Forum - View topic

NEWS: Aniplex USA to Release Gurren Lagann on Blu-ray Singles

I've asked. There's usually either no answer or an answer you wouldn't at all be satisfied with for a variety of reasons.

Our reviews of their product just about always mention the prices (usually decrying how expensive they are). If we were as cozy with Aniplex as our conspiracy theorist suggests, that wouldn't be in there. I've talked at length on our podcast and in other public places about how crazy their prices are. I'd have been fired or at least scolded for saying these things - hasn't happened. My communication with the company is limited - entirely - to interview requests for convention guests that they're hosting here in the States. Otherwise we don't talk. I do receive review copies of some of their products, same as Funimation, Sentai Filmworks, Rightstuf and Viz which is standard operating procedure for any editorial department at an entertainment journalism organization. Receiving review materials does not compromise the review process nor does it influence our scores.

But here's the reality: no amount of internet mob rage will force a privately-held company in a capitalist system to lower their prices to whatever you deem reasonable. You can't force them to change their business model - which is all this is, a business model - and start charging less for entertainment product. The only way you can change that is by organizing a boycott massive enough to actually hurt their sales, which so far hasn't happened. Everything we know about Aniplex of America right now says that their approach to this, from a "staying in business" perspective appears to be working fine.

You seem to be under the impression that you can brute force a company into lowering their prices for you. Shy of mafia tactics you really can't. You can try an organized boycott, sure, but in my opinion if the enraged masses existed in the numbers you're suggesting, something would've happened by now. It's been years and years and years.

Just goes to show how greedy, cheap and entitled people are.
Even if the whole thing is only $10 + extras, you would still b!tch and moan about it, "$10?! outrageous it should be free since I'm better than everyone, what is with this price? this a crime a crime I'm never buying anything again, f*ck you you &*(*&!@%*!".

Just goes to show how greedy, cheap and entitled people are.
Even if the whole thing is only $10 + extras, you would still b!tch and moan about it, "$10?! outrageous it should be free since I'm better than everyone, what is with this price? this a crime a crime I'm never buying anything again, f*ck you you &*(*&!@%*!".

ichii_1 wrote:

Just goes to show how greedy, cheap and entitled people are. Even if the whole thing is only $10 + extras, you would still b!tch and moan about it, "$10?! outrageous it should be free since I'm better than everyone, what is with this price? this a crime a crime I'm never buying anything again, f*ck you you &*(*&!@%*!".

Seems like Aniplex is the greedy one. I don't see too many other anime licensors bleeding their customers dry this badly.

You know, except for the folks handling Gundam Unicorn. I might finish my collection if I stumble over a leprechaun's pot of gold some day.

By the way, to something else brought up in this thread, I have never once implied ANN was in any anime licensors' pockets, let alone Aniplex's. That's just a silly misconception feebs on 4chan believe.

Just goes to show how greedy, cheap and entitled people are.
Even if the whole thing is only $10 + extras, you would still b!tch and moan about it, "$10?! outrageous it should be free since I'm better than everyone, what is with this price? this a crime a crime I'm never buying anything again, f*ck you you &*(*&!@%*!".

Seems like Aniplex is the greedy one. I don't see too many other anime licensors bleeding their customers dry this badly.

You know, except for the folks handling Gundam Unicorn. I might finish my collection if I stumble over a leprechaun's pot of gold some day.

By the way, to something else brought up in this thread, I have never once implied ANN was in any anime licensors' pockets, let alone Aniplex's. That's just a silly misconception feebs on 4chan believe.

2-4chan dweebs? :/ Maybe. But don't forget to add paranoid, not-trusting people who see suspicious activity everywhere. Or as Zac likes to call us, "conspiracy theorists." Which is a totally different thing.

1-Ignore him. He's just some dumbass with an Aniplex hard-on. And given his registration date, maybe even a disgruntled employee.

For the record, it's absolutely not hypocritical of me to say that given that I also replied to him, but I replied to him to preserve our honor!

ichii_1 wrote:

Just goes to show how greedy, cheap and entitled people are. Even if the whole thing is only $10 + extras, you would still b!tch and moan about it, "$10?! outrageous it should be free since I'm better than everyone, what is with this price? this a crime a crime I'm never buying anything again, f*ck you you &*(*&!@%*!".

I just don't realistically see how in your brain you can compare $250 to $10....

Yes, we are entitled. But in our defense, we have alternatives to go to in lieu of our entitlement. If we're willing to import, then your logic just fails on so many levels.

Seems like Aniplex is the greedy one. I don't see too many other anime licensors bleeding their customers dry this badly.

Bandai Visual is one of the other companies that is considered comparable to Aniplex in terms of commercial influence in anime and seems to have their hands in just about everything, just not quite to the same degree. It sucks too because they have way more titles I like than Aniplex and even technically own my historically favorite anime studio yet I can't really say I support their practices much either. I still remember going into a store in 2005 and seeing a bunch of 29.99 discs in the anime section with a disc for Diebuster priced at 69.99 for two episodes strictly because it was under the Bandai Visual label and they felt they had a right to charge that much.

The point is you and a lot more people would still moan and b!tch even if it's only $10 for the whole thing, get it? pay attention

As for Gurren Lagaan , the OOP Anime Legends set is still cheaper on Amazon than this single volume release, and it's got the whole series.

And it's not like it's hurting the industry - the original creators still get their cut in exchange for official products. So, where's the moral dilemma?

There's just something about their approach to producing, marketing, pricing and just their whole self-congratulatory attitude that reeks of arrogance and really rubs me the wrong way and I just wish more fans would wake up and realize what's going on and stop rewarding their frankly awful behavior, treatment of staff at A-1 (not sure how many people have heard about the suicides and 600 hour work months the lower tier animators have to endure there while higher up execs and big shot names get the lions share of the income and praise from fans) and crass extremely transparent and shameless commercialism.

kevinx59 wrote:

As for Gurren Lagaan , the OOP Anime Legends set is still cheaper on Amazon than this single volume release, and it's got the whole series.

Just be aware that some of those could be the nearly-identical bootleg. A while back, various Anime Legends sets got bootlegged. The sets are so identical to the originals you have to have them in your possession and even have to put the discs in your computer and check the data to tell.
.