We’re just over a month from the theatrical adaptation of the comic book character of Doctor Strange in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and I’m definitely feeling hyped. Marvel has now cut a new minute long teaser spot for it that’s designed to raise awareness of the upcoming IMAX teaser that will be included with showings on October 10th, 2016. There’s plenty of familiar footage in the spot but we get some expansion on the placement of the film and context with The Avengers while also sliding in another little dose of humor.

Directed by Scott Derrickson, it will star Benedict Cumberbatch as Stephen Strange and Chiwetel Ejiofor as Baron Mordo, Rachel McAdams, Michael Stuhlbarg, Mads Mikkelsen, Benedict Wong and Tilda Swinton. It’s set to debut on November 4th, 2016.

Plot concept: The film will follow the story of neurosurgeon Doctor Stephen Strange who, after a horrific car accident, discovers the hidden world of magic and alternate dimensions.

First trailer:

Second trailer:

It’s a new world order with a familiar harem design.

What They Say:
Invertia–The astral catastrophe that annihilated many cities in the 20th century also gave birth to a new human race with special powers called the “Genestella.” At the same time, the special element found within the meteors of Invertia facilitated humanity’s technological advancement.

At the academic-city above water Rikka, also known as “Asterisk,” students from each of the six schools at Asterisk prepare for the ultimate battle tournament — known as “Festa.” Seidoukan Academy’s Ayato Amagiri takes up the challenge along with his partner Julis, a.k.a. Glühen Rose, the Witch of the Resplendent Flames. Ayato learns Julis has a big dream to achieve and decides to protect her to the end.

The Review:
Audio:
The audio presentation for this release is very solid as we get the original Japanese language track in stereo as well as the newly created English language dub, both of which are done in the uncompressed PCM format. The series works a healthy mix of dialogue and action so that it keeps moving and has a life about it and this translates well across the forward soundstage. The powered attacks definitely make an impact with the bass at times and with the flow it across the stage it has a good bit of life. There’s a fair bit of variety to it as well and with some good moments to it in how it unfolds, the high definition audio definitely makes it feel stronger and more connected to what’s happening on screen. When it comes to the dialogue it’s much the same case as it flits about as needed but has a lot of ground moments as well, whether the cast is yelling as they fight or just getting up close and personal. We didn’t have any problems with dropouts or distortions during regular playback.

Video:
Originally airing in 2015, the transfer for this TV series is presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.78:1 in 1080p using the AVC codec. The six episodes for this release are spread evenly across two discs, giving it plenty of room. Animated by A-1 Pictures, the show definitely has a whole lot to like, especially in its color palette, as it’s vibrant and detailed with what it wants to look like. There are lighter and less detailed moments to be sure in the source but the series wants to look and feel flashy and slick and it pays off well with the backgrounds as well as fluid character designs. The animation comes across in a really clean way with no problems such as artifacts or breakup nor is there any line noise of note. Those that enjoyed the show previously will find exactly the kind of top tier presentation they’d expect here to bring it to life.

Packaging:
The limited edition release is pretty nicely put together, though I do wish once again that it was done with a heavy chipboard box. The cardboard box we get has some appealing artwork as it works off of the Japanese releases, giving us Juris on the front cover here with the pink and white background to give her more color clarity as it stands out. The back panel works a good image of Kirin as she looks all cute while having her sword behind her, using purples and whites as its main focus. The wraparound along the bottom covers the technical information on the back while the front breaks out the features and extras plus all the bonus material. Within the box we get two clear Blu-ray cases with the first one holding the two discs while the second is the soundtrack remix CD. Both of these cases are done with just line artwork of a couple of the girls on the front while the rest of it goes very minimal for backgrounds and interiors with a touch of color and text to detail what’s inside. The set comes with a really great selection of slick postcards that uses various pieces of cover artwork but we also get a fantastic forty-page square bound booklet that provides some great full-color material of character designs and backgrounds, world setting material, and a lot more.

Menu:
The menu for this release works pretty well as we get some of the iconography from the show in the background with the hexagons and the badges, for example. Within that we get some clips playing out that shows off the characters through some decent filters so that it feels slick and active while giving us an idea of what to expect. It’s brightly colored and moves well, making it engaging and interesting without being overwhelming. The navigation strip along the bottom is standard Aniplex fare with the thin strip to hold together the selections in their boxes which are also used in the same way as the pop-up menu. With the font used it can be difficult to read at times, particularly in the submenus with some of the animation from the background coming through, but it’s largely workable.

Extras:
The extras for this release are familiar for the most part as we get a couple of clean opening and closing pieces and the clean prologue from the first episode. We also get the web previews, which are kind of amusing since they show clips from the episode in the background while the rest is done with 3DCG model stuff of one of the characters, which is slick and glossy and very much focused on fanservice – especially that last one in the swimsuit!

