Category Archives: Anime

Bandai Namco Arts releases ‘MixBox’ A New Streaming Program

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MixBox is a new streaming program by Bandai Namco Arts that will connect you to a variety of video content as well as, both classics and, the latest tunes from the Lantis music label all free of charge!

▲MixBox Service Image
Character: The Navigator, Lan Amane

MixBox will also be releasing exclusive and previously unpublished content by MixUp, a project that supports remote production by artists and creators as part of the #StayHome initiative to prevent the spread of COVID19. Some of these contents are currently being released on the Lantis YouTube Channel.

MixUp! Artists (currently releasing on YouTube Lantis Channel) include:

Aira Yuhki, Chihiro Yonekura, CMB, CooRie, Hironobu Kageyama, Hiroshi Kitadani, JAM Project, Kenichi Suzumura, Kenshiro, Masaaki Endoh, Masami Okui, Miyuki Hashimoto, Nami Tamaki, Sayaka Sasaki, Shiho Terada, Shuhei Kita, Yoshichika Kuriyama, Yoshiki Fukuyama, fhána, yozuca (and more)

A teaser website is LIVE as of today ahead of the launch. You can check it out here: MixBox.live. Bandai Namco Arts will be streaming a beta version of MixBox on the Lantis YouTube channel for 24 hours from 12:00 on June 12 (Friday). Take advantage of this opportunity to experience the service before it is launched.

Follow MixBox on social media!
MixBox Official Twitter & Official Homepage
Official Twitter: https://twitter.com/Amane_LAN
Official Homepage: https://mixbox.live

Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 OST Released! |Nobuko Toda x Kazuma Jinnouchi

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Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045, the latest installment in the highly-acclaimed Ghost in the Shell series, is currently available worldwide on Netflix.

The Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 original soundtrack was released today. The Soundtrack was composed by Nobuko Toda and Kazuma Jinnouchi.

Using a combination of elements from orchestral, acoustic, and electronic genres, they have created scores for numerous films, video games, and anime including, the Metal Gear Solid series, Uzumasa Limelight, Halo 5: Guardians, and Ultraman. The musical duo had the following comments about the release of the Ghost in the Shell SAC:_2045 soundtrack:

“We are sincerely grateful to be part of the creative team for Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045.

It was such an inspiring process to work with the wonderful director duo, Mr. Kamiyama, and Mr. Aramaki, and our focus was to deliver music that maximizes their vision. We hope the soundtrack album lets you relive the still-evolving world of SAC_2045.”

-Nobuko Toda x Kazuma Jinnouchi

Over the last two decades, the duo have received numerous awards and honors including the BAFTA Games Award, NAVGTR Awards, Global Music Award, and MPSE Golden Reel Award.

The Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 soundtrack also features renowned musicians such as legendary drummer Simon Phillips (pictured below), a former member of the band Toto, and Ernest Tibbs, the bassist from the Protocol Series.

SAC_2045 directors Shinji Aramaki and Kenji Kamiyama the had the following to say about working with Nobuko Toda and Kazuma Jinnouchi,

“We first met Nobuko Toda and Kazuma Jinnouchi during the production of Ultraman (2019), and they fulfilled our requests so perfectly that it only felt natural to invite them to do the music for Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045. As the first members of staff to objectively read our work, they thoroughly studied the scenario and storyboard and then began proposing ideas for the music, so we always looked forward to music meetings and dubbing sessions. Once again, they exceeded our expectations, and we were surprised by the depth of their knowledge. We look forward to seeing what they are going to come up with for season 2!”

-Kenji Kamiyama x Shinji Aramaki

Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 OST now available for digital download

Related products brought to by The Right Stuf Anime shop
Ghost in the Shell: Arise The New Movie Blu-ray/DVDGhost in the Shell README 1995-2017 (Hardcover)

Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex Complete Collection DVD Anime Legends

Japan LA and Little Tokyo Shops DESTROYED by Los Angeles Rioters

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**This is NOT related to the RECENT 2025 Los Angeles Protests**

People took to the streets of Los Angeles on Saturday, May 31st for what began as a peaceful protest for the death of George Floyd, who died Monday after being handcuffed and pinned to the ground by Minneapolis Police Department officer, Derek Chauvin.

