Alcon 2008 site launched and registrations open!

Alcon was one of this years new conventions (click here to see our feature) and have now confirmed that they will be back for a second time in 2008!

Being held once again in De Montfort University in Leicester on September 5th - September 7th 2008, next year's Alcon is shaping up to be just as fun as 2007.  Its early days yet with lots of events to be announced, but so far Japanese culture favourite Akemi Solloway is confirmed to return, along with all the activities such as AMV night, J-parties, cosplaying, video gaming and anime viewing. 

A three-day entry pass for Alcon is just £25 and onsite accommodation £19.50 a night.  Both Webmasters Tom & Rich attended Alcon 2007 and agreed that these prices are a bargain.  Prices will increase after April 31st 2008 and places cannot be guaranteed once member registrations reach 350, so the earlier you book the better. 

For more information and to register visit www.alcon.org.uk

Naruto Film Delayed

Manga Entertainment have informed us that the release date for Naruto The Movie: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow has moved back to 26th December.  The film was originally due for release on 26th November but has presumably been put back to tie in with the release of the Naruto Series 2 Box Set, which is also due out on Boxing Day.  It will also allow more time for a (very) brief theatrical run for the film at the Apollo West End in London, on 24th and 25th of November.

License Announcements from MCM London Expo

As has been the case quite often this year the sheer number of anime events in the calendar and the high amount of as yet unreleased - but already announced - licenses has meant that there hasn't been a lot announced at this Expo.  However, what has been announced is certainly interesting.

MVM have been the most active, with releases announced for romantic comedy spin-off Love Hina Again, Gonzo's anime take on the US comic series Witchblade, action thriller Black Lagoon and fantasy actioner Shakugan no Shana.  Interestingly MVM are to release both seasons of Black Lagoon, despite the fact that the release of the second season is in doubt in the US following the withdrawal of distributor Geneon from the American market.  They also hinted that they had more in the pipeline but weren't quite ready to make announcements yet.

ADV talked about previously announced series Red Garden, 009-1, The Wallflower, Pumpkin Scissors and the Azumanga Daioh Collection Boxset, as well as saying that they would be releasing Ah! My Goddess TV season 2 once MVM's release of the first season ends.  However the big news from them was that they had licensed Devil May Cry for the UK.  The anime spin-off from the popular Capcom game series only came out in Japan this year and with so many fans of Dante's gun-toting exploits this is a major coup for ADV.

Manga mainly talked about the release of Bleach and the forthcoming Naruto Movie, saying that it would receive a limited cinema release in London.  Their only license announcements were of Naruto season 3 and Straight Jacket, a three-episode action series which hasn't even been released in Japan yet!

Beez had no new license announcements, but hinted that a few were in the pipeline.  Their only announcement was to say that sci-fi actioner S-Cry-Ed would be released in boxset form before the year's end.

Revelation once again didn't play any part in the panels, so their plans for next year remain largely unknown.  However, we do know that they will be releasing romantic comedy series School Rumble on 21st January next year in standard and 'starter set' form (comes with a slipcase box to hold the whole series).  Revelation were releasing DVDs at a rate of knots this year so don't be surprised to see more from them in 2008.

Amecon 2008 dates announced!

Flyers at this weekend's MCM London Expo have confirmed a date for Amecon next year as 8th August 2008.  Amecon is the UK's biggest dedicated anime and manga convention, and it usually runs every two years.  However an extremely successful event this August has led to the first consecutive convention becoming a reality.  Unlike the MCM Expos, which focus on retail and sell tickets on the day, conventions are more focused on events, parties and screenings, but only have limited places available.  In order to get a ticket for Amecon it is necessary to register your interest in advance, and registration for next year's event opens on 18th November 2007.  Keep an eye on www.amecon.org for details on registrations nearer this time, and bear in mind that all the places were snapped up well in advance of the event itself last year.  Webmaster Tom attended this year's event and had a great time, so we highly recommend getting your registration in early!

Mysterious Cities of Gold finally comes to DVD!!!

