What's Hot in Japan and Anime Sequels Galore!Posted on 30 Aug from:rory
[Photo Credits: Gakuen Alice © 2004 TACHIBANA HIGUCHI E HAKUSENSHA/ "GAKUEN ALICE" PRODUCTION COMMITTEE
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Licensed by Animation Int'l Ltd ]
FINALLY,
some free time! First things first. It seems some of you have been
wondering why I can't blog on a fixed day. Sorry, but I have a very
hectic work schedule. While my intro states that I am an entertainment
writer, I am actually first and foremost a medical columnist, not just
for one but two publications. This means, if the Obataku is not around
blogging, she is out in Metro Manila interviewing doctors and health
officials and writing articles about all sorts of diseases, how to
prevent getting them and how to safeguard your health. One of the
pitfalls of being both an anime fan AND an ex-doctor. Add the fact that
I'm also not in the peak of health myself. So, if the Obataku suddenly
disappears for a few days, instead of asking "why" and "when", just
think "she's probably being harassed at work again" or "she's probably
sick again." That's the nitty gritty of it.
Anyway, since I have an hour or two before my next interview, here are some anime news that I was able to scrounge around.
* * * * *
Animax In Africa!
Some
BIG NEWS first! As part of its worldwide expansion, Animax will soon
hit Africa in the latter part of 2007. As part of the DStv satellite
service, the channel will be broadcast over South Africa, Botswana,
Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. At present, Animax
is being aired in Asia, Europe and South America.
Yes,
the Animax family is growing in leaps and bounds! Only one country
remains to be conquered, and that's the U.S. Here's hoping that Animax
will eventually make it to the U.S. of A. because a lot of my friends
and close associates are clamoring for the channel to be available on
their cable TV services.
* * * * *
Top 30 Anime In Japan for August
For
those of you who want to know what anime are big in Japan this month,
here's the Power Rankings for August. It seems anime with school girls
remain a huge hit in Japan, judging from the fact that a number of the
titles listed are of the shoujo genre. Being not a huge fan of school
girl misadventures, sometimes, I wonder how much of the genre can be
milked of originality before it becomes pretty stale. But I'm glad that
at least a few of my faves made it to the list.
If you want to know what these anime are all about, visit Anime News Network for synopses and more info.
AUGUST ANIME POWER RANKINGS
1. School Days
2. Gurren Lagann
3. Code Geass
4. Lucky Star
5. Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei
6. Seirei No Moribito
7. Baccano!
8. Darker Than Black
9. Claymore
10. Potemayo!
11. Terra e...
12. Dennou Coil
13. Zero No Tsukaima ~ Futatsuki No Kishi ~
14. Seto No Hanayome
15. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai
16. Romeo x Juliet
17. Mai Otome ZWEI
18. Heroic Age
19. Idolmaster XENOGLOSSIA
20. Hayate no Gotoku!
21. Devil May Cry
22. Lovely Complex
23. Nagasarete Airantou
24. Ookiku Furikabutte
25. Sky Girls
26. Kaze no Stigma
27. Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-chan 2
28. Kenko Zenrakei Suieibu Umisho
29. Code-E
30. Doujin Work
* * * * *
Gunslinger Girl Season Two Confirmed
The
powers that be have deleted the news from their website. They have
denied its possible existence. But now, it has been confirmed that
there WILL BE a second season of Gunslinger Girl.
Based on the ongoing manga by Yu Aida, Gunslinger Girl
is about cybernetically-enhanced girls who fight terrorists. The focus
of the second season will be the Pinocchio Arc, which can be found in
Vol. 4 of the manga. According to a friend of mine who has been
following the manga, Pinocchio is an infamous knife-wielding assassin
who defeats Triela during a bloody encounter. As Triela slowly comes to
terms with what happened and prepares for her next confrontation with
the assassin, she begins to remember her life before she became a
killer. In the meantime, Henrietta can no longer deny her growing
feelings for her handler, Jose (In the manga, his name is Giuseppe.).
It
is still uncertain how many episodes the new season will be, but my
friend is hoping that Season 2 will also feature the introduction of
Petrushka, who is probably the best and most daring cyborg in the team.
* * * * *
Hot Gakuen Alice News!
This
is probably the news that EVERYONE is waiting for. I got this tip from
my source, who works at the Manila office for a leading newspaper in
Japan.
Although it has yet to be officially confirmed or announced, there IS going to be a Season 2 of Gakuen Alice (Alice Academy), which is tentatively slated to begin airing in Japan in March, 2008.
Yes,
folks! To those of you who have been hankering for it, it is very
likely that you will get to see the famous kiss between Natsume and
Mikan.
* * * * *
AHK! My editor just called me that we should get going for our interview. ;P I'll catch you guys later!!
