SciFi Japan
    Source: FUNimation Entertainment press release Official Site: fractale-anime.com (Japan), funimation.com/fractale (US) Special Thanks to Tim Baxter From A-1 Pictures -- the studio behind BLACK BUTLER and FAIRY TAIL -- soars a sci-fi adventure sure to make you ponder how much control you really have over your own future. The anime series FRACTALE (?????, Furakutaru, 2011) will be available in a Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack from FUNimation Entertainment on July 17th. In a near-perfect society, humans enjoy virtually anything their heart desires by simply staying connected to Fractale -- a centuries-old technology on the verge of collapse. One day, Clain, a teenage boy who collects antique electronics, saves a girl on the run from dangerous pursuers. She disappears in the night, leaving only a pendant full of data behind. Suddenly Clain`s quiet life turns to chaos when he`s caught between the religious order determined to save Fractale, and

    All-Star Cast Includes Martial Arts Superstars Donnie Yen, Michelle Yeoh and Tony Leung Source: Well Go USA, MPRM Communications Special Thanks to Leif Helland Honk Kong’s number one action star Donnie Yen (IP MAN, IP MAN 2) headlines an all-star cast in BUTTERFLY SWORDS (??????, Xin liu xing hu die jian, 1993), on DVD July 10th from Well Go USA Entertainment. Donnie Yen, Michelle Yeoh (CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON, KUNG FU 2) and Tony Leung (HERO, INFERNAL AFFAIRS) combine amazing martial arts with high flying wire work as members of an elite group of assassins loyal to the king. When a group of Rebels threaten to take down the empire, they must infiltrate the organization in order to stop them. The bonus features includes brand new English subtitles. Siblings who are also assassins infiltrate a group of rebels to prevent them from overthrowing the king’s empire.

    Author: Andrew Nguyen Source: Bandai Entertainment, Madman Entertainment Official Site: gundam.jp (Japan), gundamofficial.com (US) During the 1970s, most Japanese animation that dealt with giant robots (also called mecha) was mainly of the super-robot/superhero variety. However, in April 1979 -- almost two years after the release of STAR WARS in the US -- a veteran Japanese animation director by the name of Yoshiyuki Tomino created, with assistance from the Japanese animation studio Sunrise, a new show called MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM (????????, Kidoo Senshi Gundamu). Two other principal players in the show’s production were character designer Yoshikazu Yasuhiko and mechanical designer Kunio Okawara. At first, it seemed that GUNDAM would follow the standard format of most mecha shows at the time, but differences in comparison to its predecessors were soon apparent. Chief amongst them were the giant robots being actual military weapons of war. In

    National Wushu Fighting Champion Wu Jing Stars in a Martial Arts Western on Steroids Source: Well Go USA, MPRM Communications Official Movie Site: xifenglie.ent.sina.com (China) Special Thanks to Leif Helland Director Gao Qunshu follows up his breakout hit THE MESSAGE with the action-packed martial arts western WIND BLAST (???, Xi Feng Lie, 2010), debuting on Blu-ray and DVD July 3rd from Well Go USA Entertainment. Starring national wushu fighting champion Wu Jing (KILL ZONE, LEGENDARY ASSASSIN), newcomer Zhang Li, Yihong Duan (THE MESSAGE, HOT SUMMER DAYS), and Francis Ng (EXILED, INFERNAL AFFAIRS II), this fast paced, shoot-em up western follows a group of elite policemen on the trail of a hitman and his pregnant girlfriend as they try to elude two hired killers sent by his former employer to silence them. Bonus features include a making of featurette, behind the scenes footage and trailers. Cold blooded killer

    Source: FUNimation Entertainment press release Official Site: hetalia.com (Japan), funimation.com/hetalia (US) Special Thanks to Tim Baxter HETALIA WORLD SERIES 2: SEASON 4 on DVD will be released on Region 1 DVD by FUNimation Entertainment on July 3rd. The 2-Disc set contains episodes 25-54 of HETALIA WORLD SERIES (???? World Series, 2010). HETALIA WORLD SERIES 2: SEASON 4 will also be available in a limited edition with an orange bandana featuring the entire main cast. The awesome international incidents never stop in HETALIA WORLD SERIES! All your fave Allied and Axis boys are back, and they`ve brought a bunch of new guys to the party. You like to party, right? Duh. Feel the tension build as Prussia plots an invasion of Austria`s happy little place. Try on a codpiece! Share in Spain`s pain as he does his best to look after little Romano. Run with stampeding kittens!

