Just when you have had it with these motherfuckin snakes on this motherfuckin plane, it's the return of the Cocaine Cowboy Corner.  It’s the dog days of summer and a new school year is upon us, but don’t let that stop you from enjoying a new edition of the corner.  Normally, new DVD releases and reruns on television dominate the summer anime scene.  Sure, this summer has been a little different since you had new “Eureka Seven” episodes on Adult Swim to look forward to each week, but that is nowhere near enough to hold over rabid anime fans such as yourselves.  Don’t fret, this installment of the corner promises to deliver some excitement into your current boring rerun watching existence.  Mark your calendars, kids!  On Saturday, September 9, there is only one place to be at 12:00 AM eastern time, in front of your television watching the premieres of “Trinity Blood” and “Bleach” on Adult Swim.

The channel already regarded as the premiere locale for showcasing anime in America is rearming their already world dominating arsenal with two anime heavyweights.  The insanely popular “Bleach” series and the Gonzo stalwart “Trinity Blood” series will be joining the already successful “Eureka Seven” series on Saturday nights to form a colossal block of anime programming that cannot be missed.  Think about that for a second.  Every Saturday night starting on Sept 9 until winter break, you’ll be parking your ass on the couch in front of your television locked in on excellent anime premieres on Adult Swim.  You won’t even need your remote control!  In fact, this could be that one time you can pretend to be well-mannered and relinquish control of your remote control to your boyfriend/girlfriend.  But if he/she dares to try to change the channel, you better chop his/her fuckin hand off!  Starting September 9, control of the remote on Saturday nights will be in title only, because the channel will never actually change EVER!

Maybe I am getting ahead of myself.  I think my excitement is taking over this article, and I need to remember that the main motivation of the corner is to provide much needed information to all of you.  So allow me to backtrack just a bit before I continue with my happy dance.  I am forgetting that some of you may not know too much about the “Trinity Blood” and “Bleach” anime series.  So allow me to give you some background information as well as a brief synopsis of each series.

“Trinity Blood” is a product of the geniuses at Gonzo animation studio and the Japanese novels by Yoshida Sunao.  Gonzo is a world-renowned animation studio responsible for some of the best animated series to ever grace the small screen.  You might know their work from such gems as “Hellsing,” “Last Exile,” and “Samurai 7.”  “Trinity Blood” marks Gonzo’s second foray into a vampire-centric anime series.  That’s right, “Trinity Blood” has vampires and lots of them.  The story takes place in the distant future in a post-apocalyptic world after the destruction brought about by Armageddon.  In this distant future, the vampire species called Methuselah overwhelms mankind, as the war between humans and vampires rages on.  There are three factions in this world, the Methuselah, the Knighthood of the Rose Cross, and the Vatican (whenever there is a vampire problem, you better believe that the Vatican will be there to fix it).  A priest named Peter Abel Nightroad is the main protagonist in this tale.  He is a representative for the Department of Foreign Affairs in the Vatican, as well as being a vampire that feeds on the blood of other vampires (quite a twist, eh?).  Father Abel works with Sister Ester, and the two of them go out on various missions under the command of Cardinal Catherina Sforza.  The missions concern the Methuselah and the Rose Cross, the two enemies of the Vatican .  Not sure what to think of “Trinity Blood” just yet?  Well, allow me to suggest to think of “Trinity Blood” as “Hellsing” with a twist, mixed in with some “Trigun” for that soothing, familiar flavor.  Oh, I guess I should explain how it is similar to “Trigun,” right?  Well, Father Abel is kind of a dimwit, but in a good way, which is very similar the personality of Vash the Stampede.  He has that lovable idiot quality to him.  The character design and artwork is very good, very reminiscent of “Castlevania: Symphony of the Night” on the PlayStation.  The action sequences are extremely well done, as expected from a Gonzo series.  They are very tight and will fill your Saturday nights with loads of excitement.

“Bleach” is your new favorite anime series.  I have no fear in decreeing this statement, because it will soon be true.  The series is based on the manga by Tite Kube, and Studio Pierrot helms the animation.  Studio Pierrot has also been behind other high-profile anime series.  I guarantee you have seen their work in a series about a certain spikey-haired, orange-clad, demon fox, ninja boy.  The “Bleach” series takes place in present-day Japan in a Tokyo neighborhood known as Karakura Town .  The story follows the life of 15-year-old Ichigo Kurosaki, a rough-and-tumble teenager who has always had the special ability to see ghosts.  One day, Ichigo witnesses the sudden appearance of an oddly-dressed stranger in his bedroom, and immediately reacts with a swift kick to the stranger’s back.  This stranger is the shinigami (literally translates to god of death), or Soul Reaper in the English manga translation, Rukia Kuchiki.  She is extremely surprised at his ability to see her, because shinigami are spirits not visible by average humans.  Their resulting conversation is interrupted by the appearance of a hollow, an evil spirit that is left behind causing trouble on Earth.  It is the job of the shinigami to vanquish hollows, and prevent them from consuming good spirits.  Shinigami also grant salvation to good spirits that have lost their way to Soul Society, or heaven.  During the battle with the hollow, Rukia is severely wounded and there is nothing to stand in the path between the hollow and Ichigo’s family.  She decides to transfer half of her powers to Ichigo, hoping to give him the opportunity to face the hollow and protect his family.  For unknown reasons, Ichigo absorbs all of Rukia's powers during the attempt, allowing him to defeat the hollow with ease.  The next day, Rukia turns up in Ichigo's classroom as a transfer student, and must wait for her powers to return.  While she waits to recover her abilities, Ichigo must bear the responsibilities of a shinigami by watching over the region, battling hollows and guiding lost souls to the afterlife.  This series has it all, from comedic moments to well orchestrated action sequences.  It’s a great combination of school life, supernatural, comedy, drama, and adventure.  You even get the prototypical anime mascot introduced later in the series!  So seriously give “Bleach” a handful of episodes and you’ll be saying to yourself, “Naruto who?!?”

 This is the second year in a row that Cartoon Network has me excited for a fall premiere on their station.  Last year, it was the “Naruto” premiere on Toonami, and this year, they have upped the ante with the premieres of two great series in “Bleach” and “Trinity Blood” on Adult Swim.  I wonder what they will have in store for us next year.  I hope that I can successfully contain my joy for September 9, otherwise I might explode from the excitement and never even have a chance to see Cartoon Network’s new set of surprises in 2007.