Wednesday, February 28th, 2001
Digital omake
(06:05 PM EST):
Another piece of
omake has been discovered
for Dual Vol. #3!
Tuesday, February 27th, 2001
Cover art
(08:39 PM EST):
A few new pieces added tonight to a show
that I know some people *cough*Anime
Jump*cough* are really looking forward to, much like me with
Crest of the Stars. Check out the cover art for the
Big O. Also check out
Twin Signal from Media Blasters, Black Heaven Vol. #4 from Pioneer and
Street Fighter TV 1 and 2 from Manga.
Alternate angles
(08:18 PM EST):
A few more alternate angles have made
their way in recently...
Akira Premier
(06:21 PM EST):
The
official Akira site has updated with some juicy news. The Digital
Projection World Premiere of the movie will be at the AMC Empire, Times
Square,
New York City on March 30th, 2001.
The Official Word
(05:49 PM EST):
A big thanks to Bill Flanagan over at Viz
for clarifying the Ranma 1/2 situation with us this afternoon. It looks
like a series of things sort of worked its way through the release
information resulting in the confusion we spoke about earlier in the day.
Here's where things stand according to Viz:
Random Rhapsody DVD #1 Who Do? Voodoo will be released on May 22nd
along with the tape. #2 will be released in June.
All Random Rhapsody DVD's will be bilingual (English/Japanese language
with selectable English subtitles) and will contain three episodes coming
to 78 minutes each.
This also applies to upcoming Ceres: Celestial Legend (Ayashi no Ceres)
DVD's as well.
New title confusion
(02:36 PM EST):
I'm now officially confused. Also listed
at
Right Stuf is the Ranma we knew was coming on
6/19 for 29.95$. But it's listed as Ranma 1/2: Random Rhapsody 2: The Way
We're Not, is only 52 minutes long and is dub only. It's also volume 2!
Volume 1 is listed but for VHS dub only. This completely contradicts the
information given out in Viz's own press release last week as well as
information out of Katsucon that it would be bilingual:
"RANMA 1/2, RANDOM RHAPSODY: THE WAY WE'RE NOT 3 episodes per
volume/English dubbed/color, stereo, 78 mins.//DVD: $29.95
USA/DVDRRR002/VHS: $24.95 USA/VRRR002/ISBN 1-56931-600-7/SHIPS 6/19/2001"
So what is it really? I have no clue. If some kind person from Viz or
Pioneer would let us know, I and
the readers would be most appreciative.
New title announcements
(02:31 PM EST):
A few new announcements arrived today via
Right Stuf. Due on 4/24 from Critical Mass (a label of TRSI) is Mail Order
Maiden. Running time is 45 minutes with a price of 24.95$ and the DVD is
bilingual (no sub tape). Due on 3/13 from Funimation is the oft-delayed
Dragonball Z: Androids Invasion and Dragonball Z: Dr. Gero. Prices for
each are 24.95$ as well.
Monday, February 26th, 2001
Newly reviewed
(09:18 PM EST):
Our latest review this week (and probably
our last until after we move) is
Tenchi
Universe Vol. #7 from Pioneer.
Utena update
(06:09 PM EST):
A bit of information was sent in to us
today from a reader who got a response from Central Park Media about their
upcoming Utena releases. According to the information, the Utena movie
will be out before the end of the year and if things go well, more TV
episodes sometime after that. While I'm glad that more Utena and the movie
itself is coming out, I'm going to firmly put myself in the camp of "Don't
watch the movie until you see the TV series!". While the movie isn't a
word for word sliced down retelling of the TV series, a good many things
would likely be spoiled for those who have yet to see beyond episode
thirteen.
Digital Omake
(06:08 PM EST):
Mmmm, the smell of omake. A
new piece was just
submitted to us today, this time for the Pioneer release of Dual Vol. #3.
February Contest
(06:00 PM EST):
The February
contest has ended
and the winners posted. This one took awhile to read through all the
entries (as we read them all at the end, so as to not predispose ourselves
towards an early entry) and there were a lot of great suggestions. As it
was a historically based contest, the majority of the themes ran along
Roman epics and various stages of Japanese history as well as a few global
World War II ones. One particular one focused on the American Revolution,
which would be quite interesting to see how the Japanese would present it.
