Just as a reminder, I won't be answering any email (feel free to send it
though) or doing anything web related probably until the 4th of October when I
regain web access. Be sure to
sign the petitions if you haven't already - let's see if we can get
another 200 names!
NEWS: 09/22/98
I admit to being a die-hard Tenchi junkie (Ayeka's such a babe), but will I
bring myself to buy the VHS only releases announced this week for the new TV
series, Tenchi in Tokyo? Sadly, no. Here's hoping we get some announcements
from Pioneer soon, as
they've had little new coming out on DVD
You know, this might be dangerous. I'm now learning how to make
banners.
Be sure to
check out this link for something about the expansion of Anime on DVD.
According to the fax release from
CPM, Ayane's High Kick was
a title that was set as "postponed, no new date". This, as many are finding
out now that that disc is available, is not necessarily a bad thing, but
something that eases up on the "where's this disc?!" emails I'm sure Image and
CPM must be getting. I've updated dates for several shows, though Lodoss was
not listed in the last round of Laserviews changes...
I'm also still trying to secure an actual date for Bubblegum Crisis. Animeigo
says "Late October", Laserviews has 9/29 and others list 10/10. Go figure!
NEWS: 09/21/98
Quick late note: I've been informed that
Animenation has Ayane's High Kick in stock, almost 2 weeks before the
announced date.
So I was offered a job at Circuit City Express in Marlborough, Ma. today. They
want me to sell Divx! *cackle* I spent about 10 minutes talking with the
manager and a salesman, both were quite friendly and enthusiastic. They showed
me one of their Divx discs (That Thing You Do) and talked about several
different parts of it. The salesman said at one point, "He knows a lot about
it! We should hire him to sell it!". Trust me, I was speaking in the negative
about it. I do have to say though, that the manager conceded several points as
real negatives on the product, but has faith in it. I pity them though, since
my father is now ready to go down on Saturday and play the part.
As a side note, from this Thursday (24th) to October 4th, I won't have any
access to the internet. Which, after having to reformat my PC today, makes me
glad. I need a break. The bad part is, if you signed the petitions between
9/13 and today, it was lost. So, when I get my online access back, lets see if
we can get at least 200 new signatures! Keep me busy for a few days!
Also, something to bring up in the forum, but is anyone interested in doing
some kind of short-ship for people out of the country who want to get Anime
Village titles? I've gotten a few requests about that... bring it up in the
forum
NEWS: 09/17/98
Quick heads up: Ken Cranes is listing 8 Main After Perfect Collection as being
in next Wednesday.
Roman Martel has once again added to the review library with an alternate
angle on Green Legend Ran. Be
sure to check it out, and also check out the couple of new columns that are.
I've lined up a home theater enthusiast to start in soon on what the whole
deal is with home theaters, as I know there are lot of anime fans coming on
board from the VHS crowd. I hope it'll help spread the word and the faith!
NEWS: 09/16/98
Now that Laserviews updates on California time, I'm probably asleep when they
put it up. I'm gettin' old! Anyway, three announcements yesterday.
Demon City Shinjuku and
Grappler Baki both made their
official debut, and a surprise out of left field from Polygram with the
Macross II Movie. No word on
whether it's bilingual or not, but I'm hoping it is.
Be sure to check out our second columnist (boy, they're all eager to
contribute), as Marc Yu brings us
up to speed on Anime DVD at the convention circuit...
I'm also looking for a monthly column that's aimed on helping the anime fan
get into being a home theater fan. Anyone out there up to the task of
educating the next generation of home theater enthusiasts in a non
condescending way? :)
NEWS: 09/15/98
Anime Village DVD's becoming more of a possibility? As one reader pointed out,
the announcement of their making dubs (anyone know whom by?) is a good
indication that we might see something by next year. Also, look at their store
setup, as it lists by format. Of course, only VHS is listed at the moment, but
we'll grasp where we can, yes? Especially for some Gundam on DVD...
Starting today, we're hopefully going to be moving towards providing more
content not solely by me! Yes, yes, enough applause already. :) Jeff Slipko is
the first of our new "Staff Writers" who sent in his first column. We'll be
expanding on the setup of it soon.
Be sure to check it out in the
columns & info section!
NEWS: 09/14/98
Of note today is a response I got from Mr. O'Donnell from
CPM regarding region coding.
Unless requested by the licensee, all CPM/Image titles (including Iria) will
be region 0, or code free. This is definitely good news, especially if you go
by the reporting I get from my ISP and there are a lot of international
readers and consumers out there.
NEWS: 09/13/98
Haven't signed the petitions yet? Well,
get on over here and sign 'em
my friend! Show your support! And while you're at it, head over to the
ADSC and sign the petitions
running there as well!
Also be sure to check out the
latest editorial. I know it's late, but I never promised to have it on the
first of every month!
I've also gone and updated all the pages to reflect the new forum. If you're
referencing the Bravenet forum anywhere, kill it.
NEWS: 09/12/98
Some of you may have noticed the banner above. :) No no, I'm not slapping
advertising all over the place. Actually, the reasoning behind the SegaCon
banner is pretty cool. They're doing the big show and all in December, and
they're going to be showing the Sakura Wars anime during it. With a cross link
with them, they'll be promoting the petitions we have here on my end, and more
importantly, the Anime DVD Support
Campaign's Sakura Wars petition. This could drop a thousand signatures
easily in the months to come, if not more. Let's see if we can get anime DVD a
little more exposure out there!