The protest later became violent as rioters took over the peaceful protest and, began attacking Los Angeles Police Department squad cars and setting them on fire. The protest turned riot, later made its way to affluent areas of Los Angeles including Rodeo Drive, Little Tokyo, Melrose Ave, and The Grove outdoor shopping mall.

Local businesses and shops around those areas were looted and/or set on fire during the riot prompting a mandatory curfew on the city Los Angeles and heavy police activity.

Caught by ABC 7 Action News, shows rioters breaking into well-known anime gift shop JapanLA on Melrose ave.

[Video taken down by ABC 7]

Dozens of looters entered the premises taking whatever they could find. According to a post by JapanLA:

“They [police] finally cleared them out and arrested some of the looters. We are all crushed and deeply saddened. Thank you for all the texts. We all left at 4:30pm and our staff is home safe. I’ll send more updates soon!” They released a security camera photo that shows two suspects looting the store.

In the past, we’ve covered a few events in this and their new Little Tokyo location.

A few shops and a pharmacy were broken into and looted in the early morning hours of May 30th, in the Little Tokyo district.


According to the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center,

“Businesses in Little Tokyo were looted last night. This was not done by protesters but by people who decided to take advantage of the grief and angst of others for their personal gain.“

Brian Kito of the Little Tokyo Public Safety Association expressed concern over the close proximity of Little Tokyo to City Hall and LAPD headquarters stating,

“[It] would leave [Little Tokyo] vulnerable during civil unrest. During the L.A. riots in 1992, windows were smashed at Japanese Village Plaza, Weller Court, and what was then the New Otani Hotel on Los Angeles Street.”

LAPD headquarters a block away from the Little Tokyo district

Gov. Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency for Los Angeles after approving Mayor Eric Garcetti’s request to deploy the National Guard. National Guard arrived at 12am on May 31st, 2020.

Los Angeles’ curfew will stay in place from 8 p.m. Saturday through 5 a.m. Sunday.

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Source: Rafu Shimpo, ABC7 Action News, Japanese American Cultural & Community Center

Zag Entertainment releases MIRACULOUS LADYBUG ART FIGURE!

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Miraculous Ladybug currently has 3 seasons and going strong, and with a huge demand for Miraculous Ladybug merchandise, Zag entertainment decided to open a physical store in Santa Monca, California in April of 2019.

Merchandise varies, from action figures and stationery to apparel and accessories. Recently, Zag entertainment added a highly anticipated product!

Miraculous ladybug fans have been pushing for Zag entertainment to produce collectible figures, rather than the basic figurine toy.  on March 13th, Zag entertainment released the VERY, first collectible figure; Ladybug & Catnoir Art Figure!

The figure is 100% resin and stands about 16.5” inches tall, and comes with a limited-edition storage box made from real leather.

 

How much will this limited edition figure set you back? An estimated $260 (before taxes and shipping). If you have $260+ to spare, the figure can be pre-ordered online here, but hurry only 2000 pieces were made.

We’d love to hear from you, What are your opinions on the Miraculous Ladybug figure? Comment below!

COVID-19 Coronavirus outbreak effects on Conventions

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Japan’s biggest anime convention of the year, AnimeJapan was canceled four days before the event was set to take place. Prior to that, the city of Osaka canceled its annual anime festival, Nipppombashi Street Festar which draws over 200K+ people to city’s Denden Town neighborhood. All this in fear of spreading the COVID-19 virus.

Notice on cancellation of Anime Japan 2020
Notice on cancellation of the 16th Nihonbashi Street Festa

Taking the seriousness of the situation into consideration, Olympic 2020 travelers have been wondering if the 2020 Olyimics will suffer the same fate. On March 3rd, an International Olympic Committee spokesperson stated, that there are no plans to postpone or move the Olympics, adding “We made a decision and the decision is the Games go ahead”. The 2020 Olympics is set to take place from July 24th to August 9th 2020 in Tokyo, Japan.

In the U.S., the first confirmed case of the COVID-19 coronavirus disease was announced on January 21st, Since then there have been over 230 cases reported and growing. Due to fear of infection, popular industry expo, Game Developers Conference was postponed to the Summer of 2020.  GDC was supposed to take place at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, CA.

