Posts in June 2006 News & Notes Category
June 30, 2006A good Friday afternoon to everybody out there. Anybody watching the World Cup matches today? Not me since I'm at work now ＿|￣|○ Anyways, it's been one of those weeks for me -- zero energy, haven't felt like doing much of anything beside going to work and coming home, then watching stuff and just being lazy in general. Not good timing with the rush of new shows starting (^^;) Actually sleep decently last night so I've got a bit more motivation to get things done today, though ;)
The new season got underway yesterday and continues on tomorrow with even more shows starting. Here's Saturday's lineup of new shows that I'll be watching:
Demashita! Powerpuff Girls Z - 7:00 (Friday, 6pm Eastern)
Otogi Juushi Akazukin - 9:00 (Friday, 8pm Eastern)
Mamotte! Lollipop - 26:00 (Saturday, 1pm Eastern)
Tsuyokiss - 26:05 (Saturday, 1:05pm Eastern). You can watch the OP here
...too many for one day, really ＿|￣|○ As usual, I can't guarantee I'll write something about all of those, but we'll see.
Yoake mae yori ruri-iro na - Crescent Love - Site Open
..and if I could access it I might be able to say more here ＿|￣|○ It's based on the game by August (some of you might remember them as the company that did Hanihani).. Ah, there it goes... rather slow at the moment. Ahem... Story, Cast/Staff and Character Info on there now. Only cast listed for now is Feena@Hitomi Nabatame, the animation will be handled by Daume. It's scheduled to air on BS-i this Fall.
Japan: Anime's Highs and Lows (Next Generation)
Next Generation's Japanese correspondant comments on the current state of anime as he sees it, then connects it to Japanese gaming in general -- and he doesn't like it. I'll quote a bit here to give you a taste. The first paragraph:
"I'd like to say that the sea of Japanese pop-culture contains a few glimmering pearls that manage to never wash up on Western shores. I'd like to tell you that modern Japanese entertainment consists of more than the tacky "idol" singers in brightly-colored clothes who dance and kind of sing in front of audiences of obsessed middle-aged men. I'd like to tell you that animated pornography starring girls and monsters in the Japanese style is actually being made by some other country as something of a practical joke."
And another quote:
"All we see, now, are wacky, tacky, tired animated shows about large-breasted, pink-haired schoolgirls squealing and punching and blasting psychic powers. (I'm not referencing any particular series, by the way, just a generalization.) If you consider Japanese pop culture "wacky" or "crazy" or even "zany" -- it's not your fault. It's just because no one's really trying."
The writer seems to prefer what you could say are more "literary", or "high" forms of entertainment, so it's not surprising he holds this view. It's true that there are plenty of shows and games like the kind sweepingly generalized in the above quotes, but just about any form of popular entertainment just about anywhere in the world has parts that appeal to what could be called the "lower" desires of its audience in this view. Like the writer, I do enjoy the works of "high" culture like the films made by Studio Ghibli, or Shigesato Itoi's Mother series of games, but I neither expect nor desire everything to be that way. I watch anime to have fun and enjoy myself, that's all. Sure, some of the things I watch (and might enjoy as a guilty pleasure) fall into the writer's stereotype of anime, but there are plenty that don't. And while they might not exactly have "literary" aspirations, some shows might have themes that even the writer would approve of -- ARIA's message to find wonder in the small, everyday things in life, for example... It's just very frustrating to me to have to explain why the the picture of anime presented in the media (often times much like the quotes above) isn't entirely accurate.
..and that's enough about that for now ;)
Is it really already the end of June? And the summer season gets started tomorrow? Things have been going by much too quickly for me to keep up recently (^^;) Anyways, news, news...
Studio Fantasia's New Anime (MOON PHASE)
Studio Fantasia and director Tetsuya Watanabe -- that would be the director and studio that did Kimi ga Nozomu Eien -- team up to bring a new original anime this fall titled 奏光のストレイン Soukou no Strain (ED: Corrected reading). Mankind has advanced into space, but has split into two warring factions. Sera@Ayako Kawasumi, a member of the Union, finally sees her older brother Ralph again, but he's a part of the opposing army, the Deague. Even so, Sera forces herself to fight -- will her feelings reach her brother? Guess I'll be looking forward to this one ;)
Updated June 29, 12:28PM: Official site now open with story info, characters, and staff/cast. Billed as "SF Bishoujo Mecha Action"... SF and Bishoujo and action are fine, but mecha.. my weak genre again ＿|￣|○ Do like the character design, though, and there are some seiyuu I like -- Lotti@Yukana, and Jessie@Miyu Matsuki -- so we shall see how it turns out.
