The Anime News Network is reporting that the new Ah! My Goddess anime series slated to air later this year in Japan takes place after the action in the Ah! My Goddess OVA series and will follow the storyline from the original Ah! My Goddess manga series created by Kosuke Fujishima (published in the U.S. by Dark Horse as Oh! My Goddess).  According to reports from Japan, Fujishima himself is heavily involved in the production of the series, and director Hiroaki Ghoda wants to animate the entire 15-year manga series, if the project continues to be popular.

Given the ever-shrinking window between when anime series appear on Japanese TV and when they arrive in the U.S., we could well see an American release of the anime series in 2005.  If that does turn out to be the case, it would provide an extra impetus to Dark Horse's Oh! My Goddess manga, as well as provide a market for posters, statues and action figures tied to Fujishima's popular manga series.