As they were historically focused, they tended to
follow political and social movements throughout history and the suggested
storylines almost all were geared towards more "thinking mans" anime and
less of the bouncy girl & her mecha type. Hopefully we'll start to see a
few more coming out in this style this year.
Sunday, February 25th, 2001
Ranma tidbit
(05:41 PM EST):
The most recent press release from Viz
that came out listed the first Ranma 1/2 DVD, as we mentioned earlier last
week with the date of 6/19. Unfortunately, the way they wrote out the
release information it has led some to believe that there is no Japanese
language track. With most retailers, they want to know its dubbed
because dubbed sells things. Add in the fact that the dubbed VHS tape was
included in that section of the release and it has lead to some confusion
(or downright nastiness in the case of some posts about it).
Ask LadyCat
(05:39 PM EST):
Her
first column of the new
has arrived! Check out all the answers and questions that have been sent
in recently.
Saturday, February 24th, 2001
Newly reviewed
(09:30 PM EST):
Catching up a bit on our backlog again,
we've watched and reviewed
Tenchi
Universe Vol. #6 tonight. We'll hit Vol. #7 tomorrow and possibly
Street Fighter Alpha.
New site
(06:53 PM EST):
The latest series specific site from
Central Park Media has been launched, we learned today from Anime Next via
Anime News Service. The Harlock Saga
site contains a lot of interesting things, such as character info,
galleries, press information and several interviews with people such as
the Japanese voice actors and series creative staff. Very cool site and
worth perusing to get a feel for the show.
Friday, February 23rd, 2001
Newly reviewed
(06:55 PM EST):
Due out on 2/27 is the latest from
Pioneer in the form of
Dual Vol. #3.
Much like
Black Heaven, this show continues to be something of a surprise
considering the low opinions held by people who had seen some of it
previously.
Newly licensed... again
(06:39 PM EST):
Is it new license day? According to
Anime News Service via the
Studio Pierrot English website, Tenshi ni Narumon has been acquired for
North American release, which is a 26-episode TV series. No listing of who
actually acquired it is listed though. The show was originally produced by
Bandai Visual, Studio Pierrot, and TV Tokyo, so your guess is as good as
mine.
New title announcement
(05:46 PM EST):
Zeroing in on a date, Viz's latest
information points to a 6/19 release for Ranma 1/2, Random Rhapsody: The
Way We're Not. Running time is 78 minutes (3 episodes) for 29.95$. This is
the first volume of the season six release that's planned for simultaneous
release with the VHS. Hopefully there will be something on the DVD
packaging that will indicate the volume number.
Essential Collection
(03:10 PM EST):
The
latest addition to
the Essential Collection came in today, courtesy of Andrew Tei who had
requested to write up the page for it. We do have others that are owed to
us (including Cowboy Bebop, which is just missing images to use) and hope
to get cycling through them. As always with the Essential Collection,
controversy rages over what should be in there, especially evidenced in
the forum thread this week about Battle Athletes Victory. Be sure to read
our summary page for the
Essential Collection about why we pick certain titles.
More on Macross
(12:16 PM EST):
The folks at AnimEigo have updated a bit
on their main page where they list the current number of preorders for
Macross to be at 10,459. The Macross page itself lists that this was
updated on 1/23, but the main page was listing just over 9,000 earlier
this week..
More on Vandread
(11:54 AM EST):
While still firmly in the rumor phase
until Media Blasters confirms it, more interesting tidbits have surfaced
regarding Vandread. The series
creators, Gonzo (also created Blue Submarine No. 6) apparently contacted
some fansubbing groups both in IRC and through normal webpages to let them
know that the series had indeed been acquired by Media Blasters and to
remove it from their lists. It'll be interesting to see whether people
(not the fansubbing groups) comply with the wishes of the Japanese
licensor and wait for the official releases instead of continuing to
distribute it.
There's also some conflicting information about
the show itself. Some folks have indicated that they've seen a 4:3 version
and others indicate that there's an anamorphic 16:9 version as well. It's
possible that the show has had different airings in Japan and/or the
possible 16:9 version may have been struck with DVD in mind. More info as
it becomes available.
