Funimation Productions has announced the acquisition of the 24-episode Grappler Baki TV series, which aired in Japan in 2001, as well as the 13-episode Gunslinger Girl produced by Madhouse in 2003. The Grappler Baki anime series is based on the manga by Keisuke Itagaki, which is published by Akita Shoten in Japan, where 21 volumes are currently available. The Grappler Baki TV anime is a classic sports anime series which should prove popular, at least with male anime fans. It is far better than the Grappler Baki OAV, which was produced in Japan in 1994 and released in the States by U.S. Manga Corps in 1996.
Gunslinger Girl is a mega-action science fiction adventure about a group of brainwashed or "mind-controlled" girls, who have been trained to be professional assassins. In its combination of girls with guns and bloody, high-body-count action, Gunslinger Girl resembles the popular Noir anime series released by ADV, though if anything, the Gunslinger Girl series is tinged with even more sadness and regret.