The series focuses on a near future alternate earth after an event called the Invertia happened, which was an impact event that caused massive destruction across numerous cities. THe fallout from that was that the world essentially reorganized under what feels like a corporate rule through the Integrated Enterprise Foundation. That just rolls off the tongue. Within these various regions that exist there are six cities that have special academies that foster students that are essentially superpowered. Called Genestella, they’re able to produce specialty weapons and they work through a kind of tournament system to establish their ranking and place in the cities. This series focused on Rikka, which is known better by the obvious name of Asterisk. The makeup of the world isn’t delved into much nor is the Foundation, but that could all show up later as there’s plenty of low-level intrigue simmering around the edges.

This focus is on a new arrival to the campus with Ayato, a young man who has come here to find out about his sister Haruka’s disappearance. She was here five years ago but seemingly disappeared and there’s little record of her actually being at this academy outside of some corrupted records. Ayato is a nice young man as you’d expect with an almost weak feeling about him in how he comes across. Of course, this belies the truth that he’s a gifted Genestella with abilities that place him in the top tier, should they be fully unlocked. Those abilities are kept under some control thanks to a binding that Haruka did years ago that we see in a flashback so what we get here is someone that’s far too familiar in this genre as you know he’s going to be capable of going the distance once his natural born abilities aren’t being restrained anymore.

While he builds a nice little harem of women that he ends up spending time with, from the quiet and subdued Saya to the nervous and cute Kirin, the main focus is on Julis, a young woman who is highly ranked at the academy. She’s something of a rarity as she’s actual royalty, coming from Lieseltania, one of the few nations that doesn’t run things like the Foundation does elsewhere. She has her own reasons for coming here of course but she gets caught up and drawn to Ayato from the first time he leaps into her window to return a handkerchief that blew out. Julis has some amusing moments in how she composes herself in these early scenes but it shifts all too quickly to her realizing that she likes him on some level, and the kind of abilities that he has as well. It’s not one or the other but a whole package kind of thing that grows from there, though naturally Ayato is utterly oblivious to it all.

A lot of what we get here is how the powers work and some of the variety as well as the usual campus squabbles, such as one guy that wants to keep challenging Juris since he wants to gain ranking whereas she has no interest. The introduction of the student council president in Claudia is predictably but fun as she’s the bright-eyed blonde beauty that has a bigger plan in mind as we see from some of her actions. I actually like Claudia since she’s playing this with a bit of scenery chewing about it but she’s hampered by keeping things in the dark and orchestrating with others. With Julis being a princess we also get some attacks on her from outside forces that seem to have their own plans, which you suspect will converge, but there are just six episodes here and you really can’t get all that much from it. Everything we get is nicely done and certainly above competent, but it’s also predictable because it does fall into the introduce a new girl, add story point, move forward, repeat.

In Summary:
The Asterisk War is a slick and glossy production that has some neat ideas and concepts to it that I hope it’ll capitalize on. With this volume, it’s all about the introductions and stage setting so there’s a certain predictability about it that makes out better because of the visual design and polished approach of the creative team. There’s a lot to like here if it can build on it and create something engaging and these six episodes provide hint of what’s to come that should bear that out. Aniplex’s release is naturally top-notch here with a great audio and visual design and a package that works really well, especially the book and some really glossy postcards that are appealing. Fans of the show that want to own it in its best presentation will definitely know that this is it.

Features:
Japanese 2.0 PCM Language, English 2.0 PCM Language, English Subtitles, Spanish Subtitles, Web Previews, Textless Opening, Textless Ending Version 1 & 2, Textless Prologue.

Content Grade: B
Audio Grade: B+
Video Grade: A
Packaging Grade: A-
Menu Grade: B
Extras Grade: B

Released By: Aniplex USA
Release Date: September 20th, 2016
MSRP: $89.98
Running Time: 150 Minutes
Video Encoding: 1080p AVC
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen

Review Equipment:
Sony KDL70R550A 70″ LED 1080P HDTV, Sony PlayStation3 Blu-ray player via HDMI set to 1080p, Onkyo TX-SR605 Receiver and Panasonic SB-TP20S Multi-Channel Speaker System With 100-Watt Subwoofer.

Press Release:

HOUSTON, September 30, 2016 – Your favorite singing boys are back in the exciting fourth season of the UtaPri franchise! This Fall, simulcast new episodes of Utano☆Princesama Legend Star on Anime Network Online (ANO).

In this new season, the stars and heavens collide once more as our vibrant vocalists delve deeper into the competitive and turbulent idol world. With HE☆VENS on the rise, ST☆RISH and Haruka must up their game to bring their performances to sparkling new heights!

Utano☆Princesama Legend Star begins airing on Saturday, October 1, 2016. ANO subscribers in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa, Latin America, the Netherlands, Scandinavia, Turkey, North Africa, and the Middle East will be able to simulcast new episodes every Saturday at 1:00 PM EDT.

