A Reformed Teenage Delinquent Tries to Lead a Peaceful High School Life in New Shojo Beat Series
Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases
Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen

Cover art for Volume 1 of Oresama Teacher. Photo
courtesy of VIZ Media. © Izumi Tsubaki 2008/
Hakusensha, Inc.

VIZ Media, LLC brings the hilarious high-school hijinks of Izumi Tsubaki’s manga series, Oresama Teacher (I’m The Teacher), to North American audiences on March 1st. The new title will be published under the Shojo Beat imprint, is rated ‘T’ for Teens, and will carry an MSRP of $9.99 U.S. / $12.99 CAN.

Mafuyu is the no-nonsense, take-charge and hard-hitting leader of her high school gang. But when she gets expelled for being a delinquent, her mother, fed up with her daughter’s wayward ways, sends Mafuyu to an isolated school far off in the country. Determined to make the best of the situation and make her mother proud, Mafuyu decides to turn over a new, feminine, well-behaved leaf. But her fighting spirit can’t be kept down, and the night before school starts she finds herself defending some guy who’s getting beaten up. One slip wouldn’t have been a problem, except the guy is… her teacher?! How can Mafuyu learn to be a good girl if her teacher won’t let her forget her wicked past?

“Mafuyu is going to have to try very hard to be the well-behaved, ultra-shiny, super-feminine high school student she longs to become,” says Pancha Diaz, Editor. “But along the way, she will have to contend with a homeroom teacher who blackmails her, an unruly classmate who likes to fight, and her own tendency to still find trouble. We invite readers to jump into her latest story and follow Mafayu as she strives to live like a normal high school girl.”
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Interview with IDW Cover Artist Matt Frank
Author: Bob Johnson
Special thanks to IDW Comics

As fans eagerly await the debut of IDW’s Godzilla Kingdom of Monsters comic, SciFi Japan caught up with cover artist Matt Frank and discussed the comic and what to expect in the months (years?) ahead. We also have an exclusive look at the Rodan cover for issue #2! So read on and enjoy!
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SciFi Japan mock cover by Matt Frank! ©2011 IDW Publishing and Toho Co., ltd. (note: this is not an official cover)

Source: Madman Entertainment
Special Thanks to Ben Pollock and Philippa Lamb

Photo courtesy of Madman Entertainment. © 2010
National Arts Films Production Limited

The “Asian Eye” line from Australian distributor Madman Entertainment will be releasing a number of anime and live action titles on Blu-ray and Region 4 DVD in March, 2011. The selection includes:

SUMMER WARS
ALIEN VS NINJA
PHANTOM: REQUIEM FOR THE PHANTOM COLLECTION 1
HONEY AND CLOVER
BLEACH COLLECTION 08
TSUBASA CHRONICLES OVA COLLECTION
ONE PIECE (UNCUT) COLLECTION 7
THE SACRED BLACKSMITH COLLECTION
XAM’D: LOST MEMORIES COLLECTION 2
IP MAN: THE LEGEND IS BORN

Read on for plot descriptions, DVD specs, cover art, and more.
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Two popular VIZ Media anime series are now available as rental or own downloads. Photos courtesy of VIZ Media. HIKARU NO GO © Yumi Hotta, HMC,
Takeshi Obata, Noel/ Shueisha, TV Tokyo, Dentsu, Pierrot. MÄR © 2005 Noboyuki Anzai/ Shogakukan, ShoPro, TV Tokyo

iTunes, PlayStation Network, And Amazon Video On Demand Begin Offering Both Hit Adventure Series To Rent Or Own
Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases
Official Site: VIZAnime.com
Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen

VIZ Media has announced the availability of hit anime series HIKARU NO GO and MÄR for Download-To-Rent / Download-To-Own (DTR/DTO) from leading online content providers iTunes, PlayStation Network, and Amazon Video on Demand.

