“Chidori, Like a Bird”

What They Say:
The year is 1555, the middle of the Warring States period, and one young man holds on to a very big dream. That young man, known as an empty-headed fool, is none other than Oda Nobunaga. Enchanted by his dream, a certain young girl who admires Nobunaga swears that she will become his ninja one day. Nobunaga has one goal: to unify Japan by military might! Decorated by a colorful cast of characters, including the airheaded Kichou, the errand boy Hideyoshi, the tsundere Nene, the straight man Mitsuhide, and the half-dead Hanbei, this heavy-hitting wartime gag anime is about to begin!!

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The battle with Imagawa has been set and the fun of the ninja side hit previously with Chidori doing her best for Nobunaga. With this episode, it’s time to confront the invading forces and going through some of the traditions, which includes a cute bit early on with Nobunaga doing his dance. There’s some fun historical facts mixed into the lead off here as we get Chidori going to do the work she’s assigned by scouting it all out, but what we get are some pretty impressive numbers overall as Imagawa pushes forward and conquers areas. It’s done with some level of silliness to keep it light, mostly in the dialogue, and it works to both teach in its own way while having fun as Nobunaga awaits the details from Chidori.

In Summary:
The fight against Yoshimoto and the Imagawa army is moving closer and that’s made to be a fun thing here with how the two sides go at it. We’ve gotten the prep from Imagawa previously and this one focuses on getting Nobunaga into place and using what he has to get there – and to be in the right place. It’s light and silly without being ridiculously so and that just makes it pretty appealing with its cute factor.

Grade: B-

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

The launch of an official site about a month ago  for  the upcoming original series Seiren and now some additional details have arrived. The latest comes in the form of two character spots for the show that works their designs and gives us a taste of the voice actor and interpretation of them.  Interestingly, this new project will feature a new story that takes place at the same high school as Amagami SS and is scheduled to air in January 2017 on TBS, BS-TBS, and Sun TV.

The characters introduced are Aya Sakura as Hikari Tsuneki and Juri Kimura as Kyouko Touno

The show is set to be directed by Tomoki Kobayashi based on the series composition from Kisai Takayama, who also did the original character designs. Those are being adapted by Naoto Hosoda. The animation studio behind the project is Studio Gokumi and AXsiZ.

“Fight! 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)
With its unusual tone and pacing so far, missing some really easy opportunities for laughs and engagement, I’m still trying to get a handle on Kaiju Girls. With this episode, we get a little more on the wild Kaiju Girl that we’ve seen before only to have the newbies end up coming across her, which is certainly problematic. It’s fun to watch the rampaging Kaiju Girl making her dent out there as the three newbies just can’t do anything to stop her since she’s so over the top. There’s a comical rage coming from the girl since she’s being viewed as a kid when she’s anything but, and that makes for some silly fun action.

In Summary:
With a greater focus on the action this time around, Kaiju Girls is properly silly as we see all of them going at it and causing a whole lot of trouble. It’s almost kinda basic classic giant monster action with the destruction caused but you have to laugh at how it’s mostly just taped up to be repaired by the end of it. There’s not a lot of depth here once again and our newbies are pretty much just fodder for the rampage, but we do at least see that they’re inspired by their defeat to grow and become better.

Grade: C-

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

Warner Bros. is looking to strike the right kind of balance when it comes to their Justice League Action property in that it wants to be lighter and more accessible to kids, especially in contrast to the films, but also appeal to adults that will be watching with them. And, of course, to try and get the comic book fans on their side so as to not tank it through social media. After bringing out a sizzle reel earlier this year that you can see below, three clips have now surfaced online and I can imagine that the humor is going to grate with some fans. For me, it works pretty well as it harkens back to the pre-dark era of the comics to a good degree while not going fully Silver Age in tone and style.

The new series is set to be done in 11-minute episodes similar to Teen Titans Go! and it’ll feature a solid voice cast. Kevin Conroy returns to voice Batman while Mark Hamill will be back as The Joker. We also know that James Woods will participate as Lex Luthor while Diedrich Bader will be taking on the role of Booster Gold. Bader, amusingly enough, starred as Batman in Batman: The Brave and the Bold.

