Personal opinions on distributors excised from the Bargains thread (temporary title)

[Buzz201]

I don't want to clog up the thread more than I already have by replying the same thing to several different people. So this is intended as a reply to @Rui, @IncendiaryLemon and @serpentino Hopefully you guys can forgive the hugely obnoxious portion where I start telling somebody clearly more talented than me how to do their job.

I suppose the best way of describing it is that 1.11 is a superhero film, which ends after the very first battle with the henchmen, but before you even find out the bad guy's identity.

The whole idea behind storytelling can be massively simplified down to set up a conflict > send protagonist on a journey of some kind > use gains from journey to resolve conflict, and the conflict can be literal, physical, person or emotional. Eva 1.11 is the set up and a bit of the journey with none of the resolution. Obviously, it's a remake of a TV series, it was never going to be the full resolution, but from a storytelling perspective what you should probably do is break the series down into the main conflict > journey > resolution and several simultaneously running smaller conflict > journey > resolution elements. Then pay the smaller ones off, whilst working towards the main resolution, much in the same way arcs of a long-running shonen series do. At the end of the arc you get the resolution to that specific arc and then you get some element that contributes towards the journey part of the main conflict. The way, you still get a sense of resolution and pay off without feeling unsatisfied at the lack of progress in the main arc.

When I say it lacks a beginning, middle and end, what I really mean is that it lacks a narritive or character arc for Shinji within the specific film, and as a result it fails to function on a satisfying level as a standalone film. Even if it's part of a series, for me at least, films still need to function on a standalone level within the series. So in Harry Potter 4 (is it Goblet of Fire?) he may not kill Voldemort, but he does settle the mystery of who enters him into the competition and how he ended up there. So J.K. Rowling uses the smaller conflict arc of the games to makes us feel satisfied with the lack of resolution in the larger Voldemort arc. Part of the reason Harry Potter is so good is that J.K. Rowling does an excellent job of creating a hugely compelling sub-arc whilst also using that to feed into the journey portion of the main arc.


That said, despite my issues with the film. I don't wish it any ill will. I have questions over it's treatment, but it definitely deserves a nice CE and it definitely desrves to remain in print.

 

[Rui]

I'm going to cry if I get spoiled on Harry Potter after mentioning it in this thread (lol). Fortunately I just finished the fifth film last night for the first time so I'm still good

It's a good example because when I watched the third film a few days ago (Prisoner of Azkaban) I remember feeling empty at the end; there were so many plot threads unresolved and even the main resolution felt very temporary. I watched the fourth one the very same day and felt sorry for anyone who had to wait back when they were originally released! At least they had the novels to tide them over.

I get what you're saying about structure, @Buzz201 , and I don't think you're wrong. However, I don't actually like movies very much. It makes absolute sense to have films and television series follow a standard structure which has been tried and tested to deliver the most satisfying viewer experience - except that it then becomes predictable on some level, and you can start working out how things will resolve based on how much time is left and what 'needs' to happen to make a 'good' film play out correctly. Which then becomes boring, somehow. So at some point I started enjoying weird artsy films which take the established conventions and throw them out of the window, often not bothering with an end (or beginning, or middle, or some combination) at all. Perhaps we can simplify it and say my standards are different (or wrong) but I just don't mind any more if a film is presented in a really weird way, so long as I knew that was a possibility at the start and didn't have my hopes up for a solid, standalone story. It's the same with anime series like the original Berserk and other infamous disasters where they fail to end properly because they are just expensive adverts for an ongoing manga. It doesn't bother me as much as it should, I guess.

R

 

[serpantino]

To be honest, I recently rewatched the original series and Shinji is a whiny irritating sh*t and difficult to sympathise with unless you're a mixed up teenager (probably why he resonated more with me when I first watched it many years ago ). His character seems more of a caricature of the teenage condition than a real life teen. He does develop towards the end but a lot of his outbursts are too ridiculous to be sympathetic with, like damning the world because he has daddy issues. When Shinji runs away it sure does feel like a pivitol moment in his character though.

What I really enjoyed was all the Jewish dogma and how they wound it into an engaging plot.

 

[thedoctor2016]

But he isnt a annoying little ****. He was forced into this situation eventually develops mental illness among other things. For me is the one of the most relatable protagonists and gets way to much hate.

 

[serpantino]

But he isnt a annoying little ****. He was forced into this situation eventually develops mental illness among other things. For me is the one of the most relatable protagonists and gets way to much hate.

