Anime Review Roundup
Hmm, Interesting
Rumours and bits of news that might give pause for thought this week include the announcement (of sorts), that the feature film Patema Inverted, from the creator of Time of Eve, has been licensed for UK release. There’s no mention of just who has licensed it, but it has been licensed.
Sony Pictures Television announced that they will launch the Animax channel in the UK, but before you throw a double somersault, it’s only as a video on demand service, and other than through the venerable computer, there’s no mention as to what platforms it will be available on. As such, it looks like it further dilutes the subscription anime pond (already dilute enough for the UK), adding to Crunchyroll and Wakanim. Having said all that, their title line up looks heavily Viz weighted, so it may just serve as a replacement for Anime on Demand, which has been stuck on the hard shoulder for the last two seasons.
This week MVM put up a couple of new trailers and Twittered and Facebooked about them. One of the trailers was for Dusk Maiden of Amnesia, and not long after, the trailers vanished, and the tweets and posts were deleted. So when MCM Comicon in London comes along and MVM makes their announcements, remember to act surprised!
The other new anime streaming service to the UK has officially gone into beta. You don’t have to rely on Anime Limited for the streams and can instead go to wakanim.co.uk. As I said, it’s in beta, so expect a lot of French, and when I tried the download to rent option (free for four days), I found it extremely limited in what player you could use, and the authentication for the DRM hadn’t been set up yet. The streaming side of it seems to work okay though.
News from Anime News Network and UK Anime Network.
Three reviews for you last week, beginning with one dredged out of the back catalogue. I finally got the chance to watch my Summer Wars Blu-ray, and took the chance to review it as well. It is vaguely timely, as Mamoru Hosoda’s next feature film Wolf Children is in cinemas this month, and comes out on DVD and Blu-ray in December. It will have a lot to live up to, as while technology dates, and how we see the Internet is a fluid and variable thing, there are fundamental messages about how people communicate, and the importance of the family in Summer Wars that make it an enduring and universal film. It looks all the better on Blu-ray as well.
Speaking of looking good on Blu-ray, I took a look at Cowboy Bebop: Part 2 in High Definition. If ever there was a show that compelled anime fans to indulge in a happy dance, this would be it. It’s a new company, only their second release, and you’d be willing to forgive a few teething problems. Fortunately they are pretty scarce on Part 2, and let’s face it, you’ll have to do a lot wrong to make Cowboy Bebop look bad. After all this is the anime that Heineken made, probably the best anime in the world.
From the best to the worst! I rounded off the week with Horizon on the Middle of Nowhere Part 2, and the only positive that I can take from the experience is that I never have to watch it again. It was so dispiriting a watch that I really have nothing else to say about it.
Manga Entertainment released Summer Wars on Blu-ray back in 2011, while Horizon on the Middle of Nowhere Season 2 comes out today on DVD and Blu-ray. Cowboy Bebop: Part 2 came out on Blu-ray last Monday from All The Anime, while they will be re-releasing the complete series on DVD on November 11th.
Rumours and bits of news that might give pause for thought this week include the announcement (of sorts), that the feature film Patema Inverted, from the creator of Time of Eve, has been licensed for UK release. There’s no mention of just who has licensed it, but it has been licensed.
Sony Pictures Television announced that they will launch the Animax channel in the UK, but before you throw a double somersault, it’s only as a video on demand service, and other than through the venerable computer, there’s no mention as to what platforms it will be available on. As such, it looks like it further dilutes the subscription anime pond (already dilute enough for the UK), adding to Crunchyroll and Wakanim. Having said all that, their title line up looks heavily Viz weighted, so it may just serve as a replacement for Anime on Demand, which has been stuck on the hard shoulder for the last two seasons.
This week MVM put up a couple of new trailers and Twittered and Facebooked about them. One of the trailers was for Dusk Maiden of Amnesia, and not long after, the trailers vanished, and the tweets and posts were deleted. So when MCM Comicon in London comes along and MVM makes their announcements, remember to act surprised!
The other new anime streaming service to the UK has officially gone into beta. You don’t have to rely on Anime Limited for the streams and can instead go to wakanim.co.uk. As I said, it’s in beta, so expect a lot of French, and when I tried the download to rent option (free for four days), I found it extremely limited in what player you could use, and the authentication for the DRM hadn’t been set up yet. The streaming side of it seems to work okay though.
News from Anime News Network and UK Anime Network.
Manga Entertainment released Summer Wars on Blu-ray back in 2011, while Horizon on the Middle of Nowhere Season 2 comes out today on DVD and Blu-ray. Cowboy Bebop: Part 2 came out on Blu-ray last Monday from All The Anime, while they will be re-releasing the complete series on DVD on November 11th.
Your Opinions and Comments
Be the first to post a comment!