The Japan Times has a feature article up on the use of pop music in anime. It’s short, but a good read.

A snippet:

The collaboration between Daft Punk and Leiji Matsumoto — creator of “Uchuu Senkan Yamato” (”Space Battleship Yamato”) and “Ginga Tetsudou 999″ (”Galaxy Express 999″) — on the 2003 film “Interstella 5555″ that accompanied the French band’s hit album “Discovery” was a notable case of the relationship operating the other way round, with the animation providing what basically amounts to a promotional video for the album. The choice of Matsumoto, whose style is powerfully evocative of the late ’70s and early ’80s, fits in with the retro musical references of the album, and no doubt brought a rush of nostalgia to many who watched it.

Read Sound and vision — the eclectic end of anime theme tunes

anime, music, daft punk, radio head

Popularity: 19% [?]

Technorati Tags: anime, music, daft punk, radio head

Today I stumbled upon an interesting and well-written article on the subject of transgendered characters in manga. I’ve always found this a strange and yet surprisingly popular aspect of Japanese manga culture, and I’m happy to see someone write intelligently on the subject.

From the article at The Pitcher

As early as in the 80’s works such as Doraemon have explored the idea through magical machinery and technological remaking of the physical body. Even to this day, there are works that give the writers’ interpretation of body, spirit, and gender via tales of ’switching brains’ with outlandish events, machinery, and magical interference.

…

There are, however, less well known works that deal with gender displacements, oddities and obvious trans issues. In fact, there are dedicated mangaka who have given deep thought and research into the subject and portray the issue in a serious yet readable light.

Read all of “Trans/Intersex Manga: A brief Introduction of the subgenre” at The Pitcher

Sadly, there was no mention of perhaps the most well-known gender-bending manga character:

Popularity: 25% [?]

Technorati Tags: anime, manga, trans-sexual, intersex

Not sure of the source on this image. But I found it funny. It definitely makes an anti-otaku statement in an amusing and unique way.

Popularity: 22% [?]

Technorati Tags: anime

Del Rey, one of the big players in the OEL manga market, has agreed to make manga titles based on a couple of Cartoon Network properties

Del Rey Manga, in collaboration with Cartoon Network Enterprises, announced a new manga publishing partnership that will launch with original manga based on two of Cartoon Network’s most successful series: Bakugan Battle Brawlers and Ben 10 Alien Force. This announcement marks the first partnership between Cartoon Network and the Random House Publishing Group’s manga imprint.

OEL manga is already a hotly debated topic, but it seems to be doing at least “okay” for Del Rey (Tokyopop is perhaps another story, though). Bakugan is actual anime of Japanese origin, while Ben 10 is a Cartoon Network original show. What’s weird here is that Cartoon Network, already eliminating REAL anime from their channel, is now trying to anime/manga-ize their own properties.

Full press release below:

Del Rey Manga, in collaboration with Cartoon Network Enterprises, announced a new manga publishing partnership that will launch with original manga based on two of Cartoon Network’s most successful series: Bakugan Battle Brawlers and Ben 10 Alien Force. This announcement marks the first partnership between Cartoon Network and the Random House Publishing Group’s manga imprint.

Christina Miller, vice president, Cartoon Network Enterprises says, “Cartoon Network is the home to many of the leading brands, and manga and film-comics are natural extensions of our rich and immersive content. As one of the category’s best publishers, Del Rey Manga will bring these stories to life, starting with the incredibly successful Bakugan later this year.”

The first book published under the new partnership will be released in December 2008. Bakugan Battle Brawlers: The Battle Begins, incorporates full-color stills from the animated show in a manga-style graphic novel format. A second volume will follow in March 2009. As one of the hottest boys properties currently in the market, Bakugan, has been a hit in the US since it first aired on Cartoon Network in February of this year. A character-rich animated series aimed at boys 6-11, Bakugan follows the adventures of Dan and his fellow Battle Brawlers as they use strategy and skill to unleash their Bakugan power and save Vestroia and Earth from destruction.