I'm curious; what mental illness do you see him as having? His issues seemed to be more a case of not knowing his place, not being able to accept his role and issues with patriarchal neglect and lack of a mother figure.

 

[thedoctor2016]

I'm curious; what mental illness do you see him as having? His issues seemed to be more a case of not knowing his place, not being able to accept his role and issues with patriarchal neglect and lack of a mother figure.

I believe he has depression. He has lost everything then gets forced into this crazy world.

 

[Just Passing Through]

I think re-releasing the Evangelion movies now was a mistake, although I can understand why AL are doing so.

Ideally, it would have been better to wait for Anno to actually make 4.44 or whatever, and get that out, and with it re-release the first three as uber Collector's editions, and a mega-loaded 4 movie Ultimate Edition. Let's face it, by then, the first three movies would have been well and truly out of print, and off shop shelves.

But, the licence expiring from Manga meant that it was free to pick up, and with fickle Funimation (MVM, Revelation, Manga) as partners, you have to make hay while the sun shines. The fact that the discs are going to be the same means that it's all down to the package, and despite us fanatics, the average anime fan on the street will see less reason to double dip.

 

[Buzz201]

I'm going to cry if I get spoiled on Harry Potter after mentioning it in this thread (lol). Fortunately I just finished the fifth film last night for the first time so I'm still good

It's a good example because when I watched the third film a few days ago (Prisoner of Azkaban) I remember feeling empty at the end; there were so many plot threads unresolved and even the main resolution felt very temporary. I watched the fourth one the very same day and felt sorry for anyone who had to wait back when they were originally released! At least they had the novels to tide them over.

Azkaban was the only Harry Potter film I saw in cinemas (indeed, the only one I was allowed to see), and for the longest time, it was the only HP film I'd seen at all. I certainly didn't feel the same way.

I get what you're saying about structure, @Buzz201 , and I don't think you're wrong. However, I don't actually like movies very much. It makes absolute sense to have films and television series follow a standard structure which has been tried and tested to deliver the most satisfying viewer experience - except that it then becomes predictable on some level, and you can start working out how things will resolve based on how much time is left and what 'needs' to happen to make a 'good' film play out correctly. Which then becomes boring, somehow. So at some point I started enjoying weird artsy films which take the established conventions and throw them out of the window, often not bothering with an end (or beginning, or middle, or some combination) at all. Perhaps we can simplify it and say my standards are different (or wrong) but I just don't mind any more if a film is presented in a really weird way, so long as I knew that was a possibility at the start and didn't have my hopes up for a solid, standalone story. It's the same with anime series like the original Berserk and other infamous disasters where they fail to end properly because they are just expensive adverts for an ongoing manga. It doesn't bother me as much as it should, I guess.

R

I'm not sure the whole conflict > journey > resolution aspect I was mentioning has to be present in the film from a structural level. To use a couple of examples you probably haven't seen, American indie romcom (500) Days of Summer and Australian science fiction thriller Predestination, I think the conflict > journey > resolution can come from the films effect on the audience and the way they interact with it. (500) Days of Summer is completely non-linear and not necessarily the full story, so you only really get snapshots of what's occurring at any point. Instead of the conflict coming literally from the narrative and structure, it comes as a chart events and the progression of the relationship within your head as a viewer.

Whilst Predestination, by the very nature of plot events within it, does not and cannot have a beginning, middle and end or even really any kind of literal conflict > journey > resolution. Instead the conflict, journey and resolution come as you empathise with the protagonists and gain a greater understanding of individual events with the story. The conflict here is almost a sort of personal journey of empathy, a quest for understanding of the events within the film. The journey there is that of the viewer rather than of the characters. (I appreciate if you haven't seen Predestination this must sound bizarre, but I can't really explain why without huge spoilers for the film, and I'd rather not do that, as it's definitely worth checking out.)

 

[serpantino]

I believe he has depression. He has lost everything then gets forced into this crazy world.

Yeah it certainly makes sense. I'm not sure why he annoys me so much now. Maybe it's because he resembles a younger version of myself and now that I can look at it in hindsight I can see the parallels and how much destruction my own depreciative self obsession caused (hedgehog's dilemma).

At the very end of the series though (in both rebirth & to a lesser extent the end of EoE) I saw him as taking steps to move past it as he comes to terms with everything. So in some weird way I actually always saw Evangelion as a message of hope.

