Browsing Articles

1. Category
2. Websites

Netflix to Release Sakamoto Days Anime in January 2025

Date: 2024 December 04 19:38 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

Netflix have just announced the release details for Sakamoto Days anime adaptation. Based off the popular manga of the same name by Yuto Suzuki. It follows the story of legendary ex-hitman Taro Sakamoto, who has settled down to run his own convenience store. Now with a wife and daughter, he's looking for a simple domestic life, but his past keeps catching up with him and there's a hit out on his name. The comedy action manga then deals with an chain of determined assassins out to get Sakamoto for his past deeds.

Season 1 part 1 will hit Netflix on Saturday 11th January 2025 and consist of 11 episodes with one episode released each week. While season 1 part 2 is scheduled to arrive in July 2025.

The manga is published in English by VIZ Media.

Read More... | Souce: Netflix

Square Enix Launches Web Version of Manga UP!

Date: 2024 December 02 20:39 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from Square Enix have just sent us details about their Manga UP! Platform. It''s available world wide (excluding Japan) and now it has expanded to include a web version at https://global.manga-up.com/.

Originally Square Enix's digital manga was only available via iOS App or Android App, now it's also a website it means you can access the content on your computer or other web enabled device.

Read More... | Souce: Square Enix - Manga UP! Website

Kodansha Launches Official App K Manga in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore

Date: 2024 October 21 17:11 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from publishing giants Kodansha have just sent us details about the expansion of their digital manga app K Manga. The service is going to expand to in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore. To celebrate they'll be offering 50% of select manga titles including Attack on Titan, Fairy Tail, Wistoria: Wand and Sword, Wind Breaker and Rent-a-Girlfriend.

The service is not yet available in the UK or Ireland. As of yet we haven't heard any official word from Kodansha about if or when it will be available for the UK and Ireland but we can always hope it gets rolled out.

Read More... | Souce: Kodansha

Spy x Family Code: White Movie Crunchyroll Streaming Details

Date: 2024 September 05 13:44 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from streaming giant Crunchyroll sent us a coded message. Using the S cipher we able to decode it. It was a secret message just for our eyes, it told us that Spy x Family Code: White will be hitting the streaming service from Friday 6th September 2024.

The movie had a cinema release in April earlier this year. We'd describe the movie as exactly what'd you expect for a Spy x Family cinema outing, it felt very much like a movie length version of the TV episode with high stakes, high action and lots of laughs. You can read our review here, but to be honest now it's on Crunchyroll, you should just watch it.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Crunchyroll Bring Their Anime Playlists to Spotify

Date: 2024 August 21 16:54 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime streaming giants Crunchyroll have just sent us details about their anime playlists on Spotify. They've got a dedicated shelf of animated related music for your listening pleasure.

Personally at the Otaku News HQ, we listen to some Bump of Chicken, Hitsujibungaku, Yaosobi, Yoko Kanno, Radwimps and many more.

You can always visit Spotify's global Anime Hub to find some more tunes too!

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

My Hero Academia - World Best Hero - Global Character Popularity Poll

Date: 2024 August 06 19:57 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

The good folks from Japanese publishing giants Shueisha Inc have sent us details about My Hero Academia - World Best Hero - Global Character Popularity Poll. It's been set up to celebrate author Kohei Horikoshi's internationally acclaimed manga series, My Hero Academia reaching its grand finale after 10 years.

To also celebrate they'll be running a fan art contest on Twitter (the site currently called X). Shueisha Inc have also placed an advert in the New York Times to highlight the end of My Hero Academia and the poll with a message from Kohei Horikoshi.

Read More... | Souce: Official Weekly Shonen Jump website My Hero Academia page

Crunchyroll Announce Free Streaming of Olympic Sport Anime

Date: 2024 July 23 18:20 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

In preparation of the sporting summer, the good folks from streaming giant Crunchyroll have just announced free streaming of Olympic sport anime. The sporting anime in question will stream for free with adverts, until 15th August 2024. Highlights include football anime Blue Lock and Free! - Iwatobi Swim Club. We highly recommend the gloriously ridiculous golf anime Birdie Wing (read our review) along with table tennis anime Ping Pong the animation.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Human Versus Machine Japanese Translation Mini Battle

Date: 2024 May 09 20:06 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The manga tech start up Orange Inc recently raised over 19 million USD in funding for machine translated manga. We were quite intrigued because machine translation hasn't always worked out in the past for manga titles. One recent example was the Ranking of Kings Manga that had to be pulled because the quality of the translations were so poor. What's worse was the lack of quality control from everyone involved in the publishing of the title.

As we were curious, we reached out to some professional translators to ask their opinions on the current state of translation.