Hidamari Sketch Anime (MOON PHASE)
The 4-koma by Ume Aoki that's serialized in Manga Time Kirara Carat (Hidamari Sketch on Hatena) will be made into an anime this fall. I know I've read about Hidamari Sketch somewhere before... it'll be going on my list to pick up next time I grab stuff from Amazon :)
Shouji Gatou and Nagaru Tanigawa Discuss Haruhi (MOON PHASE)
Nagaru Tanigawa (author of the Haruhi novels) and Shouji Gatou (Full Metal Panic) discuss Haruhi in this month's The Sneaker. Apparently Tanigawa-san himself is the one who suggested bringing "Asahina Mikuru no Bouken" first, shuffling around the episodes in the anime, and also ending with Yuuutsu. According to an interview with the director, he'd like to make more of Haruhi into an anime, but as of now absolutely nothing is set.
I'd be very surprised myself if a second season of Haruhi isn't made considering how successful it's been (pretty much a license to print money). I'd like to see a second season with Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu as the main story, being a Yuki fan and all ;)
Pretty slow today, so I thought I'd respond to this post by Stripey over at Hontou ni Taihen desu. A bit different since my interests are a bit different ;) Here are my favorites in no particular order, along with what I've watched from each studio and some people you might see showing up frequently in the credits for the studio's works (if I can think of any).
Kyoto Animation
What I've seen: AIR, Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu
People: Tatsuya Ishihara (director), Hiroshi Yamamoto (script/storyboard/episode director), Akiko Ikeda (character design)
Strengths: KyoAni quality -- the beautiful backgrounds and character design, the ridiculously high quality animation that stays high quality throughout an entire series, and unrelenting attention to every last detail. If you watched AIR or are watching Haruhi now you already knew that ;)
Weaknesses: Tends to be faithful to a fault to the original works of the anime they do -- in Haruhi's case, leaving those who haven't read the original work behind with the experimental series composition (jumping around) and by bringing that in episode 1. Will they be able to maintain that "KyoAni quality" for all 24 episodes (their longest work) of Kanon this fall?
SHAFT
What I've Seen: Tsukuyomi ~MOON PHASE~, Paniponi Dash!
People: Akiyuki Shinbou (director), Ken'ichi Kanemaki (script/series composition), Kazuhiru Oota (character design)
Strengths: When I think SHAFT, the first thing that comes to mind is director Akiyuki Shinbou and his very unique sense of style, especially usage of shadows and color. Just take a look at the OPs for Tsukuyomi and Paniponi Dash to see what I mean. I enjoyed both shows a lot, and SHAFT has been improving the technical side of things with each show they've done.
Weaknesses: Akiyuki Shinbou's directorial style takes some getting used to if you haven't seen one of his works before, though his work on Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha (with Seven Arcs) was rather normal compared to Tsukuyomi or Paniponi. Consistent animation quality is another issue -- Tsukuyomi's ranged from excellent to downright bad. They did a better job with Paniponi Dash!, but will they be able to do even better and live up to expectations for Negima this fall? They also tend to take a lot of liberty with interpreting the original work -- in Paniponi Dash's case, it alienated fans of the manga who couldn't keep up with its pace. If they do that with Negima it ain't gonna be pretty (^^;;)
Seven Arcs
What I've Seen: Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha, Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha A's, Inukami!
People: Keizou Kusakawa (director), Yasuhiro Okuda (character design), Yoshinari Saitou (episode director/storyboard/animation director)
Strengths: Seven Arcs firmly established itself with its work on Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha with director Akiyuki Shinbou, garnering quite high praise from mahou shoujo fans, including me of course ;) They further reinforced that impression with Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha A's the following year, even with a change in director from the first season of the show. They're capable of very high quality animation, especially detailed battle scenes as seen in Nanoha. Definitely a studio to keep your eye on.
