Forum - View topicThe Mike Toole Show - Best of Bandai
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Joe Mello
 Posts: 2266 Location: Online Terminal |
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The highlights of my very first anime convention were both Bandai events: their industry panel and a rough cut of the first dubbed episode of Scrapped Princess. I still consider that show to be the high-water mark for the fantasy genre.
I've also realized that I am part of a generation that recalls Peter Cullen as a pitchman and not a robot. |
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yotsubafanfan
 Posts: 653 |
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If Bandai hasn't already, they should add cowboy bepop in their collections of anime legends.
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VinceA
 Posts: 126 Location: Bayonne, NJ |
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Given the current situation, I don't think anything new will be created, including new collections. |
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Shenl742
Posts: 1524 |
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They did...four years ago Everyone better get it while it's still in stock I suppose! Last edited by Shenl742 on Sun Sep 09, 2012 7:19 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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rootsofjustice
Posts: 177 |
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It has been a part of the Anime Legends collection since 2008. That being said, with Akira already being rescued I have no doubt in my mind that someone will swoop in on Cowboy Bebop before the license fully expires at Bandai. |
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wandering-dreamer
 Posts: 1733 |
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So THAT'S why I could never find a reasonably priced complete set of FLAG, never seen the show but it sounds like something I'd like so I've looked around for it, well at least I know now that I have to grab the sequels if I want it legally.
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Melanchthon
 Posts: 550 Location: Northwest from Here |
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I don't think the designs are bad, well, they are bad, but they have a certain charm about them and there are a lot more worse examples in 1990's anime. I found the story and animation to be lacking, but the designs themselves, eh, they were alright by me. It's sad to take a look through the catologue of a few stores, and see what's left It looks like Scrapped Princess is gone for good. Pity, it's a damn fine story, and one of my favorite titles to rewatch. It's one of the titles that should be a classic, and it's sad to know it's gone. All that's left of Galaxy Angel is a few scraps, I'm glad I got my copies when they were still in stock, it is another classic. I still think the show would have worked on Adult Swim, it has that absurdist style of comedy that would fit well with the native shows. And the whole not dubbing the last half of the last season just reeks of corporate infighting. Seeing that alone tells you that the rot is setting in. Hayate the Combat Butler is missing! Releasing it in eight singles was always a mistake, but how could such a high profile series just vanish like that? This might be a candidate for rescue, if Sentai swings for the sequels, but I don't think you could profit of a dub here, not for 52 episodes I never bought the second season of Haruhi because I was offended by endless eight, and now it looks like I'll never get the chance. If I was not willing to buy it when it was cheap, I'm not paying a premium now. I guess I'll always have a gap in my collection, the price for having standards, I guess. They still have copies of Sola for sale, Sola was the first non-Adult Swim anime I watched, and it holds a special place in my heart. I doubt many will miss it when it's gone, but I was always thankful Bandai released it for me. You never know with license rescues. I never thought that Haibane Renmei would be rescued, but you can go buy it now, (and you should, the show is great). Who knows, maybe someday these titles will live again somewhere. Until then Bandai, thanks for the memories even though they weren't all great |
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Sakura Shinguji
Posts: 190 |
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Good article as always, Mike. And I gotta say, the portion at the end about Saber Marionette J was hilarious. At the time when the show was new, I don't think you could've gotten away with it. But now? I think you'll definitely find a lot of folks wondering, if they can be honest with themselves, just what the hell the big deal was anyway.