While Daisuki is setting up plenty of the fall season through various channels they’re also bringing out some back catalog shows for some exclusive runs. Set for debut in October, they’ve set plans for:

Jubei-chan 2: Three hundred years ago, in the frigid land of Siberia, Jubei Yagyu engaged in a fierce battle with Kitaretsusai of the Northern Yagyu clan. The duel was costly, as his daughter Freesia was frozen in suspended animation. As a result of global warming in the present day, Freesia breaks free from her icy grave and moves to Japan as a middle school transfer student, where she befriends Jiyuu Nanohana. Little does Jiyuu know that Freesia is targeting her to acquire the coveted Lovely Eye Patch, which Freesia believes is rightfully hers.

Inukami: Kawahira Keita is a descendant of a historic Inukami tamer family; however, because he lacked in its ability, he was forsaken by the family. One day, an Inukami named Youko came. She looked graceful, obedient, above all, beautiful. Soon he contracted with her, and she paid homage to him. However, she was a problematic Inukami that no one had been able to control.

This is a slap stick comedy of an Inukami Tamer, Keita and an Inukami, Youko. Keita is a man of worldly passions, and he likes money and girls very much. On the other hand, Youko likes to destroy things and is very jealous.

Gaogaigar: In the year 2005, a race of alien monsters called Zonders emerge from underground and launch a series of attacks on the city of Tokyo. The only defense against these creatures is the secret agency known as the Gutsy Geoid Guard (or 3G) and their ultimate weapon, the awesome giant robot GaoGaiGar. GaoGaiGar’s pilot, Guy Shishio, is a former astronaut who was nearly killed two years before when the Zonders first crashed to earth. Guy’s life was spared when a mysterious robot lion called Galeon pulled him from the burning shuttle and brought him to Earth. Guy’s father, Leo, then used Galeon’s technology to rebuild his shattered son as a cyborg, in the hopes that he could stop the aliens when they appear. Now, with Galeon as its core, GaoGaiGar fights to protect Earth. He is aided by a team of transforming robots and by a young boy named Mamoru, who has the power to purify the Zonders’ cores, and seems to be connected to the mysterious Galeon.

And the weirdness draws to a close.

What They Say:
“Bananya and the Birthday, Nya”

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
With this episode the focus is on a birthday party that’s about to hit as we see mama dealing with that in the background. Because of that, the Bananya’s can’t be out as much but they do find an opportunity to sneak out and have some fun with the cake and decorations while she’s off on the phone. It’s definitely cute and silly in seeing how they play and mess with everything and what kind of little troubles they get into. It’s the kind of mess that’s amusing to see and how the Bananya family does their best to try and help in their own way with mama so that everything is done.

In Summary:
Bananya is a concept that sounds like it should work well and be silly but ends up not clicking in the right way. It’s almost like they were at times trying to prove that cats on the internet can’t be funny! I had some amusing bits with it throughout but mostly it just didn’t seem like it knew what it wanted to be or how to hit the best kind of comedic timing for it but it was also a show that was likely very spot on for its intended target audience. With it just being a few minutes it’s an easy thing to check out and have a few chuckles with while not feeling like you’ve frittered away your life on something.

Grade: C

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

The folks at Deadline got to follow up on the Hollywood live-action adaptation of Ghost in the Shell with its creative marketing during the season finale of Mr. Robot last week. While it caught a lot of people off guard, the impact of it is something that’s harder to measure, at least by casual observers. According to RelishMix, the “glitch campaign” that Paramount ran earned 12.3 million viewers on the official channel with the opening clip earning over 2 million alone. The service also notes that the “#TheGhostInTheShell hashtags on Twitter and Instagram are triggering positive and enthusiastic conversations.”

“It’s a movie about glitches and technology, and that fits well thematically with Mr. Robot,” says Paramount’s co-president of domestic marketing Rebecca Mall. A former Google executive of industry, Mall also oversees the Melrose lot’s digital marketing initiatives.

Megan Colligan, Paramount’s president of worldwide distribution and marketing, says, “The great thing about season premieres and season finales is that they’re like live sporting events: People want to watch them in real time. Because of the social media explosion, there’s a fear of missing out or having a plot detail spoiled. We knew with the Mr. Robot finale we’d get that extra boost of people who would be sharing on social.”

Adds Colligan: “Ghost in the Shell is so original in its own right that it had to have a special execution to kick it off. We needed a launch that was as unique and original as the property itself. You’ll soon learn about the glitch, it’s one of the most important parts of the film’s storytelling. It was important to present the earliest advertising for this film as a glitch instead of something more traditional.”

Interest in the film is certainly mixed among the hardcore and longtime fans but it’s an area that one hopefully will see various segments attempt to market well as the manga publishers should be getting new editions ready to slide into bookstores for the holidays to seed interest. And, well, it’d be lovely if we could get the Standalone Complex TV series released again as well, you know?

The feature is set to debut on March 31st, 2017 and is directed by Rupert Sanders while being produced by Avi Arad and Steven Paul with Mark Saurian as executive producer. Scarlett Johansson stars as the lead, Pilou Asbæk as Batou, Michael Pitt as the Laughing Man, Juliette Binoche as Dr. Ouelet, Beat Takashi as Daisuke Aramaki and Kaori Momoi. The members of Section 9 are played by Chin Han, Danusia Samal, Lasarus Ratuere, Yutaka Izumihara, Tuwanda Manyimo and Rila Fukushima.

