The all things Anime related thread.
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Soldato
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I think i'm going to wait for a thinpack release of Kanon, despite having got the first disk (still unwatched), as i've realised i'm still going to have a space problem in here for disks
Gurren Lagann is one of the series I really do want to watch, but i'll be waiting for an English dub release, and possibly to see if Beez announce it for here (they've been surprising me fairly consistently).
I watched Patlabor Wasted XIII last night, which looks superb, even just the nomal DVD on my new TV*, I think i'm going to watch the Mini Pato episodes in the next couple of days.
Moonphases is cute/funny, but as you say a bit odd at the end.
*So far i've been extremely impressed with how the TV deals with SD material, i'm using RGB for my DVD player at the moment
I think you are probably right to wait for a thinpack release for Kanon if you only have disk one. Now that it's licensed by Funimation you know that it will probably have one out, and I suspect that it won't be much after volume six of the original release to cut into the market of people who may pick up all five disks of the original ADV release plus disk 6 on the cheap.
Finding the urge to abandon singles for boxsets quite a bit lately, examples being Shana where I have vol #1 on R2 but Funimation have announced a R1 boxset for September and School Rumble where, although I have vols #1 and #2 and the nice metal box, the release schedule for R2 doesn't have it finishing until next April(!) whilst the R1 boxset is out this month.
Having seen the first eight episodes on the first DVD set I'd think that Gurren Lagann would be a candidate for Loopstah collection of the best of the best. Good graphics, reasonable plot, humour and lots of mecha action. English Dub version is supposed to be out, I think, sometime in the beginning of next year ... being impatient I just went for the sub release.
I've been reading quite a bit of manga recently, mosty odd vol #1's which I have picked up as they looked interesting, (and now can't remember the names of
), but also Fruit Basket vol #1 and #2, Kujibiki Unbalance vol #1 and Pita-ten vol #1-#4 all of which were good.
Soldato
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Chobits is a nice series
... if you like that you may well like DearS, (similar concept but with computers replaced by aliens)Edit: Just had an email back from the place I get R1 DVDs from regarding Code Geass and the problems with the authoring of the disks as reported on the AoD forums. They have been told by their distributor that there will be a delay in them getting the disks due to the reported problems so hopefully the issue is being addressed and they have said they will be following up with customers to make sure the batches they get do work. I've got the Limited Edition on pre-order as it's a series which looked quite good from what I had heard about it but in this sort of situation I don't mind the delay. So if anyone is waiting for this and haven't had their order yet then it being delayed may be a good thing.
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Another vote for Dears,Really enjoyable easy to follow
Watched the first 2 discs of maria-same(relatives turned up so did not get to finish all)
Bit disappointing really
quality was not significantly better than my `other` version
Nasty yellow subs
Some really irritating translations(goki genyu being translated as both good morning and good afternoon)
And the big sister instead of onii-sama
Will have to think really hard if i want to get the other 2 series
Minor quibbles i know but if they had done a proper job(i.e. had a go at dubbing into English I would have been a lot happier paying my money because as it is now when i watch it i am expecting a different word on the subs as i have watched the `previous version`
Watched the first 2 discs of maria-same(relatives turned up so did not get to finish all)
Bit disappointing really
quality was not significantly better than my `other` version
Nasty yellow subs
Some really irritating translations(goki genyu being translated as both good morning and good afternoon)
And the big sister instead of onii-sama
Will have to think really hard if i want to get the other 2 series
Minor quibbles i know but if they had done a proper job(i.e. had a go at dubbing into English I would have been a lot happier paying my money because as it is now when i watch it i am expecting a different word on the subs as i have watched the `previous version`
Soldato
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Another vote for Dears,Really enjoyable easy to follow
Watched the first 2 discs of maria-same(relatives turned up so did not get to finish all)
Bit disappointing really
quality was not significantly better than my `other` version
Nasty yellow subs
Some really irritating translations(goki genyu being translated as both good morning and good afternoon)
And the big sister instead of onii-sama
Will have to think really hard if i want to get the other 2 series
Minor quibbles i know but if they had done a proper job(i.e. had a go at dubbing into English I would have been a lot happier paying my money because as it is now when i watch it i am expecting a different word on the subs as i have watched the `previous version`
I'm sorry to hear that you think that ... but I would make the following comments ....
