The countdown to the Fate / Zero premiere is well underway.  Latest bit of news comes from Aniplex of America stating that Fate / Zero will get worldwide simulcast treatment with eight different language subtitles.  Every episode will stream each week, and will make the episodes available for seven days.  So Fate fans can rejoice because this means Fate fans all over the world will be able to enjoy the series together.

For US fans, the first episode will air at 8:30 AM (PST) / 10:30 AM (CST) / 11:30 AM (EST) starting Saturday, October 1st, 2011!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLQg5S-gRrw

Promos for Lancer, Caster, Assassin, Rider, and Saber in order of release (Saber being first CM release.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6Qu3iQ6gE0

Next the  promo featuring Berserker and his master Matou Kariya.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zr14sIgNhYg

And last but not least Archer (Gilgamesh) x Tohsaka.  Guess the Tohsaka family excels at summoning of Archer class ^^;

Also been looking forward to the release of Aoi Eir’s “Memoria” single but looks like that has been leaked online because full version appeared on YouTube recently.  Memoria is the song chosen as the ending theme for Fate / Zero.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAOZj-HgiSM

Been this new series, announcement of Type-Moon Anniversary x Dollfie Dream project, and news of Fate / Extra CCC game; there has been a lot of Fate related news to talk about.  Bit behind on talking about lot of it due to things happening in life as well, but expect to see a few more Fate related posts soon.

The wait is finally over, to celebrate Type-Moon’s 10th anniversary the much anticipated Carnival Phantasm OAV is out.  The anime adapts an anthology of Type-Moon manga short stories by Eri Takenashi, the creator of Kannagi.  Being a Type-Moon fan, I have been looking forward to seeing this anime.  In fact, Carnival Phantasm was on the short list of anime been trying to keep up with, along with Fate / Zero (Fate / Stay Night “prequel”) that airs this October.

Thankfully, fellow Type-Moon fan and comrade Yamada pointed me to a subtitled version and I must say the show was quite enjoyable.  Just a nice fun episode which I like.  Think you can get a feel of that from the opening.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0R4pm1akDIQ

Liked the episode so much that I pretty much went overboard capturing screens.  The focus of this episode was mainly around the Fate / Stay Night cast.  The story also centers around the Holy Grail War much like in Fate / Stay Night, except this time there is a small twist.  The Masters and Servants fight for Grail as contestants in one of those zany Japanese game shows!  Needless to say shenanigans ensue.

So please enjoy the following screens.  I’ve commented on a few of the moments that caught my attention.

Poor Rin doesn’t seem to know how to work the Blu-ray player ^^;

Nice Saber Lily figure there!

Taiga!!

Meow!

Cute Ilya moment that I had to capture.

Oh that Rin…

It’s Time…

…To Duel!!

He’s the King of Games?

Remember this moment…

Caster is cute ^o^

This was the best line of the episode!!  That sums up Goldie in a nutshell!!

I just had to include this because I recently did a Dark Sakura photoshoot =)

Rider only one not using a mallet

Trace On!!

METAFORCE!!  Wait…wrong franchise lol

Yeah…no doubt this guy become Archer in the future…

Looks like next time will be a Tsukihime x Sailor Moon parody?

Shiki…that’s quite the collection you got there o.O

Cannot wait until next episode!  Looks like it will be funny as well.

Screens of the ending animation follows

Oh no…what’s this…Tiger Dojo time?!

LOL!!!

Taiga knows how to spend the money!

If you haven’t already, I would strongly suggest you check out Carnival Phantasm.  Especially if you are a fan of Type-Moon.  See you next episode!

One of my favorite anime from last year is finally going to see its US release, High School of the Dead (also known as H.O.T.D.).  High School of the Dead is an anime based of manga by the same name by Daisuke Sato with illustration by Shoji Sato.  The story is set in preset day and begins as the world is struck by a pandemic that turns humans into zombies.  The story follows a group of high school students, the school’s nurse, and a young girl the group saves as they travel the streets of Japan during this event.

In short this is another zombie apocalypse / survival story, a genre that I typically do not care for that much.  I have seen a few of the more popular zombie movies like 28 Days Later and I am Legend.  I also played some zombie based games like Resident Evil, but overall the genre still did not appeal to me much.  But H.O.T.D. had one thing going for it those did not – it was anime!  I find that I typically enjoy shows that are in anime form more often then I do their live action counterpart.

