Category > Events
CLAMP makes their first US appearance at Anime Expo.
Read More... | Souce: FUNimation Entertainment
Category > Manga
There is an interesting article on Manga News covering a survey conducted by Oricon about what manga fans want to see adapted into a Hollywood movie.
Read More... | Souce: Manga News
Category > Manga
According to Manga News, Hendra Wahjudi, creator of the recent Tokyopop Rising Star entry Samurai Zombie, is being accused of plagiarising the work of Samura Hiroaki's Blade of the Immortal. For a comparison of the manga here is the link: http://www.toothycat.net/~emsie/ref.jpg
Souce: Manga News
Category > Manga
According to Anime News Network, Tokyopop has confirmed that the following mangas have been licensed and will be out in July:
Elemental Gelade (Erementar Gerad)
Kuro no Kishi
Redrum 327
Yorozuya Tokaido Honpo
Zapt!
Le Potrait de Petit Cossette
Strawberry Marshmallow (Ichigo Mashimaro)
Trash
Peppermint
Otogi Zoshi
Souce: Anime News Network
Category > Manga
NewType USA to serialize Seven Seas Entertainment's Aoi House starting with January 2006 issue.
Read More... | Souce: Anime News Network
Category > Manga
Those clever people at NASA have teamed up with the Minneapolis College of Art and Design to produce manga that explains the NASA satellite mission to study the Earth's ionosphere. They're aiming this at "students between sixth ninth grade". The Otaku News Crew think this this a great way to teach kids about space and the science behind it.
The 24 page comic can be downloaded for free here.
Souce: Slashdot
Category > Manga
The folks over at Antarctic Press have sent us the details for their new guide to becoming a professional comic book creator. It covers all aspects from writing, drawing and submitting comic book work. We think it's worth a look into since it's only $2.99, and concise at 22 pages long.
Read More... | Souce: Antarctic Press
Category > Manga
Here is some interesting news for those manga readers who are possibly looking for some new manga titles.
A new manga series by You Higuri & Shinji Wada will be coming out in the September issue of Princess Gold and will contain the first installment of ‘CROWN’.
Masami Tsuda known for the popular Anime/Manga Karekano will have her one shot story ‘AKAI MI’ presented in the November issue of LaLaDX on sale October 8.
Ira Ishida the creator of Ikebukuro West Gate Park,has teamed up with a different manga artist for a new story, Akihabara @ DEEP. Drawings were made by Makoto Akane. Akihabara @ DEEP will premiere in the August 12th issue of Comic Bunch.
For Ai Yori Aoshi Fans the series has finally come to an end, in fact the popular Manga by Kou Fumizuki will end in Young Animal No 17 on sale August 26th. The Manga boasts two TV adaptations and has been running on Young Animal since 1995.
Souce: Anime News Network
Category > Manga
More movies based on Japanese Manga are taking Hollywood by storm. Hitoshi Iwaaki's popular manga Kiseiju is going to remade by Hollywood.
Takashi Shimizu, who made his Hollywood debut with the remake The Grudge, will be directing this project by New Line Cinema Productions. Shimizu will be a supervisor in the writing of the script and the film will be produced by his partner Takashige Ichise, as well as Don Murphy of Angry Films and Lisa Henson and Kristine Belson of Henson Pictures. The English title is Parasyte and it is said that production will begin once the sequel to The Grudge is finished.
Souce: Akadot
Category > Manga
According to Akadot, the popular manga of Naoki Urasawa 'MONSTER' will become a Hollywood Remake. The project that has been in the midst of production. Newline Cinema has hired Josh Olsen as the screenwriter, he is also known for the writing scripts for low budget movies including "A History of Violence," "Lethal Trigger," and "Killer Bugs". The contract contract allows for the possibility of sequels.
Souce: Akadot
Category > Manga
Everyone has heard about the genius designer of Art & Fashion Range Murata who left a mark on the design world of today. His portfolio of works include: media, anime character design, art books to fashion and industrial design.
Here is a summary of the Akadot Interview to Range Murata where he talks about the US release of his upcoming comic / art book Robots Vol 1 where he plans to conquer the manga world as well.
