Witchblade - The Complete Series - REGION LOCKED

Witchblade - The Complete Series

Region: A (Confirmed NOT Playable in the UK)

Price: $35.99 / £21.61 (Excludes Postage)

Episodes: 1 - 24 (3 Disc Set)

Plot: The destiny of the Witchblade continues – in stunning high definition!

Sought by the greed of Men since the dawn of Humankind, but only bestowed upon the woman whose fate it forever scars – The Witchblade. Is it the Righteous Sword of God, of the Hand of the Devil Himself? Now a new bearer has been chosen and she must discover the answers for herself. As she stands on the brink of destiny, she is forced to seek the balance between ecstasy and ruin…

Masane Amaha is a woman on the fringe of society, bouncing rootless from town to town with her daughter, Rihoko. She struggles to build a life for her family, with no memory of the past and no clue as to what the future holds. But upon their arrival back in Tokyo forces conspire to separate parent from child, unleashing the fury of the Witchblade. The young mother will find herself conscripted into the service of the Doji Group and hunted down by the emissaries of the NSWF, all while seeking to balance the weight of this forced duality.

K-ON! - Volume 1 - REGION LOCKED

K-ON! - Volume 1

Region: A (Confirmed NOT Playable in the UK)

Price: £14.78 (Excludes Postage)

Episodes: 1 - 4

Plot: When Yui Hirasawa enters high school, she wants to join a club but can't decide which one is right for her. Fortunately, the Light Music Club is desperate to find another member or they'll be disbanded!

So, with the enticement of delicious snacks and assurance that no musical experience is necessary, Yui joins the Light Music Club. She becomes the guitarist in this all-girl high school rock band with Mio Akiyama on bass, Tsumugi Kotobuki on keyboard and Ritsu Tainaka on drums.

Together, they're going to rock the school and someday make it to the Budokan! Now, if only they can put down the snacks just long enough to practice.

Needless - Collection Two - REGION LOCKED

Needless - Collection Two

Region: A (Confirmed NOT Playable in the UK)

Price: £28.22 (Excluding Postage)

Episodes: 13 - 24 (2 Disc Set)

Plot: They're called Needless-mutants who wield amazing powers such as super speed, the ability to change form, and some, like Blade, the power to "learn" other opponent's powers.

It's Blade's greatest ability. But is it powerful enough to overcome his weakness for cute young girls in revealing little skirts? Find out in the craziest action comedy anime of the year!

UK Anime Movie's Bank Holiday TV Listings

I Would not usually do this however after noticing several anime movies in such a short space of time i decided to dedicate a whole blog post listing what film it is, when its on and what channel - and for once all of these films (except one) can be watched via your standard "digital" tv.

All listings (below) are correct as of today, however they may be removed / changed without notice (Disney XD do it alot with the Pokemon Movies) and all listings are for UK viewers only.

Saturday 23rd April 2011:

CITV (Freeview Channel 72, Sky Channel 621)at 9:25am
Pokemon Movie 11: Giratina & The Sky Warrior

Film4 (Freeview Channel 15, Sky Channel 315) at 11:00am
My Neighbour Totoro

BBC2 (Analogue & Freeview Channel 2, Sky Channel 102) at 12:00pm
Spirited Away

Monday 25th April 2011:

ITV1 (Analogue & Freeview Channel 3, Sky Channel 103) at 2:00am
ITV1 HD (Freeview Channel 53, Sky Channel 178) at 2:00am
Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie

Film4 (Freeview Channel 15, Sky Channel 315) at 18:20pm
Princess Monokoke

Wednesday 27th April 2011:

Disney XD (Sky Channel 607 & 630) at 10:30am
Pokemon: Movie 10 - The Rise Of Darkrai

Saturday 30th April 2011:

CITV (Freeview Channel 72 & Sky Channel 621) at 9:25am
Pokemon: Movie 12 - Arceus & The Jewel Of Life

New Anime Blu-ray UK Releases (18/4/11)

This week see's the UK release of the "Eureka Seven - The Movie" (aka Eureka Seven: Good Night, Sleep Tight, Young Lovers) brought to us on DVD & Blu-Ray by Manga Entertainment UK.

