Anime Review Roundup

It looks as if someone has applied the paddles of a defibrillator to ADV in the US, as they have announced that they are releasing new anime again as well as re-releasing some older titles, courtesy of a distribution deal with licensors Sentai Filmworks. The report is at AnimeOnDVD, and I only mention it in passing, as it will probably take the better part of a year for the effects to be felt in the UK.

This week's free anime is…

Of more immediate interest is the continuing glut of free and legal anime online. Funimation have indicated that they are showing episode 1 of Shikabane Hime on Youtube next week, and going by past experience, it wouldn't be a shock if the rest of the series doesn't follow. What makes this different is that it isn't a show that Funimation have announced as one of their licences. Even more interesting is that it's a show that is still being aired in Japan at this time, having only just premiered on the 2nd of October. It seems that they are trying the Crunchyroll model of airing new shows online to gauge fan interest before committing to DVD distribution. If you're taking notes, The Shikabane Hime ("Corpse Princess") of the title is Makina Hoshimura, an undead girl who hunts down 108 corpses in order to go to heaven. Meanwhile Funimation's own site has started streaming the first two episodes of The Guyver TV series, one of the shows they rescued from ADV.

Update: AnimeOnDVD are reporting that Funimation have indeed licences Shikabane Hime for broadcasting, DVD distribution and merchandising rights, and that they will begin airing the 13-episode series on Youtube, Joost, Hulu and their own website from October 24th.

Xbox + Broadband Connection + UK = Anime

By golly the lack of anime on broadcast television has turned out to be a challenge rather than an insurmountable obstacle. If the Internet isn't enough, there are mobile phones, Blackberries, I-Pods and all manners of delivery for the medium. Now, having trialled the system in the United States, Starz Media (Manga Entertainment's daddy) will be piping all manner of entertainment down broadband pipes to eager Xbox owners in the UK subscribed to Xbox LIVE. While anime fans have a new way to watch favourites like Ghost In The Shell, Hellsing Ultimate and Blood: The Last Vampire, horror fans will also be catered for, with classic and modern movies to rent. Read more at UK Anime.

News Just In!!!

I just had a gander at MVM's PR website, and an interesting title has cropped up, semi-confirming an earlier rumour. Slayers: Volume 1 is scheduled for January 5th 2009. It's just a listing as yet, lacking detail, so there's no way of guessing whether MVM are starting from the first series (as it looks), or if they are going straight to the more recent one. It also looks from the price point of £15.99 that they are going for single disc releases, as opposed to the half-season or full-season boxset.




It was a Manga Entertainment week last week in terms of DVDs as well, as I got a good look at their October releases. First up was Strait Jacket, a steampunk horror set in an alternate history where magic takes the place of technology. It's a three episode OVA, which has been re-edited for the international market into a single feature length movie, although the joins still show. It's a good old-fashioned blood and guts fest of the sort that Manga Entertainment made their name with, but surprisingly there's a good deal of substance simmering under the surface. That was Wednesday.














Friday brought me xxxHolic, which has nothing to do with what you're thinking. Get your minds out of the gutter now. It's pronounced 'Holic', the xxx is a placeholder for whatever is most appropriate to the episode. It was a sister manga to Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle, but the anime adaptation has shorn it of any links to its CLAMP stable-mate. What's left is one of those spooky and chilling horror anthologies that work so well in Japanese animation, albeit leaning to the lighter side of the genre, with some zany characterisations. It's also one of the new wave of anime releases in the UK resulting from Manga's deal with Funimation, and coming out in half-season boxsets as opposed to the usual single disc volumes. Find out how much I liked it by clicking the linky.












Both Strait Jacket and xxxHolic: Season 1Part 1 will be released by Manga Entertainment on October 27th. There will be more anime next week…