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Not too long ago I reported on Viki.com, the free streaming site that presents international video with crowd sourced subtitles. They had added 80's Astro Boy and Black Jack anime to their service, and it looks like they are not stopping there!
Another huge batch of classic Tezuka anime has been added to Viki, and there is an incredible selection! Not everything is available with English subtitles yet, but you can now watch the following list anime from Tezuka Productions.
All of this is 100% free and legal!
(The Ambassador Magma anime is not very good, but hey, it's the thought that counts!)
Let's hope that the streaming rights for more shows can be acquired and that the offerings continue to expand. Princess Knight would be a fantastic addition. Let them know what else you want to see!
Continue reading "Don Dracula, Leo, Melmo, & more now on Viki."...
Just in time for the upcoming Astro Boy movie animated movie from Imagi, the classic 1960's anime that started it all will be making its return to DVD, this time in the form of affordable mini-sets. 2 sets, each containing 5 disks, will be released this fall. But they won't be alone! Also set for release at the same time is a mini set for Tezuka's Kimba the White Lion anime.
Each set contains at least 25 episodes and retails for about $50 US. They feature the same remastered footage that was found in the previously released Ultra Edition DVD collections, but will likely not contain any of the special features. These episodes are in English only, so there is no Japanese audio with subtitles, however that can be forgiven in this case because the original Japanese episodes are pretty much impossible for anyone to obtain.
The original release date was going to be September 29th, but now all 3 of these DVD-Mini sets are currently scheduled for release on October 6th. Start saving your pennies now for a major does of retro Tezuka anime this fall from The Right Stuf and Nozomi Entertainment!
Click the link below for full press releases, including cover art, UPC codes, and all the details on these sets.
RIGHT STUF’S NOZOMI ENTERTAINMENT Announces
ASTRO BOY DVD Mini Sets 1 & 2 for October 6, 2009
GRIMES, IA, June 23, 2009 – Anime producer and distributor Right Stuf, Inc. and Nozomi Entertainment are pleased to announce ASTRO BOY DVD Mini Set 1 and ASTRO BOY DVD Mini Set 2 will be released on October 6, 2009.
One of the “50 Best Anime Ever”
“as entertaining now as when it first aired”
- Anime Insider
Based on Osamu Tezuka’s acclaimed manga (comic), Astro Boy was both the first modern, 25-minutes-per-episode anime series created specifically for television and the first anime series to air on TV in the United States, during the 1960s. The original boy-robot continues to be an icon to fans wordwide and also inspired the new CG-animated Astro Boy movie, which is scheduled to arrive in theaters on October 23, 2009.
Frederik L. Schodt – Order of the Rising Sun recipient and author of The Astro Boy Essays: Osamu Tezuka, Mighty Atom, and the Manga/Anime Revolution – describes the series’ everlasting appeal among fans of all ages:
“It all started with Astro Boy. By animating his hugely popular “Mighty Atom” manga in 1963, Osamu Tezuka created the template for Japan's modern and gargantuan manga/anime industry. Today the series is still entertaining, charming, and fascinating for the sophistication of its ideas. But it also reveals how the anime boom began, and is a must-watch for all true anime fans.”
Each mini set features episodes from the original 1963 Astro Boy series, as it aired on television, with an English-language audio track.
Visit for more information about Astro Boy and to view the trailer, download desktop wallpapers, and listen to an interview with Mr. Schodt about the significance of Dr. Tezuka’s works worldwide, the differences between the Astro Boy manga and its anime adaptations, and Tezuka’s relationship with his best-known creation.
About ASTRO BOY
In a future where science fiction is reality, Dr. Boynton creates a super-robot in his deceased son’s image. Named Astro Boy, the robot can swim oceans, leap over mountains and even fly into space – but he can’t replace the doctor’s son. Abandoned and disowned, soon Astro Boy is befriended by Dr. Packadermus J. Elefun of the Institute of Science, and together, they embark upon an amazing adventure. With super strength, rocket-powered flight, a selfless heart and a kind demeanor, Astro Boy fights a never-ending crusade against the forces of evil!