Weaknesses: A very new studio with not much experience. The animation quality in Nanoha wasn't consistent from episode to episode, and the same issue is showing in Inukami now. Yoshinari Saitou's interpretation of the character designs in episodes where he's animation director strays too far from the original (known as "Velka-style" animation among otaku familiar with the studio), making it seem like the animation has significantly dropped in quality, even though there's usually more detailed movement. When are we going to see a Nanoha-quality battle in Inukami? (though that might just be the nature of Inukami there, hehe)
HAL Film Maker
What I've Seen: Princess Tutu, Kaleido Star (original creator, Jun'ichi Satou), Uta~Kata, Fushigiboshi no Futago Hime, Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-chan, ARIA The Animation, Fushigiboshi no Futago Hime Gyu!, ARIA The Natural
People: Jun'ichi Satou (director), Shougo Koumoto (director), Keiji Gotou (storyboard/animator, director for gimik works like Uta~Kata)
Strengths: Home to one of my favorite directors, Jun'ichi Satou. I don't think there's been anything of his that I haven't absolutely loved. Lots of other talented people there as well -- no better place to learn than under the supervision of Satou-san. I can watch what HAL Film Maker does without worrying too much about anything.
Weaknesses: Animation isn't quite as technically impressive as other studios. Some issues with consistency, especially when working on more than one thing at a time.
J.C. Staff
What I've Seen: A Little Snow Fairy Sugar, Azumanga Daioh, Mahoutsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto (Someday's Dreamers), Mahoraba, Sensei no Ojikan, Gokujou Seitokai, Shakugan no Shana
Strengths: A studio I'm very familiar with since I've watched many of their works. And I've liked pretty much all that I've seen :) They work on a wide variety of shows as Stripey mentioned, a lot of which come in my range of interest.
Weaknesses: Depends more on the kind of work they're doing. Gokujou Seitokai, for example, seemed to suffer from a lower budget than most of their other works, so animation quality wasn't quite up to their usual standards, though I still enjoyed the show.
Good morning to everybody on the east coast that's up this early. Only a few hours of sleep here, as usual. At least that constant eye irritation that's been bugging me for the past week or so seems to have gone away. Anyways, after getting up I finished off something of a Strawberry Panic marathon I started yesterday, watching up to episode 8. Maestro (and everybody else) seems to like it, so I decided to catch up... and yeah, I like it, too. Nagisa's cute, Tamao's cute (you Tomoyo or something?), Chiyo's cute (Chiwa!), Shizuma is a lesbian stalker getting nicer (at least for now), Chikaru's fun, Kagome's cute... y'all get the idea. I've got more I could say, but it should probably go in a different post if I'm gonna write anymore about it, so I'll stop now ;)
Some of y'all might have noticed the counter at the bottom of the right column there has finally gone over 1,000,000. Only took 2 years and 5 months, hehe. Thanks to everybody for visiting, even though the updates aren't quite as timely and regular as they used to be. We'll see how long it takes to get to the next milestone, though at this point I don't much care about the numbers so long as you, my readers, find what I write useful and sometimes insightful, or at the least amusing ;)
And now the haul from the past week:
Ichigo Mashimaro DVD 1 and the DS Lite. Luckily for me, the local Wal-Mart still had some DS Lites in stock when I went there last night :)
And the obligatory brightness comparison. DS Lite vs. Axim X5 Pocket PC, both on their brightest setting:
うおっまぶしっ (Woah, it's really bright), to borrow a famous phrase from a certain show. DS Lite wins easily. You really could blind yourself with it set that bright (^^;;) The second setting seems to work best for me.
Anyways, going into work early (in just about an hour at 8am) since this afternoon I'm meeting with a friend to have lunch, and also to watch some things (probably a lot of Futago Hime. Yeah, I've made a couple of my friends into fans of the show), so I'll leave it at this for now and add any interesting news I find during the day as usual.