Does not hurt that H.O.T.D. also features a cast of hot babes!!  The show is heavy on the fanservice.  The show is also heavy on the violence, but its toned down a bit compared to level of gore that explodes in the pages of the manga.  Pretty obvious that series is geared towards male audience considering the violence and the fanservice.  But the story is still interesting enough to make it enjoyable to watch for me.

Like many I watched the subtitle that was produced last summer, and even downloaded a the episodes.  But even though I downloaded the series, I prefer to buy actual disc if I can.  So like I said above, I have been eagerly awaiting the release of the show stateside.  And not only do US fans get the series uncensored, but Sentai Filmworks even produced an English dub!  I didn’t quite expect that because Sentai hasn’t been on the US scene that long.

You can check out the English promo videos / dub cast videos below.  Overall the dub isn’t half bad, but of course the beauty of purchasing the disc is get both versions.

httpvhp://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=A0FD30F412F8FBC8

So if you like zombies, hot babes, and intense action then give High School of the Dead a watch.  You can pick your preferred format from one of the following retailers:

Amazon:
High School of the Dead Complete Collection – DVD
High School of the Dead Complete Collection – Blu-Ray

Rightstuf:
High School of the Dead Complete Collection – DVD
High School of the Dead Complete Collection – Blu-Ray

For those that would rather have their HOTD in digital format, you can also download the complete season or individual episodes via iTunes.

I now eagerly await Season 2.  But in the meantime, I can at least enjoy the H.O.T.D. OAV episode.

One of the series that caught my attention this season was Freezing.  Typically I am behind when it comes to watching current season’s anime offerings.  The last series I watched while it was airing was first part K-ON! if that gives you an idea of how often I watch current shows.  But noticed a lot of conversation around few series this season via twitter comrades, so I decided to get aboard watching a few of them.  So when someone mentioned I should check Freezing out, I took the advice and gave it a try.  For those who are unfamiliar with Freezing, here is the plot summary from ANN:

Set in a slightly futuristic world where Earth has been invaded and is at war with aliens from another dimension called the Nova, the story follows the adventures of a Japanese boy named Kazuya Aoi who enrolls for training at a special school for genetically modified girls called Pandoras who battle the aliens, and their male partners, called Limiters, who use a special power called “freezing” to limit their opponent’s mobility. The protagonist makes the acquaintance of an unusual older girl named Satellizer el. Bridget who appears to be the most powerful Pandora in her class, but has not yet chosen a male partner to be her Limiter, and in spite of the warnings of all his friends, he decides to be her Limiter.

Image above shows Satellizer fighting it out with Lana Linchen, one of her many rivals.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ywdE4keZhw

The second promotional video (PV) for Freezing.

Gonna deviate a bit from main topic for a moment to discuss something.  I have a rule I typically follow when it comes to anime series.  I call it the “The Five Episode” rule – which basically is I give any show five episodes to engage me.  Reason I do this is because when anime is usually released here in the states, disc will have 4-5 episodes on it.  So my logic is that if a show can’t get you invested within 4-5 episodes, then its not for me.

In the case of series like Freezing, which is only 12 episodes I would have watched nearly half of the season.  That being said, Freezing had me interested by end of episode 2 and hooked by end of episode 3.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZaVvIephMk

Opening animation.  The song playing is called COLOR by MARiA, a cover of a song from Hatsune Miku.

As mentioned above, the story revolves around the team of Satellizer el. Bridget and Kazuya Aoi.  In fact, its their relationship that made the series enjoyable to me.  Mainly due to Satellizer’s personality split.  When she fights her facial expressions are so serious, but when she is with Kazuya its completely different.  Suppose that makes Satellizer a tsundere, which is fine with me as I like tsundere characters.  Her peers see her as the Untouchable Queen but Kazuya gets to see the more vulnerable side of her personality.  I would compare it to Himura Kenshin’s personality in Rurouni Kenshin.  Kenshin had two distinct personalities – the gentle “wanderer” and the ruthless “manslayer”.

Plus Satellizer isn’t bad on the eyes either.  Guess its to be expected considering the series is geared towards male audience.  ^^;;

I also started reading the Freezing manga, which is also quite enjoyable.  Obviously there are a few differences between the two.  A few alternations were made in the story and events to contain it into twelve episodes.  Also the violence is toned down a bit in the anime compared to the manga.  For instance, the Satellizer vs Miyabi fight in episode 3 had a much more brutal conclusion.  Not to mention the Ingrid flashback had much more violent battle involving the Nova.  Plus the “Pandora Mode” in the anime is different than in the manga (prefer the manga version myself).  The manga also has few comedy moments that I enjoyed.

The big difference of course being that the anime piles on the fanservice.  The girls may start of fighting clothed, but most fights end up with someone topless / semi-topless before its over.  There were a few times where I thought I may have been watching Ikki Tousen because of how fast clothing was being destroyed.

I did mention that the anime is heavy on the fanservice, right??   I just wanted to mention this red haired girl.  Her name is Ganessa Roland and she a fellow Pandora and one of Satellizer’s rivals.  In fact, at the start of the story she takes the 2nd year Rank 1 position from Satellizer thanks to the unintentional interference of Kazuya.  I do consider Ganessa to be a key character, playing a critical role during the Nova invasion of East Genetics and its outcome (don’t want to reveal too much…spoilers…lol).

I will even admit that at first I wasn’t too fond of her character.  I considered her a loud mouth and bit egotistical.  But like I said, when her moment came I had a complete change of heart regarding her character.

The Untouchable Queen has dethroned The King of Knights, taking control of my desktop.

The last eye catch of the season – an embarrassed Chiffon Fairchild with a cellphone photo of her sleeping (and cuddling) w/ a stuffed bear.  She’s the number 1 ranked 3rd year at the school as well as the Student Council President.  But what I like about her is she rather solve her problems by talking, instead of with violence like many of the other 3rd year.  In fact, she was the one that pretty much said it needed to stop.  But that doesn’t mean she’s not a capable fighter.  In fact, her nickname of “Smiling Monster” kinda reminded me of “Teresa of the Faint Smile” from Claymore considering both ranked at number 1, both have “smile” in their title, and both seems to hold back revealing her true power.

So Freezing has finished its broadcast run.  Overall I really enjoyed the series.  Plenty of action to keep me entertained.  Main characters were engaging enough to keep me interested too.  Certainly enough fanservice for those that enjoy that also.  The manga is still ongoing so obviously there is still some story to cover, hopefully enough to see another season next year.  Let me put it this way, I would love to see another season of Freezing.

Of course I have to mention that Funimation has picked up license for US release on DVD and Blu-ray.  So US fans like myself have that to look forward to next year also ^o^

Close with few Freezing related items that sure many fans (including myself) would love to have!

• Freezing Satellizer Smooth Dakimakura Cover
  
• Freezing Satellizer Dakimakura Cover
  
• Freezing Ganessa Smooth Dakimakura Cover
  
• Freezing Mofumofu Big Towel Satellizer Bed
  
• Freezing Satellizer Big Towel
  
• Freezing Satellizer Cushion Cover
  
• Bushiroad Sleeve Collection HG Vol.83 Freezing Satellizer L. Bridgette
  

Latest Gundam 00 trailer is up.  I dunno if its the actual audio or if this video is off sync, but seems like the audio is a bit off.  That aside, certainly looks good.  Looks like Graham is still alive and kicking.  Also looks like Tieria Erde has his body back?  Could just be a hologram (though why would hologram need to remove helmet).

Looks like movie will be out September 2010.  Can’t wait to see this movie.

Another amusing video I came across on YouTube.

Winner of the Momiji’s Challenge award at the Anime North 2009 Music Video Competition.
The opening theme from He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, paired with footage from Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann.

Certainly deserved to win.  Have a look below.

YouTube suggested I check out this video when I was browsing around.  Was pretty cute, so I thought I would share ^^  Sadly I don’t understand anything said in it…^^;;;;

Which lead me to this trailer of 00 Season 2 which was done in the same fashion.  This on was subbed though.

I loved this shot of Soma / Maria after she sees the Colonel.