ASTRO BOY DVD MINI SET 1
Pre-Book: 8/25/2009
Street Date: 10/06/2009
Runtime: Approximately 550 minutes, Mono, Black and White
Genre: Adventure / Sci Fi / Retro Television
Suggested Rating: All Ages
Format: DVD (English Audio)
Catalog #: RSDVD0715
ISBN: 1-57032-773-4
UPC: 7-42617-0715-2-2
SRP: $49.99
Discs/Set: 5
Case Qty: 16
DVD Features:
Contains episodes 1-25 of the original Astro Boy series! Scene access and English-language audio.
* Cover Art:
ASTRO BOY © Tezuka Production Co., Ltd./Mushi Production Co., Ltd.
ASTRO BOY DVD MINI SET 2
Pre-Book: 8/25/2009
Street Date: 10/06/2009
Runtime: Approximately 594 minutes, Mono, Black and White
Genre: Adventure / Sci Fi / Retro Television
Suggested Rating: All AgesFormat: DVD (English Audio)
Catalog #: RSDVD0727
ISBN: 1-57032-770-X
UPC: 7-42617-0727-2-7
SRP: $49.99
Discs/Set: 5
Case Qty: 16
DVD Features:
Contains episodes 26-52 of the original Astro Boy series! Scene access and English-language audio.
* Cover Art:
ASTRO BOY © Tezuka Production Co., Ltd./Mushi Production Co., Ltd.
** Product specifications and content may be subject to change.
ABOUT RIGHT STUF, INC.
Currently celebrating its 21st year in business, Right Stuf, Inc. was one of the first players in the U.S. Japanese Animation ("anime") industry, as both an anime producer/distributor and a retailer. Right Stuf works to promote knowledge of its own products, as well as the anime and manga industry, in general, through its online storefront at RightStuf.com and a variety of media including podcasts and special publications.
Nozomi Entertainment, Right Stuf’s production division, is dedicated to the highest quality releases. True to the Japanese word that inspired its name, Nozomi’s focus is on “what fans want.” By focusing on a limited number of anime properties each year, the Nozomi production team ensures each release receives the care and attention to detail it deserves.
From anime classics like Astro Boy, Kimba and Gigantor to modern comedies, dramas and favorites such as The Irresponsible Captain Tylor, His and Her Circumstances, Gravitation, Shingu: Secret of the Stellar Wars, Ninja Nonsense, To Heart, The Third: The Girl With the Blue Eye, Emma: A Victorian Romance, Maria Watches Over UsARIA, Right Stuf and Nozomi Entertainment produce quality programming for fans of all ages and interests. For more information, visit www.rightstuf.com and www.nozomient.com.
-----------------------------------
RIGHT STUF’S NOZOMI ENTERTAINMENT Announces
KIMBA: THE WHITE LION DVD Mini Set 1 for October 6, 2009
GRIMES, IA, June 23, 2009 – Anime producer and distributor Right Stuf, Inc. and Nozomi Entertainment are pleased to announce the KIMBA: THE WHITE LION DVD Mini Set 1 will be released on October 6, 2009.
“truly worth watching” – Anime News Network
“Justifiably beloved by many” – Anime on DVD at Mania.com
The mini set features the first 25 episodes of Kimba: The White Lion, as it aired on television in the United States, with remastered video (from the previous Ultra Edition collection) and an English-language audio track.
From Osamu Tezuka, the creator of Astro Boy and one of Japanese animation’s great pioneers, Kimba: The White Lion was one of the first anime classics to air on American television, in the 1960s, and the very first Japanese animated series to be broadcast in color.
Visit kimba.rightstuf.com for more information about Kimba and to view the trailer and download desktop wallpapers.