Plot concept: “Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman lead the DC Comics Super Heroes against their most infamous foes in adventures packed with relentless thrills, fun and action. No need to wait for the good stuff to start, each eleven-minute episode jumps in with lightning-paced action and heroics. Whether defending the Earth, facing invaders from space, or battling the bizarre forces of magic, the always-rotating team of Justice League heroes, are up to any challenge.

SDCC Trailer:

“Come Back Home, Ma!”

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)
With a skip week behind us, Shonen Ashibe moves into the final dozen episodes that we know of that are planned for the series. The show is one that I don’t mind that it takes breaks as it does because its charm is definitely there and getting some time away only reinforces my interest in the show. The only thing that’s kind of bugged me about it with the last several episodes since it came back from its summer break is how little Sugao we’re getting as I find that character an endless well of amusement that can be worked. There feels like there’s a whole lot to explore with it and not going down that path a bit more than they have is like missing a significant opportunity…

This episode focuses a bit on Ashibe’s mother, a character that has had some choice lines over the course of the run. With her not home as the day wears on, Ashibe is getting worried while his father is pretty blase about it. With that in mind, the two start to wonder if something happened that’s caused her to not come home that night and we see Ashibe viewing a lot of it through a lens where, yes, they have indeed screwed up a number of times. There’s always a selfish aspect to people that comes up and you get it a good bit with kids as well as they don’t know any better. Seeing the various ways in which Ma got caught up in the shenanigans and lack of thinking by the others makes for some good amusement, which includes Goma-chan from time to time as well as we see him throwing a fit over not getting some fatty tuna at the market like he wanted. Oh, the guilt of a sea lion!

In Summary:
While you expect there to be a gag as to why she’s late, and there is, the bulk of the episode is fun just to see the family dynamic play out as much as it does. And to see that Ma has her own quirks that makes her a perfect fit within this family that has grown together. There’s a lot to like in the smaller moments here but as I’ve mentioned over the years I tend to like episodes that focus on the parents as they have so many fun quirks to dig into. That all came about from watching the Urusei Yatsura parents and shows like this just reinforce the fun and silliness.

Sugao Watch: A far too brief sequence of him in a warm embrace is not enough to carry me through another week without Sugao.

Grade: B

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

With the original TV series finishing up its broadcast previously in Japan with its additional episode that saw streaming on The Anime Network, TOHO is now doing some additional promotion for Majestic Prince the Movie: Awakening of Genetics. The film began its two-week engagement on November 4th, 2016 and they’ve now got a new minute-long action sequence for it to try and drive some new engagement and get a few more butts in the seats before it finishes its run in another week.

You can read our first half and second half reviews of the anime series. The show was picked up and localized by Sentai Filmworks.

This 24 episode sci-fi action series was directed by Keitaro Motonaga (Akane Iro ni Somaru Saka, Getbackers) and features series composition by Reiko Yoshida (K-ON!, Girls und Panzer) with character designs by Hisashi Hirai (Mobile Suit Gundam Seed series, S-CRY-ed), and mecha designs by Yuji Tani, Koji Watanabe (Blue Gender) and Yasuhiro Moriki (Martian Successor Nadesico).

Plot concept: In the not-so-distant future, the people of earth have expanded their frontier into the solar system. And now, we’re under attack! Advances in physics and genetic engineering have created astonishing new flying war machines and pilots with a wide array of enhanced abilities. Young Izuru has been chosen to lead the hapless Team Rabbits into battle against the sinister Wulgaru forces. Spearheaded by the cold and savage Prince Jiart, these dark invaders possess both superior firepower and technology, as well as an unwavering thirst for earthly destruction. It will be up to Izuru and his brash band of misfits to vanquish the enemy and save us all! If they don’t kill each other first!

“Shape Up on the Balance Ball. I Dub Thee My XX”

What They Say:
Five girls who are aiming to become idols, lead the viewer through practicing various types of training, such as push-up, sit-up, back extension, dance, yoga, stretch, trunk training, and Tai Chi, while talking to viewers.

