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ADV Films could have suffered in 2006 from their lack of big name franchises, but their licenses have been strong and they seem to be the best in the UK at gauging what fans actually want. 2007 so far looks promising, with Le Chevalier D'Eon and This Ugly Yet Beautiful World really standing out as the ones to watch in our opinion. It's good to hear that they will be re-releasing some of their older titles on budget too, many were released before anime really started to take off again and bringing some classic anime to a new audience is no bad thing. It'll be interesting to see what else they have up their sleeve as the year progresses, but they've started brightly. Here's hoping for more great titles for 2007!
They Say: 'Le Chevalier D'Eon, definitely.' We Say: 'Le Chevalier D'Eon looks stunning, and no doubt will be, but we're keeping our eye on This Ugly Yet Beautiful World. Anime studio Gainax have an unbelievable track record, and a series created to celebrate their anniversary has the potential to be absolutely superb!'
It's all well and good telling you the names of all these new
titles, but what are they about? Read on and find out... |
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Comic Party Revolution
A surprising release for the UK, Comic Party Revolution is an
anime series featuring a cast of self-publishing amateur manga
authors. The story follows Kazuki Sendo, a student without a
direction after he fails his exams. To try and get him out of
his rut, Kazuki's childhood friend Taishi drags him into the world
of fan comics. He soon ends up working on his own comics and
gets drawn further into the surreal world of the (often obsessive)
comic artists. Comic Party Revolution is an alternative
version of the series Comic Party, and features much of the
same cast of characters. The series is quite popular with fans
in the US, and with more and more UK fans turning their hand to
manga-style art, it could prove to popular here too. ADV
Films have a decent track record with comedy titles and Comic
Party Revolution could be up there with the likes of Excel
Saga and Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu! in terms of gags and
quality. It's certainly one that warrants a look, expect
madness, fanservice and plenty of parodies! |
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The latest in ADV's impressive roster of giant robot and
mecha shows is this 13 episode series from 2005. The is set in
an alternative version of the recent past in which strange robots
are appearing in Venezuela and Japan seemingly bent on destroying
everyone and everything in their path. To stand up against
this mysterious cybernetic force is the secret organisation known as
Angel, who trains certain people with psychic talent to pilot robots
of their own. The two main branches of Angel (one in Venezuela
and one in Tokyo) have their work cut out, not only do they have the
robot threat to deal with but also Kyomu, a shadowy organisation
planning to annihilate the Earth. In to this deadly battle
comes Akao, an amnesiac who has an innate piloting ability and Aoba,
a Japanese girl who is kidnapped to fight on the Venezuelan front.
Can they survive this deadly battle? Jinki:Extend has
an interesting story and should be another mecha hit for ADV,
expect plenty of action and some interesting twists. |
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ADV's biggest title in their current 2007 schedule is also
one of the most impressive looking. The story follows D'Eon de
Beaumont, a member of the secret police in pre-Revolution France who
is investigating a series of mysterious deaths in the city.
His investigations take a personal aspect when his sister Lia
becomes the latest victim, her body found floating in a casket in
the River Seine. Desperate to get to the bottom of the case,
D'Eon is drawn into the seedy underbelly of a city on the verge of
revolution and into the mysterious world of a cabal known as the
Poets. The Poets have strange and disturbing powers and even
with the help of his dead sister's soul, D'Eon may have taken on
more than he can face. Very loosely based on the real life
D'Eon de Beaumont, a French spy and aristocrat who spent the latter
half of his life living as woman. D'Eon has become quite
a romanticised character and the new anime series is based on a
fantasy novel by author Tow Ubukata. It will certainly turn
heads in 2007. |
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Fans of Slayers and Rune Soldier
will enjoy this one, the latest addition to ADV's growing
catalogue of fantasy comedy. The story is set in the land of
Spooner where corrupt sorcerers are abusing their powers for their
own ends. Enter a strange group of adventurers (all named
after types of dessert for some reason), who battle against the
sorcerers to overthrow their tyranny. Well, that's the idea
anyway. The Sorcerer Hunters' special skills are
eclectic and bizarre to say the least. Carrot Glace turns
involuntarily into giant beasts based on the Chinese zodiac, whilst
Tira Misu (yes, we know it's a crap pun, get used to it) and
Chocolate Misu don dominatrix gear and wield whips in combat!
As you can probably tell this series has its tongue firmly in cheek,
featuring as it does a priestess called Big Mama and plenty of
perviness as Carrot and Gateau Mocha try it on with anyone female
(or male, Gateau's not fussy). Sounds like it'd be a great
laugh, and a very welcome one now that all the Slayers films
are out! |
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Japanese anime studios traditionally do special showpiece series to celebrate landmark anniversaries, and this is what Neon Genesis Evangelion creators Gainax did for their 20th. The story follows Takeru and Ryo, two teens who follow a light in the woods to discover a beautiful young girl. The girl seems to bring out strange powers in Takeru, and when a strange monster attacks them he transforms into a monster too and defeats the assailant. Trying to come to terms with this experience and also work out who - or what - the girl is, Takeru and Ryo take her in and she is soon the centre of attention in the house they share with several other people. However, not only do they have to deal with the strange girl but also with the affections of a drunken American scientist and more attacks from strange creatures. Why do they keep happening? Why is the girl here? It's sounds promising, even though it has some clichéd elements, and we're really looking forward to seeing what Gainax delivery for their anniversary! |
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