Defective or Disappointing UK Anime Discs

Rui

Karamatsu Boy
Administrator
Following the recent litany of buggy releases, I think we need a single place to collate reports. A certain US-based fan site used to do this and it's been pleasing to see how things have improved over time for them; perhaps this can help the UK anime industry see where mistakes are being made. In the meantime maybe the Japanese will stop forcing so many restrictions on UK releases once they see how many are flawed :roll:

Unless stated otherwise, all glitches should be assumed to affect all UK releases of a series, e.g. both the singles and subsequent complete collections will have the same problem.

Where a fix is confirmed the series name is green.

DVD List

Accel World (MVM): The character artwork extras from the US releases are not included. Signs omitted for on-screen text in episode 6 (disc 1). The shorts are missing too.
A Certain Scientific Railgun S (Manga UK): Subtitles spell a character's name incorrectly for half the episodes.
Ah My Goddess season 2 (Manga UK): Subtitles appear during the dub on the second volume.
Akira (Manga UK): Subtitle track contains two misspellings of character names. *Does not apply to BD in Manga UK's 2016 Collector's Edition Triple Play, but is repeated on the DVD. Cannot verify Manga's 2011 BD version.
Angel Beats (Manga UK): Dropping subtitles on episodes 10 and 11 (disc 2). Subtitles blink when overlapping (all episodes). Discs and inner sleeve are mislabelled with the episode split for the Blu-ray version.
Another (MVM): Some dubbed English dialogue missing in one episode.
Attack On Titan part 1 (Manga UK): The on-disc extras present in the US and Australian versions have been stripped and made exclusive to the BD Collector's Edition set in the UK.
Bakemonogatari part 1 (MVM): Incorrect discs in the first batch. A recall took place and all packs with catalogue number MVD2324 are fine.
Bakuman season 1 (Kaze): Subtitles are full of errors. They're also locked.
Ben-To! (Manga UK): Poor dub audio, chapter stops which make no sense.
Berserk (MVM): Mono audio. Fixed in the US, but not in the UK.
Berserk Golden Age Arc I: The Egg of the King (Kaze): Fewer extras than the US version.
Beyond The Boundary (Animatsu): The special Episode Zero: Daybreak bonus episode is not available in the UK edition.
Black Cat volume 4 (MVM): Minor audio issue (Japanese track).
Black Rock Shooter (Manga UK): Subtitles occasionally out of sync.
Bleach part 10 (Kaze): Poor quality subtitles, some lines missing.
Bleach part 12 volume 2 (Kaze): Text on the sleeve is for the wrong volume (the disc content is correct, though).
Blood: The Last Vampire (Manga UK): One missing subtitle.
Blue Exorcist part 1 (Manga UK): Missing subtitles. Supposedly fixed for the BD edition.
Boruto: Naruto the Movie (Manga UK): The Day Naruto Became Hokage bonus OVA is dub-only.
Brave Story (Optimum): Audio channels incorrectly configured.
Btooom! (MVM): Minor issues with audio, including a swapped audio track in the extras.
Buso Renkin (Manga UK): Part 2 Disc 1 has mistimed subtitles in episode 16. Manga-strip epilogue of episode 26 is not translated (Part 2 disc 3).
Cat Planet Cuties (Manga UK): Missing Japanese audio for extras, video glitch on disc 1, subtitling issues.
Chrono Crusade (AD Vision): The second volume (or second disc in the complete collection) has an audio problem with the English dub.
Clannad part 1 (Manga UK): Subtitles disappear when multiple lines overlap.
Claymore (Manga UK): Dub audio incorrectly specified and a commentary track is glitched.
Daphne in the Brilliant Blue (MVM): Subtitle sync problems in volume 3.
Deadman Wonderland (Manga UK): Some oddities in the subtitles and no dub for the OAV.
Death Note part 5 (Manga UK): Opening song has no subtitles.
Dragon Ball season 3 (Manga UK): Poor subtitles and a major playback glitch (Japanese track).
Dragon Ball Z season 4 (Manga UK): Audio sync problem for episode 121 (Japanese track).
Dragon Ball Z season 9 (Manga UK): A faulty subtitle and an audio dropout.
Dragon Ball Z Kai season 1 (Manga UK): Minor issue: Discs use older masters with a mix of the original/replacement background music.
Durarara!! part 1 (Beez): Subtitles disappear when multiple lines overlap.
Durarara!! part 2 (Beez): Audio issue and some subtitle problems.
Dusk Maiden of Amnesia (MVM): Distorted audio and a moment with glitched video.
End of Evangelion (Manga UK): One piece of bad translation in important explanatory dialogue (applies to subtitles and dub).
Evangelion 1.11 (Manga UK): One faulty subtitle reads "The remains unchanged" instead of "The plan remains unchanged". The Evangelion 1.01 bonus DVD included in the HMV-exclusive DVD Collector's Edition has the correct subtitle. * Cannot verify Manga's BD version.
Escaflowne (Beez): Missing subtitles.
Fantastic Children (Beez): Subtitle track choice changes during playback.
Fairy Tail part 9 (Manga UK): Faulty chapter markers. Poor video and subtitles out of sync.
Fractale (Manga UK): The 'Play All' feature stops working on the last disc, making it seem as though the series ends earlier than it should. The last couple of episodes can still be individually selected.
From The New World part 2 (MVM): A few issues with subtitles and there's a momentary video glitch in one episode. Further confirmation of the issues.