California’s biggest anime convention Anime Expo is scheduled to still take place in July of this year. The SPJA (Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation) released the following statement regarding Anime Expo status:

With the community taking its precautions, are guest cancellations are unavoidable? For now, we’ll have to wait and see.

We encourage our viewers/readers to take precautions and help reduce the spreading of the COVID-19 virus by washing your hands and keeping general germ reduction in mind when going out in public. The following are prevention guidelines by the CDC:

  • Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
  • Stay home when you are sick.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
  • Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
  • Follow CDC’s recommendations for using a facemask.

For more information, please visit the CDC website.

Sources: Link 1, Link 2, Link 3, Link 4, Link 5

Interview with voice actress, Dorothy Fahn | On-Camera interview debut!

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We had the honor of interviewing voice actress, Dorothy Fahn during Ronin Expo‘s Otaku Market Gathering in Orange County! This mark Dorothy’s first on-camera interview, all other interviews she’s previously done have been in audio format only. Dorothy is known for voicing Lilymon in Digimon, Meryl Stryfe in Trigun and Chihiro Fujisaki in Danganronpa

She’s married to voice actor Tom Fahn (Voice of Agumon) and is one of four family members to become voice actors, family members include, Jonathan Fahn (Brother-in-law) and Melissa Fahn (Sister-in-law). We’re honored to share Dorothy’s on-camera, interview debut and we hope to interview the rest of the Fahn family.

Interview with: MIKE POLLOCK

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Voice actor Mike Pollock has been in Radio, eBooks, and commercials, but you might recognize him in animation. He’s the Narrator of Pokemon and the notorious Doctor Eggman in the Sonic The Hedgehog franchise. He’s also done numerous other characters in anime such, Meat from Ultimate Muscle, Deus Prometh in GKid’s Promare, and most recently, Yasui in Weathering with You. 

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Subscribe to our channel to updated on upcoming interviews, such as:

This interview will be recorded live during Ronin Expo’s Otaku Market Gathering at the source OC. For event information Click here.

Interview with voice actress, Dorothy Fhan voice of  Naru Narusegawa in Love Hina, Meryl Stryfe in Trigun, Chihiro Fujisaki in Danganronpa and much more!

Furthermore, we’ll be interview a VERY special guest at the end of this month, her voice was featured in only two games, Jak II and Jak 3 as Tess!

We’re pleased to announce, former voice actress, Britton Arey will be on our upcoming interview list, if you have any questions for her, please submit them by commenting below or by contacting us using any of these platforms!

Sonic The Hedgehog the Movie first audience screening – Ben Schwartz “it was so special.”

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Sonic The Hedgehog the movie has been an extremely anticipated film. Since 2013, rights to the film were acquired by Sony Pictures before declaring it a turnaround and selling the rights to Paramount Pictures in 2017.

Since then, its been a crazy, wild ride, beginning with Sonic’s initial design. The first trailer was released on April 30th, 2019, which experienced extreme, negative feedback.

Many fans went online, critiquing the character’s resemblance to its video game counterpart. In a surprising turn of events film director, Jeff Folwer and Paramount pictures decided to delay the film to redesign sonic. The film was originally set for a late 2019 release but was delayed to February 14th, 2020.

The film was redeemed, in November 2019 when a second trailer showcasing a newly designed Sonic was released drawing positive attention from fans and media.

With all this being said, its been a long journey for the Sonic Movie, for not only its cast and crew but also for its production team. Unfortunately, no amount of positive feedback could save visual effects and production company, Moving Picture Company Vancouver from shutting down its doors at the end of 2019. The company was responsible for Sonic’s current redesign. Their last projects were Cats and Sonic The Hedgehog.

On Saturday, January 25th, Sonic The Hedgehog had its blue carpet, world premiere at the  Paramount Theatre in Hollywood. For the very first time, the film was screened for an audience.

Ben Schwartz, the voice of Sonic The Hedgehog, went to Twitter to express his experience having watched the film among fans.

The film has yet to face the world’s audience and critique, after all, the redesign fixed the visual aspect of the film, now it’s up to the plot. But it seems Paramount pictures and Ben Schwartz are quite confident the film will surpass fan expectations.

