Beyblade Burst to debut at Anime Expo this weekend

Japanese IP Specialist ADK Emotions NY Inc. (ADK) has confirmed that Beyblade Burst will be making its debut at Anime Expo 2022, the world’s biggest anime convention, which takes place in Los Angeles from 1–4 July, 2022.

Visitors to the consumer-facing event, a celebration of Japanese pop culture, are invited to visit the Beyblade Burst panel, which will feature screens showing the latest Beyblade Burst animation and a quiz where participants can answer questions to win a prize. The brand’s interactive booth will feature a free play area for some casual Bey-play and a stamp rally game where participants can collect stamps by winning matches. Formal tournament battles will also run throughout the weekend where players can battle it out for the chance to win a Swag Bag complete with toys, pins, stickers, merchandise, and limited-edition t-shirts.

A spokesperson says: “ADK Emotions is excited to make an interactive space for creators and fans to come together and celebrate in person, bringing the tournament atmosphere to the largest Anime Expo in the world.”

With the brand’s continued success including Beyblade Burst QuadDrive airing on Disney XD, ADK Emotions is enjoying the rise in popularity of the anime genre and is committed to exploring global growth opportunities for the franchise.

PLAYMOBIL targets anime fans with NARUTO figures

Just in time for the 20th anniversary of NARUTO SHIPPUDEN, PLAYMOBIL is releasing new figures from the cult anime series.

Based on the manga comic of the same name, the NARUTO SHIPPUDEN anime series follows the adventures of the ninja Naruto. In time for the show’s special birthday later this year, 24 characters from the hit series will be made available in Playmobil form.

Figures will include the series’ hero, Naruto Uzumaki, whose greatest goal is to become Hokage – the leader of his village – as well as his friends Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno. In addition to the three main characters, there are 21 other figures to discover, including the inscrutable Itachi Uchiha and Pain, the leader of the criminal organisation Akatsuki, plus Minato, Naruto’s father, and the shy Hinata.

A must-have for fans and collectors aged 5–99, the NARUTO meets PLAYMOBIL collection launches on 30 September 2022.

 

Dragon Ball Super x FILA footwear collection hits stores

FILA has teamed up with global anime powerhouse Toei Animation and its U.S. agent Funimation to launch a limited-edition Dragon Ball Super x FILA footwear collaboration.

The collection, which first debuted at New York Comic Con in October, will feature a total of seven character-inspired styles. Offered in men’s and kids sizes, each style is a unique custom colourway with design elements that celebrate the most notable traits of fan-favourite characters from the massively popular Dragon Ball Super anime series produced by Toei Animation.

The footwear offerings include a mix of classic FILA silhouettes like the Original Fitness and F-13, as well as four distinct FILA Renno designs, one of the brand’s newest styles, first launched in early 2021. The Dragon Ball Super x FILA collection features seven different designs based on Goku, Goku Black, Vegeta, Golden Frieza, Trunks, Beerus, and Super Shenron.

All styles feature Dragon Ball Super logo treatments on the tongue, heel and sock liner. The FILA Renno styles retail for US $100 (men’s) and $90 (kids); FILA F-13 for $80 (men’s) and $70 (kids); FILA Original Fitness for $75 (men’s) and $65 (kids).

The Dragon Ball Super x FILA collection is available in the U.S. and Canada only, exclusively through Foot Locker, Kids Foot Locker, Champs Sports and Footaction.

 

Crunchyroll appoints Reemsborko as UK and Eire licensing agent for anime properties

Crunchyroll, which connects anime and manga fans across 200+ countries and territories through the content they love, has appointed Reemsborko Ltd as the UK and Eire licensing agent for One Punch Man, JoJo’s Bizzare Adventure, God of High School, Tower of God and Bananya.

“Crunchyroll are a great partner and I’m very pleased to be able to expand the Reemsborko roster,” says Max Arguile of Reemsborko. “Animé is a still growing genre, especially in the UK.”

Waell Oueslati of Crunchyroll adds: “Reemsborko have done strong work so far for Crunchyroll with Junji Itô Collection. It makes sense to expand this with these properties.”

For licensing opportunities, contact max@reemsborko.com

When Geek Culture went Pop! | Kids Industries on how we’ve all adopted the geek market (without even realising)

Aleksandra Szczerba, researcher at Kids Industries, explores the ubiquity of geek culture today, and the very real chance that if you’re reading this, you’ve long since become one.

