Tenchi Muyo - OAV Collection

Recently I came into possession of the Blu-Ray Tenchi Muyo OAV collection.  It has all episodes from the first two OAVs, plus some omake.  The set also includes DVDs too.  The Blu-Ray discs and DVDs each have their own cases, each being the size of a standard DVD case.  Each case has different artwork on both the front and the back, though one of the art pieces looks like it comes from the disastrous Tenchi in Tokyo TV series.  Also, the disc cases have reversible covers with different artwork.  Both cases fit inside a chipboard artbox.  It thrills me to no end that none of the art on either the artbox or the cases is reused, and some of the art I hadn't seen before; at least, it wasn't art featured on the original Geneon DVDs that I bought aeons ago.

But the really cool thing is a mini artbook that fits in between the two disc cases.  It's paperback and a little smaller than a DVD case, but it contains the cast members in various poses; my favorite being the one mimicking the Return of the Jedi theatrical poster.

My husband found his copy of the Star Wars poster, and the Tenchi cast is in the exact same positions as the Star Wars cast.  One day I'd love to have both posters hanging side by side.

As for the quality of the Blu-Ray..... I have a sneaking suspicion that they are merely upscales of the DVDs and not native 1080p.  While the colors are eye-poppingly bright, the lines are not as crisp as one would expect a Blu-Ray to be.  I cannot say for certain, as the box lacks a technical grid, but Funimation has been called on upscale releases before.

All in all, it's a great set, and if you have any interest whatsoever in Tenchi Muyo, you owe it to yourself to get this boxset.

Spice is Nice

My copy of the 7th Spice and Wolf book arrived today, and I was thrilled to see that Yen Press has finally ditched those awful original covers with poorly photoshopped wolf ears on a skinny blond model.  Of course, now this means that the books won't match on the shelf, but that irritates me less than those stupid covers.

I have been meaning to review the packaging of several anime series that I got for Christmas, but I keep putting it off.  I will get to it eventually, though.

Streaming subscriptions

After the great enjoyment of subscribing to Crunchyroll, I thought I would give Funimation's streaming service a try.  After all, they have an equally large catalog, with titles that aren't available on CR, including simulcasts.  And also, I was getting really sick of the same commercials over and over.  $7.95 seemed a small price to pay to avoid soundbites from Geico, Ford, and whatever new show Hulu is trying to push.

Anyway, I signed up for the free 2 week trial, with every intention of becoming a subscriber after the 14 days were up.  But since I signed up and logged in, I haven't been able to watch anything.  If I log out the videos work (albeit with ads) but the moment I login to enjoy exclusive commercial-free content, the videos cease to function.  >_<

I really hope that they are rewriting the code for the site and that is why things are a little buggy.  Although I am not really impressed with their interface.  There really isn't a "queue" system ala Netflix and CR.  You can add shows to a favorites list, which took me a while to find (it's buried in the "my accounts" settings somewhere, not in the profile), but there isn't a button on the page that takes you instantly there.  Also, if you finish watching an episode and wish to add the show to your favorites, you have to go back to the show's main page.  If you click the favorites button on the episode page, you are merely adding the episode to your favorites, not the entire series.

Granted, CR wasn't as polished as it is now when it first came online, but even in their latent phase they were better than what Funimation currently has to offer.  I want to stick around in the hopes that Funimations's site will improve with time, but if I can't get a single video to play in the two weeks of my trial I will not.  There is no point in paying for a service that doesn't work.

Madoka Magica Volume 3, Limited Edition

Let me just start off by saying that this is the most money I have ever put down for anime on a price per episode basis.  Even buying it at a discount it still worked out to $18.75 an episode.  Let me also say that it is completely worth it.

The Limited edition comes packaged in a very elegant slip case with a picture of Akemi Homura on the front and a picture of all five of the magical girls on the back.  The cover has a matte finish and is made out of very heavy card stock (it is probably one step below chipboard).

The anime itself comes in a standard DVD sized case, with the Blu-Ray and DVD tucked neatly inside.  When I first opened the case the DVD fell out and landed on one of my cats, who was sitting on my lap at the time.  Considering how much I paid for this ensemble I screamed because I thought the disc was damaged, but it was fine.  My cat was fine too.  ^_^  Anyway, the case has a high-quality reversible cover, and both the discs have art from the series that differs from any of the art on the DVD case.

Next up we have the soundtrack, which also comes in a DVD sized case (this collection must have been designed for OCD in mind, because everything matches and is the same size).  The cover is very sleek; a metallic pink Soul Gem glimmers on a stark black background.  The inside cover is also black and features a tracklisting and a Grief Seed underneath the CD itself.

