Manga Entertainment, one of the largest anime distributors in the country, and consequently one of the largest Twitter users in the anime business world, have today released a new trailer for their up and coming title: 2001 Nights. This 1.11 minute video shows off some of the incredible looks of this anime and it’s clearly space themed imagery.
Currently the BVA give 2001 Nights a release date as the 26th September, but even if the wait is that long, you can see a snippet of what to expect below.
In May, Manga Entertainment announced that they will be releasing Freedom OVA, this title was previously only available as a limited release from Beez Entertainment, and thanks for the companies highly active Twitter feed, they have further confirmed that this series will most certainly be out in the UK on Blu-Ray.
Rather than just the norm, in the anime world, of a DVD release and a Blu-Ray release, Manga Entertainment are considering going down the option of a DoublePlay release, which means the OVA will contain both DVD and Blu-Ray. This is a method of selling that is used by most Hollywood movies these days and even the new Ghibili titles are on DoublePlay these days.
There’s still no confirmed release date, but with news like this, it’s likely to be the tail end of this year.
Manga Entertainment today announced via their Twitter feed some of the details on two of their most highly anticipated releases for 2011.
The first is Evangelion 2:22, which will be available in Blu-Ray, DVD and a lovely Blu-Ray/DVD combi pack from the 30th May. The combi pack contains bonus materials in terms of a booklet, although the details around the booking are yet to be confirmed. To pre-order early as to not miss out at hmv click here and for Amazon.co.uk click here.
The next one is the age-old Akira. This anime classic will be available for the first time in Blu-Ray and also available on DVD from the 27th June 2011. There will also be a Steel Book version of the release which is going to be super-limited-edition – so ensure you pre-order early as to not miss out. You can pre-order at here for hmv.
Manga Entertainment recently confirmed via their Twitter account that they have obtained the rights to release Dance in the Vampire Bund in the UK at some point this year.
At the present time no details are known regarding the release, in the UK. As soon as information comes to light, we will let you all know.
However, Funimation are the license holders in the USA and they’ve confirmed that Dance in the Vampire Bund will be available in both DVD and Blu-Ray and will be out in the Summer.
If we are truly to expect Vampire Bund this year, we may have a simultaneous release or one in late Autumn. As it’s a 12 episode series there is a decent possibility of seeing a Blu-Ray release.
Seeing as this is a short series and there’s a fair potential for good sales on the highstreet, a Blu-Ray is a fairly likely possibility in my opinion.
Aside from Manga Entertainment, news on the anime front is a little scarce at the moment from the other big distributors. However, Beez Entertainment recently blogged about their plans for the future and what 2011 has in store for us, from them.
They want, more interaction with the average fan, release more shows but reduce and sometimes stop the delay between the US release and the UK one and to increase the volume of the Anime Legends franchise, which has been a huge success for Beez.
This is nothing new to Beez, for a long time they were one of the only companies who would openly frequent forums and Twitter and since the departure of their lead PR man they are trying harder than ever to get closer to the fan. This makes sense as customer loyalty is everything in a niche market, so let them hear your thoughts!
Beez Entertainment’s blog is located here, however, it’s full of spam as their filters aren’t great so you’re better of checking out their Facebook page, Twitter page or just talking about it below!
Today we reported that Manga Entertainment announced that they will be releasing Highschool of the Dead in June or July of 2011 on both DVD and Blu-Ray. Manga Entertainment also announced through the means of Twitter that they will be releasing Casshern Sins in the UK.
Jerome of Manga Entertainment confirmed today that Casshern Sins will be released in May or June of 2011. Details surrounding Blu-Ray are uncertain, due to uncertainty surrounding blu-ray for this title.
Casshern Sins tells the story of a world where robots have subjugated humanity after becoming self aware. Their leader, Braiking Boss, rules over the world with an iron fist until one day Luna is summoned by the people marked as the saviour of human-kind.
Manga Entertainment today announced that they have gained the rights to distribute the undead anime – Highschool of the Dead, which was one of the summer seasons hits this year in Japan.