Fullmetal Alchemist (MVM/Revelation): Glitchy subtitles, player-specific problems on volume 5. One episode is dubtitled rather than subtitled.
Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood (Manga UK): Subtitles do not fit the picture in early volumes.
Gantz (MVM): Preview for episode 12 has last subtitle missing (disc 3). Missing subtitle on DVD extra "Interview with creator Hiroya Oku and actress Chiaki Kuriyama" (disc 4).
Gargantia On The Verdurous Planet complete series (Manga UK): None of the extras from the US BD release are included, such as the Petite Gargantia episodes.
Ghost Hunt (Manga UK): Severe sound quality problems with the Japanese audio track.
Ghost In The Shell (Manga UK): Various significant audio/video problems on each release.
Ghost In The Shell 2.0 (Manga UK): Subtitles are copied from the original GitS and do not reflect the Puppet Master's gender change between versions. *Cannot verify BD version
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (Manga UK): Numerous translation errors in subtitles. *Cannot verify BD version
Ghost In The Shell SAC (Manga UK): Various subtitle, sync and audio problems.
Girls Und Panzer (MVM): Recaps aren't dubbed or fully subbed and a song is replaced. Recaps also have video issues. *BD version recap subs are unaffected
Golgo 13: The Professional (Special Agent Edition) (Manga UK): Distorted sound effects on all 5.1 and DTS audio tracks across both discs (both Japanese and English); Stereo 2.0 tracks are unaffected (both Japanese and English).
Good Luck Girl! (Binbogami-ga!) (Manga UK): Poor video, unclear subtitles, awkward chapter markers.
Gunbuster 2 (Beez): Missing subtitles.
Gunslinger Girl (MVM/Revelation): Player-specific playback problems.
Gurren Lagann part 2 (Beez): Missing subtitles.
Gyo: Tokyo Fish Attack (Terror-cotta): Poor translation with many errors and typos.
Harlock: Space Pirate (Manga UK): Bonus disc: subtitles on Japanese extended cut of film are "semi-dubtitles" with one distracting typing error in punctuation. *Same bonus disc included with BD version
House of Five Leaves (Beez): Distorted background audio/music.
Ikki Tousen Dragon Destiny (MVM): Player-specific playback problems.
Inu x Boku SS (MVM): Jerky picture caused by PAL conversion and intermittent pixellation.
Iria: Zeiram The Animation (MVM): Subtitles out of sync.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Complete First Season (Warner Bros.): No true English subtitles, only SDH.
K-On!! season 2 part 1 (Manga UK): Distorted Japanese audio for episode 11.
Karas (Manga UK): No translation of on-screen text at all.
Kiddy Grade (MVM): Glitched Japanese OP sequence for episode 6. A separate menu problem in the initial release was corrected for the complete collection.
Kids On The Slope (MVM): Brief video glitch on episode 9 (disc 2). PAL speed-up related audio warbling.
Kill la Kill Part 1 (Anime Limited): Disc 2 has missing subtitle in episode 7 and mistake in burned-in caption (8.30pm instead of 8.30am) in episode 8. *Cannot verify BD version
Kokoro Connect (MVM): Missing line of dialogue in the Japanese audio. There's only one set of textless OP/ED credits on this version.
La storia della Arcana Famiglia (MVM): There's a video glitch in one episode.
Log Horizon (MVM): Minor issue with credits missing during the opening/ending.
Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions! (Animatsu): Audio quality issues due to NTSC-PAL conversion.
Lucky Star (Anime Limited): Textless Opening (TV) and Textless Ending (OVA) are missing.
Macross Plus (Manga UK): Discs are mislabelled, though the content is fine.
Mardock Scramble: The Third Exhaust (Kaze): The on-screen text translations clash with the dialogue subtitles. Extras are missing on the DVD version. The text on the reverse of the case is not professionally translated.
Mawaru Penguindrum part 1 (Kaze): No sign subs for on-screen text, insert songs aren't subtitled. Mostly affects Japanese sub viewers.
Mayo Chiki (MVM): Mistimed subtitles, no translated credits. Mistake with a subtitle in ep2.
Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya season 2 (Manga UK): Mono audio.
Metropolis (Sony): Various mistakes in US Theatrical subtitle track; Original Japanese Translation subtitle track is unaffected. Post-credits end card is missing. *Eureka Films BD version includes end card
Millennium Actress (Manga UK): Subtitles are hearing-impaired version only.
Mysterious Girlfriend X (MVM): Extra material that was present on the US release is not included. There's a possible issue with the dub audio.
Naruto Unleashed season 1 (Manga UK): No sign subtitles for the English dub.
Naruto season 2 (Manga UK): Dubtitles.
Naruto Shippuden box 21 (Manga UK): Disc 2 is set to the wrong region and won't play on UK players. Replacements will be available through retailers. There is also a problem with no translation for on-screen text even on the fixed discs.
Naruto Shippuden Box Set 25 (Manga UK): Some copies have no menus or English subtitles. Replacements will be available through retailers.
Naruto Shippuden movie 1 (Manga UK): Subtitles out of sync on checkdisc.
Nekomonogatari Black (MVM): Minor issues with subtitle timing and a possible labelling error.
New Dominion Tank Police (Manga UK): Dubtitled.
