One of the properties making its presence felt at Comic-Con was Mameshiba ((see “Mameshiba Headed for U.S.”), the puppy-faced bean characters that star in interstitial animations created by Dentsu. Toynami is launching Mameshiba toys this fall. It featured exclusive Mameshiba clip-ons at Comic-Con; larger versions will be in the initial product wave shipped to stores.
Viz Media has acquired the Mameshiba publishing rights, and will release a line of books under its VizKids imprint beginning in Spring 2011. Plans include a graphic novel, a character guide, and picture books.
The short animations are currently available on YouTube, but haven’t found a television home to date. The English-annotated versions are showing 100,000 to 200,000 views each, so they are finding an audience without TV.