News

The official website for the Under Ninja live-action film today announced two additional cast members — Shotaro Mamiya (Reinhard von Lohengramm in the Legend of the Galactic Heroes stage plays) as Kato and Mai Shiraishi (ex-Nogizaka46 member) as Suzuki. The site has also released a new trailer introducing the two. Under Ninja Live-Action Film Trailer Kato is an elite member of the ninja organization “Nin”, and he has a serious ninja mission for the protagonist, Kuro Kumogakure (played by Kento Yamazaki). "I was very happy because it had been 10 years since I had worked with Kento," said Mamiya. "I hope that I was able to create a sense of tension in Kato's quiet and unique way, and since the action scenes were filmed through trial and error with the staff, I think those are scenes worth seeing." Suzuki is also a skilled kunoichi (female ninja) who belongs to "Nin." She usually...

Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These is currently reliving its biggest battles during a terrestrial Japanese broadcast. To celebrate the airing of episode 27, the show's official social media accounts have shared two new illustrations—showing the many players on both sides of the century-and-a-half-long conflict. Taking center stage in each are the two men at the center of the war: Reinhard von Lohengramm and Yang Wen-li: Related: Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These Anime Sequel Announced The Legend of the Galactic Heroes novels are published in Japan by Tokuma Shoten, and more than 15 million copies have been in circulation since the novels debuted in 1982. An English language version of the series is also available from Viz Media. Legend of the Galactic Heroes was previously adapted into a long-running Oav series beginning in 1988, and this version is currently streaming on Hidive. Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These...

A certain meme sprung to mind when I awoke to last week’s double-whammy of old-school anime remake news. It’s that panel from a Watchmen comic where Dr. Manhattan sits pensively in isolation on the surface of Mars and is usually made to lament how time is a flat circle, a recent example of which remarked on Ghostbusters and Dune competing at the box office in three separate instances since 1984. Anime is hardly different from other mediums when it comes to rebooting or remaking older material for newer audiences, though it's arguably been slower to dig deeper for inspirations. In the last couple of years, we’ve mostly seen updates of adaptations that originate from the early 2000s or late '90s like Fruits Basket , Trigun , Shaman King , Spice and Wolf , Bartender , Tokyo Mew Mew , Forest of Piano , Orphen and so forth. A few recent exceptions include Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai...

"House of the Dragon," now well into its second season, has officially restored Westeros' place on the Iron Throne of television. All the insistence that "Game of Thrones" season 8 permanently tarnished interest in the franchise now look foolish, as this prequel about fire and blood has racked up acclaim. (Read /Film's review of "House of the Dragon" season 2 here.)

With it becoming ever more unlikely that the "A Song of Ice and Fire" books will receive a proper conclusion, "House of the Dragon" is working two-fold to sustain audience interest in its fantasy world. It's worked on me; after sitting out "Game of Thrones" during its initial run, the Foma finally got to me and I'm now watching "House of the Dragon" and reading the books.

Last time, I professed mea culpa for unfairly judging comic writer Garth Ennis. Now, I similarly come hat-in-hand to George R.R. Martin — I am...

The official website for the upcoming stage play adaptation of Yoshio Sawai's surreal comedy manga series Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo , titled Cho Hajike Stage Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo , is updated today with a key visual featuring Sho Kato as the protagonist, Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo, for the first time. "I met Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo when I was a child and spent two days wondering if there would be a world where the balance of power in the world would be determined by the power of Hajike!" said Kato, known as Ryuichi Naruhodo in the Ace Attorney stage play (2019) and Siegfried Kircheis in the Legend of the Galactic Heroes stage plays (2018-2019). "Maybe it's because I had such a childhood... I had abandoned the concept of common sense in my daily life and went on my way to become a Hajikellist. Then I began to change my constitution to be liked by animals! In other words! If...

Sir Ridley Scott is back with another historical epic with a big sense of humor in "Napoleon," a movie that looks at a great man doing important things while also showing him to be a bit of a giant baby — see also the hilarious Ben Affleck in "The Last Duel" or Jared Leto's incredible transformation as Paolo Gucci in "House of Gucci."

Also in Ridley Scott fashion, "Napoleon" is full of epic action and historical inaccuracies. From a scene where Joaquin Phoenix as Napoleon literally shoots the Great Pyramid of Giza, to an incredible moment where the Napoleonic army wins a battle by drowning the enemy under an icy lake. That latter scene is a recreation of The Battle of Austerlitz, which the film depicts as having Napoleon luring the enemy Austrian and Russian armies onto an icy lake. Then, he orders the lake bombarded, trapping and drowning hundreds if not thousands.

(Welcome to Ani-time Ani-where, a regular column dedicated to helping the uninitiated understand and appreciate the world of anime.)

We have covered many anime in this series, hopefully providing plenty of choices for your first anime, and shows to watch after that to learn more about the possibilities of this wonderful medium. From new shows that have made a splash, to older classics that marked the medium forever, there truly is enough to watch at anytime, anywhere. This is to say if you have followed this column for the past couple of years, you should have a pretty good understanding of anime and enough points of reference for "Flcl."

Pretty much like all other anime I've covered here before, it is not imperative to have watched anything before experiencing "Flcl," but the experience is improved if you understand some of the many, many references in this short 6-episode Ova. And...

Middle East and North Africa media and entertainment giant Mbc Group has expanded its partnerships with key anime studios and production houses in Japan to bolster its anime offering on its streaming platform Shahid.

Under the move, the group has acquired a number of series, including TV Tokyo’s recent 52-episode hit Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, based on the Bleach manga series by Tite Kubo, about a teenager with the ability to see spirits.

The series, which recently returned following an eight-year hiatus, will stream on Shahid at the same time as Japan and the U.S. All the previously broadcast seasons of the show are also currently available on Shahid.

Mbc Group has also extended a partnership with Toei Animation for more episodes of One Piece, the blockbuster long-running series based on Eiichiro Oda’s manga series of the same name.

The company has also expanded its partnership with...

In the third edition of our tribute to anime, we focused more on retro titles, in an effort to fill the catalogue of our reviews with titles from the 80s also. This does not mean, however, that we did not include newer series, with the relaunching of Legend of the Galactic Heroes being presented in all its 3-seasons glory. Here is a list with all the titles we wrote about this August.

1. 86 (2021) by Toshimasa Ishii

The series is split in two parts, with the aforementioned mission being the dichotomy. The first part features much action, but the focus is actually on context, with Toshimasa Ishii presenting a number of sociopolitical comments through a dialogue-heavy approach. Lena’s gradual disillusionment about what is happening with the 86 is quite shattering in that regard, with the exploitation of kids that are sent in the front lines being a direct accusation on fundamentalists, to say the least.

Considered one of the best anime series of all time, the based on a series of science fiction novels written by Yoshiki Tanaka “Legend of the Galactic Heroes” is now relaunched by Studio Ig, retaining the quality of the original but improving the audiovisual aspect.

Buy

In Ad 2801, the Galactic Federation was formed, resulting in political power moving away from the planet Earth (now named Terra) and the Space Era calendar replacing the Gregorian calendar, with 2801 Ad now being Se 1. Rudolf von Goldenbaum, an ex-admiral turned dictatorial politician, is elected to power. After declaring himself Emperor Rudolf I, absolute monarch of the renamed Galactic Empire, he restarts the calendar again, beginning the Imperial Calendar on Se 310/Ad 3110. His regime adopts extremist policies, including the suppression of any opposition and the extermination of anyone perceived too weak (such as the disabled and the poor), which is carried out until his death...