Fabulous Films, the company that released Inu-Yasha earlier this year, have managed to track down the long-missing rights to the French/Japanese series Mysterious Cities of Gold and have licensed it for UK release!  A press release issued to www.tvshowsondvd.com confirmed that the release is due to start in February 2008 and that the 39 episode series will be released here in three double disc boxsets each containing 13 episodes.  Each set will be a standard DVD with a cardboard sleeve, a booklet containing episode details and possibly a poster.  Restoration work has started in London and Fabulous Films intend to interview series mastermind and founder of DIC Entertainment Jean Chalopin.  Final extras for the release have yet to be confirmed and you can make suggestions on Fabulous Films' website on what you think should be included - check it out and join us in the queue when the DVDs come out!

New Genki Gear designs unveiled!

UK based Genki Gear, producers of t-shirts influenced by Japanese culture, have sent Animetion images of their latest designs.  The designs will be for sale at the upcoming events Birmingham Comic Con and MCM London Expo. 

Prices for the new designs start at £13.99 and feature guests artists Alma O'Caroll, Yishan Li and Mary Beaird of Sweatdrop Studios, as well as two new designs by Phil at Genki Gear himself.  As well as the new designs the popular 'Tokyo Break' design is now available in a women's fitted sizes. 

Below is a list of the new designs, click on a title to open the design in a new window:

Cute Girls

EEHR

Heavy Industries

Silver foil Ninja Bunny

Rampage

Zombie Zen

ADV Films now on Facebook!

ADV Films UK have today opened up their own group on Facebook!  If you are signed up to the social networking site, simply search for ADV Films UK and you find the group. 

The group contains information, pictures and videos of the latest ADV releases plus you can post on the wall to talk anime with other group members. 

A worthwhile Facebook group at last!

Terratag takes on Afro Samurai!

UK artist Terratag has unveiled a new range based on the hit anime Afro Samurai with a range of t-shirts, a new T-Bag, A2 prints and a bandana all available. 

Keep your eyes for an all-new forthcoming Terratag feature on Animetion this weekend to find out more!

Revelation Films Linking Up with Guitar Manufacturer

Revelation Films have revealed that they have linked up with legendary guitar makers Gibson to offer a very special competition.  To tie in with the forthcoming release of the rocking anime series Beck, Revelation will be giving away two Gibson Les Paul Classic guitars, the same type as featured in the series.  The competition details have yet to be finalised, but the prize is certainly not to be sniffed at - these guitars would normally set you back around £1000 each!  Keep an eye on the Revelation Films website for further updates and details.

DVD Bargains at Anime-On-Line

MVM's online retail arm, Anime-On-Line, are currently running an anime sale with DVD prices starting at just 99p!  Many titles are £4.99, including the likes of Cromartie High, Trigun, Chobits and Madlax, and several ADV Films series can be picked up for just £5.99 a volume.  It well worth a look so check out this link for the full selection!

First Anime Guest Announced for October MCM Expo

Manga Entertainment and MVM have announced the appearance of voice actor Johnny Yong Bosch at the MCM London Expo in October.  Bosch, who provides the voice for Trigun's Vash the Stampede, Bleach's Ichigo Kurosaki and Michael from Gun X Sword (as well as playing Adam Park in Power Rangers!), will be doing signings on both the Manga and MVM stalls.  For more info on his anime and TV roles, click here.

Bleach Press Release

Manga Entertainment have released information about volume 1 of the official Next Big Thing, Bleach.  It looks like the first 20 episode series will be released in two volumes, the first containing 12 episodes over three discs and the second 8 episodes on two discs.  They have also confirmed that the release will be subtitled and not dubtitled.  For the full press release click here.

Noein & Tokko Release Policy

As fans will have noticed lately two of Manga Entertainment's series have gone AWOL from the release schedules of late.  Noein and Tokko were major licenses for Manga but it seems that low sales have forced a rethink in their release strategy, with both series being released as boxsets instead of individual DVDs.  Obviously this won't please fans that have been buying the individual volumes as they now have to either buy the box set or import the remaining volumes from the US.  However, Manga are keen to try to help fans complete their collections and have set up special email addresses for fans to contact them directly about the issue.  To read the press release in full click here.

