Not a whole lot of news at the moment is catching my eye, but there's a con on and, oddly enough, someone's reporting from it for their own blog, but first!

Manga Recon has moved! The new URL for the site is... http://www.popcultureshock.com/manga/ update any bookmarks and all that jazz. It's actually been heavily redone, face lift, the whole nine yards. It looks snazzy and easy to navigate, so swing on by and enjoy the reviews.

Speaking of Manga Recon, this week I reviewed the first volume of Castlevania: Curse of Darkness,  a manga for one of my favorite game franchises. Who doesn't love whipping supernatural critters into oblivion? And yes, I realize that the main character in Curse of Darkness isn't strictly a Belmont and therefore may not be quite as whip happy as the series other protagonists, just go with it.

Meanwhile, Isaac Hale takes a fond look at Gon vol. 5 and Phil covers Guardian Hearts vol. 1 from Tokyopop. In the weekly Manga Minis we've got reviews of Gentleman's Alliance vol. 7, Kujibiki Unbalance vol. 1 and Maid in Heaven.

So, swing on by and take a gander at the new site!

So, the AWA con is currently going on, and Gia Pet is there! She's been updating her blog with bits on info from the various panels she's attending and there have been a few interesting bits. 

From the Funimation panel some information about their Blu-Ray releases has caught my eye. I don't own a Blu-Ray player mind you, but it's interesting to see how companies are reacting to it. Samurai 7 will be their first BR release, $99 for the entire season. Hrm.

The Bandai panel puts an end to any speculation regarding the fate of Code Geass R2 on Adult Swim. Despite the recent schedule change it's still slated to debut in Oct. With the series recently being exiled to a 5AM premire there was lots of fan speculation as to whether or not Bandai might try and take the series elsewhere (ie. Sci-Fi Channel's Ani-Monday), apparently not.

Her report on the Dark Horse panel gives us some interesting bits and pieces too. The XS manwha will continue with a fourth volume coming out.. sometime. Bill Flanagan will be handling the translation chores on the upcoming Clamp mangette series, though there's still no official title given for the project. Reportedly lots of info will be released soon though. And huzzah! More Dirty Pair novels too, now if I could only get my hands on the first two..

In local anime news, Boston area anime fans over the age of 18 take note.. Next month will see the first 12 Hour Anime After Dark Film Fest! It's slated to take place at the Sommervile Theatre in Davis, advanced tickets are about $25 or $30 at the door. They also sugget bringing pillows or blankets, more information can be found at the official site, Anime After Dark. So, so tempting.

Ani-Monday's schedule for this week will be a minor variation on their normal one. Two episodes of Gurren Lagann at 11PM, followed by the series finale of Now and Then, Here and There, which will in turn be followed by the short film Negadon!

Enjoy!

UPDATE: Toonzone is reporting that tonight will be the final broadcast of the long running Cartoon Network block known as Toonami. Too make matters worse for anime fans, there's an rumor circulating from the floor of AWA that Cartoon Network has yet to pick up Naruto Shippuden.