Property concept: Based on the internationally-acclaimed sci-fi property, Ghost in the Shell follows the Major, a special ops, one-of-a-kind human-cyborg hybrid, who leads the elite task force Section 9. Devoted to stopping the most dangerous criminals and extremists, Section 9 is faced with an enemy whose singular goal is to wipe out Hanka Robotic’s advancements in cyber technology.

The multimedia works for the Ao Oni PC game is getting a big adaptation over the next year as it’s been revealed to get a TV series of shorts and a feature film. While the film is set for next summer the TV series is set to go live on October 2nd, 2016 and now a new promotional video for it has arrived. This comes as Crunchyroll has announced their pickup of the streaming rights for the series with plans for it to hit on the same day at 3:15pm ET for members. It’s availability is wide as it’s open worldwide outside of Asia.

The TV series has set Toshirou Hamamura as the general director with Chisei Maeda handling the day to day directorial duties based on the series composition by Kanekoke. Studio Deen is working on the animation for both projects.

The cast for it includes Ryota Ohsaka as Hiroshi, Takahiro Mizushima as Takurō, Eri Kitamura as Mika and Shūta Morishima as Takeshi.

The TV series will work in the SD form that you can see to the right while the film will be an original story based on the game and novel that will go for a more serious approach.

Plot concept: On the outskirts of town stands an abandoned house where ghosts are rumored to appear. Hiroshi and his classmates Takuro, Takeshi, and Mika pay the house a visit, only to be attacked by a bizarre monster, the Blue Devil. Will Hiroshi and his friends succeed in answering riddles and escaping the house, or are they doomed to live hilarious lives forever with the Blue Devil in the haunted house?! The courage-testing life of these four friends begins with the Blue Devil who continues to entertain even after death.

“We’re Kaiju Girls?!”

What They Say:
Humanity’s battle of many years with the kaiju, giant monsters, has finally come to an end. Now that Earth has entered an age of peace, girls with the souls of kaiju have begun to appear, giving them the ability to transform into kaiju. They are known as the Kaiju Girls, and this is the powerful, transient, beautiful, and at times easygoing story of the strange fate these girls bear.

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The world of Kaiju stories out of Japan has always been something of a fringe thing for me as I know it, I’ve seen some of it, and I’ve largely found it not for me. With this series we get a world where there’s been plenty of kaiju experiences that have now changed so that the battles of old are done and the spirit of kaiju are blossoming in young girls. That means we get a range of cute girls in chibi form in basic animation here where they have dual identities, known by their birth name but also with the kaiju name from their past life. This all gets cutie-fied along the way of course as we see them all interacting and learning the tricks of the trade, such as the Soulriser tablet that guides them through transformations into kaiju. It’s all simple school silliness but we do get to see some kaiju action toward the end with one girl that steps into a difficult situation to save the day, showing that kaiju girls can be a force for good.

In Summary:
Kaiju Girls doesn’t offer any surprises here as it’s pretty predictable just based on the simple premise of it being a short and with chibi style animation. What we do get is cute and silly in all the right ways as we get some of the education as to how all of this works but you also get the sense that it’s not going to do much more than plateau from here. Which isn’t exactly a bad thing as you have to look at short form anime a little different. There’s a simplicity that’s appealing here and it’s like a cute comfort show more than something weighty and meaty to dig into. We’ll be along for the ride to see what it does and if it can step things up a bit as it’s certainly enjoyable enough.

Grade: B-

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

Funimation’s coming up fairly quick on the November 15th, 2016 debut of the Chaos Dragon DVD/BD combo release and they’re now bringing out the details of the dub for it. The show set Felecia Angelle to direct it with Mike McFarland as the assistant ADR director. They worked with the scripts from John Burgmeier and Clifford Chapin. The expansive cast includes:

• Ryan Reynolds as Ibuki
• Brad Venable as Red Dragon
• Mary Morgan as Eykha
• Orion Pitts as Sweallow
• Caitlin Glass as Meryl
• Michelle Rojas as Lou
• Eric Vale as Qi Sha Tian Ling
• Mike McFarland as Ka Grava
• T.G. Angelle as Val
• Alexis Tipton as Ulrika
• Jamie Marchi as Gakusho
• Leah Clark as Inori
• Dave Trosko as Agito
• Jeannie Tirado as Mashiro
• Joel McDonald as Hien
• Clifford Chapin as Sol
• Felecia Angelle as Shaddy
• Justin Briner as Byakuei
• Nick Landis as Fugaku
• Alison Viktorin as Kai
• Tia Ballard as Kohkaku
• Monica Rial as Setsuren
• Christopher R. Sabat as Kankohretsu
• Marcus Stimac as Simeon
• Jeremy Inman as Enumael
• Mark Stoddard as Narrator
• Kent Williams as Krama
• J. Michael Tatum as Black Dragon

The complete collection is priced at $64.98 and includes the special features of ISOtone Promo Music Video, Extended Next-Episode Previews, Location-Specific Promo Videos, U.S. Trailer, Trailers.

