Gridman: The Hyper Agent (TV Series 1993-1994) from Mill Creek - Blu-ray Forum

UFAlien · 08-16-2021, 05:35 PM

Amazon.com Page

Blu-ray.com News Post

Previously there was a bit of discussion on this release in the thread for Mill Creek's Ultraman releases, but since this isn't a part of that franchise I figured it deserves its own thread.

There's a bit of confusion as to the actual specs and even number of discs on this release at the moment. One thing worth pointing out, for the uninitiated, is that Gridman was shot on standard-def digital composite video. An upscaled version has been available for some time on Blu-ray in Japan and also on the TokuHD service; this release is presumably from the same upscaled master.

Mill Creek is either somehow unaware of the fact this isn't native HD content or is being intentionally misleading in their marketing, as their press release claimed it's in "stunning HD."

I received my shipping notice from Amazon today and it should be here sometime tomorrow; I'll update with info on the specs when I can.

Zillamon51 · 08-16-2021, 05:44 PM

I pre-ordered, but my copy hasn't shipped yet. I wouldn't watch it right away anyways; I'm still working my way through Ultraman Leo.

UFAlien · 08-17-2021, 05:54 PM

Got it!

First things first - this is a six-disc set, not four. Each disc has either six or seven episodes. The packaging states it's a 1080p presentation, but that's an error - it's in 1080i, as were the Japanese Blu-rays. That's a good thing because it allows preservation of the original 30 frames/60 fields per second frame rate of the show. The packaging ALSO says it's widescreen, which is thankfully also false - it's in the original 4:3 television ratio. Audio is in fact lossless DTS-HD MA. Average video bitrates are around 25 Mbps on the first disc, which has six episodes; haven't ripped the ones with seven yet.

I never watched the show with the infamous TokuHD subs, but watching a bit of the first episode, the subtitles seemed fine.
EDIT: Evidence has surfaced that the subtitles on this release are based on the TokuHD translation, with some of the more egregious lines changed by Mill Creek to sound better. Not an actual new translation.

The packaging is nice, up to the level of their standard Ultraman releases. Comes with a slipcover, and the sleeve itself has different art. There's also a booklet included that's just like the ones from the Ultraman sets. No digital redemption code here, though.

As for video quality - I knew what I was in for, so it's fine. It looks like composite SD video because it is. Soft, with some dot crawl and other color artifacts from the composite source. No one would mistake it for "stunning HD" but it's a very solid presentation of a limited production.

Packaging and disc shots in the next spoiler:

[Show spoiler]

And a few screenshots:

[Show spoiler]

I also have Mill Creek's old Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad DVDs; I'll do some screenshot comparisons eventually.

starsteam · 08-17-2021, 06:24 PM

Puzzling that Tsuburaya would send Mill Creek the 1080i upscale for Gridman but not for Ultraman Tiga/Dyna/Gaia. Take what we can get.

My copy is out for delivery. I remember watching their SSSS DVDs a few years ago and thinking we'd never get the original version in America. Things worked out after all.

sagadego · 08-17-2021, 08:56 PM

https://twitter.com/Jumbalia23/statu...22178297016335 yeesh sounds like the same subs as the streaming ver. :/

UFAlien · 08-17-2021, 09:09 PM

Ooof. I didn’t run into anything in my sample but I only watched through a few minutes. Jumped the gun there.

jwk94 · 08-17-2021, 09:15 PM

Ugh, guess I'll return mine.

UFAlien · 08-17-2021, 09:25 PM

It looks like instead of an actually new translation, Mill Creek just used the existing subtitles and changed some of the more egregious mistakes:

https://twitter.com/macross7isgood/s...383846915?s=20

bongozoid · 08-18-2021, 12:02 AM

Got my shipping notification - looking forward to checking it out. Hopefully I won't find the subs too frustrating!

bongozoid · 07-24-2022, 09:46 PM

Interesting that a year later, no one has really talked about this...

I'm just starting it now after finally making my way through the Showa-era Ultraman shows... and this show is a lot of fun. Really having a great time. Subtitle translations aren't the best and the picture is nothing special, but the show itself is much more enjoyable than I was expecting and I really wish someone would make more of these available on blu-ray!

08-16-2021, 05:35 PM	#1
UFAlien Blu-ray Guru Top contributor Member since:Oct 2008 4K collection:127 Blu-ray collection:474 Blu-ray reviews: 14 Trading Score:29	Gridman: The Hyper Agent (TV Series 1993-1994) from Mill Creek Amazon.com Page Blu-ray.com News Post Previously there was a bit of discussion on this release in the thread for Mill Creek's Ultraman releases, but since this isn't a part of that franchise I figured it deserves its own thread. There's a bit of confusion as to the actual specs and even number of discs on this release at the moment. One thing worth pointing out, for the uninitiated, is that Gridman was shot on standard-def digital composite video. An upscaled version has been available for some time on Blu-ray in Japan and also on the TokuHD service; this release is presumably from the same upscaled master. Mill Creek is either somehow unaware of the fact this isn't native HD content or is being intentionally misleading in their marketing, as their press release claimed it's in "stunning HD." I received my shipping notice from Amazon today and it should be here sometime tomorrow; I'll update with info on the specs when I can.