Night Raid 1931 (MVM): Subtitle problems.
Nightwalker (MVM): Subtitles out of sync, audio dropouts in both languages, video glitch.
Noein (Manga UK): Dubtitles.
One Piece Movie Collection 1-3 (Manga UK): Poor video quality and the content specified on the packaging is wrong.
Orguss 02 (Manga UK): Audio dropouts in the Japanese soundtrack.
Otogi Zoshi (Manga UK): Dubtitles (volumes 4, 5, 6).
Ouran High School Host Club (Manga UK): Video is stretched, no signs-only subtitle track, an audio dropout in part 2, disc 2 and subtitles disappear when multiple lines overlap.
Outlaw Star (Anime Limited): Some minor problems for both the dub and sub versions. All of these issues were fixed for the Blu-ray edition.
Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt (Manga UK): Missing footage. Manga is running a recall. Occasional poor translation in subtitles. No Japanese audio for the extra "Panty & Stocking in Sanitary Box" *Cannot verify BD version
Patema Inverted (Anime Limited): Shifting, flickering subtitles during end credits on both the BD and DVD.
Persona 3 - Movie 2 Collector's Edition (Anime Limited): The Japanese 5.1 surround sound is configured incorrectly (affects both BD and DVD).
Persona 4 (Kaze): No translation for one OP and a text issue with a subtitle in episode 2. The same problems crop up in the second volume. And more subtitle problems in the third.
Princess Jellyfish (Kaze): Subtitles locked to audio, no sign subs for Japanese track.
Princess Mononoke (Buena Vista): Dubtitles.
RahXephon (101 Films and ADV Films): Subtitles out of sync in episode 2.
Rock Lee and His Ninja Pals Collection 1 (Manga UK): DVDs use the TV broadcast materials, various subtitling issues for both dub and sub viewers.
Rosario + Vampire season 2 (MVM): Subtitles positioned close to the middle of the picture in disc 1.
Samurai Champloo volume 6 (MVM): Missing line in the Japanese 5.1 audio track.
Sankarea: Undying Love (MVM): Subtitle issues in one episode. The same issues are present in the overseas releases too.
Sengoku Basara season 2 (Manga UK): Missing animated extras. They were BD-only in the US/Australia, but the UK didn't get this season on BD.
Shiki part 1 (Manga UK): Episode 1 has mistimed subtitles.
Shiki part 2 (Manga UK): Minor audio issue (Japanese track).
Shimoneta: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist (Funimation): The extra features are exclusive to the Blu-ray.
Slayers (MVM): Glitches in volume 2. A recall took place.
So I Can't Play H (MVM): The subtitles are burnt into the video and cannot be removed.
Sound of the Sky (Beez): Player-specific playback problems.
Spiral volume 2 (Revelation): Dubtitles.
Spirited Away (Studio Canal): Exhibits similar video problems to other early DVDs (details in link).
Spriggan (ADV): Substandard audio mix on Japanese audio track: dialogue often drowned out (English dub is fine).
Steins;Gate (Manga UK): Minor audio issue in the Japanese soundtrack. Also, some sign subs omitted, no textless credits (all BD only). One commentary track missing. The subtitle script is different on DVD and BD. The DVD version has a poorer, contradictory translation. More examples of poor translation on the DVD.
Tekken Blood Vengeance (Manga UK): Dubtitles.
Tenchi Muyo OVA Collector's Edition (MVM): The DVD labels have incorrect episode listings and state that the content is NTSC (it is PAL).
The Cat Returns (Studio Canal): Numerous spelling and punctuation mistakes in subtitles. *Cannot verify BD version
The Devil Is A Part Timer! (Manga UK): Poor subtitling, poor dub audio, chapter stops which make no sense.
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (Manga UK): Missing subtitles.
The Tatami Galaxy (Beez): Distorted opening music for one episode, possibly related to the House Of Five Leaves issue. Final subtitle on episode 11 (disc 3) does not clear, leaving it displayed throughout end credits. Dubious translation on OVA mini-episode 3? (Applies only to Beez DVD version as OVAs not included in Anime Limited BD release). Also, consistent spelling, grammar and puncuation mistakes in subtitles for extra feature "Screenwriter's interview", presumably translated from German (eg "Herr Morimi" instead of Mr Morimi or Morimi-san).
Tiger & Bunny (Kaze): OP/ED not subbed. Some reports of the second DVD having French text printed on it (content is correct).
The Tower of Druaga: Aegis of Uruk (MVM): Subtitle glitch and no signs-only subtitle track.
Tokko (Manga UK): Dubtitles.
Toradora complete collection (MVM): Occasionally poor subtitling for the English dub track.
Voices of a Distant Star (ADV): No signs-only subtitle track; especially problematic given the plot. Main Japanese audio out of sync with picture; Alternate (Shinkai scratch vocal) audio track is unaffected. Subtitles are out of sync with picture. Short film "She and Her Cat" included in extras has mistake in a chapter number shown in on-screen caption.
UN-GO (Kaze): Extras from overseas editions are not included.
Waiting In The Summer (MVM): No English credits, subtitle problems and no song translations. More details.
Your Name (Anime Limited): Some minor subtitling issues.
Yu-Gi-Oh! GX season 1 (Manga UK): Recalled due to incorrect episodes on one disc.
Xam'd Lost Memories Complete Collection (Manga UK): Disc 1 has broken menus.