Unlike most anime films, you do not need to watch the TV Series to understand the film, as this film is a stand-alone unit - which means even if you havent watched the Anime "Eureka Seven" (which in my opinion seems abit slow at times) you can still enjoy the feature length film without feeling lost or confused.

If you watched the TV Series and then the film (like i did) then you will notice alot of differences which makes the whole story confusing (untill at the very end when it all comes together) - so i say its best to watch both the film & TV Series at different times to really enjoy the story of each as they are both really good, but i prefer the film more as not only does it contain fast paced action - but it also contains the drama & story which heavily featured in the TV Series.

Yet again Eureka Seven - The Movie is best enjoyed in High Definition as the crisp video quality & superb surround sound makes it an enjoyable experience.

Eureka Seven: The Movie - £14.93 (Amazon UK), £14.99 (Play / HMV UK)

Plot: Renton, son of scientists, and Eureka, a girl who can't live under the sun, are raised together when very young and become very attached to each other. One day, Eureka is taken away. Powerless at the time, Renton vows to rescue her. He enters the military and is soon assigned to the Independent Youths Unit 303 of the First Mobile Forces thanks to his exceptional performance alongside his Nirvash, a bio-mechanical armor/control system. Unknown to Renton, lies a plot to extinguish the alien invasion that is currently happening. It involves not only him, but Eureka too.

Ga Rei Zero - Complete Series - REGION FREE

Ga Rei Zero

Region: A & B (Confirmed Playable in the UK)

Price: £27.89 (Excluding Postage)

Episodes: 1 - 12 (2 Disc Set)

Plot: The creative team behind the Full Metal Panic! trilogy is back with a nightmare-inducing series about teenage exorcists forced to draw swords against bloodthirsty creatures of unholy origins.

Kagura and Yomi may look like ordinary school girls as they walk the streets of Tokyo clad in short skirts and knee-high socks, but they're the heroes you scream for when monsters creep out of the darkness. These sword-totting sisters are part of an elite counterattack unit that specializes in suppressing outbreaks of supernatural activity. They train together, live together, eat together, and spend their nights disemboweling demons with sacred blades.

Tragedy strikes when Yomi is possessed by a dark spirit, and Kagura must choose between raising her weapon against the eerily familiar face of ultimate evil - or watching her mentor slaughter innocent citizens. In a life or death battle that pits sister against sister, survival may be the greatest agony of all.

Sword Of The Stranger - REGION FREE

Sword Of The Stranger

Region: A & B (Confirmed Playable in the UK)

Price: £15.39 (Excluding Postage)

Episodes: 1 Feature-Length-Film

Plot: What qualifies a man as good or evil? Is it the amount of political power one attains, the quality of his swordsmanship or how well he serves his lord? With the fall of the second shogunate Japan has sunk into a state of disarray historians now call the Sengoku period, or the era of Warring States.

Civil wars rage on throughout the many feudal holdings, where a man may raise his station in life simply by killing his superior.

Whilst wandering this war torn country side a nameless ronin stumbles upon a young boy by the name of Kotaro, his dog and the many Chinese assassins dispatched to claim the boy in some strange ritual for immortality. Seeing something of his own past within the child, the nameless swordsman chooses to act as his bodyguard but can he truly keep Kotaro from the clutches of the Ming and their bloodthirsty blonde mercenary, Luo-Lang?

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The Official UK Version of Sword Of The Stranger is also available to buy in the UK from around £17.99 (including Postage) from various online websites such as Play, Amazon UK and HMV.

Samurai 7 - The Complete Series - REGION LOCKED

Samurai 7 - The Complete Series

Region: A (Confirmed NOT Playable in the UK)

Price: £18.13 (Excluding Postage)

Episodes: 1 - 26 (3 Disc Set)

Plot: Samurai 7 is set in a futuristic world that has just seen the end of a massive war, many villages are being terrorized by Nobuseri bandits. The Nobuseri are no normal bandits. They were once men, but during the war they modifed themselves with machines to become living weapons and now apprear as more machine than man. A group of villagers decide to hire samurai to protect their village. These men of valor are as skilled as they are unique.