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
With this episode, the focus shifts to Sakura, who brings a more childlike (or childish) view of things since she’s younger looking and acts like it. That’s made even more by all the stuffed animals in her room. So, that naturally makes the show appealing to those that like their girls very young looking and they deliver it here as she works the balance ball by stretching all over it very uncomfortable ways through the camera angles used. Now, you know she’s the same age as the others, but you also know the intent here in utterly sexualizing every stretch and move she makes. Thankfully, she doesn’t spend the whole episode on that and gets a few other things going, but the animators also make sure that every stretch and squat is done pretty erotically.

In Summary:
When it comes to what this show does, something it does well, there are some characters that make it more uncomfortable than others. Sakura is most definitely one of those, though it should be noted that there is a lot of truth in how there are many women who look very young even at a much older age. That said, that’s not what this show is trying to deal with nor is it the intended audience, so the whole thing just makes me cringe a whole lot with what it does, especially with how good the animation quality is here.

Grade: C

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

The partnership between Crunchyroll and Funimation is certainly bearing some fruit as we’ve got a lot of dubs hitting this season, including the Keijo!!!!!!! SimulDub that’s being produced. The series brings out new episodes every Sunday night at 10:00pm ET on the Funimation site and Funimation has now brought out a quickie of a dub clip to give us a taste of both the performances and the tone of the show. Clifford Chapin handling the ADR direction working from the scripts by Monica Rial. The English cast for it includes:

• Amber Lee Connors as Nozomi Kaminashi
• Felecia Angelle as Sayaka Miyata
• Sarah Wiedenheft as Non Toyoguchi
• Alexis Tipton as Kazane Aoba
• Morgan Berry as Yuko Ooshima
• Kristen McGuire as Hanabi Kawai
• Jamie Marchi as Nagisa Ujibe
• Dawn M. Bennett as Miku Kobayakawa

Animated by Xebec, the series was directed by Hideya Takahashi based on the series composition from Takao Kato. Keiya Nakano handled the character designs for it.

The Japanese cast includes Lynn as Nozomi Kaminashi, M.A.O as Sayaka Miyata, Kaede Hondo as Kazane Aoba, Saori Oonishi as Non Toyoguchi, Rena Maeda as Hanabi Kawai, Hibiku Yamamura as Mio Kusakai and Rie Takahashi as Rin Rokudō.

The work comes from creator Daichi Sorayomi which began back in 2013 and has eleven volumes out as of this past spring. The work is Sorayomi’s second after the three volume series Momi-Baraishi ran in Club Sunday for three volumes between 2011 and 2012.

The opening theme song is “DREAMxSCRAMBLE!” by AiRI while the ending theme song is performed by the four lead actresses with “Fantas/HIP Girlfriends!”

Plot concept: Kaminashi Nozomi (17) is an exceptional gymnast. So much so that colleges with some of the best gymnastic programs are trying to recruit her. Unfortunately for them, she has other plans. Due to her family being extremely poor, money is everything to her. That’s why she wants to step into the world of “Keijo.” “Keijo” is a type of gambling sport where girls stand on a small floating platform and compete against one another. The aim is to push the other contestant off of the platform into the water, but they are only allowed to use their butt or breasts to push the others off. Will Nozomi be able to compete in the intense world of “Keijo” and bring wealth and fortune for her family?

“Quizun is Suddenly…”

What They Say:
Tokine solves the riddle of the boxes with a little help from her English skills.

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The structure of the series was made pretty clear over what we’ve had so far and that means mostly what we get with this episode is focused on the puzzle solving itself. That’s become less appealing as the show goes on since it’s more wordplay and other elements that don’t always translate well overseas and I keep finding myself more interested in the real world story of Tokine and what she does, both for work and with friends. So spending about six minutes watching her solve puzzles doesn’t hold a whole lot of appeal when it just feels more like a gimmick than anything else.

What we do get is a lot of narration from her as she tries to figure out the clues and work through it, which I imagine is fun if you enjoy puzzles. This one makes a small twist by using some English words in order to solve it, so there’s also the fun of having the actress speak them. It is amusing seeing Tokine coming up with the words and some of the tricks to it, which also impresses the puzzle overseer, Hacchin. Tokine does a good job of breaking down the clues and working through it and there is some fun in watching that unfold, but it’s also kind of slow going overall and it becomes less and less interesting as it progresses.

