Concrete Revolutio Anime's 1st English-subtitled Promo Video Introduces Cast

Daisuki to "tentatively" stream October series

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Bandai Visual began streaming the first promotional video on Friday for the Concrete Revolutio: Chōjin Gensō (Concrete Revolutio - Superhero Fantasy) television anime series. The staff have alsoopened an English website, and Daisuki is streaming an English-subtitled version of the trailer.

The video introduces the main cast from the Superhuman Bureau:

Kaito Ishikawa as Jirō Hitoyoshi
Sumire Uesaka as Kikko Hoshino
Aki Toyosaki as Emi Kino
Eriko Nakamura as Fuurouta
Tokuyoshi Kawashima as Hyōma Yoshimura
Tetsuo Kanao as Daishi Akita

The series will premiere in October, and will run for half a year. The English website notes that the series is "tentatively scheduled on Daisuki.net and other sites."

The English website describes the story:

The stage is set in “another Japan” as a banquet of diverse superhumans unfolds…
In an imaginary "age of gods" about 20 years after the war, Japan has grown and developed by leaps and bounds. What if all the superhumans ever written about in fictional stories existed at the same time? Superhumans who came into existence through different circumstances, and who are special in different ways -- Titans from outer space, lifeforms from a mystical world, phantoms and goblins from ancient times, cyborgs created by scientists, relics that rose out of the ruins of ancient civilizations, and the list goes on. One segment of these superhumans makes no secret of their existence and has gained popularity in society. Others cloak their identities and fight in secrecy.
There are enemies of superhumans as well, organizations that operate in the shadows.
The Japanese government has taken many measures to secure peace and order.
One is the establishment of an organization under the Ministry of Health and Welfare -- the Overpopulation Research Laboratory, a.k.a. the Superhuman Bureau.
Their mission is to identify and approach suerhumans, then oversee and safeguard them. One member of the Superhuman Bureau, Jiro Hitoyoshi, is protagonist of this series.

The series will reunite the main staff from Fullmetal Alchemist. Seiji Mizushima (Fullmetal Alchemist, Un-Go, Mobile Suit Gundam 00, Hanamaru Kindergarten) is directing the series atBONES, and Shou Aikawa (Fullmetal Alchemist, Un-Go, Ghost Slayers Ayashi, Martian Successor Nadesico) is in charge of series composition.

Other staff members are as follows:

Character Designer and Animation Director: Yoshiyuki Ito
Character Creation and Concept Design: Noizi Ito, Hekiru Hikawa, Ryō Hirao
SF Concept Design: Kanetake Ebikawa, Takayuki Yanase, Toshiaki Ihara, Hideyuki Matsumoto
Mechanical Animation Director: Ken Ohtsuka
Art Design: Hiroki Matsumoto

The official site also has branch websites in French, German, Spanish, Portugese, and Chinese.

A manga version of the series will launch in the September issue of Kadokawa's Young Acemagazine. Nylon will draw the series.

Image © BONES:Sho Aikawa/ Concrete Revolutio Production Committee

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Trigger Teases New Project & New Inferno Cop/Little Witch Academia Crossover Short

Studio's 4th major project has yet to be announced in Japan

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Studio Trigger teased a new project, its fourth major project, at its Anime Expo panel on Thursday. It showed preliminary designs of several school students as well as a verdant city in the sea, intersected with bridges. The staff members added that the project has yet to be announced in Japan. Because of that, they disallowed photographs of the art and could not take questions on the project from the audience.

Studio Trigger also showed an Inferno Cop short with a crossover with Little Witch Academia characters. The staff said that the short has yet to premiere in Japan.

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Aniplex USA Details Fate/stay night: UBW, Durarara!!×2 Shō Release Details

Englsh dub cast revealed for Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works

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At its Anime Expo panel on Thursday, Aniplex of America revealed the release details for its first box set of Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works and its release of Durarara!!×2 Shō.

