Need anime bluray recommendations

[[1080-p]]

Originally Posted by Kyo28

I'm looking to expand my current library of anime blurays and I need some advice. My player is region A so anything from the US and Japan is OK.

In case of US releases, I'm only interested in releases that allow me to view the original (meaning no cutting, original JPN soundtrack and ability to turn the English subs off).

So far I have Paprika and Tekkon Kinkreet.

I'm looking into possible purchases of the Freedom box, Ghost in the Shell movies, Top o nerae (Gunbuster/Diebuster), DBZ movies, etc.

All suggestions and feedback on quality would be greatly appreciated!

vexille
appleseed

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by Uberbot

I've seen the series. It is basically a remake of the Akira Kurosawa classic, Seven Samurai. I might pick it up at a budget price but I was fairly disappointed with it overall. It didn't have a solid flow of action or a real depth in story. I would have liked the animation to be a bit more mature.

Anime on Bluray reminds me of the early days when availability was light and the costs were high. I remember spending $40 for 30 minutes of animation on a VHS clam shell!

I get to watch most of my anime from a website online. YTV from Toronto use to show anime on Friday nights (Canada) but for some months now they actualy have a new anime TV channel which my cable company does not carry It's not easy to buy either in many cases.

[HD 335]

Originally Posted by Uberbot

I remember spending $40 for 30 minutes of animation on a VHS clam shell!

You are a true connoisseur with that statement.

btw, love your setup. Just rated it and gave you a comment. I really need to get pictures of my modest setup, I'm still too embarrassed to show my lack of wire management

[Uberbot]

Originally Posted by HD 335

You are a true connoisseur with that statement.

btw, love your setup. Just rated it and gave you a comment. I really need to get pictures of my modest setup, I'm still too embarrassed to show my lack of wire management

Thanks! I certainly miss the feeling of discovery with anime back in the late 80's and early 90's. Getting your hands on something like Battle Angel felt magical. I actually flew out to California to watch the final OVA for Macross Plus in a theater! These days there is so much out there and, unlike the 90's, most of it is nonsense.

[kndy]

The majority of the Bandai Visual/Honneamise releases are solid! I recommend them all especially "Freedom". "GUNBUSTER vs. DIEBUSTER" are good but I highly recommend finding the DVD box sets with the complete episodes because the films are edited (some episodes just flat out not included in the final cut). But the positive are for the hardcore fans who wanted a better soundtrack and also the reunion of the original voice actors was a great thing to see on the Blu-ray. "Wings of Honneamise" is a must-own. Yukikaze is good but it's not widescreen.

FUNimation has good releases with Vexille but as for the DBZ films, they have been remastered and colors are more pronounced but they were not cleaned up (afterall, that's an expensive process) so expect to see the dust and scratches more pronounced. It maybe bother you if you are looking for pristine and clean picture quality.

[alienofwar]

Appleseed: Ex-Machina was a pretty cool anime. I'm so used to the traditional animation from the 80's and 90's that this movie seemed almost...fake (I think that's the word to use). Other then that the story line, voice acting, character relations and all that junk was exactly how an anime should be IMO. Just not used to these computer graphic drawings. The opening gun fight was awesome though! Best part of the movie if you ask me.

[reece]

AFRO SAMURAI...great anime with samuel l jackson. picture isnt perfect but its still good eye candy. cool soundtrack too

[Kyo28]

Wow, thank you all for your feedback. It's always interesting to hear input directly from people who've watched or bought the discs. I'm also one of those anime fans that used to pay 6.000 Yen for a VHS tape with 3 episodes of Saint Seiya on it, so at the point we are today, I get the same feeling with Bluray. I hope more releases will come and prices will go down (especially domestic Japanese releases are expensive)

Originally Posted by Uberbot

I'm a pretty big anime dork but the bluray releases have been pretty slim so far on the domestic side. There are some must-own imports if that's your thing.

Here is a quick list!

Must:
Akira (Feb 24th)
Animatrix
Appleseed: Ex Machina
Batman Gotham Knights
COWBOY BEBOP ~ Knockin' on heaven's door *
Escaflowne Movie *
Ghost in the Shell S.A.C. Trilogy Box *
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (out today!)
Lupin the 3rd -- The Castle of Cagliostro (one of the greatest movies ever made)*
Superior Ultraman 8 Brothers (Daikessen! Chô urutora 8 kyôdai) (Jan 23rd - live action but awesome!)*

* = import title

So-so domestic releases:
Afro Samurai
Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles
Samurai 7 (Feb 24th)
Vexille

Thank you for the interesting suggestions. I must say I'm not so very interested in Afro Samurai or Robotech, as I feel those are a mix of Japanese anime with US influences. I'd rather get Samurai 7 and Macross F (although they are really expensive) instead of those.

