One Piece: Gold (Review)

The Straw Hat pirates are hitting the big screen once again in an all-new high-flying adventure! The popular series that has captivated fans all over the world unfolds a new saga in the highly anticipated movie, One Piece Film: Gold. The glittering Gran Tesoro, a city of entertainment beyond the laws of the government, is a sanctuary for the world's most infamous pirates, Marines, and filthy rich millionaires. Drawn by dreams of hitting the jackpot, Captain Luffy and his crew sail straight for the gold. But behind the gilded curtains lies a powerful king whose deep pockets and deeper ambitions spell disaster for the Straw Hats and the New World alike.

One Piece: Gold fits the title because this movie is pure gold and definitely one of the best One Piece films to date. The film follows The Straw Hat Pirates gang travel to Gran Tesoro to win some cash and gold and take part in the entertainment. This place is a pirate sanctuary uninhabited by rules and regulations that other areas in the One Piece world are use too. While Luffy and the gang are racking up the wins at the Casino they encountered Tesoro himself. He has his own plans agenda for Luffy and gang and offers up a challenge. The challenge is if Luffy can win the challenges set Tesoro will ten times the winnings. Of course this all sounds too good to be true as Luffy and the gang find out Tesoro has something up his sleeve.  For the sake of spoilers I won't go too much into the plot. I would say out of all the One Piece films this one is my favorite. The film is just beautiful to look at from the use of 3D backgrounds to clever use of colors of the environments and characters. Tesoro is also a great antagonist. Like a lot of One Piece villains he has enough layers for you to connect with him. He's charismatic, cunning but also  a force to be reckon with. One Piece villains always have a likable quality to them, for Tesoro his charisma is something I think fans will gravitate towards.

It wouldn't be One Piece without action and this film does not disappoint. The action is at it's best. Once again I won't spoil the battles but with the use of CGI backgrounds and the music played it brings a level of intensity the other movies seem to lack. This movie has a sense of high stakes and using the theme of a casino it makes it more unprecedented at what is at stakes for Luffy and the gang. Fans will not be disappointed at the amazing set pieces that the team put together. Finally the voice acting was seen in the English dub and the cast once again knocks it out of the park. The cast brings energy, humor and even some high stakes emotion moments with their performances. My favorite performance is Tesoro he his so great as an antagonist and the performance shows what a great character he is.

Final Grade 4.5/5 Stars: One Piece: Gold is the One Piece movie to check out. The film has humor, action and a very entertaining villain. The visuals are beautiful with us getting a glimpse of the biggest ships in the One Piece universe. If you're fan this is a must see. If you're just getting into the franchise this a good kickstarter. 

One Piece: Gold is coming to USA click here for theatre listings. 

Dragonball Super English Dub to Premiere on Toonami

Dragon Ball fans everywhere just received the biggest gift of the holiday season. Toei Animation Inc., Funimation©Entertainment and Adult Swim are pleased to announce their partnership to bring “Dragon Ball Super” to TV audiences starting next January. “Dragon Ball Super” is the first new storyline in more than 18 years from original creator Akira Toriyama and the Dragon Ball franchise, which was first introduced to the U.S. more than 20 years ago. Adult Swim will begin airing the U.S. English dub of “Dragon Ball Super” Season 1 during the Toonami block starting on January 7, 2017 at 8 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. ET. Season 1, which totals 26 episodes, encompasses the Battle of Gods and Resurrection ‘F’ story arcs. New episodes of “Dragon Ball Super” will air each Saturday.

”Dragon Ball Super” is more than the latest adventure in the Dragon Ball saga – It’s a collaboration between the series original creator, Akira Toriyama and a passionate team of men and women who are both longtime partners and talented newcomers. “Dragon Ball Super” comes with everything viewers can hope for after waiting 18 long years for a new series – impressible dangers to overcome, the reuniting of beloved characters, and new additions to the mythos that will rock Dragon Ball’s very foundation,” said Masayuki Endo, President and CEO of Toei Animation Inc. “We are very excited to return “Dragon Ball Super” to its U.S. broadcast home on Adult Swim.”

“Toonami and the Dragon Ball franchise have a long and storied history together in the U.S.,” said Jason DeMarco, senior vice president of on-air for Adult Swim. “We are thrilled to be premiering “Dragon Ball Super” to our audience and keeping Dragon Ball on Toonami!”