Escaflowne R2
(07:53 AM EST):
Some confusion has come up in the past
couple of days since Anime News Service listed three versions of the
Escaflowne movie due out this coming April. According to one of my most
reliable region 2 news sources, one of those three listed was actually a
VHS and not DVD, according to Bandai's official line-up. BCBA-0771 is the
DD5.1 standard DVD version (7800yen), BCBA-0772 is the DTS Limited Edition
DVD version (9800yen).
Newly licensed
(07:50 AM EST):
According to information from Fanboy
Entertainment via Anime News
Service, Pioneer has acquired US distribution rights for Niea_7
(pronounced as Knee-Ah Under Seven). I've also had two unconfirmed reports
that Media Blasters has acquired Vandread.
Thursday, February 22nd, 2001
Newly reviewed
(10:31 PM EST):
A double deal today for new reviews.
Taking over as lead reviewer for this series here, Mike Breen has sent in
his latest on
Starblazers Vol. #2. Daniel Amsler has also sent in
his
thoughts on the series. Be sure to check them out as well as the
excellent Starblazers primer
we have. Also up on deck today is the latest review from Roman Martel
where he takes a look into the
Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz SE disc.
A bit off-topic
(10:08 PM EST):
But still surely of interest to a number
of readers here. According to
Right Stuf, Bandai has decided to stop
production of the edited Fox version of Escaflowne with volume #4.
Newly reviewed
(10:02 PM EST):
A few new reviews have come in for our
region 2 section today. Sean Kemp takes a look at the new
Sakura Wars TV
Vol. #1 while Samuel Marshall looks into the
Mahoujin Guru
Guru movie.
Digital omake
(09:37 PM EST):
Two new pieces of omake made its way into
us recently. Check out the full
section for new goodies to be found on 3X3 Eyes and Escaflowne Vol.
#4.
Slight site changes
(01:48 PM EST):
The site evolution continues... I've
gotten good feedback on the recent addition of the "To Watch Pile" I had
at the top of the page. That was actually a temporary bit I had put up
prior to last weekend just due to the number of discs I had and people
wondering what had been reviewed and what was slated to be reviewed. It
was not intended to be a permanent piece. It did go over well though, so
I've adjusted it slightly and added it to the right sidebar, along with a
"Recent Reviews" section for those silly folks who for some reason don't
read daily and absorb all the anime DVD goodness.
Robotech
(12:56 PM EST):
For those as anxious as I am for glimpses
at the upcoming Robotech DVD's from ADV, look no further than the
Robotech site itself. At this
article,
they talk about the discs and the CD, though they mention no price ready
yet for the DVD's, even though ADV has confirmed to fan sites that it will
be 14.98$ for 6 episodes per disc for the Macross saga portion of the
series. I believe this is also the first look at the artwork for the first
disc. Hopefully we'll be able to snag more soon.
Wednesday, February 21st, 2001
New in R2 UK
(10:11 PM EST):
UK reader Stephen Moore sent us in a
juicy tidbit today. Though no date was given, a timeframe of March/April
was given. It appears that Kiseki will be releasing Gunbuster on one dual
layered disc later this year, Japanese language only with subtitles.
Extras include a "photo gallery", "biographies" and "reviews"
Contest
(09:17 PM EST):
Don't forget! Tomorrow is the deadline
for our contest
that has the two volume Samurai X/Rurouni Kenshin DVD along with a Lone
Wolf & Cub graphic novel! Enter now! Minimal effort could win you some
nice free DVD's!
Slightly advance review
(09:11 PM EST):
Due out on 2/27, the final volume for
Sakura
Diaries arrived on our doorstop today. After taking in the entire
series now, all I've got to say is that I'd buy it again.
(double disc subtitled only home video version with creditless
openings/endings please)
Disc delay
(07:25 AM EST):
According to AnimEigo via
Right Stuf, Urusei Yatsura Vol. #1 will be
delayed by about six weeks from it's original 2/27 release date. No word
given as to why.
Monday, February 19th, 2001
Advance review
(09:33 PM EST):
Due out on 3/27, we've compiled our
thoughts while trying to avoid spoilers on
Neon Genesis Evangelion Collection 0:5. Trying not to talk about all
the cool things that start showing up here is hard to do though!
