Blockbuster Anime "Cardboard Warriors" Expands into the U.S. Market: Dentsu Inc. Entertainment USA Launches Cross-Media Campaign

The popular anime "Cardboard Warriors" has made its way to the United States. Under the American title "Little Battlers eXperience" (LBX), it began airing on August 24th on the animation cable channel "Nicktoons," part of the major media content group Viacom. Dentsu Inc. Entertainment USA, the North American master agent for this content, is considering cross-media expansion, and Bandai America has already released plastic models.

"Danball Senki" is a battle robot anime based on the eponymous video game developed by Level-5. It aired on the TV Tokyo network from 2011 to late 2013, achieving high ratings, and was also serialized in the manga magazine "Corocoro Comic," which boasts circulation of over 1 million copies. The game series has surpassed 1.2 million cumulative shipments. Furthermore, the plastic models released by Bandai achieved an exceptional shipment of over 9 million units worldwide in recent years, reigniting a plastic model boom among children. This comprehensive cross-media expansion achieved tremendous success.

The story follows children battling with customizable hobby-grade small robots called "LBX." In the US version, protagonist Van fights evil alongside his LBX to rescue his kidnapped father. Rollman Entertainment, known for animating "Spider-Man" and "X-Men," is involved in producing the US version.

Bandai America has launched a plastic model kit series under the name "SPRÜKITS" featuring characters from the show, timed with the broadcast. A video game developed by Level-5 is also planned for release, signaling a full-scale cross-media campaign expected in the US as well.

Dentsu Inc. Entertainment USA CEO Yuma Sakata expressed his enthusiasm: "Cardboard Warriors was a huge hit in Japan, linking games, anime, and plastic models—a quintessential Japanese toy. We will do our utmost, working with our U.S. partners, to convey the appeal of this work to the American market."