Hideo Kojima has revealed that his upcoming game Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker will employ the Vocaloid software, which is most famous for it’s role in creating Hatsune Miku. Apparently, Vocaloid will be used to create weapons that can sing and scream. Although more seasoned Metal Gear fans are unfazed by this bizarre announcement, my reaction can be summarized as follows:
Meanwhile, Kojima is engaging in his usual hyperbole while promoting MGS: Peace Walker. Most recently, he claimed that “I haven’t announced this yet, but there’s another feature in [Peace Walker] that will surprise people, to the point where they’ll want to go out and buy a PSP right now!” Hmm, given that the PS3 didn’t make me want to get a second job, I view that claim as rather dubious.
Just a short post to convey my general feelings of happiness on this day. After a 3 week wait (not a long time by any standards but still arduous for moi) YesAsia has just notified me that my Vocoloid Kagami Figma has been shipped. She is on her way. My Kagami idol in vocoloid cosplay (not of her will if you remember, watch the Lucky Star OVA if you don’t) has become very popular and as such there is a bit of demand. Nevertheless, the wait is over and hopefully she will be here in a few days.
On another note, a good friend of mine came across the Lucky Star-Macross figures on Ebay, the shock of which nearly killed him. The entire set can be bought for US$330, figures, plushies and all. Anyone willing to cough up that kind of money?
I’m not usually into sports series, but for some reason Shojo Fight has caught my eye. Maybe it’s the character designs… in any case, I’m planning on reading the manga when I get some free time, and I’m also looking forward to the half-hour OVA that’s shipping with the sixth volume on October 23rd. The fact that Production I.G. is involved has me even more intrigued. Anyhoo, here’s the PV.
If you’re a fansubber, please translate this when it comes out!
Hatsune Miku, Japan’s most popular virtual idol, will be making her first international “appearance” in concert at the Singapore Anime Festival Asia 2009. The act, known as Hatsune Miku LIVE! Performance, will use a projection screen to create a giant image of the Vocaloid singing and dancing. This same technique was used earlier this year in the Animelo Summer Live 2009 Re:bridge concert in Saitama, Japan, where it wooed 25,000 screaming fans. Hopefully, the reaction in Signapore will be just as enthusiastic.
Additionally, the main voice cast from K-On! will also be at AFA09. However, instead of singing, they will be dubbing a scene from the show live and taking pre-submitted questions. I’m don’t know why they’re hesitant to appear in concert, but I’m sure there’s a reason…
This is the inaugural post of our new Past Masters column. Here, we hope to explore those classic (and not-so-classic) anime productions that are ten years old or older. This will give us a chance to reminisce about the anime we grew up on, and hopefully introduce the newer generations to the series, OVAs and films that helped define modern otaku culture.
To your average otaku, mentioning “Gainax” might bring to mind such iconic series as Evangelion, Gunbuster, FLCL and Gurren Lagann. Without a doubt, Gainax is one of the most recognizable names in the anime industry. But where did this legendary studio get its start? Let’s turn back the clock and find out…
The year is 1981. The Nihon SF Taikai convention, a gathering of Japanese science fiction fans, is set to take place in Osaka, under the name of Daicon III. For the opening ceremonies, the organizers of Daicon ask a group of college students from the Osaka University of Arts to create an animated promotional video. Among the students are such future luminaries as Takami Akai, Hiroyuki Yamaga and Hideaki Anno. The 5 1/2 minute-long 8 mm film they create, which came to be known as the Daicon III Opening Animation, was to become the first of Gainax’s productions.
Daicon III features a young nameless girl, who is tasked with using a vial of water to a revive a dried-out daikon radish. As she journeys to the radish, she encounters and battles a variety of opponents, including a powered armor suit from Starship Troopers, several kaiju including Godzilla, a Star Destroyer, the space battleship Yamato, the starship Enterprise, an RX-78 Gundam, and many other iconic science fiction-themed enemies.
Danny Choo the dancing stormtrooper was recently spotted at Google Chrome’s one-year birthday bash, posing with the Google Girls and plugging Good Smile’s latest figurines. I guess he figured if he couldn’t join the K-On! band, he’d try for the next best thing… hanging around with 3D girls instead of 2D ones. You’re one lucky stormtrooper, Mr. Choo.
Unlike a lot of the gaming press I’ve been reading, I viewed Bayonetta with a large dose of skepticism. Sure, it was from Hideki Kamiya, the guy behind Okami, Viewtiful Joe and the first Devil May Cry. That’s a darn good pedigree. However, any game that goes to great lengths to emphasize the sass and sexiness of its female protagonist (Hello, Bloodrayne!) makes me suspect their motives. Yeah, they might just be really proud of their character design; but more often than not, the development team is just trying to distract players from the game’s shortcomings by saying, “Hey, look over there! Boobs!” I suspected this was going to be the case with Bayonetta and went into the demo fully expecting it to be a carbon copy of Devil May Cry 4 with Dante and Nero replaced by a sexy witch. I’m happy to say that I was wrong. Mostly.
Considering how quickly anime can gain and lose traction among fans (does anyone talk about Ergo Proxy anymore?), it’s impressive that Trigun still seems to show up in “my favorite…” lists. And with the long-awaited movie coming out, the franchise isn’t likely to fade into obscurity any time soon.
According to Sankaku Complex’s report [NSFW], the movie will be released during spring of 2010 and will star Vash the Stampede, Meryl, Milly and Nicholas Wolfwood, all voiced by the original cast. Given Wolfwood’s presence, this probably isn’t going to be set after the end of the anime or the manga–unless Nightow has been getting some inspiration from Lost.
From the Japanese I was able to decipher on the official site, the movie is set in Makka, a town surrounded by quicksand. Rumors around town say a legendary robber named Gasubakku is targeting the place. In order to protect his town, Mayor Kepler gathers ruffians to take him out…for a monetary prize, of course. Meryl and Milly happen to be in the town on a job for their insurance company when, to their surprise, they see Vash in the line of people hoping to take down Gasubakku.
So it seems the movie will be like a longer, self-contained version of the average episode of the TV series. This will likely please existing Trigun fans, but will it be able to expand the fandom?
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!
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!
Meanwhile, Kojima is engaging in his usual hyperbole while promoting MGS: Peace Walker. Most recently, he claimed that “I haven’t announced this yet, but there’s another feature in [Peace Walker] that will surprise people, to the point where they’ll want to go out and buy a PSP right now!” Hmm, given that the PS3 didn’t make me want to get a second job, I view that claim as rather dubious.
