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NEWS: Future DVD Volumes of MÄR Anime Reportedly Delisted

This is really bad news for me and my friend now... With all this companies either falling through or just cuting the series outright we are just endinf up with incomplete series in our collections, I actually wanted to wait till dvd 6 of MAR so I could wath them in a row.. sad.. so sad.

A whack of episodes have been dubbed, and it's airing in different outlets, so I think VIZ is probably just going to hold off on the single discs, and eventually do boxsets when they get the chance.

They're main focus is getting anime on TV, and selling manga, with a small range of DVD releases per month. Stuff like Buso Renkin seems to indicate that the direct-to-boxset format is one that is working for them schedule and business-wise, so hopefully we'll see more MAR in a similar format [if demand merits- it could be these were tanked due to alternate plans, or due to no one really caring].

Weird. I thought Mar was bigger here. Oh, well. I hope this doesn't affect the Flame of Recca manga....

Unpopular series + Not selling well = Cancelled.

I don't see what's so difficult to understand, here. It's been this way for nearly all products of any kind since consumerism began.

It may be a sad fact, but it is one, and only makes perfect sense. Why continue to lose money on something that isn't being the hit that one thought it would be when licensed. In the anime distribution business, like any other business, some things pay off and some things don't.

By the way, I still don't think this is any cause to celebrate homemade fansubs over professional jobs. Even if it's the only way to see the entire series, fansubs are essentially bootlegged translations done by people in their spare time, rather than an actual release.

Whether or not the series ever gets finished professionally, fansubs still are what they are. Amateur bootleg translations that shouldn't be perused further once a series is actually licensed.

Not to mention that there's absolutely no guarentee or writing on the wall at this point that they really WILL stop dubbing and airing it on TV. (Unless of course, the support, demand and popularity for the TV series wanes as much as the DVD's.)

Besides, this kind of thing that makes it difficult to take chances on DVD releases for anime licensing companies is directly attributable to the detrimental effect that anime piracy has on licensers as well.

Fansubs, bootlegs and free fan distribution of licensed series are nothing to celebrate. They, in fact, have a huge hand in CREATING situations like these where licensers can't afford to lose money on a series that isn't a megahit these days.

I've had to put up with this before with Bo-BoBo Bo-BoBoBo (One of my favorite series.)

It was often ridiculed for it's style of humor and creativity, often misunderstood, people complained and insulted the show endlessly on the internet, and blew things out of proprtion with the DVD release that weren't really that big an issue.

And even when they issued a recall program to give the (admittedly few) fans what they wanted, they still weren't satisfied.

For as much as I like the show, and the DVD's, they stopped being sold in retail stores, and faded away into semi-obscurity to the point where I no longer know if it's being continued. I'm sure that the torrents of the series had at least SOMETHING to do with it.

As I mentioned, it's often a sad thing when a series gets this kind of treatment, but when one thinks about it, it does make sense that this would happen, even if it's not something to really be happy about.

Still though, with things like this, I don't think there's any cause to celebrate torrents and fansubs (of licensed series) that, in conjunction with the lack of a huge fanbase of certain series contributes to making the anime licensing industry be forced to cancel series that aren't selling well.

Basically.. it's a sad fact, but it is one. Either people just have to deal with it, take what they can on TV, or just be angry about it. But I would steadfastly disagree that it's Viz's fault at all.

Well with Prince of Tennis they're still selling the DVD boxsets, so there's a reason to continue with that series. So hopefully it's like you said- that PoT (& likely Star Force too) is only taking a break to catch up with production, since there's still a market out there for the DVDs. Unfortunately MAR doesn't have that luxery, so its fate is a bit more clouded.

& now I have Hikaru no Go to worry about too. If Viz doesn't finish releasing that series in some form or another, I'll be very unhappy indeed.

If people can watch it for free on Jetstream, why would they buy it? If that argument applies to fansubs, it should apply in this case also.

MÄR did not sell on DVD in Japan, fairly typical of children's anime there.

According to sales figures from Character Databank in Japan, highly popular children's titles like Pokémon, Soreike! Anpanman, and the Pretty Cure series each generate hundreds of millions US dollars in character and merchandise sales annually in Japan. And, excluding movies, each generally sell poorly or so-so on DVD in Japan.

See my threads on character sales and DVD sales at the Anime**** forums for more information.

Here is the problem they are going to end up facing. I understand that low sales might lead them to cancel but then what happens to other shows people stop buying... because they are worried they are going to be canceled? I have 4 (long) viz series I'm buying as they come out not counting bleach and naruto. If I start to fear them canceling them midway I will start wondering if I should wait until the series is finished and out before buying to make sure I can get the whole thing. That itself could lead to lower sales for them causing them to cancel.

They didn't just cut their own costs by doing that though Kaba, there just weren't many people willing to repurchase dvd at those prices anymore. They were competing with their own new shows and shooting themselves for it. I understand your feelings but I really don't think you should hold that against them permanently. For the vast majority of people that decision was beneficial. They are a business after all. It's not like cutting off a series so you only have to pay 35$ for the whole vegeta saga is really that horrible. Even if you were down to the very last volume the new sets would only cost 15$ more.

Xanas, as much as I want to believe that, I have my doubts over the possibility that people just don't want to pay for singles anymore. After all, this was the first time that people could finally get Dragonball Z season 1 uncut and those who had bought the singles from Frieza to Buu would also want the singles for Vegeta Saga as well. Besides, I paid approx. $400 for vol. 1-9 with both boxes and figures. When you spend that much money on anime when you're on a limited budget, it is hard to let bygones be bygones to the company releasing the title considering that it is a popular franchise. The fact that FUNimation even re-released the sets as cropped widescreen and DVNRed footage doesn't help matters either. Mad

Honestly, while I enjoyed the series on Adult Swim, I wasn't crazy about it--in general I'm not big on long shounen series.

But I still feel sad hearing this news--I adored the dub. Because it was the first time I had gotten a chance to hear Spike Spencer play someone that wasn't either a whimp or someone extremely annoying. (I know he's had other roles I'd feel the same way about, but I haven't had a chance to watch them yet. ^^;; ) It was really fun to hear Spike play a typical hyperactive shounen hero.

Mar probably did alright when it was mixed in with other shonen titles like FMA and Naruto; but then the other two titles became huge, and it quickly got forgotten. The Recca manga would've been finished this year, too, but Viz was forced to release it at four volumes a year instead of the usual six volumes. I'm guessing it suffered from a similar fate from being mixed in with other fighting manga like DBZ and YYH. Oh, well, at least it'll be done in '09...

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Forum - View topicNEWS: Future DVD Volumes of MÄR Anime Reportedly Delisted

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NEWS: Future DVD Volumes of MÄR Anime Reportedly Delisted