Piracy is an issue that plagues most of media entertainment on the net. In manga publishing, piracy is known as scanlations, and with the boom of digital publishing becoming more popular, a viable solution must be found soon. Recently the tweets of two mangaka creators (Ken Akamatsu & Kazumi Tojo) were translated about their feelings on the issue against internet manga piracy. This all boils down to the issue of are there viable solutions and attempts being done?
Digital Manga Guild is a solution that Digital Manga Publishing came up with last year, as a way to link fans, scanlators, creators and digital publishing. As a manga publisher Digital Manga has been releasing manga, or novels under several publishing imprints. DMP, Juné, DokiDoki, and 801Media. DMP is for their general manga releases, with Hellsing, Trigun, and Antique Bakery as examples of what past English adaptations. The other three imprints I have mention are Digital Manga boys love publishing imprints varying by degrees of how explicit a story could be. Read more…
I’m not sure why it bothers me so much to see those vans with those family decals stuck on their rear-view windows. Something about having to advertise the fact that your family shares a mini-van just seems a little much. If, on the other hand, your family owns the Millennium Falcon, I think I’d be okay with it. That’s why I love this design by artist Steve Thomas. I don’t think you’ll be able to find the sticker, but you can head over to TeeFury and pick up this nifty design on a custom tee of your own. Like every other design that gets featured on the site, it’ll only be available for 24 hours, or until it sells out — whichever comes first. Read more…
It’s been nearly six years since TheElder Scrolls IV: Oblivion blew us away with its vast world filled with rich open-ended content and seemingly unparalleled visuals — at least, for its time. Those visuals were quickly dated, but kept fresh thanks to a large community bent on modding the game to meet their standards. Now, we’re finally getting our first look at the in-game engine for the upcoming sequel, Skyrim. Read more…
If you’re a fan of the Trek and also happen to enjoy the occasional comic, you might want to check out GIT Corp’s Star Trek: The Complete Comic Book Collection. Produced back in 2008, this digital collection covers over 500 issues from 1967 through 2002. That said, the title might be a bit misleading — I’d hardly call it a definitive or complete collection — but it’s certainly a lot of content. To top it off, Amazon is currently offering the collection for 90% off its list price. Rather than paying the full $30, you can snag this collection for only $7. At that price, it’s practically stealing. Check the Amazon listing for a detailed list of comics included in this package.
A while back I came across an interesting iPhone app called Bijin Tokei. I had no idea what it was at first, but I knew enough Japanese to figure out it had something to do with beautiful girls. That said, I didn’t know what to expect, especially considering Apple keeps their app store relatively clean. Turns out it’s simply a clock app that simply displays pictures of beautiful Japanese girls holding up the time. I can’t say my mind was blown, but I have to admit it’s entertaing enough to keep me coming back and tame enough to not feel creepy. Read more…
When it comes to otaku clothing, I’ve always found finding fashionable items to be a challenge. Sure there’s some gems out there, but generally speaking, it’s kind of hard to look sharp when you’re sporting a lounge shirt with your favorite Dragon Ball character printed all over it. These gloves, on the other hand, are hardly such an eyesore. Not only do they sport a slick NERV logo, they’re also utilitarian, making them perfect for your Vespa, motorcycle, or piloting your very own Evangelion unit. J-List has them for $60 before shipping but you can probably snag them cheaper elsewhere. Read more…
To honor the return of the anime series Gin Tama to the air Bandai created a limited line of desserts to celebrate the occasion. There are 25 desserts in all which will be sold at Namco Namja in Japan. Here are a few of the clever designs: Read more…
Posted by Linda Yau on Feb 28, 2011 in Comic Books
Initially released in 1968 at Japan, Shonen Jump is a still running manga magazine that targets the interests of young Japanese male readers. This is not to be confused with Shonen Sunday, which is another long running rival magazine that targets late teens to early twenties males. Now what does this got to do with the United States? Shonen Sunday and Shonen Jump, while rival publications abroad are both published in English by Viz Media. The premises of a Shonen Jump story has an easy to follow theme of a male protagonist, with a journey, conflict or antagonist to triumph over. This win is the result of morals, perseverance, loyalty, and friendship. Stories created from these concepts sold millions. Read more…
Posted by Michael Sacco on Feb 27, 2011 in Animation
