From ANN - Vertigo Entertainment Develops U.S. Death Note Remake …The production notes for the recent horror films Shutter and The Strangers both reveal that America’s Vertigo Entertainment is developing a remake of the Death Note franchise and has hired Vlas and Charles Parlapanides to write the screenplay…. Ray’s Take: So now, we WILL have American Kiras. Watch [...]
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)

…Just kidding, VIZ! You guys know I love the Death Note flicks like mad. But ANN reports that Vertigo Entertainment USA– unrelated to Vertigo comics, and the production company behind The Grudge, The Departed, and other films, is developing a Hollywood remake of Death Note. I think we all know who should play Light.
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)

Manga is the name given to Japanese comic books, although most people over the age of 35 or so will use the word to describe animation on TV as well. The word literally means "whimsical pictures" and was coined by Edo Period ukiyo-e artist Hokusai (the dude who painted the famous Red Fuji and Great Wave Off Kanagawa pictures you may have seen) to describe a book of woodblock art he'd done. Although manga can be associated with obsessive otaku culture, there really isn't a single Japanese person who didn't grow up with a favorite manga that they still feel nostalgia for, whether they're an active fan now or not. On Sundays our rural liquor shop gets the new issues of the popular weekly manga magazines, a day earlier than the large chains and convenience stores, one of the few bones thrown to small retailers in Japan. I always marvel at the customers who stop by to pick up the new issue: elementary school and junior high kids, of course, but plenty of adults, including a businessman in a really nice BMW who makes small talk with me and, since we live next door to our city's mayor by some strange coincidence, the deputy mayor of our city. This year marks the 40th anniversary of Shonen Jump, the popular manga weekly, and Japanese canned coffee maker Roots is putting on a major advertising campaign for its new coffee called "Innocent Blend" (I am not kidding), showing panels from the great Jump comics of the past, from YuYu Hakusho to Dragonball Z to Saint Seiya all the way up to Death Note. So everyone celebrate manga by, er, drinking some canned coffee, or something! Gokuh: "After he shook hands with me, he wiped his hand off when he thought I wasn't looking!" L: "I hit the snooze button on my alarm clock twice this morning, and ended up being late." Here are some more. This is from Kimagure Orange Road, the novels for which I translated back in the day. This is from the last volume when the love trianble between Hikaru, Madoka and Kyosuke (who is a secret esper) is resolved. The ad says, "I went to make a purchasae with my 'point card' but it had expired..." Another favorite of mine, Video Girl Ai, which is 1000% times better than the short anime they made, although the anime had Noriko Sakai to make up for it. This is Ai saying, "This guy only makes jokes that make himself look bad." Which is very funny when read in Japanese, very funny. For the Bleach fans. This says, "S- So she was really trying to break up with me!?"
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)

So, all around the country, for two special nights, Death Note the live-action movie was playing in theaters. I was not about to miss this as I quite enjoyed this movie and its sequel. I love the chance to see movies on the big screen, I always wish I could do it more often. [...]
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)

Old news, but I read with great interest about how they finally brought the Death Note live action movie to US shores a few days ago. Even if the first movie’s extremely old, I’m guessing that there are still some people who might be interested in catching it in theatres, if they haven’t already done [...]
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)

Amazon.com Widgets Title:
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)

Again, another of those figures that makes your heart itchy (or rather, your hands). If you would get Lala from Alpha Omega, you would not want to miss this to complete your set. This figure reminds me of from Amane Misa from Death Note. Her fish biscuit looks very realistic! And on her book, you [...]
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)

Totally unrelated, just wanted to use the image. I’ve been reading the past couple days about the live-action Death Note premiering in theaters across America in a two-day limited run and while the effort garnered a fair amount of press, I feel it was a lost opportunity of sorts. The “unique theatre event” (from the press [...]
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)

Amazon.com Widgets I went to see Death Note last night.
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)

With apologies to the Mainichi. Last year, Japan sent Death Note cosplayers Kikiwan and Naoki Shigure (dressed as Light Yagami and Misa Amane, though I’m not sure which was which) to the World Cosplay Summit, where the duo took second place. This year they’ll return to the summit, but this time they’re dressed as Nausicaa and Grandmother [...]
(Read the rest of this entry) (Entry meta)