Read More... | Souce: Otaku News

Manga Tech Startup Orange, Inc. Raises JPY 2.9B (USD 19.5M) in Pre-Series A Financing

Date: 2024 May 09 20:06 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The people from manga tech start up Orange, Inc have sent us details about their latest fundraising. They've managed to get JPY 2.92 billion (approximately USD 19.5 million* ) fundraising in pre-series A financing.

The company pitches itself as a a manga localization technology company that uses deep learning models to translate manga. In a web comic they explain how it's not cost effective to get humans to translate the bulk of manga published in Japanese. As a result they claim less than 2% of Japanese manga has been translated.

The pitch also says they'll have skilled translators polish the output, while in reality, for a translator it's actually easier to translate directly than to tidy up machine translated text.

Machine translation does have it's place. It's frequently (and successfully) used to translate text with a consistent context, such as instruction manuals and technical documents. This text is often very dry, but also very limited in scope with fixed and repeated text. Once a human has corrected it the machine model can then use the preferred translation for that expression again and again, which makes sense in an instruction manual.

Manga however is a creative endeavour and as a result the translations have a very wide scope. Translators have to be creative, who is speaking? What's their background? What mood are they in? What's the context of what they're saying? Is it a pun? Are they speaking formally? Do they have a regional accent? This and many other factors have to be taken into account words don't always have a one to one mapping, as context and intent makes manga translation an art form unto itself.

We're reminded In an industry where companies are trying to lower translation costs at the expense of translators wages, it can make it difficult to earn money as a freelance translator when companies are trying to race to the bottom.

We're thinking if you gave the Otaku News Team 2.92 billion JPY, we wouldn't publish as much manga as Orange Inc are intending to, but we'd pay our translators, letters and other production staff a decent wage. So if any companies looking to send us almost 19.5M USD to publish, then please do get in touch. We've got a list of manga we'd like to license and translate!

On a more serious note, we reached out to a few professional translators to ask their opinion on the Orange Inc News and machine translation in general. We also got them to do a translation mini battle.

Read More... | Souce: Orange Inc

Crunchyroll Announce 3 More Titles for 2024

Date: 2024 May 08 19:40 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from streaming giants Crunchyroll have sent us details from CCXP Mexico, where they announced some new and returning titles to the service.

Coming some time in 2024 is Tying the Knot with an Amagami Sister, while set for October 2024 we have Nina the Starry Bride along with the return of Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- Season 3. Re:ZERO has been hugely popular with anime fans and it's return is highly anticipated.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Crunchyroll Announces Spring 2024 Anime Streaming Line Up

Date: 2024 March 14 21:02 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from streaming giants Crunchyroll have just revealed their Spring 2024 anime line up.

The streaming service will be releasing some hotly anticipated titles. We're most looking forward to Kaiju No. 8. Based on the popular manga, the anime adaptation by Production I.G. is due out on Saturday 13th April 2024. Set in a world where giant monsters ravage Japan our hero wants to enlist in The Defence Force to help save humanity, action and a twist ensues.

Laid Back Camp returns for Season 3, we're looking forward to seeing more of this comfy camping slice of life show. We've got more of Rin, Nadeshiko and friends riding around Japanese country side. What's not to like.

While also interestingly we've got an old favourite returning. Spice and Wolf returns. The fan favourite is an interesting franchise about trading economics and a wolf girl.

There's so much to pick from this season, but one you shouldn't overlook is a new adaptation of Bartender, this version is called Bartender Glass of God. It's about bar hidden away in Tokyo, where only those truly in need seem to find it. While there the bartender just happens to make the perfect drink to sooth your worries. Each episode a different drama unfolds and we're treated to a new drink recipe.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Dan Da Dan To Stream on Crunchyroll October 2024

Date: 2024 March 10 21:47 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from streaming giant Crunchyroll have sent us details about Dandadan arriving on Crunchyroll. The anime version will be adapted by Science SARU, who also recently made Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! and Tatami Time Machine Blues.

The quirky nature of the manga makes it an excellent fit for the type of show Science SARU normally create, it feels like a natural pairing.

The show is due to hit the streaming service this October 2024. Interestingly, Crunchyroll are calling it Dan Da Dan, while manga publishers Viz have localised it as Dandadan (without the spaces).

You can watch the the official subtitled trailer on YouTube.

We're really looking forward to this series as Science SARU always produce such amazing anime.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Crunchyroll Announces the Winners of The Anime Awards 2024

Date: 2024 March 04 21:14 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime giants Crunchyroll have announced the winners of The Crunchyroll Anime Awards 2024.

Winners of the coveted award include Jujutsu Kaisen for Anime of the Year, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Swordsmith Village Arc for Best Animation, and SPY x FAMILY Season 1 Cour 2 for Best Comedy.

The awards have been running 2017, this annual event has recognized and celebrated anime's finest series, films, and the talented people who make them. Fans from around the world, along with a global panel of judges, cast their votes in a variety of categories, and the results are revealed at our live awards show.

