Chucks Anime Shrine

Wonfes 2010: Nendoroid Mickey & Figma MJ?!

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 02:10:00 +0000

The event is going on right now and thanks to Danny Choo, we are getting live feeds and images straight from the event. For those who maybe don't know, Wonfes is the largest figure and custom figure kit convention in Japan. Most if not all of the major anime figure manufacturers are there showing off the newly announced pre-orders as well as some surprises.

If you've been keeping track of the numbers on your Good Smile Company Nendoroid, you'd know they are close to their 100th figure. That figure has been announced and it's actually a non-anime character...Mickey Mouse. You heard me right, the 100th Nendoroid is Disney's Mickey Mouse. I'm fan of him...don't get me wrong but I would have so wanted a Nendo Tifa Lockhart and expected one to come before a Mickey one. Oh well, "a man can dream...a man can dream"- Futurama

It gets weirder than that. Of course for every new Nendoroid figure announce, a new Figma isn't far away. Yesterday Good Smile announced the figma K-On! Yui...but sdly, like ALL the other K-On! figmas...some sort of ass-backwards licencing embargo prevents even ME from snagging them for my store -_-
Anyways..this newley announced figma figure will surely be available in the US. That's right, you saw that link correctly from Danny Choo, it's a Michael Jackson figma.

Probably more figures to come, more anime news and more on that K-On! licensing mess in a few...for now let this news populate your mind and try not to hurt yourself with any blunt objects.

-pictures are all from Danny Choo, please visit his site for more images and info (gt to give the credit where its needed ^^)

Nendoroid Nakano Azusa

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 14:51:00 +0000

What a week. Been sick most of it (today included) and yesterday Danny Choo announced the new Nendoroid Nakano Azusa. Sadly, Good Smile Company decided to tell only HobbySearch and Amiami of this figure and they simply bought them all -_- and pre-orders were sold out...before even I could get dibs on them (another even madder face -_-).

Well, thankfully Good Smile Company just announced a second production release and I wasted no time in making sure MY STORE gets the rights to sell her too -_-.
...Yeah, there ARE other anime stores out there that are legit, guys.

Anyways, this is of course the Nendoroid figure of Nakano Azusa with her having the nekomimi ears as well. A very, very cute figure that even I will be keeping for me and my fiancee Danielle (she just melted from the cuteness when she saw it).

I reserved quite a few so you can go to her page in my store here. Be sure to chose "Cash/Money order" choice at the end so you don't have to pay via paypal until she arrives.

To get on an email list instead of using the store to later be billed when she arrives, instead of using the store...
Click here to email your pre-order reservation

Unless stated otherwise, unless something terrible happens, you are pretty much guaranteed to get one; but only if you act quickly. Once all the quantities that I ordered for the store are used up, the only chance you have of getting her is to hope for a cancellation from those before you.

This batch of Nakanos will be in some time in late June or so. For those lucky enough to pre-order from Amiami and HobbySearch, those will be in some time in May.

For those worried about bootlegs, be assure I DON'T EVER stock bootlegs...only the real deal. Still worried? Check the list of legit stores on Danny Choo's blog. My store won't be on that list till I pay for advertisement on his site, so it's why I'm not on that list yet -_-

After seeing the craziness behind anything K-ON!...why the hell the series isn't officially here in the states is beyond me.

Here's a great vid with clips of Azusa ^^

Here's some more pics of her:

Tohou Project: Nenodroid Izayoi Sakuya & Figma Kirisame Marisa

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 20:07:00 +0000

Thanks to my good friends over at Mile-Stone.jp,(who by the way are also manufacturers of some nice anime figures), my store got the rights to sell these two new Tohou project figures that originally were only meant for stores in Japan.

Good Smile Company has announced these extra rare figures.
The first being the Tohou Project Nendoroid Izayoi Sakuya figure.

The second of course being the Figma Kirisame Marisa figure.