Cartoon Network has granted viewers sight beyond sight with a trailer for the upcoming Thundercats reboot! Check out your favorite cat-dudes and their mummy-dude adversary in their new anime-inspired incarnations. It looks like the gang’s all here, more or less, and Snarf is, dare I say, pretty cute! It’s a brave new world where I can speak his name and the tone isn’t murderous, and I like it. Studio 4oC has done a great job putting their own twist on this established (and admittedly pretty weird) universe, so let’s hope the show itself holds up as well as the art does. Read more…
2011 is truly the year of superheroes, from the salvo of superhero moves being launched from Hollywood to the several superhero TV shows either being planned or already on TV. And now cable is getting its own shot at the genre — FX has ordered a pilot of Brian Michael Bendis’ comic series Powers. The series, starring an ex-superhero who works as a police officer in a department that investigates superhero-related homicides, is a great fit for a TV-MA channel like FX, so let’s hope that they handle the IP with the respect it deserves. Read more…
Posted by Michael Sacco on Feb 26, 2011 in Television
Firefly fans just can’t seem to let the show go, even this many years after it was canceled. Nathan Fillion mused that he’d like to buy the rights to the show and make more of it. But right now, the closest you’ll come to the starship Serenity is an absolutely enormous wall sticker of it! 48 inches diagonal, in fact. It’s made by Quantum Mechanix, and it’s based on the original 3D model of the ship from the film of the same name. You can even peel it off of one enormous wall and re-stick it onto another wall. You might call it Verse-atile. Yeah, I went there. Read more…
Fans of Doctor Who may be quite pleased to hear that a free-to-play MMO based on the Doctor’s exploits is in development! Called Words in Time, it’s set to be a “fun and easy” online game for fans of all ages in which you assist you the Time Lord himself, going on missions and vanquishing classic foes. Those with software engineering skills may be even more interested in the game, because its developer, Three Rings, is hiring! The catch is that you have to live in Madison, Wisconsin. Maybe it’s not as bad as it sounds, though — their office is pretty darn cool. Read more…
Ivan Reitman’s been dangling a possible Ghostbusters 3 in front of us for years now, and now that there’s a completed script, it’s only a matter of time before it starts production, right? Well, almost. There’s one problem, and his name is Bill Murray. See, there’s a special arrangement in place that says that no new Ghostbusters production can move forward without the consent of all of its original stars/creators. And Bill Murray is notoriously picky about his projects (except for Garfield, I guess). He told Howard Stern that he had received the script some time ago but hadn’t read it yet because it just “isn’t the foremost thing in [his] mind.” That’s fair. But it’s foremost in my mind! Read the damn script, Bill! Read more…
Last Tuesday, Netflix reached a landmark deal with CBS to stream what no other service has streamed before — at least, without charging an arm and a leg for individual episodes. By now you’ve probably guessed it, but they’ve secured the license to stream every Star Trek series in their entirety, along with a whole catalog of classics like Cheers, Family Ties, and one of my personal favorites, The Twilight Zone. As far as Star Trek is concerned, this may be a first as I don’t recall any other service to date offering all six shows — that’s assuming they’ll be getting access to the animated series with this deal.
Ever since the first trailers for Marvel’s Captain America: The First Avenger hit the net, fans have been gearing up for what could be Marvel’s most anticipated film since 2008’s Iron Man. Given the excitement surrounding the film, many true believers have had to make due with comics and games, but I know there are those of you out there who like to burn holes in your wallets. My suggestion? Take a gander at Sideshow Collectibles’ Captain America premium format figure. This limited edition statue stands over two feet tall and features an incredibly detailed sculpt. Unfortunately that’s not the only thing incredible about it. Seeing as they’re only making 1,000 of them, the price tag stands at a hefty $290 not including tax and shipping, though at that price I can’t imagine they’d charge for it. Still, it’s mighty impressive and, if you’re a big enough fan, worth every penny. Read more…
I was already a little iffy about the next Superman film after director Zack Snyder announced his plans to cast English actor Henry Cavill as our beloved Clark Kent, and now we’re hearing that Kevin Costner has been cast as Kent’s adopted father. As much as I’d like to give Costner credit for his storied acting career, many of the major films he’s starred in have tanked at the box office. To be honest, I’m not really sure how much of that is his fault — after all, he’s not a bad actor — but if the naysayers are to be believed, his involvement may as well serve as an omen. I hope both him, and his co-star prove me wrong. Besides, it’s not like he’s the star of the film.