Two Sides Wide and Studio Shoebox to collaborate on future projects?

Popular UK based artists Two Sides Wide, which features art projects by Susan Golton and Steve Cook (aka Kat & Dave) and produce webcomics, manga and other merchandise, may collaborate with fellow artists Studio Shoebox. 

Ruth Walter of Studio Shoebox says:

'If we do produce a joint manga, it will most likely be released as a 'Two Shoeboxes Wide' title, which was suggested as a joke;it caught on, and although we'll all be credited with authorship, the jokey studio name will be a nod to our own ventures. '

Studio Shoebox ran a successful and fun artist alley at recent anime convention Alcon (see the below news item) so could run artists alleys at other small conventions in future. 

Alcon News Roundup

The year moves on and another convention comes to a close, with the first Alcon finishing yesterday evening in Leicester.  We'll be following up with a feature in due course, but for the time being we'll just give a quick roundup of any interesting tidbits that reached our ears at the con!

Licenses:  License news was pretty thin on the ground as ADV Films were the only distributor in attendance, and they announced nothing new.  However, they did show trailers for a number of forthcoming series, including a few exclusives.  Trailers for spy thriller 009-1, old-school sci-fi Moonlight Mile, fantasy actioner Utawarerumono, sci-fi Kurau Phantom Memory, thriller Innocent Venus, comedy Paniponi Dash and horror Red Garden were not new - in fact the last five are either out on DVD or soon to be released or shown on the Anime Network TV channel.  But, ADV rep Hugh David did treat us to brand new trailers direct from the US of Gainax's new robot show Gurren Lagann, the impressive looking Japanese/Korean co-production Blade of the Phantom Master and hilariously camp comedy The Wallflower.  Other than this they confirmed that Welcome to the NHK was certain for a 2008 release following the great reception it got at Amecon, but that Sgt. Frog was delayed.  Apparently attempts to get the series on TV in the US have delayed the DVD release, causing a knock-on effect to the UK.  There are also fears over the fact that Gundam isn't hugely successful here, so this would affect Sgt. Frog's chance of success in the UK.  Somewhat annoyingly, Hugh also let slip that ADV were another company to have passed up the opportunity to license Gainax's surreal but incredibly cool FLCL.  Will that series ever see the light of day here?

Various Stuff:  One thing that went unnoticed by many attendees (and we sadly had to catch a train so didn't get the opportunity to see it) was what we believe to be the first official UK screening of Karas: The Revelation, courtesy of Manga Entertainment.  Unfortunately this was pretty much the only exclusive screening.  There was a lot of interesting stuff discussed at the ADV and Piracy panels, which we'll cover in more depth in the main feature.

Unfortunately for them, Alcon suffered a bit news-wise from being so soon after Amecon.  The big announcements were made there and the absence of the other distributors left things a little sparse.  Hopefully we'll get more news at the MCM Midlands Expo in Telford next weekend, no rest for the wicked eh?

Afro Samurai Directors Cut DVD details

Animetion has been sent details on the 2-disc Director's Cut DVD release of Afro Samurai, available from October 15^th 2007. 

Afro Samurai is set in a strange world swords, guns and kimonos, cell phones and cybernetic body parts, where a solitary black samurai, Afro Samurai seeks revenge from a man named Justice who killed his father and who happens to be the #1 fighter in the world. In order to face his enemy and claim his vengeance, he battles and faces a myriad of enemies who seek to take his rank as #2 fighter in the world. As Afro grows closer to facing his father’s killer, we are taken through a deeper ride of who the legendary Afro Samurai really is.

 Special features will include a soundtrack by RZA (of Wu-Tang fame), unedited dialogue, character profiles (with commentary), footage of the launch, art gallery, as well as features on the composition of the music and voice talent.  The documentary features total 45 minutes in length. 

Further extras include a set of exclusive art cards, reversible cover and a 20 page booklet used to pitch Afro Samurai to TV companies. 

An impressive release to look forward to this October then and certainly one that Animetion is looking forward to.