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Column by Scott Green
Kodansha Comics announced at NYCC that they will be launching an iPad that will offer Fairy Tail, Til the Full Moon, and personal favorite social satire Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei.
The publisher also announced that it has licensed unique manga Shingeki no Kyojin, or Attack on Titan.
And, if you were wondering what qualifies the manga about human civilization under the onslaught of carnivorous titans for being called unique...
Tetsuya Nakashima, who directed the nearly-Oscar-nominated adaptation of Confessions, and the cult favorite adaptation of Kamikaze Girls, will be directing an adaptation of Hajime Isayama's award-winning manga, scheduled to hit Japan in fall 2013.
Speaking of Kodansha, with Sailor Moon volume 1 holding the number one spot on The New York Times bestseller list for manga for a third consecutive week, Kodansha USA Publishing has announced that the company has commissioned a second print run equal to the first, doubling the initial 50,000 copy run and bringing the total to 100,000 copies in print.
Saolir Moon prequel Codename Sailor V simularly spent two weeks at the number two sot on the The New York Times best selling manga list.
Sailor Moon volume 2 and Codename Sailor V volume 2 are both due to release on November 15.
VIZ Media announced the upcoming launch of WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA (WEEKLY SJ ALPHA), a weekly serial anthology of some of the most popular manga series in the world: BAKUMAN?, BLEACH, NARUTO, NURA: RISE OF THE YOKAI CLAN, ONE PIECE, and TORIKO. The first issue of WEEKLY SJ ALPHA goes on sale January 30, 2012, and will be available through VIZManga.com and the VIZ Manga apps for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad.
Each new digital issue of WEEKLY SJ ALPHA brings manga fans in North America the latest chapters of their favorite series only two weeks after it debuts in Japan’s massively popular WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP Magazine. Currently, Japanese releases are often several months to years ahead of North American print titles; WEEKLY SJ ALPHA eliminates the delay in unprecedented fashion.
WEEKLY SJ ALPHA will be made available through an annual membership that provides access to 48 weekly issues for 52 weeks for just $25.99. Single issues of WEEKLY SJ ALPHA can be read for a four-week rental from the time the reader purchases it for only $0.99. Each issue, once received on one device, can be read on all other enabled devices through the easy-to-use integrated VIZ Manga app and website.
To prepare fans for the debut of WEEKLY SJ ALPHA, VIZ Media is also offering the SHONEN JUMP DIGITAL WARP, a limited collection of digital graphic novel speed-ups that will bring North American readers up-to-date with Japanese releases. In some cases, the digital speed-ups will jump ahead of the print releases in North America. The SHONEN JUMP DIGITAL WARP will begin with NARUTO Volume 53 (available now) and BLEACH Volume 49 (coming soon).
As more fans migrate to the digital WEEKLY SJ ALPHA edition, VIZ Media plans to phase out the print edition of SHONEN JUMP Magazine. The popular, one-of-a-kind monthly magazine led the rapid growth of the manga market for much of the last decade and was VIZ Media’s flagship publication since it launched in 2003. The farewell April 2012 issue hits newsstands March 2012.
For more information on WEEKLY SJ ALPHA and exclusive subscriber offers, please visit ShonenJump.viz.com or VIZManga.com.
At New York Comic Con, anime distributor FUNimation Entertainment and streaming media site niconico.com, announced that they are forming a partnership that will begin with the simulcast of several of the newest anime series debuting in Japan this fall. All simulcast episodes will be available at www.niconico.com/anime .
The companies are forming a joint effort where both companies will be contributing to the acquisition of new anime titles from Japan.
“Our goal is to simulcast top-notch anime. It’s an ambitious plan but one in which we are investing heavily,” said Gen Fukunaga, President and CEO of FUNimation Entertainment.
Part of that investment includes supporting niconico.com’s growth in the U.S. market and building toward the site becoming the leading online streaming source for subtitled anime in North America.
The simulcast titles launching this partnership include the following:
C3
From the light novel series written by Minase Hazuki, comes a story of love, action, and comedy. Yachi Haruaki is a high school boy who is naturally resistant to curses. After his father sends him a mysterious black cube, Haruaki awakes to find a nude girl named Fear standing in his kitchen. She’s the human form of the cursed black cube – and an instrument of torture! Utilizing her special abilities, Fear fights alongside Haruaki to defeat other cursed instruments and their owners.
The Future Diary
This psychological thriller, based on the manga written and illustrated by Esuno Sakae, is about Yuki, a loner who's not very good with people. He prefers to write a diary on his cell phone and talk to his imaginary friend, Deus Ex Machina – The God of Time and Space. However, Yuki soon learns that Deus is more than a figment of his imagination when he makes Yuki participate in a battle royale with eleven others. The contestants are given special diaries that can predict the future, each diary possessing unique features that give it both advantages and disadvantages. Within the next 90 days, the contestants must try to survive until there is only one left standing. The winner will become the new God of Time and Space.
