AnimEigo announced at its industry panel at Otakon 2025 that it will release the anime titles Hotori: Simply Wishing for Hope and Alien Nine on Blu-ray in 2026. These releases mark the first North American home video availability for Hotori and a highly anticipated return for Alien Nine, which has long been out of print. Both titles will be released under AnimEigo’s “Ruined Childhood” imprint.
Hotori: Simply Wishing for Hope Makes North American Debut
Hotori: Simply Wishing for Hope (also known as Hotori – Tada Saiwai o Koinegau) will receive its first North American home video release through AnimEigo. The 2005 Animax Award-winning TV special, directed by Takashi Anno and produced at Sunrise, is set to be released in HD.
The poignant story revolves around Suzu, a robot implanted with the memories of a deceased boy named Ryo Ogura, created at his parents’ request. Suzu encounters a terminally ill girl who is progressively losing her memories, a direct contrast to his own accumulating data. Their bond deepens as Suzu’s memory of Ryo continues to grow.
Alien Nine Returns to Home Video
The four-episode original video animation (OVA) series Alien Nine, which debuted in 2001, is also slated for a Blu-ray release in 2026. Based on Hitoshi Tomizawa’s manga, the series was previously licensed by Central Park Media but went out of print following their bankruptcy in 2009. This new release from AnimEigo will present the episodes in high definition and will feature both the original Japanese language track with English subtitles and an English dub.
Alien Nine is known for its unique blend of moe art style with surprisingly heavy violence. The plot follows Yuri Otani, a reluctant middle schooler who is coerced into joining the “Alien Party,” a team tasked with capturing extraterrestrial invaders on school grounds. To protect herself, Yuri must wear a symbiotic alien creature known as a “Borg.” The anime’s initial episode was directed by Jiro Fujimoto, while subsequent episodes (2-4) were helmed by Yasuhiro Irie, who also handled character designs.
Additional AnimEigo Releases Announced
Beyond these two highly anticipated additions, AnimEigo also provided updates and release dates for other titles during their Otakon 2025 panel, all scheduled for 2025. These include the Black Jack OVA collection, the second volume of Looking for the Full Moon, and the classic 1968 television anime Sasuke. These announcements underscore AnimEigo’s ongoing efforts to bring both classic and niche anime titles back to North American fans.
