Anime Film Begins US Run on July 7th Source: Eleven Arts Entertainment press release Official Movie Site: funimation.com/trigun (US), trigun-movie.com (Japan) Special Thanks to Shun Ohara The US theatrical run of the anime film TRIGUN: BADLANDS RUMBLE (????? The Movie ?????, 2010) continues with several new theaters and screening dates announced by distributors Eleven Arts and FUNimation Entertainment. The following screenings will be in addition to those listed in the previously announced schedule. Set on a remote planet in the near future, TRIGUN is a popular sci-fi action anime series created by Yasuhiro Naito. It portrays the life and actions of a wanted man named Vash, an extreme pacifist by nature with the unique nickname the “Human Typhoon”. The movie TRIGUN: BADLANDS RUMBLE debuted on April 24th 2010 in Japan, and

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3-Day Anime, Music, and Manga Event in Anaheim this 4th of July Weekend Source: BAM! Marketing, Publicity & Promotions press releases Official Site: am2con.org Special Thanks to Chase Wang AM² kicks off its 3-day, 24 hour event July 1st at the Anaheim Convention Center in sunny Anaheim, California. Current Guest of Honors include Masao Maruyama, Sunao Katabuchi, Akihiko Yamashita, Miho Shimogasa, Scandal, Sadie, Kanon Wakeshima, kanon x kanon, heidi., Gashicon, IBI and MINT. AM² activities include Exhibit Hall, AMV`s, Arcade, Summer Festival, World Cosplay Summit, Behind the Voice Actors Studio, Rum Party Pirates, Masquerade, Cosplay Chess, Dances, Fashion Shows, Table Top, Console Gaming, AniMaid Café, AniMaid Café Host Club, Workshops, Panels, Concerts and more! Entrance to the event is free, but attendees the anticipated huge lines at autographs,

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New Guests, Musical Performers, and Events Added for Anime and Manga Festival Source: Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation press releases Official Site: anime-expo.org Anime Expo, North America’s largest anime and manga celebration, has announced some new guests when it returns to the Los Angeles Convention Center from July 1 - 4, 2011. Tetsuro Araki, Masayoshi Tanaka and Kentaro Hashimoto of Madhouse Studios will attend as Guests of Honor. The trio will be present for a special July 2nd screening of the acclaimed zombie apocalypse series HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD and will host a creator’s panel. Video game producer and developer Sohei Niikawa amd voice actress and singer Miyuki Sawashiro are also Guests of Honor while Takanori Aki, President of Good Smile Company, will be an industry guest. Additional Guests of Honor include the production team behind

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Source: Eleven Arts Entertainment press release Official Movie Site: funimation.com/trigun (US), trigun-movie.com (Japan) Special Thanks to Shun Ohara Eleven Arts and FUNimation Entertainment will launch a fun WANTED campaign on Facebook in advance of the US release of TRIGUN: BADLANDS RUMBLE (????? The Movie ?????, 2010) opening from July 8th. Fans can visit the TRIGUN: BADLANDS RUMBLE Official Facebook Page today at noon to have their Facebook profile picture put in a TRIGUN "WANTED" frame. Read the announcement below for details... About Eleven Arts, Inc. Based in Los Angeles, Eleven Arts, Inc. is a motion picture production and distribution company that brings Japanese and Asian movies to worldwide audiences as well as bringing movies from all over the world into Asia. About FUNimation Entertainment FUNimation Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary

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Source: Anime Network press release Official Site: geneonuniversal.jp/hotd (Japan) Special Thanks to Christian Lopez Anime Network and Comcast will team up this Summer to bring fans one of the hottest anime in recent memory, HIGH SCHOOL OF THE DEAD! The world is turned on it`s head when the dead begin to rise, and for a group of high school students survival is their only option! All 12 episodes of this sizzling hot series will be available to rent on Xfinity Top Picks this July. From July 1st through July 31st, HIGH SCHOOL OF THE DEAD will be available to rent in the Top Picks category for only $0.99 per episode. Also included is the free behind-the-scenes special "Dead and Loving It", exclusive only to Comcast customers. Just hit the ONDEMAND button on your remote and select the Top Picks menu to find all 12 episodes and free