Funimation will be producing the U.S. English dub of “Dragon Ball Super” that will air on Toonami The “Dragon Ball Super” cast features veteran voice actors from previous Dragon Ball series including Seán Schemmel (Goku), Christopher R. Sabat (Vegeta), Jason Douglas (Beerus), Ian Sinclair (Whis) and Sonny Strait (Krillin) – all of whom starred in last year’s hit movie “Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection ‘F’,” which became the 9th highest grossing anime film of all time in U.S.A..

“We’re extremely pleased to join with Toei Animation in this broadcast partnership with Adult Swim to bring “Dragon Ball Super” to a whole new generation of TV audiences,” said Gen Fukunaga, CEO and founder of Funimation. “I have no doubt that ‘Dragon Ball Super’ will eclipse the television success of the original Dragon Ball series that first aired here more than 20 years ago when anime was still new to the U.S. Those kids that grew up watching Dragon Ball now have kids of their own.”

As part of the English dub production and in advance of the broadcast television premiere, a new DragonBallSuperOfficial.com website has been launched that serves as a hub for all things Dragon Ball. The site will feature exclusive content, videos, graphics and character bios as well as the latest news on the franchise.

 Series Synopsis

With Majin Buu defeated, Goku has taken a completely new role as…a radish farmer?! With Earth at peace, our heroes have settled into normal lives. But they can’t get too comfortable. Far away, the powerful God of Destruction, Beerus, awakens to a prophecy revealing his demise at the hands of an even more formidable being. When his search for the Saiyan God brings him to Earth, can Goku and his friends take on their strongest foe yet?

Aniplex of America Sets Nationwide Release Date for SAO Movie

Aniplex of America Inc. announced today that the nationwide release of the highly anticipated feature film Sword Art Online the Movie -Ordinal Scale-
will take place on March 9, 2017. Details on theater locations and tickets for the nationwide release will be announced at a later date on the official homepage (www.sao-movie.net/us). Sword Art Online the Movie -Ordinal Scale- will be distributed by ELEVEN ARTS in the original Japanese audio with English subtitles.

About Sword Art Online:

The animated TV series Sword Art Online is based on author Reki Kawahara’s light novel in which the protagonist Kirito fights to survive in the mysterious next-gen VRMMORPG called “Sword Art Online.” Since the first volume of the novel was published in April 2009, the series has proved extremely popular, with cumulative sales exceeding 12.5 million units in Japan and 19 million worldwide, spawning two TV anime adaptations, video games, comic books, and merchandise.

Story of Sword Art Online the Movie -Ordinal Scale-:

In 2022, the world of virtual reality was upended by the arrival of a new invention from a genius programmer, Akihiko Kayaba, called NerveGear. It was the first full-dive system, and with it, came endless possibilities to VRMMORPGs.

In 2026, a new device called the Augma is developed to compete against the NerveGear and its successor, the Amusphere. A next-gen wearable device, the Augma doesn’t have a full-dive function like its predecessors. Instead, it uses Augmented Reality (AR) to get players into the game. It is safe, user-friendly and lets users play while they are conscious, making it an instant hit on the market. The most popular game on the system is “Ordinal Scale” (aka: OS), an ARMMORPG developed exclusively for the Augma.

Asuna and the gang have already been playing OS for a while, by the time Kirito decides to join them. They’re about to find out that Ordinal Scale isn’t all fun and games...

For details on Sword Art Online the Movie -Ordinal Scale-, please visit: www.sao-movie.net/us

STAFF

Original Story: Reki Kawahara (Dengeki Bunko)