Good morning... I guess ;) Didn't feel too great yesterday (walking all the way downtown for lunch didn't help things) so I spent most of my time after getting home from work sleeping. But it was nothing compared to what Omni's had to deal with the past few days. Get well soon, Omni! :)
Anyways, I'm feeling better now. My brother is up in the middle of the night again, but he's too busy watching Kaleido Star to bother me like he usually does, so I've been cleaning up a bit. You can actually walk around a bit in here(!). There are still stacks of manga and novels with nowhere to go, though.. oh well, nothing to be done about it since I can't fit a bookcase in here. Going to get even worse when I order more stuff when I get paid again next week. Gotta get more of the Haruhi novels and such.. and the stuff I forgot to get last time. If any of you out there have recommendations for me I'd be glad to hear them since I've been looking for new things to read. That's why I've been going through Nakayoshi and Ciao and Ribon and the like, but I haven't really found anything as of yet. Anyways, y'all know what kinds of stuff I like, so suggest away ;)
Nothing really of note (at least to me) in terms of news over the past week, so I'll leave it at this for now... I can't believe the summer season is about to start next week. I'm not ready at all, really ＿|￣|○
Tales of Symphonia OVA in 2007 (Animate.tv)
I know somebody that'll be happy about this ;) Anyways, as the headline says, a Tales of Symphonia OVA is set to be released next year, with ufotable (Futakaoi Alternative, Ninin ga Shinobuden) handling the animation. No other information besides that for now.
So, I was going to have lunch over at the Tate Center so I went outside and waited for the Orbit bus... somebody asks me for directions, I say I have no idea where it is (I don't live on campus, I have no clue where a lot of buildings are) 20 minutes pass by, two Orbit buses pass by the other way, and finally a bus comes. And then, for some reason, the bus (clearly marked as Orbit) went straight ahead (taking the Ag Hill route) instead of turning right towards the stadium and the Tate Center. Get off at next stop, have to walk the rest of the way. Thank you very much... would've been quicker to just walk ＿|￣|○
Sorry about that, but sometimes the bus service here ticks me off... did manage to catch the last few minutes of the US-Czech Republic World Cup game on one of the big TVs at the Tate Center. これはひどい。 ("This is awful") just about says it all... we lose, 3-0 ＿|￣|○
Anyways, some news actually having to do with anime and such now ;)
Innocent Venus Website Open
Character descriptions, staff, cast added. Brains Base will be handling animation so it should look pretty if Kamichu! is any indication. Hmmm... hopefully it won't be too much of a robot thing (an "arms" section is on the site) since for some reason I have trouble watching stuff in that genre... Innocent Venus starts July 27 (Wednesday) at 24:00 on WOWOW, so we'll see about it then.
MOON PHASE Summer Anime Roundup
Summer is looking light compared to the over 60 new shows that started in the Spring. As of now, there isn't really anything that stands out as being something I absolutely have to see. Of those shows, I've only read the original work for Chokotto Sister (though 2 or 3 volumes, can't remember), and I have Zero no Tsukaima (2 novel volumes) but haven't read it yet, so that might explain it. I've read a bit of Mamotte! Lollipop in Nakayoshi, and it didn't seem like something that would interest me but I'll probably check it out anyways. If I had to choose some other shows besides those (and Innocent Venus mentioned above) that interest me a bit more than the rest...
Bokura ga ita - Akitarou Daichi (Fruits Basket, Kodocha, others) is directing it. That's plenty enough to get me interested.
Binbou Shimai Monogatari - Reading MOON PHASE's summary, it would seem to be my type of slow-paced story. Character design is cute, which is always a plus (yes, I know I'm predictable)
Otogi Juushi Akazukin - Yukari Tamura as the lead heroine, Akazukin, with Miyuki Sawashiro and Rie Kugimiya also in there. Scheduled for 3 quarters, so we'll have to see if the animation by Madhouse holds up... Why does it have to be on Saturday morning?... orz
Coyote Ragtime Show - ufotable. Those who've watched any of their stuff know what I mean ;)
...that's about it at this point, I think. I'll probably end up checking everything as usual, so we'll figure it out from there :)
Good morning to anybody that's up this early around here. For some reason, I just read through the second volume of Kami-sama Kazoku in one sitting. Couldn't put it down once I started. Was interesting, but I can't spoil it for y'all who are watching the anime ;) Speaking of that, I should really write something about the anime, shouldn't I? ＿|￣|○
Anyways, the World Cup gets started in Germany today, doesn't it? All of the games seem to be on during my work hours so I won't be able to catch much... not much of a soccer fan anyways (college football and NASCAR for me.. yeah, stereotypical southerner). When I do watch I usually switch to whatever Spanish channel it is (Telefutura now?) where the "GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!" (hold for a minute or two) guy is doing the play by play ;) Anyways, some news from the past few days...