Our editor Joe Curzon (that's me), was on the judging panel this year.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll Anime Awards

Studio BONES Turns 25! Crunchyroll Produces Documentary to Celebrate

Date: 2024 February 12 19:45 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from streaming giant Crunchyroll have sent us details of a new Studio BONES Documentary. The celebrate the anniversary Crunchyroll have produced a new 4 part documentary to capture the history behind such hits including Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door (the Cowboy Bebop Movie), My Hero Academia, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, and much more.

BONES 25: Dreaming Forward will be available from Tuesday 13th February 2024 and will coincide with the launch of Studio BONES new anime, Metallic Rouge.

You can check out a trailer of the documentary on YouTube.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Follow Otaku News on Bluesky

Date: 2024 February 07 21:01 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Websites

Social media is everywhere, we're not that big on on it. We have an active presence on Twitter, but now we're also on Bluesky. We've had a account there for a while with an invite code. Now that Bluesky is open to everyone we thought it's time to share our details, so if you want to follow us find us under @otakunews.bsky.social.

If you're new to the service and want to follow some other interesting people in anime and manga circles then why not follow:

@debaoki.bsky.social
Deb Aoki is a manga and anime journalist and expert who writes for Comics Beat & Publishers Weekly.

@mattalt.bsky.social
Matt Alt. Translator, author and NHK World Host.

@tristiger.bsky.social
Tristan Felix B. / Emily Balistrieri, Japanese translator. Translations include Kiki's Delivery Service, Tatami Galaxy and much more.

@glider.bsky.social
Helen McCarthy the author of many anime and manga books and a key driving force in kick starting UK anime fandom.

@benapplegate.com
Ben Applegate isdirector of publishing for the Kodansha print manga program

@zackdavisson.com
Zack Davisson is an Eisner-winning Translator/Writer/Lecturer.

There's so many more accounts we'd like to mention but sometimes if fun to discover others by exploring social media itself. It also feels very reductive just writing a single sentence summary about all these great accounts!

Souce: Otaku News Bluesky Account

Delicious in Dungeon Social Media Giveaway

Date: 2024 January 10 21:11 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from Kadokawa have sent us details about a great little social media campaign they're running to promote the new Delicious in Dungeon anime that's now streaming on Netflix.

The anime follows the story of a group of adventures who have failed on their quest. With Laios the hero down on his luck and against the clock as his sister is slowly getting digested by a red dragon. He has to return to the dungeon to rescue his sister, but is flat of our money and resources to buy food, so resorts to eating dungeon monsters!

The comedy series is animated by Studio Trigger, who have also down the fantastic Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, BNA, Kill La Kill and Little Witch Academia to name a few of their titles.

The manga is availble in English from Yen Press.

Anyway, the competition in question is a follow the X (formally known as Twitter) accounts and repost the giveaway post in order for your chance to win some signed goodies.

Read More... | Souce: Delicious in Dungeon Social Media Giveaway Post

Voidol3 Anime Style Voice Changing Software Release Details

Date: 2024 January 06 12:47 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Retail

The good folks from Japanese software firm Crimson Technology have sent us details about their English language launch of Voidol3. This is real time voice conversion software primarily aimed at streamers, v-tubers and people who have the need to change their voice in real time.

We reviewed Voidol2 when it came out a few years ago.

This new version is available for Windows and macOS. You can purchase the standard version for $270 (USD) or upgrade from Voidol2 for $170 (USD).

Read More... | Souce: Crimson Technology Voidol3

Square Enix Manga Release Their First Humble Bundle

Date: 2023 December 18 20:38 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from Square Enix Manga and Books have just released their first Humble Bundle Package.

The bundle is available to readers worldwide until Saturday 6th January 2024. The pay what you want bundle is divided into tiers of 4 items, 12 items or all 28 titles depending on how much you're willing to spend.

Titles include e books 1-3 of the popular A Man and His Cat and My Dress-Up Darling, along with guilty pleasures such as The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated. This a great way to sample a load of manga at a heavy discount as it would normally cost $271 USD to buy these separately. Square Enix Manga and Books have also partnered with Binc Foundation a nonprofit helping the employees and owners of bookstores and comic shops with unforeseen emergency financial, medical and mental health service need. Each purchase from the bundle will go towards the foundation. At the time of writing they've already raised over $2,200 USD for the cause.

UK readers should note that Humble Bundle is available in the UK in GBP too, so you won't get any pesky foreign currency charges if you purchase ebooks from there.

You can visit the Humble Bundle page to find out more.

Read More... | Souce: Square Enix Manga and Books Humble Bundle Page

Crunchyroll Unveils Winter Season of Anime for the Start of 2024

Date: 2023 December 14 20:22 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from streaming giants Crunchyroll have just sent us details for their Winter 2024 line up. As 2023 winds down, they've got some great titles to lined up to start the new year.