Read More... | Souce: Akadot
Category > Fandom
New anime and manga-based academic journal Mechademia is looking for sbumissions for future issues.
Read More... | Souce: Anime News Network
Category > Manga
The folks at eigoManga have sent us the details of their partnership with Viz Media. Apparently eigoManga will produce the English language versions of Basara and Flame of Recca. The press release is very thin on details and doesn't really explain what they mean by producing. It's uncertain if they'll be translating it directly or hiring a third party company or individual to do all the work and if they'll manage the logistics such as printing and so on.
Read More... | Souce: eigoManga
Category > Manga
Newtype USA will be releasing game-based Evangelion manga, Angelic Hearts, as serial starting in August issue.
Read More... | Souce: Newtype USA
Category > Manga
EigoManga have just sent us a press release of their latest announcement.
Read More... | Souce: EigoManga
Category > Manga
We've just got a press release from ICE Kunion, a joint enterprise between Korean publishing companies Sigongsa, Seoul Cultural and others. They mention their October line up, which includes Angel Diary, Chocolat, The 11th Cat and Bring It On, which have sold a combined total of almost a million copies in Korea alone.
The Otaku News crew note that this press release is interesting, since Korean comic books are normally incorrectly marketed as manga to people who automatically assume it is from Japan. ICE Kunion are marketing their titles are Korean and are taking pride in it claiming that "Korean Manhwa has taken over Japanese Manga to be the hottest books in the market".
Read More... | Souce: ICE Kunion
Category > Manga
TokyoPop has announced that they will launch a new branch of their successful Cine-Manga line. This July, they will release the first of the new Jr. Cine-Manga books that will, they predict, revolutionize the children’s book market by bringing beloved characters and storylines from the screen to an original exciting visual format.
Read More... | Souce: TokyoPop
Category > Manga
In regards to the previous article about 'Trick-Or Thieves', it turns out the original announcement on the author's deviantART account is actually an April Fool's joke!
M. Alice LeGrow stated that she would never write a story like this, although she is working on multiple projects for Tokyopop. Unfortunately, 'Trick-Or-Thieves' is not one of them.
Souce: deviantART
Category > Anime
Those nice folks from Newtype USA have sent us the details of their April Issue, which has features on Fearless Females (including the cute and shocking Elfen Lied and Gunslinger Girl), along an with interview from Seiji Mizushima the director of Fullmetal Alchemist. The free DVD includes the first episodes of Maburaho and Gravion Zwei.
Read More... | Souce: Newtype USA
Category > Press Releases
eigoManga have sent us a rather strange press release. Their titles Rumble Pak and Sakura Pakk are curently competing for a nomination for an the 2005 Eisner Award. Basically it means they've submitted a form to apply for what is know as the "Oscars" of comics. Still they've put up some of their stuff to look at for free!
Read More... | Souce: eigoManga
Those folks over at ADV Films have sent us the details for their US DVD release of The Five Star Stories.
Read More... | Souce: ADV Films
Category > Press Releases
The folks at Newtype USA have sent us the details about the March 2005 Issue of their magazine.
They've got some Madlax artwork on the cover that has been exclusively drawn for the Newtype USA, they've also got more coverage of Fullmetal Alchemist and Samurai Champloo, along with Maburaho and Scrapped Princess. The cover DVD has both dub and sub versions of Cromartie High School and Divergence Eve.
Newtype USA Vol. 4, Issue 3 will be available March 1, 2005.
Read More... | Souce: Newtype USA
It's press release catch-up time here at Otaku News due to the evil flu that's been lurking around most of the Otaku News Crew have been infected, the others have had to wear Bio-hazard suits! ^_-
Anyway, those nice folk over at ADV Films US have sent us the details of the insane anime Cromartie High School, which is due out on March 15th. Do you fancy the idea of going to a high school full of delinquents? Well Kamiyama somehow has been enrolled there!
ADV also have a nice limited collector's edition with the first volume of the manga bundled in and a custom series artbox to hold all 4 volumes.
