The Anime Blog - We Go Beyond Anime!

There are a quite a few great anime contests and sales for early October 2008. Some of the contests include winning free copies of Starship Operators, Hellsing, Death Note, a figure from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, a ‘K-Drama’ gift set from RightStuf! and more! There are a variety of sales this month too, from Tokyopop manga and Anime Nation!

Mania: Beyond Entertainment

First, here are a couple of contests for UK residents. Mania, formerly known as AnimeOnDVD, has partnered with a pair of UK distributors for two different contests.

MVM Entertainment has provided Mania with three copies of Starship Operators, Vol. 1. Here is the synopsis:

Starship Operators

Starship Operators, Vol. 1

“For the 73rd class of cadets of the Defence University of the small planet Kibi, a maiden voyage on the new warship Amaterasu is a fitting event just before graduation. As they are returning home, however, they are shocked to hear news of a declaration of war by an aggressive neighbouring Kingdom. When the Kibi government surrenders without a struggle, the cadets decide to fight back using the Amaterasu, with funding from the Galaxy News Network. The only stipulation? Exclusive airing rights to the action and good ratings! So, the cadets find themselves as the “stars” of their own reality show. Only on this reality show, you can die!”

To enter, send an email to contest@animeondvd.com with the subject of “STARSHIP”. The winners will be randomly selected on 10/17/08 from the list. For more entry details, go here.

The other UK contest has Mania partnering with Manga Entertainment UK . For this contest, three lucky winners will receive a 3-DVD bundle of Hellsing Ultimate Vol. 1, Death Note Vol. 3 and Buso Renkin Vol. 2. Here are the synopses:

Hellsing Ultimate UK Edition

Hellsing Ultimate Volume One (UK)

“For over a century, the Hellsing Organization has been secretly protecting the British Empire from the undead ‘freaks’. When Sir Integra Hellsing succeeded as the head of the organization, she also inherited the ultimate weapon against these undead enemies: a rogue vampire named Arucard.

Armed with an enormous ‘anti-freak’ gun and possessing mysterious and frightening powers, Arucard is forced to shoot Seras Victoria, a policewoman held hostage by a vampire. ‘Do you want to live?’ he asks Seras, whose very answer changes the course of her existence. Now reborn as Arucard’s servant, Seras is torn between her conflicting humanity and her vampire urges…”

Death Note

Death Note Volume Three (UK)

“For genius detective L, Light’s behavior is too perfect to be true, and to get closer to him, he enrolls at the same university and even invites Light into the investigation.

The murders continue, but with a new twist - there appears to be a second Kira at work! L has Light post as the original Kira in order to lure out the copycat, and Light agrees, hoping to divert suspicion from himself. But he’s surprised to discover that this new Kira has an ability even Light himself lacks…”

Buso Renkin

Buso Renkin Volume Two (UK)

“Alchemist Warriors Kazuki and Tokiko continue their war against the evil homunculi. But the awakening of Victor, the “King” of all homunculi, triggers the dark force lurking within Kazuki. Cursed with the black kakugane, he becomes a marked man. Hunted by their former allies, Kazuki and Tokiko find help from the most unlikely source…

As the showdown in this century-long battle nears its conclusion, the future rests in the hands of one young man. Kazuki must make a final decision that no one, not even Tokiko, could have predicted!”

Contest Rules: To enter, send an email to contest@animeondvd.com with the subject of “UK BUNDLE”. The winners will be randomly selected on 10/10/08 from the list. For more entry details, go here.

NOTE: Remember, both of the above contests are open to UK residents only.

Nagato Yuki in Swimsuit

Nagato Yuki Figure (US)

Mania does have a contest open to US residents. Their partner for this contest is AAAanime, who has given several figures to Mania. This contest features Nagato Yuki (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya) in a swimsuit as sculpted by Tanaka Touji. The figure is 1:8 scale, pre-painted, and comes with a clear plastic base.

RULES: To enter, you will need to have a Mania.com account and respond to the posting. The winner will be randomly selected on 10/10/08 from the list. This contest is open to residents of the continental United States only.

RightStuf! and YA Entertainment Contests

RightStuf! and YA Entertainment are co-sponsoring another K-drama contest. “THREE lucky winners will receive a copy of I Really, Really Like You, Vol. 1 – a DVD box set that contains the first 18 episodes of the series! PLUS, three runners up will each receive an ‘I Love K-Drama Bag’ with that includes the first three episodes of I Really, Really Like You and sample episodes from My Lovely Sam-Soon, Stairway to Heaven, and Damo: The Undercover Lady Detective!.”

RULES: The contest is open to residents of the US and Canada 13 years and older. To enter, just fill out the entry form before September 25, 2008. See Official Rules for details.

A Banquet of Bargains

A Banquet of Bargains

RightStuf also has their usual sales. The current one is called A Banquet of Bargains. You can take 33% off the retail price of graphic novels, books, and more from Tokyopop. This includes pre-orders. The coupon code is banquet and the sale ends on October 12, 2008 at 11:59 CDT.

AnimeNation Overstock Explosion Sale

Anime Nation

AnimeNation is still running their Overstock Explosion Sale. You can take off up to 75% on select DVDs, books & manga, CDs, and merchandise. No deadline has been given for the sale.

Overstock Explosion

In addition to this sale, AnimeNation has several special sales:

Take 25% off all Viz Big editions of popular manga that contain 3 volumes per book.

Take 27% off the limited edition sixth Death Note DVD which includes a figure of the shinigami Rem.

Take 27% off the second season of Bleach in its exclusive limited edition version that includes an Ichigo figure.

Take 25% off the limited edition collector’s set of Code Geass that includes 2 DVDs, 2 CDs, a manga, and more.

All Naruto collectables are now on sale…including savings on DVDs, manga, CDs, t-shirts, toys, and more.