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Demon Slayer and Arifureta Released Monday

On Monday December 21, Anime Limited will release the first volume of Demon Slayer as a Collectors Blu-ray, carrying the first 13 episodes of the series. It will include six art cards and a 20-page booklet featuring character art and an episode guide. Anime Limited describes the series, based on the manga by Koyoharu Gotouge:

"It is the Taisho Period in Japan. Tanjiro, a kindhearted boy who sells charcoal for a living, finds his family slaughtered by a demon. To make matters worse, his younger sister Nezuko, the sole survivor, has been transformed into a demon herself. Though devastated by this grim reality, Tanjiro resolves to become a Demon Slayer so that he can turn his sister back into a human, and kill the demon that massacred his family."

Manga Entertainment will release the series Arifureta - From Commonplace to World's Strongest.

In the series, Hajime Nagumo and his high school class are suddenly summoned to a fantastical land as heroes. But while most of his classmates have powerful stats and abilities, Hajime does not. Underappreciated and unprepared, he tumbles into the depths of a monster-infested dungeon where voracity and sacrifice are his only options. To thrive in this savage world, he'll have no choice but to welcome the abyss.

Kinji Yoshimoto (Unbreakable Machine-Doll, Seven Mortal Sins, Genshiken 2) directed the anime at WHITE FOX and asread. Chika Kojima (Big Order) was the character designer. Shoichi Sato (Yes! Precure 5 GoGo!, Shakugan no Shana episode scriptwriter) and Kinji Yoshimoto (Queen's Blade: The Exiled Virgin, The Seven Mortal Sins) wrote and supervised the scripts. Ryō Takahashi (Citrus, ACCA: 13-Territory Inspection Dept.) composed the music.

Anime Limited will release the second volume of Sword Art Online: Alicization as a Collectors Blu-ray and a standard DVD. It will carry episodes 14 to 24 of the series. The Collectors Blu-ray will include a booklet.

Studio Canal has confirmed that its fifteenth anniversary edition of Hayao Miyazaki's 2004 film Howl's Moving Castle has been moved back to December 21.

This new edition, which is exclusive to Amazon will be packed in an oversized box, including a hardback The Art of Howl's Moving Castle book: oversized art cards, a poster, a trolley coin keyring, a drawstring bag, and drinks coasters.

On-disc extras include alternative angle storyboards; an interview with the author of the original British novel, Diana Wynne Jones; an interview with Pixar's Pete Doctor; "Hello Mr. Lasseter Featurette": Hayao Miyazaki Visits Pixar; Explanation of CG Featurette; The Sounds of Howl's Moving Castle Featurette; and Behind the Microphone Featurette.

In the story, a plain young hatter named Sophie has her life changed when an evil witch transforms her into an old woman. Unable to face her family in such a condition, Sophie runs away in search of a way to become young again. Along the way, Sophie helps a turnip headed scarecrow, who repays her by leading her to the moving castle owned by the dreaded wizard Howl. There she befriends Howl's apprentice Markl, Howl's fire demon Calcifer, and eventually, Howl himself. Sophie then becomes the castle's cleaning lady in an effort to not only find the solution to her problem but to save Howl from his own terrible secrets as well.

Manga Entertainment will release Blu-ray and DVD editions of Fairy Tail Collection Seven, including episodes 143 to 164 of the series.