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No longer constrained by the four walls of a dimly-lit basement or the stacks of a comic book store. No longer only openly revered by social outcasts (and covertly by everyone else in fear of being shunned). So-called “geek culture” is – in many ways – no more. Or at least it has evolved to be something vastly different than it has been in the past. The cornerstones of geek culture of decades gone by, from sci-fi to comic books, from video games to anime, don’t just have their footholds in the mainstream. They have become the mainstream, permeating today’s biggest children’s and adult media trends alike. So how have we all become geeks, how did this happen, and what does it mean for the future?

The most obvious way in which geek culture has become a staple in pop culture is of course through screen adaptations of comic books, both feature film and television. Although one would think that DC had the head start, having the rights to iconic characters such as Superman and Batman, it is Marvel that took the movie industry by storm in the past decade. The Marvel Cinematic Universe, comprising more than 20 films and dozens of characters, became a set of interwoven narratives and franchises, brought together in a grand finale in the form of the highest-grossing movie spectacular of all time (at the time at least). “Avengers: Endgame” earned $2.798B at the global box office, and is now the second highest grossing movie of all time, after being narrowly dethroned by the re-release of James Cameron’s “Avatar”. Notably, it is not the only Marvel film people around the world saw in droves: “Avengers: Infinity War” is fifth in terms of box office earnings, and the first “The Avengers” movie ranks 8th. The dollar signs speak for themselves – it’s not just geeks who are all over superheroes today.

Although “Endgame” brought a sense of finality to the MCU, Marvel is not slowing down – it was only the end of Phase 3, and we are already well into Phase 4 with the release of “Black Widow” and the many streaming titles being released on Disney+. Each series is dedicated to developing fan-favourite side characters, and these have been a hit for the platform, both in drawing in subscribers – and in drawing critical acclaim. The June release of “Loki” coincided with Disney+’s biggest increase in mobile app downloads among major streamers, with a 39% increase in the week ending 27th June, and an 11% increase in streaming sessions, according to Bloomberg’s Apptopia data, and in general Disney+ is currently chipping away at Netflix’s dominance in the streaming space. It definitely takes a bit of a geek to want to watch a multi-episode series about a villain or a supporting character who didn’t get their own feature length movie, and clearly there is no shortage of those out there. They also come in all shapes and sizes – at KI we have interviewed children as young as 6 who report enjoying watching Marvel series with their parents.

To put it simply: superheroes are cool now. And it’s not just the MCU. The “DC Extended Universe” may not have taken off in the same way, but television’s “Arrowverse” definitely has its own very loyal following. Superhero movies and TV shows, like “Logan” or HBO’s “Watchmen”, have received prestigious accolades. Comic book brands are no longer “for kids” or “for geeks” – everyone knows these stories and characters, including their mother, father and brother. Once upon a time everyone knew that Superman was the super strong guy, now everyone has an opinion on where they stand in the Captain America vs Iron Man conflict in “Civil War”. There is something for everyone in comic book stories, from a bit of good old fashioned fisticuffs, in-depth character conflict, to comedy and teenage high school hijinks. Many of today’s superhero stories are also more diverse and more relatable; everyone is bound to find a type of superhero they can enjoy.

To an extent the appeal of comic book movies also translates to other expressions of fandom. Parts of the “geek” industry have seen growth, from collectable merchandise like Funko POP! action figures (Funko reports growth every year and quarter, with the POP! line specifically most recently seeing growth of 33% in US and Europe in the first quarter of 2021), to events (the San Diego Comic Con attracts upwards of 130 thousand attendees every year). Similarly, one would expect this to translate to comic books – and many in the industry do cite MCU’s success as the reason for the U-turn in the decline in comic sales post-1993 (i.e. when the comic book bubble burst – but that’s a story for another day). In the 2010s, comic book sales in the US alone crossed the $1 billion mark in 2015, and grew to a $1.2 billion peak in 2019. However according to retailers the ‘movie-lover-to-comic-reader’ conversion is difficult, and hasn’t been all that successful. Yes, more people come into stores and give comics a try, but they also stick to content that is as close to the adaptation as possible. The industry has seen boosts and has seen increased sales related directly to trending storylines or characters – but the bottom line is this: we might collectively be comic book movie geeks, but we’re not quite comic book geeks (yet).

