Iwa ni Hana

[Newsflash] Shimizu Reiko's (清水玲子) 'Himitsu - Top Secret (秘密−トップ・シークレット−)' to be animated

This is breaking news indeed - Shimizu-sensei's ongoing manga series Himitsu - Top Secret is to become a TV anime series in the spring of 2008. I have only read the first volume oh-so-long-ago, though I can put my name down to guarantee the quality of the story. The plot is based on an interesting premise:

In the year 2055, a technology has been invented to scan the memory of people who died unnatural deaths in order to investigate the cause(s). However, the scan can only reproduce what the dead person 'saw' but not the sounds, so experts in lip-reading are required to interpret what happened. Moreover, the technology by default amplifies the capacity of the dead person's brain (which normally only runs at 5-10%) to 120%, so visions of ghosts or illusions which are not normally seen with the naked eye are also shown alongside with what the dead person actually saw. It is possible to trace back the memory of the dead person up to a period of 5 years before his or her death.

The story begins with the mysterious death of the late American president. He met a mysterious youth who was bought to his birthday party at the White House by his daughter. 2 months later, he was killed under mysterious circumstances. It is the job of the Ninth Autopsy Lab to investigate the unspeakable secret behind the president's death.

Besides her unique artstyle, Shimizu-sensei's has always been known for a unique bent bordering on something like philosophy in her sci-fi shoujo manga. Admittedly, Kaguyahime was a bit of a failure, but her shoujo sci-fi short stories such as 22XX is an absolute masterpiece - surpassing Hagio Moto's (萩尾望都) They Were 11 (11人いる!) and Takemiya Keiko's (竹宮恵子) Toward the Terra (地球へ...) in my opinion. Personally, I would love to see her imaginative series Moon Child animated as well. At any rate, this is certainly one series I will look forward to along with Yakushiji Ryouko no Kaiki Jikenbo (薬師寺涼子の怪奇事件簿).

(Source: ttp://www.saiani.net/article/75210741.html)

An introduction to Production I.G.'s 'Toshokan Sensou (図書館戦争)'

This new anime series from Production I.G. was announced a while back. Here is my translation of the plot summary from the official site:

It is the year 2019. Thirty years have passed since The Ordinance of Media Betterment was enacted in Japan. The Ordinance regulates behaviour that disrupts public order and infringes human rights. Against the militarized Betterment Special Agency which regulates all kinds of media, a Library was founded to confront ultra vires censorship. The conflict between the Media Betterment Brigade and the Library Brigade continues to unfold in Japan. Kasawara Kaoru, who was recruited as a voluntary Librarian, aims to become a Defense Member, a role that is the most dangerous within the Library Brigade. She keeps her dream secret from her parents and undergoes strict training. When Kaoru was still in high school, a book was taken from her by the Betterman Special Agency at a bookstore and she was saved by a Librarian. She yearns to be 'an ally of the righteous', fantasizes about the Librarian (whose face she does not remember) as a prince, and decides to become a Librarian herself. At long last, Karou finally manages to join the ranks of the elite members of the Library Special Brigade.

There are so many terms and jargon that I am not sure if I translated all the names right, but you get the idea of what the story is about. I for one can't say I am completely sold on it yet, in spite of the Production I.G. brandname. I just hope it does not turn out to be one of those good-guys-versus-bad-guys sort of thing. I am also curious as to how the Librarian-Prince bit will unfold (perhaps something along the lines of Millennium Actress and Shoujo Kakumei Utena?)   

(Source: ttp://www.production-ig.co.jp/contents/works_sp/1750_/index.html)

[Newsflash] 'Persepolis': An animated film by Vincent Paronnaud and Marjane Satrapi

I see that the animated feature film Persepolis has been making the buzz among cinema-goers recently. I have heard some good words spoken of it from people whose tastes I trust.

If it is playing at a theatre near you, be sure to check it out and let me know what you think of it.

Wishlist for 2008

• Gankutsuou-like art direction in Amatsuki

Since Amatsuki is set in a computer-generated recreation of Edo Japan (albeit with some supernatural stuff), I hope they may as well make it sassy and borrow a leaf from Gankutsuou's art direction. The manga covers themselves are full of bright, vibrant colours. I hope the colours will be no less a pleasure to look at in the anime.

• A revival of interest in Tanaka Yoshiki

I think the lately announced adaptation of Yakushiji Ryouko no Kaiki Jiken will be sure to bring it off. Tanaka Yoshiki has been rather off-the-radar since the Gineiden boom in the late 80s. Efforts to animate his other works such as The Heroic Legend of Arslan and Shichi Toshi Monogatari had been abandoned halfway. A pity that is.