Blu-Ray List

009 Re:Cyborg (Anime Limited): Film has one minor distracting subtitle error (the character Jet is first introduced as "Jet.a") on BD; DVD is unaffected. Bonus DVD includes a series of commercials, but the burned-in subtitles on two of these are switched with each other.
Accel World (MVM): The character artwork extras from the US releases are not included. The shorts are missing too.
A Certain Scientific Railgun season 1 (Manga UK): There's a 7-second video glitch which was also present on the US edition.
Angel Beats (Manga UK): Subtitles occasionally disappear when multiple lines overlap. Some player-specific popup menu issues. The finale has a subtitling issue. Though this has been queried.
Appleseed Ex Machina (Warner Brothers): Disc has no main menu; film autoplays with Japanese audio but with subtitles turned off.
A Silent Voice (Anime Limited): Extra SDH subtitles are based on the JP version, not the English dub script. Minor typo in closing theme song subs.
Attack On Titan part 1 (Manga UK): The on-disc extras present in the US and Australian versions have been stripped and made exclusive to the BD Collector's Edition set in the UK. The extras in the BD Collector's Edition are DVD-only and have the wrong audio pitch for the textless opening/ending. Some questionable subtitling including several mistakes/glitches. The chapter markers are poor and illogical. The Collector's Edition box is actually a flimsy sleeve with a description of part one on the back (even though it holds both parts).
Attack On Titan part 2 (Manga UK): Chapter stops placed with no consideration for the content, again. Poor subtitling and details of the other issues.
Berserk Golden Age Arc I: The Egg of the King (Kaze): Fewer extras than the US version. No signs-only subtitles. Locked subtitles too.
Berserk Golden Age Arc II: Battle for Doldrey (Kaze): Fewer extras than the US version.
Beyond The Boundary (Animatsu): The special Episode Zero: Daybreak bonus episode is not available in the UK edition. There is also a video glitch inherited from the US edition.
Black Butler - live action movie (Warner Brothers): US dub not included and video has been cropped.
Black Lagoon (Kaze): Player-specific audio dropouts. No extras.
Blood Lad (Anime Limited): Episodes 6-8 of the first disc have incorrect chapter stops.
Bodacious Space Pirates (MVM): 1080i video rather than the remaster used in the US, with some glitches on Samsung players.
Boruto: Naruto the Movie (Manga UK): The Day Naruto Became Hokage bonus OVA is dub-only.
Casshern Sins (Manga UK): Subtitles out of sync on extras.
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion (Kaze): Box displays incorrect episode count/runtime details (disc content is correct).
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2 (Kaze): Extras from previous releases are not included. Box displays incorrect episode count/runtime details (disc content is correct).
Comic Master & His Assistants (Animatsu): Locked subtitles.
Cowboy Bebop volume 1 (Anime Limited): Picture glitch in episode 2. Some other printing/menu complaints. Will be fixed in the next print run. Replacements are now available.
Cowboy Bebop volume 2 (Anime Limited): Two glitched frames and some minor issues. Replacements are now available.
Danganronpa (Manga UK): Disc 1 has missing subtitle in episode 5. *Cannot verify DVD version
Deadman Wonderland (Manga UK): Some oddities in the subtitles and no dub for the OAV.
Death Note: Complete Series And Ova Collection (Manga UK): The 'collectors edition rigid box' is a flimsy slipcase. Includes none of the extras from previous editions and poor subtitling.
Digimon Adventure Tri part 1 (Manga UK): Not a flaw with the on-disc content, but the packaging blends terms from the Japanese version and the dub, which doesn't make sense.
Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods (Manga UK): The on-disc extras present in the US version have been stripped and made exclusive to the BD Collector's Edition set in the UK. In addition, the Japanese audio is lower quality.
Dragon Ball Z Kai season 1 (Manga UK): Minor issue: Discs use older masters with a mix of the original/replacement background music.
Durarara!! (Anime Limited): Some minor issues like the overseas editions. And some subtitling problems. A fix is on the way. Details here.
Durarara!! x2 Ten Collector's Edition (Anime Limited): Quality problem with the BD's audio tracks.
Durarara!! x2 Ketsu Collector's Edition (Anime Limited): Quality problem with the BD's audio tracks.
Escaflowne: Ultimate Edition (Anime Limited): One episode has a subtitle size issue on the BD version; this will be fixed for the standard edition and a replacement offer is running. Episode 2, Disc 2 missing subtitle "Hold them off in your melefs" at 38:42 is present on Disc 1 at 35:52 taking TV edit into account; it's also on the Bandai DVD. The replacement BD has a brief audio dropout in the Japanese track.