    Super-Charge Your POWER RANGERS Collection Source: Shout! Factory, Click Communications, Time Life press releases Official Site: PowerRangersonDVD.com Special Thanks to Tom Chen, Scott Neumyer and Ryan Clark In a move to provide avid collectors of all things POWER RANGERS with an exclusive first-to-own experience, fans now have the opportunity to purchase box sets through a Time Life direct-response television and online campaign. Shout! Factory, in collaboration with Saban Brands, has teamed up with Time Life to make a 40-DVD collection of POWER RANGERS: SEASONS ONE – SEVEN directly available to fans. Fans can pre-order now at PowerRangersonDVD.com or at 1-800-826-8545. The collections will be available beginning July 30, 2012 through Time Life’s direct-response, on-air TV campaign, as well as online. The POWER RANGERS: SEASONS ONE – SEVEN collection will include 338 episodes of for the list price of $219.95. The set starts off

    3D Monster Attacks in Korean Sci-Fi Box Office Smash Source: Shout! Factory, MPRM Communications press releases Official Movie Site: sector7movie.blogspot.com (US), 2011sector7.co.kr (Korea) Special Thanks to Leif Helland A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE On June 26th, Korea’s first 3D sci-fi thriller SECTOR 7 (7??, Chil gwanggu, 2011) will be released on DVD and Blu-ray in North America by Shout! Factory. To celebrate the new release, Shout! Factory is giving SciFi Japan readers a chance to win a free copy of the Blu-ray edition. Starring popular international female action star Ha Ji-Won and directed by Kim Ji-Hoon, SECTOR 7 delivers blockbuster home entertainment, boasting fierce action, daring stunts and spectacular CG and 3D technology. Hae-jun (Ha Ji-Won) is working as a marine equipment manager on the Eclipse, an old oil prospecting platform stationed at Sector 7, the mining area in the vast open sea

    Source: Section23 Films Official Movie Site: planzet.jp (Japan) Special Thanks to Mike Bailiff A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE Thank you to everyone who entered Section23 Films and SciFi Japan`s PLANZET Blu-ray contest. The randomly drawn winners are: Matt Barker Greg Nyman Timothy Padgett Kevin Rose Thomas Nelson Congratulations to the winners! Each of you will receive one (1) PLANZET Blu-ray. The prizes will ship soon so keep an eye on your mailboxes. PLANZET is now available from retailers across North America on DVD (SRP: $29.98) and Blu-ray (SRP: $39.98). Both editions present the feature film (running time: 53 minutes) in 16:9 anamorphic widescreen, with English and Japanese audio tracks as well as English Subtitles. Extras include interviews with director Jun Awazu and voice actors Mamoru Miyano and Kaori Ishihara, animatic comparison, audio commentary with Awazu and voice actor Takeshi Maeda, Japanese trailers, and

    Source: FUNimation Entertainment press release Official Site: gainax.co, newtype.kadocomic (Japan), funimation.com/panty-stocking-with-garterbelt (US) Special Thanks to Tim Baxter On July 10th, FUNimation Entertainment will release all thirteen episodes of the hit Gainax anime series PANTY & STOCKING WITH GARTERBELT (???????????with???????, Panti ando Sutokkingu wizu Gaataaberuto, 2010) on Region 1 DVD. Panty and Stocking -- the Anarchy Sisters -- are two nasty angels who got booted from the pearly gates for being foul-mouthed bitches! Now they spend their days blowing up ghosts in the lecherous abyss between Heaven and Earth. Panty likes sex, Stocking likes sweets, their afro-sporting main man Garter Belt has a fetish we can`t mention. Together, they`re keeping the streets free of bodily fluids. Ghosts don`t have a prayer against their panty pistols and stocking swords, and if this debaucherous duo can collect enough Heaven Coins, they just might get their halos back. They`ve got

    Each Two-Disc Set Includes 12 Episodes and All-New Featurettes Source: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Click Communications and Carl Samrock Public Relations Special Thanks to Tyler Gagnon and Kerry Meehan Catch some of Marvel’s most dangerous super heroes when Sony Pictures Home Entertainment and Marvel Animation release BLADE ANIME and WOLVERINE ANIME on DVD July 31st. The two-disc sets will include all 12 episodes from each series, with epic battles and action-packed storylines, as well as six all-new featurettes. The series are guided by The New York Times best-selling author Warren Ellis (Iron Man: Extremis, Astonishing X-Men: Xenogenesis), and produced by Madhouse for Marvel Television and Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is the distributor. BLADE ANIME Eric Brooks -- known as Blade -- seeks revenge on Deacon Frost, the vampire who killed his mother while she was still pregnant with him.