Ben 10 Alien Force: Ben 10 Returns, the first title for the hit Cartoon Network franchise, will be published in April 2009 and follows the same format, drawing art directly from the cartoon itself. The top-rated Ben 10 Alien Force show chronicles the adventures of everyone’s favorite hero, Ben Tennyson. Armed with the Omnitrix, which gives him the ability to transform into different alien superheroes, Ben , his cousin Gwen and former foe-now-friend Kevin Levin are on a mission to defeat the evil DNALIENS and save the Earth.

Original black-and-white, manga-style graphic novels based on Bakugan and Ben 10 Alien Force will release in Summer 2009 and Fall 2009, respectively.

“We’re thrilled to join forces with Cartoon Network. Fan favorites Bakugan and Ben 10 Alien Force are beautifully crafted animated series that lend themselves well to this unique artistic form of manga,” says Mutsumi Miyazaki, director of licensing and acquisitions for Del Rey Manga. “Our partnership with Cartoon Network will provide a new and exciting opportunity for Del Rey Manga as we further expand our publishing program.”

ABOUT CARTOON NETWORK ENTERPRISES:

Cartoon Network Enterprises (CNE), the global branding and merchandising arm of Cartoon Network, is charged with building consumer product franchises for Cartoon Network, its brands and characters from the channel’s growing library of award-winning original programming. CNE also works to secure and support long-term licensee partnerships across all key merchandising categories. The division currently offers consumer product programs for an array animation franchises including Ben 10, Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, Chowder, The Secret Saturdays, The Powerpuff Girls, [adult swim] and more, as well as serves as licensing agent for Nelvana Enterprises and Spin Master’s Bakugan brand.

Cartoon Network (CartoonNetwork.com), currently seen in more than 91 million U.S. homes and 160 countries around the world, is Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.’s ad-supported cable service offering the best in original, acquired and classic animated entertainment for kids and families. Overnight from 11 p.m.-6 a.m. (ET, PT), Cartoon Network shares its channel space with Adult Swim, a late-night destination showcasing original and acquired animation for young adults 18-34.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, animation and young adult media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world.

ABOUT DEL REY MANGA:

Del Rey Books (http://www.delreybooks.com) was founded in 1977 as an imprint of Ballantine Books, a division of the Random House Publishing Group, under the guidance of the renowned Judy-Lynn del Rey and her husband, Lester del Rey. Del Rey publishes the best of modern fantasy, science fiction, and alternate history. Ballantine Books is an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group, which is a publishing group of Random House, Inc, the U.S. publishing company of Random House, the trade book publishing division of Bertelsmann AG, one of the world’s leading international media companies. In 2004 it expanded by launching Del Rey Manga (www.delreymanga.com), which has grown to be a major force in the U.S. graphic-novel field. Bestselling titles include Tsubasa, Negima, xxxHolic, and The Wallflower.

Technorati Tags: manga, del rey, Cartoon Network

Popularity: 21% [?]

I’ve seen some confusion over the lack of Code Geass on Adult Swim this morning. Those poor souls who were forced to set up their Tivos and DVRs to record the show after AS banned it to the 5 a.m graveyard shift might be surprised to find that instead of Geass, they got an episode of Inuyasha. Don’t panic. It was Adult Swim’s BK Night, where a lucky fan gets to choose the lineup for a day. Code Geass will be back (at 5 a.m) on October 5th.

Technorati Tags: anime, adult swim, Code Geass

Popularity: 24% [?]

IGN has a new feature on a DVD coming out that will give fans a glimpse into the world of anime dubbing here in the U.S.

Bang Zoom, like Ocean Entertainment or Coastal Studios, is a middleman of sorts. It doesn’t license or publish anime series on its own, but it’s produced dubs for several different American anime publishers — Samurai Champloo for Geneon, Gurren Lagann for Bandai, Figure 17 for Media Blasters, and many, many more. Now, it’s coming out with a series of DVDs about the voice-acting business, aimed at fans who might be interested in learning how it works or becoming a part of it themselves.

