making Comics, McCloud applies this approach to the topic on telling stories through the medium. While the audience is those who do indeed want to make comics, the book is invaluable to anyone with an appreciations for the medium, regardless of their creative aspirations. It is an eye opening dissection of how ideas can be effectively conveyed through the medium that has much to offer those looking to move deeper into Understanding Comics. As with any medium, there are aspects to a given work of comics that can be appreciated to a greater depth when approached with an understanding of the considerations effecting the creation process. Obviously, you don't need to understand music theory to enjoy and appreciate music, and you don't need to know the workings of film to understand movies. In fact, it is sometimes the works of the greatest creators that are most approachable. Osamu Tezuka is the God o Manga. While he was given to experimentation, many of his works are sublimely easy to pick up and read. They seem to be comic that those with difficult reading the medium and could manage. Yet, look at a work like Phoenix: Karma in light of what McCloud lays out in Making Comics. The completeness to which Tezuka applies the tools of the medium becomes staggering, rudimentary from the layout of pages, to the subject of panels, to the posture of characters to the esoteric in how he radically departs for expected stylization metaphors. McCloud effectively creates a framework of the considerations that should go into telling a story in the medium, from what needs to be committed to the panel of a comic in order to clearly capture the desired stream of events (a sort of image grammar) to concerns relating to the genre context of a work. It's less an explicit "how too..." than it is a discussion of the tools available to the comic creator and how those tools work to translate the ideas to the comic's reader. Nuts and bolts topics in the process, such as a collaborations between writers and artists, and creations tools: pens, digital image work are discussed at an overview level. These topics are approached thoughtfully, and McCloud does raise the considerations involved, but the focus is decidedly on how these tools work as a vehicle of impressions on the comic's reader. The instruction is more concerns with the impression lend by styles of line work, than how to create the lines. The topic of manga is covered as part of the discussions of traditions within which a comic may be situated. The treatment is an impressive feat. McCloud is able to meaningfully condense the scale of the subject down in a quick sub-chapter. The discussion manages explains the paradox of how manga can be both open enough to encompass everything from business guides to shoujo and at the same time be a distinctive form. He also adeptly establishes the creative context for original English language manga in a manner that addresses the thought at goes into the work, in a manner going to upset the sensibilities of purists. McCloud's gift is that he is able to open his reader's eyes by clearly stating what they should be able pick up from a careful study of the comics medium. It is possible to look at comics for decades and McCloud will still either point out a missed facet or express that idea in a revealing new light. Anyone who has aspiration to be a comics creator or adjust, improve or refine their craft will find a wealth of topics to consider in Making Comics. Those who aren't call to the creative arena will find the book equally enlightening. Perhaps even to a greater degree than Understanding Comics, reading Making Comics will change the way you read comics. Choices made by the creator become far more apparent. When it's by Ken Akamatsu, Osamu Tezuka or Robert Kirkman, reading a comic will be a different experience after Making Comics.
Resource Spotlight The Manga Start-Up Guide: Pen & Ink
Released by Digital Manga Publishing
The title is exact. "Pen & Ink" is a stepping stone guide, and at that and it is more of a guide than a how-to. The volume is constructed to take a degree of technical aptitude closer to a professional level. If you can draw and have a sense of how to tell a story in the comic medium, the book will guide you in learning how to refine your work by inking the images. It's set up to inspire a creator, by pointing them to the physical tools they need; directing the reader to the path that will allow them to build there abilities. The answers it suggests are far from perfect, for example what section has a column responses to "Q - I want to dry silky, straight hair!" that amounts to literally telling the reader that it is a difficult effect to create and suggests that they practice and study the work of a few talented manga creators. The value is that it examines the process of proven professionals and offers insight into their methods. Suggestions are offered for how to form the images and the page layout of manga, but those topics are generally beyond the scope of the volume, except when they intersect the topic of inking