 

[Rui]

I found Shinji annoying but then I also find real people with depression quite annoying; that sounded a lot harsher when written out than I did in my head but I think it's pretty universally true that people with chronic depression aren't the most fun people to be around, especially when you're trying to help them and right in the thick of it. In that sense, Anno really nails it with the way Shinji acts, alternately brash and timid as he tries to figure out his boundaries when he really just wants to run away and wallow.

Evangelion was very personal to me at the time of its release. Though I identified a lot more with Rei than Shinji (what?), the series as a whole helped me claw my way out of a hole I'd fallen into in the real world simply by showing me I wasn't alone and other people out there felt these weird things about the world and the people in it. While there's certainly plenty to criticise, for those personal reasons I feel that it's a very significant work and the fact that it's out of print in a functional modern anime industry is sad to see.

Azkaban was the only Harry Potter film I saw in cinemas (indeed, the only one I was allowed to see), and for the longest time, it was the only HP film I'd seen at all. I certainly didn't feel the same way.

I think I'm suffering a bit from watching the series fresh a decade after everyone else did; the build-up is quite intense and while the first two had bigger gaps between them due to feeling more 'standalone' this changed very rapidly. They're fun films though and it's a treat seeing some of the acting performances. I'd have gone nuts waiting for each new episode at the time.

(I appreciate if you haven't seen Predestination this must sound bizarre, but I can't really explain why without huge spoilers for the film, and I'd rather not do that, as it's definitely worth checking out.)

You do a good job selling these obscure (to me) films. I'm not sure I'll check out the romcom - it sounds quite similar in structure to a few Japanese films I've seen - but the other might well end up coming into my rotation one day.

R

 

[ayase]

Huh, the thread sure veered in another direction, one that's probably more interesting actually.

I found Shinji annoying but then I also find real people with depression quite annoying; that sounded a lot harsher when written out than I did in my head but I think it's pretty universally true that people with chronic depression aren't the most fun people to be around, especially when you're trying to help them and right in the thick of it. In that sense, Anno really nails it with the way Shinji acts, alternately brash and timid as he tries to figure out his boundaries when he really just wants to run away and wallow.

Yeah, as an on-and-off depressive I'd go along with that. As much as I recognise myself in some of the Eva characters' thoughts and behaviours I also freely admit that I can't be doing with anybody else's **** - I have enough of my own to deal with. If I had to be around Shinji in reality I'd probably Bright-slap him silly.

However, I think the thing with fictional characters is that you don't actually have to deal with them as real people. You're just watching their stories. I don't know if I'll ever really get people who so strongly dislike fictional characters - They're there to tell a story. If the character was different the story would be completely different.

 

[anime_andrew]

That sounds, like it's at best 80% the same as Manga's...

We've changed the designs and have a consistent plan for that, we have different internals and art cards so all that is the same is the disc with some changes to the book. Unless we've got it all mixed up and you mean 80% different from Manga's - which isn't unfair as it's a film with notoriously tough version control & assets are tightly managed. As I do know this brand well, I can tell you what we did is pushing the envelope and it's still very nice .

No, I'm questioning how you can claim to be improving the series chances within the UK, whilst jacking up the price massively. The two seem completely contradictory to me.

We're not jacking anything up massively and you're not thinking big picture there. Think of it like this (rough example as damned if I remember the original SRPs, please let me know if someone does):

Manga release Evangelion 1.11: BD - £22.99 SRP | DVD - £19.99 or £17.99 SRP back in 2009/10 as I recall
Year 1 (2010): Varying campaigns, price stays as above
Year 2 (2011) - Year 6 (2015): Slowly but surely campaigns lead to lower fixed price, ending at about £5.99

The only direction from there is same or lower unless a re-release happens. Akira is a good example of comparable recently where it is often cheap but the Triple Play came out at £29.99 SRP for similar level of difference to what we've offered.

This is not really all too different and it's really the only way to do something new especially with something often campaigned. Basically it means there's a new product at a higher price and usually the old product that was discounted is phased out to pave way for this one to live its life and slowly decrease in price (it will do quicker than an AL product admittedly but that's just a difference in media mix etc).

The only difference here is the market is basically cleaned of all the old Eva 1.11 BDs before this new product comes out - in Akira's case as it's the same distro that wasn't necessary for them.

Ultimately all the big films with long lives tend to have this treatment - be it Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Perfect Blue etc. It's just noticeable here especially as it switched hands between distributors.

Does that remove some of the contradiction and make more sense in context ?

