It could work, up to a point, but I think it would ruffle more than just a few feathers.
Firstly, it's whether there's enough of the anime/dub/VOD audience intersection to justify it.
Secondly, it would potentially tick off a large swathe of the anime fandom. Even those that enjoy watching dubs may, in some cases, be a bit iffy about only having the option to watch it first dubbed. (If they miss the cinema window)
With
Your Name, there's more than just the anime audience though; this is a movie with more widespread, mainstream appeal - the audience the English dub was largely made for. I think the importance of dubs is also often understated - I mean, look at all the recent discussion here regarding
Miss Hokusai.
Obviously, an ideal scenario would be releasing the dub and sub at the same time, so if a dub-only digital release would allow no or little advance over dual-language, then it should be dual-language (of course, same with VOD vs home video too).
And putting aside people who prefer subs, and people like myself who have a general dislike for dubs, this option would bone anybody who is deaf, hard of hearing or otherwise requires subtitles to aid their understanding. (When my niece and nephew were much younger, my brother and sis-in-law pretty much replied on subtitles and low volume for any TV watching after kids' bedtime)
If a hypothetical earlier-dub only VOD release were possible, it would be interesting to see if Anime Limited would be able to include subtitles (can VOD support optional tracks?). The only issue with that however, is that the scripts for the two versions are different (certain scenes rewritten due to language jokes, lip-flap matching etc) and the expense/time of getting such an additional subtitle track together may not be seen as worthwhile for the minority who would use it.
It would be interesting to hear Andrew's general thoughts on subtitles for the hard-of-hearing though, even outside of the specific case of
Your Name. I remember how disheartened my great-uncle was when the
House M.D. DVD release dropped hard-of-hearing subtitles mid-way through the show, while other dub-only anime releases such as MangaUK's
Yu-Gi-Oh! completely lack any subtitle tracks.
The other issue is that by having a dub-only release out when there will inevitably be a fansub out, it's basically asking for trouble. People will grab the fansub as a stopgap measure, potentially eating into initial sales (regardless of whether or not it affects overall sales) as people delay getting something they "already have".
An initial, earlier digital-only release will not push more people towards downloading fansubs - the complete lack of any legal release will.
Still, I hope I'm as bothered about the film com next autumn/winter. As I won't be seeing this theatrically.
I actively dislike going to the cinema and only make a very few exceptions, especially when it comes to non spur-of-the-moment decisions. And my upcoming one will be A Silent Voice for thematic reasons.
Maybe you'll still be as bothered if they could negotiate an earlier release somehow...
This is actually something that bothers me. I actually wanted to go see it, bought tickets and everything but was unable to go, now I'm worried about how long the home release will take and if I'll even give a crap by the time it turns up. It's strange because if it hadn't had such a huge push in the UK for cinema I probably would have been fine waiting, but I'm conscious of it at this point so my interest can now fade from where it's at....I guess my brain is just wired weird lol kinda hope the Japanese release has English subs tbh.
I think that could be a significant issue for Anime Limited; if even the hardcore anime fans are questioning whether their interest will wane, what are the chances of the more casual film-goers still being interested almost a full year later? Which is why I'm suggesting that if there's any option Anime Limited could put on the table to try and secure an earlier release, it should be worth at least considering.