Headlining on 29th December 2023, Burn The Witch returns and we'll get more adventures in Reverse London.

While 6th January 2024 sees the continuation of One Piece, and we're introduced to new series Solo Leveling and A Sign of Affection. We've covered Solo Leveling before when it had a special London screening. We're also very curious about A Sign of Affection as the romantic series looks promising.

We're most excited about the confirmation that Frieren: Beyond Journey's End will be continuing too. We've really been enjoying this story of Elf Mage Frieren who's quest has finished and has started to figure out what to do next.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Makoto Shinkai's Suzume Hits Crunchyroll from 16th November 2023

Date: 2023 November 13 20:49 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from streaming giant Crunchyroll have sent us news that Makoto Shinkai's latest movie Suzume will be available on the streaming platform from Thursday 16th November 2023.

The director is best known for anime box office smash hits Your Name and Weathering With You. Suzume is his latest offering in with the titular character must travel around various ruins across Japan closing doors that are the cause of devastation. The film went on to gross over $300 million worldwide during its initial theatrical run, making it the fourth highest-grossing anime film of all time.

If you want to know more about the movie you can read our spoiler free Suzume movie review or our interview with Makoto Shinkai about the film.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

A Night at the Kabuki Streaming Details

Date: 2023 November 09 20:55 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Events

Fans of Kabuki, Shakespeare and Queen are in for a real treat as Sadler's Wells, A Night at the Kabuki is to be streamed live on Friday 17 November 2023 and available to watch until Thursday 30 November 2023.

A Night at the Kabuki, the acclaimed Japanese stage production inspired by Romeo & Juliet set to the songs of Queen, Transported from the original setting of 14th century Verona, Italy, this production takes place in late 12th century Japan at the start of the Samurai era where the rivalry between the Minamoto and Taira clans intensifies after their young heirs Romeo and Juliet fatefully fall in love.

The stream will be available globally as is priced at JPY ¥4,000/£21.64/€24.90. Visit Stagecrowd for the livestream on Friday 17th November at 03.00 GMT (12:00 JST) - the recording will be available until Thursday 30th November 14.59 GMT (23.59 JST). You'll be able to watch the stream live and then as many times as you like while it's available until the Thursday deadline.

Read More... | Souce: A Night At the Kabuki

Attack on Titan Concludes on Crunchyroll

Date: 2023 November 03 17:23 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

Remember remember the 5th of November as that's when Attack on Titan Final Season The Final Chapters Special 2 will be arriving on Crunchyroll. The epic conclusion to the colossal series will be available on the streaming service from 5th November 2023 in the UK and over 200 countries and territories around the world.

This will conclude the anime series, which has been running for 10 years now! Based on the hit manga (with over 100 million volumes sold worldwide) it tells the tale of Eren Jaeger and his friends who live inside the towering walls of a fortified city. The last of humanity survive behind the safety of the walls as outside roam man eating titans. Eren's life goes downhill when titans bust into his part of the city and chaos ensues.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Crunchyroll Autumn 2023 Streaming Line Up

Date: 2023 September 25 19:55 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime streaming giants Crunchyroll have sent us details of their upcoming Autumn 2023 anime season. Content wise they'll be bringing everyone over 50 new, returning, and continuing series.

We're most excited about Frieren: Beyond Journey's End which gets released on Friday 29th September 2023. It tells the story of an elf mage at the end of her adventure and has to come to terms with her human comrades settling down after their heroic quest, while she has a significantly longer lifespan. Along with more Dr. Stone. Other fan favourites including One Piece return, plus Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2.

One that might go under your radar is Under Ninja (based on the manga by the same name), in a world where ninja still exist in Japan.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

World Premiere Screening of My Hero Academia Season 6 at NYCC 2023

Date: 2023 September 20 19:59 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

Streaming giant Crunchyroll have sent us details of the World Premiere Screening of My Hero Academia Season 6. The original episode UA Heroes Battle will be shown at New York Comic Con 2023 on Friday 13th of October 2023.

This early, exclusive world preview will feature the English dub and will be available to NYCC attendees before it is screened in Japan.

In this special episode the cast play a card game U.A. Heroes Battle that the support course made. In a useful tie in e, Crunchyroll will be giving away limited edition character cards at the screening provided by UVS Games that are based on the new original episode and playable with the My Hero Academia Collectible Card Game. In our mind this is a plus ultra promotion.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Digital Manga Subscription Service Azuki adds One Peace Books Titles to Service

Date: 2023 August 10 19:34 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from digital manga subscription service Azuki have sent news that they've partnered up with manga publishers One Peace Books to offer a range of their titles to Azuki subscribers.

Titles include Tenken, Breathe Deeply , Ms. Itsuya, King's Game, Suzuki Just Wants a Quiet Life and many more.
We reviewed Breathe Deeply when it was first published in English over 10 years ago, it's an interesting title as you don't often get semi-futuristic medical drama manga!

