Posted by Michael Pinto on Jan 24, 2012 in
Animation

If you grew up with Star Blazers, Captain Harlock and Galaxy Express 999 the new Leiji Matsumoto series Ozma will bring a smile to your face! This new show will have a science fiction theme (of course!) and will start airing in Japan on March 16th this year. Below is a look at some of the character designs which remind me a great deal of Captain Harlock: Read more…
Tags: Anime, Japan
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jan 3, 2012 in
Animation

According to reports, Bandai Entertainment announced that they’re through localizing new anime and manga. While they will continue to sell their current products, Bandai plans to shift its focus to license distribution. Subsequently, all the upcoming anime and manga series they’ve announced have been officially cancelled. If you were looking forward to Turn A Gundam, you’ll just have to hope someone will be able to re-license it once Bandai’s current license expires. This also applies to several upcoming manga titles like Gurren Lagann volume 7, Code Geass, Kannagi 4, 5, 6 and others.
Read more…
Tags: Anime, Bandai
Posted by Michael Pinto on Dec 7, 2011 in
Animation,
Anime

What I love about calendars from Japan is that it gives you that something different — something fanboy to look at all year. Read more…
Tags: Anime, Japan
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 26, 2011 in
Animation,
Anime

In the early 80s two short animation films created for the Diacon science fiction convention would give a start to an animation studio that would become known as Gianax. I first watched these animations on well worn VHS tapes in that era and all these years later the animation still holds up. But it seems that some younger otaku have adopted the shorts and made them their own by doing a recreated and updated 3D version which looks pretty nice — check it out: Read more…
Tags: Anime, Japan
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 13, 2011 in
Animation,
Fandom

Oh sure any fanboy can buy a mere Mobile Suit Gundam model kit and put it together — but only a hardcore fanboy like Taras Lesko can hand craft a seven foot tall Gundam out of paper! Shown below is the step-by-step assembly and a video that he made: Read more…
Tags: Anime, Mobile Suit Gundam
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 11, 2011 in
Anime,
Hobbies and Collections

This collection of illustrations reminds me of an anime take on those Strawberry Shortcake characters from the 80s: Read more…
Tags: Anime, Fan Art, Japan, manga
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 11, 2011 in
Animation,
Hobbies and Collections

At long last the One Piece x Hello Kitty goodies are hitting the shelves in Japan for all of those kitty pirates who want something cool for Christmas! This collection includes a line of phone charms, ear buds, a notebook and of course and iPhone case which can be purchased online (of course your ill need to know how to read Japanese): Read more…
Tags: Anime, Hello Kitty, Japan, manga, One Piece
Posted by Michael Pinto on Nov 9, 2011 in
Animation,
Hobbies and Collections,
Star Wars

This cute little Chewtoro adorns this t-shirt which is created by riptapparel.com. Found via Takashi Akimoto.
Tags: Anime, Chewbacca, t-shirt, Totoro
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Nov 9, 2011 in
Anime,
Videogames

Not to long ago, From Software announced they were developing a PS3 game based on the latest entry in the Mobile Suit Gundam saga, Gundam Unicorn. Seeing as the series of OVAs are still in production, the game will only cover the first three episodes to date, and should include most, if not all, of the mobile suits depicted in them. According to a recent issues of Famitsu, developers have been working to increase the speed of the gameplay while trying to take into account the heavy feeling associated with piloting a mobile suit. I’m not really sure how the two will mesh, so I hope they can find some middle ground. They also mentioned that Sunrise — the studio responsible for the anime, seemed rather impressed with the level of detail they’ve captured with the in-game models. Read more…
Tags: Anime, Japan
Posted by Michael Pinto on Oct 19, 2011 in
Anime,
Comic Books,
Fandom

As a retro anime fanboy my heart warmed up when I came across the table of Tara Tallan at the New York Comic Con — her webcomic Galaxion is very inspired by Star Blazers which happens to be one of my favorite shows in the universe. Unlike most science fiction stories this manga isn’t dark and gritty, if you love indie comics you can show Tara your support by buying the first two volumes of the series: Read more…
Tags: Anime, manga, Star Blazers, webcomics