Escaflowne the Movie (Funimation UK): The standalone BD release doesn't include the extras from the version in the Ultimate Edition. Special Program & Roundtable Discussion, Japanese TV Spot, English Teaser, Anime Expo 2000 Premiere Interviews and Concert, Anime Expo 2000 Premiere Footage & Panel have all been removed so only the trailers remain.
Fate/Zero (MVM): Video downgraded from the Japanese release (but dub audio is lossless).
FLCL (MVM): Episode 3 suffers from aliasing problems. jaggies and shimmering, while the QTec smearing on the upscale is apparent.
Freedom (Manga UK): Audio out of sync. The Australian version has the same problem.
From The New World part 1 (MVM): Some people report that audio is out of sync (both Japanese and English) for episode 13. MVM have responded and given a full report. The issue seems to be loose sync in production rather than an actual defect; some people may find it more bothersome than others. Separately, a small number of faulty disc 2s seem to exist which won't play (fixed copies were available but MVM advise switching to the DVD version now).
From Up On Poppy Hill (Studio Canal): Minor problems with subtitle timing.
Fruits Basket (MVM): Video quality issues.
Full Metal Panic Fumoffu (Anime Limited): Some of the dialogue is missing subtitles.
Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo (Anime Limited): Minor preference issue - language options default to French.
Garden Of Words (Anime Limited): No separate sign subtitles for dub viewers. Minor subtitle glitch.
Gargantia On The Verdurous Planet complete series (Manga UK): None of the extras from the US release are included, such as the Petite Gargantia episodes. Random chapter stops, no song subs for the dub, no next episode previews.
Ghost In The Shell (Manga UK): No on-disc extras and reports of poor subtitling.
Ghost In The Shell ARISE borders 1 & 2 (Manga UK): Problems with subtitling and Manga's new translation.
Ghost In The Shell SAC Laughing Man/Individual Eleven (Manga UK): Standard definition upscaled transfers complete with sharpening artifacts. No true English subs, only SDH.
Gurren Lagann (Anime Limited): Official post highlighting three video issues and a possible audio anomaly on some players. Replacement digipaks are available if your set has a weak tray. It's not a glitch, but some of the original dub lines don't match the updated visuals.
Harlock: Space Pirate (Manga UK): Bonus disc: subtitles on Japanese extended cut of film are "semi-dubtitles" with one distracting typing error in punctuation. *Same bonus disc as included with DVD version
Horizon on the Middle of Nowhere season 1 (Manga UK): Major video glitch for half an episode. More details here. The only fix is to buy the Japanese singles (which have English subtitles). There may also be a problem with audio on certain players.
In This Corner Of The World Collector's Edition (Manga UK): All special bonus features are DVD-only and in PAL format. Inconsistent subtitling (forced song/sign subs which don't match the dub).
Journey to Agartha CE (Kaze): Bonus DVD extra "The Journey of Makoto Shinkai" has echoing audio for 5 Centimeters per Second.
K - complete series BD/DVD combo pack (Kaze): None of the extras are included. And the menus are glitchy.
Kids On The Slope (MVM): Faulty audio from the original US release has been corrected for all of MVM's discs.
Kill la Kill part 1 (Anime Limited): Discs mislabelled, some audio issues. The audio problem will be fixed before release, no replacements are necessary. Contact Anime Limited for a replacement disc if you have an advance copy from MCM Expo Oct 2014.
Log Horizon (MVM): Minor issue with disc labelling and credits are missing during the opening/ending.
Loups=Garous (Manga UK): No translated credits.
Lucky Star (Anime Limited): Video transfer not great and a possible player glitch with one feature. Textless Opening (TV) and Textless Ending (OVA) are missing. Single missing subtitle on episodes 13 and 15 (both on disc 2).
Magi: The Labyrinth Of Magic season 1 part 1 (Kaze): Numerous subtitle problems.
Mardock Scramble: The Third Exhaust (Kaze): The on-screen text translations clash with the dialogue subtitles. The text on the reverse of the case is not professionally translated.
Metropolis (Eureka): Slightly mistimed subtitles during the last few minutes of the film. (Applies to "Original translation" and "US theatrical" subtitle options; "English dubbed audio" [hard-of-hearing dubtitles] track is unaffected.) *Problem applies to both the BD and DVD included in double-play set.
Mobile Suit ZZ Gundam part 1 (Anime Limited): Some stuttering in recap episode.
Nadia: The Secret Of Blue Water (Animatsu): Occasional drops in video quality.
Nekomonogatari White (MVM): There's a missing subtitle.
Ninja Scroll (Manga UK): No sign subs for the dub track.
Nisekoi season 1 part 1 (Kaze): Subtitle timing problems.
Nisemonogatari (MVM): Subtitles are cut off during the next episode preview. Discs are mislabelled (but the content is ok).
Nurse Witch Komugi R (MVM): Clean opening video shows footage for the ending (with the opening's music).