Similarly to superheroes, once upon a time interest in anime and manga may have been limited to people known as “otakus” or “weebs”, but in the year 2021 things could not be more different once again. The anime industry is worth over $20 billion today, with overseas markets accounting for half of the Japanese animation industry’s profits according to the Association of Japanese Animations. In 2019 the industry reached an all time high of $24 billion, with the overseas market valued at around $11 billion – a 19% increase on 2018, and almost a fivefold increase from 2009. These numbers include everything from animation itself (TV and film), to music, and merchandise, with the latter alone being worth over $5.2 billion globally. The dollar signs don’t lie – they’re all pointing East. Not only are we geeks, we’re also otakus.

Data from various streaming services further backs up the data on anime’s growth. According to the specialist anime streamer Crunchyroll’s data, a whopping 8 in 10 people today watch anime, and the platform has felt this. During last year’s Festival of Licensing the platform boasted of nine consecutive years of record sales (the site doesn’t just offer anime, but also manga and merchandise), and in February 2021 the site had hit 4 million paying subscribers, alongside over 100 million registered users, having grown its paid memberships by 33% in the space of just six months. In December 2020 news emerged regarding a possible monumental merger worth almost $1.2 billion in which Crunchyroll would be acquired by another anime giant: Sony’s Funimation. The deal is still up in the air, but if the deal goes through, it will lead to the creation of a veritable anime giant.

Anime isn’t just something found on niche platforms however; regular mainstream players recognise the power of anime too. In 2020 Netflix reported that more than 100 million households across the globe had watched at least one anime title on the platform between January and September, an increase by 50% from the year before, and that anime titles had appeared in top 10 lists in nearly 100 countries. The company has a Tokyo-based team dedicated to anime production and is regularly producing new content as well as acquiring new titles. Just as an example, earlier this year they released a well-received two-part Sailor Moon movie “Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal”, and August will see the release of “The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf”, an anime prequel to the live-action fantasy “The Witcher” series based on the Polish hit-books-turned-hit-video-games (now how’s that for layers of geekiness?)

Of course, the best known titles today are still the likes of Pokémon, Naruto, Studio Ghibli movies, but people are broadening their horizons. This exploration does not end with animation – manga sales were at an all time record high in 2020. Based on NPD’s BookScan data, across the 20 top selling adult graphic novels in the US in October 2020, 17 were manga titles. One of the biggest hits of today took the top three spots: My Hero Academia, a shōnen superhero-themed series popular with teenagers. This year an ever hotter commodity is the supernatural series Jujutsu Kaisen, particularly following the release of its anime adaptation; as of May this year it has 50 million copies in circulation, it has had successful brand collaborations including Uniqlo, and has topped the list of Japan’s most lucrative franchises of 2021 so far.

Anime and manga are popular enough in the English-speaking world that an element of fandom never previously accessible to these audiences is finally being opened up to them as well. This summer, for the first time ever, stage adaptations of popular anime will be streamed online with English subtitles for non-Japanese speaking audiences. These musical stage productions, also known as “2.5 dimensional musicals”, are a big part of manga, anime and video game fandom in Japan, but overseas audiences haven’t been able to engage with them officially until now. In August musical adaptations of Naruto, Sailor Moon and My Hero Academia will be streaming as part of a special online theatre event.

Geek culture has undoubtedly morphed and evolved over time, and the 21st century has seen it become – for all intents and purposes – pop culture, with previously “geek” franchises and fandoms becoming your standard, everyday, blockbuster fare. How “geek” evolves from this point on, we are yet to see – but it is definitely here to stay. It has made its place in the media landscape and it is seeping into trends everywhere. Geek franchises have bastions of fans, and they’re primed and ready to discover new titles and brands that align with their tastes. It is official: we have all become geeks (probably without even realising it).

Sony’s Funimation completes $1.175bn acquisition of anime platform Crunchyroll

The Sony owned Funimation Global Group has completed its acquisition of the anime platform, Crunchyroll from AT&T in a deal that closed out at $1.175bn.