Aniplex of America will release the first season of Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works in a limited-edition Blu-ray Disc box set and a complete first season DVD set on August 25. Both vesions will include uncut episodes #00-#12, and will include Japanese and English audio as well as English and Spanish subtitles. The Blu-ray Disc set will include the 13 episodes on four Blu-ray Discs.

The limited edition Blu-ray Disc set will include the trailer, TV spot, commercial, and promo video collections, textless opening and ending, an original soundtrack I, a 24-page deluxe booklet, and an exclusive collectible Weis Schwarz PR card while supplies last. The limited edition will also include a double-sided wrap for the Blu-ray Disc case, and a chipboard box featuring an illustration by the original character designer Takashi Takeuchi.

The limited edition Blu-ray Disc box set will retail for US$219.98 with a store price of US$179.98.

The DVD set on three DVDs will include the textless opening and ending video extras. The set will retail for US$99.98 with a store price of US$79.98.

Aniplex of America also revealed the show's English dub cast on Thursday. The cast is as follows:

Shirou Emiya: Bryce Papenbrook
Rin Tohsaka: Mela Lee
Saber: Kari Wahlgren
Archer: Kaiji Tang
Sakura Matou: Cristina Vee
Illyasviel von Einzbern: Stephanie Sheh
Souichirou Kuzuki: Lex Lang
Lancer: Tony Oliver
Caster: Megan Hollingshead
Assassin: Todd Haberkorn
Rider: Melissa Fahn
Taiga Fujimura: Julie Ann Taylor
Shinji Matou: Kyle McCarley
Issei Ryudo: Robbie Daymond
Kirei Kotomine: Crispin Freeman
Kiritsugu Emiya: Matthew Mercer
Blond Servant: David Earnest
Shirou Emiya (Child): Mona Marshall
Ayako Mitsuzuri: Brina Palencia
Yukika Saegusa: Jessica DiCicco
Kaede Makidera: Erica Lindbeck
Kane Himuro: Dorothy Fahn

Tony Oliver will also serve as English voice director and ADR script writer.

Aniplex of America plans to release Durarara!!×2 Shō on Blu-ray Disc and DVD in two releases on September 29 (with episodes 1-6) and November 24 (with episodes 7-12 and the bonus 4.5 episode). Both the DVD and Blu-ray Disc releases will include Japanese and English audio with English and Spanish subtitles.

Both the Blu-ray Disc and the DVD for volume 1 will include the following: pre-broadcast cast talk show, a textless opening and ending, a 16-page booklet, illustration postcards, a package illustrated by character designer Takahiro Kishida, and clear cases with two-sided wraps. The Blu-ray Disc will retail for US$99.98 with a store price of US$79.98, and the DVD will retail for US$59.98 with a store price of US$49.98. The second volumes will retail for the same prices.

The second volume of the Blu-ray Disc and DVD will include: a 16-page booklet, illustration postcards, a package illustrated by character designer Takahiro Kishida, and clear cases with two-sided wraps.

The English dub cast, many of which include reprised roles from the first season, is as follows:

Celty Sturluson: Kari Wahlgren
Mikado Ryugamine: Darrel Guilbeau
Masaomi Kida: Bryce Papenbrook
Anri Sonohara: Michelle Ruff
Izaya Orihara: Johnny Yong Bosch
Shizuo Heiwajima: Crispin Freeman
Shinra Kishitani: Yuri Lowenthal
Kyohei Kadota: Steve Blum
Walker Yumasaki: Brian Beacock
Erika Karisawa: Mela Lee
Saburo Togusa: Spike Spencer
Simon Brezhnev: Patrick Seitz
Dennis: Christopher Smith
Kasuka Heiwajima: Vic Mignogna
Aoba Kuronuma: Kyle McCarley
Egor: Lex Lang
Varona: Brina Palencia
Sloan: Richard Epcar
Chikage Rokujo: Grant George
Kururi Orihara: Bridget Hoffman
Mairu Orihara: G.K. Bowes
Ruri Hijiribe: Cristina Vee
Shingen Kishitani: Doug Stone
Seiji Yagiri: David Earnest
Namie Yagiri: Bridget Hoffman
Mika Harima: Kira Buckland
Saki Mikajima: Cassandra Lee Morris
Tom Tanaka: Keith Silverstein
Haruya Shiki: Dan Woren
Kinnosuke Kuzuhara: Christopher Smith
Max Sandshelt: Doug Erholtz
Akane Awakusu: Brianna Knickerbocker
Emilia: Karen Strassman
Mikiya Awakusu: Jamieson Price