Priced right
(11:32 AM EST):
No dates have come in yet, but according
to ADV via Katsucon, the Robotech DVD's will be priced at a nice 14.98$
and have between 5-6 episodes per disc. I can't wait to replace my VHS
versions of this show.
Alternate angles
(08:48 AM EST):
Now that our technical problems are fully
resolved, we're digging into the stack of alternate angle reviews that we
have in our inbox...
Sunday, February 18th, 2001
Advance review 2
(09:37 PM EST):
Due out on 3/27, ADV's got a kick butt
release that I've been waiting ages for. Check out our thoughts on the
upcoming release for
Gunsmith Cats:
Bulletproof.
Advance review
(09:37 PM EST):
Due out on 2/27, Pioneer's got another in
their top of the line releases in both disc and content in the form of
Black Heaven
Vol. #3. This show continues to knock our socks off.
Newly reviewed
(05:50 PM EST):
Making a bit more of a dent in our pile
this weekend, we've completed our review for
Neon Genesis Evangelion Collection 0:4.
Katsu tidbit?
(05:24 PM EST):
According to chat regular "bludstone",
Viz indicated that one of my favorite shows will be DVD bound from them
this summer. Being released across two discs, the Video Girl Ai OVA series
will finally make it's U.S. debut on DVD.
Newly reviewed
(09:22 AM EST):
The final volume has arrived, and we're
definitely glad it's all over. Check out our thoughts on
Amazing Nurse Nanako Vol. #3.
Saturday, February 17th, 2001
Newly reviewed
(11:43 PM EST):
We finally conquered our technical
difficulties tonight and have started in on our reviews again. First up is
Sailor
Moon S TV Vol. #1. According to our list above, Amazing Nurse Nanako
Vol. #3 will be next, and we're a third of the way into the absolutely
great looking Gunsmith Cats disc.
Con news
(09:23 AM EST):
The first report out of Katsucon this
weekend has surfaced from information from the Anime on DVD panel Friday
night. You can read the full
text here. Some
of the information worth noting here is Maison Ikkoku will definitely be
out on DVD this year (3 episodes a disc likely) as well as the
simultaneous season six release of Ranma 1/2 with 3 episodes a disc
(24.95$ is what we discovered for price this past week). Box sets are in
the works for earlier seasons with some decent sounding extras.
KareKano is slated to get something released this
year, but probably not the entire thing. The interesting thing is that
it's being planned the same as Tylor, 4 discs in total.
Friday, February 16th, 2001
Cover art
(09:21 PM EST):
Even more new pieces have made it into
our galleries today.
Latest updates include Magic Users Club OVA Vol. #1, Moldiver and
Geo-Armor (aka Kishin Corps).
Thursday, February 15th, 2001
Cover art
(09:53 PM EST):
A few new pieces were added today to the
gallery
including Cardcaptor Sakura Vol. #3 and Sakura Diaries Vol. #4.
Newly reviewed
(09:31 PM EST):
Completing out last nights review, we've
added the content portion of our
Irresponsible Captain Tylor Vol. #1 review. The only problem? No disc
2 yet! Argh!
Digital omake
(08:11 PM EST):
Nope, I'm not content with getting the
first Tylor disc early, I've also managed to find some sweet pieces of
digital omake on it!
New record
(08:05 PM EST):
A bit of a milestone for myself today...
according to our DVD Profiler records, we entered our 1000th DVD into our
library today, as well as two more after that! What came in at #1000?
Amazing Nurse Nanako Vol. #3. What a way to start off the next 1000 discs
than by some bounciness?
New in R2
(10:57 AM EST):
The latest batch of region 2 Japan
announcements came in today from CD
Japan. You can check out the latest CD/DVD and even VHS releases
here.
Wednesday, February 14th, 2001
Sorcerer Hunters
(09:56 PM EST):
After we posted the artwork to the first
volume of Sorcerer Hunters in our
gallery, a lot of talk
has gone on in both the forum and chat about it. The cover, which uses the
logo found in the show itself, just didn't quite strike the fancy of a lot
of fans and they offered their thoughts on it in multiple threads (some
more polite than others). David Williams of ADV posted in one of the
threads tonight with some interesting new information regarding the cover.
