This week, photos of the upcoming Nanoha Nendoroid were posted on Mikatan’s blog.

Those of you not familiar with anime figures might be wondering what a nendoroid is. Nendoroids are basically what you see above, small figures that are a few inches high and have extremely large heads relative to the body. I guess you could also say that nendoroids are the chibi versions of anime figures. Unlike most figures though, nendoroids give you the ability to change their poses with jointed arms and legs, and interchangeable faces.

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Every once in a while those of you who participate in anime communities may hear comments about the declining quality of anime. I know there are people out there who enjoy the anime that has been coming out recently, so I thought about why someone would dislike recent anime and I came up with two major reasons:

1. No Coherent Plot

Every story needs to have a coherent plot to be interesting, otherwise it’s just a bunch of random events that don’t lead up to anything. Ever heard of the anime Akikan? It’s about a boy that drinks a pop can which then turns into a girl. I have no clue where you can go with that, and from what I’ve heard, the writers didn’t have a clue either.

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One anime from last season that I think deserves more credit is Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~. Based on the game Phantom of Inferno, the anime revolves around a Japanese tourist (codenamed Zwei) who is forced to become an assassin in the American underworld. Under the tutelage of Ein, nicknamed “Phantom” for being the deadliest assassin, Zwei trains to become the next “Phantom” while trying to convince himself that he’s not doing anything wrong.

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So I’m sure by now everyone is already aware of the upcoming release of Windows 7 and all the new and improved features it comes with, but you might not have heard of Nanami Madobe. According to Akiba PC, the Japanese version of Windows 7 Ultimate will be getting an OS-tan named Nanami Madobe who will be voiced by popular singer Nana Mizuki. So what is an OS-tan you ask? simple, it’s basically a mascot character drawn anime-style that represents an operating system (more details here).

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With a new season comes new anime, and this fall’s anime line-up looks to have quite a few gems.

Personally, I think the biggest anime of the upcoming season would have to be Inuyasha: The Final Act. Anyone who has been following the Inuyasha anime will remember how the series ended without any real conclusion. Well, now that the manga is complete (at an impressive 56 volumes over more than 10 years), the anime will finally be given a real ending. This is certainly appreciated for people like me who just don’t have the time to go get the manga and read through it (I’m a slow reader).

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If you’ve been keeping up with the anime scene in America, then you’ll know that Cencoroll will finally make its American debut on Semptember 25 at the New York Anime Festival.

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One of Disney’s recent attempts to gain a more solid foothold in the Japanese market is the production of the 3D animation “Fireball”. This series is about the daily life of your typical robot princess called Drossel (and we all know how popular robots are in Japan), and her robot butler, whose name has slipped my mind. Each episode is only a few minutes long and deals with some random event such as a human uprising, or a monkey stuck in a chair.

OK, so Fireball might not sound that great (especially since there’s no plot), but considering how short each episode is, it isn’t that bad. Some bits are pretty entertaining, like Drossel’s new hairdo and finding out all these little features that she comes installed with. Fireball is at least worth a look during lunch time if there’s nothing better to do, just search up “Disney’s Fireball” on youtube.

Any anime music lovers out there may be interested in the Anime House Project, which had its first volume released on August 26. So what is the Anime House Project? Basically, it’s a collection of popular anime tracks that have been redone house-style. If you’re unfamiliar with house, wikipedia has a pretty good explaination of what it is, but it would be much easier to understand if you just listen to it. The good thing about this project is that they have a website with samples of their music.

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Fans of Chaos;Head will surely remember the pink-haired 2D wife of a certain delusional otaku, Seira Orgel. Although there were a variety of Seira figures shown in the anime, none of them actually existed until now.

Late this year, Wave will be releasing the first PVC figure of Seira. It will be 1/7 scale (according to Seira’s fictional size, not the figure) so it stands approximately 15cm high, and it’s partially cast-off-able. The retail price for this figure is 7,429 yen which is about 80USD; a bit expensive, but I’m sure that wouldn’t deter any collectors of pink-haired girls, or figures of figures.

Those of you who have been following this year’s International Saimoe League (ISML) will know that we are now entering the final week of the regular season. If you aren’t familiar with the ISML, it’s an annual competition where people from around the world can vote on which anime girl they think it the most “moe” (pronounced mo-e). The word “moe” is defined on Anime News Network as follows:

Moe is a Japanese term used in connection with manga or anime to describe something precious, usually (but not always) the ideal of youthful and innocent femininity. Written with the kanji for “to bud or sprout” (萌), the concept covers a range of ideal behaviour for youthful female characters in manga or anime. To be moe, a character can be eager or perky, not overly independent, and call forth a desire in the viewer to protect them and nurture them. The term is also used to describe any preciously cute item; there is an animal mascot character store in Tokyo called Moe.

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Avid fans of the moe-anime K-ON can probably recall the scene involving Mio’s blue and white striped bowl from episode 6. Those of you needing a little reminder, or who haven’t seen the scene before, it can be found on youtube. Of course, due to Mio’s popularity, it’s only natural that anything involving her would eventually be marketed to hardcore fans.

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Those of you into Magic: The Gathering or Yu-Gi-Oh cards may be interested in some Weiβ Schwarz cards too. Like Magic and Yu-Gi-Oh, the gome involves battling with an opponent using “monsters” and other cards. The difference here is that Weiβ Schwarz uses actual anime characters rather than beasts or dragons or what have you.

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Some of you may remember Kadokawa’s Nyantype Magazine, which includes anime news and images of the female cast of recent anime. Now, 3 months after the magazine’s initial release, the second volume is finally available in stores. This volume contains quite a few pin-up posters from the summer 2009 anime lineup, but also includes posters of older series like Strike Witchesand K-ON (shown below).

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I came across Elite Banana Banao a while ago and I thought I should share it with everyone on FG. Originally from the weird and wonderful land of Japan, Banao is a banana with various clothing and accessories stuck on to him. For the cellphone strap versions of Banao, there is one with a tie and cellphone, one in a tuxedo, one holding a shopping bag, and two sitting in a hot dog bun-shaped chair. Seriously though, how cool would it be to have a banana sitting in a hot dog bun with a cat on his lap hanging off your phone.

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One of the new anime airing this season is called “Bakemonogatari”, which can be translated as “Ghostory” since bakemono = ghost/monster, and monogatari = story. The anime has different characters that it focuses on for a couple of episodes, and each of those characters has something to do with the supernatural. There is, however, a main character named Koyomi Araragi who is a former vampire and appears to try to help the other characters.

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For all of you Haruhi fans out there, you’ll be happy to know that the single for the season 2 opening song “Super Driver” by Aya Hirano will be released on July 22. You’ll be even happier to know that the full song has made its way to youtube early for everyone to enjoy.

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