Volume one here is part of a projected three-volume series – the next two are slated to cover video games and original American productions, respectively. This one is about Japanese animation in particular, and to Bang Zoom’s credit, they haven’t put together a fluff piece. There’s some fluff in it, sure, and plenty of goofing off – if you’ve ever met a professional voice actor, you’ll know that they tend to be interesting characters in real life, too. Most of the feature’s 130 minutes, though, are a reasonably serious and involving look at how the art (and the business) of voice acting works.

I know many of you are completely totally anti-dub, but if you’re interested in what really goes on behind the scenes (or are interested in doing voice acting work yourself), it’s a very good read.

Read IGN’s Adventures in Voice Acting feature here

Technorati Tags: anime, IGN, voice acting, dubbing

Popularity: 15% [?]

Hulu.com, that brilliant online video site partnership between NBC and FOX, has added an anime channel today. They’ve added 20 English-subtitled episodes of Naruto, all 37 English-subtitled episodes of Death Note, and 12 English-dubbed episodes of Mushi-Shi.

As I wrote in 4 places to watch anime for free legally, Hulu already had Speed Racer and Astro Boy on their site. Now with these new additions, they’re more up to date. Complete total awesomeness. Let’s hope the trend continues and we see more on Hulu. I’ve been a big advocate of free online anime distribution, and I’ve always praised Hulu and Joost as great models to follow. As I wrote in IGN Anime’s Fansubbing Dilemma, “If the media conglomerates that handle the production and distribution of Anime would provide timely, high quality, online resources subtitled in English, the fansub problem could possibly be solved”. I’m glad some people in the biz are catching on.

Also, Joost has added some new anime as well: Death Note and more Naruto (this time subtitled).

Check out the Hulu anime channel at : http://www.hulu.com/channels/Animation-and-Cartoons/Anime, and to celebrate, here’s the first episode of Mushi Shi, embedded from Hulu:

Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: anime, Hulu, Mushi Shi, Speed Racer, Astro Boy

Popularity: 21% [?]

For those of you who missed the last broadcast, here’s TOM’s goodbye. Steve Blum did a great job on the voice, as always

Bang.

Technorati Tags: anime, Toonami

Popularity: 16% [?]

It’s official. Cartoon Network announced today that they are ending their Toonami cartoon block. After tonight, September 20th, 2008, it’s gone. Employees who worked on the block will be going to other parts of the channel. Anime will be mostly handled by Adult Swim (which, as I wrote earlier, is also dying), and there will be another action block replacing Toonami on Friday nights afterwards. Toonami Jetstream will remain without the Toonami name.

This is another sad day for American fans of anime. Toonami was one of the programming blocks that brought decent anime to U.S. airwaves. Now it’s gone, and it looks like anime on Cartoon Network is doomed to extinction.

Started in 1997, Toonami was the first real cable option action anime. It brought us shows like Outlaw Star, Yu Yu Hakusho, Gundam Wing, and most importantly, Dragon Ball Z. In its later days, Toonami aired more generic shows like Naruto and One Piece while Adult Swim handled the more “mature” series like Death Note, Ghost in the Shell: SAC, and Blood+. But recently, most anime fans had given up on the block since its selection of shows had been rather…poor. Some stalwart fans still held out hope that the execs at Cartoon Network would bring in exciting new shows again, but it seems like they’ve decided to give up. No word on exactly what shows they plan to replace the Toonami lineup with.

There’s also no official word yet on whether Toonami’s biggest current series, Naruto, will be continued past the remaining episodes they have the broadcast rights to. The show is in the middle of a big set of “filler” episodes, and ratings have apparently tanked. Lots of fans were still looking forward to seeing Naruto: Shippuden air, but there’s no word on whether that will happen now.

Tonight there will be a special on-air announcement for the final airing of the block. Tune in and say goodbye.

Technorati Tags: anime, Toonami, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim

Popularity: 60% [?]

As part of my writing for IGN TV, I’m reviewing Gurren Lagann along with Code Geass. You can find the first two reviews at IGN TV, What, Exactly, Is a Human? and Who Exactly is Your Bro?. Look for more reviews every Tuesday, and we’ll be adding Gundam 00 in November!

Technorati Tags: anime, scifi, Gurren Lagann, IGN

Popularity: 16% [?]