Summer Wars (UK) - REGION LOCKED

Summer Wars - UK Edition

Region: B (Confirmed NOT Playable in the USA)

Price: £12.93 (Stand-alone)
£17.93 (Includes Girl Who Leapt Through Time)

Episodes: 1 Feature-Length-Film

Plot: The Japanese Box Office sensation!

When timid eleventh-grader and math genius Kenji Koiso is asked by older student and secret crush Natsuki to come with her to her family's Nagano home for a summer job, he agrees without hesitation.

Natsuki's family, the Jinnouchi clan, dates back to the Muromachi era, and they've all come together to celebrate the 90th birthday of the spunky matriarch of the family, Sakae. That's when Kenji discovers his "summer job" is to pretend to be Natsuki's fiancé and dance with her at the birthday celebration.

As Kenji attempts to keep up with Natsuki's act around her family, he receives a strange math problem on his cell phone which, being a math genius, he can't resist solving.

As it turns out, the solution to the mysterious equation causes a hijacking of the social networking site through which most of the world's social and business traffic flows. It's up to Kenji and his new fake family to put reality back in order.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (UK) - REGION LOCKED

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time - UK Edition

Region: B (Confirmed NOT Playable in the USA)

Price: £13.99 (Stand-alone)
£17.93 (Includes Summer Wars)

Episodes: 1 Feature-Length-Film

Plot: There is a future that we can't wait for.

What would you do if you could "leap" backward through time? When tomboyish 17 year old Makoto Konno gains this ability after an accident in her high school chemistry lab, she immediately sets about improving her grades and preventing personal mishaps. Before long, however, she realizes that even innocuous changes can have terrible consequences.

Changing the past is not as simple as it seems, and eventually Makoto will have to rely on her new powers to shape the future for herself and her friends. Featuring brilliant character design by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto (Neon Genesis Evangelion) and stunning art direction by long time Studio Ghibli. Nizo Yamamoto's The Girl Who Leapt Through TimeT is a feast for the eyes as well as the heart.

Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex Blu-ray's Available to Pre-order from Amazon USA

All three movies from the TV Series "Stand Alone Complex" have recently gone up for Pre-order on Amazon America with an upcoming release date of 21st June 2011 and a price of $24.49 for each Blu-ray.

Previously the Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex movies were only available to buy from Japan in a large "S.A.C." Boxset, which featured all three films in 1080p High Definition with Japanese Soundtrack & English Subtitles (main movie(s) only) which resulted in a Japanese Retail price of around £150.

No information on region coding (as of yet) but if these films are being Distributed by Bandai Entertainment then they will most likely be region locked to USA (Region A) - however we will not know until after the films are released.

If your still interested in pre-ordering the films then you can check them out below:

Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - The Laughing Man
Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Individual Eleven
Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Solid State Society

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - Part 4 - REGION LOCKED

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - Part 4

Region: A (Confirmed NOT Playable in the UK)

Price: $29.99 / £18.30 (Excluding Postage)

Episodes: 40 - 52 (2 Disc Set)

Plot: Edward and Alphonse Elric's reckless disregard for alchemy's fundamental laws ripped half of Ed's limbs from his body and left Al's soul clinging to a cold suit of armor. To restore what was lost, the brothers scour a war-torn land for the Philosopher's Stone, a fabled relic which grants the ability to perform alchemy in impossible ways.

The Elrics are not alone in their search; the corrupt State Military is eager to harness the artifact's power. So too are the strange Homunculi and their shadowy creator. The mythical Stone lures exotic alchemist from distant kingdoms, scarring some deeply enough to inspire murder. As the Elrics find their course altered by these enemies and allies, their purpose remains unchanged - and their bond unbreakable.

