The Recession Claims a Scalp

I tend to call the UK anime companies distributors, but they’re not really, they’re licensors. The anime is produced in Japan of course, although additional production takes place in the US where an English dub, and subtitles will be applied, as well as English language credit sequences. A PAL version will be produced, usually when the Australian market releases it after sublicensing from the US, and the UK companies will probably strike the UK masters off that Australian version, adding some localisation in terms of menus and packaging, as well as converting to Region 2. Of course there are many permutations of this, and the vagaries of licensing and sublicensing usually make my nose bleed. But when it comes to the other steps in the road from licence to shop shelf, that work is usually contracted out. Another company will manufacture the retail discs, a PR company may be hired to market the shows, and distribution is usually outsourced to get those discs onto shop shelves and into e-tailer warehouses. It makes sense of course, if every company had its own little van to get the discs from the factory and take them to every retail outlet, then our streets would be clogged with DVD traffic alone. Of course it’s centralised and simplified.

The trouble with these chains of distribution and production is that if one link goes, the whole process can come grinding to a halt, as so painfully became clear when Woolworths called in the administrators a few weeks back. A lot of the entertainment retail industry relied on their 2Entertain group to keep their shelves stocked with DVDs and CDs, and that knock on effect is having repercussions on retailers and producers alike, with the former Virgin Megastores, Zavvi, experiencing particular angst.

Last week, another distributor hit the buffers and called in the administrators, one that is more relevant to anime fans. Pinnacle Entertainment has fallen victim to the recession, and with them their subsidiary Pinnacle Vision, which distributes DVDs for several of the more niche labels. That includes Revelation and Beez, who release titles like Fullmetal Alchemist, Tsubasa, Gundam and Cowboy Bebop. With both Revelation and Beez’s next titles due in January, that gives them plenty of time to find an alternate distributor and you shouldn’t experience any noticeable delays at all. Indeed, Revelation have already partnered with ADV’s distributors Lace to get their livestock to market, while the word from Beez is that they too have an alternate distributor in the frame. But spare a thought for companies like Stax Records, Cherry Red Entertainment, and 4Digital Media who also have to look for new distros this Christmas…

Update: Crunchyroll Partners with Pony Canyon, This week’s free and legal anime is…

Steel Angel Kurumi is now available to stream free and legal from Crunchyroll. This accompanies the announcement that Crunchyroll are now partnering with Japanese multimedia company Pony Canyon Inc. to stream some of their popular anime titles. The first four episodes of Steel Angel Kurumi are now available to stream, while sequel series Steel Angel Kurumi Zero, and Steel Angel Kurumi 2 Shiki will also become available as time passes.

Partnerships with Gonzo, ADV, Toei and TV Tokyo among others have already been put in place, and this is another sign of rapid expansion on the part of Crunchyroll prior to the January deadline when all unlicensed content will be removed from the site. It is Crunchyroll’s intention that at that time, some 100 or more titles should be available to stream, all free and legal, as well as download for a subscription. Read more at AnimeOnDVD.

I got 2008 done and dusted last week, with a triplet of anime reviews, although I stepped back in time for a retro review of Nurse Witch Komugi to begin with. It’s a satire around the magical girl phenomenon, those shows where a little girl waves a magic wand and transforms into a superheroine that can save the world on a regular basis, and still find time to chase the man of her dreams. Sailor Moon is the template of course, but there quickly comes a time that you can no longer take a genre seriously. Nurse Witch Komugi pokes fun at it mercilessly, and also finds time to poke fun at anime fans in general. If your ego can stand it, click the link to read the review.














There are two Manga Entertainment releases to draw a delicate veil over 2008, beginning with the second Naruto movie. I now have a foot high pile of Naruto to appreciate, most of it released this year, and with Naruto Shippuden tentatively scheduled for next year, there may be a lot more Naruto to come. It’s good to throw in a movie once in a while to shake things up a bit, and Naruto the Movie 2: Legend Of The Stone Of Gelel is a pleasant diversion from the ongoing storyline, where we get the ubiquitous tangerine ninja and his friends, a challenging quest, and a whole lot of adrenaline fuelled action, without any of that pesky character development, continuity and weighty narrative to slow things down.














Once you’ve popped your champagne corks, launched a couple of rockets, kissed your nearest neighbour and sung yourself hoarse with 15 rousing choruses of ‘Auld Lang Syne’, you can gorge yourself on the bloody vampire action delivered by the second volume of Hellsing Ultimate: Volume 2. The two-disc/single-disc debacle is long behind us now, and you can just appreciate one of the most moody, atmospheric, and action packed anime to have come to the UK in many a long while. Blood and guts is what Manga Entertainment came to prominence with, and it’s nice to see them back doing what they do best.















ADV released Nurse Witch Komugi way back in the depths of… last year, while Manga Entertainment release both the Naruto movie and Hellsing Ultimate on the 29th of December. Just in time for you to have something to spend your Christmas money on.

Posted by Jitendar Canth

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