CLAMP Works On A Robot Show? (MOON PHASE)
Sunrise x CLAMP isn't quite a combination that comes to mind as being that likely to happen, but now it has. CLAMP is doing the character design for a Sunrise robot anime directed by Gorou Taniguchi (Panetes, GUN x SWORD, among others) named Code Geass (Code Gears, maybe?) set to start this fall. Official site here. And while we're on the subject of CLAMP, Kobato (without the kari "temporary" on the end) will restart serialization in the November issue of Newtype.
Mamoru-kun ni Megami no Shukufuku wo! Anime (MOON PHASE)
And yet another light novel series gets made into an anime. Reading the summary of the first volume... one day this guy goes to his first day at this high school and this really pretty girl (that happens to be a witch) asks to go out with him. That happens a lot, doesn't it? ;) Anyways, ZEXCS will be handling animation.
Red Garden (Red Garden Official Site)
GONZO teams up with the director of Rozen Maiden and Rozen Maiden Traumend, Kou Matsuo (along with other staff from the Rozen Maiden anime as well). According to the "Outline" page on the official site, the story takes place in New York and involves some girls who attend the same school -- Kate@Akira Tomisaka, Rose@Ayumi Tsuji, Rachel@Ryoko Shintani, and Claire@Miyuki Sawashiro -- who learn of the death of Lize@Misato Fukuen, a classmate, and are somehow led to a warehouse where they, who would normally never approach each other, meet. A rather strange man and woman walk up to them -- the woman tells them that they're dead. Hmm.. anyways, it's set to start in the fall.
"Working Man" Anime For Noitamina (MOON PHASE)
The Noitamina slot on Fuji TV will be filled in the fall by "Working Man" by Mayoko Anno (Sugar Sugar Rune among others)... Hmm.... I just can't get used to her character designs.
The current schedule for the summer season after the jump.
Everybody have a nice weekend? :) Mine was pretty good... though I spent most of it doing things other than blogging (I know, I know). Some stuff I ordered came in Saturday, including this:
Got the limited edition of Kamichu! Vol 1. and the June issues of Megami and Ciao (that's a somewhat odd combination, ain't it?). I'll post the Kamichu! and Ciao stuff in a separate entry and Megami after the jump. First, some news from the past week.
Negima! "Spring" OVA Site
I thought from the post on Akamatsu-sensei's diary that the entire OVA would be included on a DVD to be bundled with volume 15 of the comics, but I guess not. Instead, a 5 minute digest of the OVA (with commentary), the OP, and a video version of the web radio broadcast. On sale August 17.
CPM Still In Business (ANN)
The company sent out a statement attributing the reductions in staff to the bankruptcy of Musicland, their largest customer. No bankruptcy filing as the previous story rumored. CPM will be releasing products as they restructure the company.
ADV Offers Digital Downloads Through ZVUE (ANN)
A press release from ADV announced a partership with ZVUE to digitally distribute ADV titles online. My first reaction: who's ZVUE?
ZVUE makes a low-cost low-end media player that is sold at Wal-Mart for $100. At January's CES show ZVUE annouced two new ZVUE players with upgraded specs but no release date. Checking their online store, most titles sell for $1.99. The video format is either very low-res low-bitrate xvid for the ZVUE player or 320x240 for viewing on a computer or other devices that support it (like a Pocket PC).
I can't quite understand why ADV choose to team up with ZVUE instead of seeking a bigger and more well-known partner -- the obvious one being Apple with iTunes. Either way, I doubt I'd utilize the service due to the low resolution format and the likely possibility that only dubs will be made available for download. I suppose it is a good first step, though we'll have to see if it's successful and can lead to an offering of downloadable content from others.