Both are super rare and will probably be on display at the upcoming Wonfest convention in Japan. Sadly, due to their rarity and exclusivity, their price is a bit higher than your typical Nendoroid and Figma at a $69.99 price tag. These though will in time go for $200+ on eBay and if you are in the US, their final price turns out the same anyways since store in Japan might be able to sell them at a cheaper price, but you'll pay for it in the shipping -_-

To reserve Nendoroid Izayoi Sakuya, just check the product page and order her or email me and I'll reserve yours.

To reserve Figma Kirisame Marisa, just check the product page and order or of course, email me to get your name on the list of those getting her.

Be sure to use the "Money Order/Cash" option if you wish to not pay now. Once they arrive all who reserve them (confirmed and in time) will be guaranteed one.

Their release date is to be some time in April so expect them to arrive around that time or possibly sometime in May id Good Smile is running late on production.

The iPad: Good or Bad for Manga?

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 19:41:00 +0000

Of course many have you have heard about the iPad (and god knows this is probably the 1 millionth post about it on the web.) I was busy posting about it on my other personal blog as the information was coming in during the Apple conference. The first thing that comes to our minds when seeing it is; how great would reading manga be on it? Also, there are the Kindle, the Nook, and the Sony Readers out there that for the most part, haven't captured the hearts of manga fans and the lack of manga on them is proof.
Now, here's the more important question. Will this be good or bad for the manga industry? The good is that people who might not have been into manga, could start to realize what all the hype is about. On a bad note for the industry, it is bound to reduce the actual paper printing of manga plus it will give more fuel for all those illegal manga viewing sites...even more so than what we already see.

The anime and manga industry hopefully will be able to monitize from the iPad and the other readers as well and if they don't, though many fans will be happy to build the pirating free manga sites, less money in the pockets of the content creators means less anime for us to read and watch.

Comment what you think this means for manga. Would you be buying the iPad for manga (as well as the other features)? Maybe you are already or planning to use the Nook, Kindle, Sony Readers, etc...or are you just sticking to what most anime fans continue to do and buy stacks and stacks of manga?

Team Four Star: DBZ Abridged Season 2

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 22:38:00 +0000

It's been some time coming. The very funny work-for-free voice actors of Team Four Star had some hurtles to go through over the past number of months; stuff I'm actually familiar with. Their videos were doing insanely good and for good reason. The DBZ Abridged parody is a thing of genius. Even the American voice actors of DBZ loved their series and they got the go-ahead to continue their not-for-profit clips by FUNimation. Then came the miscommunication with content creator, Toei who unknowingly shot themselves in the foot by banning TFS's original Youtube page. Reason why it was a suicidal move on the part of Toei was well, the darn parody was getting a fan base that has been keeping DBZ alive and well long after the "geniuses" at Cartoon Network dropped the series.

Well, as of yesterday, Team Four Star posted up episode 11, the first of the long awaited Season 2. Below you'll find the clip and good god is it hilarious XD.

...
In reference to what I said above; I've had the same garbage happen to me on YouTube back in 2005 and 2006 when Youtube first surfaced. For those who've been with me since the beginning in 2002 know that back in 2003 I created some very popular AMVs that made it to the Collections of Newgrounds.com and even got the blessings from the group QED who's song I used in the "Love Bites" AMV. This site was having loads of bandwidth issues due to the downloads from the site pre-youtube for the AMVs. Once youtube came along in 2005, the videos did great with well over 100,000K views per vid. Then of course, due to images of Inuyasha during the series' peak, it seemed that Viz didn't understand the good the videos did for the series and the account got booted -_- It took me a year just for people to find me on my new account as well as try to tell people I was who I am. Most thought I was an imposter..of myself! Anyways, this little rant is to tell you guys at Team Four Star...that I went through the same crap. now that I run an anime store in conjunction to this site...you'll actually see Viz buy ad space here ^^ and of course I continue to sell their product and put $ in their pockets.

Vocaloid: Kagamine Rin Nuclear Fusion "Meltdown" Figure

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 16:30:00 +0000

Just when you thought Good Smile Company went insane with the Miku Hatsune VN02 figure, they do it again with this very cool and very crazy Rin Kagamine figure. This figure will retail for 9800 yen (~$115-~$120) and will hit the Japanese market by August (so probably September here in the states -_-). Naturally she's up for pre-order in my store ^_^
Check out the images and (long) video below. Info thanks of course to Danny Choo.