About KIMBA: THE WHITE LION
Kimba's enchanting adventures of friendship, jungle survival and harmony return… Ready to be introduced to a whole new generation of fans! Join Kimba along with his pals Pauly the Parrot, Daniel Baboon, and a charming assortment of other loveable characters, as he follows in the footsteps of his late father, the great lion king, making the jungle a safer, better place for everyone to live. Each masterfully restored episode is presented in order according to Osamu Tezuka's original storyline. Contains episodes 1-25 of the original Kimba series!
KIMBA: THE WHITE LION DVD MINI SET 1
Pre-Book: 8/25/2009
Street Date: 10/06/2009
Runtime: Approximately 550 minutes, Mono, Color
Genre: Adventure / Retro Television
Suggested Rating: All Ages
Format: DVD (English Audio)
Catalog #: RSDVD0716
ISBN: 1-57032-774-2
UPC: 7-42617-0716-2-1
SRP: $49.99
Discs/Set: 5
Case Qty: 16
DVD Features:
Scene access and English-language audio.
* Cover Art:
KIMBA © Tezuka Production Co., Ltd./Mushi Production Co., Ltd.
** Product specifications and content may be subject to change.
ABOUT RIGHT STUF, INC.
Currently celebrating its 21st year in business, Right Stuf, Inc. was one of the first players in the U.S. Japanese Animation ("anime") industry, as both an anime producer/distributor and a retailer. Right Stuf works to promote knowledge of its own products, as well as the anime and manga industry, in general, through its online storefront at RightStuf.com and a variety of media including podcasts and special publications.
Nozomi Entertainment, Right Stuf’s production division, is dedicated to the highest quality releases. True to the Japanese word that inspired its name, Nozomi’s focus is on “what fans want.” By focusing on a limited number of anime properties each year, the Nozomi production team ensures each release receives the care and attention to detail it deserves.
From anime classics like Astro Boy, Kimba and Gigantor to modern comedies, dramas and favorites such as The Irresponsible Captain Tylor, His and Her Circumstances, Gravitation, Shingu: Secret of the Stellar Wars, Ninja Nonsense, To Heart, The Third: The Girl With the Blue Eye, Emma: A Victorian Romance, Maria Watches Over Us and ARIA, Right Stuf and Nozomi Entertainment produce quality programming for fans of all ages and interests. For more information, visit www.rightstuf.com and www.nozomient.com.
Source: ToonZone - TV Shows on DVD
Continue reading "60's Astro & Kimba DVD Mini-Sets This Fall"...
 Here's a cool announcement that slipped through my fingers last week.
One of Osamu Tezuka's most famous creations, Jungle Emperor Leo (sometimes known internationally as Kimba the White Lion), will be getting a new animated special this summer in Japan. It will be a new story set in the future and is said to be incorporating elements of "variety storytelling", but still be in step with Tezuka's original themes. Here's a description of the plot:
In this future story, mankind is plagued with the environmental destruction it did little to prevent. The United Nations entrusts a company called Eternal Earth to create "Neo Jungle," an artificial environment for the wildlife that faces extinction. Within this thriving miniature ecosystem, a young white lion named Leo is born. While the cub lacks bravery at first, he vows to "become the Jungle Emperor like my father someday!" One day, Leo encounters Ken'ichi, the son of the head of Eternal Earth. Sounds pretty cool, and it's been confirmed that some incredible talent are working on it, including Code Geass director Goro Taniguchi and legendary character designer Yoshitaka Amano. I'll be keeping an eye on this! Source: Anime News Network - Tezuka's Jungle Emperor to Return in Summer TV Special - Geass' Taniguchi, FF Games' Amano on New Jungle Emperor
Continue reading "Jungle Fever"...
 There has been a torrent of Tezuka related news and articles coming out of the UK to coincide with the film festival taking place in London at The Barbican, which started yesterday and will conclude September 24th.
In a recent article found in newspaper The Times, writer Dominic Wells talks about Tezuka and makes a case that he ought to be much better known considering the depth and importance of his work. It's a great article that also briefly details the controversial comparisons between Tezuka's Jungle Emperor Leo/Kimba the White Lion and Walk Disney Pictures' The Lion King.