All episodes are $0.99 each for Download-To-Rent and $1.99 for Download-To-Own across all platforms.
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Source: Anime Network press release
Official Site: geneonuniversal.jp/hotd (Japan)
Special Thanks to Christian Lopez

The anime HIGH SCHOOL OF THE DEAD episodes will be available with English audio
starting next month. © 2010 Daisuke Sato/ Shouji Sato. © 2010 Fujimishobo

This March, the HIGH SCHOOL OF THE DEAD (aka HOTD) English dub will premiere on Anime Network Video On Demand. The highly acclaimed zombie survival anime will now be available with English voiceovers from some of the top voice actors in the business, only on Anime Network VOD. Stay tuned to Anime Network’s website, Twitter, and Facebook page for upcoming cast announcements and extras!

From director Tetsuro Araki (DEATH NOTE, BLACK LAGOON), and adapted from the highly successful manga of the same name by Daisuke Sato, comes one of the hottest new shows of the Summer, HIGH SCHOOL OF THE DEAD. A deadly new disease is ravaging the world, turning the populace into mindless zombies, and the number of infected is skyrocketing by the second. As their fellow classmates and teachers succumb to the infection around them, a small group of students at Fujimi High School are fighting for their lives after surviving the initial outbreak. It is up to Takashi Komuro to unite the group of weary survivors and try to escape the horrors that surround them. In this new world of the living dead… will they escape?
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GUIN SAGA COLLECTION 1 BLU-RAY EDITION Available on March 29th
Source: Section23 Films press release
Special Thanks to Mike Bailiff

GUIN SAGA COLLECTION 1. Photo courtesy of
Section23 Films.

Home video distributor Section23 Films has provided details on its March 2011 slate of releases, including the sweeping anime epic for the ages, GUIN SAGA! The first collection will be released on DVD and Blu-Ray by Section23 client Sentai Filmworks.

Other spring releases include AKANE IRO NI SOMARU SAKA COMPLETE COLLECTION, GHOST SWEEPER MIKAMI COLLECTION 3, SHIN KOHIME†MUSO – COMPLETE COLLECTION, and CLANNAD THEATRICAL on DVD.

Read on for plot descriptions, DVD specs, and cover art for all of these titles.
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Get the 4 Disc DVD Set for Free, Courtesy of Shout! Factory and SciFi Japan
Source: Shout! Factory
Special Thanks to Tom Chen

A SciFi JAPAN EXCLUSIVE

Win the new REBOOT Seasons 1 and 2 DVD. Photo
courtesy of Shout! Factory. © 2011 Rainmaker Inc.

SciFi Japan is pleased to present out first contest with Shout! Factory, who have offered our readers a chance to win the new 4 disc DVD set of REBOOT Seasons 1 and 2.

Since early 1990s, Dot Matrix, Enzo, Guardian Bob and thousands of Binomes from REBOOT have thrust into battles with corrupt forces of Megabyte and Hexadecimal to stop their relentless pursuit of chaos and destruction of the high-tech city Mainframe. REBOOT made history for being the first fully computer-generated animated TV series when it debuted on U.S and Canadian television in 1994. The series ran four successful seasons and was seen in over 70 countries around the world, boasting a large fan base of loyal followers in kids and adult gamers alike. The show’s unique setting inside a computer allows the characters and storylines to mine the references to computers and video games for all they’re worth, giving the show its humorous edge. The innovative animation, insider humor and high octane action combine to give viewers a lot of binary bang for their buck.

REBOOT Seasons 1 and 2 will be released on Region 1 DVD on March 1, 2011. The DVD set includes all 23 episodes from the first two seasons plus new audio commentary by producer Christopher Brough, designer and storyboard artist Blair Peters and animator Zeke Norton. The running time is approximately 570 minutes. The SRP is $29.93.
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Source: FUNimation Entertainment press release
Official Site: funimation.com/avn, Sushi Typhoon
Special Thanks to Jackie Smith and Manny Alcala

Cover art for the ALIEN VS NINJA DVD. Photo courtesy of
FUNimation Entertainment. © 2010 Sushi Typhoon & “Alien vs.
Ninja” Production Committee

On February 22nd, ALIEN VS NINJA will be released on North American DVD and Blu-ray from FUNimation Entertainment. The filmmakers behind TOKYO GORE POLICE and THE MACHINE GIRL joined studio Sushi Typhoon for this side-splitting horror-comedy… a new hybrid of science fiction and period action film brought to fans by legendary action directors and fight choregraphers Yuji Shimomura (VERSUS, SHINOBI, DEATH TRANCE) and Kensuke Sonomura (MACHINE GIRL, HARD REVENGE MILLY: BLOODY BATTLE), and directed by Seiji Chiba (DEATH TRANCE, EVIL NINJA)!