Azuki offers a free with advertisements service or premium and access the full catalogue for $4.99 (USD) a month.

Read More... | Souce: Azuki

Parallel World Pharmacy Competition

Date: 2023 June 22 19:50 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Websites

The good folks from manga publishers One Peace Books have just sent us details of a little competition they're running. If you can write a mini review of their new title Parallel World Pharmacy, and post it on Twitter of Facebook tagged with #ParallelWorldPharmacy, you'll have the chance to win a signed illustration by the manga artist Sei Takano featuring the manga's star characters.

Competition closes June 26 2023 11:59 EST. Note that the competition is open to the US only. It's not everyday you get a chance to win original manga artwork! So we suggest you enter if you can!

Read More... | Souce: One Peace Books Twitter

Crunchyroll Announces New Movies to the Platform for April 2023

Date: 2023 April 24 20:06 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > Film

The good folks from streaming giant Crunchyroll have sent us details of their upcoming film slate available for home streaming. Normally when you think of the service series come to mind, but don't forget they've also got a great line up of movies to watch on the streaming service too.

They headline with That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime The Movie: Scarlet Bond (which is out now), The Quintessential Quintuplets movie (which it out 28th April 2023).

Also out is the promising To Every You I've Loved Before and To Me, The One Who Loved You.

Plus for Gundam fans on 28th April 2023, they'll be releasing Mobile Suit Gundam Cucuruz Doan's Island.

The press release mentions various movies available, but it does vary by region, with the Mamoru Hosoda back catalogue not currently available in the UK.

If you are looking for something light, fluffy futuristic and enjoyable then give the Sing a Bit of Harmony film a try, we really enjoyed it.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Crunchyroll Announces Spring Anime Streaming Season 2023

Date: 2023 March 23 17:30 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime streaming giants Crunchyroll have sent us details of their Spring 2023 streaming line up. This season has so much good stuff available this spring.

We're excited about the Skip and Loafer anime due for release on 4th April 2023, based on the popular and much loved manga it follows the of a rural girl getting used to life in the big city of Tokyo, amongst other things.

Ranking of Kings returns with Ranks of King : The Treasure Chest of Courage. This is due for release on 13th April 2023.

We're really looking forward to The Ancient Magus' Bride Season 2, as the first season and specials were so good. That and it's great to see some anime set in the English countryside. After all not much anime is set in the Cotswalds.

Mobile Suit Gundam The Witch from Mercury returns for a second season. We're also curious about A Galaxy Next Door as we've read the first volume of the manga and it shows promise.

We've already covered Doctor Stone, which returns for a third season and are looking forward to more silly science adventures.

There's also more Vinland Saga Season 2 and One Piece.

There's something for everyone and we're sure you'll find something to enjoy this Spring 2023 anime season.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Kodansha Announces New US Digital Manga Service

Date: 2023 March 21 19:56 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from publishing giant Kodansha have sent us details of their new US digital manga service. Called K Manga the service promises to deliver about 400 titles including 70 on going titles.

Kodansha are known for publish manga mega hits Attack on Titan, Ghost in The Shell, Tokyo Revengers and Fairy Tail, amongst other titles including Blue Lock and Rent-A-Girlfriend.

The service has a teaser version up now. The official is app scheduled for launch on Wednesday 10th May 2023. The service will be US only. Full website launch is to be announced.

Details of the pricing and exact model their using is yet to be revealed. So it's not clear if they'll go for a set monthly / yearly subscription charge or if you'll have to pay per title or buy some kind of token, or even how much K Manga will cost.

We're excited about this service even though it is US only, as it's always good to have more official digital manga options.
However the first thing we're drawn to is the name. K Manga. We know they've called it called K Manga for Kodansha Manga. Nevertheless in English speaking circles, when you prefix something with K you think of Korean things. We have K Pop, K Drama, K Rock, K Horror all parts of the K Wave. K Manga inspires thoughts of Korean Manga which is frequently called Manhwa. So already the brand is fighting an up hill battle to explain to consumers that no, this isn't a Korean service, it's all about Japanese Manga! We feel that they've not got any branding consultant involved or considered the impact this could have on the service. We've causally spoken to a few people about this and they all think K Manga sounds like a great Korean manga brand rather that a new digital manga platform.

Check out teaser.kmanga.kodansha.com to see what K Manga will have to offer!

Read More... | Souce: K Manga Teaser Page

Dr. Stone Returns to Crunchyroll for a Third Season

Date: 2023 March 13 21:02 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from streaming giant Crunchyroll have just sent us details that Dr. Stone will return from 6th April 2023 with Dr. Stone New World. The hilarious action show rocks back for a 3rd season with Senku getting up to more science as he brings more advances to the stone world. This series our team of science users build a ship to go off on a naval voyage to find the mystery of the global petrification event.

