A whole bunch of stuff gets announced every year at Anime Expo, and it's not feasible for a publication of our size to collect every single new announcement, but here's a short list of the things we're excited for! Our reporters break down what to look out for over the coming months.
Jukey
I'm a big manga reader and collector, so I'm always on the lookout for new books to pick up and read, and this year's announcements didn't disappoint.
Kodansha announced a new hardcover edition of Osamu Tezuka's Phoenix, and they're pulling out all the stops for this one. It has a silkscreened cover with gold foiling as well as updated lettering. You can see Ben Applegate of Penguin Random House gushing about it here.
And speaking of cool hardcover releases, Manga Mavericks announced The Sword of Paros, a classic shojo manga series by Kaoru Kurimoto and Yumiko Igarashi. I will admit that classic shojo is a pretty big blind spot for me, so I'm super excited to check this one out. I hear it has sword lesbians.
This series is going to be available on Omoi (formerly Azuki), along with a few other titles they announced at their panel.
I'm personally going to be checking out Shonen Racket, a series about table tennis, and Walking Home with You, a cute looking series from the author of Hikaru in the Light. Those new announcements along with their new partnership with Red String Translations has me excited for their upcoming slate.
It would be a shame to attend Anime Expo and not be excited for any anime.
While not exactly a new anime (it aired in 2011), AnimEigo announced they've licensed Drucker in the Dugout, or Moshidora as it's known in Japanese. Some folks I knew 15 years ago were pretty big fans of this series, and It's cool this is going to be available physically in English. AnimEigo also licensed House of Five Leaves, which is going to be available in HD for the first time in the US. I never watched it back when it aired, but its unique art style and the fact that it aired on Fuji TV's Noitamina block put it on my radar all those years ago.
shcboomer
For me, as you've probably guessed, I've always been more fascinated by the gaming side of things. In this case, mostly gacha games, which were fully on display at Anime Expo this year as well.
The first game that really popped had to be MIRESI from Smilegate. The booth was packed all weekend long with people doing booth activations to try out the game. As pictured, the big giveaway was the Happi Coat of one of their title characters, which you could get from just trying out the game. Not to mention, their booth was something more akin to something out of a gaming or industry convention.
In terms of gameplay, the preview we got to see looked polished and certainly seems like a game that will get popular in fairly short order. The combination of turn-based RPG and the "plot" seems like a winning formula. If only you could see the live display.
Another entrant for an exciting new title comes from Nexon. We know Blue Archive is huge, and we don't really need to talk too much about it. I mean, just look at how big their booth has gotten over the years. However, Nexon's IO Division came to share with everyone their latest project in Project RX.
Obviously, this game is a way away, but it's a positive sign when they start bringing displays to large conventions. We'll continue to follow and see where things lead on this project.
I think the actual booth and content that really surprised me was the UltraPro booth, though. Considering this was Anime Expo and it had limited-time merch, I guess it wasn't surprising. There were three exclusive playmats, and this booth was easily the busiest in this hall. Heck, maybe the whole convention. The items easily sold out within the first hour on each day. At least they had daily stock. Hopefully, this shows how big they can get with limited-time merch, and they stock more next year.
When it comes to the non-gaming side of things, I think the thing that really caught my eye is the anime coming out with Mika Pikazo art. RE:BEL ROBOTICA is the title, and a PV was shown at Anime Expo this year. There's always just something about her art that pops due to the vibrancy, and it carries over to this project as well. If you're a fan of Fire Emblem Engage, this might be worth at least a peek into.
mentaiko
So much gets announced at AX every year that there's always something for everyone. Here's what caught my eye.
Mahjong Pros has been on a tear since last year, and at the Manga Mavericks panel they announced two more licenses: Golden Sakura and Maetel of the Glassy Sea. As a longtime jonger, I'm familiar with the mahjong pros both works are associated with, and I'm looking forward to picking them up when they are released.
The one I didn't see coming was Williams F1 x DAN DA DAN. I follow Williams and cheer for Albon, though I'll admit I haven't kept up much this season. So I was surprised to see they'd brought a DAN DA DAN-wrapped show car to the West Hall to promote the anime, tied to a collection of watches and apparel launching later this year. I'm excited to see what they cook up.
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Last one's a classic. Crunchyroll and Sony are rereleasing Akira in U.S. and Canadian theaters in 4K and IMAX on September 4. Apparently the 4K master might be a bit messy, but seeing it that big, in a theater packed with other people, is going to be worth the ticket.
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