4Kids Entertainment has acquired worldwide rights (excluding Asia) for the 39-episode anime series Tai Chi Chasers, which was produced in 2007 by Toei using a mixture of cel and computer animation.  Tai Chi Chasers is the first anime series that 4Kids has acquired since Dinosaur King, which debuted here in the U.S. in 2008, and the acquisition represents a first step toward taking 4Kids back to its original business model (see “4Kids Returns to Licensing”).  4Kids is currently offering the Tai Chi Chasers series at MIP-TV 2010 for broadcast in all countries outside of Asia starting in the fourth quarter of 2011.

For those familiar with Yu-Gi-Oh!, Tai Chi Chasers has a familiar look.  A fantasy adventure series with an overlay of Oriental mythology and at least the potential for exploitation as a CCG, Tai Chi Chasers is the story of a young lad named Rai who discovers that he is the last descendant of the Tigeroids, a race of beneficent beings locked in a struggle with the evil and ruthless Dragonoids.  In a parallel universe the Tigeroids and Dragonoids attempt to recover 500 lost tai chi symbols, which if possessed would yield ultimate power.  Rai has to hone his innate tai chi card skills in order to fight the Dragonoids and become one of the champion Tai Chi Chasers.