NEWS: New Anime Titles on Animax in 2008

XXXHOLiC © CLAMP, Kodansha, Production I.G. First, the GOOD NEWS!! After a few days of wheedling, begging and groveling, I was FINALLY able to convince a hardworking Animax representative to share with you some of the titles that the network will be airing this year. Here are just some of the anime you can expect to hit your TV screens this 2008… OOKIKU FURIKABUTTE After getting everyone's adrenalin high with soccer, racing and basketball, it's baseball mayhem this time as pitcher Ren Mihashi discovers that it's difficult to be a member of a High School baseball team wherein your grandfather is not the manager. Yep, family connections really don't help if you want to become an ace pitcher. ORIGIN ~ SPIRITS OF THE PAST ~ This is the only anime movie that is definitely scheduled to air this year. In this futuristic thriller, humanity has destroyed the Earth's environment, and the few survivors were forced into a deep sleep. Three hundred years later, a young boy named Agito discovers the sleeping girl Toola, who may be the Earth's savior. LA CORDA D'ORO ~ PRIMO PASSO ~ I know for a fact that La Corda D'Oro ~ Primo Passo ~ is scheduled for airing this April in the Philippines. I don't know about other countries though. Join newbie violinist Hino Kahoko as she competes against top musicians in her exclusive music school in this delightful shoujo romance/comedy. XXXHOLIC Fans of the mangaka circle CLAMP are sure to be very happy with the premiere of xxxHolic. It tells the story of Kimihiro Watanuki who possesses the ability to see evil spirits. Determined to rid himself of this accursed gift, he meets with a mysterious woman named Yuuko. However, Yuuko demands that he work for her in her shop and take on the strangest errands until he has earned enough to acquire her services. AYAKASHI If you love horror anime as much as I do, don't fail to watch Ayakashi, which features three chilling Japanese horror stories. I highly recommend that you don't miss the third story arc, entitled "Bakeneko" ("Ghost Cat"), because the animation style is radically different from what you're used to watching. "Bakeneko" is the story arc that started off the critically acclaimed anime series Mononoke, which I'll be reviewing next week, together with the voice actor's blog. SERGEANT KERORO (KERORO GUNSO) Now, this is one anime I'm definitely looking forward to, simply because it's going to be quite a challenge to do in English for the Animax voice actors. This hilarious anime is about a group of frog aliens from the planet Keron who have been ordered to invade and conquer the planet Pekopon (a.k.a. Earth). Watch Keroro, Giroro, Tamama, Kururu and Dororo as they try in vain to accomplish their mission while doing household chores and assembling the latest Gundam models. NODAME CANTABILE Still want more classical music with your anime viewing fare? The hugely popular anime Nodame Cantabile will be premiering on Animax as well. Follow the trials, tribulations and triumphs of Shinichi Chiaki and Megumi "Nodame" Noda as they strive to be acknowledged as a brilliant conductor and pianist, respectively. EMMA: A VICTORIAN ROMANCE SECOND ACT To those of you who have been left heartbroken with the conclusion of the first season, now you can follow Emma's adventures in the Second Act of this romantic drama. One month has passed since Emma left London in order to end her relationship with William Jones. She has established herself in the estate of the Molders family, and found herself catching the eye of stern, but kind-hearted (Not to mention handsome!) footman, Hans. Meanwhile, back in London, Eleanor Campbell is ever more determined to win William's heart. However, little does everyone know that the fates are conspiring to bring Emma and William back together again. SHOUNEN ONMYOUJI I am very, very sure that a good friend of mine, who is allergic to the word "LICENSED", would be pleased to know that Shounen Onmyouji will be airing this year, especially since she was left hanging at Episode 9. Follow the misadventures of Abe No Masahiro and his diminutive sidekick Mokkun as he struggles to break away from the stigma of being the grandson of the legendary onmyou priest, Abe No Seimei, and earn the right to become his grandfather's successor, if not exceed him. DARKER THAN BLACK Listed as No. 8 in Japan's list for Top Anime in 2007, Darker Than Black will be premiering on Animax. Join Hei and his team of agents as they try to unravel the mystery of the impenetrable Hell's Gate and the powerful humans known as "Contractors" who have appeared as a result of the Gate's influence. ~~~~~~~~~~ After the good news, here are some NOT-SO-GOOD NEWS. Let's just enumerate them. 1. To those who won't stop asking "when", the above titles have NO DEFINITE SCHEDULE YET. Instead of constantly asking "when", do you see that "PROGRAMS" tab on this page? Please just monitor the schedules for the dates when these anime will premiere. SCHEDULES ARE ALL SUBJECT TO CHANGE. 2. There is a possibility that the phrase "TERRITORIES APPLY" will apply to some of the titles above. This means, that some anime may premiere in one country, but not in other countries. For example, I know that Glass Fleet is presently airing in SEA, but it's not airing in the Philippines. Same also applies for the much-complained-by-India-viewers Colourcloud Palace and Le Chevalier D'Eon. When this happens, you can expect the anime to be aired in your country AFTER it has aired in a particular territory or, WORSE, will NOT be aired at all. Licensing and airing rights is the MAIN REASON when this occurs, so please don't go into mob riots and yell "Damn you!" as some of you diehards had done in the respective forums. For heaven's sake, BE PATIENT AND WAIT! I don't think there's any reason for any of you to curse. 3. I DID NOT include in the list above FOUR anime that were supposed to be aired last year, but are hopefully going to be aired this year. Unfortunately, I don't have the permission to reveal those particular titles. All I can say is that one is a series that is presently ongoing in Japan (No, it's not about ninjas!), two are quirky high school comedies, and the last is about weird samurai. 4. Sorry, Full Metal Alchemist: Conqueror of Shamballa is definitely NOT INCLUDED in the line up that was given to me. However, there is a strong likelihood that you will get to watch BOTH Seasons 1 and 2 of God (?) Save Our King! (Kyou Kara Maou) this year as well.