In ancient Japan, the fiercest ninjas of the Iga clan face their toughest enemies – and they aren’t from this planet! A fiery mass crashes in the forest and soon horrifyingly savage creatures reduce the warriors to tasty snacks. But these jerks from outer space have bitten off more than they can chew. The ninjas’ swords and throwing stars may fail against the unearthly goons, but their skills don’t stop at sharp stuff. If you’re into ARMY OF DARKNESS, you’ll be taking bets over who’ll win this over-the-top battle for survival!
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New Series Launches On VIZAnime.com and Hulu Today
Source: VIZ Media, MediaLab press releases
Official Site: VIZAnime.com
Special Thanks to Jane Lui and Erik Jansen

Key art for NEURO: SUPERNATURAL DETECTIVE.
Photo courtesy of VIZ Media. © Yusei Matsui/
Shueisha. © DNP, VAP, Shueisha,Madhouse

VIZ Media brings an exciting new animated series to North American audiences with the launch of NEURO: SUPERNATURAL DETECTIVE on Friday, February 18th on VIZAnime.com, the company’s own premier website for free anime, as well as the streaming content provider HULU.

The new series (rated ‘M’ for Mature) will debut with the first five subtitled episodes available, with new installments available weekly.

In NEURO: SUPERNATURAL DETECTIVE, Neuro Nogami is a demon that feeds on criminal mysteries and riddles in the human world. In order to protect his identity, he forms a partnership with Yako, an incisive 16-year-old high school girl. This unlikely crime-solving duo devours one mystery after another in search of the ultimate appetizing mystery!

NEURO: SUPERNATURAL DETECTIVE is based on a popular manga series created by Yosei Matsui that sold over 3 million copies in Japan and is produced by the famed animation studio, MADHOUSE.
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His Job is to Deliver a Message: Tomorrow You Die…
Source: The Associates press release

Cover art for the UK DVD of DEATH NOTICE: IKIGAMI.
Photo courtesy of The Associates. © 2008 IKIGAMI: The
Ultimate Limit Production Committee

Directed by Tomoyuki Takimoto (THE INVESTIGATION GAME), based on the best selling manga series written and illustrated by Motoro Mase, and sharing similar thematic elements with LOGAN’S RUN, BATTLE ROYALE, and 1984, DEATH NOTICE: IKIGAMI (イキガミ, Ikigami, 2008) paints a vivid and shocking portrait of a dystopian future Japan in which citizens are routinely killed, by law, “for the good of the nation”.

In the interests of national prosperity, in a near-future Japan all children are given an inoculation on their first day at school. One in every thousand of the injections contains a lethal nano-capsule, which will end the recipient’s life some time between the ages of 18 and 24. Having been randomly selected to die, prior to their termination these citizens are given 24 hours’ notification of their impending doom in the form of an “Ikigami”, a death notice allowing them one final day to say goodbye to loved ones and to come to terms with their fate.

DEATH NOTICE: IKIGAMI (cert. 15) will be released on DVD (Region 2, PAL) by MVM on 7th March 2011. The suggested retail price is £15.99.
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Front and back cover art for Shout! Factory’s GAMERA VS ZIGRA/ GAMERA: THE SUPER MONSTER Double Feature DVD.
Photos courtesy of Shout! Factory. © 1971. 1980 Kadokawa Pictures, Inc.

Source: Shout! Factory
Special Thanks to Tom Chen

Our friends at Shout! Factory sent over an advance copy of their GAMERA VS ZIGRA/ GAMERA: THE SUPER MONSTER Double Feature Collector’s Edition DVD set, so we’re pleased to give SciFi Japan readers an early look at what’s coming their way on March 15th. The DVD has a suggested retail price of $19.93.
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In March, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment will release NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND on Blu-ray and TALES FROM EARTHSEA on Region DVD.
Photos courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. © 1984 NIBARIKI – TOKUMA SHOTEN – HAKUHODO. © 2006 Nibariki – GNDHDDT.© Disney Enterprises, Inc.

