FUNimation has opened up their School Rumble website along with a game to give out School Rumble Starter Box sets. By searching around the website, you can find audio clips of the different characters which you can then take a guess at which voice actor is playing the role. (more…)
Tsukiko Izumisawa (Mami Nakamura; Tokyo Garbage Girl) is constantly having trouble sleeping at night. Images keep haunting Tsukiko, which she believes are connected to the memories she lost in a tragic accident. With the help of Dr. Hosono’s (Yoriko Douguchi; Ju-on) unorthodox hypnotherapy approach, Tsukiko is hoping to find out what happened and why she feels like she lost everything. Meanwhile, Izumisawa’s new downstairs neighbor is a peculiar man with a secret. Yamamoto (Kenji Mizuhashi; Kairo) devotes all of his time and energy to taking care of something in a basket. However, this basket doesn’t seem to hold a pet, because you can see a full head of straight black hair inside. Based on manga author Junji Ito’s beautiful and terrifying character, Tomie from Adness America comes to frighten a new audience. (more…)
Full Moon is back and the tumultuous road to stardom is ready to test Mitsuki’s resolve once again. Concerts, substitute managers, rivals, and a possible love interest are all packed into one volume as Mitsuki Koyama and her alter-ego Full Moon try to cope with the growing troubles of being an up-and-coming j-pop idol. Based on the original manga story by Arina Tanemura, Full Moon O Sagashite: Her First Kiss?, the fourth volume from Viz Media, takes the next step on multiple levels as Mitsuki and Full Moon each face some changes in their lives. (more…)
With her first single already a hit on the airwaves, generating many fans, Full Moon is in demand everywhere she goes. However, Mitsuki’s true goal is getting her message to reach her childhood-friend Eichi Sakurai. Full Moon’s record label wants publicity in print, TV, and radio, which works to Mitsuki’s advantage if she is to have any chance of reaching the special boy she thinks about. Originally serialized in shoujo magazine Ribon, Full Moon O Sagashite has created a phenomenon. Viz Media brings Full Moon O Sagashite: I Want You to Hear It!, the third volume in their on-going Shojo Beat series, to introduce a new audience to one girl’s dream to touch the heart of a friend she must find again. (more…)
Arina Tanemura’s shoujo manga series originally began as a serialized story in the girl’s magazine Ribon. However, Full Moon o Sagashite quickly found a growing audience and an animated series went into full production. Covering 52 episodes with high weekly ratings, the TV series managed to catch up and even finish the storyline before the final manga was printed. Following 12-year-old Mitsuki Koyama, it’s easy to think she’s just another regular elementary school girl dreaming of being a j-pop idol. Yet Mitsuki has throat cancer and her dream will be unfilled if she has her vocal cords operated on. In come two shinigami who decide to help the girl fulfill her dream of becoming an idol before the cancer takes her life within a year. Viz Media brings Full Moon O Sagashite: Full Moon Debuts!, the second volume in their on-going Shojo Beat series, to the American audience. (more…)
Geneon Entertainment has updated their Talk Radio podcast series with a new one featuring a behind-the-scenes interview with Satoshi Fujii (Geneon) and Jiro Okada (Ocean) about the new show Black Lagoon.
Following the North American release of “Black Lagoon” Vol. 1 DVD, this week’s Geneon podcast features an interview with “Black Lagoon” producers Satoshi Fujii [Geneon Entertainment (USA) Inc.) and Jiro Okada (OCEAN STUDIOS). The producers go over various aspects of the English language production, such as auditioning the voice talent, producing a behind-the-scenes featurette for the DVD extra, the common factor between the English and Japanese actresses who voice the character “Revy,” and more.
These are more of a blink-and-you’ll-miss-them type of thing, but it seems like everyone will be seeing Pirates this weekend so you may as well try. With the power out due to the heavy rain last night, I made my way to the air conditioned local theater to catch the third Pirates movie: At World’s End. You can imagine my surprise to see Mark Hildreth credited as a “Cryer” and J.B. Blanc as a “Clerk” in the film. I believe Blanc’s scene is when Gov. Swann (Jonathan Pryce) is signing the execution orders, but I’m foggy on when there was a town cryer in the movie.
No, it’s not the upcoming box office battle between Peter Parker and Naruto Uzumaki… we all know that the webslinger’s box office sales domination will not be threatened by Naruto’s one day box office draw. Instead, it’s far.. far… far more dangerous. The Rabbids are back! Ubisoft’s Rayman Raving Rabbids (Wii + other platforms) poked fun at several characters including Superman and Ubisoft’s own Splinter Cell series. Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 (Wii) will include mini games featuring Rabbids dressed as (you guessed it) Spider-Man and Naruto. You can see a video of the two heroes battling it out carrying burgers (crime fighting doesn’t pay that well, I guess) and running in a rodeo on GameTrailers.com. While you’re there, you should probably also check out the Rabbids 2 parody teaser based on upcoming box office movie Transformers.
When FUNimation sent out the Samurai 7 DVD to reviewers, they included a very nice (small) sword on a stand. (I don’t have one nor did I get the DVD to review, so I can’t show any pictures. I hear it’s nice, though.) In fact, it’s common for some websites and magazines (not this one, mind you) to get lots of fancy little bonus items to help intice the person to review the title sooner, be nicer, or whatever else to get some publicity for the DVD. Where am I going with this? (more…)
Picking up from the last volume of tough daily troubles for Hiroyuki Fujita and co., To Heart: Volume 2 – Finding Courage finds two more girls to join our growing collection of female friends for Hiroyuki and Akari. Based on the Aquaplus PC dating-sim game called To Heart, the anime series follows the childhood friendship between Hiroyuki and Akari Kamigishi as Akari’s feelings for her friend grow with each passing day. However, lazy-yet-nice-guy Hiroyuki is also starting to attract the attention of quite a few other girls around him. Only time will tell if Hiroyuki figures out what he’s getting into the middle of as this laid-back series of simple troubles continues. (more…)
