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ADV Acquires The Wallflower

During a special event at the Alamo Drafthouse West Oaks in Houston, Texas, ADV Films announced its license of The Wallflower, the anime based on Tomoko Hayakawa's eponymous manga which is currently being published by Del Rey.

The event was centered around the appearance of “Nabeshin” (Shinichi Watanabe), the director behind Excel Saga and Nerima Daikon Brothers; The Wallflower is his latest directorial effort. The story follows four teenage pretty-boys who are invited to stay at a posh mansion, free of charge—provided they can transform the owner's stand-offish, terminally weird niece into a polished princess.

Fresh from his recent appearance at Anime Central in Chicago, Nabeshin took the stage with the house lights down while over two hundred fans in the audience quickly donned afro wigs—in tribute to Nabeshin's trademark appearance.

The event was emceed by Brett Weaver, the voice actor who plays Nabeshin in the English dub of Watanabe's shows (Nabeshin is famous for inserting himself the series he directs). A special screening of the 10th episode of Nerima Daikon Brothers was introduced; following that, Chris Ayres, the show's English ADR Director, interviewed Nabeshin. The interview eventually led him into a discussion about his latest work—at which point John Ledford, CEO of ADV Films, took the stage and jointly announced the license with Nabeshin. After the announcement, a freshly subtitled version of the first episode of The Wallflower premiered.

A more detailed report with photos, video, and an interview with Nabeshin will be available soon.