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Author: Elliot Gay Official Site: funimation.com/flcl (US), gainax.co.jp/flcl (Japan) High school was a strange time in my life. We were only a few years into the new millennium and like all teenagers I was struggling to figure out who I was. One look at my journal entries from that period of time tells you all you need to know about the kind of person Elliot Gay used to be. Through my years as a freshman and sophomore, I was one of the kids who had to have the latest Michael Jordan sneakers, wore chains around his neck and spoke less than correct English. Underneath all of that though, I was a film and anime lover who wanted to be a writer. Yet for some reason I refused to hold my head up and be honest with myself or the people around me about

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Authors: Chris Taylor and Daisy Evans Official Site: fanime.com Fanime is one of the largest anime conventions in North America. Held in San Jose, CA during Memorial Day weekend, Fanime is a very fan centered convention and features many fan-run panels and events, as well as some notable guests of honor. The Japanese band FLOW was particularly popular. We heard people talking about their concert all weekend. The dealer’s hall and artist alley were both quite sizable and offered a large assortment of wares. Fanime included many panels for all types of fans. Panels topics ranged from cosplay to manga and music to instructional sessions and the increasingly popular steampunk genre. There was even a dojo, where convention goers could attend workshops on various martial arts topics ranging from basic self defense

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Author: Elliot Gay Official Movie Site: funimation.com/trigun (US), trigun-movie.com (Japan) Special Thanks to Eleven Arts Entertainment Let me get this out of the way first: I am a huge TRIGUN fan. Back in college, I powered through all 14 volumes of the original manga series, and then went on to watch the complete TV anime. I could not help but find myself disappointed with the fact that the anime begins to move away from the original material early on in the story. Character motivations and often even the characters themselves are changed. Important plot details were lost along with personality quirks and entire story arcs. I would find out later that original manga creator Yasuhiro Nightow had only penned a few volumes of the series before the anime was green lit. With that knowledge, it is difficult to be too critical of the

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Source: BAM! Marketing, Publicity & Promotions press release Official Site: am2con.org Special Thanks to Chase Wang From AM² representative Chase Wang... I am writing to see if you would be willing to help us spread the word of AM² being held July 1-3, 2011 at the Anaheim Convention Center. Over this past weekend, individuals hacked into our website and put up a very incorrect and false statement claiming that our event was "Cancelled" and that all our guests were going over to a different event. THIS IS COMPLETELY FALSE. I am extremely disappointed that there are individuals out there that are so willing to stoop to such levels to disrupt and harm our event after all the work and planning that has been done to bring as much fun to

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Anime Film Begins US Run on July 7th Source: Eleven Arts Entertainment press release Official Movie Site: funimation.com/trigun (US), trigun-movie.com (Japan) Special Thanks to Shun Ohara Eleven Arts and FUNimation Entertainment are bringing TRIGUN: BADLANDS RUMBLE (????? The Movie ?????, 2010) to the big screen in theaters across North America in Summer 2011. The film will be shown in Canada on Wednesday, June 22, 2011, and open in the United States beginning in July. The initial US release schedule has just been announced, with another wave of theaters to be revealed early next month. Set on a remote planet in the near future, TRIGUN is a popular sci-fi action anime series created by Yasuhiro Naito. It portrays the life and actions of a wanted man named Vash, an extreme pacifist by

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Ordinary Boy Becomes a Hero in the Land of His Dreams Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases Official Site: VIZAnime.com Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen VIZ Media has announced the availability of the anime series, MÄR, on Netflix, Inc., the world’s leading Internet subscription service for enjoying movies and TV shows. 52-episodes of the animated fantasy adventure story are available to stream to subscribers in the U.S. as of May 31st. MÄR (rated TV-PG, subtitled) is based on the hit 15-volume manga series created by Nobuyuki Anzai (Flame of Recca), published in North America by VIZ Media. The series joins several other popular VIZ Media anime titles such as BLEACH, DEATH NOTE, NARUTO, and INUYASHA, which can now be instantly streamed from Netflix. An ordinary middle-school boy with an overactive imagination, Ginta Toramizu dreams about fairy tales and make-believe lands. One day at

