It is pretty clear that FUNimation’s roll out of their new license Shikabane Hime onto streaming video websites on Friday trumped what little bit of buzz ADV planned to generate with its Monday license revelations, not only because the title debuted only three weeks ago on Japanese television but also because of the strings and behavior involved in what will be the company’s most ambitious venture into digital distribution yet.
Let me make this clear before I proceed: I will not intentionally imply or assert that FUNimation has any ill intentions despite what the title of this editorial might suggest through subtle reference to contemporary politics; I simply wish to flesh out the many promises and concerns I have about their influence on how the handling of Japanese animation in North America will evolve in the near future. I will give them respect when due but I will also not hold back on expressing any pertinent criticisms.
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Tags: drm, Editorial, funimation, gainax, hulu, joost, shikabane hime, streaming, youtube
Trivia: Greg Ayres voiced Chrono in the ADV dub.
I suppose I should have anticipated that, the day before a large convention, a firestorm that would spawn from Scott’s post on the divisive issue of fansubs with relation to Greg Ayres’ Anime Next panel but I was still a bit surprised by the blogocube aftershock. Hinano composed a breakdown of his piece to present the other extreme of being a raw-only watcher (the first extreme being no fansubs/raws, period). Her post led with what I agree is an important distinction — downloading raws IS essentially different than watching fansubs.
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Tags: copyrights, Editorial, fansubs
I’m gonna throw in my two cents on my current feelings about Lucky Star (albeit possibly tardy…or maybe not) as a slight fuss arose in the anime blogocube following Scott’s post. Like Scott, I showed the series in question in my anime club with the final episode shown this past Wednesday. While most people liked it watching for the first time, I began to be pretty passive about it rewatching, working on a crossword or reading some articles for a class. On principle, I usually don’t watched something I have already seen (anime, movies, TV shows, etc.) except I am looking for something in particular to pick out or if I am listening to a director’s commentary. For example, I can recall somehow seeing Love Actually three times within a 9-month period and enjoying it less and less on each subsequent viewing.
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Tags: Editorial, lucky star
Earlier this week, ANN reported that listings for recent ADV Films titles including Kanon, Gurren Lagann, and Sgt. Frog have been removed from the company’s website and store. Soon after, a spokesman for the company told them that they are “working through a few short-term challenges and fully intends to continue our releases”. However, further information has come out in the form of a canceled ICv2 article that was posted on a couple forums and subsequently Robert’s Anime Corner Blog and, at least for me, puts a new light to the breaking down of negotiations with Geneon late last year. It’s not as horrible as Geneon – the reason why it’s a canceled article is that something got worked out – but it’s still something I’m concerned about as this industry continues to traverse a rough patch.
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Tags: adv films, Editorial, industry
Even though my Internet access right now is limited to use of university computer labs on weekdays and Internet cafes at the rate of €1 per hour, I am still trying to keep up with my usual information absorption methods through podcasts and RSS feeds. I was not particularly aware of the recent “anime is just entertainment” discussion that happened over the past week and frankly I didn’t really care about it. (My short response: anime is entertainment by definition. It is the viewer that chooses to see depth in it, if any in fact exists with the work in question.) Same goes for the “anime is dead” and “how does one define anime” discourse of the last month or so. I felt that if I happened to fashion a post on the above topics and those of similar ilk, it would get lost in the noise and not get read with as much credence or attention as the first couple people who chimed in. Though I probably would have written a “What are you talking about?!? Anime is alive and kickin’!” post if I had thought of it at the time instead of just now.
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Tags: advertising, blogging, self-reflection
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