Ever since Section23 formed, they've been doing two things right- licensing a good amount of anime in a very short time, & releasing them in even shorter time. The newest batch of series by them & their partner Sentai Filmworks are "Maria Holic" & "Skull Man."

"Maria Holic" aired just earlier this year in Japan, & is about a girl who transfers to an all-girl school because of her fear of men. It is there she meets the yuri love of her life, who happens to be a cross-dressing boy. Yes, this is a trap anime, & quite a popular one among fans of this recently surging genre. The complete 12-episode set will go on sale February 23 for $39.98.

"The Skull Man" is a modern day remake of the classic horror manga by Shotaro Ishinomori (Kamen Rider, Cyborg 009, Kikaider) from the 1970s. The story is about a masked man committing horrendous murders in an alternate history of Japan. The complete 13-episode set goes on sale February 2 & also retails for $39.98.

Finally, Section23 also announced that Part 2 of To Love-Ru will go on sale February 16, also retailing for $39.98. I think it goes without saying at this point that all of these releases are sub-only.

Press Release: http://www.sxanimedia.com/2009/12/section23-films-announces-maria-holic.html

The January 2010 issue of Yen Plus magazine added a last minute new title to the magazine- a manga adaptation of the popular novel & TV series "Gossip Girl." That's right, a manga... of Gossip Girl. Come on, guys. You don't want me to unsubscribe from your magazine, do you? What the hell? Okay, granted I've never given the books or the TV series a chance. I'm also not quite the target demographic for this, what with me being neither a girl or a teenager.

Korean artist Baek Hye-Kyung (Bring it On, Happy Spider, Chiro) is the artist for the new series, making it sort of manhwa & sort of an OEL manga. "Gossip Girl: For Your Eyes Only" will also consist of new original stories rather than a straight up adaptation of the teen novels. According to Yen Press publishing director Kurt Hassler:

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Seems like I'm doing one of these Year in Review things pretty much everyday now. Today we take a look at the ten most shocking anime headlines of 2009. The list comes from a Japanese magazine, so don't expect any American-side anime news to make the list. A lot of these of course were covered here on the Nebs Blog over the course of the year as well. Check out the list below & see if you can remember when they happened:

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Fans of "Samurai Champloo" might recall an early episode where we learn that the historic artist Vincent Van Gogh was inspired by Japanese Ukiyo-e art. Now it turns out that he wasn't the only world renowned painter to be inspired by art from Japan- Pablo Picasso was as well. Only the art that inspired Picasso was a little more... revealing. That's right, Picasso was a hentai fan.

An art exhibition in Barcelona is showcasing the works that inspired Picasso to become the infamous painter he was. It turns out the man had quite a few Japanese prints in his personal collection. 19 erotic works, to be exact. The most notable of his private collection is the world famous Hokusai Katsushika piece "Dream of the Fisherman's Wife," otherwise known as the first ever tentacle hentai drawing. Picasso loved the piece so much that he painted his own version of it in 1903.

Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jBNjJckr3o8MiPpUJqsogcsvuWow

It's been a tough year for 4Kids Entertainment, as it was announced that sales fell over the past quarter once again. Third quarter 2009 sales results were an unimpressive $7.3 million, while sales from one year ago were over $10 million higher at $17.8 million. However the amount of loss was only about $5 million, which is slightly less loss seen between third quarter 2007 & third quarter 2008, which was $5.3 million. All in all, 4Kids has lost over $20 million since 2009 began.

CEO Al Kahn, pictured above, has called the past year "the most challenging period of my life." The company a lot of hope & money into their new Chaotic property & hoped that the card game for the franchise would turn the company around. However, Chaotic has deeply underperformed, & nearly every other 4Kids property saw fallen revenue as well.

The one major exception was actually 4Kids' (now) oldest property Yu-Gi-Oh, which saw a small increase over the past year. Not only did the sales for the card game go up recently, but ratings for their CW4Kids block have been on the rise recently too, mainly because they started re-airing the original Yu-Gi-Oh anime series. Coincidence? Al Kahn thinks not, saying rebroadcasting the original series has gotten new kids interested in the card game. This of course can't be good news for their dub of 5D's. If they're getting better ratings & sales from the original series, why bother spending money dubbing the series which hasn't been doing so well for them? Just like GX before it, it looks like 5D's may never get a finished English dub at this rate.

Source: http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/16230.html

FUNimation's parent company Navarre Corporation recently reported that their sales were down for second quarter of the 2010 fiscal year, but their profits for the same time period actually went up. This includes Navarre as a whole, & they didn't report how Funi is doing just on its own. But it's publishing division, which includes FUNimation among others, was down 26% compared to the previous year. Navarre says though they're "still optimistic about Funimation and its future" & blames the decrease on general decline in the overall DVD market, not just anime.

