Saturday, September 30th, 2000

Newly reviewed (10:11 PM EST):

Kenshin #2 (09:10 PM EST): We received word from Media Blasters this evening that the second volume of Rurouni Kenshin began shipment this past Thursday and Friday, so it'll start making its way onto various retailer shelves next week as they go through their own sub-distributors and then to trucks to your favorite retailer.

Date shuffle? (06:06 PM EST): From some reports we're getting, it looks as if two Media Blasters titles have gotten pushed back just a bit. I've now seen both Rurouni Kenshin 2 and Shinesman listed as a 10/17 release from several online retailers.

The other region 2 (05:41 PM EST): Over the past couple of years of running this site, we've occasionally run pieces on anime activities in other countries such as Japan, England, France, Italy and Australia. Often times things going on there have some sort of effect or are caused by the market here. But we don't focus heavily on these markets because in my mind, it's hard to report on an area (and culture) that you're not fully a part of. One of the best resources I've found for figuring out that oddity that is the UK market is Digital Anime UK. The site, run by Daniel Fawcett, reminds me a lot of how things were here a couple years back in terms of the market. For those looking for more info on the UK market, this is definitely the place to head to.

Evangelion clarification (05:33 PM EST): Several of our readers pointed out something that was missing in the recent ADV press release heralding the upcoming second volume of Neon Genesis Evangelion. Where are the French and Spanish soundtracks? Well, we've gone straight to the source and gotten the good word for those, like myself, really enjoyed these two tracks. Both are definitely on there, they just got omitted in the press release.

Omake (05:31 PM EST): We've updated our digital omake page with yet another hidden extra on the newly released Dual DVD. We've also added a "semi" omake piece for Geobreeders to the list.

Friday, September 29th, 2000

Upgrade! (06:33 PM EST): We got in an email from the folks at Multimedia 2000 today regarding the upgrade path for their Bubblegum Crisis Mega Set. After receiving some passionate and reasoned emails from fans, they've decided to drop the price from 39.95 to 29.95 with the upgrade. The only real kicker in this is that the press releases went out for this today and it indicated the wrong price. So if you see folks mentioning 39.95 as what it is, you make sure to correct them!

Petition (06:05 PM EST): A new petition has been added tonight, this time for the wildly popular Love Hina series that's finishing its broadcast run in Japan and is also making its way out on DVD at the moment. This series is getting an immense amount of buzz among the internet anime fans, especially those who are absolute junkies on our own chat.

Digital omake (05:59 PM EST): A new piece of omake has come in today, this time for the newly released Dual DVD.

Thursday, September 28th, 2000

Advance review (07:59 PM EST): We've completed our review for the upcoming release next week of Jubei-Chan Vol. #2. We took a couple of minutes to check out Escaflowne Vol. #1 as well and we're liking what we're seeing, especially the music videos. This disc however leaves us with a problem. Bandai's issuing it as Escaflowne yet the fan in me insists it be filed (and reviewed here) as Vision of Escaflowne. What to do... what to do...

Feedback wanted (07:53 PM EST): I'm looking for some very specific feedback from what I'm sure is a very small group of readers. I know I'm not the only one with an HDTV set watching anime DVD's. I'd really like to hear your opinions on how shows are looking on your set, especially if you have a Toshiba like mine.

ADV Press (05:25 PM EST): The latest ADV press release has come out with information on Neon Genesis Evangelion 0:2 and New Cutey Honey Vol. #1. The list of extras on the Cutey Honey disc sound interesting and I'm hearing that they're the same ones from the VHS release. How a live Press Conference, Phone Messages, a Production Portfolio and a live Costume Play sound to you for that disc? I like it!

New title announcement (05:14 PM EST): The folks at Pioneer are doing things up quite right with this piece of news. Due on 1/23/2001 (quickly becoming a sizeable release day!) the first volume of Sailor Moon TV in bilingual format will be arriving. It will contain six episodes or the equivalent of the two 14.95$ VHS tapes (2 sub and 2 dub) being released at the same time. The DVD will have an MSRP of 29.95. The running time for the DVD is 160 minutes, so dual layered is assumed. Anyone else getting excited about this release?

Mononoke news (05:12 PM EST): Jeff Kleist over at DVD Angle has tracked down some information regarding Mononoke that should help ease the minds of many:

"I got the answer straight from Buena Vista's reps.

"In having your question checked out - I was informed that the English subtitles on the Mononoke DVD are literal English translations of the Japanese dub."

This says to me that they are using the Ghibli subtitle script. Since their translations on the subtitled prints are usually pretty good, I'd have to say they'd at least be decent."

Wednesday, September 27th, 2000

New title announcements (04:24 PM EST): Ok folks, take note of these dates as there's a couple of them. And don't ask about subsequent volumes for the series, cause I don't know:

• Neon Genesis Evangelion Collection 0:2 - 11/21/2000 (29.99)
• New Cutey Honey Vol. #1 (of 2) - 11/21/2000 (29.99)
• 3X3 Eyes Collection - 12/26/2000 (64.98)
• Serial Experiments Lain Box Set - 11/7/2000 (119.99)
• Fatal Fury OVA's - 12/5/2000 (29.99)
• Black Heaven Vol. #2 - 11/21/2000 (29.99)

From what we've learned, the Evangelion disc will have no overlays and what would have had overlays will now have subtitles. No word yet on whether they'll be hard subtitles or soft DVD subtitles.

New Cutey Honey contains the first 4 of 8 episodes. 3X3 Eyes is the entire OVA collection in one package (it ran 2 tapes for 34.98 on VHS), Lain is supposedly the lunch box set, but we have no real details yet on it. Fatal Fury is the bumped back OVA's that were originally due on 10/31 and Black Heaven we previously had dates for.

Tuesday, September 26th, 2000

Heads up! (06:54 PM EST): Jerry Chu at Bandai sent us a bit of information today that you folks who are ordering the first volume of Escaflowne need to know about. During the phase where the inserts are popped into the packaging, the initial batch of discs had a slight problem. It should insert one business reply card and one insert for the tarot card deck redemption offer (this is the one where you need all 8 cards to get it). It seems as if about 7 to 8 business reply cards made it into some of them and no tarot deck redemption card. It's being asked that you retain your sales receipt/invoice for this item (just tuck it into the insert area) if you're interested in getting what sounds to be a really nice goodie when the series completes. Bandai will be posting more information about this early next week. All in all, this is a much better solution than cutting out the UPC code on your disc!

Survey time (10:00 AM EST): Shen-Fen Ho sent us a link to a survey she's currently running about several anime titles that people are looking to get licensed someday. Take a peek.

Monday, September 25th, 2000

BGC upgrade path (08:46 PM EST): One reader sent in a reply he got from Multimedia 2000 today about the upgrade path for those who already own the original Bubblegum Crisis series on DVD.