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Gun-Toting Infant Mafia Hitman Grooms a Shy Student to Take Over an Organized Crime Syndicate Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases Official Site: VIZAnime, j-reborn.com Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen VIZ Media has announced that it has begun streaming the animated comedy-action series REBORN! (????????? REBORN!, Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, 2006-2010) starting June 1st on VIZAnime.com, the company’s own premier website for free anime, as well as the streaming content provider HULU. VIZAnime is a free-to-use interactive web destination that is now the permanent home to some of the company’s best-loved animated series. The series (rated TV-14) will be presented uncut and subtitled and will debut with the first five episodes available immediately. Five new installments will be uploaded each week. The REBORN! anime series is licensed for U.S. distribution by VIZ Media from TV Tokyo and AniTV. REBORN!’s main protagonist is Tsunayoshi "Tsuna"

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Anime Film Blasts into Canada on June 22nd Source: Eleven Arts Entertainment press release Official Movie Site: funimation.com/trigun (US), trigun-movie.com (Japan) Special Thanks to Shun Ohara Cineplex Entertainment, Eleven Arts and FUNimation Entertainment are bringing TRIGUN: BADLANDS RUMBLE (????? The Movie ?????, 2010) to the big screen at participating theaters across Canada on Wednesday, June 22, 2011 at 7 p.m. local time. The film will open in the United States in July, with US theaters to be announced in two weeks. Set on a remote planet in the near future, TRIGUN is a popular sci-fi action anime series created by Yasuhiro Naito. It portrays the life and actions of a wanted man named Vash, an extreme pacifist by nature with the unique nickname the “Human Typhoon”. The movie TRIGUN: BADLANDS

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Passports, New Guests of Honor, Movie Premieres, and More at Animation, Manga, and Music Festival Source: BAM! Marketing, Publicity & Promotions press releases Official Site: am2con.org Special Thanks to Chase Wang AM², the highly-anticipated animation, music and manga convention coming this 4th of July weekend at the Anaheim Convention Center in Southern California, has announced some new additions to the festival lineup and revealed the cover design for the 3 Day Passport which gives holders exclusive access to events plus major discounts to Disneyland, Best Buy, Macys, and other Southern California venues, retailers, and restaurants. Akihiko Yamashita and Miho Shimogasa, the celebrated Character Designers of GIANT ROBO: THE ANIMATION-THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL, CUTEY HONEY FLASH, GRAVITATION, THE PRINCE OF TENNIS, POWERPUFF GIRLS Z and Animation Directors of SAILOR MOON SUPERS, SAILOR MOON SAILOR

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Source: FanimeCon press releases Official Site: fanime.com Special Thanks to Milton Le FanimeCon 2011 takes place this Memorial Day weekend (May 27-30, 2011) at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center (150 W. San Carlos St., San Jose, CA 95113). Registration opens 8:00 a.m. on Friday, May 27, and Closing Ceremonies ends at 4:00 p.m. on Monday, May 30. In between, the fun continues nonstop for people with full-weekend memberships (available for $60 at the convention). Guests of Honor for 2011 include GAINAX co-founder Hiroyuki Yamaga, Japanese rock legend Yoshiki, popular idol Halko Momoi, musical performer Yuya Matsushita, pop band FLOW, prolific voice actor Tohru Furuya, designer GASHICON, manga creator Ryusuke Hamamoto, anime director Seiji Mizushima, and animator/artists Takahiro Yoshimatsu, Fumio Iida, and Mamoru Yokota. FanimeCon has provided some last-minute updates for this year`s show... FanimeCon 2011 Announces Japanese Rock

