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NEWS: Aniplex America Sells Gurren Lagann Movie DVDs in July

xstylus wrote:

Meh. I plan on waiting for a dub anyway. Maybe by then it'll be available on RightStuf.com.

There won't be a dub. Aniplex made it pretty clear.

Edit: Oh, they're up for pre-order already: http://store.bandai-ent.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=gurren+lagann+movie&Search.x=0&Search.y=0

The prices aren't exactly pleasant (MSRP of $29.98 for the regular and $49.98 for the special edition), but they're about what you'd expect from higher-priced singles, so it's not too bad. And they are somewhat cheaper as pre-orders ($23.98 regular, $39.98 special) - though there is likely to be shipping on top of that, which I would have avoided had I been able to buy them at rightstuf. Not great prices, but not all that bad.

I really don't know how to react to this. Do they honestly think that they can connect with North American fans better than the established R1 anime companies? I find it unlikely that they really could. Not impossible perhaps, but highly unlikely. Are they just really that unhappy with what the R1 companies have been doing to decide not to license to them? Or did all of the R1 companies just decide that the Gurren Lagann movies weren't worth the cost. It's not likely they're really new material after all. They're rehash of the show and probably contain a fair amount of rehashed material (though not having seen them, I don't know how much of it is really new animation). It really sounds to me like they're just trying to get a product into the North American market that the R1 companies wouldn't license.

And I can't see this as a particularly postive thing, generally speaking. If it brings titles over here that wouldn't otherwise come, then that's great. But I really don't expect them to deal with the R1 market as well as the R1 anime companies, and selling titles only through the Bandai store isn't exactly desirable. It pretty much guarantees that we're going to have to pay closer to MSRP than you would at some of the other online anime stores. And there's a high chance that they'll try and charge prices closer to those in Japan - though the fact that they're concerned about Blu-Rays being reverse imported is a good sign since it would indicate that they do intend to sell them at least somewhat cheaper here than in Japan.

If this means that we'll be getting titles that we wouldn't have otherwise gotten, then that's good. But it doesn't seem to me like a very good sign that a Japanese anime company decides that it needs to try and sell to the R1 market directly. It doesn't say good things about what they think of the R1 licensors, and it's likely to increase prices (not to mention almost guarantee a lack of dubs).

If a Japanese anime company does this, it seems to me that either the R1 anime companies have decided that it's not worth the cost (in which case, unless the lack of license fees would be enough to make the title profitable, it'll probably bomb for the Japanese anime company as well) and/or that the Japanese anime company is looking to try and reap a higher profit margin by selling their titles directly at higher prices (which is likely to bomb as we've seen in the past). So, if we get titles that we wouldn't have otherwise, then great. But this really doesn't look like a good trend (and the fact that Bandai in Japan is selling the most recent Gundam OVA in a similar manner makes this seem like it's definitely starting a trend).

Edit: Oh, they're up for pre-order already: http://store.bandai-ent.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=gurren+lagann+movie&Search.x=0&Search.y=0

The prices aren't exactly pleasant (MSRP of $29.98 for the regular and $49.98 for the special edition), but they're about what you'd expect from higher-priced singles, so it's not too bad. And they are somewhat cheaper as pre-orders ($23.98 regular, $39.98 special) - though there is likely to be shipping on top of that, which I would have avoided had I been able to buy them at rightstuf. Not great prices, but not all that bad.

Considering all the people alluding to BVUSA in the comments so far, those prices are downright golden when compared. And $30/$50 for standard/LE is actually, for lack of a better word, standard...

Where will you ship these DVDs? Will they be for USA and Canada only?

Yes, North America (USA and Canada) only.

Where will you ship these DVDs? Will they be for USA and Canada only?

Yes, North America (USA and Canada) only.

Besides all the tired comments about dubs and the like, I think the real question is if Aniplex will be able to get the word out there enough to try to get people to buy this. Until this morning, the only place I heard about the online Bandai-Ent. store was a banner ad over on animeondvd. Dubs, price points, and shipping charges don't really matter if no one knows you're selling the stuff. Maybe they'll hand out flyers that they are selling the dvd's whenever they have theatrical screenings of it.