- Quality, the visuals are simple and there isn't any fast action so given a good source encoding it for unofficial distribution whilst retaining reasonable quality would have been quite simple so a vast improvement wasn't to be expected.
- Nasty yellow subs - I don't think that I've come across a DVD where the subs themselves are as visually appealing as those on other versions. I don't know enough aout DVD authoring to comment on what limitations there maybe.
- The Goki genyu greeting .... agree with you here and I've argued with people about that elsewhere.
- Big sister .... I was listening to the audio track whilst watching the subs and I agree that there are fewer onee-sama's here than in the original release but I would not necessarily say that in all cases the DVD is in the wrong ... my Japanese is negligable but there are times where before we'd have onee-sama but that does not appear in the audio track and the translation is big sister so it may be that a phrase other than onee-sama is being used.
I am keeping my pre-order for the other seasons and don't think the differences and errors are bad enough to detract from my enjoyment of the DVD release. If you watch different versions of a seres then there will be differences in translation as sub tracks at times seem to be more of an art than a science. I doubt that a dub track would have improved matters, particularly as it would have probably been of the main sub track instead of the honorific one, and as it's not a mass appeal series it would have been to expensive to produce.
I think a dub track would have given it a fresh new appeal to me at least(if they made a good job of course)
As for the translation issues i too don`t know enough Japanese to give an accurate description(but i suppose that because the `other` version i have seen many times i have learned the script by heart...nearly
and any differences shout out to meI see what you are saying about the quality though,there is not a great deal of hi res images in the series so expecting a higher quality dvd is perhaps too optimistic of me
I may end up getting the other series but i won`t preorder just yet.Will wait and see how i enjoy subsequent rewatchings
IIRC the DVD spec only allows for a handful of safe fonts (in a handful of sizes), for them to be static, and only for 4 colours total to be used - normally done so you have two contrasting colours for easy reading on most screens (an outline, filled with a contrasting colour).
The positioning is also done to allow for the fact that a lot of older screens have "overscan" which means you can only put subs reliably in a certain area of the screen.
Things like the ADV vid notes, jiggle counter etc are all really pushing the spec (iirc the jiggle counter was in part a way for ADV to check that vid notes would work, as it used the same coding).
Remember DVD specs were set something like 10 years ago and for a disk to be classed as a DVD it has to abide by them, and even then there are some players that don't like certain things (PS2 i'm looking at you
), so has some fairly serious limitations in what it can manage in terms of anything other than normal playback of the A/V Streams.Fansubs can manage different things because they either hard encode the subs etc onto the image (something DVD's tend not to), or because they are using the processing power of the PC to do various things (hence the fun and games with codecs at times).
I think it's Animeago who have a very interesting set of notes/articles on their site about how/why they do some things the way they do.
They started using the two contrasting colours per sub, with up to two sets on their original VHS releases due to a combination of what looked best, and the limitations on their subtitling equipment, and the official DVD spec just happened to end up with the same sort of solution to subs (which is why their subs haven't changed much in appearance for 20 years).
Things should be a bit better with the new formats.
From I can remember both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray allow for much more to be done with subs, but i've got a feeling it was HD-DVD that actually had the better options from the word go**.
I know blu-ray players have at least 2 specs, with some features that were standard on HD-DVD only being adopted for the newer blu-ray players and I think the PS3*, so if distributors play it safe on the compatibility front blu-ray still might have some limitations in regards to subs etc.
Oops, gone way off topic
*Due to it's nature they were able to update it's functionality.