Watch Sonic The Hedgehog in theaters February 14th, 2020

Find tickets here

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Sources: NintendoEnthusiast, Twitter.

Photos Source: Rachel Luna/Getty Images North America


Sonic X Complete Series Blu-ray

Miku Expo Celebrates 5th Anniversary With U.S. 2020 Tour!

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Virtual-popstar idol, Hatsune Miku is back in the U.S. for the 5th anniversary of MIKU EXPO; Miku Expo 2020 USA & Canada!

Hatsune Miku performing at Nokia LIVE in Los Angeles during MIKU EXPO 2018.

You may remember Hatsune Miku, Megurine Luka, Kagamine Rin, and Kagamine Len made their U.S. debut at Anime Expo 2011’s Mikunopolis.

Screenshot of “Making of Mikunopolis“

Since then, they’ve been touring in and out of the U.S., having in a total of 4 concerts within the U.S. in the last 9 years; Miku Expo 2014, Miku Expo 2016 North America, & Miku Expo 2018 USA & Mexico.

Miku Expo 2014
Miku Expo 2016
Miku Expo 2018

Since making her first U.S. debut, Miku has landed in the mainstream media spotlight, even being featured in other U.S. media, such as ‘The late-night show with David Letterman‘ and was also the opening act for Lady Gaga’s 2014 worldwide tour, The Artpop Ball.

 

Recently, Crypton Future Media announced California tour dates which include, Coachella, San Jose, and a newly added, Los Angeles concert! L.A. tickets go on sale on January 31st!

SEE YOU THERE!

Anime Los Angeles 2020 |Special Musical Guests

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Anime Los Angeles 2020 kicked off with the first-ever, U.S. performance of Japanese rock band, BRATS with an opening act by female rap duo, FEMM.

LuLa (FEMM) performing at Anime Los Angeles 2020
BRATS performing at Anime Los Angeles 2020, their first performance in the U.S.

BRATS is a Japanese all-female rock band formed in 2011 by sisters Rei and Aya Kuromiya.  In 2018, they released their studio album, BRATS which included the theme songs from the anime series To Be Hero and the Japanese film Slavemen.

BRATS performed to an enthusiastic crowd, performing hit singles such as ‘Misery’, ‘Juuyon Sai Byou’, ‘Come to See You’ and their newest single ‘Excuser’, which was digitally released on day one of Anime Los Angeles 2020.

Rei Kuromiya performing at Anime Los Angeles 2020
Rei Kuromiya during LADYBABY concert in Los Angeles in 2015

Vocalist Rei Kuromiya, is also a former member of Kawaii Metal band, LADYBABY which was formed by Austrian Wearstler, Ladybeard and gravure idol Rie Kaneko.

In 2015, Rei performed collectively as LADYBABY at Los Angeles’s most popular anime shop, Anime Jungle. Rei left the band in November of 2017.

Prior to their U.S. debut, BRATS had their first live concert appearance outside of Japan at “Ambitious Girls Series 1” in Seoul, South Korea, alongside idol-metal group Broken By The Scream on January 20, 2019. Since then, they’ve been touring within Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.

Vocals – Rei Kuromiya
Guitarist – Hinako
Bass – Aya Kuromiya

Special musical guest performances also included an opening act from Japanese electronic, rap duo, FEMM. The band consists of RiRi and LuLa and they described themselves as ‘live mannequins’, in fact, FEMM stands for, Far East Mention Mannequins.

FEMM at SOU SOU booth, J-POP SUMMIT 2015 | Photo Credit: Hirominy

In 2014, FEMM released their critically acclaimed, hit single “Fxxk Boyz Get Money”.

Later that year they released their debut studio album, Femm-Isation. Since then, FEMM has released several EPs and singles.

Their newest studio album, 80’s/90’s J-Pop Revival was released in 2017 in both audio CD and cassette. FEMM spends their time touring in Japan and overseas.

We anxiously anticipate Anime Los Angeles’ musical guests for 2021.

BRATS Anime Los Angeles 2020 performance gallery

Vocals - Rei Kuromiya
BRATS performing at Anime Los Angeles 2020, their first performance in the U.S.
Guitarist - Hinako
Bass - Aya Kuromiya
Rei Kuromiya performing at Anime Los Angeles 2020
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