The first disc and cover has already been finished and is making its way
to retailers (though not due out till late March), so there's nothing that
can be done about that batch now. However, the cover for volume two will
be done more in the vein of the VHS releases. But what about the disparity
between the two? You know how picky anime fans are, with the distracting
purple Battle Athletes Victory spine amidst the collection of black ones.
Well, contrary to a segment of fandom who continues to paint ADV as folks
who don't listen to their fans, they're going to go back and redo the
cover for volume one for future pressings.
But what if you end up with one of the first
pressing covers, as is likely if you've got it on preorder? "We'll print
some extra covers and work up some sort of exchange program where you can
get the new cover if you'd like. Details to follow." Kudos to ADV for
going to this extra expense (and it is one, don't think otherwise) and
trying to please fans of the show. Of course, those with their agendas
against ADV will continue on as they always do.
Slightly advance review
(09:42 PM EST):
Our review copy (1st off the replication
press, it didn't even get silkscreened!) arrived today from TRSI. While
we've only had a chance to watch through the first four episodes of the
seven included, we've written up the technical review of
Irresponsible Captain Tylor Vol. #1. Once we complete it tomorrow
night, we'll add the content portion of the review and any tweaks that may
be necessary for the technical side.
New title announcements
(09:00 PM EST):
The
Right Stuf site has updated with new dates for a
few upcoming Manga titles. Black Magic M-66 is due on 6/26 for 24.95, Amon
Saga is due on 5/29 for 24.95 and Appleseed is due on 4/24 for 24.95. Due
to our current limitations mentioned yesterday, we can't update our
database, but will do so as soon as we can.
Diamond updates
(03:15 PM EST):
Getting earlier and earlier (and less in
touch with late announcements), the March Diamond Previews was updated
with items shipping in May this year. A large percentage of the titles
listed are already known, so we won't cover those yet again. But there are
some interesting things mentioned in there. The first is a Cardcaptor
Sakura DVD holder listed in the international section for 7.99$ (which I
don't believe is the same as the DVD boxes that some got earlier this year
from Animaxis). An Astro Boy DVD holder is also listed for 7.99$. What I
believe is the first of the newest season of Ranma 1/2 is listed, Ranma
1/2 Random Rhapsody Vol. #1 for 29.95$ though content itself is unknown.
The Bastard OVA DVD collection is listed in two variants, the DVD by
itself for 29.99$ and another one that includes a figure for 49.99$. The
Fushigi Yugi OVA box set is listed with a price of 69.99$. As actual dates
for these titles are announced, we'll add them to our upcoming listings.
Akira: Double your fun
(03:02 PM EST):
Continuing with the interesting new
information today, we've now learned that Akira will definitely be
receiving a great treatment from Pioneer. The two DVD's are due out on
7/3/2001. Two DVD's you say? Well, how about three in reality? In addition
to the 24.95 standard edition Akira DVD, there will be a 34.95 Deluxe
Edition double disc set. The second disc is entirely extras, such as the
Making of Akira production report, a documentary on the creation of the
soundtrack and other unspecified extras still to be listed. We've also
learned that the Dolby Digital 5.1 track is for the English only, the
Japanese track will retain it's original theatrical soundtrack format
which I believe is stereo, as the movie does date back to the late 80's.
Which version will you choose?
Feel the pain of our wallet
(01:36 PM EST):
And join in the pain I say. According to
the product listing
here at AMO, Tokyo, a Japanese online retailer, the next big release
from Production I.G., entitled Blood: The Last Vampire, is getting its
Japanese release on 4/25 in three different flavors. The one
that gets our juices jumping though is the 120$ three disc box set that
looks to contain a limited edition box, Disc 1: Movie Film version, Disc
2: Movie Digital Master Version, Disc3: Special bonus movies, a Shot
board, a screenplay book and more unlisted items. There's been a lot of
interesting buzz about this title and this style of release backs it up.
Of course, for those unable to play region 2 titles, Manga Entertainment
will be releasing the movie (we don't know if it's the Digital Master or
just the film version) on 7/31 here in region 1.
