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Bandai/Sunrise (cont’d)

Their new title announcements also turned more than a few heads. Sunrise confirmed a third Code Geass project was indeed in the works for 2012, but couldn’t say more than that—they weren’t even at liberty to talk about what the exact nature of the project was (theatrical film, OAV, new TV series, etc.). Also in the works: Gundam The Origin, the next Gundam series—again, about which nothing but the title could be revealed yet, despite a certain amount of strategic prying from the fans during the Q&A session.

A third new release from them, Accelerated World, came with a short untranslated teaser and trailed a good deal of mystery in its wake. Ozaki admitted he hadn’t even read the novel it was based on, but pointed us towards the Japanese web site for the show (accel-world.net) where further details would be released in time. The show itself is set to debut in 2012.

Sunrise also took some negative vibes from the audience for their newly-released Gundam Age, the newest Gundam installment which broke from tradition by providing a markedly younger cast. (My seat neighbor put it this way: “It’s everything Gundam as we know it is not.”) But Ozaki noted that while Japanese fans had been equally dismissive before the formal release of the show, the actual viewer reactions to the first episode were a good deal more positive, and he encouraged us to give it a chance.

Naruto Shippuden: The Movie -BONDS-

An audience of would-be ninja of all stripes turned out Saturday Night for the U.S. premiere of the newest feature-length Naruto release.

Instead of being featured at the Javits Center itself, Bonds was screened at the School of Visual Arts Theater, a few blocks downtown on 23rd Street. People stood in line for a half hour over the announced time to receive free goodies, have their photo taken with a Naruto pro cosplayer, and give a warm (and loud) welcome to Naruto’s voice actress Junko Takeuchi. She was still reeling from the rollicking reception her fans gave her for her panel Friday, and a few lucky VIPs got a chance to pose with her for photos before the film started.

Bonds itself is an above-average entry in the Naruto canon, a full-length feature and not just a one-hour toss-off item. Ninja warriors from the Sky Nation, long believed extinct, show up and pummel Leaf Village with a vicious aerial bombardment. When Naruto and company investigate, they find a wise medic and his feisty apprentice being targeted by the show’s main nemesis Orochimaru—who sends none other than Naruto’s old friend-turned-enemy Sasuke to tip the balance in his own favor.

The way Sasuke is shoehorned into the story seems a little opportunistic—his appearance is reserved to mostly the last fourth or so of the film—and the whole thing ends with the abruptness of a pulled plug. But it’s still a fun way to see Naruto and Sasuke sharing screentime for the first time in what feels like decades. Plus, the production quality’s uniformly high throughout—especially during an eye-popping climactic beatdown between Naruto, Sasuke, and a bad guy whose powers make him a bit like a once-removed cousin to Pride from Fullmetal Alchemist.

Etc.

Bandai had a major event in the form of a 3-D screening of Tekken: Blood Vengeance with its screenwriter, Dai Sato, as a bonus guest. I sat in on a panel with the writer, and interviewed him during AnimeFest earlier this year, and watched the movie itself during Otakon 2011.

Manga Video (a subsidiary of the Starz cable channel) announced a major release for January 17, 2012: RED LINE, on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Most every anime review blog out there has been wildly singing the praises of this film, and for good reason: it was the culmination of seven years of work and is stupefying to look at from beginning to end. Unfortunately the film laid an egg commercially in Japan, but perhaps a solid following overseas will help bring it the attention it deserves.