The grief that binds.

Creative Staff:
Story: Tom King
Art: Ivan Reis, Joe Prado, Oclair Albert, Scott Hanna
Colors: Marcelo Maiolo
Letterer: Deron Bennett

What They Say:
“I AM GOTHAM” epilogue. In this stand-alone tale, Batman seeks redemption as he tries to keep Gotham Girl from going down a dangerous path. But can the Dark Knight save someone who doesn’t want to be saved?

Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
With a fairly decent opening arc overall that provided for some solidly emotional material along the way with Gotham himself. Batman has been… well, decent. Having not read a Batman proper book since the start of New 52 for a few issues I’m still not sure what to make of this run beyond the understanding that it’s setting up bigger things. I liked what we got with Gotham and Gotham Girl in the opening storyline but I felt like an outsider reading the book more than anything else. I liked the ideas but the execution left me a bit uncertain about its intent. With that opening storyline done we get an epilogue issue here that works better than I expected and rises above the occasion a bit thanks to some fantastic artwork from Ivan Reis and great color work from Marcel Maiolo.

Taking place over the course of a few days we get a look at how Claire, aka Gotham Girl, is handling the fallout from Hank’s death. With the way her use of powers ends up costing her her life along the way, the idea of going out day after day and doing heroic things is painful to watch but is also the crux of many heroes themselves. Unfortunately, Claire’s also in a state of grief and is essentially broken at this point because the one true constant in her life is gone. There are some moments where you can see her looking almost like a variant on the Joker with her expressions and eyes and that’s painful to watch, especially as you know it registers for Batman pretty well. He and Duke are doing their best to figure out how to help her but it’s such a difficult situation even when you know someone well that someone like Claire, a near absolute stranger in all reality, is far more difficult.

The moment that Bruce asks Alfred about what he did to help him cope when he was a child is one of the more humanizing moments and it works really well. Especially since you can hear Alfred’s near sarcastic and accurate response about Bruce and coping. But it does turn into a strong sequence where Bruce pulls back the cowl and does his best to connect with Claire in a way that’s really meaningful to try and help and likely helps to unburden himself as well. The two share a deep grief of different kinds, hers raw and in the moment and his built upon years and years of guilt and anger, but it’s just that simple human contact and sense of compassion and understanding that goes a long way toward helping. I like what we got of Claire before and what we get here is certainly curious as to how she’ll be on the other side, but I’m admittedly looking forward to the book shifting gears as we get Batman going on… a suicide mission.

In Summary:
There are some genuinely strong moments in this book that will resonate more so for people that have suffered grief and loss and that works really well here. It’s something that doesn’t land as strong as it could since we’ve burned through the first five issues quickly and there hasn’t been a huge amount of investment in Gotham himself, never mind Gotham Girl. But as an epilogue and push forward into the next arc it definitely works well. It’s also a strong issue with Ivan Reis on the art duties as I really loved that two-page spread with Gotham Girl leaping into the city, something that just clicked really well with Maiolo’s color design on it. Reis is an artist that I really admire for what he’s capable of and he does a great job here in bringing it all together. While this may not be a great epilogue as it feels more like setup for what’s to come it does get the job done.

Grade: B

Age Rating: 12+
Released By: DC Comics via ComiXology
Release Date: September 7th, 2016
MSRP: $2.99

As we get more and more excited about the new feature film that will be coming out in 2017, getting new fans to connect with the work through the compilation films of Kuroko’s Basketball is underway first. With the first film having landed this past weekend, the official channel is now showing off a new promotional spot for the second film that comes out next month as well as unleashing a new key visual to the right for it as films cover the Winter Cup material. The run of films is currently setup like so:

• 09/03/16 – Winter Cup Sōshū-hen ~Kage to Hikari~ (Winter Cup Compilation ~Shadow and Light~)
• 10/08/16 – Winter Cup Sōshū-hen ~Namida no Saki e~ (Winter Cup Compilation ~Beyond the Tears~)
• 12/03/16 – Winter Cup Sōshū-hen ~Tobira no Mukō~ (Winter Cup Compilation ~Crossing the Door~)

The manga comes from Tadatoshi Fukimaki whose original series ran for thirty volumes between 2008 and 2014 while Extra Game ran for two volumes afterward.

Plot concept: A year has passed, and a famous American street basketball team called the Jabberwock has arrived in Japan and immediately faces off with STRKY, a team comprised of the recently graduated third years: Miyaji (Shuutoku), Imayoshi (Touou), Higuchi (Rakuzan), Kasamatsu (Kaijou), and Okamura (Yousen). After suffering a humiliating defeat, Aida Kagetora calls for a revenge game. Who better to defeat them than the Generation of Miracles?