I got the Gurren TV series for £18, back when series actually got campaign prices from you and Zavvi..

Neither Gurren nor Bebop went down last year to the levels they did when I brought them in 2015 and nothing new has joined the campaign prices. In fact, I was genuinely about to ask, based on the previous line, if you still did campaign pricing. I guess I've just stopped paying attention, as I already own all of the campaign titles.

We continue price variation and campaigning on both titles and this year will see the entry to standard editions of a lot of shows starting that cycle afresh with the majority of our previous catalog as we get it and have been slower to act than I should have. Sorry about that folks, downside of so many spinning plates but we do take it seriously as we want you all to be able to enjoy our works .

Totally get that once you own it you'd not pay attention though too.

I appreciate a good pun, but the sentiment seemed to be that somehow reissuing a mostly similar product to Manga, for a higher price was improving the series' chances in the UK, which is just absurd.

It's not similar though in terms of build - you're getting the premium version you never got with this. A booklet bunged in an amaray in a double walled card sleeve a Collector's doth not maketh (don't think anyone would argue that now) and it's no different from the Akira re-release or prior re-releases of Ghost in the Shell (the new one is a bit of a different case for the UK) yet I don't see much railing there, in part as I laid out above and part that they aggressively campaign Day 1 in stores which is harder to do with the kind of premium packaging we do.

It's also not absurd because due to how long Eva 4.44 is taking, keeping the franchise in print and not at a price akin to a copy of NEO is important. It's why you see most of the major anime films go through these refreshes too.

I didn't say Manga as a distributor were brutally honest, I said Jerome was. To the annoyance, I suspect, of their PR staff.

The big PR incident to me, was the about 5 different and occasionally contradictory stories we got for the Durarara!!x2 OVAs being MIA. (I guess "stage managed" isn't the best term for this, given it clearly wasn't.) I was rather disappointed, so I paid attention to most of things you guys said about it. At one point it was just that nobody was being allowed them as they were an Aniplex exclusive, then it was maybe in a few years' time, then it was maybe going to 6-episodes might have got them, then you said you'd never been informed of their existence nor seen them in a professional capacity. Only to reveal on your podcast, that Kat had seen them in preparation for your release. The whole thing was just a huge mess. I was hoping we'd get a more solid (or at least more consistent) explanation upon Ten's release.

Wow - is that what it was? What I did was told you the truth and then I threw out possibilities to sound you, the fans, out to try and make a case to Aniplex. I see now the error of my ways trying to treat fans as human beings with a real input in the direction of a company they're putting money into though now with this xD. If all I'm going to do is make you feel we're stage managing or don't know - then what's the point ?

FYI though:

• Exclusive to AOA release - Officially this is the case, you'll note no western release has them.
  
  
• Maybe if we'd done a 6 ep part release - A musing on my part about it, this was just a musing though - I thought it relevant to float though as I have often been railed on AoA shows for doing that to see what the value was. It makes for a case in future on how hard I should push or what I should offer.

• Maybe a few year's time - Me musing again to see if it was worth me making a case and maybe even - gasp - more money by episode to get those rights and do a special release down the line to make it possible for fans to own every episode as I care enough to do the time needed to amke that happen.

• Kat having seen them via the podcast - Man your memory is better than mine, too busy to go back through to see. If she did though, it'd be from the AoA copies we were sent though given our timeframes.

You're right though - from now on better to just tell you they're exclusive to AoA and never even make a case to try for them in future I guess . Thanks for the input there though - very illuminating!

Best,

AP

 

[anime_andrew]

Wow, I take an evening out to watch a Harry Potter film and all hell sure broke loose.

My thoughts.

• Please keep the bargains thread for bargains. Start a new topic if you want to critique the value in other people's use of money. It's basically flamebait anyway but at least it's less spammy.
• Defending Jerome (who doesn't talk to us or listen) at the expense of slagging off Andrew (who talks to us and listens to our feedback) is below the belt. Defend Jerome if you like Jerome, that's fine. People like AL for what they're doing, just like you like Manganimatsu for what they're doing.
  
• The Eva Rebuild films are great. Fight me.
• Chipboard boxes are perfectly acceptable reasons to want a specific release. Not only do they look nice, they are often freestanding and work as art pieces - great for those with small collections and also for those with large ones who can put them at the front of shelves (or on top) to save space. If you're paying more to have something better than a stream in the first place, why not pay a bit extra for something a lot better? If you don't like the box, there's always a box-free version eventually.
  
