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MAJOR EARTHQUAKE HITS JAPAN! MAGNATUDE 9.1 QUAKE THE BIGGEST IN JAPANESE HISTORY! JAPAN DECLARES A NUCLEAR EMERGENCY AS TWO NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS ARE OVERHEATING, OVER 20 MAJOR AFTERSHOCKS ABOVE MAG 6.0

Allahpundit of HotAir.com gives a sense of the carnage that has gripped the entire country.

To call it the biggest story in the world doesn’t capture the magnitude. At the moment, it’s really the only story in the world. But even so, it’s confounding to write about. No words are adequate to convey the scale of the forces at work; the obvious points, that the entire country would look like Hiroshima right now if not for Japanese engineering and preparedness, are too obvious to repeat; and there’s no obvious political angle to blather on about...

 This is a disaster of biblical proportions and its still not over...

Hundreds of bodies found... Thousands Missing, Feared Dead... Dam breaks, washes away homes... Agency: N American plate snapped upward... HUGE WHIRLPOOL CREATED... Thousands roam Tokyo streets... Cruise ship, entire train missing... Japan Rushes to Contain Damage...



There are over a  quarter of a million people  are in shelters, with thousands more trapped in buildings , two nuclear plants are in danger of a meltdown and there are powerful aftershocks still hitting the island, while the auto industry has been temporarily halted.

While the full extent of the disruption or damage the quake has caused the anime industry is unknown, Anime News Network has a list of those Anime/Manga/Game Industry Members checking in via the internet.  

ANIMATION STUDIO AIC SOLD FOR 700 MILLION YEN

From AnimeNewsNetwork.com

The mobile software company Aplix Corporation announced on Thursday that it will acquire the Japanese anime studio Anime International Company (AIC) as a wholly owned subsidiary for 700 million yen (about US$8.5 million). Aplix intends to offer anime videos and other contents in China and Southeast Asia on smartphones from Korea's Samsung Electronics, China's Huawei Technologies, and other makers.

Aplix is buying AIC from the pachisuro (pachinko-parlor slot machine) maker Oizumi, which had just acquired AIC last year. At the time, Oizumi spent 530 million yen (US$6.3 million) for 95% of AIC.

Toru Miura established the studio that would become AIC on July 15, 1982, and he is its current head. AIC has a number of sub-studios within itself: AIC Digital, AIC Spirits, AIC ASTA, AIC PLUS+, and AIC Takarazuka. It has 95 million yen (US$1.1 million) in capital.

 Long time Robotech fans will remember that AIC was one of the studios to work on Megazone 23 Part 1 which made up a big chunk of Robotech: The Movie. AIC founder Toru Miura was listed as one one of the producers on Robotech: The Movie opening credits.

NEW ROBOTECH ANIMATION SHOWN AT ANIMATION ON DISPLAY

Numerous reports have been filtering out of Animation On Display that Harmony Gold screened new animation for the fans at the Robotech panel on Saturday. It appears the animation is related to the currently untitled Robotech project the company is working on.

Harmony Gold has stated via their facebook page and the Robotech.com website that the only way to see the footage at this time is on the Robotech Convention Tour.The next tour stop will be Mar.31-Apr.01 at Tekkoshocon in Pittsburgh, PA where both Tommy Yune and Kevin McKeever will be Guests of Honor.

ROBOTECH CONVENTION TOUR TO KICK OFF ON ANIMATION ON DISPLAY THIS WEEKEND

Robotech.com announced today that the 2011 Robotech Convention Tour will kick off at Animation On Display in San Francisco on Feb. 19-20th. It appears that AOD has invited both Tommy Yune and Kevin McKeever to the convention as Guest Of Honor.

                            CLICK HERE FOR THE AODSF ARTICLE ON ROBOTECH.COM

NEW PHOTOS OF ROBOTECH TOYS AT THE NEW YORK TOY FAIR!

The RobotechX.com team has posted some new photos of upcoming Robotech toys from The New York Toy Fair!


CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PHOTOS

ROBOTECH CONVENTION TOUR TO MAKE A STOP AT ANIME CENTRAL ON MAY 20-22nd 2011

On the Robotech Facebook Page it was announced that the 2011 Robotech Convention Tour will make a stop at Anime Central this May. The convention has booked Robotech's Steve Yun as its Guest of Honor.

2011 ROBOTECH CONVENTION TOUR ARTICLE NOW UP ON ROBOTECH.COM

Yesterday Harmony Gold put the article for the 2011 Robotech Convention Tour. Already the tour is booked into San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Dallas, Albuquerque, Los Angeles, San Diego, Tulsa, Columbus, New Orleans, Denver and more to be announced!

Fans who like to find out how they can get the tour booked to a city near them are encouraged to check out the tour  suggestions thread. 

Here are the links to recaps from the previous tours. 


Click here for recaps of the 2010 tour
Click here for recaps of the 2009 tour
Click here for recaps of the 2008 tour
Click here for recaps of the 2007 tour
Click here for recaps of the 2006 tour
Click here for recaps of the 2005 tour


With the new Robotech Facebook page fully operational it appears that 2011 promises to be a interesting year tour wise.

FUNIMATION CLOSED FOR THREE DAYS DUE TO WEATHER & POWER OUTAGES

From AnimeNewsNetwork.com

The North American anime distributor Funimation has announced that its simulcast of the fourth episode of the television anime Fractale will be delayed. Funimation's offices in Flower Mound, Texas have been closed for three days due to ice on the roads and rolling power outages throughout the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

The company has not yet announced when the episode, which was originally scheduled to go live at 11:45 a.m. EST on Thursday, will be streamed.

ROBOTECH SODA LINE FROM 2006 CONFIRMED

Today on the Robotech Facebook Page a photo of the much rumored Robotech Soda line from appeared. Rumors of these sodas have been floating around the internet since the spring of 2006 but Harmony Gold has never made any official comment until today.

According to the post over on the Facebook page these sodas are not for sale, nor does the page make any indication that they have have been for sale in the past. Several fans have pointed out that a company called Jones Soda is the manufacturer of these and anyone can make custom labels.

It appears that one of the more interesting rumors of the past few years has now proven to be true.

SHADOW CHRONICLES WALLET ON SALE FOR 17.99

The Robotech.com store has in stock a Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles Wallet for 17.99 USD. The wallet is made of polyester and is an tri-fold wallet featuring the Expeditionary Force emblem.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE THIS ITEM

LVINIG ON THE EDGE

                                Two battle pods live on the edge of a bookshelf at Harmony Gold.