The summer 2016 anime broadcast and simulcast for Food Wars! The Second Plate moves on and promotion for the next episode has arrived. The tenth episode is scheduled for an September 3rd, 2016 debut and Warner Bros. Japan has a good look preview at it with some pretty intense moments in the mix.

Crunchyroll is streaming the series to members in the USA, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa, Netherlands, Scandinavia, Turkey, Austria, Bulgaria, Comoros, Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Croatia, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain.

Directed by Yoshitomo Yonetani, the series is being animated at JC Staff with Shogko Yasukawa handling the scripts and Tomoyuki Shitaya working on the character design adaptations. It’ll star Yoshitsugu Matsuoka as Soma Yukihira, Risa Taneda as Erina Nakir, Minami Takahashi as Megumi Tadokoro, Ikumi Mito as Shizuka Ishigami, Maaya Uchida as Yūki Yoshino, Ai Kayano as Ryōko Sakaki, Taishi Murata as Shun Ibusaki, Yūsuke Kobayashi as Zenji Marui, Ai Kakuma as Mayumi Kurase, Rina Hidaka as Urara Kawashima, Banjo Ginga as Senzaemon Nakiri and Rikiya Koyama as Joichiro Yukihira.

The series is currently running in Weekly Shonen Jump by Yuto Tsukuda and Shun Saeki with ten volumes to its name so far. Viz Media publishes the manga in North America digitally and in print form.

Plot concept: The second season of Food Wars! picks up where the first season left off on the cusp of the contested Fall Selection. Eight of the most talented first-year students of the elite Tohtsuki Academy wage a culinary battle to advance to the next round of the Fall Selection, a kitchen-based showdown that will decide who will rise in the ranks and who will end up on the chopping block. Underdog Soma Yukihira’s cooking may leave his customers begging for another bite, but are his skills enough to face off with opponents as equally talented (and merciless) when it comes to the palate as him?

Anime Limited announced this summer that they picked up a bit of a classic with the announcement of Ouran High School Host Club. The UK distributor will be bringing out the 2006 show on Blu-ray in November 2016 with a Collector’s Edition design for it, though the date itself is still being finalized. The packaging side of it is now being firmed up and shown off as you can see from the visual below as the £59.99 release will have some neat things about it. It’ll include the full run of the series plus the episode commentaries, manga pages, outtakes and the clean opening and closings as the on-disc extras. The CE exclusives includes the new box, a 32-page booklet, and two stickers for it.

The series previously saw release through Manga UK on DVD only. Anime Limited’s release will be a bilingual one.

Based on the manga from Bisco Hatori, the twenty-six episode anime series was directed by Takuya Igarashi based on the series composition and scripts from Yoji Enokido. Kumiko Takahashi served as the character designer as well as the chief animator. The series was animated at BONES. The opening theme was”Sakura kiss” as performed by Chieko Kawabe while the ending theme is “Shissou” as performed by LAST ALLIANCE.

The Japanese cast Maaya Sakamoto as Haruhi Fujioka, Ayaka Saito as Mitsukuni Haninozuka, Daisuke Kirii as Takashi Morinozuka, Kenichi Suzumura as Hikaru Hitachiin, Mamoru Miyano as Tamaki Suou, Masaya Matsukaze as Kyoya Ootori, Yoshinori Fujita as Kaoru Hitachiin and

The English cast Caitlin Glass as Haruhi Fujioka, Vic Mignogna as Tamaki Suou, Greg Ayres as Kaoru Hitachiin, J. Michael Tatum as Kyoya Ohtori, Luci Christian as Mitsukuni “Honey” Haninozuka, Mike McFarland as Ryuuji “Ranka” Fujioka, Monica Rial as Renge Houshakuji, Patrick Seitz as Umehito Nekozawa, Todd Haberkorn as Hikaru Hitachiin and Travis Willingham as Takashi Morinozuka.

Plot concept: Ouran High School. An institution of extravagance and prestige where learning is secondary to luxury. Bookish Haruhi can’t afford to slack, being on a scholarship and out of place among the moneyed. No matter – the Host Club is now open! A group of handsome boys dedicated to selling their charms to their bored female classmates, Haruhi is suddenly in debt to the club after breaking an expensive vase in their lair. The only way to pay for the damage? Haruhi will work as a Host! The only problem? Haruhi is a she!