the work. Because this is the focus, the volume offer less of a value to those looking to understand rather than create. The book collects four subsections each of which could almost stand on their own. The first part, "Close up on How a Manga Is Born." Presented with glossy, full color picture, it is an examination of process that looks at how Yasuhiro Nightow, Oh!great, and Satoshi Shiki ink their images. At first Nightow might seem like an odd choice as a purveyor of manga knowledge. While he has a strong sense of style, his storytelling is labored and often difficult to follow. Fortunately, that is a moot point for the topic he covers. The section gives a strong tools and techniques over-view of how he, and the other examined creators produce the images that they are known for. The remaining sections shift to a more tutorial rather than examination format, meant to transition pencil artists into inked world of manga. "I Want to Draw Manga!" has hints to aid the learning process moving from "doodles" to inked pages. "There Is A Lot I Don't Get When I'm Starting Out..." coverage a barrage of issues and topics in a Q&A format. "Four-Week, Professional-Level Pen Training!" presents a set of exercises for working with inked images. An appendix features an the results of an extensive polling of manga creators as to the tools they use for illustrating. This covers a large range from the creator of Eden to the creator of Vampire Princess Miyu. The text is plagued issues with funky translations. Not just spelling and insider terms, but lines that require multiple readings to parse. "A well-done manga should read smoothly. On the other hand, if an amateur rushes through their manga it is difficult to read. This is often the fault of the name (the dialog and drawing)...." To make this morning confuse, once you get to the next chapter, there is footnote explaining the "name" concept: "The word has two meanings in this book. One is "the dialog," and the other is "picture layout." Which meaning is being used should be drawn from context".Illumitoon News
Anime on DVD points out Right Stuf lists Illuminatoon's first slate of releases as follows. Newly announced Beat BtX is “B’T X” and “B’T X Neo” , a 39 episode collection of series from the creator of Saint Seiya (aka Knights of the Zodias) 1/9/07Beet the Vandal Buster 1/23/07
Beat BtX volume 1 2/6/07
Beat BtX volume 1 2/20/07
Beet the Vandal Buster volume 1 3/6/07
Beat BtX volume 2 3/20/07
AM Driver Volume 2 Illumitoon Entertainment, Ltd. announced that it will be utilizing Westlake Entertainment Inc. for home video distribution on its new acquisitions. The announcement comes on the heels of Westlake Entertainment's announcement of the company's repositioning in the marketplace to release first-run features, including theatrical and new title acquisitions in other key core categories. "Westlake is a strong strategic partner for Illumitoon and we look forward to a strong launch together," said Barry Watson, President/CEO of Illumitoon. "Westlake brings considerable home video experience including a high level of anime sales and marketing experience and shares our vision for the product." Tony Vandeveerdonk, VP of Sales for the new Westlake and formerly with Pioneer (now Geneon) and FUNimation states, "Illumitoon is bringing the anime category exciting new brands and content as well as a clear direction for repositioning the product in new and innovative ways. We feel the timing is perfect for Illumitoon's entrance into the anime marketplace. We're very excited to include them with our other premium content."
Dororo Live Action
Twitch points out that the official site for the new live action adaptation of Omamu Tezuka's samurai manga Dororo is online at www.dororo.jp. The dark, influential manga followed a boy whose body, upon birth, was divided up among 48 demon. The driven by an indomitable spirit, what was left of the boy was found by a doctor, who fashioned an artificial boy, which the boy hunted down the demon to, piece-by-piece, retrieve his original body. Trailer include 15 second spot 30 second full length trailer The is schedule to hit Japanese theatres in January 2007.Game News
AnimeNation reports a trailers for Detective Evangelion, the game that will twist the Evangelion in a mystery in narrowband and broadband. Gunota points out that the site for PSP Gundam Battle Royale is open. From The Magic Box, screenshots of Super Robot Taisen XO can be seen here Namco Bandai's PS2 sports game Captain Tsubasa, featuring the internally popular soccar anime, can be seen here. The game will be released in Japan on October 19, 2006. Pictures of Bleach: Shiraha Kirameku Rondo for the Nintendo Wii can be seen here. The game will feature an original character created by Kubo Tite to be voiced by Seki Tomokazu. Namco Bandai's PS3 action game Mobile Suit Gundam: Target in Sight will become a launch title in Japan on November 11, 2006. SD Gundam for the Wii can be seen here Destineer's release of Fullmetal Alchemist: Dual Sympathy for the Nintendo DS is slated for release