Guilty Crown
In the near future, a meteorite carrying a foreign virus crashes in Japan, leading to a devastating nation-wide infection and total anarchy. Several years later, Shu – a teen with a special ability awakened by the Apocalypse Virus – meets a strange girl who incites him to join the struggle against a government organization’s robotic forces and a secret society whose goal remains shrouded in mystery.
Haganai (Boku Wa Tomodachi Ga Sukunai)
Kodaka Hasegawa has just transferred to St. Chronica's Academy and he's having a hard time making friends. With his naturally blond hair and fierce looking eyes, people constantly mistake him for a delinquent. One day, he runs into his bad-tempered loner of a classmate, Yozora, while she's talking to her imaginary friend, Tomo. Since neither of them have any friends, they decide to form a club and start recruiting some. Little by little, lonely classmates join their club to learn how to build friendships through cooking together, playing games, and other group activities. But, with so many misfits, will the club members really be able to get along?
LASTEXILE -Fam, The Silver Wing-
Acclaimed director Koichi Chigira helms this highly-anticipated follow up to the anime classic, LASTEXILE. High above the sacred waters of the Grand Lake, a battle rages between the Ades Federation and the Turan Kingdom. Powered by the might of its battle fleet, the federation invades the Turan Kingdom. For the Turan Kingdom and its princesses, all hope lies with a female sky pirate named Fam. The first episode premieres 11:00 am Eastern, October 17th.
Maken-Ki!
Based on the manga series by Takeda Hiromitsu, this romantic comedy is about Ohyama Takeru, a typical perverted teenage boy. His new school doesn’t require entrance exams, and it just turned co-ed! Unfortunately, his dreams of a happy high school life are dashed when he finds out the school is much more than it seems. All of the students wield a special item – a Maken – to unleash their magical abilities in duels! Can Takeru find a Maken that works for him? Even while trying to fit in at a new school and dealing with all kinds of girl problems?
Shakugan no Shana III Final
A continuation of the previous series (Shakugan no Shana II), both Shana and Kazumi wait for Yuji only to discover that he has disappeared without a trace. As everyone searches for answers as to Yuji’s whereabouts, he reappears in front of them as the leader of Bal Masqué. Now Shana must confront her most unlikely adversary on the battlefield.
FUNimation Entertainment also announced that it has acquired the home entertainment, broadcast, digital, and mobile rights to the Production I.G. full length animated film, “Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror.” This Production I.G. produced film, directed by Shinsuke Sato (“Gantz” live action films), was nominated for the award for Excellent Animation of the Year at the 33rd Japan Academy Prize.
“Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror” is the first full length film from Production I.G. done completely in 3D computer generated animation. The character designs have a unique “anime” style to them; while the look and feel of the animation bear a closer resemblance to a video game cut scene.
A blend of fantasy and Japanese tradition, the story revolves around sixteen-year-old Haruka who lost her mother at a young age. Haruka had been given a hand mirror by her dying mother, and told to always have it on her. At some point, it winds up in a closet, and now she can’t find it! One day, she decides to go to a local shrine and pray for the hand mirror to be returned to her. There she encounters a small fox-masked creature which she secretly follows to the land of forgotten items.
And, the distributor announced tthat it has acquired the home entertainment, digital, and merchandise rights to the “Fafner” anime series and movie.
The series focuses on a group of children who pilot the titular Fafners in a war against the Festum—giant aliens who destroyed much of the world. The movie takes place two years after the end of the original series.
Vertical announced the new licenses of Moyoco Anno's Sakuran, Makoto Shinkai's 5 Centimeters Per Second , and Osamu Tezuka's Adolf.
Yukiko Seike provided art on the 5cm Per Seconds manga adaptation. It will be released in June 2012 as a single omnibus for $18.95.
Sakuran is due out in July 2012 for $14.95. The manga by the wife of Evangelion creator Hideaki Anno follows a poor peasant girl was sold to a brothel in Edo. Its movie adaptation starred Anna Tsuchiya
Tezuka's Adolf follows the relationshop between a Jewish boy growing up in Japan and a half Jewish, half Japanese boy, through World War II and into the 20th century. This two-volume release will be hardcover, and will feature a new translation. It's due out in August 2012, and will be priced at $26.95.