In Summary:
Nazotokine is the kind of show that I imagine works well in watching with friends or as a family to try and solve, but the puzzle aspect of it is what’s proving to be a slog to get through for me since it comes across as too drawn out. And I’m more interested in Tokine’s actual life and story since we’ve got a character that’s an adult, has friends, goes out, and does things we never see in other shows. And she’s not chasing a guy, either. Definitely an odd episode once again that leaves me wanting more of parts of it and less of other pieces.

Grade: C

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

The live-action film for the Blade of the Immortal manga recently set an April 29th, 2017 debut and now we’ve got some new material to sink our teeth into. Warner Bros. Japan has put together a quick spot below that showcases some elements of the film, making it available to stream worldwide, but they’ve put the longer teaser for it on the official site as opposed to a YouTube embed. That one shows off more of the main cast with what looks like a pretty compelling film in our futures. With the film being shot on location in Kyoto, one can imagine there being a lot to like in marketing it in the spring in that area and others as well.

The cast for the film includes Takuya Kimura as Manji, Hana Sugisaki as Rin Asano , Hayato Ichihara as Shira, Erika Toda as Makie Otonotachibana, Ebizou Ichikawa as Eiku Shizuma, Tsutomu Yamazaki as Kensui Ibane, Min Tanaka as Habaki Kagimura, Kazuki Kitamura as Sabato Kuroi, Chiaki Kuriyama as Hyakurin and Shinnosuke Mitsushima as Taito Magatsu.

The film is directed by Takashi Miike. It’s based on the manga by Hiroaki Samura that began in 1993 and finished in 2012, with Dark Horse Comics publishing it in North America for much the same period where it won an Eisner years ago. New omnibus editions are in the works domestically for it.

Plot concept: To end his eternal suffering, he must slay one thousand enemies! Manji, a ronin warrior of feudal Japan, has been cursed with immortality. To rid himself of this curse and end his life of misery, he must slay one thousand evil men! His quest begins when a young girl seeks his help in taking revenge on her parents’ killers . . . and his quest won’t end until the blood of a thousand has spilled!

“Because I Can’t Stay in This Outfit”

What They Say:
Yuzuka Hanami is an average girl, with a few friends until one day she finds a strange creature named Miton digging through the garbage. Miton suspiciously tells Yuzuka that she has the makings of a magical girl. However, much to her dismay, when she transforms, Yuzuka is wearing a bathing suit.

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
As the series works a good balance between group stories and more individual tales, there’s been some good if pretty light and fluffy episodes so far. That doesn’t change much here as Yuzuka is reaching her breaking point when it comes to her outfit. Part of that comes from the way she’s being abused in regards to it, such as going to the coffee shop so that she can transform and cool down the place since the air conditioner isn’t working. Of course, we learn early on that that’s not the case and it was just an opportunity to get her into minimal clothing because of how cute she is. It is fun with the water bubbles everywhere but it’s also pretty manipulative.

In Summary:
There’s a lighter tone to this episode that plays well as we get the trio playing games and having fun at the cafe with what’s going on there, but the whole reason for the hot room just kind of rubs me the wrong way. I do like how Chiya and Yuzuka handle things and Yuzuka never finds out the truth, but Mafuyu just comes across in a bad way here. Like other episodes, however, it is really nicely animated with its color tone and quality of animation and that means it’s a pleasant episode on at least that level.

Grade: B-

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

With the noitaminA works now essentially being a non-existent joke thanks to the agreement made for their shows to show up through Amazon, primarily in Japan with the rest of the world being forgotten about, the official channel has now put together an extended thirteen minute digest video of the anime adaptation of the novel Fune wo Amu, known as The Great Passage. The digest video serves to try and get folks interested in it as it gets ready for its sixth episode next week for viewers in Japan. Toshimasa Kuroyanaga is on board to direct it based on the series composition by Takuya Sato. Character designs are being handled by Hiroyuki Aoyama with Zecsx handling the animation production.