Anime Blu-Ray UK Blog Changes

Ive had this small blog running for 4 months now and ive decided to make a few changes - i'll still be posting Region Coding information for USA Anime Blu-rays (as that is the main purpose of this site) however i will also post up information regarding Blu-rays from other countries (if needed or if requested).

For example i recently published Region coding information for Professor Layton & The Eternal Diva and Ghost In The Shell Double Pack - as these were requests from amercian Viewers of the website - as it works out cheaper for them to Buy the UK Versions instead of the american version.

Another noticable change is that i will update releases (that have already been posted on this site) if they are found to be working in the UK (when previously only been read as USA only).

An example of this is Moribito - Guardian Of The Spirit - Part 1, as the packaging states REGION A, however it actually works in UK Blu-ray players.

If there is any Blu-rays you would like to see on this site then please leave a comment or ask me via Twitter

Professor Layton & The Eternal Diva (UK) - REGION LOCKED

Professor Layton & The Eternal Diva - UK Edition

Region: B (Confirmed NOT Playable in the USA)

Price: £7.49 (Excluding Postage)

Episodes: 1 Feature-Length-Film

Plot: The Professor's first movie and his toughest puzzle yet!

Professor Layton, true English gentleman and the world's greatest amateur super sleuth embarks on his most daring adventure yet when he receives a letter from his old student, the famous opera diva Janice Quatlane. She is to perform at the legendary Crown Petone Opera House and invites him to attend as her special guest. Meanwhile, a spate of disappearances hits London. Two young school girls are the latest victims and the Professor suspects it's related to the mysterious occurrences at the theatre. The Professor and his loyal assistant Luke travel to the Opera House to solve their toughest puzzle yet, the mystery of Eternal Life!

Based on the UK's favourite Nintendo DS game, Professor Layton And The Eternal Diva is a brand new adventure produced by Level 5, the creator's of the multi-million selling Professor Layton puzzle games.

Ghost In The Shell Double Pack (UK) - REGION FREE

Ghost In The Shell 2.0 & Innocence (Double Pack)- UK Edition

Region: A and B (Playable in the USA)

Price: £10.99 (Excluding Postage)

Episodes: 2 Feature-Length-Films

Plot: Ghost In The Shell 2.0: In the year 2029, the search for a criminal computer genius known as "The Puppet Master" sends Major Motoko Kusanagi, a cyborg policewoman operating as part of the covert anti-terrorist unit Public Security Section 9, on a dangerous mission, leading her to a powerful artificial intelligence whose influence reaches deep into the government and who is desperately seeking a physical form to inhabit. As she delves further into the case, Kusanagi is forced to contemplate the nature of her own existence: is she simply an artificial construct... or is there something more?

Ghost In The Shell: Innocence: It is the year 2032 and Earth is a world where the few remaining humans coexist with cyborgs, human spirits inhabiting mechanized bodies, and dolls, robots with no human elements whatsoever. A cyborg detective for the government's covert anti-terrorist unit Public Security Section 9, Batou is charged with investigating the bizarre case of a malfunctioning gynoid - a hyper-realistic female robot created specifically for sexual companionship - responsible for slaughtering its owner.

Delving deeper and deeper into the investigation, Batou and his partner, Togusa, are forced to confront violent Yakuza thugs, devious hackers, influential government bureaucrats and powerful corporate criminals. As they move closer to uncovering the mystery, it slowly becomes apparent that the truth behind the crime is far more shocking than anyone dared imagine...

Burst Angel: The Complete Collection - REGION LOCKED

Burst Angel - The Complete Collection

Region: A (Confirmed NOT playable in the UK)

Price: $24.99 / £15.28 (Excluding Postage)

Episodes: 1 - 24 & OVA (3 Disc Set)

Plot: A new law and a dark underground syndicate have delivered devastating chaos to Tokyo. The city's only chance for survival is a fearless mercenary, her dangerously beautiful comrades and a massively armed and armored mech. In this land where war has spread like a disease, they will have to put their very existence on the line and fight to be the cure.