From Tezuka's official site
"A Story of Three Adolfs" is a long Manga that features three men who coincidentally have the same first name of "Adolf." The story is set in both Japan and Germany during World War II. In 1936, Toge Sohei goes to Germany to cover the Berlin Olympic Games as a reporter. There, he finds that someone has killed his brother, who was studying in Germany. Later it becomes clear that his brother was killed because he sent a secret document to Japan concerning Adolf Hitler. The document contains a secret of Hitler's birth: that he in fact has Jewish blood. At around the same time, Wolfgang Kauffmann, who works for the German Consulate General in Kobe, Japan, is searching for the document at the order of the German government. Kauffmann has a son named Adolf, who he wants to become an ultra nationalist and hard-line supporter of Adolf Hitler. But Adolf Kauffmann, who has a Jewish friend named Adolf Kamil, is not attracted to Nazi Germany because it approves of the killing of Jewish people. The era of terror completely changes the destinies of the two men named "Adolf."
...
January 6, 1983 to May 30, 1983
Appeared serially in "Shukan (Weekly) Bunshun" (Bungeishunju Ltd.)
"A Story of Three Adolfs" appeared serially in a weekly magazine for adults, "Shukan Bunshun." Compared with other Tezuka Osamu works, it is a surprisingly serious and hard-core social drama. Tezuka Osamu crafted the work this way because the editor in chief of "Shukan Bunshun" asked him to do so. One of the two settings for the story is Kobe, where Tezuka Osamu lived as a boy and during the war, so this work conveys the atmosphere of Kobe in those days. As Tezuka Osamu was hospitalized while he was writing this work, the episodes in the latter part were largely cut but later rewritten by Tezuka Osamu himself when published in book form.
Bandai Entertainment announced that the company will be bringing the classic Akira back to DVD. Anime studio Sunrise co-presented the panel and announced that a new Code Geass project is in the work, but it's unclear how new, given Code Geass: Bokoku no Akito is not out yet. CLAMP is again designing while Kazuki Akane (Escaflowne) directs
Crunchyroll announced in honor of Makoto Shinkai's appearence at New York Comic Con/Anime Fest. 5 Centimeters Per Second, Voices of a Distant Star, and Place Promised in our Early Days will be streamed for one week.
Yen Press announced that the publisher has licensed Hanokage's manga adaptation of popular magical girl deconstruction Puella Magi Madoka Magica, The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan, Until Death Do Us Part, and former Tokyopop license Alice in the Country of Hearts.
The English release of Atsushi Okubo's side-story manga, Soul Eater Not!, is planned to be simultaneous with the Japanese publication.
THE INFERNAL DEVICES by Cassandra Clare, art by HyeKyung Baek
This prequel to Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments series, The Infernal Devices is the story of Tessa Gray, a sixteen-year-old American girl traveling alone to Victorian London who runs afoul of the city’s sordid supernatural underworld. Rescued by the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, Tessa quickly finds herself caught up in an intrigue that may very well destroy her new friends – including the two enigmatic young men, Jem and Will, who have taken her under their wing…
DARK-HUNTERS: INFINITY by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Yen Press will be releasing a two-volume adaptation of Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Chronicles of Nick series, a prequel to the immensely popular Dark-Hunter novels. A young, streetwise Nick Gautier meets Dark-Hunter Kyrian of Thrace, who shows Nick a world of vampires, demons, and zombies far more dangerous than the mean streets of New Orleans. A must-read for existing fans and those new to the supernatural world of the Dark-Hunters!
ALICE IN THE COUNTRY OF HEARTS art by Soumei Hoshino, story by Quinrose
Take heart, Alice fans! Yen Press will be releasing the COMPLETE Alice in the Country of Hearts series in June 2012 as three omnibus editions each collecting two volumes of the original series!
THE DISAPPEARANCE OF NAGATO YUKI-CHAN story by Nagaru Tanigawa, art by PUYO, characters by Noizi Ito
This spin-off takes place in the world of the “Disappearance” arc of the Haruhi Suzumiya novels, focusing on the high school life (and romance!) of a tentative and bashful Yuki Nagato quite unlike the one you’ve come to know and love through the usual exploits of the SOS Brigade…but no less charming!
UNTIL DEATH DO US PART story by Hiroshi Takashige, art by DOUBLE-S
Haruka is a young girl with precognitive abilities that allow her to predict the future with incredible accuracy. Unfortunately, these powers have made her a target for greedy corporations. Haruka uses her power to seek the one who can offer her protection, singling out Mamoru Hijikata, a blind man whose inability to see belies his skill with a sword!
PUELLA MAGI MADOKA MAGICA story by Magica Quartet, art by Hanokage
Madoka had always thought magic was the stuff of her dreams…until she encounters an unreal cat-being at her totally normal school! The cat offers her a choice — Will Madoka become a Puella Magi in exchange for her dearest desire?
On the subject of Alice in the Country of Hearts, follow-up Alice in the Country of Clover: Bloody Twins was among the Seven Seas Entertainment licences.
