Urban Vision announced their latest acquisition yesterday, and revealed some preliminary information on the show, as well as their release plans for it. The series, Strange Dawn, is a 13 episode TV series produced by Pioneer LDC and tells a familiar tale of the adventures of a pair of highschool students, Emi and Yuko, after having been transported to a wondrous new land. Strange Dawn has a number of quirky twists to keep things interesting, however, the first of which is the diminutive stature of the inhabitants of Strange Dawn's world.

Take a peek at the show's heroines and a number of the super deformed characters they meet over the course of the series:

Here's an excerpt from the press release outlining further story details and release information for Strange Dawn:

Strange Dawn
“Strange World”
VHS/DVD
Pre-book: 12/20/01 • Street Date: 1/22/02

What would you do if you found yourself in a world half your size? Nothing can be more surprising for Emi and Yuko, a couple of regular middle-school girls, when they discover a whole new land at their feet. To make matters even more complicated, the inhabitants of this world think Emi and Yuko are the legendary protectors of their country! It’s a fantastic adventure as Emi and Yuko struggle to find a way back to normal-sized life!

Contains four complete episodes!

Episode 1 “Walking in the Desert”
Emi and Yuko have landed in a world of trouble! On the way to class, they find themselves magically transported to another world! Is it a hidden part of Earth, or a planet in a whole other solar system?

Episode 2 “Surrounded by Silence”
The girls have been brought to Bellzagle, suddenly becoming the ‘Great Protectors’ of the village, when all they really want to do is to get home! Shal decides to help the girls even though problems are creeping up on the village!

Episode 3 “In the Darkness”
Reka and Mani can’t stand the situation in the village, so they set off after Shal and the others, only to be captured! Who are friends, and who are enemies? Who can tell?!

Episode 4 “A Storm Rolls In”
Is there another force creating chaos in all the countries? Alone, Emi finds a strange magical being with a mysterious message. Is this a good witch, or a bad witch? Without Yuko, what will Emi do?

DVD Special Features Include:

• Character Art Gallery
• Remastered in 5.1
• Motion menus
• English and Japanese language w/English subtitles
• Trailers
• Strange Dawn online

FREE GIFT INSIDE!
Approximate Run time: 100 minutes
Not rated. Contains scenes of mild violence. Recommended for most audiences.

Here's a small collection of screen shots to help visualize Strange Dawn's strange world while waiting for the first disc to hit retail shelves on January 22nd:

The silly, super deformed world of Strange Dawn is somewhat of a departure from the usually more serious subject matter in Urban Vision's choice of anime to release domestically, like Vampire Hunter D. For those looking for a fun series to get into come January, however, this should come as a welcome change, and Strange Dawn will definitely be a series worth keeping an eye on.