It's based on the manga by the same written by Riichiro Inagaki and illustrated by Boichi. We've really enjoyed the first two season and the special episode which leads up to this season. The show is silly, fun and action packed, while watching it you'll feel like a science genius as you'll watch Senku use science to extract various raw materials to build components and then use them to make modern technology in post apocalyptic stone age.

You can catch previous season of Dr. Stone now on Crunchyroll or if you're already up to date, wait until Thursday 6th April 2023 for the new season.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Azuki to Publish Manga Titles as eBooks

Date: 2023 March 11 12:00 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from digital manga subscription service Azuki have sent news that two of their exclusive manga series will be published as eBooks on BookWalker, Amazon, Apple Books, and Google Play Books. They're going to start with My Dear Detective: Mitsuko's Case Files and Turning the Tables on the Seatmate Killer!. Both titles will are available for pre-order and will be released on March 23, 2023.

It's great to see Azuki branch out to digital publishing like this.

Read More... | Souce: Azuki

What's on NHK World?

Date: 2023 January 29 13:05 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime > TV

Being a fan of anime, manga and Japanese stuff in general it's always good to find a great source of content. Most fans will hunt on DVDs and blu-rays for those extra features, read magazines and articles and various bonus features included in books and so on. They'll even read websites like this one, but one resource that we find that is frequently overlooked is NHK World.

NHK is the national state broadcaster for Japan. NHK World is it's international arm. It's content is available in a selection of languages including either dubbed into English or in Japanese with English Subtitles. The service is free to access and is available on a wide range of satellite and cable providers in the US, UK and further afield. You can also watch it free and legally on the website or app that's offered on many platforms including iOS (iPhone and iPad), Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android, Roku and more. You can watch the live broadcast or the video on demand service.

A lot of the content there is excellent for anime and manga fans.

Read More... | Souce: Otaku News

Jump Festa 2023 Live Stream Details

Date: 2022 December 12 20:15 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from Japanese publishing giants Shueisha Inc. have just sent us details of an on-line event. The yearly mega event Jump Festa 2023 will live stream for international fans. Set to run from 17th to 18th December 2022 the streaming weekend will cover content around Jump titles. The various events will have either available with English subtitles and simultaneous interpretation or just English subtitles. This is the first time the content of the Jump Festa will be streamed in English, so you'll get to see everything just like a fan in Japan too!

You can visit https://www.youtube.com/c/jumpchannel during that time to catch the content.

Read More... | Souce: Jump YouTube Channel

Vinland Saga Season 2 to Stream on Crunchyroll

Date: 2022 October 26 19:56 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime streaming service Crunchyroll have sent us details of their latest streaming acquisition. Vinland Saga Season 2 will stream on the service simulcast from January 2023.

It follows the story of Thorfinn a young Viking with a passion for revenge (well that was season 1). Season 2 follows the further adventures of Thorfinn! The historical action anime series feels like tale Vikings would tell around a campfire at night. It's violent in a way you'd expect medieval Europe to be, and it's amusing to hear it all in Japanese. It's also great to see certain places in the UK get a mention as they off to Gainsborough and Bath in season 1!

We really enjoyed Season 1 (which is currently showing on Netflix and Amazon Prime).

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Art of Dragon Ball Showcase Auction at Heritage Auctions

Date: 2022 October 12 18:49 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from Heritage Auctions have sent us details of an upcoming Art of Dragon Ball Showcase Auction. Set to run from October 20 - November 17.

The auction line up contains plenty of production cels from Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, and Dragon Ball GT along with various other items.

Read More... | Souce: Heritage Auctions

My Hero Academia Season 6 comes to Crunchyroll this October 2022

Date: 2022 August 09 18:36 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime streaming giant Crunchyroll have sent us details about the streaming release of My Hero Academia Season 6. The latest series will arrive on the streaming service from October 2022. Lots of action is promised as Tomura is now in charge of even more villains and is set for some good up coming conflict!

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Crunchyroll Reduces Monthly Subscription Price in Nearly 100 Countries including UK and Ireland

Date: 2022 July 18 19:32 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime streaming mega service Crunchyroll have just announced they're reducing their monthly subscription price for almost 100 countries and territories including the UK and Ireland.

In the UK, Mega Fan will change from £7.99 to £5.99 GBP and in Ireland, Mega Fan will change from €9.99 to €6.49 EUR.

All subscription tiers allow you to watch ad free content, while the basic fan tier allows you to watch Crunchyroll on one device at a time, the Mega Fan tier allows off-line viewing and for 4 devices simultaneously.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Azuki to Release Idol Manga Hikaru in the Light!

Date: 2022 May 30 19:53 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks from on-line manga service Azuki have sent us news of their latest manga acquisition Hikaru in the Light! by Mai Matsuda. The exclusive license is a story about pop idols and chasing your dreams. If you're curious about the title you can read a preview on Azuki.