Read More... | Souce: ADV Films
Category > Events
Florida anime convention Metrocon are currently seeking Cosplayer volunteers to participate in their Anime Human Chess Match. So if meet all their terms and conditions and can cosplay as one of the characters listed on their site why not give it a shot? It's also interesting to note that they've got ninja and pirate pawns.
The Otaku News Crew are pondering which anime characters are going to be which pieces, we suspect that Gendo Ikari will be a king for one side, while Rosette Christopher will be a bishop!
Souce: Metrocon
Category > Manga
The folks over at eigoManga have sent us a press release detailing their achievements this year. A full HTML version with graphics can be found here, alternatively to just read the text, read the rest of this article.
Read More... | Souce: eigoManga
Category > Manga
Viz have just announced the launch of Shonen Jump Advanced, it's not a game for the GameBoy Advanced, but infact a new range that "will that will present the latest cutting-edge manga stories offering titles with progressive storylines and characters to older teens and young adults". At first glance this sounds a bit like Pulp - Viz's manga anthology taglined as "Manga for Grownups" which stopped in August 2002, or perhaps Pulp Junior since it's aimed at a slightly younger audience. However like the Shonen Jump manga line these titles will be sold individually, and should not be confused with the Shonen Jump Magazine.
So keep your eyes peeled in April 2005 when title like Hunter X Hunter, I's and Eyeshield 21 start hitting the shelves.
Read More... | Souce: Viz
Category > Anime
Newtype USA Vol. 3, Issue 12 Out Now
The folks from Newtype USA have just sent us details for their December issue, which is out now. It has a cover feature on Ah! My Goddess, with details on the OVAs, the movie and the TV series which is currently being produced in Japan.
Other features include details on shows like Chrono Crusade, Samurai 7, Wolf's Rain and Gankutsuou.
The Otaku News Crew recommend that you take a look at the two page feature on Howl's Moving Castle, which has some nice shots of the Ghibli artwork and we also suggest you read their Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide, since that way you'll know what to buy us for Christmas! ^_-
Read More... | Souce: Newtype USA
Category > Manga
TokyoPop have just launched their popular manga competition where artists are invited to submit 15 to 20 pages of manga inspired comics for a chance to be in the next Rising Stars anthology, to be published in Summer 2005.
Along with the usual lovely cash prices TokyoPop have added an extra and welcomed twist with the people's choice category where the top 20 finalists will have their entire entries posted on the TokyoPop website and judged by the fans. The Otaku News crew think this is a good idea, the interactive element adds that extra bit of fun to the competition by getting fans to participate (especially the ones that can't draw to save their lives like myself) and also provides TokyoPop with additional market research resolving tricky tie breaker situations with which submission will generate the most fan interest (and hopefully revenue too).
Read More... | Souce: TokyoPop
Category > Toys
ICv2 have the details for the late spring 2005 releases from Yamato USA. They'll be releasing a Mizuho in Space Suit Resin Statue from Please Teacher. For Capcom fans there's Morrigan & Lilith Collectible Miniature from DarkStalkers.
Love Hina fans can expect Naru, Mutsumi, Motoko, and Shinobu PVC statues from the Love Hina Again OVA. They'll also be be releasing figures from Guilty Gear, Read Or Die (aka ROD) TV, Iron Leaguer, and Cyber Formula.
Souce: ICv2
Category > Webcomics
It's been a busy week for me which is why I haven't posted as much news as I would like on Otaku News this week. So today is catch up day! One of the advantages of running your own news website means that you can plug your other side projects now and again (no Spike that doesn't mean you can start posting about all the yaoi you draw).
OK, first up on Monday November 22nd, Frightmoore University an up-and-coming webcomic I'm the webmaster for, has just made the milestone of posting it's 100th page! Gigi has drawn a little celebratory image of the main characters having a little party. Frightmoore has been running since 2001, and in April 2004 when an updated version of the site was launched on it's own domain name were we able to gauge an idea of how many hundreds of thousands of unique users actually visited Frightmoore! If you have read any of it yet, go on and take a look.
While we're on the subject of plugging stuff don't forget to check out The Journey of Light an independent animation project that is currently underway written by our very own Azure.