Additionally, Kirk Thornton and Patrick Seitz will serve as ADR directors.

The second arc of the series, Durarara!!×2 Ten, will premiere in Japan on July 4. The show will also stream on July 4 on Crunchyroll, Hulu, Daisuki, and the Aniplex Channel.

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Crunchyroll Adds Ushio & Tora Anime

Sentai Filmworks licensed the series

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Media distribution service Crunchyroll announced on Thursday that it will stream the Ushio & Tora television anime as it airs in Japan. The stream times are not yet set.

The stream will be available in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Latin America, Scandinavia, Netherlands, Middle East, North Africa, and Europe (excluding France and French speaking and Italy and Italian speaking countries).

Sentai Filmworks announced on Thursday that it has licensedthe series.

Ushio & Tora is based on Kazuhiro Fujita's supernatural battle manga. ADV Films released the 1992 original video anime project, and it describes the story:

Ushio thinks that his father's talk of an ancient ancestor impaling a demon on a temple altar stone with the legendary Beast Spear is nuts, but when he finds the monster in his own basement, Ushio has to take another look at the family legend! To save his friends and family from the invading spirits, Ushio is forced to release Tora from his captivity. But will the creature prove to be worse than the curse?

Satoshi Nishimura (Trigun, Hajime no Ippo) is directing the anime at MAPPA (Rage of Bahamut Genesis) and a relatively new company, Studio VOLN. Toshiki Inoue (Chaos;HEAd, Death Note,Ranma ½) and Fujita himself are in charge of the series scripts, and Tomoko Mori (guest character designer on Garo: Honoo no Kokuin, Juden Chan) is designing the characters. Rock band Kinniku Shōjo Tai is performing the anime's opening theme song "Mazeru na Kiken," and Sonar Pocket isperforming the ending theme song "Hero."

The 39-episode anime will be split into two seasons. The series will premiere on July 3 and run for 26 episodes until December. Then, 13 more episodes will air from April to June of 2016. The anime's final episode will coincide with the manga's final battle.

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Viz Media Adds K: Missing Kings Film, K: Return of Kings 2nd Season

Viz Media announced at its Anime Expo panel on Thursday that it has acquired the rights to the K film, K: Missing Kings, and the second television anime series, K: Return of Kings.

The film premiered in Japan on July 12. Eleven Arts screenedthe film in theaters in North America, starting in Los Angeles on July 18.

The official website for the film outlined the story:

[Note: Highlight the text below for the story, which contains spoilers for the end of the television series]

The “Academy Island Incident” in which all four “kings” cross paths... Since then, Silver Clansmen Kuroh Yatogami and Neko have been searching for their master, Shiro. Without finding any clues to Shiro's whereabouts, the two became disheartened. However, one day, they see HOMRA members Rikio Kamamoto and Anna Kushina being chased by someone.

The second series will premiere in October.

The first television anime premiered in 2012, and Viz Media streamed it in North America as it aired. An English dub streamed on Viz's Neon Alley service. Viz released the series on Blu-ray and DVD.

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Garakowa -Restore the World- Trailer Highlights Story, Characters

Official English title revealed for Vitreous Flower & Destroy the World

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Pony Canyon began streaming an English-subtitled trailer for Garakowa -Restore the World- (Glass no Hana to Kowasu Sekai) on Thursday. The English title on the Japanese version is Vitreous Flower & Destroy the World, but the promotional video introduces the new English title.