NEWS: 09/11/98
I happened to, surprisingly, receive an email from John O'Donnell from
Central Park Media. You'll see
more information about it on the ADSC page, since it was more for Edwin and
his Slayers campaign, but there was definitely some interesting general
information in there. Essentially, there is a lack of policy among the
Japanese rights holders in regard to DVD, and many are not setting any in the
near future. Naturally, that leaves us a little high and dry. As is common
knowledge among DVDphiles, the format has yet to make any serious inroads in
Japan, where laserdisc still reigns quite supreme. So, after hearing it like
that, things make sense. Anyways, thanks to John for responding, and keep up
the good work. Just gimme Lodoss though! :)
I also sent out earlier this week all the petitions to the respective
companies, as well as information from Panasonic (provided by a reader) and
their desire to do business with the smaller companies. So far, I've received
a response only from Pioneer. Things will be looking good on that front.
NEWS: 09/10/98
Yet another Streamline English only title rears its head at Image this month.
Space Adventure Cobra should
be out sometime in November.
Two more alternate angle views are up. This time around, Roman Martel talks
about the disc he won during last months contest,
Urusei Yatsura: Beautiful Dreamer.
We've also got a lengthy review from Tim Otholt on
Iria. Check 'em out!
NEWS: 09/09/98
If you've been following the discussion in the forum regarding the "rainbow
effect" on Iria, I managed to check out my copy when I got home today. When I
freeze the disc at those times, and inch through it, yes, I see a small
rainbow effect on some of them. However, when played in full motion, neither
my wife nor I saw them even though we were looking for them.
So, since I hadn't done it before, I put up a page off of the columns section
on how I go about my reviews.
I still stand fully by each and every review I have written.
NEWS: 09/08/98
I've gotten some tempting news from a reader who recently held the Japanese
release of Wings of Honeamise in their hands. Japanese 5.1, English 2.0 (no
subtitles). Gotta be gorgeous. The price tag of $110 makes it daunting,
especially when one holds hope that Manga's releases will have both an English
and Japanese 5.1 track. Worth the wait? You decide.
The forum is definitely working out, and I'll be adding it to all the pages in
the next couple of days. I got a copy of Rainbow Six today, so I'm getting
ready to be immersed in the tactical PC game world for a few days...
Just to give both fans and any anime company surfers out there, here's a
breakdown of a few series and their value, according to the petitions running
here. As a side note, I thoroughly encourage you to sign the petitions,
especially the Escaflowne one on the ADSC.
Neon Genesis Evangelion - 7 DVD's X 29.99 SRP = $210.00 X 413
signatures = $86,730
Ranma 1/2 Season 1 - 4 DVD's X 29.99 SRP = $120.00 X 333 signatures =
$39,960
Tenchi Muyo TV - 8 DVD's X 29.99 = $240.00 X 331 signatures = $79,200
Vision of Escaflowne - 8 DVD's X 29.99 = $240.00 x 274 signatures =
$65,760
Good numbers I'd think, especially for what is mostly considered catalog
titles now. The money is made in being able to resell your product after all.
That's what's exciting retail stores.
Be sure to check out EX: The Online World of Anime
And Manga for an in-depth review of what the anime fan should know about
DVD. While most DVD fans will already know this, the article is very well done
and should let many non DVD owners get a feel for why they should be getting
into the format. Curiously, they list Kiki's Delivery Service as a title due
out, though where they heard it I don't know.
NEWS: 09/06/98
Our new forum is up for testing. At present, you can only access it either
HERE or by the
forum link in the menu on the main news page.
Check out the Columns & Info section for information regarding the anime
companies and their DVD stance.
Several reports have come in from Dragon Con regarding anime and DVD. The one
that is the same in all of them is that
CPM is fully behind the DVD
bandwagon and they intend to release all their titles, including Anime 18,
onto DVD. The only exception being
Slayers due to
irresolvable legal problems, though apparently a VCD version may be on the
way.
Also, be sure to check out the Anime
News Network. I recently discovered this place, and find it to be pretty
informative and interesting.
Another preliminary piece of info has come down regarding yet anotherCPM title! Check out
Grappler Baki here.
For those looking for the petitions, I've moved them over to the Info section
for now. Once the ADSC is up and
going, I'll see if I can bug Edwin to merge them together. As a side note,
it's very important to sign the Escaflowne petition to show
Bandai that we want DVD. Doing
the basic rough numbers of 8 DVD's for the TV series at 29.99 each (which is
identical to the tape release), the 201 signatures that the ADSC already has
brings the number to $50,000. Anime
Village? Them's good numbers.
NEWS: 09/02/98
Preliminary information has come down regarding
Demon City Shinjuku. I'm
definitely looking forward to this title, as it's one of my favorite
laserdiscs.
I've also finally gotten the Bubblegum Crisis image and information today (5
days after my request, ah well). Check it out in the
info section.
NEWS: 09/01/98
Yeesh, September already. Summer's just about done here in New England then...
Quick update on yesterdays
Pioneer comments. I've heard from a very reliable source that what was
stated about their DVD commitment, while true, is now outdated. Changes are
supposedly going on, and it's just a matter of resources. Let's hope so. Of
course, if someone from
Pioneer would like to give me
the skinny on it, feel free...
Humble apologies about the messed up link for the Ninja Scroll DVD problems
listed in the 08/30 news section. It's all set now though.
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