The service costs $4.99 (USD) per month, along with a 30-day free trial and a discounted annual plan are also available. All titles on the service are available worldwide (expect for Japan) in English.

Read More... | Souce: Azuki

Crunchyrolll Announces Chainsaw Man Streaming Rights

Date: 2022 May 16 19:01 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime mega company Crunchyroll have just revealed that they have the streaming rights for the upcoming Chainsaw Man anime series. Crunchyroll state that it'll be shown sometime in 2022 in one of the upcoming seasons simulcast. They've yet to confirm a release date. It'll be released subbed and with dubs in English, Latin American Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French and German.

The Chainsaw Man anime series will be animated by MAPPA who are best known for Attack on Titan Final Season; Jujutsu Kaisen, Yuri!!! on Ice and many more. The Chainsaw man manga is created by Tatsuki Fujimoto who blends action, horror and violence with the occasional comedic twist. Part of the joy of the series is you can't predict where it's going next. Fujimoto has also created some amazing stand alone one shot manga titles, which suggest you read Look Back and Goodbye, Eri, which can be read on Viz.com.

You can buy the manga from all good booksellers, including Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Crunchyroll and Funimation Merge into One Offering

Date: 2022 March 02 22:10 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

Anime streaming service Crunchyroll have announced that they've merged brands with Funimation. Crunchyroll now replaces Funimation for all global content.

In December 2020, Sony bought Crunchyroll for $1.175 Billion USD. Sony also owned Funimation. Up until now they were running the streaming services separately with fans having to buy subscriptions to both if they wanted to watch exclusive titles on each platform. This issue has now been resolve and merging into Crunchyroll makes sense as they have more brand recognition as a streaming service. As a result all titles that were exclusively available on Funimation will now be added to Crunchyroll.

Funimation will also be rebranded to Crunchyroll for home video offerings. In April 2021, much loved brand Manga Entertainment UK (which was also owned by Sony, via Funimation) rebranded as Funimation. Now the brands will be consolidated to Crunchyroll.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

MangaPlaza - Online Digital US Manga Service

Date: 2022 March 01 20:18 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

We've got news from new online digital manga service MangaPlaza. The service offers nearly 50,000 manga Chapters from 2,000 titles including Attack on Titan, That Time I got Reincarnated as a Slime, Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku and Obey Me! The Comic!

The web based service is currently US only. It's yet to offer an offline reading mode.

The service costs $6.99 (USD) per month for $0.45 to $3.99 you can purchase chapters individually without a subscription. Most titles also have a free chapter.

MangaPlaza is created by NTT Solmare Corp., a subsidiary Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West Corporation.

Read More... | Souce: MangaPlaza

Cagaster and Crueler Than Dead Now Available on Azuki Manga

Date: 2022 February 26 19:13 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

We've received a press release from digital manga subscription service Azuki . They've just told us that they've added two new titles to their service. Cagaster is a story about a disease transforms its victims into cannibalistic insects and decimates human society. It follows bug hunter Kidow and his newfound friend Ilie who struggle to survive in this brutal new world. While Crueler Than Dead is about another virus which results in fast-paced and violent zombie action.

With Azuki it should be noted that their titles are available in English worldwide (apart from Japan). The first few chapters of most series are available for free with ads, and for $4.99 (USD) per month users can sign up for a Premium account and read the entire catalogue without ads. A 30-day free trial and a discounted annual plan are also available.

Read More... | Souce: Azuki

E-mail Based Manga Service from Mangasplaining

Date: 2022 January 31 21:19 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Manga

The good folks at popular manga podcast Mangasplaining have just sent us details of their latest endeavour, titled MSX: Mangasplaining Extra its an e-mail based manga subscription. The substack news letter will be delivered to your inbox.

The first projects to be announced are Okinawa by Susumu Higa and These Days by Taiyo Matsumoto. Interestingly the press release credits everyone involved in each manga project, this isn't the standard (but we wish it was). Keen eyed readers will also notice that These Days is translated Michael Arias the director behind the anime version of Tekkonkinkreet (which is based of the manga by Taiyo Matsumoto), so it's clear that the translator is very familiar with the artists work!

Mangasplaining have partnered with Fantagraphics Books and UDON Entertainment as publishing partners, so it's going to be interesting to see what else they've got in the pipeline.

Subscription to the service costs $5(USD) a month or $50 (USD) a year on Substack . Pricing has been set to be sustainable so they can pay the licensors, creators, publishers, translators, and letterers who do this work. There's been a lot of discussion in manga fandom about fair wages for staff involved in production and the Mangasplaining people are making sure everyone involved in the process gets paid fairly.

We're excited about this project as the people behind Mangasplaining are more than just manga and anime fans, they're manga and anime fans who work in the industry. They've got a track record of successfully delivering various projects. We're wondering what this will grow into!

