A little bit of interesting got mixed in with a little bit of exciting today while I was away. But here is what happened today wrapped up as neatly as I can get it.

Clannad Dub Premieres NEXT WEEK: When Sentai announced that they were going to dub Clannad I didn’t actually translate that into ‘we’ve actually already done it and now we’re going to blindside you with it so enjoy!’ I’m not complaining, I’m just saying this has been an incredibly fast rollout.

The press release went out this morning and has confirmed that the new dubbed version of Clannad will gets its first premiere on March 25th on The Anime Network’s Video on Demand. On March 26th, the series will become available via The Anime Network’s Online Player.

I admit that I do want to watch this. I saw the entire first season in its original Japanese and had a very lukewarm reaction by the end. Maybe a new dub track will help me take it a bit more seriously and not laugh at inappropriate times? (Full press release after the cut)

4Kids Strikes Back: 4Kids hasn’t been doing too well lately. It was recently reported that in the last quarter they posted a $21.3M loss (that figure was only $19.6M a year earlier) but when the going gets tough, the tough… um, license stuff. In a conference call with investors, Chairman and CEO Al Kahn assured investors that things are moving in a new direction, “The business reverses in the past few years have caused 4Kids to basically return to the very successfully business model that was used for 20 years prior to the launch of Chaotic. We have decided that 4Kids needs to return to its roots as a licensing and merchandising company that specializes in bringing wonderful Japanese programming and merchandizing to the rest of the world.”

Ready for the really good news though?

“We signed yesterday a very important Japanese property that we will be announcing in the next couple of days.”

And start speculating………… now!

Quick Durarara Update: In a quick update to something I mentioned earlier this week, VP of Licensing at Crunchyroll Rob Pereyda has mentioned on Twitter that Crunchyroll will be streaming the final two episodes of Durarara (episodes 25-26) and Sora no Woto (episodes 13-14) on the same day that they are released on DVD in Japan.

So yeah, that is mostly great news and I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth… but in 3 days, episode 12 of Sora no Woto airs. Volume 7 is set to street September 22nd. Durarara will finish streaming around June and there’s not even a date set for the final volume of that one. This is going to be a loooong wait.

Ikkitousen Adds Additional OVAs: Moving into spring premiere news, Ikkitousen can’t cram all of the breasts that it wants to into the third season, Xtreme Xecutor, so the staff is creating additional OVAs. That’s not quite a direct quote but it seems close enough to me. Each of the six DVDs will be released with an additional original OVA attached to them.

MM! Light Novels Get Anime: Finally, the light novel series MM! will be getting an anime adaptation in the future (all the usual stipulations apply; announcement only, no details). From what I have gathered, the series is an ecchi school comedy about a boy who is secretly a masochist when it comes to abuse from girls but is ashamed of it. Now in high school, he wants to confess to a girl but is afraid of his masochism freaking her out. Seeking a solution, he joins the 2nd Volunteer Club after the president decides that she can fix him.

CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED DRAMA SERIES—CLANNAD—PREMIERES THIS MARCH ON ANIME NETWORK WITH FULL ENGLISH DUB

HOUSTON, TX — 3/18/10 — Clannad, the hit series from Sentai Filmworks, will be premiering on Anime Network VOD with a full English dub, and will be available on the Anime Network’s Online Player the day after it’s VOD premiere.

WHAT: U.S. VOD Television Premiere of Clannad English Dub
From the creators of AIR and KANON comes a sweeping new saga in which the sentimental, the surreal and the supernatural inexplicably become one: this is the world of CLANNAD. Prepare to meet the ambitious Tomoyo, who dreams of becoming class president; Kotomi, a troubled genius with a secret past; and most mysteriously, Fuko, whose disassociation with the world has become so severe that she is literally fading from existence!

WHEN: Episode 1 and 2 available on VOD beginning March 25, 2010, also available on the Anime Network Online Player March 26, 2010

WHERE: Anime Network, America’s #1 Anime Channel

HOW: Don’t have VOD? Don’t worry! Catch episodes 1 and 2 the VERY NEXT DAY on Anime Network’s Online Player!