08-17-2021, 05:54 PM	#3
UFAlien Blu-ray Guru Top contributor Member since:Oct 2008 4K collection:127 Blu-ray collection:474 Blu-ray reviews: 14 Trading Score:29	Got it! First things first - this is a six-disc set, not four. Each disc has either six or seven episodes. The packaging states it's a 1080p presentation, but that's an error - it's in 1080i, as were the Japanese Blu-rays. That's a good thing because it allows preservation of the original 30 frames/60 fields per second frame rate of the show. The packaging ALSO says it's widescreen, which is thankfully also false - it's in the original 4:3 television ratio. Audio is in fact lossless DTS-HD MA. Average video bitrates are around 25 Mbps on the first disc, which has six episodes; haven't ripped the ones with seven yet. I never watched the show with the infamous TokuHD subs, but watching a bit of the first episode, the subtitles seemed fine. EDIT: Evidence has surfaced that the subtitles on this release are based on the TokuHD translation, with some of the more egregious lines changed by Mill Creek to sound better. Not an actual new translation. The packaging is nice, up to the level of their standard Ultraman releases. Comes with a slipcover, and the sleeve itself has different art. There's also a booklet included that's just like the ones from the Ultraman sets. No digital redemption code here, though. As for video quality - I knew what I was in for, so it's fine. It looks like composite SD video because it is. Soft, with some dot crawl and other color artifacts from the composite source. No one would mistake it for "stunning HD" but it's a very solid presentation of a limited production. Packaging and disc shots in the next spoiler: [Show spoiler] And a few screenshots: [Show spoiler] I also have Mill Creek's old Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad DVDs; I'll do some screenshot comparisons eventually. Last edited by UFAlien; 08-17-2021 at 09:27 PM.

08-16-2021, 05:44 PM	#2
Zillamon51 Banned Top contributor Member since:Oct 2013 Location:S.E. Michigan 4K collection:374 Blu-ray collection:2062 DVD collection:664 Digital collection:929 Trading Score:11	I pre-ordered, but my copy hasn't shipped yet. I wouldn't watch it right away anyways; I'm still working my way through Ultraman Leo.

08-17-2021, 06:24 PM	#4
starsteam Blu-ray Champion Top contributor Member since:Sep 2015 Location:Alabama 4K collection:455 Blu-ray collection:5465 DVD collection:3246 Digital collection:1329 Trading Score:261	Puzzling that Tsuburaya would send Mill Creek the 1080i upscale for Gridman but not for Ultraman Tiga/Dyna/Gaia. Take what we can get. My copy is out for delivery. I remember watching their SSSS DVDs a few years ago and thinking we'd never get the original version in America. Things worked out after all.

08-17-2021, 08:56 PM	#5
sagadego Senior Member Member since:Jun 2019 4K collection:51 Blu-ray collection:333 DVD collection:362 Blu-ray reviews:1	https://twitter.com/Jumbalia23/statu...22178297016335 yeesh sounds like the same subs as the streaming ver. :/

08-17-2021, 09:09 PM	#6
UFAlien Blu-ray Guru Top contributor Member since:Oct 2008 4K collection:127 Blu-ray collection:474 Blu-ray reviews: 14 Trading Score:29	Ooof. I didn’t run into anything in my sample but I only watched through a few minutes. Jumped the gun there.

08-17-2021, 09:15 PM	#7
jwk94 Active Member Member since:Nov 2019	Ugh, guess I'll return mine.

08-17-2021, 09:25 PM	#8
UFAlien Blu-ray Guru Top contributor Member since:Oct 2008 4K collection:127 Blu-ray collection:474 Blu-ray reviews: 14 Trading Score:29	It looks like instead of an actually new translation, Mill Creek just used the existing subtitles and changed some of the more egregious mistakes: https://twitter.com/macross7isgood/s...383846915?s=20

08-18-2021, 12:02 AM	#9
bongozoid Power Member Top contributor Member since:Jul 2014 4K collection:68 Blu-ray collection:596 DVD collection:38	Got my shipping notification - looking forward to checking it out. Hopefully I won't find the subs too frustrating!

07-24-2022, 09:46 PM	#10
bongozoid Power Member Top contributor Member since:Jul 2014 4K collection:68 Blu-ray collection:596 DVD collection:38	Interesting that a year later, no one has really talked about this... I'm just starting it now after finally making my way through the Showa-era Ultraman shows... and this show is a lot of fun. Really having a great time. Subtitle translations aren't the best and the picture is nothing special, but the show itself is much more enjoyable than I was expecting and I really wish someone would make more of these available on blu-ray!

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