"If you send us your three old discs, than you can have the new MegaSeries 4 pack for $39.95 + shipping and handling. That's opposed to the $69.95 that it normally costs. If you wish to do this, you can send us a check with your discs. Shipping and handling is $6.95, so the total is $46.90. You can send them to: 
 

I think it's worth noting that this is almost exactly the same price that several online retailers are offering it for, though with a bit of variance for the shipping.

Press (05:55 PM EST): The latest ADV Films press release came out today, this time announcing Bubblegum Crisis 2040 Vol. #2 and Nadesico Vol. #2. Please note that if you see this release around the net, the initial one had the wrong pricing and running times.

Image gallery (05:02 PM EST): We've gotten in six pieces of new cover artwork today that's now up in our image gallery. The folks at NuTech have sent along the 5 covers for the upcoming hentai series Imma Youjo and an extra image of the box set!

Slayers Update (12:17 PM EST): The folks at Central Park Media have posted about their latest update on the Slayers set.

A really sweet contest (09:39 AM EST): Now, this isn't one of my contests, but it's really sweet for you artists out there, of whom I've seen some really gorgeous work done before. Merideth Mulroney of Media Blasters sent us some info about a fan art contest for Rurouni Kenshin where the winners will have their work on the 4th Kenshin DVD as a special feature art gallery. Each piece will have the artists’ name shown in the upper right hand corner. Winners will also receive a copy of Kenshin disc 4. I'm already looking forward to seeing the results!

Divi-chan (07:53 AM EST): The Untitled Divi-Chan Project has had another submission by Mystery Artist X and strip writer Roman Martel.

Sunday, September 24th, 2000

October Contest (05:41 PM EST): We've kicked off our October contest just a few days early because we're just so gosh darned excited about it. We're making October our big Gundam month and giving away a pretty spiffy prize pack of Gundam Wing 1-3 DVD's, the Mixx graphic novel and for you old timers out there, a classic U.C. 0079 Gundam and Zaku toys! The astute readers out there will note that this is the prize that I ended up winning in the CD Japan summer contest. As with every other contest I've managed to win related to the site, the prizes end up going directly to you (though I really like these Gundam toys!). 

Moving on up (01:33 PM EST): Only last week, Samurai X VHS Vol. #1 was riding high on the Billboard charts at the #11 slot. This week, according to Anime News Service, it's hustled its way up the #7. 

Newly reviewed (01:22 PM EST): We got our hands on the latest release from Viz in the form of Key the Metal Idol Vol. #2 and have made our way through the six episodes to bring you a review of it.

Petitions (01:22 PM EST): A new petition has been added today to our full list. This one is to convince Central Park Media to fix or swap out the recently released Slayers box set that has the audio problems. The petition states, "The problems exist on the Japanese language track and are apparently caused by one of the channels being phase inverted. This causes numerous issues, including: low volume, audio being sent to the rear speakers, spacey/directionless sound, and others depending on your setup." As of this posting, there are 188 signatures to the petition.

Saturday, September 23rd, 2000

Newly reviewed (10:52 PM EST): Making our way through the backlog a bit, we've got our review for the other disc out by Central Park Media this past week, the Maze OVA's.

Bandai tidbit (10:33 PM EST): Anime Village has a promotional piece up on their site for an Escaflowne Movie Event in Japan early next month where US fans can send in their questions to the creative team behind the movie. They will be taping and interviewing key people at the event for their website and for possible inclusion in a future DVD. They do go on to state, "No schedule has been set yet for the home video release, but it is anticipated to occur after the TV series has been fully released to DVD." So at the earliest, we'll see Escaflowne movie on DVD in region 1 no earlier than January 2002.

Did you know? (10:11 PM EST): According to several video calibration guides and other home theater materials, the average seating distance from your set (or monitor) is between 3-5 times the height of the set? How do you fare?

ADV release styles (05:33 PM EST): Some tentative (and easily subject to change) information was posted on the forum earlier today on what number of discs/style we can expect to see for a few ADV series. Bubblegum Crisis 2040 is set for 4/4/4/4/5/5, Gasaraki is 4/3/3/3/3/3/3/3, Lost Universe is 4/4/4/4/5/5, Neon Genesis Evangelion is 4/4/3/3/3/3/3/3, AD Police (not yet formally announced) is 12 (2 disc set - 6 per disc) and Martian Successor Nadesico is 4/4/4/4/5/5. Much like Bandai is playing with varying release styles, ADV is looking to see what works for them. 

Friday, September 22nd, 2000

Newly reviewed (08:20 PM EST): It's probably the shortest running time disc we have at the moment, so we popped in Tenchi Universe Vol. #3 into our deck this evening to watch and review. Over the weekend we'll have Key the Metal Idol Vol. #2 and hopefully get further into the Slayers box set. We made it to episode #3 and haven't had time to make our way back to it yet. For those counting, this marks our 490th review in our region 1 library. Not too shabby I'd say.

Mononoke bits (02:35 PM EST): A reader in the forum pointed out today that Amazon has updated their information on Princess Mononoke. According to their technical information section, it will have Japanese (Original) (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0). What about subtitles you ask? Available subtitles: English. Now granted, that doesn't really differentiate between true subtitles of the Japanese language track or simply the English language track. We're really hoping for the accurate translation of the Japanese track of course. Even sweeter in my eyes? Widescreen Anamorphic - 1.85:1. 

Formally announced (01:28 PM EST): The folks at Multimedia 2000 have formally announced the upcoming release of Bubblegum Crisis Mega Set and the separate 4th volume. Check out their press release here, where I've also attached their full page ad for it which shows you exactly what the box set itself will look like and each of the individual discs covers.

Site gatherings (12:23 PM EST): We've gotten the page put up from this past weekends LA/SoCal gathering and it definitely looks like they had a ton of fun there! There's also interest starting to brew for a few other gatherings over the next couple of months. If you're in the Houston, Washington D.C. or the Cleveland-Pittsburgh area, check out the Conventions & Gatherings forum to find out more. Or start one in your area!

Speaking of class (12:00 PM EST): For those of you who can't make it out to my neck of the woods from Boston but are looking for a good place to learn Japanese, David Owens wrote in about a place called Showa Boston, which is the sister-school of Showa Tokyo, a boarding school for girls roughly ages 18-22 (college age, in other words). "The neat thing is that the Boston school is where the girls stay when they come to the U.S. to study abroad," he says. "Another very neat thing is the last 45 minutes of the 2 hour class is spent with girls from the Showa school in the room, conversing....so you get to talk to people who predominantly speak Japanese all the time. It's pretty fun and makes it a lot more useful than a standard sit-and-listen-and-repeat class, because you can pick up slang, colloquialisms, and other things you wouldn't get from a book or from your average teacher."

