NDK - Funimation Panel

Funimation brought its presence back to NDK this year to let us know what they are doing in the world of anime.  The panel was led by their convention manager Sully who had lots of news to share.

The beginning of the panel was mostly a focus on how Funimation gets its information out to the public and the services they have for the anime viewer.  Funimation has their main website, a Twitter feed, a Facebook page, a Youtube account and a Tumbler account.  Sully said that they have all these different forms of communication both to get their information out and to interact with the anime fandom at large.  It allows them to get feedback and suggestions from the anime community and put them into practice in their business.  She said that recently there has been an uptick in demand for the magical girl genre, so they're going to see what they can do on that front.

Funimation also have the Simulcast, bringing shows over the next day after airing in Japan with subtitles for the western viewer.  Currently Funimation is Simulcasting the following shows; Kingdom, Toriko, Eureka 7 A0, Binbogami Ga!, One Piece and Esthetic of a Rogue Hero.  Funimation has an Elite Video Subscription for $7.95 which gives a viewer axcess to all their shows online in both English and Japanese subtitled.  They also have apps for the iPhone and Android smartphones as well as a tablet app under development.  Many shows are available on Netflix and Hulu and more new titles are coming to both services in the next couple of months.  They are also getting a special Funimation button that will be available on new Samsung televisions, allowing direct axcess from your television. 

Funimation thanked its supporters for helping to bring back Toonami to Cartoon Network. An outpouring of support got it back on the air on May 26, 2012.  They also asked for continued and new support for the Funimation channel on cable providers.  The more people that express their desire for the Funimation channel through cable, the more markets it will get into and broadcast to.

Sully then talked about current and upcoming Funimation titles.

Current titles from Funimation include:

Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt - A surprise big seller this year.  Powerpuff Girls on steroids for a mature audience.

Fractale - A sci-fi hit where the internet is directly entered into your brain.

Oblivion Island - A beautiful family-friendly moive from Production I.G. in 3D.

King of Thorn - A dark sci-fi movie with humanity on the brink of extinction.

Fafner - An anime to get your mecha fix in a current mecha drought.

Aria: The Scarlet Ammo - A high school full of elite warriors in-training.

One Piece: Season 4 Voyage 2 - The continuing adventures of the Straw Hat Pirates.

C-Control - The world post financial collapse with avatars battling for money.

Hellsing Ultimate - The master vampire Alucard and his fight against other creatures of the night. Volumes 5 through 8 being released for the first time in English!

Sengoku Basara: The Last Party - The movie to this over-the-top samuari showdown.

Mass Effect: Paragon Lost - Prequal to ME3 following James Vega.

Funimation also added many classic Geneon titles to their lineup such as, Armitage III, Ai Your Ashi, Ego Proxy, and Technolize.  There are also many great October releases such as Strike Witches 2, Deadman Wonderland, Ga Rei-Zero, KolidaStar Season 2, and my personal favorite, Tenchi Universe, which is a re-release of the original OVA. 

Sully talked about future projects that Funimation had secured, including Lupin III, Sankarea, Moken Ki!, Tenchi Muyo! War on Geminar, Space Battleship Yamoto: Resurrection, Fairy Tail Season 2 and the Movie, Aquariou Evol, One Piece Season 5 plus the Strong World Movie, and the biggest announcment was them acquring Akira.  However, they did not have much information at this time about the title and what's happening and to stay tuned for future news.

All in all, Funimation has some great titles that have been released and that are coming out.  Be sure to check out their multiple sites for future information and to watch anime series.  I'm excited to see what future titles they will be releasing soon.