Souce: Frightmoore University
Category > Manga
ICv2 are reporting an interesting trend with Amazon.com's manga best seller list. Apparently Yaoi is three of the top five, four of the top ten and six of the top fifteen manga titles. ICv2 point out that these sales are only on Amazon.com as the American Bookscan list doesn't not match with these sales figures, with only Del Rey's Tsubasa Volume 3 appearing at the top of both lists.
ICv2 speculate that people purchasing Yaoi prefer the privacy and relative anonymity that on-line reatilers offer and that the two main Yaoi publishers Digital Manga and CPM Manga don't have the marketing clout or number of titles compared to other publishers with titles at the top of the graphic novel lists.
Souce: ICv2
Category > Manga
eigoManga have just sent us a press release for their latest pseudo manga for girls. It's a bit odd, because they've sent it to us almost a month late. Their pseudo manga is called Sakura Pakk and is out now.
Read More... | Souce: eigoManga
Category > Manga
Fans of manga studio CLAMP (Chobits, X, Tokyo Babylon, Card Captor Sakura, Angelic Layer to name a few) will want to check out a recent article on Sequential Tart. They interview Carol Fox the girls' manga editor for TokyoPop. The article focuses on CLAMPs 15th anniversary and has some nice tidbits that every otaku should like, including TokyoPop's intention of releasing CLAMP no Kiseki: The Ultimate Collection from spring 2005, it's a 12 volume collection with interviews highlights photos and so on.
Souce: Sequential Tart
Category > Anime
Although it's old news, I'm sure many of our readers are not yet aware that Stone Bridge Press have published a new book by anime and manga guru Fred Pattern, - Watching Anime, Reading Manga. The book has 63 articles covering all aspects of anime from fandom and the industry, it also has articles on the first ads in America to current day mainstream hits like the anime sequence in Kill Bill and anime inspired live action films like The Matrix. If you want to know more be sure to check OnlyPubjab.com's write up.
Souce: Stone Bridge Press
Category > Anime
We've just got a press release from a group called IMAF, who will be holding an international competition to find the best manga and anime talent in the world, entrants stand a chance to win big bucks with a total prize fund of $75,000!
The entrants work will be shown at London County Hall from 16th - 19th December. Judges include Koike Kazuo who is best known for writing Lone Wolf and Cub and Crying Freeman.
Read More... | Souce: IMAF
Category > Manga
Recently we ran a press release about Seven Seas producing original manga. Now their site Gomanga.com is live. So far they've got details of four titles on their site - Amazing Agent Luna, Blade for Barter, Last Hope and No Man's Land.
Read More... | Souce: GoManga.com
Category > Retail
Newtype USA have just sent us the details of a cool subscription offer. They'll be offering Cosplay Caps along with the 40% off subscription rate for 12 issues brining each issue down to $7.50
Read More... | Souce: Newtype USA
Category > Art
LA otaku are in for a treat from October 28 to November 26 The Perfect Exposure Gallery will be hosting an exhibit on cosplayers or "Photographic portraits of costumed anime fans" to be more exact. Shot at anime conventions around the US and Canada in 2003 and 2004, it sounds a bit like A Fans View only off-line!
Read More... | Souce: The Perfect Exposure Gallery
Category > Anime
The good folk at Newtype USA have sent us a press release regarding their second anniversary. To celebrate the popular anime magazine will bring back it's free DVD insert, which became a subscriber only bonus item. We've heard that Newtype USA stopped the free DVD due to retail issues, original store clerks removed the free DVD to pass on to friends, this in turn meant that the opened issue could not be sold. It seems that the people at Newtype have been listening to their readers. We welcome the return of the DVD since it means more free anime! ^_^
Read More... | Souce: Newtype USA
Category > Press Releases
In one of the more unusual press releases we received this week eigoMANGA have announced that they are sending anime and manga care packs to U.S. Army Troops destined for Iraq.
Apparently there is an anime club formed by the Army troops in Colorado Springs base called "A.N.I.M.E. Club". Independent media and publishing company eigoManga are asking for local otaku to donate anime and manga gifts to the anime fans in the US army.
