Anime Update: 11/13/2011

The new Space Battleship Yamato 2199 trailer is here, Viz Media has debuted two Naruto volumes ahead of the print counterparts, and we’ve got another great video to share from Japan – Danny Choo has just shared Episode One from season two of his television series Culture Japan and you can watch it right at the bottom of this post.

First up this week:

It’s been confirmed that we’ll see the re-make Space Battleship Yamato 2199 come to Japan on April 12th, 2012, and I couldn’t be more excited!  At Anime Expo 2011 it was announced that this series will be the animated re-telling of the “Journey to Iscandar” storyline.  The project will initially launch in theaters as a fifty minute feature consisting of episodes one and two – and the rest of the series will soon follow on broadcast television in Japan. Yoshinobu Nishizaki’s adopted son Shoji Nishizaki is leading the project, and the trailer for the series was just launched yesterday on the new Yamato 2199 website:

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I don’t know about you, but I’m really excited about this series! I really hope we’ll get North American distribution soon after the release of the series in Japan this spring, but it’s hard to say with this title as only some of the Yamato properties have come to North America since 1974.

Next up this week:

Press Release: November 7, 2011

VIZ MEDIA DEBUTS TWO LATEST NARUTO VOLUMES AHEAD OF PRINT COUNTERPARTS ONVIZMANGA.COM AND THE VIZ MANGA APP FOR iPAD, iPHONE AND iPOD TOUCH

November Digital Manga Update Also Sees Debut of
Natsume Ono’s
RISTORANTE PARADISO And GENTE,
As Well As Updates to 17 Popular Series

VIZ Media continues to lead the digital manga (graphic novel) revolution with a variety of new titles just announced for November that are available to read online on VIZManga.com and also for digital download on the VIZ MANGA App for the Apple iPad™, iPhone™ and iPod™ touch.

Among the notable new releases will be the two latest editions of NARUTO – Volumes 54 and 55 – which will be made available on VIZ Media’s digital platforms several months in advance of their print counterparts. This is part of the SHONEN JUMP DIGITAL WARP, a speed-up of selection titles to bring North American readers up-to-date with Japanese releases to prepare fans for the debut of the digital WEEKLY SHONEN JUMP ALPHA in January 2012.

NARUTO Vol. 54 · Rated ‘T’ for Teens · Available Today!

Naruto54_Cover

Viaduct to Peace: Naruto and his team engage in an intense battle with the Akatsuki organization as both sides seek the power to determine the future of their land. Internecine fighting weakens the Akatsuki, but will their dark forces sideline Naruto?! Print edition debuts on January 3rd, 2012.

NARUTO Vol. 55 · Rated ‘T’ for Teens · Available November 21st

The Great War Begins: Evil masterminds Kabuto and Madara instigate a skirmish with Naruto and friends on Turtle Island. The Allied Shinobi Forces prepare to attack, but are they ready for Kabuto’s horde of reanimated dead ninja?! Print edition debuts on March 6th, 2012.

November also sees the debut of two titles from the critically acclaimed Natsume Ono. RISTORANTE PARADISO weaves a story around the lives of the staff of a restaurant in Rome, and in the follow-up manga, GENTE, continues to follow the character’s romances, heartaches, hopes and dreams.

RISTORANTE PARADISO · Rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens · Available Now!

At the age of 21, Nicoletta travels to Rome to find her mother, Olga, who abandoned her long ago. Nicoletta finds her at Casetta dell’Orso, a charming little restaurant owned by Olga’s husband. The staff of bespectacled gentlemen welcomes Nicoletta warmly, but Olga’s reception is not so pleasant. Olga has never told her husband that she ever had children–and he must never know.

GENTE Vol. 1 · Rated ‘T+’ for Older Teens · Available November 14th

Buona sera! Welcome to Casetta dell’Orso, a quaint little restaurant in the heart of Rome. The food’s delicious, but the handsome staff of bespectacled gentlemen is the real draw. Follow these dashing men home and witness their romances, heartaches, hopes and dreams in this delightfully whimsical continuation of Natsume Ono’s beloved RISTORANTE PARADISO.

Additions to 17 popular VIZ Media series are scheduled for November, with over 30 new manga volumes scheduled to make their digital debut. Updates include the rock-and-roll romantic drama of AI ORE and the courtly royal intrigue of THE STORY OF SAIUNKOKU, as well as the supernatural adventure of BLEACH, the ongoing high seas pirate fun of ONE PIECE, and the kinetic sci-fi action depicted in new weekly chapters of NEON GENESIS EVANGELION.

New VIZ Media manga volumes launching include:

November 7th:

BLEACH Vol. 32

DENGEKI DAISY Vol. 6

NARUTO Vol. 54

NEON GENESIS EVANGELION Chapter 14

OISHINBO Vol. 4

ONE PIECE Vols. 54 & Vol. 55

OURAN HIGH SCHOOL HOST CLUB Vol. 12

RISTORANTE PARADISO Vol. 1

November 14th:

AI ORE Vol. 3

BLACK BIRD Vol. 11

BLEACH Vol. 33

CLAYMORE Vol. 19

D. GRAY-MAN Vol. 21

FUSHIGI YUGI: GENBU KAIDEN Vol. 8

GENTE Vol. 1

KEKKAISHI Vol. 17

NEON GENESIS EVANGELION Chapter 15

ONE PIECE Vol. 56

RUROUNI KENSHIN Vol. 26

November 21st:

BLEACH Vol. 34

GENTE Vol. 2

NARUTO Vol. 55

ONE PIECE Vol. 57

NATSUME’S BOOK OF FRIENDS Vol. 9

NEON GENESIS EVANGELION Chapter 16

SATURN APARTMENTS Vol. 4

THE STORY OF SAIUNKOKU Vol. 5

November 28th:

BLEACH Vol. 35

GENTE Vol. 3 – Final Volume!

INUYASHA VIZ Big Vol. 6 – Exclusive to the VIZ Manga App for iPad!

KEKKAISHI Vol. 18

NEON GENESIS EVANGELION Chapter 17

ONE PIECE Vol. 58

RUROUNI KENSHIN Vol. 27

VIZ Media’s digital manga platform allows for universal access for fans for reading manga from their iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, and now, VIZManga.com for desktop/laptop computers and Android-powered devices with built-in web browsers. With one account, registered users are able to view their purchases across even more devices than ever.

The free VIZ Manga App continues to be the top app for reading manga on iOS devices and features a rapidly growing library of the most popular manga series in the world, currently offering over 45 series and nearly 500 volumes, with new additions and free Chapter 1 previews added weekly.

For more information, please visit VIZManga.com or www.VIZ.com/apps.

Finally this week: I bring you another video for our Videos from Japan collection – Danny Choo has just shared Episode One from season two of his television series Culture Japan. For those of you who haven’t checked the series out yet, it’s definitely worth a watch for anyone hoping to learn more about Japan and Japanese culture (including fun tech. and geeky stuff). Some of you may have seen him on youtube as the Tokyo Stormtrooper, but he’s much more than that – he is a Japanese cultural expert and self-made, geek-culture powerhouse! This particular episode is a somber one – as it covers the recent earthquake and tsunami, but I highly encourage you to watch and learn a bit about Japan’s struggle to recovery.