Ocean Waves (Studio Canal): No extras, despite extras being available in the US edition.
One Piece movie 8 (Manga UK): The 5.1 dub audio from the US release is missing, and there are no extras.
Origin: Spirits of the Past (Manga UK): Dub audio out of sync and no signs-only subtitle track.
Outlaw Star (Anime Limited): Momentary audio dropout in the dub in one episode.
Patema Inverted (Anime Limited): Shifting, flickering subtitles during end credits on both the BD and DVD.
Perfect Blue (Anime Limited): The Japanese audio tracks are mislabelled, so select 5.1 if you want 2.0 or vice versa. There are also some other issues when watching with Japanese audio and subtitles.
Persona 3 - Movie 2 Collector's Edition (Anime Limited): The Japanese 5.1 surround sound is configured incorrectly (affects both BD and DVD). This has been fixed for the standard edition and a replacement scheme is available.
Persona 4 (Kaze): No sign translations for the subtitle track, only on the sign-only subs, though audio tracks can be toggled through the pop-up menu. Also no translation at all for the eyecatches and one OP. The same problems crop up in the second volume. And more subtitle problems in the third, made worse by the OVA having locked subtitle tracks.
Place Promised In Our Early Days/Voices Of A Distant Star (Anime Limited): The main Voices Of A Distant Star 5.1 Japanese audio track is out of sync (the 2.0 track is not affected). The bonus Shinkai audio track for Voices Of A Distant Star seems to be absent. Error in audio options: selecting "English 5.1 with song subtitles" plays film with Japanese audio and SIGN-ONLY subtitles, as song subs only appear on the full-subtitles track. Short film She and Her Cat included in extras has error in on-screen caption (shifted to bottom of screen in tiny font size) on BD only; DVD is unaffected. Also has mistake in a chapter number shown in on-screen caption from ADV DVD version; applies to both BD and DVD).
Psycho-Pass season 1 (Manga UK): No song subtitles, weird chapter markers. Some other subtitling issues. The video banding from the US version is still present.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica (Manga UK): No songs/signs subtitle track on disc one.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica The Movie Part 3 - Rebellion: Mysterious subtitle irregularity in extras.
Samurai Bride (Manga UK): The dub audio is missing from the mini OAV extras.
Samurai Champloo (MVM): Some non-English dialogue isn't subtitled in the dub, though a translation exists in the full sub track. This affects the US version too.
Samurai Girls (Kaze): Mistimed and flickering subtitles as well as a number of navigation/translation/playback problems.
Space Dandy season 1 (Anime Limited): Disc 1 is labelled with the wrong episode numbers, and the OP/ED aren't subtitled.
Space Dandy season 2 (Anime Limited): Another mislabelling error (the actual discs contain the correct episodes).
Steins;Gate part 1 (Manga UK): Minor audio issue in the Japanese soundtrack. Also, some sign subs omitted, no textless credits.
Sword Art Online part 1 (Manga UK): No chapter stops. Flickering subtitles.
Sword Art Online part 2 (Manga UK): No chapter stops and an audio glitch. A fix is planned.
Sword Art Online II part 1 CE (Anime Limited): Various quality control issues. And text issues.
The Cat Returns (Studio Canal): Mistake in the chapter selection menu.
The Devil Is A Part Timer! (Manga UK): Poor subtitling, chapter stops which make no sense.
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (Manga UK): Missing subtitles (possibly the same issue as with the DVD version?)
Tiger & Bunny (Kaze): OP/ED not subbed on the first set, some sign subs missing. Affects volume two as well. And volume three. And volume four.
Tiger & Bunny: The Beginning (Anime Limited): No songs/signs subtitles for dub viewers, no song subtitles for sub viewers.
Triage X (Animatsu): Locked subtitles, like the US release.
Trigun - Badlands Rumble (Kaze): Lossy audio, some extras missing and the rest split onto a separate DVD, locked subtitles for JP audio.
UN-GO (Kaze): Won't work on Panasonic players. Affected users should contact Manga UK to trade their set for an alternative series. Extras are not included either.
We Are X (Manga UK): Subtitles contain multiple very prominent spelling mistakes.
When Marnie Was There (Studio Canal): Playback issues reported on a multitude of players. The DVD is unaffected. Replacement discs will be available for affected copies.
Your Name (Anime Limited): Video quality issues which will be addressed in a future print run. More details in the linked post. Some varying reports of audio dissatisfaction (song quality in the dub track). Some minor subtitling issues.
Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie: Dark Side of Dimensions (Manga UK): Dual audio despite no mention of this, however the Japanese audio version still uses the English dub's end credit music.

