Anime
30 CommentsCrunchyroll’s biggest anime of the year isn’t the obvious choice
Crunchyroll members worldwide were big fans of several different series this year, from a new season of classic action anime Berserk to the Brotherhood Final Fantasy 15 prologue series. But the service revealed which anime were 2016’s most viewed in each country, below, and the series that took the global top spot may be a surprising choice.
Crunchyroll
While Yuri on Ice, the ice skating romantic comedy that’s taken audiences by storm since its premiere this fall, nabbed the title of “most popular” in a number of countries, the majority of Crunchyroll’s audience fell hardest for Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World-, according to the streaming platform’s metrics.
“A casual glance at the map reveals what is an undeniable truth in the world of anime — Re:Zero is a...
Anime
11 CommentsThe official trailer for Attack on Titan’s second season is here
Funimation has released the official trailer for Attack on Titan’s second season, bringing Christmas cheer a day early to anime fans.
The new trailer, which can be seen above, starts out with footage that will be familiar to most fans; an army of titans walking menacingly toward human civilization. As seen in the trailer, there’s been a breach in the Wall Rose, the second outermost wall protecting the citizens of the Chlorba District, the Karanese District and the Trost District.
Main characters Eren, Mikasa and Armin are all back in fighting form, taking out titan after titan with their various maneuvering techniques. One of the most important moments in the trailer, however, features a couple of new titans that fans should acquaint themselves with. In one of the better scenes, a...
Opinion
29 CommentsYuri on Ice brought me back to anime
On paper, there’s almost nothing that would compel me to like Yuri on Ice.
I haven’t watched anime since high school. I know nothing of figure skating except for passing glances at the Winter Olympics. I’m sure there are plenty of people in the same boat, yet this show is approaching alarming levels of popularity on Tumblr, Twitter, basically the entire internet.
So how is an ice skating anime so popular that it crashed Crunchyroll? Yuri on Ice packages an extremely niche thing into something fascinating — even relatable — for mass audiences. It’s one of the most authentic shows I’ve seen in a while; the skating moves are real, the depression is real, even the sound design is spot-on. Yuri on Ice is also super cute and super gay, and it’ll leave you wanting more.
M...
Deals
14 CommentsAmazon’s got great prices on Cowboy Bebop, Evangelion and more anime today
Amazon’s Deal of the Day is all about the anime, and some of the best-known series are on sale at big discounts through the day’s end. From now until 11:59 p.m. PT on Dec. 21, Blu-ray and DVD sets of shows and movies like Cowboy Bebop and Ghost in the Shell are available on the cheap.
The most attractive offer here is for the complete series of Cowboy Bebop on Blu-ray and DVD. The Amazon-exclusive edition Blu-ray combo set is marked all the way down to $47.49; it regularly goes for $100, making this the lowest price ever for this set. Included with all 26 episodes (across nine discs) are a special art box to house them all in, a 140-page black-and-white art book full of concept art and a 48-page full-color art book. (There’s also a standard version of the Blu-ray for $19.99, or a DVD...
News
6 CommentsGravity Rush’s anime captures the game’s signature style
The sneak peek above at Gravity Rush the Animation ~Overture~ lasts only 30 seconds, but it’s long enough to get a good sense of just how pretty the anime adaptation of Gravity Rush will be.
The interstitial story — it’s set between 2012’s Gravity Rush and next January’s Gravity Rush 2 — will debut in advance of the second Gravity Rush installment, which is coming to PlayStation 4. Players of the first physics-defying action title, released on PlayStation Vita (and later PS4), will recognize characters like Kat and Raven, who star in the animation. It fills in their story following the cliffhanger that concludes Gravity Rush.
Studio Khara produced the anime; it’s known best for its work on the Rebuild of Evangelion film franchise. Unlike those longer features, Gravity Rush the...