    Source: FUNimation Entertainment press release Official Site: funimation.com/oblivion-island (US) Special Thanks to Tim Baxter Hold on tight and discover the magic of memories! On August 14th, FUNimation Entertainment will release the computer animated film OBLIVION ISLAND: HARUKA AND THE MAGIC MIRROR (??????? ????????, Hottarake no Shima - Haruka to Maho no Kagami, 2009) as both a Single-Disc DVD and a 3-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack. A vibrantly animated blend of Japanese folklore and storybook charm reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland, Production I.G`s (GHOST IN THE SHELL) award-winning feature-length romp will amaze both the young and the young at heart. 16-year-old Haruka is on a mission to find her mirror a precious childhood gift from her mother that mysteriously disappeared. While following a strange foxlike creature in the woods, she tumbles into a mystical world where once-cherished toys and treasures go when their owners neglect them. Join Haruka and

    1971 Anime Arrives June 26th Source: Discotek Media On June 26th, distributor Discotek Media will release a 4-Disc DVD set of the first LUPIN THE 3RD (?????, Rupan Sansei, 1971) anime series based on the long-running manga franchise by Monkey Punch. LUPIN THE 3RD: THE COMPLETE FIRST TV SERIES contains all 23 episodes -- including episodes directed by Studio Ghibli founders Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki -- plus both the widescreen theatrical and alternate television versions of the LUPIN THE THIRD Pilot Film from 1969. Hard-boiled, cocky, classy and silly. These words only begin to describe the amazing master thief Lupin the Third. With the help of some quick gunplay by his partner Jigen, Lupin takes on the world in elaborate heists, classic car chases, and nasty explosions. Fujiko, a buxom redhead with a penchant for betrayal, always gets tangled up in Lupin`s capers. The stoic

    Source: FUNimation Entertainment press release Official Site: animax-asia.com/FMAB (Japan), funimation.com/fullmetal-alchemist-brotherhood (US) FUNimation Entertainment concludes their DVD and Blu-ray sets of FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: BROTHERHOOD (?????? FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, Hagane no Renkinjutsushi: Furumetaru Arukemisuto, 2009) with Complete Collection 2 on July 17th. In the shadows beneath Central, the Elrics encounter Father, the creator of the Homunculi. His face is familiar -- as is the new face of Greed -- but his alchemy is unlike anything the brothers have ever seen. As Father`s dark plot takes shape, Ed and Al brave the frigid north to meet the top officer of the fortress Briggs: General Olivier Armstrong. With icy nerve and burning intensity, she commands the hardest soldiers in the land. When you witness her leading the warriors of Briggs in battle against the unstoppable, rampaging Sloth, you`ll know -- the stakes are higher than ever. FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: BROTHERHOOD Complete Collection 2

    Source: Sentai Filmworks press release Official Site: irohanihoheto.jp (Japan) Special Thanks to David Williams Sentai Filmworks is pleased to announce their acquisition of INTRIGUE IN THE BAKUMATSU ~ IROHANIHOHETO (????? ???????, Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto, 2006). This 26 episode thriller soaked in blood is created and directed by Ryosuke Takahashi (GASARAKI, THE COCKPIT, ARMORED TROOPER VOTOMS) and features character designs by Yusuke Kozaki and music by Hideyuki Fukasawa (NANAKA 6/17, YOU’RE UNDER ARREST: FULL THROTTLE). Animation is produced by Sunrise. In the final years of the Bakumatsu, wandering mercenary Yojiro Akizuki travels the length and breadth of Japan. And while he employs his sword in the usual fashion, he also uses it to help him locate supernatural items which he pursues with single-minded determination, often with bloody results. In the course of his quest, he crosses paths with a traveling theater group whose members have their own

    Source: Section23 Films Official Movie Site: planzet.jp (Japan) Special Thanks to Mike Bailiff A SCIFI JAPAN EXCLUSIVE On May 22nd, the computer animated sci-fi film PLANZET (??????, Puranzetto, 2010) will be released on DVD and Blu-ray in North America by Section23 Films and Sentai Filmworks. To celebrate the new release, Section23 is giving SciFi Japan readers a chance to win a free copy of the Blu-ray. The creation of writer, director and character designer Jun Awazu (NEGADON: THE MONSTER FROM MARS), PLANZET is presented by industry innovator CoMix Wave (5 CENTIMETERS PER SECOND, Hoshizora Kiseki). In 2047, an unknown, alien life-form descends upon the Earth, destroying all the major cities in one fell swoop. The survivors unite and build a Diffusor to stop the Februus -- the invaders the military would later codename the FOS -- and a temporary peace is achieved.