Maze Clarification (11:55 AM EST): It looks as if my wording last night on the Maze issue wasn't too clear for some. Let's start from the beginning. CPM has released the Maze OVA's onto DVD. The OVA's are uncut and fine. As a bonus, they included the first episode of the TV series that they're currently releasing dub-only onto VHS. This bonus episode is where the controversy has come in.

After Maze made its original broadcast run in Japan, the producing company decided to spice things up a bit for the home video release and put in several more risque scenes throughout. Maze fans, after seeing the bonus episode on the US DVD and comparing it to their existing fansubs from the Japanese LD's, have realized something is... off. What CPM has apparently acquired is the broadcast version of Maze. This version is also considered the original version as it is what was seen and created first. Whether this affects your interest in buying it is dependant on how you view the situation. To me, it's rather cut and dry; we're getting the directors original completed vision. 

Date shuffle (09:38 AM EST): Only one last minute date shuffle has come to light regarding the sizeable 9/26 release date. Rurouni Kenshin TV Vol. #2 has slipped to a 10/3 release date. Of course, many of you are now cringing due to the sheer size of that release date. So much anime, so little time!

Thursday, September 21st, 2000

Gasaraki contest 3 (11:09 PM EST): The final Gasaraki DVD contest has come to a close and the winner has been chosen. Check out his entry as well as all the other entries!

Advance review (10:44 PM EST): We spent the evening tonight watching ADV's latest offering to the DVD buying public in the form of Martian Successor Nadesico Vol. #1, which has an official street date of 11/7/2000.

Maze TV toned down? (09:21 PM EST): With the release this week of the Maze OVA's on DVD and the inclusion of the first TV episode, Maze fans who've seen the fansubs are noting that there's a difference. According to this review and the pictures contained within, it looks like the TV cut of the TV series is being released here. There appears to be two versions, with a more risque version produced when the series hit the home video market. With luck, we'll be hearing more from Maze fans over the next few days while we wait for our copy of the DVD.

New title announcements (09:10 PM EST): The folks at ADV continue to crank 'em out. Two new dates have come in today from David Williams on the forum. On 12/5, we'll see both Bubblegum Crisis 2040 Vol. #2 and Nadesico Vol. #2.

ADV goes artsy (06:47 PM EST): Check out this press release from ADV about their involvement with the Houston Museum of Fine Arts during the month of October. There's even a night where fans get to meet the staff of ADV. I'm sure some of you in the area will be sure to take Dan and David out for a few beers. 

For the Aussies (06:39 PM EST): Provided you're not completely worn down by all the Olympic brouhaha, the folks at Madman are prepping up their new full color catalog and have an offer for you. 

Two down... (06:15 PM EST): We've posted the results to the first two Gasaraki contests (random entry and create a crossover). For the crossover one, we've included most of the entries we received. Several of them had titles that ADV doesn't have the license to, so they were removed. We'll have the third one finalized a little later this evening after we finish reading them all.

Starblazers rumor (05:41 PM EST): On the AnimEigo mailing list today one member passed along information they received from Voyager today regarding future releases of Starblazers DVD's. According to the message, "VEI is waiting on the RESPONSE CARDS that were inserted in the first DVD. She also reports that the response to these cards has been below expectations." When asked about dates for subsequent volumes, "VEI has no date available for a second DVD release. Diane speculates; "Maybe late December or early January, but no earlier than that." This information originally came from Spacecruiseryamato.com. 

Pardon me whilst I don my editorial hat here. I'd speculate on a few reasons why the response card returns are so low. One could initially figure that they'd be low due to the low to non-existent amount of advertising about the discs release. Many retailers don't even know of its existence or of any way of getting it. If the public isn't told it's released, it's hard to get responses on it.

Of those who did know of its release, I'd wager a decent number of them bought the UK import which is essentially a mirror copy of the US release. They then waited to hear what few reports there were of the US release and then upon finding out that it's identical, passed on buying it again. So they have no response cards to send it.

I'm sure the low quality release also has people not bothering to return response cards.

The final reason that comes to mind is the near complete lack of a web presence to get immediate and well thought out ideas and feedback from people online. These are, once again, probably a good segment of the folks who even knew the disc was coming out. For those of you who do have disc one and want to see more, I'd encourage you to pull out your package again and fill in that response card.

Bandai bits (05:29 PM EST): The latest wave of announcements via Diamond Comics has hit their site. All of the titles listed were previously known, so there's little to really say, save one title. Listed is Saber Marionette J TV for 44.98$. I received confirmation from Bandai about this title with a little bit expanded information. The series was originally slated for a February release but has been bumped up to January (not December as Diamond seems to indicate). The price is indeed correct, as it will follow the Outlaw Star release style of double disc sets (9/8/8), more than likely every other month. January is traditionally a light month, so having this amount of a TV series kick off then, well, I'm looking forward to seeing it. Now, where's Clamp Campus Detectives...

More Media Blasters news (05:24 PM EST): This is definitely shaping up to be a good week for good news to be coming out of the Media Blasters offices. Earlier today on the forum, company president John Sirabella indicated that they're removing the overlays from their sentai anime parody, Shinesman, for its DVD release. Excellent news indeed!

Site news (05:21 PM EST): I've just been informed that from midnight tonight to around 5 AM EST tomorrow morning (Friday), the server that the forum/Anime Showcase resides on is being taken offline for server maintenance. Please don't flood me with "Where's the forum!" emails. Thanks!

Wednesday, September 20th, 2000

Quick glance (09:10 PM EST): We got in our review copy for Martian Successor Nadesico today from ADV Films. We've only glanced through the show a bit itself (don't ask me about the overlays, I was having a hard time finding them), but the disc itself looks pretty solid so far. The disc does contain a number of sweet extras. In addition to having four episodes, there's the ADV trailer for it, translation notes on all four episodes (multiple pages on some!), textless opening and ending and several nicely done character profiles. We should be watching the show tomorrow evening sometime after work and will try to get in a review if time permits after we finalize the Gasaraki contest winners.

Press (09:03 PM EST): The folks at Central Park Media have sent us no less than twelve press releases today. We've updated our press section with all the info, though we've combined a few of them (by genre for the VHS releases). They cover the September to November date range. Check 'em out.

Week 1 (09:00 PM EST): Tonight was our first night of Japanese class at the World Language Centers that we were surprised to find near us. Having been into anime properly for about 12 years now and longer via Robotech, I've picked up a fair smattering of sentences and words beyond the normal cussing and the like most newbies have mastered, providing they listen to the Japanese tracks. Over the course of the next twelve weeks, myself, my wife and another fellow classmate will undertake the task of learning this language. The class maximum of 6 makes learning much more individualized, especially after hearing how some folks are dealing with classes that number between 40 and 60. If you're near them at all, I heartily recommend checking it out. The first class is 100% in Japanese and it's only going to get more involved. We love it!