Read More... | Souce: eigoMANGA
Category > Culture
We've just got details in from Ridgeback Press, apparently they will be launching Samurai History Papers, a quarterly newsletter from Romulus Hillsborough (whose research on the history of the Meiji Restoration spans over twenty years). It focuses on the facts behind many samurai anime series, such as the Shinsengumi (central to Peacemaker Kurogane and Rurouni Kenshin).
Read More... | Souce: Ridgeback Press
Category > Events
The good girls at Yuricon have just sent us their press releasing detailing the Yuri Revolution event in Tokyo
"We'll be touring the anime and manga centers of Tokyo, visiting Tokyo Tower, museums and other Tokyo attractions.We'll top it all off with an all-yuri event in the home of yuri manga, the Nichoume in Shinjuku, where we can embarrass ourselves by trying to speak Japanese with well-known yuri mangaka." This is just for starters.
To attend all you have to do is get to Tokyo on April 12-17, 2005, remember you have to sort out your own flights and accommodation though.
Read More... | Souce: Yuricon
Category > Manga
I've just got hold of the press release from Seven Seas, a new LA based publishers dedicated to producing manga for the international market.
Although it isn't exactly clear, it seems that the company won't be licensing and translating manga, but actually getting artists outside of Japan to produce work in a manga style. This has been successful before with artists such as Adam Warren (Dirty Pair and Starwars manga to name a few), and Fred "Piro" Gallagher of MegaTokyo fame, it will be interesting to see if a company can work with such a specialist policy, personally I'm curious as to which artist they'll be using and if any of them are already well known in anime/manga fandom.
Read More... | Souce: Seven Seas
Category > Retail
ADV USA have just sent us the details for the latest issue of Newtype USA. The anime/manga mazagine which is easily the best English language magazine out there.
I suggest you check out the Paranoia Agent article (Satoshi Kon can do no wrong in my book), as well as the Xebec feature. What's odd is that the press release doesn't mention that there's also a feature on L'Arc~en~Ciel too!
Read More... | Souce: Newtype USA
Category > Manga
Sales of the Rurouni Kenshin manga have been doing so well that the US publisher Viz have decided to release the title monthly, previously it was published bi-monthly, but due to the successful sales figures and the demand from fans, Viz have decided to narrow the gap between releases.
This is great news for fans who can't wait for the next instalment of the popular series, but also bad news for my wallet! ^_-
Read More... | Souce: Viz
Category > Anime
We've just been sent a very interesting press release for the Ghost In The Shell franchise, it's well known that the movie Ghost In the Shell 2: Innocence it will be hitting US cinema screens on September 17th and that Manga Entertainment and Bandai Entertainment are jointly releasing the DVDs for Ghost In The Shell Standalone Complex series. However what they also point out is that Standalone Complex will be aired on Cartoon Network's late-night Adult Swim from early November!
The press release also mentions that Dark Horse is republishing Shirow's Ghost in the Shell manga as Ghost in the Shell 2nd Edition, it features extra materials not published in previous US editions and will be printed in it's original Japanese size.
It also mentions the new PS2 game. So it looks like US anime fans will be able to get Ghost In the Shell in every single format they could want!
Read More... | Souce: Go Fish Pictures
Category > Press Releases
Washington Otaku will be pleased to know that the Japanese Language Center will be running a course that focuses on learning Japanese by reading manga!
Read More... | Souce: Japanese Language Center
Category > Fandom
The Anime News Network have just published an article regarding a recent reader poll. The poll asked readers for their opinion on Newtype USA's decision to remove the free DVD from non subscription issues of the magazine.
Read More... | Souce: Anime News Network
With ADV creating The Anime Network it seems that everyone wants a slice of anime on TV. We've just been sent the press release from eigoManga, they're going to produce a weekly anime news magazine.
Read More... | Souce: eigoManga
Category > Manga
It appears that Digital Manga and Penguin Group USA have joined forces to publish manga for both children and adults.
Read More... | Souce: Digital Manga Publishing
Category > Manga
The people from eigoManga have just sent us details about the reissue of their Rumble Pakk manga series.
Read More... | Souce: eigoManga