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The Viridian Collection editions of Case Closed seasons 4 and 5 arrived earlier this week from RightStuf (ahead of their March 23rd street date) and they look like nicely designed box sets.
The discs feel more stable in these Scanavo cases than in the ones used in earlier thinpak season sets. (I’ve had bits of the disc holders break off in a few sets.) The case design licenses US patent 5,743,390 from Pozzoli and looks custom-ordered to hold the four discs in each set.
Tags: box sets, case closed, Detective Conan, dvds, packaging
Yesterday, my order of DVD singles arrived from RightStuf – I had ordered all of Kurau Phantom Memory (which I bought the first volume of and liked, but then sold when I needed some money), the three volumes of Princess Nine they had in stock, and an Ergo Proxy CD (still need to watch the series). When I unwrapped the artbox for Kurau, I saw pull quotes in ads for Le Chevalier D’Eon and Coyote Ragtime Show and knew I had to track down their contexts (like I did some months ago for something else).
Le Chevalier D’Eon
“Blazing, exciting action! A swashbuckling version of Ghost in the Shell!” – Ain’t It Cool News
Quote fragment context 1 (vol. 1 “preview” reads like a review):
“Unless you are completely off-put by the look and feel of the 18th century, Chevalier d’Eon is an anime that strongly warrants a look. It approaches an environment that is rarely animated. It presents characters with intriguing moral complexity. It leaves open room for interpretation. It offers blazingly exciting action. What more can one hope for in anime?”
Quote fragment 2 context (from same source):
“As a series developed by Production I.G, featuring strike force secret police, given an ambiguous license by the higher powers of government, it is tempting to think of Chevalier d’Eon as a swashbuckling version of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Given that the appeal of Stand Alone Complex can largely be credited to its procedural faithfulness and the depth of the ideas it developed, the comparison is not unreasonable.”
“History mixes with supernatural mystery for a thrilling ride.” – Anime Insider
DEAD MAGAZINE HAS NO ONLINE ARCHIVE
“Stunning! Very Recommended!” – Anime on DVD
Quote fragment 1 context (vol. 1 review):
“When a production studio moves outside of some of their more normal areas, not that Production I.G. has really kept to just one area, they can either produce something stunning or incredibly weak. In its first four episodes, Le Chevalier d’Eon is moving quickly up on the stunning chart. While its first episode felt incredibly rushed and poorly paced in some ways due to how much it was trying to do, it settles in nicely after that and begins its expansive storyline. Similar to their work on Otogi Zoshi, they’ve done a ton of research on the period and locales and it adds so much more to the atmosphere. Combined with the real life nature of many of these characters, you get a greater sense of them having truly walked these streets and interacting with each other.”
Quote fragment 2 context (the next paragraph):
“Very recommended for those who are tired of high school lads saving the world or magical princesses that never seem to grow up.”
Coyote Ragtime Show
“Mind-blowing exhilarating action!” – Anime News Network
Quote context (Shelf Life):
“For anyone that loves their anime to be steeped in blood and peppered with bullet holes, Coyote Ragtime Show is the stuff of dreams. It’s the kind of mind-blowing, exhilarating action show that swoops from the skies, clouding everything in a rain of lead, angry punches, and loud passionate music.”
“Think Ocean’s Eleven meets Treasure Island meets Cowboy Bebop and you’re on the right track!” – DVD Talk
Quote context (vol. 1 review):
“This first volume stays strong the entire way through. The characters were quirky and the atmosphere was a lot of fun even though the plot isn’t necessarily the most unique. Think Ocean’s Eleven meets Treasure Island meets Cowboy Bebop and you’re on the right track. Frankly that is a nice combination of ideas when you get right down to it so in many ways Coyote Ragtime Show sizzles. Put me down as being interested in future volumes and if you have ever loved science fiction/pirate anime it would behoove you to do the same.”
“A stunning visual treat with high action animation and characters with bold & brazen attitudes.” – Theotaku.com
CANNOT FIND ON WEBSITE- but did find it mentioned in a cached listing from ADV Films
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Tags: box quotes, Coyote Ragtime Show, kurau phantom memory, le chevalier d'eon, packaging, quotes
Monday afternoon I stopped by the Best Buy in Natomas (store #660) and bought Case Closed Season 3, which was 17.99 after the half-off discount. Ghost Hunt Parts 1 and 2 were also there for the same price but I’m a little tight on money right now (typical college student excuse). But I’ll try to pick those up at a later time, promise. Once I got home, I was surprised by how thin the volume actually was, given this was my first neo-FUNimation set.
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Tags: best buy, case closed, Detective Conan, packaging, pictures, Shopping
Something that has irritated me lately has been the increasing trend of DVD volumes coming with the disc inside the case and that’s it. Recent examples in my buying experience have been the regular edition of Haruhi vol. 1, Red Garden vol. 1 and Pumpkin Scissors vol. 1. Seeing the empty space on the inside left side of the case when I open it for the first time triggers a sense of disappointment because I have an expectation that there was some sense of effort put into the packaging including the inserts.
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Recent Consumption
Why Are “Interactive Menus” Still Listed on DVDs?
August 12, 2009 in Commentary by Tom Langston (calaggie) | No comments
I received the Cowboy Bebop Remix set in the mail last week and soon noticed that “Animated Interactive Menus” was mentioned under DVD Features. I remembered seeing that interactive menus touted on the Kannagi and Lucky Star volumes and mentioned that on Twitter, complaining that such a basic feature of the format shouldn’t really be mentioned. To me, it’s like saying CDs have Dynamic Track Navigation. Later that night, I realized that ‘features’ can be also used as a verb so the listing on the box is about what the DVD features, not what the DVD features are (those are called “DVD Extras” on these releases) so I felt a little stupid. However, I still felt my main complaint may been worth writing about.
This week, I received the Lucky Star OVA and the first Hayate the Combat Butler volume and as I expected, those two also had menus listed under what the DVD features, effectively giving me the green light to continue working on this post.
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Tags: bandai, DVD, menus, packaging, pictures, terminology