AnimEigo on Urusei Yatsura (05:03 PM EST): AnimEigo CEO Robert Woodhead posted to the companies mailing list today with some various bits of information. The final 90 or so sets of Urusei Yatsura will be shipped within a day or two and then they'll be going back to deal with the two hundred problem orders such as declined credit cards, incorrect addresses and various other issues. Those who have requested replacement discs from them should also be sent out by the end of the week. I would recommend waiting until Monday to see if you are contacted about an issue with your order before trying to get in touch with them if you haven't heard anything about your set.

They also indicate that the Lupin III movies that they have will be done after the more popular shows. Frankly, this shows that there's something indeed wrong with fandom when Lupin III is not a popular show. The previous rant is just that, a rant. Note it was done with a smiley face by the author.

Media Blasters on Kite (04:57 PM EST): In another posting by John Sirabella today, they've indicated that a less cut version of Kite will be arriving from their Kitty Media label in January on VHS. DVD plans are not on the table right now but they know it's something that needs to be done. We'll be looking forward to the day we can watch that disc.

Media Blasters on Kenshin (04:54 PM EST): Some new information has come out regarding the audio issue with the first release of Rurouni Kenshin TV from Media Blasters. There is also a follow-up in the forum from company president John Sirabella that there will indeed be a trade in offered in the near future. Right now, their queue has the second volume (which is free of this issue) set to be replicated and then they can go back and replicate the fixed first volume. It's recommended that you just sit on your current copy of the first volume until they have their plans solidly in place. Sending it in early will not get it to you any earlier.

Tuesday, September 19th, 2000

Slayers revisited (04:16 PM EST): Please note that our earlier posting about the Slayers box was erroneous. Our box set for the first 26 episodes of Slayers arrived today and we immediately popped the first disc in to check things out. Both language tracks appear to play fine on our setup (as was the case with Kenshin TV 1 as well). Initially we posted that both the English and Japanese tracks were playing solely out of the left speaker. We had played with a lot of audio settings to see what we could get (including pro-logic forced which did create the rear speaker issue) but couldn't get anything else but the left speaker to work.

I say this with great honest embarrassment. My cats caused it. Having gone back down to try again to see what I could learn, I pulled out both tower speakers only to note that the black wire into the right speaker was dangling loose. Melanie has sufficiently laughed at me. My apologies.

Justin Sevakis of Central Park Media has posted this official information regarding the audio problems on this box set. The Slayers Next and Lodoss TV sets have been checked and do not exhibit this problem.

Review correction 2 (02:50 PM EST): We also took the time today to recheck out Genocyber DVD which we had a menu problem with. Previously, when the show ended and you got placed in the trailers submenu, selecting main menu dropped you into Meet the Cast and anything selected there brought you to the same place. Another run through with it this afternoon and the problem doesn't seem to exist.

Manga tidbit (01:05 PM EST): The individual listings on Image Entertainment are now showing Angel Cop from Manga in their database. In addition to a truly tiny cover image that they supply, they do list that it will contain both languages and be subtitled. This would be the first time the show has been presented in Japanese by a domestic studio. Running time is 3 hours with an MSRP of 29.95$ and is due on 10/31/2000.

Review correction (12:12 PM EST): When we reviewed Gasaraki last week, we noted some freezing problems we had with the discs main menu, to the point where we couldn't select anything at all. Over the weekend we pulled the disc out to show it off a bit to some friends and lo and behold, it worked flawlessly. I've done a few tests with it on the Pioneer 414 to try and recreate the freeze but have been unable to do so, and it never did it at all with any of my other players. I've removed that criticism from my review.

New title rumors (11:53 AM EST): On some recent discs, there's indication of some upcoming shows that will hit DVD. According to those who've gotten their Slayers box set, they now list a preview trailer for Slayers Try (currently being released on VHS). It certainly isn't a stretch to believe that we'll see a box of this sometime next year. On the copy of Samurai X I received yesterday, there's a new trailer for Blood Reign: Curse of the Yoma from ADV Films. As the trailers listed on ADV discs indicate shows slated for DVD release, this looks like a potential end of year release if not early 2001.

New title announcement (11:27 AM EST): The folks at Fox have lightly gotten into the anime game and have announced a 12/5 release date for the first Digimon volume, dubbed only, with an MSRP of 24.95.

Meow (08:45 AM EST): LadyCat is back (and from the LA/SoCal gathering too) with a new Ask LadyCat column up for your perusal!

Press (08:36 AM EST): Viz has sent out their latest press releases; their weekly update can be found here while their new offerings for January can be found here.

New reviews (08:29 AM EST): A couple of new ones available this morning. Ryan Hobbs checks in with Cowboy Bebop Session 5 in our region 1 section while Jeffrey Stenzel sends in the word on Fushigi no Kuni no Miyuki-chan (otherwise known as Miyuki-chan in the Wonderland in the US) in our region 2 section.

Monday, September 18th, 2000

Advance review (11:14 PM EST): It's raining blood here at our little home theater thanks to a late night viewing of Samurai X Vol. #1. 

Slayers box set problems? (02:08 PM EST): Over the weekend, some reports started rolling in from a few people that there's an issue with the Japanese soundtrack on the Slayers DVD boxset, similar to the Rurouni Kenshin TV release awhile back. Since then, a bit more information has come in about it and the folks at Central Park Media are very aware of it. They are currently working with their authoring house to isolate the exact problem and hope to have some solid information by tomorrow that will be posted to the forum. A lot of the problem, much like the Kenshin disc, is dependant on how your audio setup is configured. Take a look through the main forum for tips and tricks on how you may be able to bypass any issues if they affect your system. The English language track appears to be unaffected however.

Gasaraki contests (01:44 PM EST): Just a reminder to folks that we are running currently three very short term and very different contests for a copy of Gasaraki as supplied by the good folks at ADV. We've gotten in over 1000 entries in the random drawing since late Saturday night and quite a number of good entries in the crossover contest. We've also gotten a number of well written ones for the third contest, which is where you're asked to write something positive about ADV's influence either on you personally or the industry itself since its inception.

This particular contest has stirred some folks as being essentially a suck-up piece (which was put a little less delicately to me in some emails). If you've been on the net for any length of time, you'll note that ADV tends to be the poster boy company for abuse from fans. Of course, they're also one of the more popular companies with as many varied releases as they do have, so they have a large number of fans who basically love everything they do. These groups have a hard time believing the other exists. This contest was essentially for them, the majority of people who love what ADV does and get a chance to tell everyone why. So before you fire off more hate email to me or make a snide remark here and there on the forum, take a deep breath and move onto something else. Thanks.

Tylor on DVD (01:33 PM EST): According to the Tylor site, the number of orders has reached 792 as of yesterday. Also mentioned on their main page, "Tylor DVD sales top the 750 mark! Will this mean more Tylor DVD's in the future? Stay tuned for details!"