Castle of Cagliostro
(01:22 PM EST):
File this under the "oh my god, gimme
gimme gimme" category. According to
this
post in our forum today, the Japanese region 2 release of Castle of
Cagliostro has been delayed from it's March 7th date to an April 26th
date. Why? Well, how about adding a second disc that will be filled with
information how the movie fits into the Lupin III continuity, trailers,
and an overview of Miyazaki's work, including a preview of the new
Miyazaki movie, coming out theatrically this summer. On the downside, it
looks like the second disc will not be English subtitled, but there's
bound to be a lot of interesting things in there for Lupin fans. And the
really sweet thing? The price has remained the same at 4700 yen. The
actual movie itself will have the original mono and stereo remixed
Japanese tracks and English dub track. There will also be Japanese and
English subtitle tracks
Tylor information
(12:14 PM EST):
We've received some new information this
morning regarding the near imminent release of the Irresponsible Captain
Tylor on DVD. According to what we've been told by the good folks at TRSI,
all the discs are now in replication. Those who ordered directly will
receive theirs first, and then the shipment to the retailers will be made.
They're just within days of shipping to those who ordered directly from
them.
Work has also just begun on the Tylor OVA
release, which will be across three DVD's (two single layered discs and
one dual layered disc). A May/June slot is being targeted for these at the
moment.
Tuesday, February 13th, 2001
Newly reviewed
(09:59 PM EST):
It's either all or nothing here
sometimes. We went through the weekend with nothing new to watch or review
and then today over a half dozen new discs come in. Tonight we sat down
and watched the audio/video treat that is
Sol Bianca: The
Legacy Vol. #3, which brings this OVA series to its conclusion.
Tomorrow we should have our first look at the Irresponsible Captain Tylor
TV Vol. #1 disc, and then a lot of stuff throughout the remainder of the
week and into the weekend, with the possibility of Gunsmith Cats!
Site note
(06:51 PM EST):
Just a quick note here that I'm currently
having a few "technical difficulties" in updating the site. Everything on
the site itself should be fully accessible and the forum is up and running
as well.
Saturday, February 10th, 2001
Alternate angles
(08:57 PM EST):
Trying to catch up while a bit of free
time has emerged, we've got a few alternate angle reviews ready today. As
always, alternate angle reviews aren't proofed for spoilers, so read at
your own risk.
Cover art
(12:07 PM EST):
A few new pieces have been added, such as
Gunsmith Cats, Sorcerer Hunters and Sol Bianca Vol. #3 to our
cover art
gallery.
Friday, February 9th, 2001
UK Release
(07:03 PM EST):
For those in the UK or those able to
import and handle PAL discs, Battle of the Planets is apparently arriving
there in dub-only form. Check out
Anime Digital
for more info.
Kenshin replacement
(04:33 PM EST):
Swapped out copies of the Rurouni Kenshin
TV Vol. #1 are finally making it both into retailer and customer hands
these days, and it looks like there's some interesting changes with it.
The first change is one way that you can tell which version you have, but
only if you actually open the package. The new version is produced on a
DVD-9, or dual layered, disc. This means that the bottom side of it will
be gold-reflective as opposed to the silver-reflective DVD-5 single layer
disc.
The phase inversion of the audio tracks has been
fixed, but the first episode is still reversed (as opposed to the original
disc where all four episodes were reversed). The subtitles have been
tweaked in terms of spelling mistakes and the main menu now has music. The
layout of the disc is also similar to more recent ones from Media
Blasters, which means the branched openings/endings are gone and one
straight video track is laid out instead.
Also noted is that with it now being dual
layered, video quality is much improved over the original release. The one
seeming downside is that the image gallery is short many of the pictures
that were on the original release.
New in R2
(04:15 PM EST):
The newest batch of
announcements came in to
us today from CD Japan. Of interest
is two Gundam movies, F91 and Char's Counterattack (Japanese subtitled
only sadly) as well as the third and final volume of Gunbuster. Check out
the list for more DVD's and CD's.
Newly reviewed
(03:57 PM EST):
Our latest review is one of my favorite
series and a section of which I found to be one of the best parts of it,
Escaflowne Vol.
#4.