Finalising a deal that was first detailed in December 2020, it now sees the Crunchyroll business welcomed into the Funimation fold – a partnership made up of Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment Japan.

The deal – valued at $1.175bn – arrives in recognition of the pace at which the popularity of anime is growing among audiences the world over.

“The alignment of Crunchyroll and Funimation will enable us to get even closer to the creators and fans who are the heart of the anime community,” said Kenichiro Yoshida, chairman, president, and chief executive officer, Sony Group Corporation.

“We look forward to delivering even more outstanding entertainment that fills the world with emotion through anime.”

Crunchyroll is an anime direct to consumer service that boasts more than five million SVOD (streaming video on demand) subscribers, offering mobile games, manga, events merchandise and distribution to over 120 million users worldwide.

“Crunchyroll adds tremendous value to SOny’s existing anime business, including Funimation and our terrific partners at Aniplex and Sony Mucis Entertainment Japan,” said Tony Vinciquerra, chairman and chief executive officer, Sony Pictures Entertainment.

“With Crunchyroll and Funimation, we are committed to creating the ultimate anime experience for fans and presenting a unique opportunity for our key partners, publishers, and the immensely talented creators to continue to deliver their masterful content to audiences around the world.

“With the addition of Crunchyroll, we have an unprecedented opportunity to serve anime fans like never before and deliver the anime experience across any platform they choose, from theatrical, events, home entertainment, games, streaming, linear TV – everywhere and every way fans want to experience their anime.

“Our goal is to create a unified anime subscription experience as soon as possible.”

Pokémon is heading to the BBC for the first time as iPlayer catches series and movies

Pokémon is heading to the BBC for the first time.

The British broadcaster has acquired two complete story arcs from the Pokémon the Series collection to be housed on the BBC iPlayer, along with the story arcs’ accompanying feature-length Pokémon the Movie for both linear broadcast and the iPlayer.

This will mark the first time that Pokémon has been broadcast on the BBC platform. From this August, BBC iPlayer viewers will be able to watch the adventures of Ash and Pikachu, with all 189 episodes of Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl, and all 142 episodes of Pokémon the Series: Black & White.

Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl will be exclusively available to UK audiences on BBC iPlayer from August 2, while Pokémon the Series: Black & White will follow this autumn on a non-exclusive basis. The deal lands in time to help fans continue to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Pokémon brand this year, marking a quarter of a century since it was first launched in Japan in 1996 with two Game Boy titles.

Pokémon is one of the world’s most popular and successful entertainment properties. Its anime began in 1997 and now spans 24 series, with over 1000 episodes, and accompanying movies, which have aired in 176 different countries and regions in over 30 languages.

Emily Arons, SVP of licensing at The Pokémon Company International, said: “We are delighted to team up with such a world-renowned broadcaster as the BBC to bring the exciting adventures of Ash, Pikachu, and their friends to their huge UK audience.

“In our 25th anniversary year, it gives Pokémon fans old and new even more to celebrate with this wonderful opportunity to revisit or discover the wonderful world of Pokémon in these thrilling animated series. In addition, the Diamond and Pearl episodes will provide a great introduction to the fascinating Sinnoh region.”

Toei Animation teams with LA streetwear brand The Hundreds to celebrate One Piece

Toei Animation has joined forces with the LA-based streetwear brand, The Hundreds to celebrate the international anime series, One Piece, with the launch of a full range of apparel and collectable accessories.

Produced by Toei Animation and based on the top-selling manga title of all time by Eiichiro Oda, the One Piece anime series spans more than two decades with over 975 episodes to date since it first launched on Japanese TV in October 1999. The series follows pirate Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat crew on the quest to fine One Piece – the legendary treasure of the Pirate King Gol D Roger.

The anime series has achieved global pop culture status that has spurred the growth of the franchise to span theatrical films, home videos, video games, and a catalogue of licensed merchandise that includes accessories, toys, novelties, furniture, housewares, and apparel.

The Hundreds X One Piece Collection will feature Monkey D. Luffy, Roronoa Zoro, Nami, TonyTony Chopper, and the rest of the crew across a line of graphic t-shirts, long sleeves, crewnecks, pullover hoodies, sweatpants, and hats, as well as an array of collectable accessories, including stickers, coffee mugs, pin sets, keychains, and post-it notes.