The Japanese cast includes Takahiro Sakurai as Mitsuya Majime, Hiroshi Kamiya as Masashi Nishioka, Maaya Sakamoto as Kaguya Hayashi, Tetsuo Kaneo as Kouhei Araki, Mugihito as Housuke Matsumoto, Yoshihiko Sakakibara as Kaoru Sasaki, Chiwa Saito as Remi Miyoshi and Yoko Hikasa as Midori Kishibe.

The opening theme song is “Skiokaze” by Taiiku Okazaki and the ending theme song “I&I” which will be performed by Leola.

Plot concept: The series revolves around Mitsuya Majime and Masashi Nishioka. Mitsuya is a serious man who is a poor talker, and Masashi is a sociable man. The novels follow their friendship, determination, and passion as they work together to publish a new dictionary titled “The Great Passage”.

“Yuki-onna and Yukinko”

What They Say:
This is the visual diary of Kiitaro’s experience with youkai. He’s a boy with a very strong spirit sense, but when he entered a forbidden storehouse, he was kicked out of his home. He soon found a new place to live, where he met a zashiki warashi (house spirit) named Suzu. He and Suzu soon began to attract all kinds of spirit creatures, starting with a nurikabe (appears as a wall that impedes travelers) and mokumokuren (appears as eyes in a torn paper wall). What kind of folkloric creature will he meet next?

The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Kiitaro’s journeys and what he comes across are definitely fun to watch just for the visuals and this episode with Yuki and Yukinko definitely fits that. The snow related yokai has always been a favorite and having him come across her has its proper weird moments that only gets weirder when Yuki-onna arrives to hang out with Suzu. Both are pretty similar in design/age so there’s some fun in just how normal they are in this regard. The show wants to give us time with them being normal, which even feels like too much for Kiitaro in how normal they are, but it has him saving the day when it come to Yuki-onna because of how difficult it is for her to function in the heat. Yuki-onna isn’t fresh or original but the dynamic between the trio works surprisingly well, aided by it being such a short show.

In Summary:
This series still feels pretty off in a number of ways but as it goes on it’s getting a better handle on the pacing and structure of it. The focus on our snowbound yokai is always a pleaser for me so there’s plenty to like here, especially with Suzu being friends with Yuki-onna and just doing such utterly normal stuff together. The cuteness hits the right notes and the overall presentation is one that’s appealing with what it does.

Grade: C+

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

The month of October worked a bit familiar with what hit the charts as The Walking Dead scooped up four positions on it as fans got ready for the seventh season to get underway. The latest volume took the top spot but we also get the other three spread a bit further down the line. DC Comics doesn’t have a big month this time around as it’s just Batman: The Killing Joke and the first Harley Quinn volume charting, but hopefully as more Rebirth titles arrive we’ll see a surge. Marvel has some good numbers with Black Panther moving upward, but that’s the only book to chart as well. Image Comics has a bit more than just The Walking Dead to work with as the fantastic Monstress is still charting and we get Saga with its latest holding on strong.

On the manga side, Viz Media takes five spots with their properties this month, four of which are manga, as they chart with two volumes of Tokyo Ghoul and two volumes of One-Punch Man. They also get a slot with Super Mario Adventures ranking pretty high at sixth place. Sadly, no manga from other publishers charted in the top twenty.

[Source; ICv2]

With the first cour of Bungo Stray Dogs having arrived this past spring and the second cour underway, a teaser spot for the upcoming nineteenth episode has arrived that’s due out on November 16th, 2016. Crunchyroll is streaming the series as they did for the first season.

Studio Bones announced the project with its adaptation in early August 2015. The series comes from the manga that began in 2012 in Young Ace from writer Kafka Asagiri and artist Harukawa35. The ninth compiled volume came out on December 29th, 2015.

The anime adaptation was produced by Bones with Takuya Igarashi directing it based on the screenplay by Yoji Enokido. Nobuhiro Arai served as both character designer and chief animation director.

