The Marvel Animation panel just got a whole lot more interesting.
News just rolled in that there will be an exclusive sneak-peek at the new Anime versions of Wolverine and Iron Man.
This could be very good news and a lot of fun to look at. Earlier in the decade Marvel published a Manga Spider-man book that was quite fun to look at and I had hoped they’d revisit that idea sometime. I hope this is cool, there’s a lot of talent involved (including Warren Ellis.) My concern? It’s not scheduled to hit TV even in Japan until 2010, so this might be an extremely early look at something we might not see here in the United States for quite a while.
Without further comment, here’s the press release:
CULVER CITY, CA (7/15/09) – Marvel Entertainment Inc., has partnered with renowned Japanese animation studio Madhouse (Paprika, Tokyo Godfathers) to create four all new anime versions of classic Marvel Super Heroes. Get an exciting first glimpse of two of the planned four series at this year’s Comic-Con International, the country’s leading comics and popular arts convention. The Marvel Animation Panel will be held on Friday, July 24, and will include an exclusive first look at official teaser trailers for two of these new series, hosted by writer and multiple-Eagle Award winner Warren Ellis, who will appear to discuss writing the all new adventures of these re-imagined Super Heroes.
These Marvel Anime TV series are being created as a way of merging the beloved Marvel Super Heroes of western culture with the bold animation tradition of Japan. The resulting product will be four visually groundbreaking anime series featuring popular Super Heroes redesigned and repurposed as emerging from the fabric of Japanese culture. The series is expected to begin appearing on the Animax channel in Japan in spring of 2010.
The Marvel Animation Panel with run from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Friday, July 24, at the San Diego Convention Center. An autograph signing with Ellis will follow the panel at Marvel’s Comic-Con booth #2429.
Madhouse, Inc., established in 1972 with offices in Tokyo, Los Angeles and Beijing, is one of the top animation studios in the world working exclusively with some of Japan’s top anime directors. They have created many well-known titles such as worldwide hits Ninja Scroll, Vampire Hunter D, Trigun, Tokyo Godfathers, and Metropolis, Japanese successful TV series such as “Death Note” and “Nana”, as well as Paprika (an Official Selection at the 2006 Venice Film Festival) and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2007 Japanese Academy Award for Best Film – Animation) Marvel Entertainment, Inc. is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of over 5,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in licensing, entertainment (via Marvel Studios and Marvel Animation) and publishing (via Marvel Comics). Marvel’s strategy is to leverage its franchises in a growing array of opportunities around the world, including feature films, consumer products, toys, video games, animated television, direct-to-DVD and online.