Director: Tomohiko Ito

Character Design & Chief Animation Director: Shingo Adachi

Prop Design: Tomoya Nishiguchi

Art Director: Takayuki Nagashima

Art Setting: Yoshinori Shiozawa

Concept Art: Sotaro Hori

CGI Director: Ryuta Undo

Sound Director: Yoshikazu Iwanami

Animation Production: A-1 Pictures

Produced by: SAO MOVIE Project

Character Design Concept: abec

Script: Reki Kawahara/Tomohiko Ito

Monster Design: Ryuta Yanagi

UI Design: Satoshi Watsuji

Art Supervision:Yusuke Takeda

Color Design: Satoshi Hashimoto

Director of Photography: Kentaro Waki

Editing: Shigeru Nishiyama

Music: Yuki Kajiura

CAST

Kirito: Yoshitsugu Matsuoka

Asuna: Haruka Tomatsu

Yui: Kanae Ito

Leafa: Ayana Taketatsu

Silica: Rina Hidaka

Lisbeth: Ayahi Takagaki

Sinon: Miyuki Sawashiro

Klein: Hiroaki Hirata

Agil: Hiroki Yasumoto

Akihiko Kayaba: Koichi Yamadera

Jinsei (Life Consulting) The Complete Series Review

Yuki Akamatsu desperately needs to work on his social interactions—at least according to the 2nd Newspaper Club president. And by that, she means getting him a girlfriend! After a barrage of personal insults, she assigns him to work the Life Counseling section of the paper. Yuki has no idea what this really means for him until he meets the three cuties responsible for providing advice. Rino Endo specializes in the sciences, Fumi Kujo covers humanities, while Ikumi Suzuki handles the world of sports—and snacks! Unfortunately, these three girls cannot agree on anything. Which means Yuki has to keep them on track and guide them to the answers that will help their classmates in need. Can he survive the onslaught of their boisterous personalities and compromising positions a plenty? There’s only so much a teenage boy can take!h

Death Note: Light Up The New World Trailer

Hey O&G fans, the trailer for the upcoming Death Note: Light Up The New World live-action movie has been released. The Japanese-language film is Nikkatsu's fourth film in its Death Note series, which is based on the manga by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata. Here is a look at the trailer:

10 years after the Death Note murders, six Death Notes fall to the human world. Two people inherit the DNA of Light Yagami and L, and a deadly new game of cat-and-mouse begins... In Cinemas in Australia and New Zealand November 10. Book your tickets now!

Death Note: Light Up The New World will be released October 29 in Japan, with an Australia & New Zealand release scheduled for November 10. No North American release has been scheduled as of yet.

Warner Bros.'s North American adaptation of the Death Note manga is currently filming for a 2017 release.

Rooster Teeth's RWBY Volume 4 Premieres October 22nd 2016

The fourth season of RWBY -- Rooster Teeth’s award-winning anime series that tells the story of four different girls brought together for one legendary purpose – launches Saturday, October 22.

Saturday 10am FIRST members only ($5 a month) - Sign up for FIRST and watch athttp://roosterteeth.com/show/rwby

 Sunday 10am RT Site Members (free to sign up) - Make a profile and watch at http://roosterteeth.com/show/rwby 

SHOW INFO

Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang are students at Beacon Academy, an ancient school designed to train the monster-slayers knows as Hunters and Huntresses. Unfortunately, monsters aren’t the only threat in the world of Remnant, and if these girls want to graduate, they’ll have to learn to work together – both on the battlefield and in the classroom. The 14-episode season is directed by Gray G Haddock; voice actors include Lindsay Jones (Ruby), Barbara Dunkelman (Yang), Miles Luna(Jaune) and Kerry Shawcross (Neptune).

RWBY VOLUME 4 SYNOPSIS:

It's been several months since the Fall of Beacon, and the world of Remnant is still recovering. Tensions are high, lives have been lost, and the members of Team RWBY... are divided. Each of our heroines now faces a journey of their own. While some must search inward if they ever hope to move on, others will venture out into the world in search of answers. Alongside the remaining members of Team JNPR, Ruby Rose has begun the long trek to the kingdom of Mistral, but the road ahead is full of surprises. New friends and enemies await, while the threat of an even larger catastrophe draws near.

Character Short

Here is a recap video of Volumes 1 to 3.

toco toco ep.38, Shoji Murahama, Animation Producer

In the latest episode of toco toco the team follows Murahama Shoji, who is an animation producer currently working as a manager at the Emon Studio. After working at Gainax on acclaimed anime series and founding the Gonzo studio, Murahama is now working on several anime series in this new international studio, aiming at bringing globalization to the anime industry. We will follow Murahama during a themed-game of airsoft, where players dressed as characters from various post-apocalyptic universes such as Mad Max or Fallout gather to play. After that, we will visit the Emon studio to learn more about the company's philosophy and its founder, Li Haolin, who will share with us his company mission, one of which is to nullify the borders of the animation industry. As a science-fiction lover, Murahama will also share with us his perception of imaginary worlds, and the thin line that separates them from the ordinary.