“D.I.C.E. is a huge initiative for Bandai America, and one that we hope serves as a model for future properties developed by our company,” said Bill Beebe, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Bandai America Incorporated. “Few companies have their own entertainment, toy and game divisions, and that’s a wonderful position for Bandai to be in—especially when nurturing a property at its launch, as we’re doing with D.I.C.E.”

D.I.C.E (DNA Integrated Cybernetic Enterprises) is a large corporation established to deal with emergencies occurring throughout the Sarbylion galaxy. D.I.C.E. F-99 is the only unit comprised entirely of highly trained kids. When a problem arises, D.I.C.E is called to the rescue. And when their special training and skills aren’t enough, they rely on their Dinobreakers to help get the job done. Always on call, always on alert – D.I.C.E is ready for action!

Building upon the theme of teamwork to overcome insurmountable odds, Bandai America’s toy line will center on the main characters of the F-99 unit and their arsenal of state-of-the-art equipment and vehicles. Many of the toys have transforming features and dinosaur-inspired designs, which is sure to appeal to boys of all ages eager to bring the excitement of the show to life. Borrowing a page from how movies are released, a major launch program is currently in place, complete with an in-theatre trailer, print/tv advertising, and a giant promotion with Cartoon Network, all scheduled to work in conjunction with the premiere of the show.

“The D.I.C.E. series targets boys 6-11 with cool animation and transforming toys that bring the on-screen heroes to life,” said Matthew Golding, director of marketing for Bandai America Inc. “The initial fan response has been overwhelmingly enthusiastic from all age groups, ever since we first offered a glimpse of the toy prototypes at Comic-Con 2004 this past summer.”

"TOKYOPOP is delighted at the opportunity to partner with Gravity on this very cool promotion," said Rob Tokar, TOKYOPOP, senior editor. "We are continuously seeking new ways to enhance the interactive experience of our manga readers, and nothing could be more perfect than to delve into Ragnarok's multi-layered world through the rich online game."

DVD (Japanese with English Subtitles) Catalog#: RSL9015 Suggested Rating: 13+ ISBN: 1-57032-939-7 UPC#: 7-42617-9015-2-2 SRP: $29.95

Right Stuf International is proud to present BOOGIEPOP AND OTHERS, a live-action counterpart to the anime cult phenomenon BOOGIEPOP PHANTOM! With scenario work by Sadayuki Murai (PERFECT BLUE, COWBOY BEBOP) and directed by Ryu Kaneda (VIDEO GIRL AI, SHENMUE), BOOGIEPOP AND OTHERS is the quietly chilling tale of ten high school students whose lives are all intertwined in a twisted and deadly web of secrets.

The cold dead of night is a dangerous time to be near the Shinyo Academy. Girls have begun to mysteriously disappear without a trace, and the school is alive with rumors. Some say the girls are just runaways, but with each new disappearance, a lingering fear grows ever stronger – fear that a shinigami...the very spirit of death...is prowling through the streets of the city. They say you never see it coming...a lone whistle splits the dark silence, and it suddenly appears behind you to steal your soul...

However, Nagi Kirima has never feared the darkness. She's determined to uncover the truth, but there aren't many clues to follow. A mysterious new drug that's appeared on the streets... A homeless man who's more than he seems... A girl still haunted by a serial killer who died five years ago... Nagi must take every fragment and piece together the entire story, before more students end up missing...or dead. PLUS!! Includes two special featurettes with close to 50 minutes of behind the scenes footage and interviews with the Japanese cast and crew!

Bonus DVD content includes: History of Boogiepop, Director's Commentary, Storyboards, "Boogiepop in Yubari" Premiere Featurette, "Making of Boogiepop" Featurette, Cast and Staff Bios, Original Boogiepop Trailers, Right Stuf Trailers

Graphic of cover is located at: http://www.rightstuf.com/outgoing/sleeves/rsl9015.jpg

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CD SOUNDTRACK ALSO AVAILABLE!
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BOOGIEPOP PHANTOM: MUSIC INSPIRED BY BOOGIEPOP AND OTHERS AUDIO CD Pre-book date: 2/1/2005 - Street date: 3/1/2005 Audio CD Catalog#: AT9311 ISBN: 1-57032-895-1 UPC#: 7-42617-9311-2-3 SRP: $14.98 Total Running Time: 40 minutes, 11 tracks

The audio CD containing the hauntingly beautiful music from the Boogiepop and Others Live Action Movie. Created by Japan's spectacular composer Yuki Kajiura, famous for her amazing work on such well known titles as Noir, Gundam SEED, .hack//SIGN, and Kimagure Orange Road: Summer's Beginning. Features music heard in the movie as well as original scores inspired by the Boogiepop and Others Japanese Novels. With musical styles ranging from light jazz and piano and to pop mixes this is a great addition to any fan's collection.

Greg Ayres is not your average voice actor. The once "fanboy" turned VA started working for ADV Films two years ago, and in that time managed to snag two of his favorite roles in anime. He was thrilled to voice the role of his favorite character Son Goku in Saiyuki, then just one year later Kaworu Nagisa in the director's cut of Neon Genesis Evangelion. Other roles include Toga in Gravion, Bomb in BASTOF Syndrome, Yuya Asou in SuperGals, Mannen in Pretear, and Shinji Kazama in Full Metal Panic. He can also be heard in other anime titles such as The Legend of the Mystical Ninja, Steel Angel Kurumi, Those Who Hunt Elves II, Panyo Panyo DiGi Charat, Dragon Knight Wheels of Time, Oh Super Milk Chan, and Aura Battler Dunbine.

David Kaye is heard world wide providing the voice for thousands of different broadcast projects. He is perhaps best known to fans as Megatron in Beast Wars: Transformers and Transformers: Energon. He has also played Professor Charles Xavier on X-Men: Evolution, Sesshomaru in Inu-Yasha, Zabo in The SoulTaker, Treize Khushrenada in Gundam Wing, and Soun Tendo in Ranma 1/2 in addition to roles in many other titles. He still finds the time to appear in many well-known television series including Battlestar Galactica, The Outer Limits, The X Files, made for TV movies, and feature films (yes, that was him in Happy Gilmore). David continues to travel back and forth between New York, Los Angeles, and Vancouver, recording radio and television commercials for clients throughout North America as well as appearing in a few from time to time.

There are no lofty acquisition announcements from the usual companies, there are no company representatives. There is no corporate sponsorship, in fact no guests of honor to speak of. And I love it. EMS was 100% grass roots 100% about the fans and for the fans. I've seen something here that I think will be the shape of the future with regards to how cons are executed.

If indeed fate exists, I must remark at how it has the tendancy to turn unfortunate events around and perhaps make a situation turn out for the best, perhaps even better than would have happened otherwise. Such is the case with EMS, in planning for over a year, which discovered it's originally scheduled convention space would not be accessible with less than a week prior to the actual con. With eager fans pre-registered and just days to go, the staff recieved assitance from a rare corner as far as anime cons go in the form of the mayor of the city of Anniston and chamber of commerce for Calhoun County. The result has been a resounding success, stay tuned for our full report and photos to come shortly.