Between the wildly inflated ego of the expert escorts and the potential calamities of constant cross dressing, Haruhi’s freshman year looks like it will be one to remember.

Ouran High School Host Club UK Packaging

[Source: Ouran High School Host Club]

Funimation is gearing up for the limited engagement of Shin Godzilla into theaters on October 11th through the 18th and with tickets able to be pre-purchased via the official film website now, fans can secure their chance to see it when it lands. Ahead of that they’ve now brought out the trailer for the film to add to the excitement.

“We are thrilled to bring ‘SHIN GODZILLA’ to theaters across North America this October,” said Gen Fukunaga, CEO and President of Funimation. “Toho established Godzilla as one of the most iconic monsters in science fiction history and we’re honored to now be a part of that history with the theatrical release of this new movie. Fans will not want to miss this limited theatrical event.“

“Movie audiences can look forward to a great time watching ’SHIN GODZILLA’ this October,” said Mike DuBoise, EVP and COO of Funimation. “A larger than life monster like Godzilla has to be experienced on the big screen. And we expect this movie to sellout in numerous theaters so we encourage fans to purchase tickets in advance.”

Plot concept: It’s a peaceful day in Japan when a strange fountain of water erupts in the bay, causing panic to spread among government officials. At first, they suspect only volcanic activity, but one young executive dares to wonder if it may be something different… something alive. His worst nightmare comes to life when a massive, gilled monster emerges from the deep and begins tearing through the city, leaving nothing but destruction in its wake. As the government scrambles to save the citizens, a rag-tag team of volunteers cuts through a web of red tape to uncover the monster’s weakness and its mysterious ties to a foreign superpower. But time is not on their side—the greatest catastrophe to ever befall the world is about to evolve right before their very eyes.

The production behind Regalia: The Three Sacred Stars got things back underway earlier this month and now they’re doing some extra promotion to get fans on board with it. The newest way of doing that is by streaming the opening sequence for the show, allowing fans to sample the animation and the song itself. The piece is “Divine Spell” as performed by TRUE and it certainly gest you moving with what’s presented.

The series was directed by Shin Tosaka working from the series composition from Keigo Koyanaga while Kimitake Nishio did the character designs and served as the chief animation director. The original designs from QP:flapper. Actas animated the project.

The cast includes Yurika Kubo as Sarah, Yui Ogura as Tia, Asami Seto as Ingrid, Nao Touyama as Kei, Kaede Hondo as Yui, Ayane Sakura as Rena, Hisako Kanemoto as Retsu, Megumi Ogata as Johann, Azumi Asakura as Aoi, Yuka Iguchi as Naru, Masako Katsuki as Margaret, Hiroshi Yanaka as Marshall and Hidenari Ugaki as Theodore.

Plot concept: Sisters Yui and Rena live a peaceful life in the kingdom of Enastoria, but they become involved in a vortex of destiny when a giant robot attacks Enastoria.

The summer 2016 anime series Sweetness and Lightning is getting its home video release handled by Toei Video and they’ve set the details for what they’ll be doing with it. Ahead of the release of the first single for it that’s coming up on October 5th, they’ve now released the cover design for it that’s essentially the same between the two formats. The twelve episode series is getting a six-volume release as well as a box set release that’s landing right in the middle of it, which is unusual but not unheard of. With the release set to begin on October 5th, 2016, the DVD singles are priced at 5,800 yen while the Blu-ray singles are at 6,800 yen. The DVD box set on January 11th, 2017 is priced at 19,800 yen while the Blu-ray edition is priced at 24,800 yen.

The series was directed by Tarou Iwasaki based on the series composition from Mitsukata Hirota and character designs by Hiroki Harada. It was animated at TMS Entertainment.

The main cast includes Yuuichi Nakamura as Kouhei Inuzaka, Rina Endou as Tsumugi Inuzaka and Saori Hayami as Kotori Iida. The supporting cast includes Satomi Arai as Megumi Iida, Ai Kayano as Tae Inuzuka, Komugi Koga as Yuuka, Saaya Andou as Hana and Shouki Tsuru as Mikio.

The manga from Gido Amagakure began back in 2013 and has six volumes so far. Kodansha Comics has been releasing the series in North America digitally through their various services.

The opening theme for the series is “Harebare Fanfare” as performed by MimimemeMIMI while the ending theme is “Maybe” by Brian the Sun.

Plot concept: Having lost his wife, math teacher Kouhei Inuzuka is doing his best to raise his young daughter Tsumugi as a single father. He’s pretty bad at cooking and doesn’t have a huge appetite to begin with, but chance brings his little family and one of his students, Kotori Iida, together for homemade adventures. With those three cooks in the kitchen, it’s no wonder this dinner table drama is so delicious.

Sweetness and Lightning Japanese Volume 1 Cover

[Source: Amaama to Inazuma (sweetness & lightning)]

Bandai Visual is handling the home video release side of the summer 2016 anime series Love Live! Sunshine!! and the folks at Lantis are doing some big promotion for it. While we’ve got a bit before the first volume debuts, the packaging artwork and design for the second volume arrived ahead of its October 26th, 2016 debut. And now Lantis has put together a fourteen-minute promo for the release that has the voice actresses talking about the show as well as numerous clips frmo it. The series is getting a seven volume release that begins on September 27th, 2016 in both regular and limited edition form. The first volume has just one episode and is priced at 3,500 yen and 4,500 yen respectively. The remaining volumes are priced at 6,000 and 7,000 yen respectively. All the volumes are solicited with English subtitles.

Animated by Sunrise, it was directed by Kazuo Sakai based on the series composition from Jukki Hanada. Yuhei Murota worked on the character designs for it.

The Aquors cast includes Inami Anju as Chika Takami, Rikako Aida as Riko Sakurauchi, Nanaka Suwa as Kanan Matsuura, Arisa Komiya as Dia Kurosawa, Shuka Saito as You Watanabe, Aika Kobayashi as Yoshiko Tsushima, Kanako Takatsuki as Hanamaru Kunikida, Aina Suzuki as Mari Ohara and Ai Furihata as Ruby Kurosawa.

Plot concept: Love Live! Sunshine!! follows the nine-member school idol group Aqours (pronounced “aqua”) at Uranohoshi Girls’ Academy in Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture. Chika Takami, who is a fan of the Otonokizaka Academy’s μ’s school idol group, similarly forms Aqours in order to save her school from being closed down.

Love Live Sunshine Japanese Volume 2 Cover

Love Live Sunshine Japanese Volume 1 Cover

[Source: Love Live! Sunshine!!]

The upcoming 3DCG production of Gantz:O from TOHO is definitely working for me as a really good way to bring this project to life and each teaser, trailer, and music video reaffirms that. TOHO is doing some additional marketing for it today as they’ve released a new 90-second trailer that highlights the theme song “Nigen Video” from The Dresscodes. The film has been set for an October 14th, 2016 release date in Japan.

This film has set Keiichi Satou as the general director with Yasushi Kawamura as the hands-on director working from the script by Tsutomu Kuroiwa. This appears to be Kuroiwa’s second script as the only other work I’m seeing listed for him is the recent One Piece: Gold film. Digital Frontier is handling the animation for it.

The cast includes Daisuke Ono as Masaru Kato, M.A.O as Anzu Yamasaki, Tomohiro Kaku as Jōichirō Nishi, Saori Hayami as Reika, Shuuichi Ikeda as Yoshikazu Suzuki, Masane Tsukayama as Nurarihyon, Masaya Onosaka as Susumu Kimura, Kenjiro Tsuda as Sanpei Taira, Teruaki Ogawa as Tetsuo Hara and Yuuki Kaji as Kei Kurono.

The original manga ran from 2000 to 2013 for thirty-seven volumes and has been getting released by Dark Horse Comics while the anime saw release originally from ADV Films.

Original concept: Thought your life was bad? Sometimes, death is worse. There is no salvation, peace, nor god waiting to receive you into their care. But wait, a god? Maybe you are talking about that big black ball stuck in the room with you. Now you are thrown into a game, fighting green aliens and robot monsters for the chance to survive.

When Kei Kurono is killed, he thus finds himself caught in such a game; a test of his skills, morals and will to survive. His life is not his own, his death spat and trampled upon over and over again. What happens if he does not listen? God knows.

We learned way back in February with NTV listing the anime adaptation of the manga series Udon no Kuni no Kiniro Kemari as being on their slate for 2016. The series has a planned fall premiere with an October 8th, 2016 debut set. That comes with the second promotional trailer that gives us a better taste of what the show is going to be like.

The cast announced so far includes:

• Yuuichi Nakamura as Souta Tawara
• Shiho Kokido as Poco
• Tomokazu Sugita as Shinobu Nakajima
• Mai Nakahara as Rinko Oishi
• Jun Fukuyama as Shunsuke Fujiyama

The show has Yoshihide Ibata directing, coming off his run on Attack on Titan: Junior High, with series composition from Natsuki Takahashi and character designs from Eriko Itou. Liden Films is listed as the production company.

The adaptation brings the manga from Nodoka Shinomaru to life that began in 2012 and has six volumes released so far as serialized in Comic@Bunch magazine.

Plot concept: Souta Tawara is a web designer working in Tokyo. When he visits his family’s Udon place in his hometown Kagawa Prefecture, he discovers a young boy. Upon confronting the boy, Souta soon learns his secret and decides to quit his job in order to take care of the boy, Poko. The daily adventures of the two slowly enfold as Poco energetically navigates his way through Kagawa, the “Udon Kingdom,” along with Souta.

Kadokawa is putting together another sought after property for a Blu-ray release wit the Honey & Clover TV series. The distributor has set a December 21st, 2016 release for the set that will contain both seasons on Blu-ray plus a DVD of bonus materials. It’s set to be priced at 28,000 yen and it’ll be a 4k remastering upscale via Q-Tec.

The first season has 94 minutes worth of bonus materials from the clean opening and closing, behind the scenes footage from it, event videos, promos, and more. The second disc comes ina t 37 minutes and has the clean opening and closing plus the dubbing studio material and the promos. The set also comes with a new 48-page booklet.

Plot concept: What do you get when you cross creativity with self-discovery and unrequited love? Art school! Yuta Takemoto has no idea what’s in store for his life when he enrolls at a Tokyo art college, but he find out right away it’ll never be dull! Love triangles form as fast as friendships when both Takemoto and senior classmate Shinobu Morita fall hard for shy artistic prodigy Hagumi Hanamoto. And while architecture student Takumi Mayama secretly pines for an older woman, dazzling ceramicist Ayu Yamada pines for him! Confused yet? Welcome to the bittersweet world of Honey and Clover…

[Source: Honey and Clover]

Funimation is getting things in order to bring out the live-action films for Attack on Titan beginning this fall and the first feature now has the first clip arriving for it, which certainly sets an eerie tone about it! The feature is set for a DVD/BD release on October 4th, 2016 priced at $29.98 where it’ll be a bilingual piece. The only extras included with the film are the original trailers for it.

Funimation previously brought the feature films out theatrically in North America for limited engagements.

Plot concept: When the Titans first attacked, life for mankind was forever changed. Fearing the massive man-eating humanoids, survivors constructed three enormous walls for protection. From that point on, humanity lived safely behind the walls”for the time being. A century later, life is peaceful. Eren and his friends live inside the walls, yearning to explore beyond the borders they’ve always known. But the opportunity comes sooner than expected when a Colossal Titan appears above the wall. With a single kick the barricade is pierced, allowing a swarm of titans to pour in and devour their newly exposed prey. Witnessing the devastation, Eren and his friends vow to destroy the man-eating terrors. The future looks bleak, but there’s more to Eren than meets the eye: he may be humanity’s last hope against extinction.

Saturday is here and once again there’s just a slew of new shows rolling out on the services to dig into, making for a great way to spend the day. Crunchyroll has more Ace Attorney on tap as well as B-Project, which is doing well in Japan, and the newest Days alongside One Piece.

• 7:00am - ACE ATTORNEY - Episode 22
• 7:00am - RIN-NE SEASON 2 - Episode 48
• 9:30am - HITORINOSHITA – THE OUTCAST - Episode 10
• 10:00am - FOOD WARS! THE SECOND PLATE - Episode 11
• 12:00pm - REWRITE - Episode 11
• 12:30pm - QUALIDEA CODE - Episode 10
• 1:00pm - B-PROJECT - Episode 10
• 2:00pm - ANGE VIERGE - Episode 10
• 3:30pm - DAYS - Episode 11
• 6:30pm - MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM UNICORN RE:0096 (ENGLISH DUB) - Episode 22
• 6:30pm - MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM UNICORN RE:0096 - Episode 22
• 8:30pm - FOLKTALES FROM JAPAN - Episode 231
• 10:00pm - CARDFIGHT!! VANGUARD G STRIDE GATE - Episode 48
• 10:00pm - ONE PIECE: DRESSROSA CONT. (700-CURRENT) - Episode 756

The free side unlocks last week’s episodes and includes the recent Case Closed as well.

• 7:00am - ACE ATTORNEY - Episode 21
• 7:00am - RIN-NE SEASON 2 - Episode 47
• 8:00am - PERSONA5 THE ANIMATION -THE DAY BREAKERS- - Episode 0
• 9:30am - HITORINOSHITA – THE OUTCAST - Episode 9
• 10:00am - FOOD WARS! THE SECOND PLATE - Episode 10
• 11:30am - FIRST LOVE MONSTER - Episode 10
• 12:00pm - REWRITE - Episode 10
• 12:30pm - QUALIDEA CODE - Episode 9
• 1:00pm - B-PROJECT - Episode 9
• 2:00pm - ANGE VIERGE - Episode 9
• 3:00pm - CASE CLOSED - Episode 830
• 3:30pm - DAYS - Episode 10
• 6:30pm - MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM UNICORN RE:0096 (ENGLISH DUB) - Episode 21
• 6:30pm - MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM UNICORN RE:0096 - Episode 21
• 8:30pm - FOLKTALES FROM JAPAN - Episode 230
• 10:00pm - CARDFIGHT!! VANGUARD G STRIDE GATE - Episode 47
• 10:00pm - ONE PIECE: DRESSROSA CONT. (700-CURRENT) - Episode 756

Funimation has a trio of Broadcast Dubs up today along with three new simulcasts!

	Endride - Season 1	23	Sub	TV-14	9/10/16
	Endride - Season 1	18	Dub	TV-14	9/10/16
	First Love Monster - Season 1	11	Sub	TV-14	9/10/16
	First Love Monster - Season 1	9	Dub	TV-14	9/10/16
	Love Live! Sunshine!! - Season 1	11	Sub	TV-14	9/10/16
	Love Live! Sunshine!! - Season 1	7	Dub	TV-14	9/10/16

And the free side unlocks last week’s episodes.

	Endride - Season 1	22	Sub	TV-14	9/10/16
	Love Live! Sunshine!! - Season 1	10	Sub	TV-14	9/10/16
	Endride - Season 1	22	Sub	TV-14	9/10/16

The Anime Network has one show on tap today with:

• 11:00 AM GMT – RIN-NE 2 – 23 – Episode 23

There’s a lot going on in the fantastic Doctor Strange series these days and with The Last Days of Magic piece out there, things are continuing to change. The series is now getting ready for its next arc in October with “Blood in the Aether” and now Marvel has released a preview of it, which means a look at the finalized cover, a few preview pages, and some beautiful variant covers. The series comes from creators Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo.

Plot concept: His magic has been depleted, all but lost. Sensing him at his absolute weakest, his enemies see their greatest opportunity yet – destroy him once and for all! Baron Mordo, Dormammu, Satana, Master Pandemonium, Nightmare, Kaecilius and more are all ready to take their shot. If Doctor Strange is to survive, he’ll have to learn to defeat them without the help of his magical abilities. The rules of magic in the Marvel Universe have been reshaped. Can Doctor Strange adapt in time…or is it too late? Don’t miss out on the kickoff to the next explosive story arc when “Blood in the Aether” kicks off in DOCTOR STRANGE #12!

DOCTOR STRANGE #12 (JUL161005)
Written by JASON AARON
Art & Cover by CHRIS BACHALO
Classic Variant by PAUL SMITH (AUG160826)
Champions Variant by JOYCE CHIN (AUG160824)
Defenders Variant by BUTCH GUICE (JUL161006)
Story Thus Far Variant by MICHAEL WALSH (AUG160825)
FOC – 09/12/16, On-Sale – 10/05/16

Funimation’s getting a bit more material out there for the upcoming DVD/BD release of the Overlord series that lands on November 8th, 2016. They’ve now brought out a new 75-second dub clip that showcases a lot of action from the early part of the show but mostly involves a whole lot of grunting and straining as they go at it, which is pretty amusing. The release is coming out in two editions with:

• Overlord: Complete Collection (Blu-ray / DVD Combo) – 325 minutes – $64.98 – 11/8/16 – Special Features: Episode 2 Commentary, Episode 9 Commentary, Episode 13 Video Commentary, Play Play Pleiades, Special Preview Collection, Episode 1 Preview, Promotional Videos, TV Spots, DVD/BD Spots, Textless Opening Song ”Clattanoia”, Textless Closing Song ”L.L.L.”, U.S. Trailer, Trailers
• Overlord: Complete Collection (Blu-ray / DVD Combo LE) – 325 minutes – $84.98 – 11/8/16 – The Limited Edition of Overlord Season 1 contains episodes 1-13 plus a chipboard box, featuring a luxurious matte touch to help showcase the artwork, with a special multi-later emboss and gloss on Albedo and the logo that make them stand out. This set also includes eleven art cards, again with that painterly dark fantasy style art, on extra-heavy stock–these are real collectible items and not just your typical pack-in postcard. – Special Features: Episode 2 Commentary, Episode 9 Commentary, Episode 13 Video Commentary, Play Play Pleiades, Special Preview Collection, Episode 1 Preview, Promotional Videos, TV Spots, DVD/BD Spots, Textless Opening Song ”Clattanoia”, Textless Closing Song ”L.L.L.”, U.S. Trailer, Trailers

