One Piece Film Z will be celebrating the 15th anniversary of Eiichiro Oda's sprawling series when it opens in Japanese theaters on December 15, and it's got some more special animation ready to hit TV leading up to its release. One Piece Episode of Luffy: …Read more »
A new promotional poster debuted for the 2013 Dragon Ball Z movie, raising more questions as to what's in store for the next anime feature. Set to take place in the ten-year time skip after Goku bests Buu in battle, between Dragon Ball manga chapters …Read more »
Namco Bandai is gearing up to release a remake of Tales of Hearts , which originally made its debut on Nintendo DS in 2007. Currently slated for a 2013 release in Japan, Tales of Hearts R shakes things up a bit with 3D character models, …Read more »
A short manga recently found in a used bookstore catalog is reported to be a very early work by “God of manga” and anime pioneer Osamu Tezuka, creator of Astro Boy and Phoenix . The manga depicts Japan’s food shortage problem after World War II, …Read more »
It’s been a rather Mamoru Oshii-influenced week, with the premiere of 009 Re:Cyborg , directed by Oshii protege Kenji Kamiyama, and the successful backing of Kick-Heart , the short on which Oshii is consulting. The veteran director of classics like Ghost in the Shell and …Read more »
This week marked the deadline for the funding of Kick-Heart , the crowd-funded anime short by Production I.G. and Masaaki Yuasa. With the ringing of the closing bell came good news: not only had Kick-Heart met its $150,000 goal, backers had helped reach a total …Read more »
One of the big changes to Namco Bandai's upcoming fighter, Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 , involves interactive arenas, and the latest trailer shows this gameplay tweak in action. Developed as usual by CyberConnect2 ( .hack series, Asura's Wrath ), Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 …Read more »
Japanese rock duo Boom Boom Satellites, known in the west for a number of contributions to popular anime and films, have announced the release of their first album in two years, entitled Embrace. The album will feature the single “Broken Mirror,” which was used as …Read more »
Residents of the Tokyo Metropolitan District continue to face a barrage of advertising in the face of the impending release of Evangelion 3.0: You Can (Not) Redo . The latest and greatest promotion comes at the hands of the high-end department store chain Lumine, which …Read more »
It's that time again, folks, because the latest edition of Otaku USA e-News—our free newsletter loaded with exclusive bonus content—is now available! If you haven't received it, all you have to do is head here to sign up free of charge. In this issue we …Read more »
Those of you holding out to read the new issue of Otaku USA digitally need wait no longer. The December 2012 issue—which includes a cover story on Penguin Drum , plus features on Toriko , Ninja Scroll , and a bunch of reviews covering anime, …Read more »
Director Koji Wakamatsu, a revered filmmaker in the world of Japanese cinema, passed away October 17th after being hit by a taxi in Tokyo at age 76. Wakamatsu, who directed over 100 films, had recently won Asian Filmmaker of the Year at the Busan Film …Read more »
Here’s a story that nicely dovetails our love of anime and pop idol/Harajuku hero/incessant Twitter user Kyary Pamyu Pamyu. The 19-year-old, best known in the U.S. for last year’s “Pon Pon Pon” and accompanying insane music video, has been busy lately. This past week saw …Read more »
“Huh. That’s something I bet our readers would love to see.” That’s a thought that your Man In Japan (aka me!) has at least once a day walking around town. Tokyo is nothing if not a visual feast, and we’ve decided to share the love …Read more »
Unofficial Gundam videographer darwinfish has done a great job of capturing stuff like the full-scale Odaiba Gundam and other similarly themed spectacles, and his latest focus is the Flower Gundam in Shiokaze Park for the 29th National Urban Greenery Fair Tokyo. The Flower Gundam promotes …Read more »
Joseph Luster
Matt Schley