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Lord Geo
Posts: 2560 Location: North Brunswick, New Jersey |
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Very nice article, Mike! Great job bringing up lesser-heard titles like Android Kikaider (I have that complete collection, which oddly enough has an empty spot for a 6th DVD... If only we got the Kikaider X Inazuman OVA), Don't Leave Me Alone, Daisy (it is an odd title, but I think that it part of the appeal), & Cyber Formula, too. I've essentially gotten everything I must have form Bandai, outside of that rare & expensive volume of FLAG so that I could fill up my artbox & the second Dragon Drive boxset, so I'll just bring up some other lesser-known Bandai titles I really enjoyed or at least think are worth mentioning:
Eat-Man: I really don't think there's any other duo of anime series that are based on the same manga, yet are so utterly different from each other... And that is why I love both shows so much. "'97" is just such an esoteric & obtuse title that simply sucks you in with its oddness, while '98 is just such a great adaptation of four really enjoyable early stories from the original manga, and the two anime-exclusive stories are pretty good, too. Next Senki Ehrgeiz: Yeah, it's by no means a great or "must-see" title, but I just can't help but really enjoy this title. The characters are still memorable to me to this day, the story was interesting enough, & the music was really fun. Oddly enough, I don't actively search for Ehrgeiz-related stuff, yet I end up finding good deals on stuff relating to it; buying the Bandai/AnimeVillage VHS tapes was expected enough for me to watch the whole show, but I only ended up buying the first three Japanese LDs & the OST because they were cheap.... And now I want the other three LDs for completion's sake, but they're really rare. Clockwork Fighters: Hiwou's War: This had to easily be part of a package deal, like Cyber Formula, but I think BONES did a really good job with their very first anime (i.e. the first of their own productions; not helping others). I liked the semi-realistic way of handling a giant mech in feudal Japan, the story was both fun & engaging, even for older audiences, and the music was also really catchy. Yeah, the dub sucked, but this title really did surprise me in how enjoyable it was. Dragon Drive: Granted, I had seen this show in its entirety fansubbed before realizing that Bandai had released it, but I wouldn't mind re-watching this title again, especially because I've since read the entire manga. Too bad the second collection is pretty rare & expensive now... Fantastic Children: I haven't seen this title yet, but I do have the boxset release. But, yeah, this was another of those "Why did Bandai license this?" titles. Still, I hear that it's an excellent story, so one day I'll take a look at this title. Z-Mind: This is simply a fun homage to old-school mecha, right down to having it take place in the 70s. Nothing truly amazing, but it does very little wrong, and I'll probably re-watch it sooner or later. Bandai did do a lot of great titles, but I know that a good number of them won't ever see license rescues, especially the stuff I would love to see rescued, like Eat-Man, Ehrgeiz, or Cyber Formula. |
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Sakura Shinguji
Posts: 190 |
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Outlaw Star, I think, suffered more from horribly inconsistent animation than outright bad character designs. Though so did a lot of shows in the late '90s when budgets were shrinking and the industry had only just begun to dabble in using computers to effectively shortcut... everything, but also make it look good. I still love the show, problems and all. And the Firefly controversy never ceased to amuse me. Not that anyone ever did figure out the truth, though I suppose it doesn't matter; if it was a coincidence, then that's great, and if it wasn't, then Firefly is still good and Whedon's still all right in my book. |
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irongrill
Posts: 1 |
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Junkers Come Here? will always remind me of your Dog Pope character from Anime Jump.
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mdo7
 Posts: 6269 Location: Katy, Texas, USA |
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Kudo to you Mike for mentioning Saber Marionette J, that show was awesome. Kinda sad they hven't made any more series other then an attempt to make Saber Marionette Z, and I'm very sad to see Bandai go. I would love it if Funimation or Sentai can rescue the Saber Marionette series, and I hope in the future Hal film maker (or another studio, maybe JC Staff) can either remake the series or make another Saber Marionette series. Also I hope Funimation can rescue Cowboy Bebop (since Justin Cook said on ANN podcast that Funimation would be the first to rescue Cowboy Bebop) and Gurren Lagann (I wouldn't mind Sentai get it). I wonder who could rescue The Big O, and Escaflowne (my bet is Sentai). I wonder who's going to rescue Kurokami and is there any chance the Gundam series can be rescue (Funimation if you rescue that series, you'll be a national hero to all NA anime fans).
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Myaow
 Posts: 1068 |
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I'm going to miss Bandai, even if their releases could be janky and weird sometimes. Looking around, it seems like a bunch of my favorite Bandai titles, like Scrapped Princess, Fancy Lala and Galaxy Angel, have been impossible to find for quite a while now, even before the company started going down. (So happy to see a lot of people mentioning those titles, btw! You are all invited to my birthday party) I hope that some of Bandai's great hits will get rescued by other companies!
Anyway, lovely lovely article! It's helped to solidify my plans for last-minute salvage purchases. I think I'm going to try to grab the 08th MS Team and the Haruhi movie at the very least. What are you all going to snag? EDIT: holy crap mdo7, you are blowing my mind. What if Sentai rescues Gurren Lagann now that Bandai's lost it!? That would be legendary. Full circle! Last edited by Myaow on Sun Sep 09, 2012 7:53 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Lynx Amali
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Nah. I like the character designs. They fit the setting and the era the show was made. Now, if the universe could be revisited perhaps, they could retool them but alas, the odds of that happening are the same as the odds of ever getting a proper Nadescio: Prince of Darkness sequel. (No, the two obscure Dreamcast games available only in Japan don't count.) Still sad to see Bandai go. Really hoping someone can rescue and re-release IGPX but I'm not holding my breath. I only have the first two DVDs so I guess I'm out of luck. |
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Botan24
 Posts: 684 Location: Northern Michigan |
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What I find "strange" about the character designs is that the women aren't very feminine looking. Take the assassin, Twilight Suzuka. She's supposed to be "beautiful but deadly". However, that headband she wears is not sexy, plus you never see any curves (minus the hot springs episode, my favorite ep, btw). So, she comes off as rather unattractive. Jim never looks like a kid, and Gene...well he's a rogue, so he has charm, but those scars just look like tiger stripes to me. 
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