Furthermore it was stated that FUNimation now commands 56%-60% of the total American anime market & is "still the market share leader." CEO Cary L. Deacon even went so far as to say Funi has "a first look at all opportunities in terms of licenses. We’re seeing them all, we have an opportunity to bid on them all." So basically he's saying Japan goes to FUNimation first to get a title licensed, & if they pass then they look elsewhere. Deacon also said that Funi is being "pretty selective" overall.

Personally I think this is all a bit of an exaggeration. I'm not saying FUNimation isn't the king of the American anime world, because they are. As such, I'm sure they do get first dibs on a lot of titles. Japan knows that anime is suffering in the US a bit, & if they want their title to sell then why not give it to the best? However, Viz Media still gets first dibs of any anime that's based off of a Shonen Jump title, & more recently I think that now includes Shonen Sunday & Ikki titles as well. That's a lot of titles that Funi can't access first, & very popular ones to boot. & I'm sure Bandai Entertainment, despite their tough times right now, get first dibs on any title involving Bandai Visual in Japan. This of course includes all things Gundam. & to say that Funi is being selective? I don't really believe that. I mean, "Strike Witches" & "Dragonaut"? Only a select number of hardcore otaku are really gonna buy those titles.

Source: http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/16151.html

Much to my total surprise, apparently there exists a prose adaptation of the Death Note spin-off movie L: Change the World. So a movie that has very little to do with the manga series it's based off of- who's total existence depended on changing the outcome of said original story & creating an alternate universe- gets a novel adaptation? I had never heard of it before, but apparently it is a translation of a Japanese version of the novel. Incidentally, the original Japanese author is only listed as "M." I doubt the "M" is a reference to Mello, but you never know.

The book is on sale now, & I've already seen it at Barnes & Noble. The cover art & clear slipcase is pretty nice looking, actually. Here's a summary of what this adaptation of a spin-off of an adaptation is about:

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Man, Sentai Filmworks & Section23 have been on fire as of late. They keep announcing more & more new titles, which is awesome. Of course though since this is Sentai, all their licenses will be sub-only, which isn't so awesome. But at least we're getting some good stuff.

Most recently, Sentai announced another three new titles- Hidamari Sketch, Glass Mask, & Neo Angelique Abyss. The first half-season box-sets for all three will come out this January, so you wont have to wait too long for them. Each of them will likely be added to the Anime Network as well. Also confirmed to come out in January are the second halves of You're Under Arrest: Fast & Furious, Special A, & Tears to Tiara.

I've been interested in checking out Hidamari Sketch for awhile now, mainly because for the past two years I've been very surprised at how well the girls from this series do in the early rounds of the Saimoe Tournament. They never make it to the finals or anything, but they have done shockingly well early on against other characters you'd think would win. So it's got me curious for that reason. As for Glass Mask & Neo Angelique Abyss, both of those shows are already up on Crunchyroll. What's the point of buying a sub-only series when legal free subs for them have already been available for sometime?

Press Release: http://www.theanimenetwork.com/myblog/149-Section23-Films-Announces-6-New-Anime-and-Live-Action-Titles-for-January-2010

Sentai Films & Section23, aka the "brand new" former-ADV anime licensing company, have announced their DVD releases for the month of December. In addition to releasing the first halves of both Clannad: After Story & Ghost Hound, they quietly announced a brand new title- To Love-ru! The manga may have just recently ended in Japan, but the US will finally be getting its first official taste of the series.

Of course since this is a Sentai title, it'll be a sub-only release with no English sub. The plus side to that though means we'll getting the first half in very short amount of time, & the second half will be out not long after that. It's a shame though, as I'd like to see what To Love-ru would've been like dubbed. The first set is scheduled to come out on December 15 & retails for $39.98.

Press Release: http://www.theanimenetwork.com/myblog/147-Section-23-Announces-3-NEW-Titles-for-December

Bandai America has announced its intent to bring back the original classic Mighty Morphin Power Rangers franchise, bringing 1993 to 2010. In addition to relaunching the toy line of the original Rangers this Fall, Bandai also says that the original TV series will air on the ABC Kids Saturday morning block beginning in January 2010.

This certainly isn't good news for the Power Rangers is dead rumor that's been going on throughout the year. In years' past, the current season of Power Rangers ends at the end of the year, with the next season starting early on in the new year. But with the current RPM series ending in December & no news series (which would have been an adaptation of Japan's current Samurai Sentai Shinkenger) yet announced, it's looking like the relaunch of Mighty Morphin IS the "new" series. & since ABC Kids is currently the only American home for Power Rangers (what with ABC Family & Toon Disney no longer showing it) & the fact that the block is already scheduled to show MMPR in January, this really does look like the end of the line for new episodes. The future of Power Rangers seems to lie in the past. & here I thought with Disney's deep pockets that franchise would live on forever.

Press Release: http://www.bandai.com/blog/press-release/mighty-morphin

It's no secret that Japan has been called a dying country. Every year the birth rate decreases more & more. Less young adults are seeking out to start families, or even marriage. Japanese women, who's primary role used to be that of a housewife so she can take care of all the kids & the home so that the husband could go out & work, are becoming more interested in having careers of their own.