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Source: Sentai Filmworks press releases Special Thanks to David Williams Sentai Filmworks today announced its acquisition of two anime series... the outrageous new comedy MM! (?????!, 2010) and the romantic omnibus AMAGAMI SS (????SS, 2010). MM! (pronounced Emu! Emu!) takes a decidedly different bent when it comes to looking at people of a decidedly different bent. Based on the twelve novel series of the same name by the late Akinari Mitsuno, and subsequent manga adaptation illustrated by Issei Hyoujyu with character designs by QP: Flapper, the new series features direction by Tsuyoshi Nagasawa (storyboards for TO LOVE-RU), and follows the adventures of a character who discovers that, while he, himself, might be a masochist, there are other people he knows with equally life affecting fixations. There are twisted tales and twisted tales, but few are as twisted as poor Taro Sado’s, who’s just realized that he

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Subtitled Version on Anime Network Online, Dubbed Version Available On Demand Source: Anime Network press releases Official Site: angelbeats.jp (Japan) Special Thanks to Christian Lopez This summer, ANGEL BEATS! (????????!, Enjeru Biisu!, 2009) is making its way to fans in both the subtitled form and with an all new English Dub! Join the SSS for the fight of their afterlives against a cruel oppressor in a place where death is meaningless and destiny rules over all. Are you ready to throw down? The original Japanese version (with English subtitles) will be offered on Anime Network`s Online Streaming Service. Or you can check out the new English dub featuring Blake Shepard, Brittney Karbowski, Hilary Haag and many more, coming this June only to Anime Network Video on Demand! It sucks being dead. Sucks even more to be trapped in a surreal afterlife where you’re caught between the

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Concert to Feature the World’s First Digital Diva Performing in 3D Source: Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation press release Official Site: anime-expo.org Special Thanks to Jim Yeager and Roberta Silverman Hatsune Miku, a Japanese virtual pop idol whose computer-generated singing and holographic performances have sparked a new form of musical entertainment, will thrill U.S. audiences for the first time when she performs live in concert at Anime Expo, North America’s largest anime and manga celebration in Los Angeles from July 1 - 4, 2011. In addition to her live concert, Hatsune Miku will be Anime Expo’s first Virtual Guest of Honor. A digital diva famous worldwide for her ankle-length aqua-colored pigtails and distinctive voice, Hatsune Miku will light up the stage at Nokia Theatre on July 2nd in her U.S.

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New Guest of Honor and Featured Charities Announced Source: FanimeCon press releases Official Site: fanime.com Special Thanks to Milton Le FanimeCon has provided some press updates regarding this year`s event, taking place Memorial Day weekend (May 27-30, 2011) at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center (150 W. San Carlos St., San Jose, CA 95113). FanimeCon 2011 Announces Animator Fumio Iida as a Guest of Honor FanimeCon welcomes animation director Fumio Iida, who will interact with fans during Gainax’s panels and autograph sessions at the 2011 show. In addition to being an animation director, Mr. Iida has experience as a character designer, illustrator, game creator, and manga artist. He draws manga under the name SUEZEN, and he has worked as an animator for companies like

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Concerts, Fashion Shows and Masquerade Dates and Times Revealed! Priority Seating for Passport Holders! Source: BAM! Marketing, Publicity & Promotions press release Official Site: am2con.org Special Thanks to Chase Wang AM², the highly-anticipated animation, music and manga convention this coming 4th of July weekend at the Anaheim Convention Center in Southern California, announces their Main Event schedule with date and information regarding events such as the Masquerade and the daily schedule of concert acts involving the superstars of Japan including heidi., Kanon Wakeshima, kanonxkanon and Scandal! "With only 1,500 Main Event seats, attendees will be `up close and personal` with artists moreso than ever in an intimate setting", states Chase Wang AM² representative. Entrance to the event is free, but attendees can avoid the anticipated huge lines at autographs, premiere screenings, workshops, main events, concerts and panels by

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