SXAniMedia (Previously ADV Nation) relaunch, Turns 1 Year Old

What's New with SXAniMedia?

Welcome to SXAniMedia, the new relaunch of the ADV Nation blog. Last month's division of ADV Films into separate entities, unfortunately, forced the ADV Films brand to be retired. In order for me/this blog to move forward and continue, I have had to do the same as the newly divided companies are looking to the future and are moving away from the previous brand. As a blogger/press member I did not want to be a reminder of the past when making necessary inquiries for news stories.

One year ago (October 2008), I started the ADV Nation blog (previous incarnation of this blog) as a spur of the moment personal project.

Though I must confess, I did not spend as much time as I probably should have on the actual aesthetics of the site - I was more focused on unvarnished (without opinion) news. In the last year, this blog has been sourced by major and respected sites like Anime News Network, Ain't It Cool News, Anime Vice, Japanator and others. As a long-time reader and fan of those respected sites and professionals, simply put, it's been very cool, especially since a lot of the news I post just doesn't fall to my lap - I have to dig for it or go to sources just like other news sources do - it's very time consuming and not always fruitful.

So over the last 2 months I've been hard at work on the redesign of the blog from the ground up. Even though I used to code HTML back in the day, I haven't exactly been keeping up with all specifics and blog developments that closely. Much of the last 2 months was quite a lot of work, everything from learning more about CSS, the newer technologies available to customizing every little element and design within this blog up to standards.

Most of the feedback I got in the last year focused on suggestions on being able to find news much more easily, especially if they did not visit daily. With that in mind, I've switched this blog to a news format layout, revolving featured stories section and have added a number of social-networking options (bottom of the news post) to help make the news easier to share, as well as a much more accessible commenting system via Disqus (which allows Twitter and Facebook members to comment without setting up a Blogger/Google account).

It has been an incredible and exhaustive amount of work with all the details and cross-browser compatibility issues. I'm proud of the result and this wouldn't have been possible without the support of the readers and followers I have gotten over the last year.

Sincerely, Thank you.

(And yes, the symbol graphic is an homage to ADV - you didn't expect me to quit on them cold-turkey - Did you?)

About the Blog/Author:

In the last year, folks have often asked me why I started this blog.

The troubles in the Anime industry sector and indeed ADV Films' own issues shifted their attention and priorities - for good and bad - more towards the tangible day-to-day and difficult operations needed vs the visible fan-favorite image us longtime fans had come to know. Coupled with the industry being in a state of flux, there generally weren't as many marquee license stories as in the past. It was a paradigm shift, for the company as well as for the fans. The result of silence, with the other factors at play, was often a void filled with speculation and uncertainty. In the midst of more rumors than news at times, I felt there were still a lot of positive developments and news that simply was not getting out or being covered.

My interest in ADV Films started around 10 years ago due to the timeless Gunsmith Cats, later on with Full Metal Panic, bolstered further on since getting VOD access to Anime Network. (There's more to say on this topic, but I'll leave that for future coverage.)

With several years of experience in anime, industry contacts, and closely following the umbrella of companies under ADV - in early October 2008, I believed I could bring something new to the table by complimenting existing news sources out there. (Special thanks to a friend who prodded me to put my creative juices to some use towards this blog.) That was the basic impetus for the previous iteration of this blog to be created.

(In the interest of full-disclosure, since mid-2006 I have been helping Anime Network as a sort of unofficial-viewer relations - helping bridge fan concerns and issues to the staff there. In the past, I have also been in an advisory capacity for media and programming divisions of niche/international programming for other content operators as well as Digital Distribution departments of Cable/Satellite/IPTV companies.)

More on my Anime background:

My experience with anime started as a kid in the late 80s/early 90s with titles like Galaxy Express 999, Macross, Voltes V, Voltron, and Vampire Hunter D.

I was mostly an on and off casual fan of the entertainment medium throughout the 90s. That changed in the early to mid 2000s with titles like Gunsmith Cats, Vandread, Full Metal Panic, Serial Experiments Lain, ROD TV and Last Exile - I have been hooked since and have been watching everything from smart series like RahXephon, Kino's Journey, to dramas like Yugo the Negotiator, Mushishi to fan service fluff like Air Gear and everything in between. After watching over 4 months worth of anime, 400 TV series and Movies later, I'd like to think I've picked up a little something along the way. For the record, I am a proud (but sensible) dub afficionado. English dubs still remain my preference of choice, especially with production quality and the talent pool increasing a great deal during the boom times - it doesn't mean however I can't watch subtitles, nor enjoy it any less. I grew up with both and can recognize the rich experiences they both provide.

In addition, I'm also a DVD collector. In the early-mid 2000s I began buying DVDs to support the industry and medium that has brought me a great deal of entertainment and joy. Don't remind me why I spent $120 on Love Hina! Though I must confess I still enjoy it... somewhat. My collection now stands at around 350-400 DVD discs of R1 anime, a good deal of which were titles from the boom era of expensive singles.

My Top Favorite Anime Series and Movies:

- Kaleido Star
- Death Note
- Great Teacher Onizuka
- Full Metal Panic (especially Fumoffu)
- ROD TV
- Vandread
- Eureka Seven
- Whisper of the Heart
- Last Exile
- Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex
- Marmalade Boy
- Kare Kano
- Gunsmith Cats
- Black Jack OVA
- GetBackers
- SuperGals (Seasons 1 and 2)
- Fullmetal Alchemist 
- Fushigi Yugi
- Noir
- Martian Successor Nadesico
- RahXephon TV and Movie
- Azumanga Daioh
- Princess Nine 
- Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
- Air Gear
- Pani Poni Dash
- Mushishi
- Welcome to the NHK
- Madlax
- Godannar
- Case Closed
- Scrapped Princess
- Steel Angel Kurumi
- Serial Experiments Lain
- Hellsing
- Galaxy Railways and Express 999