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Hey, Answerman! [2006-08-18]

Bayoab: Going with what you're saying, it still sounds like in the end it's better for everyone to still have fansubbs, as we all have a better idea what we're getting into. Both companies and consumers ^^

Fansubbs aren't the only deciding factor but probablywith their help,the hits are bigger hits, the slightly less obvious titles do better, and even the not-so good titles (I’m guessing) do a little better. ^^

I like the anime that I buy enough to warrant the purchase of the entire series, but is it really hard to imagine why I, or anyone else for that matter, would like going with the cheaper route of just buying the entire series in a handy thinpack boxset? I mean liking and appreciating a series is something else but suggesting that you should buy the single volumes when in most cases a boxset will be coming sooner or later - [..snip..] I would rather get the boxset, even for the same price as the those of all the single volumes collected - just to get the entire series in one nice package (the reduced price is just a bonus and obviously an added incentive).

Plus CMX's awful marketing of Tenjho Tenge as "girl power" probably turned people away from the Gals manga, thus hurting the synergy in the process.

You're right, every single business decision that a company makes must succeed 100 percent or the people running that company are huge idiots and failures and you know better than they do. There are companies in the US that have never made a mistake, and only the people working there can be called "smart"!

Anime, like sci-fi TV shows, is a fan-supported industry. It relies on passionate fans spreading the word to do a lot of its business.

You've obviously never worked as an animator in Japan. They're only slightly better off than those in Korea and China

I really don't get that statement. It seems to me that the people interested in those two titles are pretty different.

But I guess what I'm really saying is I like Gals, but not Tenjho Tenge, and had no clue there was supposed to be any synergy between them.

As for Princess Tutu having poor sales, I'm sure that Answerman didn't help anything when he called it something akin to "the girliest anime ever." My boyfriend and I had the biggest fight we'd ever had over that, all because I wanted him to check out the first volume, and he refused, quoting Answerman verbotim

Ashkash:

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How is it, that Funimation, who has less experience as a dubbing company, and maybe a net worth of about 1/3 that of ADV, is able to release FMA in a total of 13 volumes at a reasonable 1 to 1 and a half month release rate, when ADV can't even manage to get GetBackers out in anything less than 18 volumes in close to two years?

If FMA did as well as Getbackers, I'm sure that ADV would give it a faster release.

LordofPie:

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Between a completely mishandled and incompetent manga dvision,

Compared to, say, CMX or Dr. Master, their manga line is fine.

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the stripped thinpack shenanigans,

The thinpacks sell, hence the reason ADV will continue to make them.

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and apparently trying to piss off the hardcore fans again by using some of the dumbest localizated series names in recent memory,

Blame whatever the Japanese producers were smoking for the titles themselves, not ADV.

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It's all well and good to suggest that people should run out to support their favorite niche series now (and they should), but I'm still going to feel like a tool when the inevitable cheap boxset appears before I can finish collecting the series.

You got to see your series, which is all you really wanted. Why do you care?

elsie: Just be glad that ADV didn't release a dub and edited version on dvd, like Geneon did with Dog of Flanders.

bayoab:

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They don't care about dub ADR director interviews, etc. (American produced extras.)

The ADV voice actor interviews and commentaries do suck, but their liner notes are on par with those from Animeigo.

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In this day, I think it's hard to differ "because they weren't that good" and "because 2 or 3 uber sellers are being released right against it". There are a few great series that companies claim are getting "eh" sales.

I doubt you're really missing anything with titles like Gravion and Sister Princess.

Pleroma:

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I'm sorry, but any company foolish enough to release something with such a ridiculous profit margin is shooting itself in the foot and needs to get rid of its financial advisor ASAP. It is nobody buy their own responsability to lead their properties to success. Of course sometimes even quality products will fail, but that is just the reality of any market.

Tutu's just a casualty of the glut.

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Yes we all like good stuff getting brought over, but if indeed the series was doing THAT badly it would indicate either no market research or a very stupid gamble on behalf of the R1 licensor.

It wasn't a stupid gamble, just a bad one. If it had been released a little sooner, it might have at least done modestly well for itself.

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The starving artist analogy is ridiculous as well, as niche as anime may be its not in any way equivalent to single goddamn individual barely making ends meet because that is simply not a business model any sane company would folow.

You've obviously never worked as an animator in Japan. They're only slightly better off than those in Korea and China.

Zac:

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I assume you'd tell all the Firefly fans who purposefully went out and showed their numbers and supported the show so much by buying lots of DVDs and convincing others to do the same that they should stop doing that and just be "normal consumers", even though it got them a feature-length film.

They helped make the show successful, but they did make fools out of themselves when they tried to hype the movie. But to be fair, so did Whedon. I never really understood the point of making a cancelled series into movies...OTOH, being a Lupin fan, I do see the point in encouraging people to continue buying the tv show, particularly in the hope that the Miyazaki episodes will finally be on R1 dvd.

burzmali:

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Anime is already more expensive then American media by a factor of 4 or more.

Maybe in Japan, but it's about average here.

klamsd:

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I mean liking and appreciating a series is something else but suggesting that you should buy the single volumes when in most cases a boxset will be coming sooner or later - just to support the series doesn't make any sense. Your money is going to support the company that releases the product anyway, more or less when you buy the boxset of the same series.

The thing is that there's no guarantee there will be a box down the road. Look how long it took for the second season of Super Gals to get released.

I don't think anyone's really touched on this, so I'll try to point it out here.

Those who say fansubbers are so passionate about subbing that they do it completely free... Wake. Up. Ever hear of things like "nothing is really free" is "if it sounds too good to be true, maybe it is?" I'd like to see a fansubbing site that offers subs and does NOT have a little "Paypal Donate" box or ads or messages saying that they need money to pay for space. Chances are, many are getting paid one way or another. The whole "we need donates for something-besides-profit" argument has never settled well for me. I get more suspecious and lose respect for them more than anything. Unless of course they're a real, legitment company that picks these things up, runs a busniess, and have employees that depend on profits to put food on the plate.

But really, even thinking about claiming these people do it 100% free for the love of anime is either idiotic or naive.

We have had a couple people ask us "Where is the donation button on the site, I can't find it?" [name removed] (The group overall) does not accept donations. It is our policy that accepting donations makes it like we are trying to sell you something. That is absolutely not what we are about. If you, however, want to donate to our individual bot providers, that is between you and them. You can contact them directly via the channel.

I don't think anyone's really touched on this, so I'll try to point it out here.

Those who say fansubbers are so passionate about subbing that they do it completely free... Wake. Up. Ever hear of things like "nothing is really free" is "if it sounds too good to be true, maybe it is?" I'd like to see a fansubbing site that offers subs and does NOT have a little "Paypal Donate" box or ads or messages saying that they need money to pay for space. Chances are, many are getting paid one way or another. The whole "we need donates for something-besides-profit" argument has never settled well for me. I get more suspecious and loose respect for them more than anything. Unless of course they're a real, legitment company that picks these things up, runs a busniess, and have employees that depend on profits to put food on the plate.

But really, even thinking about claiming these people do it 100% free for the love of anime is either idiotic or naive.

As for Princess Tutu having poor sales, I'm sure that Answerman didn't help anything when he called it something akin to "the girliest anime ever."

For a show like Ghost in the Shell? Your hardcore fan dollars don't mean a whole lot. Princess Tutu? You're the only one they can count on to make that a success.

For that last comment, do you really want a list?

Anyway, I decided to check out Princess Tutu