    Source: Anime Network press release Special Thanks to Toni Brown In celebration of Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month, Anime Network invites fans to enter this summer’s hit series THE BOOK OF BANTORRA (???? The Book of Bantorra, Tatakau Shisho - The Book of Bantorra, 2009) promotional giveaway. The first 13 episodes of this hit series are now airing on Video on Demand and Xfinity’s Top Picks. Successful entrants will watch the first six episodes of THE BOOK OF BANTORRA now through June 30 and visit the BOOK OF BANTORRA Contest Page to answer a few simple questions. THE BOOK OF BANTORRA is among four anime titles featured in May’s Xfinity Top Picks section celebrating Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month, Anime Network. Along with ANGEL BEATS, ELFEN LIED and INFINITE STRATOS, THE BOOK OF BANTORRA was selected because they represent the unique use of colorful illustration,

    THIS BOY CAN FIGHT ALIENS Available on August 14th Source: Section23 Films press release Special Thanks to Mike Bailiff Home video distributor Section23 Films today announced its August slate of releases; including THIS BOY CAN FIGHT ALIENS. Written and created by director Soubi Yamamoto, the newest and most innovating creator in the anime field, and produced by CoMix Wave Inc., THIS BOY CAN FIGHT ALIENS will be released on DVD & BLU-RAY by Section23 client, Sentai Filmworks. Product details follow, in order of release... THE WORLD GOD ONLY KNOWS SEASON 2 Published by: Sentai Filmworks Distributed by: Section23 Films Run Time: 300 min. Street Date: 8/7/2012 Format: DVD Language: English & Japanese with English Subtitles SRP: $59.98 THE WORLD GOD ONLY KNOWS SEASON 2 BLU-RAY Published by: Sentai Filmworks Distributed by: Section23 Films Run Time: 300 min. Street Date: 8/7/2012 Format: Blu-ray Language: English & Japanese

    Clips from THE SECRET WORLD OF ARRIETTY, WHISPER OF THE HEART and CASTLE IN THE SKY Source: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, Inc., Click Communications Special Thanks to Dre Birskovich In anticipation of the May 22nd Blu-ray & DVD Combo Pack releases of the legendary Studio Ghibli`s THE SECRET WORLD OF ARRIETTY, WHISPER OF THE HEART, and CASTLE IN THE SKY, Walt Disney Studios has released clips from the films and bonus material. Enjoy! THE SECRET WORLD OF ARRIETTY WHISPER OF THE HEART CASTLE IN THE SKY About Walt Disney Studios

    Shout! Factory to Release International Box Office Hit from the Makers of HAEUNDAE and SECTOR 7 Source: Shout! Factory, MPRM Communications press release Special Thanks to Leif Helland Spectacular street chases and pulse-pounding action are taken to new heights on August 21, 2012 when Shout! Factory, in collaboration with CJ E&M, fulfills viewers need for speed with Korea’s highly popular, action-packed motion picture QUICK (?, Qwik, 2011) on Blu-ray and DVD, as well as being made available on digital entertainment platforms. Both Blu-ray and DVD editions boast English and Korean audio tracks, English subtitles and extensive bonus content. The Blu-ray contains exclusive bonus features. A must have home entertainment addition for action fans, collectors and world cinema enthusiasts, QUICK Blu-ray is priced to own at $ 26.97 SRP; the DVD has a suggested retail price of $19.93. Pre-order now on Amazon.com. Starring international

    Source: Madman Entertainment press release Official Site: madman.com.au/top20 Special Thanks to Ben Pollock In March, the Australian film and television distributor Madman Entertainment invited anime fans across the world to determine the ‘Top 20 Anime’ titles of all time. For the last two months, fans have rallied together to cast their vote in Madman’s poll. Along the way, there have been laughs, tears and triumphs -- but in the end, there can be only one to claim the top spot. As voted by the fan community, NEON GENESIS EVANGELION is the number one anime of all time. For many modern day Australian fans, their passion for anime can be traced back to the moment NEON GENESIS EVANGELION first arrived on SBS in the ‘90s. It was their first step into a bold new world -- one of epic science-fiction, deep philosophy, complex human relationships and, of

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