Highschool of the Dead stars Takashi and his good friend Rei and her best friend Hisashi. Then a Zombie arrived at the school gate. Within a few minutes a zombie plague managed to spread across the school throwing them all into a panic and attempt to avoid being eaten by their former school-mates.
After breaking out of the school to discover the infection had spread across the world, they search for a safe place in the world that’s managed to avoid the zombie chaos….
Currently there are no firm release dates confirmed; however, Manga Entertainment are hoping for the releases to start in June/July 2011 with both a DVD and Blu-Ray release penned. Manga are also hoping to work with Sentai Filmworks for the Blu-Ray release in the UK. So lots of good news there!
Just a few days ago we reported that Manga Entertainment were going to have to delay their release of Summer Wars due to production issues in the USA with their partner Funimation.
This weekend Funimation announced that they will be releasing Summer Wars for a theatrical run across the USA. This is great news as that means there’s potential of Oscar nominations for Summer Wars and whilst we all know that Oscars mean very little as they are always pretty biased, they do look good on a DVD box.
Manga Entertainment, the UK distributor of Summer Wars have also confirmed that they are planning on doing a theatrical release in the UK. News-Anime.com asked if a theatrical run is on the cards and Jerome from Manga Entertainment UK confirmed the below:
That’s the plan. Hopefully around late February if we can get some screens.
This is great news as there are very few anime releases that make it to the cinemas, Ponyo and Howl’s Moving Castle are the last two that had any major cinema interest.
Manga Entertainment today squashed the rumours floating around the internet regarding their acquisition of Kanon 2006. We reported in May that Manga Entertainment along with Bamboo Blade had Kanon 2006 on their wishlist, Bamboo Blade was confirmed today by Manga Entertainment.
To the dismay of the Kanon fans, Manga Entertainment have today confirmed via their Twitter page that they do not currently own the rights for Kanon in the UK:
Re #Kanon rumours. Manga does not currently have this series on its schedule. Sorry for the misinformation that may have got out.
This announcement does not rule out Manga’s interest in the series for the UK, it just reiterates that it does not have the rights to the series.
Following yesterday’s speculation, it has now been formally confirmed by Manga Entertainment that their latest acquisition is indeed Bamboo Blade and it will be released as Play.com stated correctly, on the 22nd November 2010.
Manga Entertainment’s Jerome Mazandarani confirmed this today on their official Twitter page:
@NewsAnime T’is true. #BambooBlade Series 1 Part 1 (Eps 1-12) out on double disc DVD 22.11.2010. www.play.com
There are unconfirmed reports that the popular series: Bamboo Blade: Series 1 – Part 1 will be released in the UK on the 22nd November 2010, according to Play.com, Anime UK News have reported today. Anime UK News have further speculated that this release may actually be published by Manga Entertainment due to the titling of the show.
Manga Entertainment currently have not confirmed that they have acquired the license to Bamboo Blade; however, we reported in May that Bamboo Blade along with Kanon 2006 were on their hit-list. So it’s very possible that Bamboo Blade will be released under the Manga Entertainment name. This rumour is further firmed by the level of Funimation shows that Manga Entertainment distribute as part of their distribution agreement with the US Anime company.
It is being reported by various sources that the parent company of Manga Entertainment, Overture Films, is likely to be sold in the coming weeks. Manga Entertainment has various parent companies; however, the parent company of Overture Entertainment, Starz Media, who in turn are owned by Starz LLC, whom are in turned attributed to the Liberty Capital Group and Liberty Media Corporation own various other companies. Such as Manga Entertainment globally, Anchor Bay Entertainment in the US and Film Roman in the US to play with, it’s likely that different buyers will be interested in each of these specialist companies.
This is still to be confirmed by Starz LLC formally; however, there have been some high level resignations at other subsidiary companies in the Starz LLC family. Executives at Overture Films recently resigned with almost immediate affect, citing: “due to differences over the strategic direction of the company”.
The worldwide entertainment phenomenon, Bleach, is distributed on DVD in the UK by Manga Entertainment and is one of the corner stones of their release schedule.