• A license rescue doesn't remove old releases from circulation (in fact, it often floods the used market due to upgrades) so nobody is being shortchanged by AL rereleasing the Evangelion films. Let the buyers talk with their wallets. If there's no appetite for a CE the figures will clearly dictate future strategies.
  
• Personally, I avoid UK releases from Manganimatsu because of the years of utter contempt they have shown for me as a customer and a human being, ranging from glitchy releases of titles I wanted to calling me a pirate to my face for buying a legitimate Japanese release (logic, please) to calling all CE fans idiots (repeatedly) to blocking my access to a show I wanted to watch so they could make more money based on an unproven theory they made up. However, if Jerome wants to make a perfect release which hits all of my notes he is more than welcome to win me back; I'm here for the taking and I've probably spent vastly more on Manga UK releases than most of the Jerome apologists here in my lifetime. Miracle Train still isn't licensed on disc anywhere in English, c'mon Jerome!
  
• Second guessing the views of other fans and labelling them as Jerome haters or Jerome lovers is disrespectful. It's also really, really weird. Stop doing it. Everyone.

R

Sorry - I'm in part responsible for de-railing xD. I'm the bad kind of CEO who interacts directly where it comes up and doesn't often stick to his box for AL feedback too xD.

For what it's worth too hopefully it comes across but I defend Manga UK as much as anything here where I can too (or at least I'm not particularly negative either when I've nothing super nice to say) - not my place to interact that much on it! The twilight zone is where we have shows that overlap due to licenses changing hands there - but we keep that down to a minimum where possible.

Re the Rebuild films as a whole - as an Evangelion fan, I love the rebuilds and I am in the minority but especially 2.22 and 3.33. Fight Rui, not me though please!

AP

 

[Jaysgba]

no different from the Akira re-release

This, at least, isn't entirely true, to be fair. The Akira release did finally give the UK access to a different blu-ray master, not just the same disc in fancier packaging, though the DVD is still the same.

 

[Rui]

Sorry - I'm in part responsible for de-railing xD. I'm the bad kind of CEO who interacts directly where it comes up and doesn't often stick to his box for AL feedback too xD.

I am never going to complain when you're going out of your way to take extra feedback from the community (so long as it doesn't come out of your time allocated to licensing Miracle Train, right?)

It's sort of staggering how many licenses you guys are in charge of now; I thought this when I was skimming through your website a while back. The power of fans who decide to get properly involved in the industry is impressive.

I think even the most put out anime fans are still happier to be listened to than not

R

 

[serpantino]

Whilst I'll happily criticise AL when I'm cheesed off that a series I wanted gets an insanely priced UE edition or an LE that is too pricey, I wouldn't criticise Andrew. I think the fact we know he listens leads to more vocalised opinions from everyone as he actually has listened to feedback and made amendments where money allows.

I think Andrew chooses to straddle a very difficult line as both a business owner and fan and its not one he has to. He has to make difficult decisions and listening to fan feedback too much can be detrimental and even destroy a company.

I do think that he can be a bit too open at times, revealing things that aren't set in stone etc and I'm sure that fancy releases aren't purely a product of his own personal fandom as a company needs to be profitable.

Of course there's a bit of a PR spin at times but that's just business & again I think this is more of an issue because Andrew takes on both roles in the community & I personally wouldn't have it any different.

One thing I'll always appreciate is when I asked (or was I whinging?) about lack of information on standard release dates, in particular a standard Escaflowne release because I really wanted it & Andrew said it'd be out early this year & it's now pegged for next month so thanks. I'll be ordering it next week.

 

[anime_andrew]

This, at least, isn't entirely true, to be fair. The Akira release did finally give the UK access to a different blu-ray master, not just the same disc in fancier packaging, though the DVD is still the same.

Eep - my apologies there, I'm a complete spanner - it totally did too and this time I didn't pay too much attention to it xD. It's not so different to mean the comparative isn't there though still .

AP

 

[Jaysgba]

Eep - my apologies there, I'm a complete spanner - it totally did too and this time I didn't pay too much attention to it xD. It's not so different to mean the comparative isn't there though still .

AP

I just like to be awkward.