The cast includes Yuto Uemura as Atsushi Nakajima, Mamoru Miyano as Osamu Dazai, Yoshimasa Hosoya as Doppo Kunikida, Hiroshi Kamiya as Ranpo Edogawa, Toshiyuki Toyonaga as Junichirou Tanizaki, Hiroyuki Kagura as Kenji Miyazawa, Yuu Shimamura as Akiko Yosano, Chiaki Omigawa as Naomi Tanizak, Rikiya Koyama as Yukichi Fukuzawa, Kensho Ono as Ryuunosuke Akutagawa, Wataru Hatano as Motojiro Kaijii, Asami Seto as Ichiyo Higuchi and Sumire Morohoshi as Kyoka Izumi.

Plot concept: Nakajima Atsushi was kicked out of his orphanage, and now he has no place to go and no food. While he is standing by a river, on the brink of starvation, he rescues a man whimsically attempting suicide. That man is Dazai Osamu, and he and his partner Kunikida are members of a very special detective agency. They have supernatural powers and deal with cases that are too dangerous for the police or the military. They’re tracking down a tiger that has appeared in the area recently, around the time Atsushi came to the area. The tiger seems to have a connection to Atsushi, and by the time the case is solved, it is clear that Atsushi’s future will involve much more of Dazai and the rest of the detectives!

German distributor FilmConfect has been working through their releases of the Danganronpa series with the first two volumes now out. After getting the first out in August and the second in October, the third volume has now been scheduled for its bilingual release on December 16th, 2016 and they cover artwork for it has arrived as well. Both DVD and Blu-ray releases are coming priced at 25 euro each.

The series was directed by Seiji Kishi based on the series composition by Makoto Uezu and character designs by Kazuaki Morita. Animation was produced by Lerche.

The Japanese cast includes Megumi Ogata as Makoto Naegi, Akira Ishida as Byakuya Togami, Chiwa Saito as Aoi Asahina, Hekiru Shiina as Celestia Ludenwerg, Kappei Yamaguchi as Hifumi Yamada, Kazuya Nakai as Mondo Ōwada, Kouki Miyata as Chihiro Fujisaki, Kousuke Toriumi as Kiyotaka Ishimaru, Kujira as Sakura Ōgami, Makiko Ohmoto as Sayaka Maizono, Masaya Matsukaze as Yasuhiro Hagakure, Megumi Toyoguchi as Junko Enoshima and Mukuro Ikusaba, Miyuki Sawashiro as Genocider Syo and Tōko Fukawa, Nobuyo Oyama as Monokuma, Takahiro Sakurai as Leon Kuwata and Yōko Hikasa as Kyōko Kirigiri.

Plot concept: Hope’s Peak Academy is an exclusive private school that only accepts the best of the best. Graduates of this elite — yet enigmatic — institution have the world at their fingertips, but getting a cap and gown is easier said than done. The hallowed halls are ruled by the sadistic administrator Monobear, who declares that the only way to pass the class is by sending a fellow student home in a body bag.

If you can get away with murder, you’ll get your diploma. But if you’re caught red handed, you’ll find yourself on the receiving end of a deadly detention slip!

When your principal is psychotic and your finals are fatal, high school goes from being the best years of your life — to your last.

The fall 2016 anime series Girlish Number is one that will obviously be bringing out some song material in CD form and the next one is currenetly lined up for a December 14th, 2016 debut. Ahead of that, TBS Animation has brought out a promotional animated music video for it showing off the series and the main song itself, “We ☆ high tension”. An instrumental version will be included as well as another song to be determined, which also will get an instrumental version, all priced at 1,200 yen.

Shota Ibata directed it based on Wataru Watari’s series composition. Sumie Kinoshita worked on the the adaptation of QP:flappers character designs while Diomedea handles 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 Japanese 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, Takuya Eguchi as Towata AP and Kenyuu Horiuchi as Namba Shacho.

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 f

The fall 2016 anime series Magic of Stella is getting its home video release plans handled by Media Factory and they’ve set a pretty good schedule for it. While we’ve got about a month and a half until the first volume debuts, the cover artwork for it has arrived that showcases the overall tone and design pattern that we’ll be seeing for it. The twelve episode series will be getting a four-volume release that begins on December 21st, 2016. Te DVDs will be priced at 6,500 yen each while the Blu-ray’s are priced at 7,500 yen. Each release comes with a bonus CD of some sort as you can see in the chart below.