General Distributor-specific Issues

Kaze: Player restrictions to prevent the user switching audio/subtitle tracks etc. Explanation.

Manga UK: No separate signs-only subtitle tracks, and missing chapter stops, on releases such as Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt, Strike Witches and Welcome To The Space Show. However, other releases are unaffected. Older discs often contained dubtitles rather than a standard subtitle track. Titles on Blu-Ray have been subject to abrupt cancellation partway through their release and switched to DVD-only (i.e. Casshern Sins, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, Xam'd Lost Memories).

Buena Vista: Many of its Studio Ghibli DVDs had dubtitles.

Many BD releases have locked subtitles due to reverse importation fears. These are only listed when it's explicitly mentioned by other fans, but please be aware that this regrettable issue is more widespread than it looks.

Feel free to add more and I'll integrate them into the list (obviously I'm missing hundreds of potential bugs!). It's also useful to know if any of the problems were ever fixed.

R
 
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Re: Defective UK anime discs

Don't forget Gurren Lagann's missing subtitles on ... I think it was disc one of volume 2? Someone who owns the series might know better. One of the first with Nia iirc.
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

Sparrowsabre7 said:
Don't forget Gurren Lagann's missing subtitles on ... I think it was disc one of volume 2? Someone who owns the series might know better. One of the first with Nia iirc.

Thanks, I've added it. As the thread I used as a reference has mention of fixed discs being on the cards, I can mark it as having fixed discs in the wild if this can be 100% confirmed (I bought the initial R1 sub-only sets so can't check myself).

R
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

Rui said:
Sparrowsabre7 said:
Don't forget Gurren Lagann's missing subtitles on ... I think it was disc one of volume 2? Someone who owns the series might know better. One of the first with Nia iirc.

Thanks, I've added it. As the thread I used as a reference has mention of fixed discs being on the cards, I can mark it as having fixed discs in the wild if this can be 100% confirmed (I bought the initial R1 sub-only sets so can't check myself).

R

I had a feeling that it never actually happened, but I could be wrong.
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

The question is how to define a defect. Are we talking deliberate choices on the part of distros that cause problems like Kaze's UPOPs? Are we talking mistakes in authoring that cause compatibility problems with selected players, are we just talking shoddy discs, or are we talking faults that any other industry would bend over backward to rectify.

For instance, in Princess Jellyfish, Kaze have put the subtitle translations with the Japanese audio, but the text caption translations on the English audio. If there is text in the background and someone is speaking in the Japanese version, you won't know what is written on that text unless you skip back and switch to English (UPOPs make that impossible)

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex Volume 5 has its subtitles in a white font in black rectangular boxes like old analogue Ceefax 888, but that's a distributor choice...

Another Manga authoring choice, even when corrected, Panty & Stocking and the forthcoming Strike Witches won't have a signs only track, and don't have the episodes conveniently chaptered.

Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood's early volumes had subtitles that strayed off the edge of the screen.

MVM (and Revelation's) FMA had problems with random characters in subtitles, and volume 5's multi-angle credits cause my Sony Player to glitch, but not any other player.

Claymore volume 2 only has DD 2.0 English instead of the advertsised 5.1

Claymore volume 3's audio commentary ends early after 13 minutes. (You can hear it all using VLC)

Berserk's initial release was all in mono.

Ghost in the Shell 1st DVD release (incorrect aspect ratio)
2nd release (audio out of sync)
3rd Special Edition release (LFE flag missing on 5.1 audio)

The first release of MVM's Slayers V2 was glitchy through the middle of the disc, they instituted a recall

Are discs with dubtitles faulty cos I got a whole lot of Manga I could list here.?