So what does all this have to do with anime, manga, & video games? Recently a BBC reporter in England, Robin Lustig, wrote up an article blaming Japan's death on the otaku culture. The piece about the country dying is a bit long, but here's the blurb where he puts the blame on otaku:

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Hello Kitty isn't just popular in Japan. The mega franchise has taken Taiwan by storm as well. Now while in Japan (& even the US sometimes) you can find Hello Kitty plastered over a bunch of unusual merchandise, Taiwan here really takes the cake. Introducing the Hello Kitty Maternity Hospital!

Actually called the Hau Sheng Hospital, it was originally built in 2006 & cost $3 million to open. Hello Kitty's parent company Sanrio gave the official OK to turn the hospital into pink kitty paradise, so now all the staff & facilities are covered with the iconic white cat face. From Aprons to linens to room decor, the feeling of being surrounded by the mascot icon is meant to ease the stress of childbirth. As well as bring more attention & business to the hospital of course. Even the babies' birth certificates are stamped with the official Hello Kitty seal. What better birth-day gift could a baby ask for?

Source: http://www.weirdasianews.com/2009/09/12/taiwans-kitty-maternity-hospital

Earlier this month, Japanese news stations were all a flutter covering the story that a Peko-chan statue had been stolen from a local candy store. For those who don't know, Peko-chan are popular collectors items in Japan that look like giant bobble-head dolls. They're about 3.5 feet tall & weigh in at 22 pounds. The things can go for over $400 on the market, which is probably why the 42-year-old suspected yakuza member stole the thing.

The sheer amount of extensive coverage some stations devoted to this story is astounding. NTV's news team created some interesting animated pieces to reenact the crime (which shows off how the thief did the act with an accomplice), & then brought in nearly a dozen Peko-chan dolls in their studio... for seemingly no other reason then to have their creepy, bobbly eyes gazing into the camera. You can check out the main story in the video above, & then see the in-studio segment below:

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Illegal manga scanlation pirate site MangaHelpers.com recently tried to send out a secret letter to Viz Media in order to strike some sort of deal with them. It's unknown if they got a chance to send it to Viz yet, but somehow it did manage to get leaked out to the public.

Basically MangaHelpers is interested in going from illegal to legit, the same thing that Crunchyroll did with anime videos. In their letter, they off to strike a deal with Viz where they will post legal & simulcast copies of titles from Japan. Of course Viz has already begun experimenting in this field, opening up legal manga websites for Rin-ne, Sig Ikki, & Shonen Sunday. But MangaHelpers believes that an "established name" will help to expand their media to a larger audience.

While in a certain sense this course of action might be viewed as honorable, what it all comes down to is that these are a bunch of greedy kids who are looking to make more money from their website by either selling it to Viz or working directly for them. Their attitude is "Hey, we illegally show your titles on our website & get all the profit for it. But we'll stop if you pay us." Maybe not those exact words, but yeah. Check out the leaked letter here:

http://freetexthost.com/0mx2pnuhpw

After being without a home for nearly a year, Naruto Shippuden will finally be airing on American TV. Only it wont be anywhere on Cartoon Network. Instead, a very unlikely new channel has stepped in- Disney XD. That's right, Naruto Shippuden will be airing on Disney XD, beginning next month in fact.

In a way it can be considered a fitting home. Disney decided last year to evolve their Jetix action block on Toon Disney by expanding it to the entire channel & renaming it Disney XD. It was meant to change the channel to the go-to place for young & tween boys to tune in for action & adventure. The only problem was, while Jetix was actually pretty cool of an action block (not quite at the level of Toonami, but it was the spiritual successor to Fox Kids), Disney XD ruined all its potential & just plain old sucks. Jetix had a decent amount of anime in its day, but XD decided to get rid of pretty much all of it, even though it now had MORE time on the schedule to fill with such programming.

With Shippuden coming to the channel, Disney XD seems to be trying its hand at anime once again. & what better way than to air the biggest action title in the anime world today? The only problem is, how badly can we expect the edits to be in this version? The original Naruto series didn't air completely uncensored, but it was pretty darn close with very little changed or removed. Heck, some episodes even had parental warnings at the beginning to warn of the extensive violence in the eps, saying it wasn't meant for a young audience. But on a Disney channel? I'm afraid to see how badly this series will get butchered. I can't imagine Naruto without blood, but at the same time I can't imagine Disney allowing blood to be shown.

& do you really expect we'll get the original Japanese opening themes if the series airs on XD? Granted that Oban Star-Racers airs its Japanese ending them without issue, but I just don't expect the same of Shippuden's openings. But if the idea of this show being edited to hell & back bothers you a lot, it really shouldn't. After all, we get free simulcasts of the Japanese version every single week online. & if you really want an unedited dub version so bad, just buy the DVDs or episodes on iTunes.

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