Petitions
(11:14 AM EST):
A few new petitions were sent to us
recently and we've added links to them in our
petitions page. This time
around the efforts include uncut original language Pokemon movies,
subtitled Captain Harlock, subtitled Yu Yu Hakusho TV from Funimation and
an effort to get Pioneer to put more episodes per disc.
Press
(11:05 AM EST):
The folks at ADV have sent out their
latest press release talking
about their April VHS & DVD releases.
New title announcement
(10:58 AM EST):
The second volume has been announce for
the Sailor Moon S TV series. This 140 minute disc is due out on 4/10 with
an MSRP of 29.95$.
Wednesday, February 7th, 2001
Digital Omake
(08:09 PM EST):
The latest sweet little hidden extra has
surfaced today on the Fatal Fury OVA disc from Pioneer. Check out our
Digital Omake section for
it and many others!
Akira distribution?
(08:03 PM EST):
Has Pioneer picked a distributor for
their Akira theatrical release? If you go by the information
here, it looks as if Warner Bros. will be handling it. While I don't
expect a Pokemon Movie level of advertising, Warner Bros. does do a solid
job in promoting movies that they handle distribution for. This flick
could go pretty wide. Thanks to JP Kellams for the tip.
Outlawed Contest
(08:01 PM EST):
The folks over at
The Artist's Website are
running a contest for Outlaw Star DVD related to the TV broadcast. Check
it out!
Disc delays
(07:33 PM EST):
According to
AnimeNation, Gasaraki 4 and 5 have been delayed
with no new date set. Information from ADV indicates that things are
moving a bit slowly on the production side (with a cast of 120 actors, I'm
not surprised) and that when they do have firm dates, they'll be
announced; the series is not on hiatus. The Tylor set from TRSI has also
gotten a new date of 2/20.
Tuesday, February 6th, 2001
Newly reviewed
(09:06 PM EST):
Dipping into the new release pile backlog
we gained today, we took in a viewing of
Escaflowne Vol.
#3 this evening and have finished our review of it.
New title announcement
(11:57 AM EST):
Well, this is certainly a surprise. On
5/8, CPM will be releasing Project A-Ko OVA's 2, 3 and 4 on one single
disc with a running time of 180 minutes for 29.99$. Japanese and English
languages included.
Newly reviewed
(11:39 AM EST):
We're buried in under a foot and a half
of snow up here in the second biggest storm we've had this season, so what
better to do while recovering from shoveling (oh my back!) than to sit
back in our chair and write up our
Blue Seed Vol. #1
review?
Monday, February 5th, 2001
New title announcements
(09:08 PM EST):
The latest
press release came out today from
Media Blasters that details all of their releases due out on 5/29 this
year, and it's a bit of a doozy with a wide range of titles for DVD that
include:
- Office Affairs & Co- Ed Affairs (29.95)
- Magic Users Club (Maho Tsukai Tai) Vol. #2 (24.95)
- Samurai: Hunt for the Sword (24.95)
- Rurouni Kenshin Vol. #8 (29.95)
- Elf Princess Rane (24.95)
If you haven't heard of some of these titles, do check out the press
release as it gives a good synopsis of each of them.
Good call
(05:33 PM EST):
Some new information cropped up on the
forum today regarding the upcoming (yet no date set for) Princess Nine TV
series from ADV. This 27 episode series was originally being planned for a
9 disc release (It's a baseball show... get it? 9 disc? 9 innings! Got
it?) has been changed and is now set for a 6 disc release with the first
disc set for 5 episodes. More information should be showing up as this is
a likely Summer 2001 release. While I really did like the whole marketing
aspect, you really have to love the number of 6 disc series coming out of
ADV lately. Even the complainers have to agree.
Petitions
(05:25 PM EST):
Two new
petitions added today, one
for Rose of Versailles to come to region 1 and another for more anime on
Sci-Fi Channel.
Tweaking
(05:21 PM EST):
As with any site, we're always evolving.
Based on some feedback we've gotten recently as well as the addition of
some new artwork from my fave artist Riki LeCotey, we've now added a
section on our reviews (going forward) for an overall disc rating.
Trigun Vol. #6
is the first such review to receive the overall rating, and you can
check here to see how they
can be interpreted. I do expect to be tweaking the "definitions" a bit
more in the coming weeks.
