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This week we have a good show. We review Bleach as usual, and Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni and Nodame Cantabile. Enjoy the love.
Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo – Wait until it hits the US and NetFlix it.
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni – Wouldn’t kick it out of bed for crackers.
Nodame Cantabile – Wouldn’t kick it out of bed for crackers.
Show Notes
Music
Intro – Higurashi no Naku Koro ni by Eiko Shimamiya from Higurashi no Naku Koro ni
Intermission 1 – Kimi to no Asu by Sachi Tainaka from Fate/Stay Night
Intermission 2 – Makka Na Chikai by Yoshiki Fukuyama from Busou Renkin
Intermission 3 – Candy Line by Hitomi Takahashi from Gintama
Outro – Neko Mimi Mode by Dimitri From Paris from Tsukiyomi Moon Phase
News
Anime Expo Announces First Guest of Honor
Anime Expo, the largest anime convention in North America, has announced Mary Elizabeth McGlynn as their first Guest of Honor for 2007. Ms. McGlynn is best known for directing Naruto, Cowboy Bebop and and Wolf’s Rain. Anime Expo will be held June 29th through July 2nd at the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, California.
I.G. and Kazuto Nakazawa to Animate “Asience: Hairy Tails”
Kazuto Nakazawa, director of the animated segment of Kill Bill Vol. 1 is working on a commercial for Asience shampoo. Art director Shuichi Hirata is also working on the project. The commercial is drawn in the style of Japanese woodblock prints, using women’s hair as a metaphor for life, and detailing a tragic love story in a traditional dramatic style.
TAF 2007: All Japan Anime “Knowledge Test” Announced
The writers of the “National General Anime Culture Knowledge Test” held a panel at the Tokyo International Anime Fair (TAF) on the 22nd, where they announced plans to offer the test in November 2007. Among the recent surge in Japanese “tests” about Pop Culture, the anime test is made under far more serious guidelines. The test is edited with the support of employees at anime companies and the Association for Japanese Animation (AJA) while an executive committee oversees the test. Organizers are hoping that the exam may eventually be used as a component of finding qualified employees for anime companies. According to the TAF panel, a mobile phone version of the test is going to be offered for free, while 5 seperate levels of tests (1 being hardest) will be offered. Testers must pass Level 3 to take Levels 2 or 1.
Manganews.net confirms Libre/CPM dispute
Manganews.net has contacted Libre Publishing and confirmed that the reason Libre claims the Be Beautiful releases of its manga are unauthorized is because following the bankruptcy of Biblos, CPM never renegotiated the licenses it held to manga that now became the property of Libre. CPM has not made any statement concerning the matter.
Shirow Masamune and Production I.G. Announce Ghost Hound
Production I.G. has announced its 20th year anniversary project, “Ghost Hound” (Shinrei Kari). Shirow Masamune, creator of Ghost in the Shell, is writing the anime. Other staff on the project include Ryutaro Nakamura (Serial Experiments Lain, Kino’s Journey), scriptwriter Chiaki Konada (Serial Experiments Lain, Big O), and character designer Mariko Oka (Jing: King of Bandits). The series is set to premiere on Wowow in Japan this fall. Wowow’s Japanese homepage is now online as well.
No attendance cap at Otakon 2007
Online pre-registration for Otakon 2007, the second-largest anime convention in the US, has opened. Unlike the previous two years, there will be no attendance cap. According to the Otakon website, because of the increase in the number of both volunteer staffers and hired security personnel, as well as various changes to the convention layout, restricting attendance is no longer necessary.
TAF 2007: A-1 Pictures Discusses Ookiku Furikabutte
Details of anime adaptation of popular baseball-themed manga presented at TAF.
Reviews
Kindaichi Shonen no Jikenbo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kindaichi_shonen_no_Jikenbo
http://www.toei-anim.co.jp/tv/kindaichi/
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=1859
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higurashi_no_naku_koro_ni
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=6134
http://www.alchemist-net.co.jp/products/higurashi_matsuri/indexx.html
Nodame Cantabile
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nodame_Cantabile
http://www.nodame-anime.com/
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=7010