Check out our review of the complete series here.

Chaos Dragon is part of a multimedia project that’s tied to a boardgame and a smartphone game from Sega Networks and is based on the role-playing fiction project Red Dragon,which was created by five notable creators.

The cast includes Marina Inoue as Ibuki, Miyuki Sawashiro as Eiha, Sōma Saitō as Soirot Clasbari, Maaya Uchida as Rō Chenfa, Unshou Ishizuka as Kagraba, Haruka Terui as Meryl, Jouji Nakata as the Black Dragon, Keiji Fujiwara as Simeon, Aimi as Ulrika, Haruo Satou as Enumael, Tomokazu Seki, Sayaka Ohara, Tōru Ōkawa, Eriko Matsui, Ryoko Shiraishi, Atsushi Tamaru, Ryohei Kimura as Sol, Aoi Yūki as Shaddy and Ayaka Imamura as Miska.

The anime adaptation was directed by Masato Matsune at Silver Link with overall series composition by Ukyou Kodachi with work by Shou Aikawa

Plot concept: The island of Nil Kamui is caught between the war of Kouran and D’natia, two powerful warring countries. When Kouran makes moves to claim the island, there is nothing the people of Nil Kamui can do to stop them. The guardian dragon of the country, Red Dragon, has gone insane and provides them no help, and even a treaty with D’natia provides them with little aid. The small island loses all its independence and becomes divided.

Amidst the war, royal descendant Ibuki loses his entire family to an attack by Kouran soldiers. Haunted by the tragedy, he denies the throne, thinking that Nil Kamui will be better off without a king. However, when tensions rise and the rebel army of Nil Kamui attacks Kouran soldiers, Ibuki finds himself bound to the Red Dragon as a child of contract. With this contract, he will have the powers of Red Dragon when he calls upon him. But there’s a catch. To use this immense power, he must offer an equivalent exchange the life of someone precious to him. Can Ibuki handle the weight of sacrificing a life in exchange for power? Or is the only way to obtain peace to destroy the Red Dragon?

The Tiger Mask W is set to kick off tomorrow in Japan and Crunchyroll has announced that they’re getting in on that as it should reach a pretty good audience. The series will premiere on October 1st, 2016 at 3:45pm ET for members with it being available to viewers in the U.S.A, Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Central and South America including the Caribbean.

The series will be directed by Toshiaki Komura based on the scripts supervised by Katsuhiko Chiba. Hisashi Kagawa is on board to handle the character designs for it with animation coming from Toei Animation where they’re working 2D and 3DCG animation work.

The Japanese cast includes Taku Yashiro as Naoto Azuma/New Tiger Mask, Yuichiro Umehara as Takuma Fujii/Tiger The Dark, Kenichi Suzumura as Hiroshi Tanahashi, Suzuko Mimori as Haruna Takaoka, Masakazu Morita as Kazuchika Okada, Ryouichi Tanaka as Kentarou Takaoka, Takeshi Kusao as Daisuke Fujii and Chiemi Chiba as Ruriko Yamashina.

The property is based on the original manga from Ikki Kajiwara that began back in 1968 and had a couple of TV series adaptations over the years.

Plot concept: The protagonists are two young pro wrestlers, Naoto Azuma and Takuma Fujii. Both were trainees of “Jipang Pro Wrestling,” a small pro wrestling team, until it was crushed by the evil “Global Wrestling Monopoly (GWM)” team. To plan their revenge, Azuma trained at the foot of Mount Fuji, becoming the “New Tiger Mask,” while Takuma entered “The Tiger’s Hole,” the organization that manipulates GWM, becoming “Tiger the Dark.”

“The Cats That Came From the Stars”

What They Say:
Tora is hard at work looking for pieces of the Nyanbo’s UFO again today… but the other Nyanbo just want to laze around, sharpen their claws, and act like cats.

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
With some of my favorite short-form anime series focusing on cats as I have fond memories of Chi’s Sweet Home and especially Poyo Poyo, the arrival of a 3DCG short series with Nyanbo is certainly up my alley. I like taking the diversions from the seasonal sets I review to take in something light and simple with a cuteness that can click. This one has an extra special appeal because it uses lots of live action footage so we get to see more of “real” Japan as these cute little square headed cats interact with it. The focus of the series is to find pieces of the Nyanbo’s UFO as they’re not from here but the usual problem of being more interested in enjoying the simple pleasures of life is what really drives most of them. Tora wants to do what’s needed and that makes him a bit frustrated to say the least, even as we get some like Shiro being all cute in trying to win him over to her view of things. Tora’s intent on getting things done but the rest really just want to be cats and enjoy life, which one can easily understand.

