Anime Expo® 2010 Announces World Premiere Screening of Black Lagoon Roberta's Blood Trail

Anaheim, CA – May 18, 2010 – Anime Expo® is pleased to announce today that the world premiere of the third and the latest installment of the popular BLACK LAGOON anime series, Roberta's Blood Trail, will be screened at its July convention. Anime Expo, North America's largest anime and manga convention, is scheduled for July 1 – 4, 2010, at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The exclusive uncut version of Black Lagoon: Roberta's Blood Trail, Episode 1, will premiere on July 1, 2010, at 1:30 p.m.

The BLACK LAGOON anime series began as an adaptation of the manga by the same title, created by one of Anime Expo's 2010 Guests of Honor, Rei Hiroe. The series debuted in 2006 to much critical acclaim and has since been released worldwide. BLACK LAGOON made its North American broadcast debut on the Starz Edge channel in February 2008. The DVD version of the first two series is currently available through FUNimation Entertainment.

BLACK LAGOON is known for its hard-boiled storytelling, clever dialogue and its ultra-violent and stylized gun fight sequences, often compared to Hong Kong noirs and Hollywood action films. Its high-quality animation is produced by MADHOUSE Ltd., one of Japan's most prestigious animation studios, known for titles like Hellsing Ultimate, Death Note and Trigun the Movie: Badlands Rumble.

The world premier screening of Black Lagoon: Roberta's Blood Trail will precede the Japanese Blu-ray/DVD release scheduled for July 17. This special screening is made possible by the courtesy of Geneon Universal Entertainment Japan, LLC, and Shogakukan, Inc.

Anime Expo's 2010 Guest of Honor line-up includes manga artist Rei Hiroe; musical artist MELL; supergroup AKB48; voice actor Katsuyuki Konishi; Eden of the East trio Kenji Kamiyama, Satoru Nakamura and Tomohiko Ishii; voice actor Kyle Hebert; animation director Toshihiro Kawamoto; seiyuu Yuu Asakawa; J-rock band Sophia; and anime director Shinichi “Nabeshin” Watanabe. To stay updated on all of the latest Anime Expo 2010 news, follow us on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook and check us out on YouTube.

To register for Anime Expo 2010, please visit our website.

About Anime Expo®
Anime Expo is located in Los Angeles and is the nation's largest anime and manga convention. The Expo serves to foster trade, commerce and the interests of the general public and animation industry. This event serves as a key meeting place for the general public to express their interest and explore various aspects of both anime and manga, as well as for members of the industry to conduct business. AX 2010 will be held July 1 – July 4, 2010, at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Southern California. More information can be found at www.anime-expo.org.

About The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation
The Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to popularize and educate the American public about anime and manga, as well as provide a forum to facilitate communication between professionals and fans. This organization is more popularly known by its entertainment property, Anime Expo®. More information can be found at www.spja.org.