CitizenGeek said:
But, didn't ADV announce it had attained the license? So, doesn't that mean they can release it whenever they want? Viz started dubbing Death Note before the series has even ended in Japan, so the same thing might happen in this case?
Actually, I'm being far too optimistic, aren't I? =(
Well, it's not unknown for comapnies to license a series and just sit on it for years without doing anything (*cough*Kurau*cough*), although I wouldn't say it's too likely in this case. But while distribution companies are becoming aware of the advantage to a speedy turnaround from Japanese TV to domestic DVDs (striking while the iron is hot, etc), there're often limitations on how fast they can do this. Apart from the technical and production factors (honestly, a dub, subs, and NTSC-->PAL don't take
that long) Japanese companies often impose a time period before the series can be put out on DVD to cut down on reverse importing - given that Japanese DVDs are so much more expensive than ours, this isn't an insignificant factor.
So, if you want to watch this series on UK DVD, patience is the only answer. If you want a rough estimate of how long till we get the DVDs, take a look at Mushishi - the first DVD in the UK is being released exactly 2 years after the first episode aired in Japan.