To quell the questions (01:29 PM EST): For the past several weeks, there's been some nod-nod wink-wink going on among the ADV folks who read and post the forum in terms of the "great debate" among fans over the titling of the Rurouni Kenshin OVA releases as Samurai X. This has led to a variety of speculation by many people wondering how this release, due on October 10th, would look. Well, we've gotten our review copy in today and we can finally spill the beans. As I expected, it is indeed a reversible cover. The initial front cover is the Samurai X one as seen in our upcoming image gallery. The reverse side is the quite nice. It contains what the subtitled VHS version contains for artwork and has the original logo in Japanese with it subtitled in English below it. Even nicer for fans is that the reverse side of the back cover doesn't contain any of the credit information, so you see more of that artwork. While some people will be unhappy regardless of what ADV does for this release, the vast majority of people who are picking it up will be very pleased. We'll have a full review of the disc contents itself late tonight. 

Sunday, September 17th, 2000

Boston gathering (09:23 PM EST): The weather was nice and the food was great and the company was solid. Check out the Anime on DVD Boston Gathering that took place today here.

Cover art (10:38 AM EST): The upcoming release gallery has been updated with three new pictures; Nightmare Campus, Record of Lodoss War TV and Photon.

Top ten (08:43 AM EST): We've updated our top ten list for September today, with a brand new title sliding into the #1 position.

Saturday, September 16th, 2000

On the charts (10:41 PM EST): ADV has scored two big numbers in different venues. According to the Express top fifteen on their site, Bubblegum Crisis 2040 #1 made it to the #10 slot. Anime News Service is reporting that in the latest issue of Billboard magazine, the VHS version of Samurai X Vol. #1 made its mark as the 11th best selling video in America for last week. 

Contests! (06:02 PM EST): The good folks at ADV Films have supplied us with three copies of Gasaraki Vol. #1 to give away in some contests! After some hard and serious thought, we've devised three crafty and cunning contests. All three contests (which are different) will end at 5 PM Thursday (9/21) to give the winners a chance to cancel their existing orders (because I know you're all ordering it, right?). Click here to check out the contests!

The Megazone bits (05:21 PM EST): We made mention of the upcoming release in Japan of Megazone 23 on DVD in Japan, though not all the specifics have come in. Ryan Gavigan wrote in with some history of the multiple languages that this series has seen:

Two 'Megazone 23' dubs have been done, one for Megazone 23 part 2 that was done in the 80s, as well as the Streamline version of part 1 done in the last few years. Part 2 was dubbed for the Japanese market (in certain circumstances, they have hired American studios to dub films, in order for them to release the movie in theaters or on video in English with Japanese subtitles.

Megazone 23 part 1 was also of course dubbed as 'Robotech the Movie', but with its extensive editing, no sensible English track would be able to be made from it (and you wouldn't want to either, it's totally wretched ^^). 10 minutes of extra footage for a new 'happy ending' of part 1 was animated on the behest of Carl Macek, which was included as a 'bonus' on the English dub LD release of part 2.

So far, no English version of part 3 has been done.

UK Rob Bushe had this to add:

Part three of Megazone 23 was dubbed, released and is still available in the UK from Manga Entertainment [on VHS]

New title announcements (05:16 PM EST): A bunch of a new titles have been revealed as listed in the Express anime listings, most from Central Park Media. On 1/9/01, Silent Service, Urotsukidoji III and Virgin Fleet will arrive. On 2/13, Urotsukidoji IV and Sprite: Between Two Worlds ships and on 3/13 Knights of Ramune will ship. Virgin Fleet has been previously reviewed here in our region 2 section. There's also the mention now of the Bubblegum Crisis Mega Set arriving on 10/3 as well as the fourth volume being available separately at that time. I personally think this date is really fluid and those of you who were around when this set was originally released will know exactly what I mean.

Gatherings (05:09 PM EST): Just a reminder to folks, the two gatherings are taking place tomorrow. Check the forum for more information if you're attending either the LA/SoCal gathering or the (cooler) Boston gathering.

Friday, September 15th, 2000

Big DVD on campus (08:48 PM EST): We mentioned earlier this week about Central Park Media's release of Nightmare Campus on DVD. Some more information about the set has come to light. Most importantly, it has been confirmed that it will indeed be subtitled. For those who did not know, this series was released as a dub-only VHS and no proper subtitled translation was done. For a fan of series like this, well, no offense to the American voice actors who read this site, but you all can't seem to moan like the Japanese voice actors do. The DVD will correct all of this and we'll be able to enjoy it as originally presented. In addition, a number of extras have surfaced. Meet the cast, yearbook, promos, parental control, interactive chapter stops, DVD sneak peaks, art gallery, sketches, scripts, and cast and production credits. For an MSRP of 49.99, it beats the heck out of the dub VHS box set for 129.99$. CPM is fast becoming my hero when it comes to affordable box sets.

Dragu slave! (08:43 PM EST): Just in under the wire as Central Park Media's biggest box set is now shipping, Joshua Carvalho has sent in his in-depth primer for the world that is Slayers. 

Cover art (08:40 PM EST): With a big thanks to the folks at Urban Vision, they've supplied us with some rough images of what Wicked City and Vampire Hunter D's DVD covers will look like.

Potential new title release date (08:12 PM EST): "Dylandog" wrote in today mentioning that Buy.com is now listing an 11/27 release date for the second bargain basement priced Pioneer series, Hyperdolls. Pioneer Entertainment has been very lax in updating their own announcements lately (they haven't updated since 8/15) so we're a bit out of touch with their listings these days. It sounds pretty likely though.

Petitions (08:10 PM EST): Garret Jax has sent in a note to us telling us about his petition to urge AIC/Pioneer to create a 3rd Tenchi OVA series. Check it out in our petitions page.

Region 2 tidbit (07:50 PM EST): Reader Patrick Vera wrote in today telling us that in the latest issue of Newtype (Japan obviously) on the back cover is a solicitation, starting October 1, with an in-store date of December 16, for a 3-disc box set of Megazone 23 OVA series. No indications of an English language track, but I believe that an English track was produced at one time for at least one or two of the OVA's for educational purposes.

Various bits (07:42 PM EST): The folks at ADV have sent out another press release (someone there is well employed!) this time talking about some titles lowered in price for the holidays. Couple of good ones in there if you're still interested in VHS. In Australian anime news, Tim Anderson, the managing director for Madman Entertainment made some journeys into online fandom and listed out several very interesting things about the state of the Australian market (and partially the UK market) and even mentioned part of the reason why Spriggan is taking so long to be released. An interesting read and a round of thanks to Mr. Anderson for forwarding the information to us to help spread the word.

Thursday, September 14th, 2000

Tylor running out (08:00 PM EST): The daily updated numbers at the Right Stuf now show that out of the 750 sets that will get extra goodies with it when ordered from them, 660 have been ordered for the Irresponsible Captain Tylor series. If not tomorrow, then over the weekend it'll be all over, though you can still order it but just without the goodies.