this fall. Covering the entire Fullmetal Alchemist storyline, Fullmetal Alchemist: Dual Sympathy has two modes of play: Story Mode, which follows the saga of the Elric brothers and includes cinematics and battle sequences from the TV series; and Character Mode which allows players to assume the role of one of the six characters. Upon finishing the game with a particular character, players are rewarded with a special character cinematic from the TV show. Additional exciting features of Fullmetal Alchemist: Dual Sympathy include: Ability to play as one of six characters: Edward or Alphonse Elric, Roy Mustang, Alex Louis Armstrong, Izumi or Scar; as well as acquire the special moves of the other characters; Voice-over from the stars of the Cartoon Network series; More than 10 touch screen mini-games, include "Whack-A-Homunculus" and "Fullmetal vs. Flame"North American Screenings
Gonzo's Origin: Spirits of the Past will screen on September 24 at Alamo Drafthouse Cinema's Fantastic Fest. After the accolades received at Venice 63, Mamoru Oshii’s "Tachigui: The Amazing Lives of the Fast Food Grifters" (original title: "Tachiguishi Retsuden"), produced by Production I.G will have its North American premiere at the Dragons and Tigers Section of the 25th annual Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF), held September 28 - October 13, 2006 in Vancouver, BC, Canada. SCREENING SCHEDULE AT VIFF 2006 Date: September 28, 2006 (Thu)Time: 10:00 pm
Place: Empire Granville 7 Theatre 3 Date: September 30, 2006 (Sat)
Time: 2:30 pm
Place: Empire Granville 7 Theatre 3 Date: October 3, 2006 (Tue)
Time: 4:15 pm
Place: Empire Granville 7 Theatre 6 VIZ Pictures, has announced the forthcoming theatrical release of the quirky romantic comedy TRAIN MAN: DENSHA OTOKO. The film's theatrical premiere and exclusive one week showing begin on September 22, 2006 at the ImagineAsian Theatre in New York with the . TRAIN MAN: DENSHA OTOKO is the film inspired by the phenomenal bestseller by Hitori Nakano that took Japan by storm. Based on true events that took place on a popular Internet Bulletin Board website (BBS) in Japan called "2ch," this fairy tale-like story has become a media sensation, and been adapted in book, comic, television drama, and movie formats. Released in 2005, the movie became an instant hit, grossing over 35 million dollars in Japan. TRAIN MAN: DENSHA OTOKO is the story of a computer engineer otaku (the Japanese term for 'geek'), who is an average young man dressed in unstylish clothes and dorky glasses. As luck would have it, he encounters a pretty young woman on a commuter train and saves her from a lecherous molester, falling in love with her at first sight. A few days later he receives a thank-you message from the woman along with a set of Hermes teacups. Having never had a girlfriend or received a gift from a girl in his life, the otaku seeks out his pals on the BBS website for advice using his codename Train Man (Densha Otoko). Deeply interested in Train Man's first love, his BBS pals eagerly supply him with advice. Encouraged by their support, Train Man undergoes a total makeover for his first-ever date with "Hermes." Little does he know that he is about to ignite an Internet phenomenon. After it's initial premiere in New York the movie will move on to Portland, Chicago, Seattle and other major cities. TRAIN_MAN: DENSHA OTOKO, the manga will be released by VIZ Media on October 3.
NewType USA Looks At Gothicmade
Newtype USA Vol. 5, Issue 9 features a preview of Gothicmade, the latest project from The Five Star Stories creator Mamoru Nagano. The magazine will also look at CLAMP and Sunrise's collaboration on Code Geass: Lelouch the Rebellion.Naruto Sales and Awards
NARUTO Vol. 7 has been nominated for a Quills Award VIZ Media has announced that the recently released volume 11 of the popular NARUTO manga series, which is published under the company’s SHONEN JUMP imprint and serialized in the monthly SHONEN JUMP magazine, placed at Number 21 on USA Today’s Top 150 Best Seller List for the week of August 27, 2006. This is the highest placement any manga title has ever achieved on the daily’s note literary sales list, which compiles sales traction for fiction, non-fiction, hardcover as well as paperback titles. The Quills is an initiative launched with the support of Reed Business Information and NBC, is an industry-qualified “consumers choice” awards program for books. The Quills celebrates the best adult and children's books of the year in 20 popular categories, including Book of the Year, plus a committee-selected award for best Book to Film. To vote, simply log on to http://www.quillsvote.com Votes will be accepted until September 30.PMX Guests