Alice in the Country of Clover is an ongoing manga series that reimagines Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland in a sly, shoujo style. This new series is a follow-up to Quinrose's bestselling Alice in the Country of Hearts, but can be read independently. In June 2012, the one shot, Alice in the Country of Clover: Bloody Twins will kick off the series, followed by Alice in the Country of Clover: Cheshire Cat Waltz volume 1 in July 2012 and Alice in the Country of Clover: Cheshire Cat Waltz volume 2 in September 2012. Each new volume will be released in oversized editions that feature impressive artwork and color pin ups.
The whole list of licenses includes
Alice in the Country of Clover: Bloody Twins (June 2012)
Story by QuinRose / Art by Mamenosuke Fujimaru
Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum are the “Bloody Twins,” amorous and affable killers who are able to transform themselves into adorable children or suavely handsome adults. As the gatekeepers to the Hatter Mansion, they tried to kill Alice once. Now they are hopelessly in love with her. Will either Dee or Dum win Alice’s affections, and more importantly...will she survive their screwball courtship?
Alice in the Country of Clover: Cheshire Cat Waltz (July 2012)
Story by QuinRose / Art by Mamenosuke Fujimaru
His name is Boris, and despite his human form and piercings and tattoos, he is not your typical punk teenager. For he is the Cheshire Cat, complete with cat ears and a tail, and a penchant for riddles. Boris is in madly love with Alice, and Alice is vulnerable and lonely. But will she fall for the Cheshire Cat?
Angel Para Bellum (July 2012)
Story by Kent Minami / Art by Nozomu Tamaki
A war between heaven and hell is brewing and only a young man named Mitsuru holds the key to prevent it. Yet Mitsuru is unaware of his secret birthright and his role in the battle between angels and demons. All he knows is that his family is dead and Kyrie, the kindly woman who cared for him in his time of mourning, is not what she seems. Now, with demon attackers seeking to destroy him at every turn, his only protection is two beautiful gun-wielding angels who kick ass like nobody’s business.
And, speaking of Madoka Magica, Aniplex of America's New York Comic Con announced details Blu-ray and DVD releases of the series. The first of three parts is set to be released on February 14, 2012, and will be available in three different versions: standard DVD release, the standard Blu-ray, or a Limited Edition Blu-ray/DVD/CD combo. The Limited Edition comes in a collector's box packaged with a 24-page booklet, a double-sided poster, a Kyubey sticker, an original soundtrack CD and postcards. Extras include a trailer collection and textless opening and ending animation.
Volumes two and three will follow on April 10 and June 12, respectively.
Aniplex also announced some of Madoka Magica's English cast:
Sarah Williams - Sayaka Miki
Cassandra Lee - Kyubey
Christine Marie Cabanos - Madoka Kaname
It's been a long time coming, but Manga Entertainment has finally attached a release date to a pair of eagerly anticipated, unique anime features. Both Redline, the product of seven years Takeshi Koike's work at Madhouse and First Squad: The Moment of Truth, Studio 4°C 's co-production with Russia's Molot Entertainment, will be released on DVD and Blu-ray January 17, 2012. Redline will also be released in theatres prior to January 17th.
Written by Katsuhito Ishii (director of The Taste of Tea, Funky Forest, Shark Skin Man & Peach Hip Girl and the anime segment of Kill Bill Vol.1) and directed by the Takeshi Koike, who participated in the “World Record” segment of Animatrix (2003), Redline was seven years in the making and proudly demonstrates the new possibilities of 2D animation, amidst the current prominence of 3D animation.
Redline is a racing film created by studio Madhouse (Paprika, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Summer Wars). Redline is about the biggest and most deadly racing tournament in the universe. Only held once every five years, everyone wants to stake their claim to fame, including JP, a reckless dare-devil driver oblivious to speed limits with his ultra-customized car - all the while, organized crime and militaristic governments want to leverage the race to their own ends. Amongst the other elite rival drivers in the tournament, JP falls for the alluring Sonoshee - but will she prove his undoing, or can a high speed romance survive a mass destruction race?
Bonus features include Perfect Guide to Redline, Quick Guide to Redline, and Redline 2006 trailer. The DVD will sell for $24.98, while the Blu-ray will go for $29.99.
Directed by Yoshiharu Ashino, First Squad: The Moment Of Truth is set during the opening days of World War II on the Eastern Front. Its main cast of characters is a group of Soviet teenagers, each with extraordinary abilities. The teenagers have been drafted to form a special unit to fight the invading German army. They are opposed by a Schutzstaffel (SS) officer who is attempting to raise from the dead a supernatural army of crusaders from the 12th Century Order of the Sacred Cross and enlist them in the Nazi cause. First Squad: The Moment Of Truth was produced by Eiko Tanaka, Misha Shprits and Aljosha Klimov.
The DVD will sell for $24.98, while the Blu-ray will go for $29.99. No bonus features are listed.
