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Tickets for 'Eureka' film to go on sale


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POSTED: Tuesday, August 18, 2009

OK, anime fans — “;Ponyo”; has been released in the U.S. I'm sure a good number of you watched it over the past few days, marveled at the animation, poked and prodded at its numerous plot holes, and cringed at how the ending credits theme, originally a quaint little Japanese tune, turned into a Disneyfied rap production.

But “;Ponyo”; is so last Friday. I'm all about looking forward to the Next Big Thing, which is why the “;Cel Shaded radar”; is already homing in on to the next anime that will be screened at a local theater: “;Eureka Seven: Good Night, Sleep Tight, Young Lovers.”;

Longtime viewers of Cartoon Network's Adult Swim will remember the 50-episode “;Eureka Seven”; TV series was part of the late-night programming block from 2006 to 2008. But while the central characters — impulsive teen Renton Thurston and enigmatic Nirvash typeZERO pilot Eureka — remain the same, the movie is not just a straight retelling of the series. In an interview on Right Stuf's Anime Today podcast on Friday, Bandai Entertainment marketing director Robert Napton estimated the film contained 80 to 90 percent new footage and said the film presented an alternate reality for Renton and Eureka.

“;Eureka Seven's”; path to U.S. theaters has been relatively quick as far as Japanese-to-English localizations go — after debuting April 25 in Japan, Bandai turned around and announced it had picked up the U.S. license July 3 at Anime Expo.

The English-dubbed version will be screening at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 24 at theaters across the country, including the Regal Dole Cannery Stadium 18 locally. But for those of you who really want to plan ahead, tickets go on sale Friday at the NCM Fathom Web site.

Oh, and for the record: While the word looks like it should be pronounced “;yoo-REE-kah,”; as in what prospectors cried out when they found gold, the official pronunciation is “;eh-ooh-REH-kah.”; Just a little helpful technical tip there.

 

MEETING ROLL CALL

» MangaBento: This group of anime- and manga-inspired artists will meet from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Academy Art Center, 1111 Victoria St., Room 200. For more information, visit www.manga-bento.com.

 

COMING UP SUNDAY

Hayao Miyazaki is the director most often linked to Studio Ghibli films — see “;Ponyo”; for proof of that. Yet there are other directors who have worked for Ghibli, and I'll be looking at a pair of those non-Miyazaki works in “;Drawn & Quartered”; in the Sunday Today section: “;Whisper of the Heart”; and “;The Cat Returns.”;

 

A TEASER FOR TUESDAY

I've been waiting a while now to reveal some exciting news about a project I've been working on for the past few years, and it looks like next week might be a good time to do just that. Come back to this column Tuesday for the big reveal ... it'll be worth it. (I hope.)

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For more anime and manga news and commentary, check out “;Otaku Ohana”; at blogs.starbulletin.com/otakuohana. Follow Jason S. Yadao on Twitter at twitter.com/jsyadao or e-mail him at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).