Novala Takemoto, Japanese cult author and fashion icon, will make his first U.S. appearance as a Guest of Honor at Pacific Media Expo (PMX) on Oct. 28 and 29. Internationally acclaimed, award-winning film Kamikaze Girls (Shimotsuma Monogatari, 2004), based on Takemoto’s signature novel, will screen at PMX. PMX will be held at Hilton Los Angeles Airport. The show will feature honored guests, live performances, panel discussions, autograph sessions, Asian cinema and animation video rooms, art exhibitions and one of the country’s only exhibit halls dedicated to Asian media and pop culture. “Pacific Media Expo has been looking for guests who represent the convergence of all aspects of Pacific Rim media and culture. Mr. Takemoto’s accomplishments as a fashion designer, novelist and now the creator of a hit film in both Japan and the U.S. makes him the perfect Renaissance man to represent these trends to the United States,” said Mike Tatsugawa, PMX Event Chair. “With the growing popularity of the sweet Lolita fashion trend in Japan and the United States we felt that Halloween weekend was the perfect time to bring all his fans together.” Takemoto’s debut novel, Sewing Machine (Mishin, 2000) sold 500,000 copies. Later works Emily (2002) and Lolita (2004) were nominated for the prestigious Yukio Mishima Literary Prize. Kamikaze Girls (Shimotsuma Monogatari, 2004) depicts the seemingly odd friendship between a frustrated and bored country girl fixated on the lifestyle of 18th-century frilly French dress, and a spunky member of an all-female biker gang. The film pays homage to fellow cultural luminaries Tank Girl, The Outsiders and Kill Bill while incorporating homegrown Japanese eccentricities. Once labeled the “Lolita Bard” by overseas newspapers, Takemoto passionately supports the Lolita fashion style, which emphasizes Victorian-style and Edwardian fashion girl's dress and often aims to imitate the look of porcelain dolls. He created his own clothing and product line, Pour Lolita, in collaboration with Baby, The Stars Shine Bright, a leading boutique chain created in 1988. Bryan Konietzko and Michael DiMartino, co-creators of Nickelodeon action-adventure series Avatar: The Last Airbender, will also appear as Guests of Honor at Pacific Media Expo (PMX) on Oct. 28. Both are veterans of numerous other critically-lauded series, including Family Guy, King of the Hill and Invader Zim.New MaraMite OVA
AnimeNation reports that the Maria-sama ga Miteru homepage lists a new 5 episode direct to DVD "third season", to be released starting November 29th. Maria-sama ga Miteru, MaraMite for shorts is a drama set in an all girls catholic school. Heisei Democracy looks ate MaraMite releases hereNew Kino's Journey
Ikimashou reports a new Kino's Journey entitled Kino no Tabi: Nanika Wosurutameni ("In order to do what?") will animate a story arc called "Life Goes On". Work of Kino's Journey capture a Swiftian style fantasy social satire,Voltron Release Sales Success
ICV2 reports the first Voltron release from Media Blasters has become Media Blaster's best seller. Barbara Herman, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing states "The first two days are trending at 115% of initial estimates and we expect even better news this weekend," she said. "We are certainly looking at a new release sales record for Media Blasters, surpassing our current first month top seller, Nickelodeon's Invader Zim." Best Buy has a two-week exclusive window on Voltron Collectors Tin One; the release date for its window was September 12th. Wal-Mart has the regular edition. The "account wide" street date is September 26th.Avatar Week Days
Nickelodeon will be showing Avatar: The Last Airbender week days at 6:30pm.Suzumiya Haruhi Doujin Con
MangaCast reports that hit anime Suzumiya Haruhi has spawned it own doujinshi fan comic convetion. Kita High Festival, took placed on Tokyo on September 17th. The popular work (light novels, manga and anime) follows the relationship between a high school guy who becomes attached to a girl who professes her disinterest in all people who aren't aliens, time travelers, ESPer or other non-mundane beings.Manga Looks At Ultraman Creator
Anime News Network and MangaNes reports that scriptwriter Shinichi Ichikawa and artist Takeshi Kôno will be producing the manga "Muchuujin" about Ultraman creator Eiji Tsuburaya.New Manga From FullMetal Alchemist Creator
ComiPress reports that Hiromu Arakawa (Fullmetal Alchemist) will start a new series called Juushin Empu, which will begin serialization in Square-Enix's Gangan Powered Nay.3, on sale 10/21.Yasuo Yamayoshi Passes Away
Yasuo Yamayoshi, director of the Kinnikuman (MUSCLE) super hero wrestling anime, and episode direct The Rose of Versailles has passed away due to an aortic aneurysm at age 64.Shakugan no Shana OVA
Anime Nation reports the 30 minute Shakugan no Shana Special: Koi to Onsen no Kougai Gakushuu! ("Love and Hot Spring Off-Campus Study Session!") OVA will hit Japanese DVD on December 8th and retail at 5,250 yen. Jigoku Shoujo Live Action Akadot reports horry anime Jigoku Shoujo/ Girl from Hell will be adapated into a live action series, scheduled for November 4th.Check back later this week for a preview of the next volume of Eden, reviews of Omukae Desu and Ninja Nonsense and Path of the Assassin, as well as looks at new volumes of Samurai 7, Vagabond and Monster.
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