**I beleive network connections, and picture in picture (for things like storyboards/interviews/commentaries to be shown at the same time as the main feature) were standard in V1 of the HD spec, but only adopted by the later blu-ray players.
Soldato
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Yep i think that the Blu-ray thing is profile 1 vs profile 2 .... it's the one thing that the ps3 has going for it on blu-ray, Sony will keep it updated as it wouldn't do for it to have titles it couldn't play well / at all.
I think the page on AnimeEigo you are refering to is the the secret history under about us ... it's a good read, thanks for pointing it out, (VHS subbing madness on early Macs)
I do prefer the subtitles in fansubs over those on legit DVDs, they are often easier to read and nicer to look at but they'd be way out of spec ... I have had issue in the past with ones in mkv files using vlc as a player (but nothing I can't deal with). And seeing how they have done the karaoke subs for the theme songs is always fun.
In my ideal world you could get legit "fansubs", i'd be happy with xvid/mp3 encoding in non-HD with no-DRM, for a couple of dollars a pop (*) prior to the DVD release ... i'd happily pay that and still get the DVD/Blu-ray release to have a decent archive copy ... but hardly anyone else would so it's not going to happen ....
(*) Yep i realise that for a 26 episode release that would cost more than a DVD boxset but that would be $2 (~£1) a week for six months not a one shot deal and you would not mind to drop a couple of quid to try a series and if you don't like it then you haven't lost much.
Dragging the thread back on topic (kicking and screaming) .... watched some more of Beck earlier .... really a lot better than I expected ...
I think the page on AnimeEigo you are refering to is the the secret history under about us ... it's a good read, thanks for pointing it out, (VHS subbing madness on early Macs)
I do prefer the subtitles in fansubs over those on legit DVDs, they are often easier to read and nicer to look at but they'd be way out of spec ... I have had issue in the past with ones in mkv files using vlc as a player (but nothing I can't deal with). And seeing how they have done the karaoke subs for the theme songs is always fun.
In my ideal world you could get legit "fansubs", i'd be happy with xvid/mp3 encoding in non-HD with no-DRM, for a couple of dollars a pop (*) prior to the DVD release ... i'd happily pay that and still get the DVD/Blu-ray release to have a decent archive copy ... but hardly anyone else would so it's not going to happen ....
(*) Yep i realise that for a 26 episode release that would cost more than a DVD boxset but that would be $2 (~£1) a week for six months not a one shot deal and you would not mind to drop a couple of quid to try a series and if you don't like it then you haven't lost much.
Dragging the thread back on topic (kicking and screaming) .... watched some more of Beck earlier .... really a lot better than I expected ...
Soldato
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I think a dub track would have given it a fresh new appeal to me at least(if they made a good job of course)
As for the translation issues i too don`t know enough Japanese to give an accurate description(but i suppose that because the `other` version i have seen many times i have learned the script by heart...nearly
I see what you are saying about the quality though,there is not a great deal of hi res images in the series so expecting a higher quality dvd is perhaps too optimistic of me
I may end up getting the other series but i won`t preorder just yet.Will wait and see how i enjoy subsequent rewatchings
Incidentally, have you submitted any questions to put to the original author over at the TRSI Maria-sama site? I submitted questions asking if she was surprised by the stories being liked so much outside Japan and whether she should like to see the original novels and the manga translated into English.
(I did actually email Tokyopop earlier and asked them if they have any plans to do an English release for this series seeing as they have both the novels and the manga out in German ... doubt I'll get a response)
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Woot
Emma Season 2 has a release date, October 28th
I wonder what I should put my name down as this time...
It looks like ADV is also pushing out box sets for Macross ($90rrp), and a $60* set for Southern Cross / Genesis Climber Mospead (20 hours worth) around that time
I suspect i'll be getting them, despite already having the Animeigo Macross sets (i'm interested to hear how the Japanese VA for Minmay sounds in English).
