OMAKASE, the new subscription service that offers bimonthly boxes of curated merchandise, ad-free anime streaming and original digital comics and music, and Otakorp, Inc., the educational non-profit who organizes the massively popular Otakon convention, announced today an amazing bundle that includes a two-month membership to OMAKASE and membership to attend Otakon 2016. “Otakon is the driving force behind anime fandom and Japanese popular culture on the East Coast,” said Rob Pereyda, Chief Executive Officer of Viewster Inc. “We were thrilled to exhibit at Otakon last year, and know that their fans are trendsetters, influencers and the very people who are the bedrock of the anime community.”
Currently, this promotion is the only way to register for Otakon 2016. There will be no better deal after this promotion ends. Fans can receive membership to Otakon 2016 by doing the following:
- Sign-up for OMAKASE at full price ($29.00 plus $6.00 shipping & handling in the USA) between 12:00PM (PST) on January 11, 2016 and 11:59PM (PST) on January 23, 2016
- Receive an email from Viewster on January 26, 2016 with a link to a redemption form to obtain Otakon 2016 membership
- Fill out the redemption form and agree to Otakon’s Terms & Conditions by 11:59PM (PST) February 2, 2016
- Enjoy America’s premier anime merchandise subscription service as well as the East Coast’s premiere anime convention all for one amazing low price!
Eligibility Period: must subscribe to OMAKASE at regular price between January 11, 2016 at 12:00PM PST and January 23, 2016 at 11:59PM PST. Any customers who used coupons or other bundles will be ineligible for this promotion.
Email Delivery: Viewster to email customers at the email address they signed up for OMAKASE with, on January 26, 2016. Email will be sent from Viewster’s SurveyMonkey account via MailChimp. Customers must disable their spam filters and check their spam folders to ensure they receive this email.
Redemption Period: customers must redeem by February 2, 2016 at 11:59PM PST.
The current theme for OMAKASE’s upcoming subscription merchandise box (January 2016) is Naruto Shippuden. Items include an exclusive Gold Naruto Mininja, an exclusive Sasuke Highly Articulated Figure, a mystery Gaara item and more action-packed surprises. Created by Masashi Kishimoto, Naruto debuted in Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in Japan in 1999 and quickly became that country’s most popular ninja manga properties. The series spawned multiple anime series, movies, novels, video games and more, and is beloved by millions worldwide. The manga series (rated ‘T’ for Teens) and animated counterpart (Naruto and Naruto Shippuden rated ‘TV-14’) are both published by VIZ Media in North America.
OMAKASE, operated by Viewster, shipped its first merchandise box in November 2015 to universal acclaim with Kill la Kill. Items included a gold foil hardcover manga, a Senketsu scarf, a Mako Mankanshoku towel, a Mittsu Hoshi wristband and a Guts button. All merchandise inside OMAKASE is officially licensed, including OMAKASE’s upcoming use of Naruto Shippuden, which is officially licensed by TV TOKYO and VIZ Media.
Get more information and join OMAKASE at http://www.viewster.com/omakase.
The series’ premise struck an instant chord with fans: What would you do if you had all the time in the world? The otherworldly drama – from Miller and fellow executive producers Dan Lin (Sherlock Holmes) and Jennifer Gwartz (Veronica Mars) – follows Dr. Henry Morgan (Ioan Gruffudd), a star New York City medical examiner, on his journey to answer that looming question. Henry has a vested interest in studying the dead: He is immortal, and only his best friend and confidant, Abe (Judd Hirsch), full of life at age 75, knows Henry’s secret. Henry hasn’t aged at all since the clock stopped 200 years ago, but he’s managed to be discreet without anyone finding out his affliction. That task becomes increasingly difficult when he meets NYPD detective Jo Martinez (Alana De La Garza), who is fascinated by Henry after learning he was the sole survivor of a horrific train crash — and his knowledge proves extremely helpful to her in solving crimes.
Previously on the CBMFP...
We are introduced to this world through the story of Ivan and Sena, a magician boy in training and his girl/dog friend. After being forcibly separated, Ivan grows to become a master mage while never forgetting the friendship he had with Sena. He extends an uncharacteristic kindness to Zun, a mouse-girl while refusing to bow the wishes of his lord Kazbek. As Kazbek and Ivan butt heads over the treatment of animals, Zun struggles to take care of an increasingly decrepit bear and a suitably grumpy sphinx.
As for those girls, they have joined up with two cybernetic, time-traveling teenagers, Heck and Naldo, who claim to be able to cure Erin's bullet wound. A trip through the tunnels to reach the boys ship is interrupted by the appearance of the afore-mentioned Editrix who appears to be sphere with square eyeball tentacles. All that should sound like a bit of a mess, not even mentioning oddly out-of-place mention of homosexuality and the final plot swerve.
With a more streamlined story and a lot less fragmented than before, Barb Wire #7 continues to suffer from the same issues it had before. Barb Wire is depicted as a badass who won’t take shit from anybody, except when she’s dealing from shit from everyone else. Having read the entirety of the Wyvern Sotrmblüd saga and jumping into this issue, there still the overwhelming feeling that Barb is never in control of almost any situation, she continues to react to whatever problem is smashed in her path and most times, including in this issue, the only way out of those situations is when her male counterparts/mentors appear with a deus ex machina to save her day and keep the story going. When it she was dealing with Sotrmblüd, her brother came in with the gun that suppressed powers; in the flashbacks happening in this issue, she’s unable to get out of from O’Brien’s grasp had it not been for Hunter Saving her, and the pattern continues throughout this issue. She admits getting tips and being able to pay the bills because Roman fed her information. There is a prevalent notion that she needs a male character helping her out throughout the series.
Remarkably, The Last Contract takes place entirely in Canada! If you’re like me then your first inclination is to make a Canada joke (that’s just how I appreciate things… by mocking them). But the Canada in The Last Contract is not your “How did they get the name Canada? They put all the consonants in a hat and blindly drew them out in the following order: “C”, “eh!”, “N”, “eh!”, “D”, “eh!” Canada. This is a seedy world, very well portrayed by Lisandro Estherren and Nick Guardia.
Archie as maintained consistent in how fresh it feels from issue to issue, transitioning out of juggernaut Saga artist Fiona Staples seemed like it could have been a difficult task, yet they’ve proven to be shoes the follow-up artists are more than capable to fill. Veronica Fish shows off her skills by giving Reggie his most evil (and greatest) smiles yet. The dynamic with all three artist so far has been great, Archie comics have done a good job of keeping a similar style in the book but also one that shows off each one of the artists as puts their own take on each character, and they’ve all been taken under the experienced Mantle (pun definitely intended) of Mark Waid. 
Any zero issue has an uphill battle with its audience. Ostensibly the "zero" denotes an artificial jumping on point. It means this is where you learn the rules and tone of the series proper. At the same time the issue is presumed to be optional, providing new insight or clarification for an already running book. King and Canvas actually published zero before one, thus making the extra-long introduction most readers' first exposure to the comic's world. So, I suppose it is important for the sake of completeness. But it is crucial because of its quality.
Naturally, Kings and Canvas has a lot of fighting. The exaggerated, nearly comical quality of Jake Allen's art makes each blow brutal without devolving into excessive gore. Delightful touches pull you into the narrative and render its characters with expressive line work, both subtle and dynamic. For instance, the way a malevolent dragon hangs casually from fingers of rock in between matches tells you so much about the arrogance its opponent will have to conquer. People’s faces contort into exaggerated, twisted grimaces and beaming grins. Bodies similarly curve and thrust with manic energy. The scenes of boxing elevate the sport into something mythical and glorious.