The main cast includes:

Yumiri Hanamori (Etotama's Uritan, The Rolling Girls' Chiaya) as Remo
"I must return to the flower patch..."
A girl who has lost her memories. She was saved by Dual and Dorothy when she was being attacked. She does not know who she is, but the only things she can remember are her name and the words, "I must return to the flower patch..." The story of the film begins from her.

Ayane Sakura (Love Live! School idol project's Arisa, Your Lie in April's Tsubaki) as Dorothy
"We're not gonna cry. After all, there's no need to."
A girl who competes with Dual while fighting enemies in order to protect the "Box of Wisdom." She is loud, and quite the chatter-box. She sees Dual as her rival, but their strengths are pretty much the same. Dorothy and Dual meet the girl who has lost her memories, Remo. This was their meeting with the still unseen truth.

Risa Taneda (Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma's Erina, Is the order a rabbit?'s Rize) as Dual
"This isn't a dream. The world that you've been seeing up until now... That was a dream."
A girl who fights with enemies in order to protect the "Box of Wisdom." A quiet girl who doesn't speak many words, she meets Remo when she is being attacked. This pushes Dual to move and search for the truth of the girl's identity. Through their meeting, the gears begin to move.

The website describes the story:

A floating space without gravity where an infinite number of lights shine in different colors: The "Box of Wisdom." Inside of this box, there are multiple worlds, multiple timelines, and there used to be many different people. This is where Dual and Dorothy were fighting with enemies called "Viruses." Worlds infected by viruses must be erased. That is the duty, the job of these girls. However, one day, Dual and Dorothy feel the presence of a new Virus. Arriving at the scene, they see a girl being attacked by Viruses. After saving the girl, the duo wait for her to awaken so they can ask who she is, where she came from, and where she is going. Finally, when the girl opened her eyes, she gave her name, Remo, and whispered only one sentence... "I must return to the flower patch..."

The brand-new anime film is based on D.Backup, the scenario and illustration project by the relatively new creative unit "Physics Point." D.Backup won the grand prize in Pony Canyon's first ever Anime-ka Taishō (Anime Adaptation Prize) in 2013. According to the prize's website, the premise is "'software' characters fight bugs that have spread inside the box of wisdom."

Masashi Ishihama (From the New World, Kamichu!) is directing the film at A-1 Pictures (Sword Art Online, The IDOLM@STER), and Fumihiko Shimo (Air, Kanon, Clannad, Amagi Brilliant Park,Golden Time, Infinite Stratos) wrote the screenplay. Kantoku (The "Hentai" Prince and the Stony Cat., Magical Suite Prism Nana) created the original character designs.

Physics Point, which consists of the creative duo Otono Shimura and Suyuli Hiraume, won one million yen (about US$10,000) and the opportunity to have their D.Backup concept adapted into anime in Pony Canyon's contest.

The film will open this year. Ponycan USA has announced plans to release the film in North America.

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Sentai Filmworks Adds Legend of the Galactic Heroes, Higurashi Anime

Adaptation of Yoshiki Tanaka's space opera novels gets 1st English release

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Sentai Filmworks announced at its panel at Anime Expo on Thursday that it has licensed Legend of the Galactic Heroes and both seasons of the When They Cry - Higurashi (Higurashi no Naku Koro ni) anime series, as well theHigurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei OAV.

Legend of the Galactic Heroes video anime series adapts Yoshiki Tanaka's space opera novel series. The story follows the epic conflict between the Galactic Empire and Free Planets Alliance, as well as the personal stories of Imperial Admiral Reinhard von Lohengramm and the Alliance's Yang Wen-Li.Viz Media's Haikasoru imprint has licensed the original novel series and plans to release the first three novels in spring 2016.

The late director Noboru Ishiguro (Macross, Orguss, Megazone 23) and his Artland anime studio spent more than a decade adapting the novels into a theatrical and video anime franchise, with over 100 installments, from 1988 to 2000.