• At least one adaptation from an old-school shoujo classic

In 2007, we had Toward the Terra (though there is some hairsplitting debate as to whether it qualifies as shounen or shoujo). The point is, I would love to see the likes of Ikeda-sensei's The Window of Orpheus (or something grand and epic in the old-school shoujo genre) animated. The original stories are so packed and meaty that the animators would have to try very hard in failing to produce an interesting series.

(Speaking of which, whatever happened to that The Rose of Versailles movie which was announced at TAF 2007?)

• At least one series of serious historic drama

Just as convention seems to have it that summer is usually the season for supernatural thrillers, one would have thought that the fall/winter season would be the time for serious historic drama. There was none to speak of in the fall/winter of 2007/2008, which was something of a disappointment.

• A new series from Watanabe Shinichirou

Likewise, Watanabe-sensei has been rather off-the-radar since Samurai Champloo in 2004-2005. There are directors out there who churn out work every season, but Wanatabe-sensei seems to have been on a rather long vacation. I hope 2008 will be the year he makes a comeback.

• Shinbo Akiyuki coming to his senses at last
  

The man who brought us Le portrait de petit Cossette is really doing himself a disservice with works like Sayonara Zetsubou-sensei and that what's-its-name series. Zetsubou-sensei is all the more heartbreaking to behold because there is so much promise in terms of graphical creativity – the show is like... a beautiful woman who is all dressed up but has nowhere to go.

• Something groundbreaking in terms of art direction

I am a big fan of art direction. The year 2004-2005 had Gankutsuou. The year 2006 had Kemonozume. The year 2007 had Mononoke. I am just hoping that there will be at least one such effort to break new ground every year.

So what is your wishlist for 2008? I would love to hear from you all.

Shinkai Makoto in Ani*Kuri15

Of all the animated shorts in the series Ani*Kuri15, my favorite has to be Shinkai Makoto's The Assembly of Cats (猫の集合):

I appreciate the Ghibli-like artistic simplicity, the originality and the humour. It really is top-of-the-line.

Manyou's compilation of original art by anime/manga fans

I believe Manyou (漫友) was the first magazine in the PRC to be dedicated to anime/manga. There was a time when it sold like hotcakes, partly thanks to pirated cassette tapes of anime theme songs which were packaged with the magazine. The pirated cassette tapes later became pirated CDs and DVDs, and the market was soon filled by other anime/manga magazines with similar sales strategy. Anyhow, the point is - Manyou is a household among Chinese fans to this day.

I see that they have compiled a collection of original artwork by anime/manga fans, which you can browse over here at Aetherealtiy Gallery. 

Are these not gorgeous? Let us hope for greater things to come out from the Chinese anime/manga fan community. 

'Sougen no Ko Tenguri (草原の子テングリ)' to be released in DVD

Guess what is coming out in DVD? An obscure anime called Sougen no Ko Tenguri (草原の子テングリ). It was directed by Ootsuka Yasuo (大塚康生) and based on a story by Tezuka Osamu (手塚治虫). The then young Miyazaki Hayao (宮崎駿) was also on this project.

The story surrounds a boy and a cow who have always lived their lives together. One winter, a famine strikes their village. The villagers resolve to the cow, but the boy secretly helped the cow escape. A few years ago, the boy (now grown-up) and the cow meet again...

I am somewhat piqued by the storyline.

From the creator of 'The Legend of Galactic Heroes' and 'The Heroic Legend of Arslan': 'Yakushiji Ryouko no Kaiki Jikenbo' to be animated in 2008

I was being nostalgic the other day about anime classics like The Legend of Galactic Heroes and The Heroic Legend of Arslan - which were both based on the novel series of Tanaka Yoshiki (田中芳樹). And now the good news came that his novel series Yakushiji Ryouko no Kaiki Jikenbo (薬師寺涼子の怪奇事件簿) is to be animated in 2008! I haven't read it, but I know it is about an enfant terrible of a gorgeous policewoman with a ton of brains solving complicated cases and causing trouble to the Establishment in general.

Finally I feel that there is something for me to look forward to in 2008. I will be sure to write more on this.

(Source: ttp://www.starchild.co.jp/special/yakushijiryouko/)

Korean historic fantasy 'Taioushijinki (太王四神記)' to be animated

I gather that the K-drama Taioushijinki has been making something of a fuss in Japan recently, and now it is going to be animated by the Korean animation studio G&G Entertainment.

To be honest, I have never been a fan of K-drama, and skimming through some video clips of Taioushijinki on YouTube does not make me a convert either. (It would make me sort of embarrassed if I were ever caught streaming the OP.)  I have not checked out the plot or characters in any great detail, but it seems to include the usual blah about war and gods and love and revenge and what-have-you. On the whole, I am underwhelmed by this whole thing.

But those of you who are interested any wish to check out these official sites:

ttp://www.nifty.com/taiousijinki/index2.html
ttp://www.taiousijinki-tjoy.jp/
ttp://taiousijinki.avex.jp/