Source: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, Inc. Press release
Official Movie Site: disneypictures/earthsea (US)

On March 8th, Studio Ghibli’s TALES FROM EARTHSEA (DVD only) and NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND (Blu-ray + DVD Combo Pack) will be available to bring home from Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment.

Goro Miyazaki’s directorial debut, TALES FROM EARTHSEA (Gedo Senki, 2006), features exquisite hand-drawn animation and the vocal talents of Timothy Dalton, Willem Dafoe, Cheech Marin, and Mariska Hargitay. Bonus material includes a behind-the-scenes look at the studio and Studio Ghibli Trivia Challenge.

NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND (Kaze no Tani no Naushika, 1984) launched the Academy Award-winning career of famed director Hayao Miyazaki! This stunning animated tale features the voices of Uma Thurman, Shia LeBeouf, and Patrick Stewart. Bonus features include a behind-the-scenes look into the recording booth and the birth story of Studio Ghibli.
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The subtitled version of GANTZ will be screened this month at the VIZ Cinema in San Francisco. Photo courtesy of VIZ Pictures.
© Hiroya Oku/Shueisha © 2011 Gantz Film Partners

Source: MediaLab press release
Official Site: NewPeopleWorld.com
Special Thanks to Erik Jansen

VIZ Cinema at NEW PEOPLE, the nation’s only movie theatre dedicated to Japanese and Asian film, presents a pair of special movie events taking place at the venue in February. Trailers, screening times and tickets are available at VIZCinema.com. The venue is located inside NEW PEOPLE at 1746 Post Street in San Francisco’s Japantown.

Slated to screen on February 19th will be the acclaimed Korean director Kim Ki-duk’s romantic prison drama, BREATH, which will be followed by a reception with The Red Lantern: Bay Area Asian Cinephiles, based in San Francisco and the world’s largest Meetup group for Asian films.

Also, by popular demand, VIZ Cinema at NEW PEOPLE will offer a special one-night-only screening on February 19th of the live-action sci-fi thriller GANTZ (in Japanese with English subtitles). GANTZ is based on the smash hit manga and anime series and was world-premiered at 334 theatres nationwide in January.
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Gendo Hikari observes a battle between Angel and Evangelion in EVANGELION: 2.0 YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE, now in limited theatrical release
across North America. © 2009 Khara

Second Impact Happens in Chicago, Boston, Detroit, Minneapolis and More…
Source: Eleven Arts Entertainment press release
Official Movie Site: funimation.com/evangelion (US), evangelion.co.jp (Japan)
Special Thanks to Shun Ohara

Cinema Arts Releasing, Eleven Arts and FUNimation Entertainment are proud to announce the new release schedule of EVANGELION: 2.0 YOU CAN (NOT) ADVANCE (Evangelion Shin Gekijoban: Ha, 2009) in the United States. The movie originally opened in US theaters on January 21, 2011. EVANGELION: 2.0 has met with great success in each city and has received postive reviews and word of mouth, prompting an expansion of its theatrical release. Some theaters will also show the first chapter, EVANGELION 1.0: YOU ARE (NOT) ALONE (Evangelion Shin Gekijoban: Jo, 2007), prior to the release of the second feature.
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Christopher Nolan’s critical and box office smash INCEPTION is now available on DVD and Blu-ray.
Photo courtesy of Warner Bros Home Video. © 2010 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Author: Kyle Byrd
Official Site: inceptionmovie

Blu-ray cover art for INCEPTION. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros
Home Video. © 2010 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Every now and then a genre film will come along that takes old ideas and reinvents them. It reminds you why you go to see fantasy films to begin with. INCEPTION is one of those rare films.