In Summary:
I really had no idea what to expect going into this show since so little was revealed beforehand but I’ll be damned if it didn’t just enchant me overall. It’s not high art or anything but it’s a decidedly creative approach and I love that use of live-action and the 3DCG to bring it to life – especially since they spend time trying to get a real cat to do what it’s told here and that just feels like far too much fun. I definitely want to know more about the Nyanbo here and to connect with the little group that exists as we just get a slim look at them overall here. This is definitely charming and cute and I adore the character designs. One of the highlights of the fall season to be sure for short-form fans.

Grade: B

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

We’re almost to the debut of the Tiger Mask W series that’s set to arrive on October 1st, 2016 and that has Toei Animation getting a little more priming of the pump out there for the late night series. While we’ve had some material before, a lot of what we’ve gotten for the show has been cast and staff updates and the like. Now we have our first TV spot and a good fun look at the animation itself.

The series will be directed by Toshiaki Komura based on the scripts supervised by Katsuhiko Chiba. Hisashi Kagawa is on board to handle the character designs for it with animation coming from Toei Animation where they’re working 2D and 3DCG animation work.

The Japanese cast includes Taku Yashiro as Naoto Azuma/New Tiger Mask, Yuichiro Umehara as Takuma Fujii/Tiger The Dark, Kenichi Suzumura as Hiroshi Tanahashi, Suzuko Mimori as Haruna Takaoka, Masakazu Morita as Kazuchika Okada, Ryouichi Tanaka as Kentarou Takaoka, Takeshi Kusao as Daisuke Fujii and Chiemi Chiba as Ruriko Yamashina.

The property is based on the original manga from Ikki Kajiwara that began back in 1968 and had a couple of TV series adaptations over the years.

Plot concept: The protagonists are two young pro wrestlers, Naoto Azuma and Takuma Fujii. Both were trainees of “Jipang Pro Wrestling,” a small pro wrestling team, until it was crushed by the evil “Global Wrestling Monopoly (GWM)” team. To plan their revenge, Azuma trained at the foot of Mount Fuji, becoming the “New Tiger Mask,” while Takuma entered “The Tiger’s Hole,” the organization that manipulates GWM, becoming “Tiger the Dark.”

“Fly! Fly! Goma-chan!”

What They Say:
A cute, pleasant story of Ashibe and Goma-chan and their unusual school and their neighbors. Sometimes endearing, sometimes bizarre, it’s a fun anime for the whole family!.

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The return of Shonen Ashibe this month has certainly been welcome after it took a break for part of the summer due to the Olympics and other reasons. That said, the show disappointed a bit so far with minimal Sugao in the first episode that returned and then nothing at all the last time around. It was a good bit of fun that we had regardless, but there’s that craving after being away from him for so long that I want to see more of his struggle. The show does work the balance well when it comes to the characters it focuses on, keeping it from being all about Goma-chan for instance, so there’s a lot to enjoy regardless. But I’ve got my pet needs here when it comes to Sugao that must be sated!

This episode shifts back to Goma-chan for a good bit of it as his curiosity and struggle with a nature not normally his is front and center. When we see him trying to figure out how to fly after seeing some birds do it, well, it’s cute to be sure and you kind of want him to succeed in some weird way. Of course, it doesn’t take long for Ashibe and his father to figure it out and that means some amusing misunderstandings from the get go. Goma-chan actually does his best to figure it out on his own for a bit but he has some natural obstacles that are throwing him off from accomplishing it. Of course, there has to be a trick or two and that comes when he and Ashibe end up seeing Tendou doing some pole vaulting to incredible heights and you almost get a glimmer of an idea.

Part of the problem is that Ashibe is pretty much your standard little kid who has no concept of how things actually work, so coming up with silly ideas to help him fly only serves to frustrate Goma-chan – though they at least amuse us. It’s his grandfather that offers some help yet it’s the kind of help that really should frighten since he sets them up for some skydiving. I really wish that had gone through as it would have been hilarious to see how freaked out Ashibe would likely get, never mind Goma-chan. In the end, it’s no surprise that Goma-chan doesn’t get to fly like he wants to but we do get some nice material for him that comes with a price to be paid. The dream of flight inspires all!

In Summary:
Shonen Ashibe has another cute episode here and watching how things come together for him is definitely a journey filled with struggle. But you have to like that Goma-chan perseveres throughout it and never gives up. And he should give up considering the kind of help he’s getting from Ashibe and his family. It’s a good bit of silliness with some nice callbacks that work well to keep the momentum and energy going for the show.

Sugao Watch: We get a minor bit of time with him and a few others stuck in a pit. My heart is in that pit as well. Climb, Sugao, climb!

Grade: B

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

The spring 2016 anime series 12-Sai revealed previously that it was going to get a second season which is now set to land on October 3rd, 2016. Ahead of that debut, the official channel of the magazine it appears in has added a new teaser spot to remind fans that the property is about to hit the airwaves again. The anime adaptation has a lengthy name attached to it as well with 12-Sai: Chiccha na Mune no Tokimeki, which is translated as Age 12: A Little Heart-Pounding.