However, recently Crunchyroll announced that they will be streaming Bleach online to almost all regions as a simulcast from when the Japanese episodes are released in Standard Definition.
Crunchyroll CEO Kun Gao said: “BLEACH is one of the most popular titles of all time, and while it has already been licensed in North America, we are proud to bring BLEACH to all fans of anime within one hour of Japan TV broadcast. With BLEACH and our expanding licensing partnerships with TV TOKYO, Shueisha, and Pierrot, we have solidified our network as the most attractive destination online for fans of Japanese anime in the United States and the English-speaking world. Fans can enjoy the best in anime such as BLEACH and Naruto Shippuden through Crunchyroll.com, our iPhone app, set top box applications, our thousands of embedding affiliates partner sites, and now our new iPad application. It’s a historic time to be an anime fan, and we are proud to help pioneer the future of the anime viewing experience with our Japanese partners.”
The latest simulcast episode 274 will be available to premium viewers. Tentatively on June 15th, episodes 266 to 274 will be free for all viewers, with the simulcast of episode 275 available to premium members. Thereafter, new episodes will be added at 2:30am PST every Tuesday, with simulcasts available for premium members and the previous week’s episode being available to all viewers. Catch up of older episodes are planned and additional info will be provided at a later date.
We recently received the below press release from Manga Entertainment, as it’s so perfectly written, here it is in full:
Manga Entertainment are very excited to be participating in the May 2010 London MCM Expo, which is being held at the Excel centre on the 29th and 30th May. As always Manga will be making sure that your Bank Holiday weekend gets off to the best start with plenty of news and excitement for fans about upcoming new releases!
Also come visit the Manga stand with 50% off most DVDs, DVD box sets and Blu-ray releases as well the bargain-licious £1 Manga Shop! You will also be able to satisfy your manga books and comics cravings as VIZ Media will be joining the stand.
Here’s a sneak peak at some of the news you can look forward to at the weekend…
An early chance to purchase the beautiful and mesmerising Sky Crawlers on DVD and Blu-ray which will be officially out on the following Monday, 31st May. Check out the latest Oshii classic that has been driving the critics crazy!
You will also be able to catch the DVD launch of new anime series Soul Eater Part One (due out on DVD on 28th June) and also the “grown-up” Naruto Shippuden Box Set 1 (out 14th June.)
Manga are also proud to announce that anime classic Full Metal Alchemist is making a come back! Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood Part One is due out on DVD and… Blu-ray! Put 23rd August in your diaries for this one…
That’s not all. Keep your ears open for more Funimation titles to be announced!
Finally… like the Professor Layton games? Make sure you hot-foot it over in time to see a sneak peak of Professor Layton And The Eternal Diva which promises to be one of the biggest hits this year just like the games. We’ve told you too much already!
It was recently confirmed that Manga Entertainment have gained the license to release two new movies in the UK, the confirmed release dates for one movie has not been confirmed yet; the other is due shortly. Those two films are:
Musashi: The Dream of the Last Samurai Movie
Based around the real life Japanese swordsman, Miyamoto Musashi, author of The Book of Five Rings this Oshii/Production IG film’s plot is still to be 100% confirmed to English audiences.
Release: Unknown
Eureka Seven – good night, sleep tight, young loversEureka Seven – good night, sleep tight, young lovers Movie
Renton and Eureka are both children who are somewhat of an oddity. Remton raised by scientists and Eureka who can’t live under the sun are very attached to one another and this attachment is put to the test when Eureka is taken from Renton – who is powerless to stop it. He vows to get Eureka back one way or another.
Release: 19th July 2010 Format: Standard Definition and Blu-Ray
Manga Entertainment have recently been picking up a lot of anime films and this just shows their continued commitment to the UK scene.
Manga Entertainment, one of the largest anime distributors in the country, and consequently one of the largest Twitter users in the anime business world, have today released a new trailer for their up and coming title: 2001 Nights. This 1.11 minute video shows off some of the incredible looks of this anime and it’s clearly space themed imagery.