The Hundreds X One Piece Collection arrives on Thursday, June 17, and will be available on The Hundreds App and Online Shop, as well as The Hundreds flagship store at 501 N Fairfax in Los Angeles and in select authorized retailers in the United States, and Canada.

The Koyo Store partners with Toei Animation to launch Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super collectables

The entertainment merchandise specialist, The Koyo Store has secured the EMEA rights to create a range of officially licensed collectables based on the popular Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super anime TV series.

Through its partnership with Toei Animation Europe, the Lancashire-based Koyo Store will launch an initial product line-up this May encompassing collectables based on popular characters and imagery from both series, including a Character Pin Badge Collection featuring Buu, Goku, Master Roshi, Piccolo, Trunks, Krillin, and more.

 Widely regarded as the series that made anime popular in the West, the Dragon Ball Z TV show was created by Toei Animation and first aired in 1989. Its popularity saw the franchise spawn movies, TV specials, soundtracks, video games and countless other items of merchandise.

 It’s sequel, Dragon Ball Super, followed the adventures of key protagonist Goku during the ten-year timeskip’ after the defeat of Majin Buu. Toei recently announced that a new Dragon Ball Super film was in development with a planned release for 2022.

 With Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super still huge favourites with pop culture fans, The Koyo Store is lining up a range of pin badges to celebrate these iconic brands. Available in-store and online from this month, the range will include a Goku & Vegeta Pin Badge Set, an Icon Pin Badge Set – including symbols for Kame, Majin, Capsule Corp, Red Ribbon, Radar and Dragon Ball, a Dragon Ball Z Symbol Pin, Dragon Ball Super Symbol Pin, Master Roshi Pin, Goku Pin, Vegeta Pin, Gohan Pin, and Trunks Pin.

 The collectables will be priced from £6.99 and will also be available for fans to buy direct at www.thekoyostore.com

Toei Animation is the latest major IP owner to join The Koyo Stores burgeoning collectables line-up, which also includes partnerships with Ubisoft, (Rainbow Six Siege), PUBG, Games Workshop (Warhammer 40,000), Capcom (Street Fighter) and HBO (Game of Thrones)

“Were delighted to be able to tell Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super fans that we can Summon You Forth’ to collect this range of officially-licensed pin badges,” said Lee Townsend, founder and CEO of The Koyo Store.

Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Super remain among the most popular anime franchises across the world, so were honoured to be collaborating with Toei Animation to bring this range of collectibles to Dragon Ball enthusiasts.”

 The Koyo Stores high-quality pin badges, coins and other unique merchandise have proved a hit among games, Esports and TV and film fans who are looking for great collectibles and the opportunity to claim bragging rights within their peer groups.

Toei Animation celebrates Goku Day with new Dragon Ball Super movie announcement

Fans worldwide received a special surprise this Goku Day –  the annual Dragon Ball celebration – when Toei Animation revealed that a new Dragon Ball Super film will be released in 2022, marking the second film based on the Dragon Ball Super manga title and anime series launched in 2015.

The Dragon Ball phenomena began in 1984 when Japan’s well-known manga from Akira Toriyama premiered in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump, becoming a top ranked title throughout its 10 and a half years of publication. Since then, the manga’s popularity has continued to grow with a record of 260 million copies sold worldwide and counting.

Dragon Ball’s ever-increasing popularity has seen it has expand beyond manga to include TV animation, movies, games and merchandising. Now, 37 years after the launch of the original manga, Dragon Ball continues to evolve.

The 2022 film follows the success of its first movie release in 2018, Dragon Ball Super: Broly, which achieved over $120 million at the worldwide box office.

Planning for the new film project was kicked-off in 2018, before the release of Dragon Ball Super: Broly, with the goal of telling a large-scale story that would build on the enthusiastic response for the previous theatrical series and the current global fervor for Broly.

Akira Toriyama himself has picked up his pen to deliver a story ‘for the fans.’ From the story composition to character design to the lines of the script, Toriyama has ‘worked with the greatest attention to detail and highest quality standards’ to create what Toei has billed as a ‘Dragon Ball movie unlike any other in its history and one that will surely be a blockbuster with fans.’

Akira Toriyama, creator of the original story, screenplay, and character design, wrote a special message to Dragon Ball fans. A signed copy of this message is available here.