Twilight Manga

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:00:00 +0000

Ok, I'm either going to create some hatred or some happy fans...or both but as some of you might know, Yen Press is printing 350,000 copies of the Manga version of the hit book and movie series of Twilight. As an anime store owner, I naturally placed the manga in my store for pre-order. My fiancee, Danielle is a big fan of the series, she has read all the books and is for both Team Jacob and Team Edward (did I just type that? 0_0). Listen, I'm not a huge fan of the series, I'm more of a Bram Stoker's Dracula or Vampire Knight person. Unavoidable for both fans and non-fans is that the series is big news on all fronts.

Yen Press will make 2 volumes of the manga both of which are set to be a massive 200+ pages; massive for a single manga volume of course. The expected release date of the first volume is around March 17th so fans of the series, I'll gladly help you get access to a copy (while supplies last of course ^^;;). Both fans of the series or non-fans, you can bring on the discussions in the comment fields but for the love of God, not crazy fighting -_-

Nendoroid Petit: Fate/Stay Night Action Figures

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:20:00 +0000

Saber and Fate fans are going to be once again happy to hear of some more great news from Good Smile Company. On top of the amazing Excalibur Saber figure announcement, there is also this wonderful Petit Nendoroid set that was announced back before the weekend...

As the picture shows, there's a couple versions of the figures included in the set and supposedly a secret figure as well. I'm so keeping a set myself ^^.

Of course, you can find them for pre-order in my store (or you can email your reservation). There's 12 in the set and they go for $90 altogether so not bad at all. Expected to come stateside in August; could always be sooner or later ^^;;

More images below:

#MoeMonday 1/25/10

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:03:00 +0000

#MoeMonday (#MM) continues on this busy Monday with some yukata moe from the girls of Shugo Chara.

Crunchyroll's Anime Streaming iPhone App

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 16:57:00 +0000

While watching some Kurokami I noticed that CrunchyRoll just came out with their own iPhone app. Yep, now you can stream anime on you iPhone guilt free. Of course, make sure you use Wifi since it's doubtful AT&T's "fast" 3G network can handle an ounce of anime goodness. It's a free app so go right ahead and add it to your collection. Supporting Crunchyroll supports the anime business, so do your part to keep those content providers in business -_-

Fate/Stay Night: Saber Triumphant Excalibur Figure

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:09:00 +0000

Saber fans are going to love this newly announced figure. The Saber Triumphant Excalibur figure just got announced for pre-order and this stunning figure will be a 1/7th scale figure and it also seems like you have the option of having Saber's sword's effects be there or not if you choose.

Reserves for this figure can be purchased right here in my store. Select Money Order/Cash at the end of the transaction or email us to reserve yours without having to pay right away via Paypal.

More info can be found on her official page.

..here's some more images of her

#MoeMonday 1/18/10

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 18:56:00 +0000

Once again, I'm continuing the #MoeMonday (#MM) trend. Some people still want it to go on so here's another Moe image for you all to see.

#FanServiceFriday: 1/15/10 Spice And Wolf

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 14:27:00 +0000

You didn't think I'd forget #FanServiceFriday (#FF) now, did you? Been watching Spice and Wolf and I see why everyone likes the Wolf spirit Horo. The series and the art is very clean and artistic and a must watch for any anime fan....that's 13 and older ^^;;

Otacool 2: Worldwide Cosplayers

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 14:14:00 +0000

Many of you are familiar with the Otacool project Kotobukiya and Dannychoo.com did with otaku rooms and I'm certain many of you heard about the second collage book fronted now by mega cosplay site CURE. If not, then you guys really should check out the official post over at Dannychoo.com. Some of you might become rather popular in Japan with your cosplay outfits. Even my fiancee, Danielle is joining in the fun ^^

Being that I'm an anime store owner, I'll be getting the rights to stock the Otacool 2 book ^_^

so here's the link to preorder it.

Adult Swim Getting New Anime?

