Subscribe to the ANN Newsletter • Wake up every Sunday to a curated list of ANN's most interesting posts of the week. read more
This Week in Anime
Manga, Translation, and the Rise of Machines
by Lucas DeRuyter & Coop Bicknell,
Lucas and Coop discuss the insidious rise of AI in the translation space.
Disclaimer:The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Network. Spoiler Warning for discussion of the series ahead.
Coop
Lucas, we are no strangers to the occasional stories of AI and machine translation popping up in anime and manga localization. Most of the time, we'll see talk of it in copy covered from head to toe with language about "the power of AI" and the supposed creativity that is "unleashed" through its use. And you, dear reader, have probably seen this same language creeping into every aspect of your lives. However, we need to take a closer look at how AI is impacting the livelihoods of those who make it possible for you to understand your favorite series in your native language. Just recently, AI localization house Kodansha USA available on their service. With Orange Inc.'s history and the corporate disposition to abuse this technology, there are many understandable concerns to examine here.
Lucas
That's right, Coop! A portion of the paycheck you and I receive for doing this column will come from funds ANN earned by running a paid article promoting Orange Inc. and their manga reader platform, emaqi.
This opens a wealth of compelling questions relating to journalistic integrity, the tension between individual business and industry sustainability, and the future of both anime and manga and its journalism. First and foremost, what is AI translation? For the life of me, it seems indistinguishable from machine translation, and I, for one, am sick of "AI" being used as a buzzword for "things a computer can do!"
True, "AI" has become a catch-all for tools that can seemingly streamline or assist in a certain process. A perfect example from the video games world is Speedtree—a piece of modeling software that, to my knowledge (and from listening to Jeff Gerstmann talk about it), can reduce the burden of generating vegetation for a game world. From there, human artists can come in and fine-tune the final results to their needs.
Post-apocalyptic action game slated for Xbox X|S, PC, PS5― Game Freak Inc. announced during the Xbox Games Showcase livestream on Sunday a new game titled Beast of Reincarnation for the Xbox Series X and S, Xbox PC, and Xbox Cloud in 2026. Game Freak later confirmed that the game will also be available on PlayStation 5 and PC via Steam. The company describes the game: In post-apocalyptic Japan, a la...
Original game debuted in 2008― Atlus revealed during the Xbox Games Showcase livestream on Sunday Persona 4 is getting a remake game titled Persona 4 Revival for the Xbox series X|S, Xbox PC, and Xbox Cloud. The original Persona 4 launched for the PlayStation 2 in 2008. The game received a port for the PlayStation Vita in 2011 under the title Persona 4 Golden. The franchise inspired several spin-off...
Princess Principal: Crown Handler Chapter 4 feels like it squanders the tension it gained in the previous installment with a return to the status quo.― The previous Princess Principal film ended on the mother of all cliffhangers. While Mary was saved, Prince Richard captured and all of our heroes were as well, with even Princess Charlotte revealed as a traitor to the crown. All this left us wonderin...
Ever wonder what would happen if you took Sailor Moon, Kamen Rider, and Hades, threw them in a blender, and covered the result with hot neon paint?― Ever wonder what would happen if you took Sailor Moon, Kamen Rider, and Hades, threw them in a blender, and covered the result with hot neon paint? Well, wonder no longer. The answer is Starlight Re:Volver. Recently, I was able to spend a few hours with...
Group featured in Link! Like! Love Live! smartphone game app― The staff for the Love Live! franchise announced with a video on Sunday that a brand-new 3D anime film in the "Hasu no Sora Jōgakuin School Idol Club" (Hasu no Sora Girls' School Idol Club) "virtual school idol" project has been green-lit. The "Hasu no Sora Jōgakuin School Idol Club" idol group is part of the Love Live! franchise, and inc...
The real star here is Okinawa and its language.― In case you're not familiar with Okinawa's place in Japanese culture, the US has a convenient analog: Hawaii. Like Hawaii, Okinawa was an independent nation that was annexed by a larger and more militarized empire. Its geographical distance from its colonizer allowed it to maintain its distinct culture; however, it struggles to survive under the threa...
Theme of new season is "remains"― The staff of the Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories television anime announced on Friday that the anime is getting a 15th season that will air on the TV Tokyo channel starting on July 13. The theme for this season is "remains." Cast in the new season include: Kanji Tsuda, Yutaka Shimizu, Ponzu, Satoko Tsuchiya, Kōichi Kosse, Nana Akuzawa, Yūta Hoshino, Hina ...
9th title in Resident Evil series to launch for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Steam― Capcom revealed the Resident Evil requiem (Biohazard requiem) game at the Summer Games Fest event on Friday. The game will launch for February 27, 2026 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam. The livestream event noted the game will mark a tonal shift for the franchise. Capcom describes the game: Requiem for t...
Jean-Karlo goes over all the exciting announcements from this week's State of Play as well as updates on Tango Gameworks and Shueisha Games' newest title.― Welcome back, folks! I had the pleasure of working on a Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma review earlier this week. The Rune Factory games are routinely some of my favorite titles to cover; I am ashamed to it that I never got around to playing ...
The new film Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League reimagines the JLA as yakuza. Character Designer Takashi Okazaki talks about how he did it.― The sequel to 2018's Batman Ninja, Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League follows Batman and the larger Bat Family as they venture into a strange land where the Justice League of America have all been warped into yakuza versions of themselves. While the film itself is part...
Fun as it is, Evil Eye isn't really a movie. You will find plenty of exposition, a rising action, and a falling action—but nothing resembling a satisfactory conclusion.― Fans of DAN DA DAN have nothing to fear but the Evil Eye as we head into the second season of the supernatural action series. Evil Eye is the theatrical cut of the anime's first three episodes, a now tried-and-true promotional avenu...
Shuuichi Shigeno's new story follows 2 drivers linked to previous manga's characters― The official website for Kodansha's Weekly Young Magazine announced on Friday that Shuuichi Shigeno will launch the Subaru and Subaru (Subaru to Subaru) manga series in the magazine in July. The new manga continues the shared storyline of Shigeno's Initial D and MF Ghost manga, and it follows two characters named S...
Next chapter launches on June 20― Shueisha's Shonen Jump+ website announced on Friday that Naoya Matsumoto's Kaiju No. 8 manga will end in two chapters. The next chapter (128) will launch on June 20, and the 129th chapter will be the final one. Matsumoto launched the manga in July 2020 on Shueisha's Shonen Jump+ website. Shueisha published the manga's 15th compiled book volume on March 4. Viz Media ...
Steve and Chris talk series where the episodes are short and sweet.― Steve and Chris talk series where the episodes are short and sweet. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Network.Spoiler Warning for discussion of the series ahead. Crunchyroll streams Lycoris Recoil: Friends are Thieves of Time, Umayon, Yamishibai, Infern...
Stay By My Side After the Rain is a remarkably well put together story. While each volume is more or less self-contained, they all build together to form a picture of two people overcoming their hurdles and finding happiness together.― If there are two persistent narratives that queer fiction is beholden to, they're coping with homophobia and coming out. Both are real and significant in fiction and ...
@RiderStrike
@BWProwl
@LucasDeRuyter
@vestenet