The 10 main novel volumes and four side-story volumes in Legend of the Galactic Heroes saga have sold 15 million copies and earned Tanaka a Seiun Award. Besides Legend of the Galactic Heroes, Tanaka also wrote the original novel inspirations for The Heroic Legend of Arslan, Ryoko's Case File, Sohryuden - Legend of the Dragon Kings, and Tytania anime projects.

A stage production of the series had announced last year that a new anime adaptation was in the works. The new anime is not a remake of the earlier anime, but another anime adaptation of the original novels with a new staff.

Funimation originally released When They Cry - Higurashi in North America in 2008 after acquiring the license from Geneon Entertainment. Funimation thenannounced in 2011 that it was going to let its license of the series expire.

07th Expansion's original Higurashi no Naku Koro ni visual novel software revolved around murders that coincide with an annual festival in a quiet rural village. The software inspired two television anime series, several video anime projects, two live-action films, and manga adaptations by several artists.

The 26-episode television anime series originally aired in 2006. Chiaki Kon (Nodame Cantabile: Paris/Finale, Umineko - When They Cry) directed the series at Studio DEEN off of scripts byToshifumi Kawase (Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, Umineko - When They Cry).

NIS America released Umineko - When They Cry in North America on Blu-ray Disc in 2012.

Update: Sentai Filmworks confirmed with ANN that the OVA it has licensed is Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei.

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Sentai Filmworks Acquires Ushio & Tora, Gate, School-Live!, Wakaba Girl, Aoharu x Machinegun Anime

Company also adds To Love-Ru -Trouble- Darkness 2nd sequel

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Sentai Filmworks announced at its panel at Anime Expo on Thursday that it has licensed the following summer 2015 titles: Gate: Jiei-tai Ka no Chi ni te, Kaku Tatakaeri, School-Live!, Ushio & Tora, Wakaba Girl, To Love-Ru -Trouble- Darkness 2nd, and Aoharu x Machinegun.

Gate: Jiei-tai Ka no Chi ni te, Kaku Tatakaeri (Gate: The Self-Defense Forces Fight Like This in Another Land) adapts Takumi Yanai's light novel series of the same name.

The military fantasy series begins when a gate appears in Tokyo's Ginza district sometime in the 21st century. From the gate pours out monsters, knights from middle-age Europe, and other fantasy-like beings, and they kill many of the citizens of Tokyo. This event is known as the Ginza Incident.

The government sends a small group of soldiers from the Japanese Self-Defense Forces to the alternate world beyond the gate. Led by otaku soldier Yōji (voiced by Junichi Suwabe), they find that the villages in the world are being attacked by a dragon. An elf girl (Hisako Kanemoto) who is a survivor from the dragon's rampage joins the group in their travels across the dangerous new world.

Takahiko Kyōgoku (Love Live! School idol project) is directing the series at A-1 Pictures with series composition by Tatsuhiko Urahata (A-Channel, Black Bullet). Jun Nakai (Silver Spoon, The Sacred Blacksmith) is designing the characters, and Yoshiaki Fujisawa (Love Live! School idol project, The Eccentric Family) is composing the music. Yukio Nagasaki (Love Live! School idol project, Yona of the Dawn) is serving as sound director, and GENCO is producing the series.

The School-Live! anime is based on Norimitsu Kaihō (Nitroplus) and Sadoru Chiba's Gakkō Gurashi! manga, which began inHoubunsha's Manga Time Kirara Forward magazine in 2012.

The story of the manga revolves around girls who decide to stay over at school: the energetic Yuki Takeya (voiced by Inori Minase), the shovel-loving Kurumi (Ari Ozawa), spacey school adviser Megu (Ai Kayano), level-headed underclassman Mii-kun (Rie Takahashi), and Rii-san (M.A.O), who brings everyone together. However, through mysterious circumstances, the girls find themselves the final survivors in a zombie attack, and continue to live at the school.

