FUNimation recently announced that they would be re-releasing the Dragon Ball Z series episodes into sets. The episodes are being remastered and then converted to 480p 24frames with enhancement for HD. Naturally, the idea of cropping a fullscreen image into widescreen is going to cause a fuss amoungst the fans. So FUNi has put together a handy FAQ answering questions regarding the upcoming season sets, cropping issues, and the need to re-dub various moments to attempt to have a consistent dub over the 291 episodes.
Arsene Lupin the Third, a.k.a. “The Wolf” to some older anime fans, has transformed from a little-known Japanese iconic character into a late-night Cartoon Network star in America since The Castle of Cagliostro was first released in 1991. Directed by Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away), Lupin the III: The Castle of Cagliostro has recieved an upgrade from the initial 2000 DVD edition with a brand new video master and DVD extras. Now new and old fans alike can enjoy this “Green Jacket” Lupin tale as Lupin searches for the legendary counterfeit-money printing-plates hidden within the Castle of Cagliostro and attempt to save Clarisse d’Cagliostro from her fate of marrying the evil Count Cagliostro. (more…)
Maple Colors from RightStuf’s Critical Mass Video label introduces us to a 2-episode OVA hentai based on a game from Crossnet. Yoshijiro Saku has transfered to a new Academy, but his fellow classroom 2-B peers are a colorful crowd, made of the rejects, weirdos, and losers of the school. Professor Sakamoto teaches the unruly students of 2-B and has just gained Yoshijiro as a new student when a new problem arises: spunky Mirai Aoi races out with a baseball bat to save a fellow student from some bullies. When Yoshijiro steps in to keep Mirai from hurting them, both students end up facing expulsion unless they can rally 2-B’s class into order to beat the theatrical club. (more…)
Released simultaneously world-wide from Geneon Entertainment comes the Japanese “girls with guns” film Cool Dimension: Innocent Assassin. Teaming Godzilla: Final Wars director Yoshikazu Ishii and Princess Blade action director Kenji Tanigaki, Cool Dimension brings together three leather-clad female assassins following orders in a live-action Yasuomi-Umetsu-styled (KITE/Mezzo Forte) version of Charlie’s Angels. J-idol-turned-actresses Yoko Mitsuya and Mitsuho Otani along with actress Mika Shigeizumi are on a mission to eliminate a dangerous man before he goes public with his information or a rival assassin group finishes the job first. (more…)
Neon-g has returned once again with another addition to the Ninja Vixens series, Ninja Vixens: Vixen Dropouts. Continuing the proud Japanese ninja girls tradition, Vixen Dropouts is a comedy title in the same vein as National Lampoon’s Animal House featuring the characters of N-class showing how the bottom-of-the-barrel ninja vixen student body can be just as good as the elites. Vixen Dropouts features a colorful cast with j-idol Nozomi Fujikawa, Japanese AV actress Miyu Inaba, Japanese AV actress and singer Airi Miyazawa, actress Yuka Nakatani, and actor Takashi Taniguchi in the role of a lifetime: playing a really ugly woman. (more…)
Bang Zoom! Entertainment has produced a sequel to their first [adult swim] video following the Behind-the-Scenes dubbing process of Eureka 7. Making an appearance are Johnny Yong Bosch (Renton), Stephanie Sheh (Eureka), The Ninja, Mami Okada (Assoc. Producer), Eric P. Sherman (President), and Lisa Marie Cizneroz (Exec. Assist.). We will spare you of the “b-movie flyer” also sent along. 😉
In the continuing series of Japanese ninja girls, we find Ninja Vixens: Devilish Angels from Neon-g. Third in an ongoing-yet-unrelated series, Anju earns the title of “Ninja Vixen” with a vengeance. Having defected from her clan, she takes up jobs for money and hustles the stupid theives in the Japanese countryside. It is this latter tendency which creates a chance meeting with Yuki, a homeless soul looking for a friend and teacher to make her more than a shell of a woman. Ninja Vixens: Devilish Angels brings back the humor found in Flame of Seduction along with the arousing talents of actresses Miki Shigeyashu, Minako Tsuge, and Japanese AV idol Chika Kawamura to present a light-hearted story with action. (more…)
The second title for Neon-g is Ninja Vixens: Crimson Blades which continues the “Ninja Vixen” tales of babes, blades, and beauty. Completely unrelated to the first film, we begin anew in the days of ninja clans as the rogue ninja Shinobu fullfils her debt to the village chief who saved her from dying on the streets. Not having the benefit of a couple known Japanese AV stars in the lead roles, Ninja Vixens: Crimson Blades attempts to focus more on story and action to draw you into the battle between two lovers and the forces putting them at odds against each other. (more…)
ANN has an interview with Los Angeles’ Patrick Seitz done at Anime USA earlier this year.
Ninja Vixens: Flame of Seduction is the first title for Geneon’s new Neon-g label. A period film set in the days of ninja clans, shoguns, and demons to battle, Ninja Vixens: Flame of Seduction brings together two popular j-idols and a new actress for a film that embraces its campiness full-force. Japanese AV idols Sara Shimada and Nao Oikawa play sisters battling against each other for the forces of good and evil. (more…)