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 14:29:00 +0000

Yep, the title is correct. No, hell hasn't frozen over (yet) but word has it that Cartoon Network's Adult Swim is getting 3 new anime series to air. I guess the constant pestering at Adult Swim by anime fans, the success of Bleach, the success of Syfy's Ani-monday as well as Chiller's own anime block are making the home-brewed-heros over at Williams Street pine for the shows that got them on the map in the first place back when their only claim to fame was Space Ghost.
Rumor has it that two of the 3 anime series will be Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood and Inuyasha: The Final Act but so far, nothing is certain yet. What is certain is that Blood+ and Death Note are to no longer be played on Adult Swim.

Actually, the person who got me into anime back in the late 90's works for AS, so I might get him to spill the beans...stay tuned.

Inuyasha: Kagome Higurashi Figma

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 14:09:00 +0000

Hey Inuyasha fans; got some more good news for you! Other than the series finally being concluded with the Final Act episodes, you can soon get your own Kagome figma figure ^_^. Yep, looks like Max factory has announced the production of a Kagome Figma figure. It's set to be released some time in April or May of this year. Pre-orders can be made here or you can email the store to reserve her. Nothing yet on other characters in the series but I'll keep you all informed.

Winners of the Nendoroid Kureha Contest

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 21:51:00 +0000

Wanted to congratulate the winners of the Nendoroid Kureha contest. To no surprise, it seemed like of the 11 or so people that signed up for the members blog, only 2 people decided to post anything on the site and they were @nekozawa and @Zero6699 was split on who to give this wonderful Kureha to but thankfully they live together and (hopefully) can share the winnings. Congrats to you guys for the win.

For those who signed up on the member's blog and didn't write anything, sorry, you snooze, you lose ^^;; but, don't fret you and as well as anybody else who joins in the blogging will surely be up for any future contests. so not only will posting you own blog posts here help get your blogs some traffic...you might get a free figure too ^_^

FLCL Anime Redo

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:05:00 +0000

Update: Should have checked before blogging but FUNimation recently noted that they will NOT be re-dubbing the series. Thanks @janaiblog for the info. I guess read the post and wonder if a re-dub would ever be good for FLCL or any other series. Talk about blog FAIL ^^;;;

Some of you might have heard the news, but for those who didn't (from possible CES overload) FUNimation just announced a page and eventual DVD/Blu Ray sales for FLCL (Fooly Cooly). They bought the rights from Gainax for the series and supposedly they are going to...re dub the series.

Now I'm a big fan of FUNimation, don't get me wrong. They used their DBZ money to buy out failing licenses from Gonzo, Gainax plus others to essentially keep anime in America amid the economic crap storm, lack of anime airing on Cartoon Network / Adult Swim and the obvious piracy of anime that's the fault of both eager fans and unimaginative licensees. A crap storm of which has eroded the industry. In other words, they are keeping anime alive in America despite sort of becoming a monopoly.
As my handle being "princetrunks" across the internet and having some stock in their parent company Naveer Corp, I of course will be in their favor.

Yet, if they are honestly going to re dub the series, I can't help but ask the question, "why?" FUNimation's voice talent is top notch, I won't deny their experience and their ability to actually do great anime voice dubbing but as both an anime purest and a business owner, I can't see why they would re dub it. Back when you could actually call Cartoon Network, "Cartoon Network" without laughing and making MTV comparisons, FLCL got great ratings and became one of those "hard-core, WTF?" anime series to make it on the US airwaves. The original dubbing was top notch and some the fandom is still strong. My only guess is that the reason why they might be re dubbing it is that the process of licenses is even more out of date and convoluted than I can even imagine and they might own the images but not the audio (-_-) Time for the content owners and the whole copyright / license system to get into the 21st century. We are already in the second decade of the century and $ is being wasted on bureaucratic BS.

Anyways, while we are on the topic of the redubbing of anime...there is a certain series FUNimation should really focus on a re-do...I think Sailor Moon is loooong overdue for such a treatment. Japan has already created remastered DVDs in 2009. Time to take that voice talent to some really good use for both the fans and for the growth of anime. Re-doing Sailor Moon is money in the bag for who ever takes it.

