October Haul #3
Finally we have
Fire Punch Volumes 7 & 8. I acquired Volume 7 from Blackwells and Volume 8 from Amazon. Wanted to get the series completed before they go out of stock again due to the Chainsaw Man anime.
Next, we have the fourth Discotek Media batch, covering seven catalog and two new releases which arrived early from October's batch.
Crusher Joe the Movie, from director Yoshikazu Yasuhiko and from Studio Nue & Sunrise in 1983. This release also includes both 4:3 & 16:9 versions of the film. Always good to have more classic Sunrise sci-fi anime. Plus, we also have
Crusher Joe: The Complete OVA Series, from director Toshifumi Takizawa. Just two episodes from 1989 and released after the film but may as well get both together!
Then we have
Nutcracker Fantasy, a 1979 stop-motion film by Sanrio (creators of Aggretsuko & Hello Kitty) and directed by Takeo Nakamura. Based on the classic ballet, the presentation is what had me interested in the film for a while and given Discotek's warning that some stuff will discontinue, I figured this film (despite including a dub) is likely to be niche enough that it's probably in the danger zone and so I decided to acquire it sooner than later.
The Princess and the Pilot, a 2011 film by Madhouse & TMS from director Jun Shishido. Discotek rescued the film from NIS America, though it's a limited run release. While Manga UK did release the film in the UK, the Discotek release is re-authored with some tweaks to the subtitles and combined with the low price it's a good time to pick it up.
Super Dimension Century Orguss, the classic 1983 series from Artland & TMS and director Noboru Ishiguro. I finally picked up this series and looking forward to it. This was rumoured to be part of the Robotech stuff but thankfully it wasn't, otherwise, we wouldn't have gotten this series on Blu-ray in the best way possible. Discotek's set also includes the incomplete English dub.
To Be Hero & To Be Heroine, two Chinese anime shows that aired in 2016 & 2018 from Studio LAN & Haoliners Animation League with director Li Haoling. Another limited release run and based on the Japanese broadcast version, but this does include improved subtitles.
Time for a triple bill for one franchise!
Yowamushi Pedal Season 1, aired in 2013 from TMS and director Osamu Nabeshima. A really great anime series about bicycle racing, and I marathoned a lot of episodes back in the day. This season has 38 episodes which is a lot, but you'll blitz through them easily.
Yowamushi Pedal Grande Road, the second season which aired in 2014, gets better and I also watched this 24 episode series (which was all that was legally available at the time). The cast stand out pretty well. I really should start catching up with Seasons 3-5 now (New Generation, Glory Line & Limit Break).
Last but not least we also have
Yowamushi Pedal Re:RIDE & Re:ROAD, the two compilation films that cover the first two seasons which released in 2014 & 2015 respectively. Honestly surprised Discotek released these but pretty neat none-the-less.
Now we are at 39 Discotek Media Blu-rays. I'll probably aim for 50 in total before 2023. And yes, these hauls are not cheap (especially as we non-US folks have to pay twice as much to acquire them) but the learning lesson here is to grab them as soon as possible and don't leave it 5 years later lol. But on a serious note, not everyone can get them when they were first released (or even within the first 12 months) so yeah - sucks being an anime fan.
You're probably wondering where
Yowamushi Pedal the Movie is, the set wasn't in stock at the time of the order, so I had to get it elsewhere which is on its way later this month. Also want to recap that this film is listed as discontinued on
Discotek's site so heads up if you have yet to own it (which makes sense given it came out in 2017 - aka 5 years ago).