The summer 2015 anime series comes from author Kugane Maruyama with illustrations by so-bin that’s published by Enterbrain. It began in the summer of 2012 and released its tenth volume earlier this year.

It was animated by Madhouse with Naoyuki Itou directing it based on scripts by Yukie Sugawara and character designs by Takahiro Yoshimatsu as they adapt from the original works.

The Japanese cast includes Kenta Miyake as Cocytus, Manami Numakura as Narberal Gamma, Masayuki Katou as Demiurge, Shigeru Chiba as Sebas Tian and Yumi Uchiyama as Mare Bello Fiore.

The series is being directed by Kyle Phillips with Josh Grelle as the lead writer on it. The cast includes Chris Guerrero as Ains/Momonga, Elizabeth Maxwell as Albedo, Felecia Angelle as Shalltear, Anastasia Munoz as Narberal, Jill Harris as Aura, Megan Shipman as Mare, Jeff Johnson as Demiurge, Ed Blaylock as Sebas Tian, Bryan Massey as Cocytus, Mikaela Krantz as Clementine, Brad Venable as Khajit, Ray Hurd as Gazef, Morgan Berry as Nphirea, Heather Walker as Hamsuke, Clifford Chapin as Peter, Ben Phillips as Dyne, Chris Wehkamp as Lukrut and Lara Woodhull as Ninya.

Plot concept: The series follows a salary man who remains online when the service for an MMORPG ends. In doing so, he becomes a powerful skeletal wizard. In his new form, he begins attracting followers and conquering the digital world that remains.

New material in the Lupin-verse is always welcome so having a new trailer drop from the official channel to reveal an upcoming theatrical anime project with Lupin the Third: Goemon Ishikawa’s Spray of Blood definitely makes the day for a lot of anime fans. THe film has been set for a February 4th, 2017 release date and it looks like they’re bringing back the staff from Jigen’s Gravestone for it, which definitely works.

The film will be directed by Takeshi Koike based on a screenplay from Yuuya Takahashi. With Telecom Animation Film producing the animation, TMS Entertainment and Showgate are handling its release.

The anime adaptation of the light novel series Occultic;Nine from Chiyomaru Shikura and artist pako continues to get some incremental updates ahead of its fall premiere. The latest pieces of the puzzle to arrive includes a trio of actors that have been revealed to be a part of the project and that the series will premiere on October 9th, 2016. The series is being directed by Kyohei Ishiguro based on the series composition by MAGES and Morita to Junpei. Tomoaki Takase is handling the character designs and it’s being animated by A-1 Pictures.

• Satomi Akesaka as Asuna Kisaki
• Kenjirou Tsuda as Kouhei Izumi
• Maria Naganawa as Chizu Kawabata

The previously announced cast includes:

• Yuki Kaji as Yuuta Gamon
• Ayane Sakura as Ryouka Narusawa
• Kaito Ishikawa as Sarai Hashigami
• Hitomi Yoshida as Miyuu Aikawa
• Shizuka Itou as Touko Sumikaze
• Miyuki Sawashiro as Aria Kureinaino
• Kishou Taniyama as Kiryuu Kusakabe
• Mamiko Noto as Ririka Nishizono
• Tetsuya Kakihara as Shun Moritsuka

The light novels began back in 2014 and has two volumes out so far with a manga adaptation from Ganjii that began last fall.

Plot concept: The story takes place in Kichijoji. Dreaming day and night of getting rich very quickly, Yuuta Gamon, a 2nd year high school student, owner of an affiliation blog called Kiri Kiri Basara, takes advantage of it and he gathers nine eccentric individuals. With their help, he challenges the supernatural and tries to solve all mysteries leading to unimaginable events that can potentially alter the course of the world…or maybe not?