Read More... | Souce: Mangasplaining

Crunchyroll Announces New Anime for 2022

Date: 2021 December 22 17:17 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime streaming service Crunchyroll have just revealed details of their new anime for 2022. They headline with Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2, along with anime style FreakAngels (inspired by the works of writer Warren Ellis and artist Paul Duffield), My Dress-Up Darling, Orient, and The Case Study Of Vanitas.

They'll also be continuing to stream Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Entertainment District Arc and Platinum End alongside new episodes of Blade Runner: Black Lotus and of course One Piece.

We're most excited about Ranking of Kings, which will be streaming on Crunchyroll soon. Previously it was a Funimation exclusive but now it'll also be available on Crunchyroll.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Funimation Announces 20 New and Returning Shows for 2022

Date: 2021 December 20 19:57 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

We're still processing 2020 and the good folks at anime distributors Funimation are telling is it's almost 2022 and they've got 20 new and returning shows. They'll be showing Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2 from 9th January 2020, while from the 8th they'll be showing My Dress Up Darling. They'll be more Demon Slayer too, as the Entertainment District Arc continues along with lots of other good shows.

But let's be honest the one everyone is talking about is Ranking of Kings, we won't say anything about it. Just head over to Funimation and watch it if you haven't already.

Read More... | Souce: Funimation

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Entertainment District Arc Now on Crunchyroll and Funimation

Date: 2021 December 05 15:45 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

Quick reminder for fans of the anime version of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba. The Entertainment District Arc has just started on streaming services Funimation and Crunchyroll.

This latest arc follows on from Mugen Train Arc and introduces new demon Daki.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Voidol2 Anime Style Voice Changing Software Release Details

Date: 2021 November 25 21:59 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from Japanese software firm Crimson Technology have sent us details about their English language launch of Voidol2. This is real time voice conversion software primarily aimed at streamers, v-tubers and people who have the need to change their voice in real time.

The software has many voice modes and can make you sound like an anime character or even a robot and everything else in between. It retails for 13,200 JPY (about $114 USD / £86 GBP), but is currently on offer for 8,800 JPY (about $76 USD / £57 GBP). It's available to download on Windows or Mac via Sendowl.

Read More... | Souce: Crimson Technology

Crunchyroll Announces Spy x Family

Date: 2021 November 22 20:43 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime streaming giants Crunchyroll have sent us details of their upcoming titles. The headline announcement is the release of Spy x Family, based on the manga of the same name it follows a master spy working in a cold war European-esque country. His newest mission requires him to build a family in order achieve his objective. This action comedy has been highly anticipated by fans of the manga (this includes us). Kazuhiro Furuhashi (Hunter x Hunter, Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn) on board as Director while Kazuaki Shimada (The Promised Neverland) serving as Character Designer.

Other titles lined up for 2022 include Dance Dance Danseur (it's about dancing if you didn't guess), Aoashi which is based on the football (soccer) manga, plus the second season of the spooky In/Spectre.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2 Airs on Crunchyroll

Date: 2021 November 19 19:53 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

The good folks from anime streaming service Crunchyroll have sent us details about Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2. It'll stream from 9th January 2022, available subtitled in eight languages and in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. It'll also appear on Funimation and Hulu.

Keen eyed fans will notice that it's been marketed as "epic continuation" not the epic conclusion. So does this mean that there'll be another part of the final season? Only time will tell. Manga fans will have already had a chance to discover the ending as the final volume of the mega franchise was released in Japanese in June and in English last month.

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train Now on Crunchyroll

Date: 2021 October 05 20:07 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

Anime streaming super service Crunchyroll have just sent us details about their latest release. They've just put up Demon Slayer -Kimetsu no Yaiba- The Movie: Mugen Train. The box office smash is now available to stream on Crunchyroll. Which means if you haven't already you can get on the hype train and see what all the fuss is about.

They've also sent us a reminder that they have the original series that leads up to the events of the movie.

Availability wise the series and film will be available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese in English-speaking countries; and in Spanish and Portuguese in Latin America -- both in subbed and dubbed. The series will also be available in French-, German- and Russian-speaking countries as well as the Nordics. The film will also be available in French- and Russian-speaking countries as well as the Nordics.

Don't forget Viz have just released the complete box set of the original manga which contains the whole story!

Read More... | Souce: Crunchyroll

Sakugan Episode 1 Streaming Review

Date: 2021 August 04 19:45 | Posted By: Joe

Category > Anime

New anime Sakugan is due to hit streaming service Crunchyroll in October 2021. If you want to catch episode 1 early , the world premiere of Sakugan will stream at Virtual Crunchyroll Expo.

The good folks at Crunchyroll gave us access to a screening copy of Sakugan to review. So read on if you want to know about the show!

Read More... | Souce: Otaku News

1. Category
2. Websites