 

[Otaku-san]

I wish I could contribute some more so. The only product I'm more interested in is that RightStuf have a BD release for Galaxy Angel, though I don't know if it has any garnished reputation here for Anime Limited to even consider picking up since at the moment, I can't even play US BD

 

[Buzz201]

We're not jacking anything up massively and you're not thinking big picture there. Think of it like this (rough example as damned if I remember the original SRPs, please let me know if someone does):

Manga release Evangelion 1.11: BD - £22.99 SRP | DVD - £19.99 or £17.99 SRP back in 2009/10 as I recall
Year 1 (2010): Varying campaigns, price stays as above
Year 2 (2011) - Year 6 (2015): Slowly but surely campaigns lead to lower fixed price, ending at about £5.99

The only direction from there is same or lower unless a re-release happens. Akira is a good example of comparable recently where it is often cheap but the Triple Play came out at £29.99 SRP for similar level of difference to what we've offered.

This is not really all too different and it's really the only way to do something new especially with something often campaigned. Basically it means there's a new product at a higher price and usually the old product that was discounted is phased out to pave way for this one to live its life and slowly decrease in price (it will do quicker than an AL product admittedly but that's just a difference in media mix etc).

The only difference here is the market is basically cleaned of all the old Eva 1.11 BDs before this new product comes out - in Akira's case as it's the same distro that wasn't necessary for them.

Ultimately all the big films with long lives tend to have this treatment - be it Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Perfect Blue etc. It's just noticeable here especially as it switched hands between distributors.

Does that remove some of the contradiction and make more sense in context ?

The most I've seen Akira go for is £22, the cheapest Eva 1.11's reissue has gone is £20 for a weekend, as an exclusive to your webstore. I don't know that any casual or non-anime fan will have seen that offer. So the £25 you mentioned is probably the fairer comparison.

As I understand it there's different dub options, a new better subtitle track. It's also triple play. I guess it depends on your opinion and whether you value booklets or not, but you could probably argue Manga are giving more content away for their price too.

It's not similar though in terms of build - you're getting the premium version you never got with this. A booklet bunged in an amaray in a double walled card sleeve a Collector's doth not maketh (don't think anyone would argue that now) and it's no different from the Akira re-release or prior re-releases of Ghost in the Shell (the new one is a bit of a different case for the UK) yet I don't see much railing there, in part as I laid out above and part that they aggressively campaign Day 1 in stores which is harder to do with the kind of premium packaging we do.

It's also not absurd because due to how long Eva 4.44 is taking, keeping the franchise in print and not at a price akin to a copy of NEO is important. It's why you see most of the major anime films go through these refreshes too.

Having seen the way some digipacks turn out, I think I'd rather have the whole amaray in a chipboard box thing (if I had to), like you guys/Funimation did with Assassination Classroom or Animatsu did with a few titles It feels a lot more premium to me than a release where the discs are sliding around and one of them goes missing.

Wow - is that what it was? What I did was told you the truth and then I threw out possibilities to sound you, the fans, out to try and make a case to Aniplex. I see now the error of my ways trying to treat fans as human beings with a real input in the direction of a company they're putting money into though now with this xD. If all I'm going to do is make you feel we're stage managing or don't know - then what's the point ?

FYI though:

• Exclusive to AOA release - Officially this is the case, you'll note no western release has them.
  
  
• Maybe if we'd done a 6 ep part release - A musing on my part about it, this was just a musing though - I thought it relevant to float though as I have often been railed on AoA shows for doing that to see what the value was. It makes for a case in future on how hard I should push or what I should offer.

• Maybe a few year's time - Me musing again to see if it was worth me making a case and maybe even - gasp - more money by episode to get those rights and do a special release down the line to make it possible for fans to own every episode as I care enough to do the time needed to amke that happen.

• Kat having seen them via the podcast - Man your memory is better than mine, too busy to go back through to see. If she did though, it'd be from the AoA copies we were sent though given our timeframes.

You're right though - from now on better to just tell you they're exclusive to AoA and never even make a case to try for them in future I guess . Thanks for the input there though - very illuminating!

Best,

AP

People certainly didn't interpret it as just possibilities. People ran with the 6-episode story, and for everyone but me (I really love Durarara!! and really want those OVAs), had that been the case, you made the right call.

It doesn't bother me that Kat has seen them, it bothers me that you would claim that AL as an entity didn't officially know they existed, only to review them on your own podcast. Although, there was a bit of a timegap between the two, so maybe things changed then and I'm being unfair.

If you were investigating whether pushing for them was worth doing. Unfortunately, it seems, it did not come across as intended. For reference, I would appreciate you trying to get them in some form and have never said otherwise. However, given AoA seem moody and restrictive at the moment, I won't be banking on it as a possibility.