[Source: Ota☆Suke via MAL]

The spring 2016 anime series Flying Witch is being handled by VAP for its home video distribution in Japan. With the third volume arriving recently, they’ve now brought out the cover artwork for the fourth volume that’s set for release on September 21st, 2016. The twelve episode series is getting a six-volume release that began on June 22nd, 2016. The Blu-ray releases will be priced at 6,800 yen each while the DVDs are priced at 5,800 yen. The first volume cover artwork has also been released that you can see below.

Produced by JC Staff, Katsushi Sakurabi directed the series with Deko Akao handling the scripts. Character designs were done by Masato Yasuno.

The cast includes Minami Shinoda as Makoto Kowata, Eri Suzuki as Chinatsu Kuramoto, Shinsuke Sugawara as Kei Kuramoto, Kana Aoi as Akane Kowata, Shiori Mikami as Nao Ishiwatari, Mari Hino as Inukai, Yuka Iguchi as Anzu Shiina, Ai Kayano as Chito, Ayane Sakura as Kenny and Ari Ozawa as Al.

The manga began back in 2012 in Bessatus Shonen Magazine and has released three volumes so far with a fourth to ship in April in Japan. The show has enlisted the voice actors Shinoda and Suzuki to perform the ending theme song for it as well.

Plot concept: The series follows the 15-year-old witch Makoto Kowata and the other boys and girls in her daily life. With her black cat Chito, the somewhat aimless girl moved from Yokohama to live with her second cousin at Aomori in verdant northern Japan.

Flying Witch Japanese Volume 4 Cover

Flying Witch Japanese Volume 4 Packaging

Flying Witch Japanese Volume 3 Jacket

Flying Witch Japanese Volume 3 Cover

Flying Witch Japanese Volume 2 Cover

Flying witch Japanese Volume 1 Cover

[Source: Flying Witch]

The official site for the upcoming light novel series Girlish Number from Wataru Watari and QP:flapper has hit a new update in the casting department. This comes after the recent promotional video that we got and the reveal of the October 6th, 2016 debut date for the series. The new cast additions include:

• Takuya Eguchi as Towata AP
• Kenyuu Horiuchi as Namba Shacho

Shota Ibata is directing based on Wataru Watari’s series composition. Sumie Kinoshita is handling the adaptation of QP:flappers character designs. Diomedea is handling the animation production.

The opening song is “Bloom” while the ending song is “Ima wa Mijikashi Yume Miyo Otome,” both of which are being performed by the five female lead voice actresses under the name Girlish Number.

The previously announced cast includes:

• Sayaka Senbongi as Chitose Karasuma
• Kaede Hondo as Yae Kugayama
• Yui Ishikawa as Koto Katakura
• Kazuya Nakai as Kuzu-P
• Yuuichirou Umehara as Gojou Karasuma
• Eri Suzuki as Momoka Sono
• Saori Oonishi as Kazuha Shibasaki

Watari’s other work My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU has gotten an anime adaptation and Qualidea Code came out this summer.

Plot concept: The series follows Chitose Karasuma, a university student who aims to become a voice actress (seiyuu). The stage event listing further indicates that it focuses on the profession of idol seiyuu.

[Source: Ota☆Suke via MAL]

Seeing as how Japan cannot have enough idol based shows, the MAGES property Idol Jihen is expanding its mixed media scope to include an anime series that will debut in January 2017. The series will be directed by Daisuke Yoshida with MAPPA and VOLN producing the animation for it.

An ongoing manga series currently exists for it along with a social game and some CD singles.

Plot concept: The story follows 47 idol members of the seven parties in the Japanese Diet elected from each prefectures and focuses on their efforts to change Japan with their dance and songs and to give smile to everyone in the country.

The cast includes:

Heroine-tou
Natsuki Hoshina (Niigata): Sarara Yashima
Shizuka Onimaru (Fukuoka): Mai Fuchigami
Sachie Kondo (Toyama): Reina Ueda

Sanrai-tou
Mizuki Fudo (Tokyo): Lynn
Sayo Nekohira (Iwate): Haruka Terui
Konatsu Shinjo (Aichi): Saeko Zougou

Starligh-tou
Sakurako Iizuka (Nara): Yurika Kubo

Bishoujo-tou
Ume Momoi (Kanagawa): Sayaka Nakaya

Wakaba-tou
Kuruha Amou (Tokushima): Yuuri Yoshida

SubCul Shintou
Mika Kozuru (Kagoshima): Chinatsu Akasaki

SOS-tou
Ringosama Yami (Aomori): Nozomi Yamamoto

[Source: Crunchyroll]