#MoeMonday 1/4/10: Black Rock Shooter Moe

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 14:00:00 +0000

The first #MoeMonday (#MM) post of the New Year and decade. Recently announced was the new Black Blade version of the Black Rock Shooter Figure and how fitting it is to show a wonderfully drawn BRS image by the very talented OceanChan.

2009 Anime In Review Podcast

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 21:59:00 +0000

That's right everybody, I was a guest in another cool podcast. This one on Otaku In Review with Scott Spaziani, Jon Ingoglia, and Tim Maughan. The subject of course reviewing the anime of 2009. A bunch of new series came up this year and if you are a fan of Moe, it was definitely your year.

Sadly for me it was a busy year due to my anime figure business on the grow and my efforts to shield myself from the sh*%-storm known as the US Economy so oddly enough...my anime business (as well as a needed stay in the p/t job -_-) kept my anime viewing to a minimum I have been watching the newer box sets of Yu Yu Hagasho and the recently released box sets of Romeo X Juliet..of which I mention in the podcast. Sadly, though Romeo X Juliet's box sets got released here just in 2009...it wasn't exactly considered 2009 anime ^^;; A great list to check out would be on Jon's http://janaiblog.wordpress.com/. Series for this year included To Love Ru, Sora no Otoshimono,Valkyria Chronicles, K-On, Sora wo Kakeru Shoujo (Sora Kake Girl) and Chi's New Address...just to name a few.

Check out the podcast here. It will undoubtedly be added to my podcast page.

Got a favorite anime from 2009? Discuss it in the comments below of course ^^

K-ON! Season 2

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 22:26:00 +0000

Thanks yet again to ANN for breaking the news on K-ON! That's right, 2010 will have yet more Moe with this second season slated for a January 20th DVD/Blu Ray release (in Japan). Still wondering when we can watch K-ON! (legally) here in the state. Fans are waiting and to the licensees...that's money down the drain. I'm all for legal downloads to continue to help the industry but if you don't give the worldwide (particularly US) fans what they want...expect the pirating to continue. Can't say I didn't warn them.

Anyways, check out the K-ON! official site here

#MoeMonday 12/28/09

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 17:35:00 +0000

I'm anime blogging like a fiend today. The third (and probably final) post today is the much missed #MoeMonday (#MM) photo for the week. Enjoy and hope you all got what you wanted for Christmas.

Nendoroid Sanae Kochiya

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 17:29:00 +0000

Here's another rare Nenodoroid I am lucky enough to eventually get my hands on, Nendoroid Sanae Kochiya from Touho Project. Thanks to figure manufacturer and wholesaler, Mile-stone.jp, this Japan-Only exclusive Nendoroid will be stocked by me...

Some of you might have noticed the price is up there at $60. Though the regular retail price is actually 3000 yen in Japan, even as a store owner, I wasn't able to get her at that price...but a good amount higher -_- This is the kind of figure that will probably be on eBay and other sites for $200+ down the road. That insane price you will never see me do so hopefully my price is still a bargain for such an exclusive figure.

Sanae Kochiya is the kind of anime figure where you usually ONLY see in selected shops in Japan so if you are in Japan, grab them at the better 3000 yen price before it's too late.

Check her out here for pre/order

Check out her official product page here

Nendoroid Reimu Hakurei seen here goes for a ridiculous price on eBay and other sites >-<

Black Rock Shooter Black Blade Version

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 16:52:00 +0000

I'll probably be the 100th+ blogger/store promoting this figure but here's the first glimpse of the Black Rock Shooter Black Blade Version figure by Good Smile Company. I was a little hesitant to post her since Good Smile STILL has yet to get the first Black Rock Shooter to us anime retailers in the states -_-

I posted this one for pre-order but as with many of the fast selling Good Smile Company figures, expect the release date to be at least month or more from what they say. This one is also to be a 1/8th scale figure and probably will be tough to grab in a few months.

#FanServiceFriday: 12/25/09 X-Mas Edition

noreply@blogger.com (princetrunks) — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 12:00:00 +0000

#FanServiceFriday (#FF) today will of course be a Chrismas version. This one of course a Gurren Lagann image. Have a merry x-mas anime fans ^_^