The series was directed by Shinya Kawamo based on the series composition from Fumihiko Shimo. Hideki Furukawa handled the character designs and it was animated at Silver Link.

The cast includes Maria Naganawa as Tamaki Honda, Rie Murakawa as Shiina Murakami, Ari Ozawa as Ayame Seki, Aoi Yuuki as Kayo Fujikawa and Ryouko Maekawa as Yumine Fuda.

The manga comes from creator cloba.U which began back in 2012 and has three volumes out as of the end of January. No details about the production were revealed but based on its origins it’s a solid shot at being another short-form show that hits the gags quick and smartly when it does arrive.

Plot concept: Tamaki Honda, a new high school student joins a doujin game development circle.

Magic of Stella Japanese Volume 1 Cover

[Source: Magic of Stella]

Media Factory decided back in May what to do with the fall 2015 anime series Cocotama as they announced the first box set release for it in Japan. The distributor released that set on July 27th, 2016 that contained the first twenty episodes. It was priced at a low 4,800 yen which means a lot of content for the price, though more typical when aimed squarely at the kids market. Extras for the release include a reversible cover, clean opening,c lean closing, character introductions and the promos and commercials.

The second set was recently scheduled with episodes twenty through thirty-six of the series. Priced at 4,800 yen also, it’ll land on DVD as a box set collection on November 25th, 2016 and now Media Factory has brought out the first TV spot for it to remind folks to get their orders in. Extras for this set includes the dance lessons piece, the clean ending, character intros and other promotional pieces and commercials.

The series began airing in October 2015 with OLM Inc providing the animation for it. The show is directed by Norio Nitta based on the series composition by Michihiro Tsuchiya and character designs by Shinobu Ookawa.

Plot concept: Cocotama are tiny gods born from the thoughts and feelings of objects that people use with great care. The fact that Cocotama wear part of the egg they hatch out of as underwear is proof that they are still apprentices. The Cocotama use a mysterious magic, and they train hard to be of use to humans and to become full gods. They live inside human houses and stealthily move around to help humans find things they have lost, although they make many mistakes.

Kamisama Minarai Japanese box Set 1

[Source: Kamisama Minarai: Himitsu no Cocotama]

The summer 2016 anime series Tales of Zestiria the X has its home video release being handled by Bandai Visual and they’re sticking to form these days. The thirteen episode cour is getting a Blu-ray only release and they’re going big with it by doing just a single box set. With a bit over a month until the set comes out, Bandai Visual is now showing off the limited edition release with the materials included while also highlighting the special music CD. The first promo is 90 seconds of some solid instrumental material and the second one hits the three minute mark with more. The set is scheduled for a December 22nd, 2016 release priced at 32,000 yen. An Amazon.JP exclusive set is also being produced that comes with a bundled drama CD.

On disc extras include a promo and commercial collection and the clean opening and closing as well as a cast commentary. A booklet will be included.

Animated by ufotable, the series will be directed by Haruto Sotozaki with ufotable working the scripts. Akira Matsushima is on board to work the character designs and FLOW will handle the opening theme song Kaze no Uta.

The cast includes Ryouhei Kimura as Sorey, Ryota Ohsaka as Mikleo, Ai Kayano as Alisha, Mikako Komatsu as Rose, Misato Fukuen as Edna, Daisuke Ono as Dezel, Kenjirou Tsuda as Zaveid and Noriko Shitaya as Lailah.

Plot concept: Sorey is a human youth who grew up among the “seraphim” (tenzoku), spiritual beings not visible to humans. Sorey believes in the folklore that says “long ago, every human was able to see the seraphim” and dreams of unraveling the ancient mystery to make the world a place where people and seraphim can live together in peace.One day, Sorey visits the human capital for the very first time. He becomes embroiled in an incident during which he pulls out a holy sword imbedded in a rock and ends up becoming a “Shepherd,” one who casts away calamity from the world. He begins to realize the gravity of his mission, and his dream of coexistence between mankind and the seraphim becomes more intense. And thus, the Shepherd embarks on an amazing journey with his companions..

[Source: Tales of Zestiria the X]