The booklet has a sketch of Madoka on the cover, and inside has episode summaries, a conversation with the director and writer, and interviews with two of the voice actresses.  It also has character models and sketches, as well as an inucurry art gallery, artwork from the Japanese DVD covers and a set of four panel comics.  For being only 22 pages it really crams a lot of info in there.  Aniplex spared no expense: the booklet is printed on high quality paper in full color.

We're not done yet!  Also included were two double sided posters.  These are approximately 11 x 14 inches.  The posters are a beach scene (of course), a picture of Homura, Ultimate Madoka, and a festival scene with all of the girls in yukata.  I can't imagine actually hanging these up and putting tacks through them, but they are certainly nice to look and feature completely different art from any of the other items included in the collection.

The limited edition also came with a set of postcards.  These showcase the artwork from the next episode preview segments of the anime series.  They were all drawn by different artists and so have a different take on the characters.  The cards themselves are larger than an average sized postcard and for all intents and purposes are to be put in the mail.  This is something I will never do.  My precious........

Last but not least we have an Aniplex survey card.  That I will put in the mail and let them know I will have to sign all my paychecks over to them from now on.  There is also a "Proof of Purchase" with a serial number on it.  I am not sure what to do with this other than wave it around and sing happily about this acquisition.

All in all, this Limited Edition set was worth every penny, but would I buy another show that got the same treatment?  Probably not.  I splurged for Madoka because it is my favorite show and would not pay the same amount for a show I had lukewarm feelings about.  But good job, Aniplex!  You could not have done better.

Madoka Magica Uber Edition

I just got my copy of the Limited Edition of Madoka Magica in the mail!  Squee!  I will be writing a review on the packaging but only after I watch the show tonight.

Atelier Meruru

I have been a fan of Gust's Atelier series for a long time, so it was only natural for me to shell out my hard earned money for the limited edition of Atelier Meruru.

Since I just started playing I won't review the game (plus, there are already a few reviews of the game online) but I will review the packaging for those who have decided to buy the game but are on the fence regarding limited or standard editions.

The limited edition comes in a nice looking artbox featuring artwork of all three alchemical heroines (Rorona, Totori and Meruru) from the Arland trilogy.  The goodies inside are a soundtrack, and artbook and a T-shirt.

The soundtrack CD has 25 tracks of original music, clocking in at 67 minutes.  Basically, if you liked music from the other two Arland games you'll like the music in Meruru.  The first few tracks are vocal tracks, most of which are peppy J-pop songs, but the music really shines in the instrumental tracks of the game.  Those are often cute and whimsical and are guaranteed to put the listener in a better mood.  "Everyday Me" is my favorite track.  The following is the song from the opening scene.

As for the artbook, it is rather ho-hum.  This is not to say that the art in AM is lackluster; far from it!  However the artbook is a bit on the small side (slightly larger than a CD case) and only has character art.  If the book had included the still scenes or some background art it would be a vast improvement.  As it is, I am a bit disappointed.

Now for the last item: the T-shirt!  It is a black size large shirt with a picture of a barrel on it, with the word "Barrel!" written underneath.  As an obvious nod to the previous Atelier games it made me smile a little, but as an extra it really doesn't add to the collection.  I would have preferred a poster (like the one included with the limited edition of Totori) to a T-shirt, but that's just me.  Oh!  And the shirt is impossible to get back in the box.  *grumble*

In summary, I am happy that I got the limited edition, but would only recommend it to die-hard fans of the series.  The only goodie that really stands out as a "must have" is the soundtrack.  So if you are unsure which edition to get and soundtracks aren't your thing, just get the standard edition.

Thanks, NISA, for localizing the entire trilogy!

We make great pets

The first 4 episodes of Inu X Boku have me hooked.  I admit that I was a little leery that the main character would be a cookie cutter tsundere type.  I have nothing against those types of characters, it's just that lately they've become a bit of a cliche and pop up unannounced in many anime series, and they are usually all voiced by Rie Kugimiya so it gives one the feeling that there is a being capable of inter-dimensional travel that keeps appearing in multiple anime universes.

Anyway, the writers of Inu X Boku at least make a decent attempt at giving the heroine, Ririchiyo, a complex psyche.  In her inner monologue she states that she says the exact opposite of what she's really feeling, and that she hates that about herself.  While this is typical of tsundere, what is different in this example is that the audience gets to see the inner gears of her mind working.  It also gives the impression that she wants to change, and character growth is something that I really like to see in a series.

Also, having a handsome kitsune spirit as your personal butler would rock!