Lupin the 3rd is an interesting suggestion. I saw the movie on TV in Japan and liked it a lot. So I just might buy that one.

Ultraman is also a good suggestion. I like tokusatsu as much as anime, so I'll check into it. Is the PQ good? Also interested in Keitai Sousakan 7, but if I want the whole series on BD, it'll turn out quite expensive.

Is Batman Gotham Knights good? Is it pure anime or also a mix of Japanese anime and US influences?

Anyway, thank you all for the suggestions so far!

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by rkish

Royal Space Force: Wings of Honneamise

It's a lot to pay the list price ($80.00) and I don't know why they felt the need to include a DVD copy as well.

I found a brand new copy on EBay for $29.99 and it fits all of your criteria.

The PQ is outstanding, as is the AQ. If you can find a cheap copy, it is a must title to own on BD.

I was looking to buy the Patlabor movies but I really don't want to pay $100 a pop.

[Marquoz]

Anybody pick up the GitS: Innocence yet? I'm still aggravated about the lack of the first one stateside.

[MOONPHASE]

i would go with Air series box set(a bit pricey for the blu-ray box set but the series alone makes it worth it), 5 Centimeters Per Second, Tenchi Muyo(this spring in Japan with choice of english dub or japanese dub),

[MOONPHASE]

Originally Posted by Marquoz

Anybody pick up the GitS: Innocence yet? I'm still aggravated about the lack of the first one stateside.

i was going to get it but my local best buy didnt have it yet

[u_nick]

Originally Posted by Kyo28

Is Batman Gotham Knights good? Is it pure anime or also a mix of Japanese anime and US influences?

It's basically US studio created, with stories from US writers, with art and direction from Japanese artists/creators/directors.

If I remember correctly...

[Uberbot]

Originally Posted by u_nick

It's basically US studio created, with stories from US writers, with art and direction from Japanese artists/creators/directors.

If I remember correctly...

Yes, the stories are written by mostly American comic writers and animated by some of Japans best studios.

Batman Gotham Knight is SUPER HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!

[Zen_Amako]

I was very pleased with the Bubblegum Crisis Blu-ray set that was released last year in Japan. No English subtitles or dubbing, but the picture quality is amazing for a 20-year-old anime. It just destroys the DVDs. The only bad thing is that it's expensive. Riding Bean looks very nice on Blu, too.

5cm Per Second is another great-looking Blu-ray, but again, no subtitles. It might be a good idea to wait on this one, since a U.S. release might happen soon.

For titles that include English subtitles, I can recommend:

Royal Space Force: Wings of Honneamise
Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade
Paprika

Gunbuster vs. Diebuster: The GATTAI! movie is really for hardcore Gunbuster fans. If you're not sure what it is, I would recommend watching the OVAs first (maybe through Netflix?). The Gunbuster movie is a 90-min. compilation culled from six half hour episodes, so a lot of material got cut out - primarily character development. It IS nice to see the episodes shot on 35mm (the material from episodes 5 and 6) in HD, though.

[Zen_Amako]

Originally Posted by MOONPHASE

i was going to get it but my local best buy didnt have it yet

It sounds like the import versions of Innocence (Ghost in the Shell 2) are the way to go, since the U.S. release is a BD-25 with no lossless sound. I'm sure the U.S. version is less expensive, though.

I have the Japanese import of the first Ghost in the Shell movie (the first release, not "2.0"). The picture quality is pretty underwhelming for a Blu-ray, but if you compare it to the DVD, the Blu-ray is clearly an improvement.

[Xboxbydegrees]

Wings of Homeamise (not sure if spelled correct)

[Clark Kent]

I am dying though to see Ninja Scroll on Blu-ray. Anyone heard anything yet?

[Uberbot]

Originally Posted by Clark Kent

I am dying though to see Ninja Scroll on Blu-ray. Anyone heard anything yet?

I second that. I am also dying to see Blood The Last Vampire released. In the early days of Bluray it had a release date but it just disappeared!



Also, Cowboy Bebop, Macross Plus, Battle Angel, Giant Robo, Samurai Champloo, Spriggan, and on and on and on.

[Beefbowl]

Originally Posted by Uberbot

I am also dying to see Blood The Last Vampire released.

I'm looking forward to the live action of this movie