Masaomi Ando (White Album 2) is directing the anime atLerche (Assassination Classroom, Carnival Phantasm). Nitroplusis credited with producing the scripts. The original manga's writer, Norimitsu Kaihō (Gunslinger Stratos) is in charge of the series scripts, while Haruko Iizuka (Little Busters!, Tamayura) is designing the characters.

Ushio & Tora is based on Kazuhiro Fujita's supernatural battle manga. ADV Films released the 1992 original video anime project, and it describes the story:

Ushio thinks that his father's talk of an ancient ancestor impaling a demon on a temple altar stone with the legendary Beast Spear is nuts, but when he finds the monster in his own basement, Ushio has to take another look at the family legend! To save his friends and family from the invading spirits, Ushio is forced to release Tora from his captivity. But will the creature prove to be worse than the curse?

Satoshi Nishimura (Trigun, Hajime no Ippo) is directing the anime at MAPPA (Rage of Bahamut Genesis) and a relatively new company, Studio VOLN. Toshiki Inoue (Chaos;HEAd, Death Note, Ranma ½) and Fujita himself are in charge of the series scripts, and Tomoko Mori (guest character designer on Garo: Honoo no Kokuin, Juden Chan) is designing the characters. Rock band Kinniku Shōjo Tai isperforming the anime's opening theme song "Mazeru na Kiken," and Sonar Pocket is performingthe ending theme song "Hero."

The 39-episode anime will be split into two seasons. The series will premiere on July 3 and run for 26 episodes until December. Then, 13 more episodes will air from April to June of 2016. The anime's final episode will coincide with the manga's final battle.

The Wakaba Girl TV anime adapts Yui Hara's manga of the same name. Seiji Watanabe (Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid, Munto 2: Beyond the Walls of Time key animation) is helming the anime at Nexus. In addition, Kana Ishida (Aquarion Evol, The irregular at magic high school) is designing the characters, and Jukki Hanada (Love Live! School idol project, Petite Princess Yucie) is writing the scripts.

The story centers around the activities of Wakaba Kohashi (voiced by Ari Ozawa), "a slightly out-of-tune super" daughter of a well-to-do family, and her friends. Wakaba (literally, "young leaves") looks like an elegant rich daughter, but she admires the trendy "gyaru" fashion subculture. There is also the pure, innocent, fairy-tale-like Moeko (Mikako Izawa). Mao (M.A.O) is capricious and behaves in her own way. Nao (Rie Murakawa) used to be an athletic type of girl, but now loves the boys-love genre.

To Love-Ru -Trouble- Darkness 2nd is the second season of theTo Love-Ru -Trouble- Darkness television anime series.

The new season will reunite the main cast and staff from the first season. Ray (To Love-Ru -Trouble- Darkness, Waiting in the Summer, A Lull in the Sea) will perform the opening theme song and Mami Kawada (Jormungand, A Certain Magical Index, Please Twins) will perform the ending theme song.

Kentaro Yabuki and Saki Hasemi's To Love-Ru -Trouble- Darkness manga, a sequel of the first To Love-Ru -Trouble-series, launched in Jump Square in 2010. The series has 14 million copies in print. Sentai Filmworks licensed the 2012 television anime series, and The Anime Network streamed the series in North America.

Aoharu x Machinegun(Aoharu x Kikanjū) adapts NAOE's manga of the same name. The manga follows high school student Hotaru Tachibana (Mikako Komatsu), a girl disguised as a boy. Through strange circumstances she finds herself drawn into the world of survival games by a host, Masamune Matsuoka (Tomoaki Maeno). The two form a team with ero-manga artist Tohru Yukimura (Yoshitsugu Matsuoka) and aim to be the be the best in Japan.

Hideaki Nakano (Baccano!, My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU, Golden Time episode director) is helming the anime series at Brains Base (Durarara!!, Natsume's Book of Friends), with scripts byKenji Konuta (Library War, Ace of Diamond). Junko Yamanaka (Detective Conan films, You Are Umasou, Kamisama Kiss 2) designed the characters and is also serving as chief animation director.

Crunchyroll will stream the series in the United States and Canada.

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