You can read the entire article for yourself on the Times Online website or read the archived copy right here by clicking the link below.
Osamu Tezuka, the master of mighty manga
The ‘Japanese Walt Disney’ deserves wider acclaim
Dominic Wells
“One explanation for the popularity of comics in Japan,” ran the Japanese newspaper Asahi’s obituary for the man known as “the god of manga”, “is that Japan had Osamu Tezuka, whereas other nations did not.”
Walt Disney was an admirer of Tezuka. Stanley Kubrick tried to recruit him as an art director on 2001: A Space Odyssey.Devoted as a child to American movies and cartoons, Tezuka introduced a remarkably cinematic style to his comics, and every Japanese animator since lies in his debt, or shadow. And yet, even as racks of Japanese animation proliferate in our DVD stores, even as Western parents gratefully add another enchanting Miyazaki anime such as Princess Mononoke or Spirited Away to their collection of family classics, the name of Tezuka, who died aged 60 in 1989, has been all but forgotten over here.
This week, a festival of Tezuka’s films, coupled with an exhibition of his artwork, will set the record straight. The week-long season at the Barbican in London cannot hope to be comprehensive – throughout his all-too-short life, Tezuka slept only four hours a night, the better to create more than 700 stories, 170,000 pages of manga, dozens of TV series and 17 feature films. But it includes his best-known works, as well as many never before seen in this country.
Here, for instance, are the three cartoon series that in the Sixties introduced a generation of Americans to Japanese animation. Astro Boy, inspired by Pinocchio, stars a super-strong robot child, built by a scientist to replace his own dead son. Princess Knight features a warrior princess who disguises herself as a boy, thus inventing the now massive shojo genre of adventure comics for girls. By contrast, in America, when the Fantastic Four was dreamt up, what superpower did the one woman get? Invisibility.
And of course there is Kimba the White Lion, which acquired notoriety in 1994 when Disney did not, repeat not, rip it off for The Lion King. How could Disney have, when their lawyers swore that not one of the animators on The Lion King had even heard of Kimba? Though as the Tezuka festival’s curator Helen McCarthy wryly remarks: “If you were a car manufacturer and not one your designers had heard of Honda, wouldn’t you be worried?”
Seeing Kimba again, the parallels are head-smackingly blatant; the bird that announces the birth of an heir to the lion king; the animals paying their respects at the foot of Pride Rock; the wise old monkey with a dodgy Jamaican accent; even the deceased paterfamilias appearing in a cloud. Tezuka’s estate, recalls McCarthy, reacted with commendable dignity. There was no court case, merely a statement to the effect that as Tezuka had himself been influenced by Disney – he watched Bambi 80 times, and it helped him to pioneer the bigeyed style with which Japanese animation has now become synonymous – he would have been delighted to repay the favour.
And yet his output is not just kids’ stuff. Tezuka, who studied medicine and became a licensed physician before turning all his energy to art, had an extraordinary breadth of interest. His comics include an adaptation of Crime and Punishment and a Life of Buddha in eight large volumes. McCarthy’s own favourite is Mw, “about a homosexual raving psychotic shagging a priest and trying to end the world” (a live-action adaptation is in the works). And at the Barbican season, must-sees include Lion Books, a series of experimental shorts, and 1,001 Nights (1969), the world’s first feature-length erotic animation.
McCarthy describes Tezuka as a “story machine” – his output was obsessive, relentless, even while dying from stomach cancer. A victim of bullies at school, who discovered that his drawings had the power to melt even their hard hearts, he wanted to do more than entertain. He hoped to spread a message of tolerance between peoples, and respect for the planet born of his studies of insect life.
“Comics,” Tezuka once said, “are an international language that can cross boundaries and generations.” As Japanese graphic art continues to convert the rest of the world, this season is a welcome chance to rediscover the man who made it possible.
Osamu Tezuka: Movies into Manga, Barbican, London EC2 (www.barbican.org.uk 020-7638 8891), Sept 18-24 2008
Continue reading "Master of Mighty Manga"...
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