This adaptation is directed by Masaharu Okuwaki based on series composition from Fumi Tsubota. OLM is handling the animation production for the series. The cast includes Ai Kakuma as Hanabi Ayase, Soma Saito as Yuuto Takao, Juri Kimura as Yui Aoi, Shun Horie as Kazuma Hiyama, Mayuki Makiguchi as Marin Ogura, Sayuri Hara as Kokoa Hamana and Tetsuya Kakihara as Ayumu Tsutsumi.

The manga from Nao Maita previously had a short-form eight episode OVA series.

Plot concept: The story begins with Hanahi, a sixth-grade girl who is neither an adult nor a child. She deals with issues such as accidentally witnessing her homeroom teacher kissing, and worrying about experiencing physiological changes before her friends. The manga depicts a 12-year-old girl’s innocent worries and first love.

A perfect jumping on point.

Creative Staff:
Story: Jim Zub
Art: Steve Cummings
Colors: Tamra Bonvillain

What They Say:
NEW STORY ARC! This issue is the perfect place to jump on board and see what Image’s supernatural sensation has to offer. Rori and Ayane have been transported to Ireland and the Emerald Isle teems with new magic, mystery, and danger.

Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
With the previous arc of Wayward wrapping up back in March it’s certainly been quite the break for the series. Which is good in a lot of ways as it gives people a chance to dig into the trades and for more word of mouth to get out there. It also gives the creative team a chance to collect their thoughts, nudge a few other things along, and come back refreshed. And this opening installment of a new arc from Zub and Cummings, which picks up where we left off, feels very refreshed. The previous arc kind of frustrated me with how complicated things were getting as the narrative was becoming a bit thick but there’s a good sense of things being pared down a bit here and a better map toward the future being looked at in how to move it there.

Bringing Rori and Ayane back to Ireland through her dad’s powers definitely helps to provide the break we need from events in Japan while opening up mysteries here. This issue actually gives us a little time in the distant past as we see him as a young man first meeting Rori’s mother and there’s some real charm to it as it plays out and segues into the present. But at the same time, it makes his crying at the news of her death feel all the more forced and fake with how it’s presented here and how cavalier he is not that much later. Rori’s struggling with a lot of things so you can see her not quite being certain how to take him with it or even recognizing it since we all grieve in different ways, but it left me with some real wariness toward the man. That whole sequence at least broke things up with some real lightness as we have Ayane trying to understand what’s going on since they’re all speaking in English that she can’t understand.

With the pair settling in temporarily with him to get things figured out, we do get a tease of what’s to come as Ayane tries to communicate with the local cats but is rebuffed as an outsider. I’m definitely intrigued by the cat that turns invisible here. We also get to see that Rori’s dad is definitely as he always was, lifting wallets and playing loose with everything while heaping the charm out there. Rori’s dad also gets a bit more exploration as we see him dealing with something very supernatural but it’s a mystery at the moment that only Ayane sees. Oh, sweet Ayane, sleeping at the foot of the bed like a cat. So adorable. The book does a good job of connecting us with Rori and Ayane throughout this that even if you hadn’t read the series before you could enjoy it quite well and the little recap Rori gives her father fills in some of the blanks while also providing a smooth and simple summary of what happened.

In Summary:
The start of a new Wayward arc always seems to leave me hopeful and upbeat but then things get complicated along the way and it becomes a bit of a chore. So, with this issue I’m feeling pretty good about everything that we get and it does work as a very solid launching point for new readers. Zub keeps it all moving quite well here and Steve Cummings almost feels like he’s reinvigorated here with the visual design which pops even more thanks to what Bonvillain does with the color work. It’s a very good read and one that makes out a whole lot better by taking a slower pace with it all rather than barreling into a lot of new additions and expansions.

Grade: B+

Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Image Comics via ComiXology
Release Date: September 28th, 2016
MSRP: $2.99

The fifth volume of Youjo Senki revealed back in January that an anime adaptation was coming and things have been pretty quiet since. Now, the official site and Kadokawa have released a new 75-second promo for it while revealing that it’s full name is Youjo Senki: Saga of Tanya the Evil. There’s no dialogue with it to be had nor any details of the cast or staff but we do get some good instrumental music that certainly sets the tone for it.

The Enterbrain published series is written by Carlo Zen with illustrations from Shinobu Shinotsuki and began back in 2013. An audio drama came with the third volume as wel.

Plot concept: On the front lines of the war, there is a little girl. Blond hair, blue eyes, and porcelain white skin, she commands the army with lisping voice. Her name is Tanya Degurechaff. But in reality, she is one of Japan’s most elite salarymen, reborn as a little girl after angering a mysterious being who calls himself God. This little girl, who prioritizes efficiency and her own carrier over anything else, will become the most dangerous being amongst the sorcerers of the imperial army.

Elfen Lied

Australian streaming service AnimeLab is boosting their catalog a bit this week as we get into the fall season as they’ve announced the addition of the cult classic Elfen Lied. The service doesn’t have a start date for it but the episodes will be coming soon.