I don’t know why I thought Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga would be the last in the series of Star Wars and Lego crossovers. Maybe I just thought Lego was planning on sticking with film franchises they knew they’d be able to cash in on — Indiana Jones, and Harry Potter for example. Turns out I was wrong. Today marked the release of the official demo for the latest title in the series, Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars. As you’ve probably guessed, the plot of the game will follow the Cartoon Network animated series with a number of cameos from both the show and original films.
Could we be seeing a Hollywood-produced Star Blazers live-action film in foreseeable future? Well, it’s not 100% official just yet. Skydance Productions are reportedly in the process of negotiating the license for the series. If some of you recall, Japan recently produced a live-action adaptation of their own that performed pretty well, so I imagine there’s probably some pressure to make sure the Hollywood adaptation will at least hold a candle to that. It probably won’t be a problem, seeing as they plan on hiring Christopher McQuarrie to write the script — he’s also working on the upcoming Wolverine “sequel.”
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Feb 22, 2011 in Science, Tech
Japan recently announced that they’re considering sending a talking humanoid robot to the International Space Station in 2013. In addition to offering companionship, and being generally creepy — it’s suppose to monitor the astronauts while they sleep — it’ll communicate with Earth via twitter, where it’ll tweet images to its followers on the ground. Sadly, I don’t think the robot will posess super-human strength, or any form of self-awareness. After all, I doubt Japan has any cyberneticists capable of crafting the appropriate positronic components. Read more…
Japanese anime run on a four season schedule, so to be serious about this hobby, a fan must be aware of anime that is going to be happening in the following season. The next season is slated to begin from March until June. Referring to the chart below, anyone would realize that there is a number of titles already announced. From those announced titles, these are my ten choices to not just watch, but know that a lot more fans might be checking out. Read more…
Posted by Linda Yau on Feb 21, 2011 in Comic Books
Maintaining a blog and growing with it, has been an personal interest, since I began my own blog. My own blogigng life has been what I believe to be an ever changing one with writing as well as reading other blogs. There is one blogging niche that I have actively been keeping apace with, and the manga blogging community is a close knit group. Certain names are mentioned and appear time and again. Thanks in part to the Twitter networking, Google reader, and continuing blogging projects like an annual Great Manga Gift Guide recommendation list or Manga Movable Feast, it would be good to have these bloggers on your blog reading radar. This list is listed in alphabetical order, by the blogger’s first name; a link to their writing/blogs is also included with additional information about what makes them memorable bloggers. Read more…
Posted by Michael Sacco on Feb 20, 2011 in Cinema, Star Trek
This is one of those stories that makes me wonder if things wouldn’t actually have been better if they had turned out as originally planned. Star Trek producer Rick Berman stated in a recent interview that the last film to star the Next Generation crew, Star Trek: Nemesis, was originally going to star a completely new cast of characters, but Berman fought to keep the TNG cast around for another film. At that point, Berman argues, Enterprise was just about to hit TV, so he felt like introducing yet another new Federation crew would’ve alienated series fans. Nemesis was not a great film by any means, its production was hampered with problems with both its script and cast, and it certainly didn’t make any money for Paramount, so one has to wonder if maybe a new cast and a fresh take on Trek would’ve made a better movie. Fun fact: Shinzon, Picard’s clone (shown above), was played by a young Tom Hardy, who you may know from Inception, and who’ll soon be playing Bane in The Dark Knight Rises. Read more…
Seems like we’re seeing lots more anime adaptations of quintessentially American IPs, like Supernatural, coming out of Japan these days, and a lot of them are through the animation studio Madhouse. Their latest offering, an X-Men anime, has all the hallmarks of such an adaptation — achingly beautiful hero (Cyclops), a whole lot of fire, and a Thundercats character. Wait, no, that’s Beast. But you can’t deny that there’s a family resemblance there! I think that X-Men is actually a property that might work well in anime, with its mix of character drama and over-the-top action, so I’ll be interested to see the final product. Read more…
Brand-new brawler Marvel vs. Capcom 3 has a pretty robust roster of 38 characters (including announced DLC characters), but just because a character didn’t make it into the game in playable form doesn’t mean they didn’t make it in at all. Each playable character’s ending in Arcade mode has unique art and dialogue, and almost every ending has cameos from both sides of the Marvel-Capcom spectrum. GamesRadar has collected them all and catalogued them for your perusal, and there are cameos from some seriously obscure or second-string characters here. Shanna the She-Devil? Dazzler? Fin Fang Foom? Awesome. And then there are some matchups that just make sense, like Devil May Cry‘s Dante duking it out with Ghost Rider. I’d pay to see that fight. Read more…