The subtitles in the extras on the Casshern Sins Blu-ray are screwed, completely out of sync with the audio and get more so as the featurette progresses

The first Naruto Shippuden movie DVD checkdisc had out of sync subtitles, I don't know if Manga fixed this...

Haruhi Suzumiya Season 2 mono audio

Ikki Tousen Dragon Destiny would not work on my Sony Player, but worked on my Blu-ray

The final volume of Escaflowne had missing subs.

Fantastic Children was just a badly authored set of discs, which just about played. (Still switch to French subtitles haflway through)
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

I am more than happy to include all of the above. My loose personal definition would be something you couldn't anticipate before purchase which impacts on your ability to enjoy a show; something which normally would warrant a recall. Most UPOPs are not technically glitches, however I think including them is still something which some people might want to know since they aren't the normal way things are done. Perhaps I could add them in another colour or italics?

Where the UPOPs cause a genuine usability issue with subtitles I would consider that an actual glitch. If the user, who is presumed to understand English and not Japanese, cannot fully see the translation provided, it's a bug.

The one I was a little stumped on was duff video/audio quality, as it's always a lottery to begin with with anime companies and for every release which is a visual mess there's one with a strangely glorious encode around the corner. It would end up with almost every UK release ever on the list. So for that I think only the most dramatic examples should be included.

I'll fold that wonderful list you gave into the top post, thanks!

R
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

I think it's high time someone told me what a UPOP actually is. All Google finds for me is the Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program and a defunct satellite radio channel.
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

User Prohibited OPeration. It's when the disc locks the player limiting what you can do. Normally it boils down to unskippable piracy adverts, but with Kaze discs, they lock the audio and the subtitles during playback, and they lock the player timer. You can't change audio options on the fly with your remote, and navigating the discs becomes hard.

and more errors

DD 2.0 Japanese track in Angel's Snare is actually the English stereo track repeated in Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex 5
There's an 5.1 Japanese audio dropout in volume 6 of GITSSAC

In Portraitz on Volume 3, the Japanese 5.1 audio DTS and DD is out of sync...

There were dropouts in volume 2 of GITSSAC as well.

I also remember one of the volumes was recalled and replaced because of audio dropouts in the English dub, but I can't remember which one.

EDIT: I think we should leave bad video encodes out, as I find that when I notice and write about Kaze's NTSC-PAL conversions for Vampire Knight and Bleach making me nauseous if I don't watch them on as small a set as possible to minimise judder, no one else ever notices the problem.

One thing I did notice

The Brave Story DVD has the centre channel swapped with the front right channel in its 5.1 audio, making the stereo track the only way to watch the movie on a home cinema system.
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

On some players, Beez's Sound of the Sky will sometimes skip the menus and go straight to episode 1. After episode 2 it will just loop that same episode until the end of time. I've only seen this problem on my LG BD player. But it works fine on others I've tried.
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

Just Passing Through said:
User Prohibited OPeration. It's when the disc locks the player limiting what you can do. Normally it boils down to unskippable piracy adverts, but with Kaze discs, they lock the audio and the subtitles during playback, and they lock the player timer. You can't change audio options on the fly with your remote, and navigating the discs becomes hard.
Yeah, I knew about the locked subs / audio situation but it just never occurred to me to link that with the term UPOP, because I had no idea what it meant. Now I do. Thanks.

The player timer thing seems utterly pointless but doesn't really impede anyone's viewing pleasure, does it?
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

I thought the glitches happened with Slayers volume 2? My volume 1 was fine, however my volume 2 would play up to about a third of the way through the second episode on the disk and die out, couldn't skip and other episodes beyond wouldn't work, so i had to get it replaced.
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

Sorry, I got called away halfway through editing the list. I'll check it properly and add additional entries this evening (that's what I should have said!).

R
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

Regarding the 'distributor-specific issues', Manga's release of Shiki does have a separate subtitle track for signs and on-screen text, which is very well done. I suspect that's more to do with Siren Visual than Manga themselves...

Edit: For the main list, weren't there some complaints about Clannad's UK release having issues with rendering two lines of subs at once? I seem to remember people mentioning something back when part 1 was released.
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

animefreak17 said:
question

iv got all the slayers series i haven't seen it yet but if i have this problem do you think mvm will change it for me
Did you buy it from Anime On Line? I doubt MVM would have sold the recalled stock.

Don't know whether you'll count this as an issue though it's an annoyance for me how the default for Clannad and Welcome to the NHK is english subtitles rather than the dub.
 
Re: Defective UK anime discs

I wouldn't call having a different default a technical fault, unless it's overriding player defaults on a wide scale and making it difficult to pick the dub? On a personal note I myself hate it when the default is not the original language ;)

I have now finished updating the list so if you spot any mistakes they're wholly my fault and you can collectively slap my wrist. I haven't included unverified bugs but if anyone can provide a link to a discussion or personally confirm that the other issues people have brought up are definitely still in place, on the list they'll go.

R
 
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