To be defined by the Japanese as one of the most popular ‘Classic’ Seiyuus of all time is quite an achievement. Oricon, a company that provides statistics and information, recently conducted a poll asking the Japanese public their opinions on the top ten ‘Classic Seiyuus’, or voice actors whom they consider to be legendary. Guess who made it into the top ten?
We all have that favorite series that we keep going back and watching. Mine is Lucky Star. However, despite my ever drooling over that series and the lovely protagonists therein, I always knew in my heart that none of my beloved Lucky Star girls would compare to legendary characters of anime past. Why do I know this? Well, the people at IGN have tallied their opinions of who belongs in the top 25 most popular anime characters of all time, and after reading I could not help but agree (mostly).
The criteria used to judge each character was their ever lasting fame and the impact they had on both the industry and their particular genre. Without spoiling the article, which I insist you go check out, I was pleased to see that most of my guesses made their way into the top 25. Our glorified SOS brigade leader was among them, and righteously so. She made a big impact in the world a few years ago, and still remains dominant even today.
As for Lucky Star, while it was (and indeed still is) enormously popular and fun, no individual character carried the series alone, rather it was a glorious team effort.
So check out IGN’s top 25. What is your opinion on the most popular (or influential) anime character? Did your favorite even make it onto IGN’s list?
You can find the list here.
–Via IGN
KyoAni obviously expected the announcement of their Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya film to generate lots of excitement and anticipation. However, the response thus far from the fan community has been underwhelming. Many fans have expressed concerns that the Disappearance arc is far too lengthy for a feature-length production. Other are merely apathetic towards Haruhi in general since the Endless Eight fiasco. However, there are also fans who are cautiously optimistic; they believe that KyoAni learned their lesson, and will produce a quality motion picture that does Haruhi justice.
So what do you think? Are you excited about the Disappearance movie? Let us know in the poll below, and join the discussion on our forums!
[poll id=”8″]
Today, the final episode of Suzumiya Haruhi No Yuutsu‘s ‘renewed airing’ was broadcast, and at the end, a very special announcement appeared.
The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya has been announced… and it’s going to be a theatrical film, opening in the spring of 2010! Aside from that, no further information on the film is available, although Haruhi’s official site will be updated with more details ‘at a later date’.
Fans are still debating whether this is a good or bad idea. However, for at least a little while, Haruhi seems to have recaptured the spotlight. For those of you wondering about the future of the Haruhi franchise, you now have your answer!
Kyoto Animation, the studio behind Haruhi, K-On! and Lucky Star, has announced a new contest aimed at independent authors and artists. The Kyoto Animation Award invites anybody, whether pro or amateur, to submit their work in one of three categories: novel, script or manga. The top entry in each category will win a prize of ¥300,000 and have the possibility of being animated by KyoAni. Runners-up will take home ¥100,000. The contest rules do not mention any restrictions on the location, nationality or professional status of the entrant, nor on the genre or content of the work itself. However, the entry does have to be in Japanese. (Thanks to Dazza for pointing that out.)
So, is KyoAni actually trying to give some aspiring author or artist their big break… or have they simply run out of ideas?
The first Endless Eight Haruhi DVD sales figures are in, and the news isn’t good. In its first week, the first Endless Eight volume chalked up 14,104 sales. By comparison, the Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody DVD sold 26,265 copies in its first week, meaning Haruhi DVD sales have dropped by around 54% as a result of Endless Eight. Overall, this places Haruhi third on the DVD sales charts for this week, albeit against other weak contenders like Hetalia, Prince of Tennis and Queen’s Blade.
So what does this mean for Haruhi’s future? Well, the franchise certainly isn’t dead; it is, however, a shadow of its former self. Sales figures from 2006 reveal that Haruhi DVDs used to sell between 28,000 and 38,000 copies in their first week; the E8 sales are less than half of that. It is almost certain that another Haruhi season will be animated; however without significant advertising or DVD sales revenue from the current “season”, this means Kyoani has less money to work with for future seasons. Unfortunately, this could mean that the next Haruhi’s production values will be significantly lower.
Back in 2006, Kadokawa marketing director Takafumi Ishibashi claimed that “Haruhi could become Kadokawa’s big pillar like Bandai’s Gundam series.” At this rate, that prediction very well might wind up being Haruhi’s famous last words.
–Via Cartoon Leap and the Anime News Service archives
Although official sales figures for the Endless Eight DVDs are still forthcoming, early indicators seem to reinforce Kadokawa’s pessimism about the much-reviled arc’s market potential. In particular, Akihabara’s various anime-oriented stores have seen low sales, with one employee describing them as “mortal”. Whether or not this will translate into poor sales overall remains to be seen; however, it’s not looking very good at this point.
Despite this, Akiba’s shops still feature a wide variety of colorful Haruhi promotional material, some of it emphasizing the fanservice aspects of the E8 arc. The variety of swimsuit designs featured throughout E8 seems to be a particularly potent selling point. Pictures of a few of these displays can be found below. For a peek inside the actual DVD set itself, check out this post over on Cartoon Leap.
In the 21st episode of Dragon Ball Kai, Gohan and Krillin stumble across a small Namekian village under attack by Frieza and his men. The village elder bravely defends two children… and can you guess who they are?
Still don’t know? Here is another clue, taken from the ending credits…
That’s right! It’s Dende, voiced by Aya Hirano (Haruhi Suzumiya) and his brother Cargo, voiced by Satomi Satou (Ritsu Tainaka). Our favorite voice actors have made their Dragon Ball Kai debut! Unfortunately, neither Dende nor Cargo get any lines in episode 21, and Cargo is killed by Dodoria in episode 22. However, Dende does get a few brief lines in 22 after being saved by Gohan. A short clip of that scene, featuring Aya’s unmistakable voice, can be viewed below.
With it’s fifth and final episode airing earlier today, the Sighs of Haruhi Suzumiya arc (episodes 20-24 of the Haruhi re-airing, and episodes 10-14 of the “second season”) has come to an end. This arc’s claim to fame (or lack thereof) was how unremarkable it was, at least compared to the huge storm of controversy that Endless Eight generated. Fortunately, Sighs has been well-received by the fans; especially in the case of the last two episodes where, by all accounts, the art improved to “near season-1 levels”.
Select screenshots from the episode are posted below.
Here’s a bright note in an otherwise dismal Haruhi day. Aya’s overly cute, the music is excellent. The video itself … I’ll let you be the judge.