Region 2 goodness (05:16 PM EST): We got in the latest release list from CD Japan today with lots of slick titles in there, including the *cackle* cheaper regular edition of Memories and lots of other fun shows such as Ah! My Goddess and more insane FLCL.

In the press (05:05 PM EST): ADV has sent out a couple of new press releases today. The first one contains their January DVD and VHS lineup. You'll note that A.D. Police Vol. #1 is listed as a dub-only VHS release with no corresponding DVD yet, though ADV is trying for day and date with new releases. I expect we'll hear a release date sometime soon (as we have for other things on that release date) or maybe there's something special planned for it? After that, check out the full press release for the Martian Successor Nadesico Vol. #1: Invasion DVD.

New title announcements (04:58 PM EST): From an extremely reliable source today, I've been told that we will be seeing Princess Mononoke on DVD on 12/19 for an MSRP of 32.99$. No languages or features are mentioned yet to my knowledge. Expect more info over the next week or so.

On the complete other end of the spectrum, Right Stuf is now listing a new compilation set from Central Park Media. On 12/5, we'll see more hentai goodness in the form of Nightmare Campus with all five episodes (40 minutes each) for 49.99$ MSRP. It's being listed as a hybrid (i.e. dual language) disc set, which could be really sweet as the Japanese language version has not been released here previously, only the English language version. Or we could be looking at the Overfiend movies all over again.

We have erred (04:56 PM EST): During last nights update, my fingers were working independently of my mind (as is often their desire) and attributed a piece of information to the wrong site. The info regarding Starblazers Vol. #2 being released came from Anime News Service, and we apologize for this error on our part. The next time it happens, I'll start cutting off my fingers. Or does that count as violence in the entertainment industry? 

Wednesday, September 13th, 2000

Tylor! (08:19 PM EST): The Irresponsible Captain Tylor is closer still to being fulfilled and your chance for extra goodies via Right Stuf is running out. As of this writing, the total number of orders is up to 558 out of the first 750 who will get some unique items.

Dates, take 2 (08:09 PM EST): According to the latest title announcement list from DVD Review, Rurouni Kenshin Vol. #3 is now slated for an 11/14 release. The episodes listed are 13-16 however, which are from volume #4. Have I mentioned how much I hate release dates?

Warning (08:06 PM EST): If you can read this, odds you've survived. The 13th of September 2000 is the official date of the 2nd Impact from Neon Genesis Evangelion. The folks behind it are celebrating (without mass destruction) by selling a limited edition CD. What better way to profit from the end of mankind?

Dates (07:56 PM EST): We're seeing a lot of new dates floating around out there this week. Some retailers list Gasaraki as 9/19, but the press release lists the 26th. Some are now listing Key 2 for 9/26. According to Anime News Service, Starblazers Vol. #2 will arrive in October. And Robert Woodhead of AnimEigo has mentioned that the various dates floating out there for the Bubblegum Crisis Megaset and Vol. #4 are pretty much wrong, which rings true as M2K has not formally announced any dates yet. And if you remember when the original set came out, they had a lotof press releases touting it. Expect more of the same.

Advance review (07:28 PM EST): It took a bit longer than usual to write this review for Gasaraki, if only because I ended up watching it two more times before sitting down to get some words out on it. Eva Vol. #2? Pfft, gimme more Gasaraki!

Amusing note (06:40 PM EST): My copies of Bubblegum Crisis 2040 and Lost Universe arrived with my usual pack of Hollywood movies this week when I noticed something fairly amusing on the BGC case. A nice neon pink sticker that indicates that the disc is Playstation 2 compatible. Marketing at its finest I'd say! Don't be surprised to see more of these kinds of stickers in the next couple of months. If only my Lost Universe discs were compatible... (that's a joke, folks)

Tuesday, September 12th, 2000

Coming soon (03:49 PM EST): Well, coming tomorrow at least. We got in our review copy of Gasaraki from ADV today and will be able to spin the disc in its entirety tonight but won't have the time for a full review until tomorrow. We've watched the first episode so far and are simply in love. Essentially, picture the show starting close to where Neon Genesis Evangelion TV ended and add in a lot more eastern spirituality. And that's only the first episode. The disc really looks like a labor of love and probably one of the best set of menus to come from ADV yet. We should also have a review of FLCL #3 later this week or this weekend. Which means we really need to review FLCL #2 as well. But that means trying to understand what's going on in this series and that is nowhere near easy.

Region 2 (12:47 PM EST): Ryan Hobbs has sent in a few new region 2 reviews today to help beef up that area a bit. Check out his thoughts on the Dirty Pair: Project Eden DVD, Giant Robo Giga Collection set and the Street Fighter Zero: The Animation Limited Edition DVD.

Alternate angle (09:04 AM EST): I expect to start seeing more alternate angles in the next week or two for the three recently released ADV titles, but in the meantime we've got a new one sent in today for Eat-Man '98!

ADV wants you! (07:36 AM EST): This was posted late last night by ADV rep David Williams to our forum:

"I'm trying to work out the ADV back catalog releases on DVD and figure, hey, why not ask what people would like. I mean, there are a lot of people at AnimeOnDVD and they all have opinions... gawd do they have opinions! Anyway, to keep some foothold on this here is what I'm going to do. I'll post a list of some of ADV's back catalog titles. You order those titles in the order you'd like to see them on DVD and email it to me. Don't post here, don't want another long thread to sort through. I'll sort through my email so only emailed replies will count. Also I know there are back catalog titles not on this list that people want but please limit it to the follow list for this round and this is only for back catalog stuff. So here is your chance to be heard, send me your version of the following list at dlw@advfilms.com.

The List (in no particular order):

Gunsmith Cats, Blue Seed, Sorcerer Hunters, Blood Reign, Super Atragon, Gunhed, Ellcia, Power Dolls, Dragon Knight, Dragon Knight Another Knight on the Town, Devil Hunter Yohko, Rail of the Star, Dirty Pair Flash, Dirty Pair OVAs, Orange Road Movie, Daimajin, Those Who Hunt Elves, Gamera, Kimera"

Dual gatherings (07:29 AM EST): It looks like September 17th will have dueling coastal gatherings! Here's what's planned:

LA/Southern California Group: Meet at the Mitsuwa (formerly Yaohan) in Little Tokyo (see address below). Date and time is this upcoming Sunday (9/17) at 12:00 PM.
 

Boston Group: Sunday, September 17th at 14:00 (2PM) in Harvard Square. We will meet by the news stand in Harvard Square and walk to Fire + Ice. If you haven't been to Fire + Ice here are some reviews [1][2][3].

New in Japan (07:21 AM EST): We've gotten a few minor announcements in regarding some upcoming stuff in Japan. Escaflowne drama CD fans will be very pleased...