Burst Angel is a cyber-punk action entertainment thriller based on a near-future Tokyo and is inspired by hilarious spaghetti westerns and the fierce gun battles reminiscent of a Hong Kong gangster movie.

Evangelion 2.22 - You Can (Not) Advance - REGION FREE

Evangelion 2.22 - You Can (Not) Advance

Region: A and B (Confirmed Playable in the UK)

Price: £14.83 (Excluding Postage)

Episodes: 1 Feature-Length-Film

Plot: The landmark anime Evangelion evolves, reaching new heights of intensity in the feature film: Evangelion 2.22. In this explosive story, brutal action and primal emotion clash as a group of young pilots maneuver their towering cyborg Eva Units into combat against a deadly and disturbing enemy.

In the battle to prevent the apolcalyptic Third Impact, Shinji and Rei were forced to carry humanity's hopes on their shoulders. Now, as the onslaught of the bizarre, monstrous Angels escalates, they find their burden shared by two new Eva pilots, the fiery Asuka and the msyterious Mari. In this thrilling experience for fans of giant robot destruction, the young pilots fight desperately to save mankind - and struggle to save themselves.

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Manga Entertainment UK Have previously confirmed that they will be releasing Evangelion 2.22 in the UK on 3oth May 2011 in a special "Combi-Pack" which contains an exclusive 20-Page Booklet explaining the Characters & Mechas used in Evangelion 2.22 aswell as containing both Blu-Ray & DVD versions of the film in one box.

This package can be pre-ordered from Amazon UK for £14.99 and even cheaper at Zavvi UK for £14.85 - both including free postage to the UK - which is a cheaper option than paying over £16 for the american version and getting abit less.

Cowboy Bebop Movie set for June Release in America

This time last month rumours were suggesting that a Blu-Ray release for "Cowboy Bebop: The Movie" or "Cowboy Bebop: Knockin On Heavens Door" (if you want the Japanese Title) would be getting a US Release in june, and these rumors started with IMAGE ENTERTAINMENT listing the product on its website.

However recently Amazon USA & Planet Axel (formly Axel Music) have listed the film as available to pre-order and given it a confirmed release date of 28th June 2011.

Further information suggests that Cowboy Bebop: The Movie Blu-ray has been given a RRP of $17.99, however Amazon US are currently listing the Blu-Ray at $12.99 - which in my opinion is an amazingly cheap price.

No information regarding the Blu-Rays region coding at this point, or even if a UK Blu-Ray release is possible - but as soon as i find out what Region information it is ill post it up.

As mentioned previously you can pre-order Cowboy Bebop The Movie from either Amazon US or Planet Axel now, but while your waiting why not check out the original english trailer for the movie below:

MangaUK Confirms UK Release of Yu-Gi-Oh! Bonds Beyond Time Movie

Manga Entertainment UK has confirmed via their Twitter account that the "Yu-Gi-Oh! Bonds Beyond Time" Movie will be released in the UK on 25th July 2011 on both DVD & Blu-Ray.

The film will also premire in cinema's across the UK in early july for a limited time.

However the fun does not stop there, as not only will both the Blu-Ray & DVD include a FREE Malefic Red Eyes Black Dragon Trading Card, but the Blu-Ray edition will include both 3D & 2D Versions of the film.

Manga UK Have also confirmed that the Blu-ray version of the film will feature full"Stereoscopic 3D", which is the same type of 3D that has recently been used in blockbuster Blu-ray releases such as Tron 3D & Despicable Me, where a 3D Ready TV, 3D Glasses & 3D Ready Blu-Ray player is required to play it in True 3D. This would mean that Yu-Gi-Oh! Bonds Beyond Time would be the first 3D Anime film to be released in the UK (if not worldwide).

Yu-Gi-Oh! Bonds Beyond Time is available to pre-order from Amazon UK & HMV - and over the next few days pre-orders will open up for other online stores such as Play & Zavvi UK. Either way this is one release from MangaUK im definately looking forward to - but for now its time to check out the official US Trailer: