Milleropolis

  NHK announced on Monday that the 2-part The Dragon Dentist anime special will re-air on NHK G during the Golden Week holiday in Japan on May 4.  The first part will air from 4:25 to 5:11 PM JST. The second part will air from 5:11 to 5:57 PM JST. The Dragon Dentist initially aired in 2 parts on NHK BS Premium on February 18 and February 25, 2017.  Source: NHK's official website

  Popular merchandise based on the Doraemon franchise has been available at the lifestyle market One'sterrace in Japan since April 23.  Merchandise (from left to right in the image): Plush toy S 16 cm; 1,650 yen ($15.29) Marche bag; 660 yen ($6.12) One push mug bottle; 3,520 yen ($32.62) Pet bottle cover; 1,100 yen ($10.28) Hand towel; 1,650 yen ($15.29) Cold storage bag; 990 yen ($9.17) Plush toy M; 3,080 yen ($28.54) Fruit jelly bank; 1,430 yen ($13.25) Face pouch; 1,760 yen ($16.31) Ecobag; 1,320 yen ($12.23) Capsule cookie and marshmallows; 486 yen ($4.49) Mug cup; 1,540 yen ($14.27) Wash towel; 550 yen ($5.10) Time Furoshiki wash towel; 440 yen ($4.08) All prices include tax. The merchandise may not be available at some One'sterrace stores. Sources: World Online Store via Doraemon Channel's website 

  Backscratchers based on Sanrio's I'm Doraemon brand entitled "I'm Doraemon: Senaka-kaite" (I'm Doraemon 背中かいて) are currently available for purchase on the Kawashima Rakuten Shop. They are made in Japan with the antibacterial component Ag and are portable.  9 variants are available: Doraemon Basic Takecopter Nakama Face Dorami Nobita Shizuka Gian Suneo Price: 1,650 yen ($15.29) plus tax Sources: Doraemon Channel's official website , Sanrio's official website , Rakuten

Image via  Amazon I've always had mixed feelings about the Case Closed anime and manga. I liked the artstyle, the premise, and the episodic nature, but the slow pacing and redundancy turned me away from actively following it every week. However, I was interested in checking out at least one of the movies because they looked more exciting than the regular TV series. I just wasn't sure which one I wanted to start off with. So today, I decided to start off with The Fist of Blue Sapphire because of the cool-sounding title and the plotline of Conan getting transported over to Singapore. Here's the official synopsis via YouTube :  The world 's largest sapphire, "The Fist of Blue Sapphire" was alleged to have been lost at sea near Singapore in the late 19th century. When a local billionaire appears to the public with a plan to retrieve the sapphire, a murder occurs in Marina Bay Sands. At the scene, a bloodied notice card from Kid the Phantom Thief is found. I must...

  Aenai Ojarumaru (会えないおじゃる丸 "Ojarumaru Can't Meet") is about the Little Oni Trio confronting Ojarumaru once again, only to find him just staring blankly. Denbo explains to them that the Full Moon Road, which connects Moonlight Town and the Heian era, is being inspected, meaning that Ojarumaru can't go back home to see his parents. Thinking that Ojarumaru is sad, the oni try to cheer him up. In the end, it turns out that Ojarumaru wasn't sad at all. He was just staring blankly for no particular reason. He uses the scepter to scratch his back, and then the oni seem both shocked and annoyed because of all the time that they wasted.  During the episode, the Little Oni Trio goes to an onsen called "Oni Mountain Onsen" and comes back with some souvenirs. I wonder what the Onsen Manjuu and Oni Mountain Tea taste like.  In one scene, Kisuke draws a really good portrait of Ojarumaru. Supposedly, he has many hidden talents throughout the show and drawing seems t...

I'm starting off with this particular Ojarumaru episode because, as of this writing, it's the most recently aired episode. I might go back and review the previous 24th series episodes some other time.  Anyway, Kisuke no Hatsukoi  (キスケの初恋 “Kisuke’s First Love”) is about Kisuke having a crush on a little girl after accidentally bumping into her on his way home from grocery shopping. His siblings Akane and Aobei, Ojarumaru, and Denbo find out about this and spy on them.  I find the little girl cute because of her design and voice (though she is only heard laughing and gasping). I like how during the scene when Kisuke and the girl bumped into each other, she seemingly doesn't mind the fact that Kisuke accidentally broke her hair accessory and is more interested in the fact that a carrot landed on his horn.  My favorite scene is when Aobei and Akane imagine Kisuke and the girl marrying each other. I find it pretty cool seeing cameos of various characters, such as Asako, ...

  Tubi has finally started streaming Anpanman with the movie  Apple Boy and Everyone's Hope  (very special thanks to Twitter user @VedsaGolfer for bringing this to my attention). I've been waiting for an official North American English release of the franchise in some form for over 10 years, so I was pretty excited to watch the movie.  The plot is basically about Anpanman and his friends helping the guest star character Apple Boy find his apple balloon and a magical apple seed so that the latter can get back to his homeland and help restore it after the evil Witchteria infects it with her dark magic. Along the way, Apple Boy learns the importance of teamwork, friendship, and courage through Anpanman and his friends. I find the movie's overall presentation very enjoyable. The plot is cheerful and warm, and the animation is incredible. The music is okay; not one of my favorites, but it gets the job done.  The English dub is pretty good. The voice actors did a goo...

  When I first discovered Dinosaur Biyori on an Anime News Network article back a couple months ago, the artstyle immediately caught my attention because of how cute and funny it looked. I was like, "Definitely going to watch this when it premieres on TOKYO MX".  Without the ending theme and commercials, episode 1 is 1 minute and 30 seconds long. It's basically about the 3 dinosaurs, Tyrannosaurus (the pink/purple one), Triceratops (the yellow one), and Stenonychosaurus (the green one) sitting in their apartment talking about stuff. It has a calm, laid-back pace that's reminiscent of shows like  Ojarumaru  and Danchi Tomoo .  When I first watched episode 1, I didn't really get much out of it (besides the artstyle) because I watched it in Japanese without any subtitles, along with it being very dialogue heavy. The only thing I understood was a visual joke about Tyrannosaurus struggling to reach for his drink due to his short, stubby hands. I re-watched it a few ...

Nissin Foods has released a new edition of children's cup noodles based on the Anpanman franchise called "Anpanman Ramen: Maroyaka Curry Aji" (Anpanman Ramen: Mellow Curry Flavor) in Japan. The suggested retail price is ¥116.  The soft noodles have nutrients such as calcium, while the broth is mellow curry flavored. The ingredients are Anpanman and Currypanman-shaped narutomaki, green onions, and carrots.   Source: Jiji.com

  SCRAP will hold a Real Escape Game based on the Crayon Shin-chan franchise entitled "Futaba Youchien Kaizou Keikaku kara no Dasshutsu" (Escape from the Futaba Kindergarten Remolding Plan) in Japan, starting April 23, 2021.  Teams of up to 5 people become Shinnosuke, Kazama, Nene, Masao, and Bo, as they must pass a test by a mysterious, self-proclaimed "kindergarten remodeling contractor" in order to put an end to his plan of remolding Futaba Kindergarten. Additionally, various merchandise will be sold exclusively at the venue of the Crayon Shin-chan Real Escape Game: Sources: Crayon Shin-chan Real Escape Game's official website , PR TIMES

A key visual for the Love Live! Superstar!! anime has been revealed.  The Love Live! Superstar!! anime will air on NHK E this July. Sources: Comic Natalie , NHK Anime World's official Twitter account

Line Corporation's defense battle video game LINE Ranger  (for iPhone and Android) has teamed up with the Crayon Shin-chan franchise.  During the collaboration period (March 31 to April 28, 2021), Crayon Shin-chan characters Shinnosuke Nohara, Himawari and Shiro, Hiroshi Nohara (who can be unlocked by logging into the login bonus for 7 days), Nene, and Kazama will appear as collaboration-only rangers. There will be collaboration equipment from the aforementioned franchise, as well as the special stage "Shinnosuke Planet". Clearing the stage will reward players with in-game items, such as coins and collaboration rangers. Source: PR TIMES

The Crayon Shin-chan anime will team up with the Love Live! Sunshine!! multimedia school idol project for a series of merchandise, which will be released on the Bandai Namco Arts official online shop A-on Store, and general stores in Japan on June 25, 2021. The collaboration serves as a celebration of the 5th anniversary of the school idol group Aqours (from  Love Live! Sunshine!! ), as well as Shinnosuke Nohara (from Crayon Shin-chan ) being 5 years old. Various merchandise, such as acrylic stands, trading acrylic keyholders, T-shirts, and tote bags, can be viewed below: A-on Store will accept preorders for select merchandise from April 14 (11:00 AM JST) to May 5 (11:59 PM JST). Bandai Namco Arts has uploaded a video on YouTube announcing the collaboration, which can be viewed below: Sources: Bandai Namco Arts's official YouTube channel , Comic Natalie

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Doraemon franchise, Sanrio's English-oriented I'm Doraemon brand has teamed up with the umbrella brand Wpc. for a series of umbrellas and other merchandise aimed at adults. The collaboration merchandise has been released at the Wpc. Flagship Shop Shinsaibashi Parco and general stores in Japan since April 1, 2021.   Various umbrellas, pouches, and a bell-shaped charm are available, as seen below: Sources: Doraemon Channel's official website , Fashion Press , Wpc. Online Store

  In "Oja Fuwa Babyun" (おじゃフワバビュン), the ending theme of the  Ojarumaru anime's 24th series by YouTuber and TV personality Fuwa-chan and Team Ojarumaru, one of the lyrics mentions the Nintama Rantaro anime: "I'll watch Nintama Rantaro after this" (あたし このあとの忍たま乱太郎見よう) This is a nod to the fact that Nintama Rantaro airs on NHK E immediately after Ojarumaru at 6:10 PM JST, which explains why Japanese fans on Twitter have found that particular line rather amusing.  Source: Fuwa-chan's Twitter account

XSEEDgames uploaded an announcement trailer on YouTube on March 30, revealing that they will release the card battle RPG video game Shadowverse: Champion's Battle on the Nintendo Switch in North America in Summer 2021. The North American version will feature English voice acting. An overview of the game, via the announcement trailer: Shadowverse: Champion’s Battle is a reimagined version of the strategic multiplayer mobile/PC card battle game for the consumer platform. As players progress the game, they can collect new cards to build more powerful decks. The game can be experienced solo, or players can head online for multiplayer matches to test complex new strategies against others. It will also feature a Battle Pass system with cosmetic leader skin rewards and other in-game bonuses unlockable by completing missions such as winning online matches. The Switch™ release also adds deluxe battle animations for a more immersive experience. Watch the announcement trailer below: Source: ...