Movies
15 CommentsNaruto is getting a live-action adaptation from a major Hollywood studio
One of the longest running and most popular anime series, Naruto, is set to receive its own big screen, live-action Hollywood adaptation.
On Saturday, Shonen Jump — a magazine dedicated to Japanese manga and anime — confirmed that Lionsgate had secured the rights to the franchise for a feature-length film. Michael Gracey, who is best known for his special effects work on shows like The Magicians, will make his directorial debut with the project.
Live-Action Hollywood movie for Naruto announced! From Lionsgate, Michael Gracey directing.— Shonen Jump (@shonenjump) December 17, 2016
Naruto follows a young boy by the same name who has been ostracized by the people in his village for an event that took place 12 years before the series begins. In an attempt to seal a vicious demonic...
Movies
5 CommentsFormer Ghibli director unveils new animated film, Mary and the Witch's Flower
Former Studio Ghibli director Hiromasa Yonebayashi has released the trailer for his new project, Mary and the Witch's Flower.
The director, best known for his work on Arrietty and When Marnie Was There, left Ghibli around the end of 2014. For his new film, he’s teaming up with another former Studio Ghibli producer, Yoshiaki Nishimura at Nishimura’s new production company, Studio Ponoc.
Mary and the Witch’s Flower is based on Mary Stewart's book The Little Broomstick, and follows a young girl who discovers she has mysterious powers that will last for one night only. Based on the trailer, Yonebayashi and Nishimura are taking quite a bit of influence from their time at Ghibli. The art work is clearly inspired by Ghibli films and it seems to imitate that kind of fantastical, animated...
Movies
5 CommentsA rare Studio Ghibli project is finally getting a U.S. release
One of the rarest Studio Ghibli projects, Ocean Waves, is finally heading to the U.S. for a limited release.
GKIDS, an American film distributor, announced that it was working with Ghibli to bring the feature over to select cinemas in early 2017. Ocean Waves was originally released as a television series by the studio, but has been played in a feature format before since it clocks in at 72 minutes.
The movie follows two high school best friends, Yutaka and Taku, as they both fall in love with a new transfer student from Tokyo, Rikako. According to GKIDS, Rikako is an adventurous spirit, “whose attitude vacillates wildly from flirty and flippant to melancholic.” Things start to go awry for the group when Taku joins Rikako on a trip to Tokyo and rumors start spreading about their...
Anime
20 CommentsThis Dragon Ball fan comic redeems the series’ most useless character
Dragon Ball is a series full of beloved, over-powered superhumans — but there’s one character that’s a little less loved than everyone else. In a new digital series, however, Dragon Ball’s biggest punching bag gets a chance to prove that he can stand alongside Goku and the rest of the crew.
Called Dragon Ball Side Story: The Case of Being Reincarnated as Yamcha, the spinoff comic is all about Goku’s bro-y pal Yamcha. Except it’s not exactly the same Yamcha that Goku and friends grew up with. Instead, the very meta storyline stars a high school-age comic book fan who dies and is reborn as the character. From that point on, he makes it his goal to prove that Yamcha is just as capable of a fighter as the rest of the guys.
Someone unfamiliar with Dragon Ball might look at the beefy,...
Anime
7 CommentsDragon Ball Super headed to Adult Swim in January
Dragon Ball Super, the first new Dragon Ball storyline in more than 18 years from creator Akira Toriyama, will get an English dubbed version in January.
Toei Animation Inc., Funimation Entertainment and Adult Swim announced today that the new series will be joining the Toonami block at the end of January, 2017. According to Adult Swim, the show will focus on the “Battle of Gods” and “Resurrection ‘F’” story arcs. Both were stand-alone films that have been converted for Dragon Ball Super. Funimation will be producing the English-dubbed version of the series for Adult Swim, the company also confirmed for today.
Dragon Ball fans will be happy to know that voice actors from previous series will be returning for Dragon Ball Super. Some of the voice actors include Seán Schemmel (Goku),...