Monday, September 11th, 2000

TRSI talks Tylor (07:00 PM EST): The folks at Right Stuf have sent out a newsletter today talking about the DVD release of Irresponsible Captain Tylor.

New title announcement (06:53 PM EST): The folks at ADV are seriously cranking out stuff these days. The latest announcement came in today for Lost Universe Vol. #4 which is due on 1/23/2001. The disc will likely be pretty barebones, similar to what the first two already are. On the plus side, it'll contain four more episodes and possibly bring the series to completion with a total of 7 discs. This is quite a turnaround compared to the past couple of years of ADV releases. Let's hope the trend continues with other titles.

SF Gathering (06:49 PM EST): The full report from the SF Anime on DVD gathering was posted, and we've transcribed it as well as pictures here. From all accounts, it sounds like everyone had a great time! For those going to the LA/SoCal gathering, make sure you take pictures too!

A note on upcoming titles (06:38 PM EST): I've gotten several emails today wondering why Bubblegum Crisis 2040 and Lost Universe 1 & 2 have been removed from the upcoming section since their street date is tomorrow. It's prompted concern among some that the titles were canceled or pushed back to some indeterminate date. The way we do things here depend on when we get the title (since we buy everything). If we get a review copy ahead of the street date, we remove it from the upcoming section the weekend that it starts arriving and shipping in online retailers. If it's a disc we don't get review copies for, it gets removed when we review it. So for example, Bubblegum Crisis 2040, Lost Universe 1 and Lost Universe 2 were reviewed upwards of a month and a half before street date. This past Saturday when we saw retailers packing and shipping it, we removed it. The links to it are available in our review list. Next week, the Slayers box set will be released which we won't get a review copy of (CPM either doesn't do review copies of DVD's or we just aren't on their list). This will stay in the upcoming section until either we get our review up or someone sends in an alternate angle for it. Yeah, kind of haphazard at times especially with box sets, but for the most part we review everything within days of its arrival so it's rarely an issue. For the very rare things that we don't review (such as the Dog of Flanders), we create the review template and fill out the technical information and just leave it at that. But those kinds of things are maybe two or three titles out of over 150 releases.

It begins... (09:23 AM EST): It's been in the planning stages for a few weeks, but today we're able to unveil something we hope to do on a semi-regular basis in the future. The Untitled Divi-Chan Project comic strip has begun!

Sunday, September 10th, 2000

SF Gathering (12:11 PM EST): A few people have been online since the San Francisco gathering yesterday and by all indications, it went well. It looks like there was plenty of peer pressure when it came to buying stuff (Card Captor Sakura bilingual manga seems to be the big item) and a good time had by all. Hopefully we'll get some pictures and a report soon so everyone can see how it went.

Contests! (11:28 AM EST): We've closed out both of the Please Save My Earth contests today and have chosen the winners! Check out who won the "Design a better DVD cover" and the random email entry winner!

Petitions (11:022 AM EST): We've added one that was submitted to us today to petition anime studios to license existing Japanese DTS anime soundtracks for domestic DVD release.

Top ten (11:04 AM EST): The September top ten has been updated and there should be very little surprise whose captured the top three spots. There's a lot of product coming out through the rest of the month though. Will good word of mouth about Bubblegum Crisis 2040 keep it ranking high?

A note on links (11:02 AM EST): Some of you have noticed recently that image links and the like that we have that go directly to the item page at Express.com aren't working properly. They are definitely aware of this and the company that is responsible for it has been working on it for the past week and with luck we should be set. Right now, instead of going to the item in question, it's going to their default main page. 

New cover art (10:51 AM EST): There's some new cover art out there on the net, available on the newly revamped Media Blasters website. Looking in both their catalog and future releases, you can see the art to be used for Rurouni Kenshin Vol. 2-4, Shinesman, Demon Fighter Kocho and Gestalt. Normally we'd add these to our upcoming image gallery, but they're not the normal flat artwork and wouldn't fit in all that well. I'm sure we'll be able to add them in sometime soon though. 

Saturday, September 9th, 2000

Advance review (10:29 PM EST): Is it anime? Some people say it is. Some say it's not. Others simply don't know what to make of it. Whatever it is, it's coming from ADV on 10/24 and we've got an early review of it for you. Check out what we thought of Sin: The Motion Picture.

Kenshin delayed (09:50 PM EST): The second volume of Rurouni Kenshin from Media Blasters is being delayed slightly again as they're being really careful to make sure there are no issues with it. While they had hoped to get it out by the 12th of September, it's now being scheduled for a release on the 26th. I don't believe it will impact the release of volume 3 as that's set for the end of October.

New title announcement & more (07:53 PM EST): According to a posted release date in the forum this evening from an ADV rep, we can expect the first volume of Nadesico to arrive on 11/7. No other details yet. There's also been word via Image Entertainment that the second volume of Sakura Diaries has been canceled. This is a surprise to ADV as they are currently proofing disc 2 and are close to proofing disc 3.

Petitions (07:52 PM EST): A new petition has been added to the section today, this one for a non-overlay release of Nadesico from ADV. Click here to check it out.

FAQ (07:51 PM EST): We're currently testing out a new FAQ remote-hosted database in hopes that we can get something a bit more manageable to work. Click here to check it out and see the few questions we have in there already. Got questions you think should be in there, especially you forum regulars? Ask them via the link there!

Friday, September 8th, 2000

Newly reviewed (08:20 PM EST): Not only is Lost Universe Vol. #1 due out next week, ADV managed to squeeze out Lost Universe Vol. #2 as well! Be sure to check out our newly added review. Also, please note that with these two releases we've done a bit more work with one of our affiliates in creating a page of "shohin" for the show. These pages will be discreetly linked at the bottom of reviews for some but not all shows.

Quick peeks (05:45 PM EST): We got in our package of review discs from ADV today and should have at least one review up later tonight. We've got Sin queued up on our Apex player at the moment, and overall this is a pretty slick looking little package. Looks like a good selection of extras as well as a Spriggan teaser (curse you Rockwell! Give us more and give it to us in 5.1!). We've also gotten in Lost Universe Vol. #2 and will hopefully have this reviewed later tonight.

Thursday, September 7th, 2000

Is that San under your tree? (06:24 PM EST): According to some information being put forth by the initial less-than-full information from Buena Vista Home Video's December release list, Princess Mononoke is apparently on the list for release. These first bits of information are almost never more than just the title. More information should be forthcoming in the next couple of weeks.

Gatherings (06:14 PM EST): The San Francisco gathering is almost here! We've adjusted our Conventions forum to cover these kinds of gatherings as well, so be sure to drop by the forum for more information about it.

Press (05:47 PM EST): We got in a ton of new press releases today, ranging from new VHS announcements (X subtitled at last) to hearing about a new daily Pokemon comic strip. ADV formally announced Gasaraki Vol. #3 and Reboot Vol. #3 for 1/23/01, marking their first announcements for 2001 (though I'm sure there are more for the end part of the year). Check it all out here.