Directed by Christopher Nolan (MEMENTO, BATMAN BEGINS, THE DARK KNIGHT), INCEPTION is a sci-fi action film that plays out like a Hitchcockian thriller on acid. It concerns a man named Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), a skilled thief who is paid to enter people’s dreams and steal ideas from them. Saito (Ken Watanabe), the head of a powerful corporation, approaches Cobb about doing a reverse operation… planting an idea instead of stealing one. He wants Cobb to enter the mind of his dying corporate rival’s son, Robert Fischer Jr. (Cillian Murphy) and plant an idea that will inspire him to break up his father’s company. Saito tells him that if he performs this task, he’ll get clearance for Cobb to live in the United States again, where he has been exiled from after being framed for murdering his wife, Mal (Marion Cottilard). Longing to be with his children in the States, Cobb accepts.
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Matsuko Kawajiri (Miki Nakatani) fins joy in the mundane in MEMORIES OF MATSUKO, the multi-award winning tragic fairytale from CONFESSIONS director Tetsuya
Nakashima. Photo courtesy of Third Window Films. © 2006 “memories of MATSUKO” Production Committee

Source: Third Window Films, TBS
Official Movie Site: thirdwindowfilms.com/memories-of-matsuko (UK)
Special Thanks to Adam Torel

Cover art for the UK Blu-ray of MEMORIES OF MATSUKO. Photo
courtesy of Third Window Films. © 2006 “memories of MATSUKO”
Production Committee

When a bored college student learns that a long lost aunt has been found dead in a park, he begins piecing together her life to see if it had any value. What he finds is a revelation.

On February 14th, Third Window Films will release MEMORIES OF MATSUKO (Kiraware Matsuko no Isshoo, 2006) on Blu-ray in the United Kingdom. Talented film director Tetsuya Nakashima (KAMIKAZE GIRLS, CONFESSIONS) wields a host of cinematic tools to make a memorably entertaining and emotionally powerful “fairytale tragedy,” weaving together realistic human drama with offbeat comedy and spectacular, Bob Fosse-like production numbers to tell the heartbreaking story of Matsuko Kawajiri, a starry-eyed woman who spends her entire life searching for a worthy “prince” capable of returning her limitless love. The versatile actress Miki Nakatani renders a virtuosic performance in the lead role of Matsuko.

Third Window Films’ Blu-ray release will include a 30 minute “Making of” documentary, storyboard to film comparison, and interview with music composer Gabriele Roberto, and the Japanese theatrical trailer. The recommended retail price is £19.99.
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VIZ Pictures, Inc. has announced that it will now operate as NEW PEOPLE, Inc. © 2011 NEW PEOPLE, Inc

Source: MediaLab press release
Official Site: NewPeopleEnt.com
Special Thanks to Erik Jansen

VIZ Pictures, Inc., the film distributor and producer behind the Japanese pop culture venue in San Francisco known as NEW PEOPLE, has announced that it will now operate as a newly established company, NEW PEOPLE, Inc., to re-brand and create synergy between all corporate divisions. The company’s film distribution and licensing division will now operate as NEW PEOPLE Entertainment.
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The World Premiere of GANTZ was held January 20th in Hollywood. Photo by Richard Pusateri.

Kazunari Ninomiya and Kenichi Matsuyama present GANTZ World Premiere in Hollywood
Author: Richard Pusateri
Official Movie Site: gantz-movie.com (Japan), gantzmovies.com (US)
Special Thanks to Erik Jansen and Rieko Fuji

Kenichi Matsuyama fields questions through his interpreter. Photo courtesy of
VIZ Pictures. © 2011 Gantz Film Partners

The fans were restless at the GANTZ World Premiere in Hollywood. Above the world famous Grauman’s Chinese Theater January 20, the fans lining the entrance corridor of Mann’s Chinese 6 theaters were fidgeting and nervously chattering long before the film’s stars Kazunari Ninomiya (LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA) and Kenichi Matsuyama (DETROIT METAL CITY, DEATH NOTE) arrived for what was billed as the “GANTZ WORLD PREMIERE.” One of the first things master of ceremonies Patrick Macias told the crowd was the stars were just in from the World Premiere earlier that day in Tokyo, leaving the description of this event as the “World Premiere” needing some clarification.
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