It would mean I can finally put my lovely Macross metal box to use holding Macross
memyselfandi, thats the stuff, profile 1 and 2 for blu-ray.
*About $34 at dvdp at a guess
Emma Season 2 has a release date, October 28th
I wonder what I should put my name down as this time...
It looks like ADV is also pushing out box sets for Macross ($90rrp), and a $60* set for Southern Cross / Genesis Climber Mospead (20 hours worth) around that time
I suspect i'll be getting them, despite already having the Animeigo Macross sets (i'm interested to hear how the Japanese VA for Minmay sounds in English).
It would mean I can finally put my lovely Macross metal box to use holding Macross
memyselfandi, thats the stuff, profile 1 and 2 for blu-ray.
*About $34 at dvdp at a guess
Is the animeigo one the one with the 3 older series in? Whats different with the new onesWoot
It looks like ADV is also pushing out box sets for Macross ($90rrp), and a $60* set for Southern Cross / Genesis Climber Mospead (20 hours worth) around that time
I suspect i'll be getting them, despite already having the Animeigo Macross sets (i'm interested to hear how the Japanese VA for Minmay sounds in English).
It would mean I can finally put my lovely Macross metal box to use holding Macross
Animeigo's release was the original Macross subbed, uncut and remastered - iirc the first time it had been released uncut in the west (Harmony Gold released it, Southern Cross and Mosepedia in an edited form as Robotech).
The ADV release is basically the same masters as the Animeigo release (HG still held the licence, but allowed Animeigo to release the subbed version in return for doing much of the remastering/restoration work), but the ADV version also has an English track, done with the original Minmay playing her role again, this time in English.
I think the ADV Mosepdia/Southern Cross set are just subbed, but are uncut.
Skeeter, Noien is good, but pretty confusing at first (at least to me).
The ADV release is basically the same masters as the Animeigo release (HG still held the licence, but allowed Animeigo to release the subbed version in return for doing much of the remastering/restoration work), but the ADV version also has an English track, done with the original Minmay playing her role again, this time in English.
I think the ADV Mosepdia/Southern Cross set are just subbed, but are uncut.
Skeeter, Noien is good, but pretty confusing at first (at least to me).
Yeah i was confused to hell at the start but im up to episode 13 and im kinda wrapping my head around it all now. Might give it a 2nd viewing as its good enough and it should make more sence next time around.
Btw anyone know a good ova thats a bit like urotsukidoji with regards to end of the world stuff and or with demons and loads of violence? I have seen loads of anime since and yet still nothing quite compares to the apocalypse story that had.
Btw anyone know a good ova thats a bit like urotsukidoji with regards to end of the world stuff and or with demons and loads of violence? I have seen loads of anime since and yet still nothing quite compares to the apocalypse story that had.
I tend to use dvdpacific for R1 dvd's (generally a 30-40% discount on rrp as standard, and relatively low shipping cost), just be careful to keep individual orders under the customs limit (about $35 at the moment) and use the "ship seperately" option (otherwise they combine what is available from different orders using the other shipping options to try and save you money on shipping).
Rightstuff can have some great offers, but for day to day disks they aren't the cheapest for the UK (shipping is a minimum of $10).
Other than that I tend to use whoever is cheapest in the UK for R2UK disks, most DVD retailers sell them although some are very expensive compared to others (anime-on-line.co.uk sell all sorts of anime/manga, and offer a decent discount on pre-orders, and some great discounts on some items but often aren't the cheapest for stuff that isn't new, or old but middling).
Rightstuff can have some great offers, but for day to day disks they aren't the cheapest for the UK (shipping is a minimum of $10).
Other than that I tend to use whoever is cheapest in the UK for R2UK disks, most DVD retailers sell them although some are very expensive compared to others (anime-on-line.co.uk sell all sorts of anime/manga, and offer a decent discount on pre-orders, and some great discounts on some items but often aren't the cheapest for stuff that isn't new, or old but middling).
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