Browsing YouTube and came across a trailer for Moble Suit Gundam Unicorn.  Not too familiar with what Unicorn is about, though I have hard of it because of the model kits available on it.  So for those like me, I turn to Wikipedia to give a synopsis,

The novel begins in U.C. 0001, at the very beginning of human space colonization, with the Laplace Incident, a major event that influences the course of human history forever. The main story takes place in U.C. 0096, three years after the events of Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack.

So obviously this story is set in the Universal Century timeline, so its tied into the original Mobile Suit Gundam.  Character designs seem to be inline with those of original Gundam, though obviously the animation is better.

What’s interesting is that the trailer states “Spring 2010 Worldwide Launch.”  Maybe a nod that there are Gundam fans worldwide?  Personally, not expecting a dub; but I do think Bandai will have a subtitled version.

Anyway, here is the first trailer from the Bandai’s Anime Channel.  Enjoy.

“Mobile Suit Gundam UC” launches on February 20, 2010!
Story by famous writer Harutoshi Fukui, creator of “Bokoku no Aegis” (aka”AEGIS”).
Featuring an all-star production team, including: Director Kazuhiro Furuhashi (“Rurouni Kenshin / Samurai X”, “You’re Under Arrest”), Original Character Designer Yoshikazu Yasuhiko (“Mobile Suit Gundam”, “Crusher Joe”), and Mechanical Designer Hajime Katoki (“Mobile Suit Gundam Wing”, “Mobile Suit Gundam 0083″, “Patlabor 2: The Movie”) “Gundam UC” will depict the epic Universal Century (“UC”) saga that fans have long waited for!

Two days ago on January 23rd, the Fate / Stay Night movie Unlimited Blade Works premiered.  From the promotional videos and the various images (like the one above) I can tell this movie will certainly be spectacular.  The Fate / Stay Night TV series mainly followed the Fate scenario from the game, though oddly enough the second opening did show the fight between Shirou and Archer which happens in the Unlimited Blade Works scenario.

The movie looks epic from the promotional video.

The theme for Unlimited Blade Works is Voice -Tadoritsuku Basho- by Sachi Tainaka, who happened to be the singer for the TV series themes as well.  You can hear the song below.

Those interested in owning the single can check out Amazon or Play-Asia.

I do hope that this movie gets picked up for a stateside release.  I also hope that the movie does focus more on Rin x Archer’s relationship, as well as the Shirou x Archer connection.  As much as I love Saber, I think that Rin and Archer need their time to shine with this movie.  I also hope that if they do the dubbing studio actually dubs Unlimited Blade Works chant correctly!!

For those that don’t know what I mean, you can see the original and dub versions below.

How you mess up an English dub on something already in English is beyond me ^^;;  Guess the director was trying to make it more localized or something.  Hopefully (if picked up stateside) the chant will be kept intact.

Closing with this lovely pic of Rin Tohsaka done by Satoshi Urushihara.  I loved this image so much that its the current desktop on my primary display.

Check out Akiba Blog for photos leading to the premiere.

I can honestly say that I am a fan of Gurren Lagann, in fact I enjoyed the series much more than I thought.  It had an interesting cast of characters and the premise of the show wasn’t half bad.  Of course being an Gainax production, I was excepting something different.  And like many Gainax series, Gurren Lagann doesn’t lack in the symbolism.

What I didn’t know was that a new movie was released in Japanese theaters back in April.  That is until I stumbled upon this clip on YouTube.  Apparently the movie covers the first half of the series, with some remade and new scenes.  One such scene includes this “rebirth” of Simon after Kamina dies.  I liked this scene in the series, and this version isn’t that bad either.  Certainly interested in seeing this movie now, wonder if someone will release it Stateside.  Anyway, check out the clip below.

What I also like about this clip is the fight between Yoko and Adiane.  This is pretty much new to the movie.  They did have a little bit of a standoff in the series, if you want to call it that.  Have to say Yoko has some nice moves here.  I loved loved it.  Yoko was pretty hawt!  Granted, leave it to Yoko to end up topless by the end of the fight; but the expression on her face at 2:38 is fierce.  I loved that expression and is the best part of the fight for me (even more than Yoko’s jiggly funbags =D).  Definitely going to find out if this movie will be available in the US, else may have to look for it online.