Hacked? (05:46 PM EST): The folks over at Pioneer Anime found themselves the target of a hack early this morning. The hack is related to all the Napster things floating about. 

Wednesday, September 6th, 2000

Urban Vision clarification (05:34 PM EST): I received a follow-up from Urban Vision about what we can expect audio-wise from Wicked City. Similar to Vampire Hunter D, the English audio will be 5.1 while the Japanese audio will be a 2.0 stereo mix.

New title announcements (05:20 PM EST): Well, sort of. I'm somewhat at a loss as to when to actually post these kinds of announcements, since half of them are titles we already knew, but this is the first "sighting" of them online. According to Right Stuf, Outlaw Star Collection 2, Jubei-Chan Vol. 3, Escaflowne Vol. 2 and Don't Leave Me Alone Daisy mini box set will all hit on 12/5 from Bandai. On 11/28, Pioneer will release the second Fushigi Yugi box. I was hoping it would be the week before so I could watch it during Thanksgiving weekend! 

In the press (05:17 PM EST): Several bits of press have come into us today. Bandai has sent out their November release list, Manga is trumpeting the second Patlabor movie and Anime Colony wants to send you to Japan! Check those and other press releases out here.

Tuesday, September 5th, 2000

Newly reviewed, part 2 (06:33 PM EST): We've also made a dent in our backlog today, but not with any kiddie shows. Check out our thoughts on the latest entry from Anime 18, Demon Beast Invasion.

Newly reviewed (05:35 PM EST): We've completed our review for Bandai's newly released Cowboy Bebop Session 5 DVD.

A Wicked release announcement (05:24 PM EST): The formal announcement came out in press release form today from Urban Vision for their November release of Wicked City: Special Edition anime. We're waiting to hear back on clarification of the audio tracks. I expect it's English 5.1 and Japanese 2.0 though.

English Ghibli! (03:52 PM EST): Get out those credit cards folks, cause if you're a Ghibli fan, you could be in for a treat. Their most recent theatrical move, Tonari no Yamada-kun (My Neighbors the Yamadas), is coming to VHS & DVD in Japan on November 17th. According to the news page at AnimeNation today, it will feature Japanese dialogue with optional English, French and Chinese subtitles. My guess is that it's region 2 coded, but nothing is firm on that yet. 

Gundam Wing issue (03:47 PM EST): A recently discovered minor issue has cropped up regarding the Gundam Wing release. Or to be more specific, with the mail in for the free action figures. Apparently with the second volume, some of the inserts included that are required to get the action figure are actually VHS inserts. The VHS folks who want to get the action figures need to have more inserts per figure than the DVD (since there are 5 more VHS tapes than DVD's). Bandai is aware of the problem and are looking into some way to resolve this. More than likely, it'll probably have something to do with needing a receipt (since it will say DVD), so hold onto your receipts. We'll post more when it becomes available.

Monday, September 4th, 2000

SF Gathering (08:59 PM EST): The San Francisco gathering is picking up steam, and they've supplied me with some firm info on it, for those who may be interested:

Official Date: 9/9/00
Official Time: 11am (though I think we'll wait till near 12 for stragglers probably)
Official Place: Japan Town Center - Kinokuniya 2F (2nd) 1581 Webster Street

The Boston gathering is going along quite well also. There also appears to be the very beginnings of a SoCal gathering being planned. Odds are later during the week I'll be updating out Conventions forum to become a Conventions & Gatherings forum to accommodate all of this.

Ask LadyCat (01:36 PM EST): She's survived another week of Japanese class and has returned with yet another column. Her 37th in fact! 

Chat transcript (10:18 AM EST): Back on July 27th, a chat was held with the folks at New Generation Pictures, which has now become available to read. Tidbits about Nanako, 3X3 Eyes and more interesting info can be found in it, so check it out.

Hardware (09:30 AM EST): Is it the ultimate anime fan DVD player? Jon Yamaoka has sent us a very detailed and interesting review of the region free/macrovision free Pioneer DV-333 player. 

Newly reviewed (09:18 AM EST): I've taken advantage of a rather quiet Sunday holiday to try and catch up a bit on some backlogged titles for review. We've got Dragonball Z: Captain Ginyu Vol. #1, Dragonball Z: Captain Ginyu Vol. #2 and Urusei Yatsura TV Vol. #5. I think all that's left for our region 1 section to be complete is a couple of Pokemon reviews and the Starblazers disc. 

Saturday, September 2nd, 2000

Region 2 & studio suggestion (08:20 PM EST): We've got a few new region 2 reviews now up, and one of them deserves to be looked at by studios as an interesting  way to... release something fun. Check out Bruce Linley's review of Aika DVD Collection Vol. #1 and then check out Derrick Leong's review of it. Thanks to Derrick for providing both the slipcover and coverless versions of this package. Not enough? How about the first review we've gotten for the new fan favorite title surely to be licensed soon, Love Hina?

August contests (07:07 PM EST): Just a quick note that we are running two contest for August. We've gotten a decent number of entries for the random email contest, but we're coming up short on the design a DVD cover contest. Be sure to check the August contests out!

Alternate angles (07:05 PM EST): We've got a few new region 1 alternate angle reviews today. Joe McCulloch has sent in his thoughts on the recently released Sol Bianca Vol. #2 and Thomas Jason has sent in his experience with the Starblazers Vol. #1 disc.

Friday, September 1st, 2000

AnimEigo PR (04:54 PM EST): The folks at AnimEigo are sending out Urusei Yatsura again and they've got quite a bit to say about it. Interesting reading.

Right Stuf on Imma Youjo (04:54 PM EST): I've been informed that the Imma Youjo: Erotic Temptress DVD release will indeed be soft DVD subtitles. It looks like enough people complained about the hard subtitles on their sub-only release of Cool Devices. Kudos to TRSI for listening to their customers!

Right Stuf does it right (02:09 PM EST): The folks at Right Stuf have done things truly like their namesake today. According to their recent changes page, they've got some sweet stuff coming out this fall. Listed for a 12/31 release (which I believe means a "set in stone" end of year date has been set, since that's a Sunday) is the Irresponsible Captain Tylor. Firstly, these are dual layered (DVD-9) discs. They're available in two flavors; individually across four (7/7/6/6) discs for an MSRP of 34.95 each or in one big box set for 129.95.

But that's not all. For hentai fans like myself, they're bringing out their most recent series from their Critical Mass label, Imma Youjo: Erotic Temptress is slated for 10/22 release. Like Tylor, it's available in two flavors. There are five discs, each 45 minutes in length. They can be purchased separately for 24.95$ or in a big box for 99.95$. These are subtitled only. My speculation is that these will be like their Cool Devices release, with hard subtitles as opposed to soft subtitles.