Check out our review of the complete series here.

Plot concept: Lucy, a beautiful young mutant, is bred by the military to be the ultimate weapon. Now, with government killers on her trail, the disposition of a five year old, and a hair trigger for ultraviolence, Lucy and her young friends must unravel the dark secret of her legacy before it’s too late.

Warner Bros. Japan brought out a quick TV spot about six weeks ago for the Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? Blu-ray box set that ties into the arrival of the new OVA for it. Warner Bros. Japan has scheduled a December 7th, 2016 release for the thirteen episode series box set that includes the OVA where it’s priced at 25,596 yen. Now in an effort to get in more orders before some the cutoffs come into play, they’ve brought out a new 90-second promo that shows off more of the OVA itself. The OVA by itself is 6,156 yen on Blu-ray while the DVD release is 5,076 yen.

The anime adaptation of Fujino Omori’s light novel series is the first part of a slate of titles that will be planned for the GA Bunko imprint that it’s a part of. The series is directed by Yoshiki Yamakawa at JC Staff based on scripts and composition by Hideki Shirane and character designs by Shigeko Kimoto.

The series stars Yoshitsugu Matsuoka as Bell Cranel, Inori Minase as Hestia, Saori Onishi as Eyes Warenstein, Maaya Uchida as Ririruka Ahde, Haruka Tomatsu as Eina Chūru and Shizuka Ishigami as Shiru Furova.

Plot concept: The huge labyrinth city, Orario, is the gateway to the huge underground maze commonly known as the “Dungeon”. Its strange name causes excitement, a place to gain honour, and maybe even a romance with a pretty girl. A place where people hold their breath, hoping to gain all they wish for, a place where a solitary young man meets a little “god”.

The anime adaptation of the Nanbaka is coming up on October 4th, 2016 with worldwide availability outside of Asia through Crunchyroll. They’ve also revealed that Funimation will be producing an English language dub for the series. Ahead of that, Tokuma Japan has now dropped a preview TV spot teaser for it that gives us a little more taste of the opening sequence and the animation itself.

The work is adapting Sho Futamata’s manga as it will be directed by Shinji Takamatsu, who has experience in comedy material with School Rumble and Gintama, and he’ll be working off of scripts from Mitsutaka Hirota.

The Japanese cast includes Yuuto Uemura as Jūgo, Tetsuya Kakihara as Uno, Airu Shiozaki as Rokku, Daiki Kobayashi as Niko, Tomokazu Seki as Hajime Sugoroku, Satomi Akesaka as Momoko Hyakushiki, Kenjirou Tsuda as Mitsuru Hitokoe, Kimeru as Kiji Mitsuba, Shouma Yamamoto as Kenshirou Yozakuro, Soichiro Hoshi as Samon Gokuu, Shunsuke Takeuchi as Yamato Godai, Keito Okuyama as Seitarou Tanabata, Toshiyuki Toyonaga as Tsukumo, Yuuki Fujiwara as Liang, Yuu Kobayashi as Upa, Genki Okawa as Qi, Yuto Adachi as Trois, Takao Mitsutomo as Honey, Yoshimasa Hosoya as Musashi and Eishin Fudemura as Hitoshi Sugoroku.

The manga began back in the PlayArt app back in 2013 and has two volumes to its name.

Plot concept: A super exciting action comedy starring the inmates and guards of the world’s most formidable prison; Uno, a man who likes to gamble with women; Rokku, a man who likes to get into fights; and Niko, a man who likes anime. Along with their warden Hajime, the high-tension action comedy story unfolds.

The back catalog continues to grow with the Australian streaming service AnimeLab as they’ve acquired the full twelve episode run of Please Teacher! for distribution. There are no detrails at the moment as to whether it’ll be a bilingual streaming run or not, or the start date for it, but more details are expected sooner rather than later.

Check out our review of the series here.

The series was an original work from 2002 that ran for a single twelve episode season, produced an OVA and had both a brief manga run and a light novel. The series was animated by studio Daume and was licensed in North America by Bandai Entertainment before Nozomi picked up the rights to it back in 2015.

The English language adaptation stars Dave Wittenberg, Bridget Hoffman, Michelle Ruff, Julie Anne Taylor, Melissa Fahn, Kirk Thornton, Tony Schnur, Michael McConnohie, Karen Strassman, Sandy Fox, Tony Oliver and Wendee Lee.

Plot concept: Kei Kusanagi isn’t your typical 15-year-old high school student. He’s actually an 18-year-old with a rare disorder that puts him into what he calls, a “standstill”! When he was younger, this disorder left him in a deep coma which stunted his growth for three years. Mizuho Kazami isn’t your typical teacher, either. She’s actually an alien sent by the Galaxy Federation to observe the Earth!

As the sole human being with knowledge of Ms. Kazumi’s secret, Kei must… marry her?! Homework, dating, and a gorgeous wife – going to school has never been quite this fun!