Newly announced
(05:17 PM EST):
Newly announced right here on our very
own forums today are two new titles from ADV Films. Due out on 4/17, Neon
Genesis Evangelion Vol. #6 and Martian Successor Nadesico Vol. #4. Both
list for 29.95 each. Evangelion was mentioned to be on track for finishing
by June, so expect the last two volumes to follow in May and June.
Tylor contest winners
(05:15 PM EST):
The
Tylor contest
has ended, the winners have been contacted and their winning entries have
been posted on our page. Be sure to check that out as well as our
latest contest!
Big thanks to the folks at
Right Stuf for supplying the Tylor box set to
begin with and then for adding another box to the pile and giving away
secondary prizes. They indeed went above and beyond for the fans here!
Sunday, February 4th, 2001
Contest!
(06:49 PM EST):
We should have the final results tomorrow
evening for the January Tylor contest (it took longer than expected to get
everything together due to the size of some of the images). But since
we're in February, let's kick off our
first contest of
this month!
Newly reviewed
(06:48 PM EST):
Catching up a bit more today we've
finished our review of
Trigun Vol. #6.
That brings us to a total of 30 episodes worth of anime this weekend.
Yikes!
Studio Challenge
(12:21 PM EST):
Our
Studio
Challenge page has been updated with our January acquisitions, and boy
are things growing! Some of our toys are being shifted next month to be
sure! Speaking of next month, please give us a little extra time to get
that in as the Challenge is usually photographed at the first weekend of
the month, and that weekend we'll be moving.
Advance review
(11:31 AM EST):
The first big release of 2001 from
Pioneer comes in the form of
3 x 3 Eyes, a
complete seven episode OVA series done in 91 & 95. The official street
date for it is still listed as 2/27.
Saturday, February 3rd, 2001
Newly reviewed
(11:44 PM EST):
Taking care of a big part of our backlog,
we've finally gotten through all of
Slayers Next
today. With luck, tomorrow will have Trigun 6 and 3X3 Eyes.
Friday, February 2nd, 2001
Newly licensed?
(07:11 PM EST):
There's some discrepancy among interested
parties, but according to posts made on our forum today, ADV indicated
that they have indeed licensed Senkaiden Houshin Engi. This came as a
surprise to a lot of people as none remember it being mentioned during the
2000 convention season. Click
here to see pages
related to it on the net.
Top ten
(04:13 PM EST):
Our
top ten for
January and the first two days of February have been updated. At the end
of this month, we'll start up the overall for 2001.
Thursday, February 1st, 2001
New R2 announcements
(11:04 PM EST):
The latest
announcements came in
today from CD Japan for upcoming
CD's and DVD's.
New R2 Reviews
(10:59 PM EST):
A couple of new region 2 reviews have
been submitted recently and I've taken a few minutes away from mad
mortgage papers to get them set up. Check out Kenneth Lee's thoughts on
the Street Fighter
Zero: The Animation Limited Edition DVD and Carlos Diaz Cheung takes a
look at the newly released and highly anticipated
Card Captor
Sakura Movie 2 disc.
True closure
(10:21 PM EST):
For those who watched the great series
Battle Athletes Victory, it looks as if something was missed when it was
brought to the US. As often happens in Japan, when a TV series is released
to home video, an extra bit or two often show up here and there. For
Battle Athletes Victory, this was a series of animation and stills at the
end of the last episode that brings you closure on each of the characters
lives. Kenneth Lee has taken the time to
map
out all of these paths the characters take as well as some
screenshots. Check it out!
Petitions
(09:22 PM EST):
Two new
petitions were sent in to us
today, this time for Hand Maid May and for the Mysterious Cities of Gold.
Advance preview
(08:45 PM EST):
This weekend we'll be compiling our
latest advance review as we got in our copy of 3X3 Eyes today. We've
watched the first four episodes so far, comprising the original OVA series
from 91-92. To quell what has been a somewhat constant "fear" among folks
waiting to buy this, this double disc set is not like previous sets from
Pioneer. 3X3 Eyes comes in a very nice double alpha keepcase and even
contains a removable tattoo! Stay tuned Saturday for our full blown
review. |
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