What did you RECEIVE today? PHOTOS EDITION!

I received two more anime packages in the mail today, with 6 in-stock Blu-ray titles from Sentai and 1 more January pre-order Blu-ray from Crunchyroll:


7 Seeds Part One
7 Seeds Part Two
Btoom!
The Severing Crime Edge
Teasing Master Takagi-san Season 3
Val x Love

Horimiya: The Missing Pieces - Season 2




6sentaijan2025.jpg


horimiyapieces.jpg
 
Used a pair of those for years before getting a pair of Godhands, pretty decent pair of nippers for the price of them. And funnily enough I switched to the Tamiya from an Army Builder one too, I still use the Army Builder side tweezers I got with it.
Yeh looking at comments online it was a choice between these or Godhands

As all my old nippers were either Army Painter or Citadel, these Tamiya ones were already way too expencive to the usual £7 I'm used to 😹😹😹

Still. Pay for quality I guess
 
Yeh looking at comments online it was a choice between these or Godhands

As all my old nippers were either Army Painter or Citadel, these Tamiya ones were already way too expencive to the usual £7 I'm used to 😹😹😹

Still. Pay for quality I guess
Yeah, I got my Godhands 7 years ago and still going strong. They cost me about €70 at the time. Only way to get them online without a massive mark up was to order them from Godhands Rakuten storefront via Buyee and they're only sold 1 day a month.
 
sWCa8A6 - Imgur.jpg
It's strange that the outgoing phone is taking a picture of its replacement, but at least the replacement it going to be able to take better pictures, however two of the items here are direct purchases.

The first item is the xiaomi Redmi 14C 4G which is replacing the Alcatel 1B because android go edition apps aren't being supported (but like with the Alcatel 1B I got this from Argos with it being cheaper there then it was on Amazon)
Next is the obligatory phone case of the same type that I got for the 1B (That being its capability to hold cards and cash), but in blue with some nature motifs pressed into the leather.
The Xiaomi Redmi Smart Band 2 was an opportunist purchase because at under £10 for an Amazon resale (formally Amazon warehouse) special it was a steal.
And the Sony WH-CH520 was another opportunist purchase from Argos at £31.50, although it's likely to spend most of its time tethered to my fire TV stick so I can watch youtube videos and the like without having to hear everyone else making enough noise to wake the undead as well as the dead.

Not purchase related, but I finally started on my journey away from Barclay's bank by opening an account with Nationwide (once it's actually open, all I have to do is get the Barclay's account back into credit and then I can finally say goodbye to it).
 
I have those headphones, they are really good 👍

These all arrived over the last few days. Love Live and Lonely Castle were from Anime Limited. Attack on Titan was from an awesome member on here 🙂

I have the first Care Bears movie on Blu-ray but I always thought the second one was locked to region A, luckily that isn't the case. I loved Tales of Graces F on PS3, I'm so glad it was remastered. I have only heard good things about Evil does not Exist so I decided to pick it up.

Lastly I picked up some Appleseed stuff because I really love that series. I don't buy DVDs anymore unless the thing I want isn't on blu-ray but these 2 steelbooks were an exception due to the prices being really reasonable and them being Appleseed related 😁 I know Appleseed XIII isn't very highly rated but I really wanted the blu-ray version and it was only £10 so I had to get it.
1000041601.jpg
 
2025 HAUL - JANUARY v1.01

It's been a while since I have posted here. Workload has ramped up a lot this month as expected so it can take a while before I can post the latest pickups. The amount of items has toned down compared to previous months, but I want to sort out some more orders for February onwards if I can.

In case you aren't familiar with my haul post write-ups, they're shown in arrival order as it adds more intrigue than just combining them altogether.

Switch 2025 01 - Animal Well & Star Wars Dark Forces.jpg

#1: Animal Well & Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster
The first arrival of the month comes from an order that I had with Video Games Plus in early December. I should have known the order would have been held up by the high demand they were experiencing during the holiday season but they did manage to ship it out in the end, just happens to end up in January instead which is fine by me.

Two more Limited Run releases turned up on their site and both were on my radar, though I didn't pre-order them immediately. Animal Well was one of the biggest indie games released last year and I figured opting for the Nintendo Switch version was the way to go for this type of experience. Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster is my first Star Wars purchase for gaming since LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Xbox 360 via the storefront like 15 years ago or something. This remaster was done by Nightdive and like the others, its style I felt was more suited for the Switch and has solid performance (which I recall had some issues at launch but a patch did fix it).

Seven Samurai - 07.jpg

#2: Seven Samurai
Next we have a title that I should have bought the moment it first came out. Seven Samurai (七人の侍) is a classic that everyone knows already and I watched it for the first time on the Akira Kurosawa Samurai Collection release a few years ago. Here it's now presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision HDR. It looks great though I know some prefer the Criterion version.

The limited edition has sold out though stock seems to be re-appearing here and there on Amazon UK so I was able to grab a copy before it was too late. This limited edition includes a rigid box, booklet, poster and art cards. An unboxing is available on my blog.

Bleach Part 3 - 05.jpg

#3: Bleach Part 3
The Bleach anime continues into the third part covering episodes 56-83. There's still ten more releases to go but at least they're not rigid box collector's editions because that would be ridiculous for shelving space. Judging by the space left, it does look like Part 5 might have something to offer to fill in the gap on the box. Unboxings for Parts 2-3 will be bundled with Parts 4-5 later this year on my blog.

PS4 Haul 2025 - 01 - Koei Tecmo games.jpg

#4: Koei Tecmo Pickups
Every now and then I am often in a random mood for going after a specific title or collection for the shelf and this month just so happens to be Koei Tecmo. Here I picked up three PlayStation 4 games from different locations, all are pre-owned but at a decent deal.

Dead or Alive 6 was the first one to arrive and it's from CeX, because the pricing for this game is surprisingly high everywhere and I could have sworn that it was super cheap at one point. Prior to owning this I did purchase a few season passes (1, 2 & 4) that were 70% off on PlayStation which was part of the reason why I bought this game. I do own Dead or Alive 5 Last Round and I'm aware this instalment is not as good as the latter but may as well grab them whilst I can, considering Koei Tecmo titles do become rarer than others.

Samurai Warriors 4 has been on my list to pickup for a very long time now, and partly was due to the Special Anime bundle version that came with the Legend of the Sanada OVA. Because Funimation included the OVA with their TV series Blu-ray release, I decided I will opt more for the standard edition release instead, as I didn't want to pay £30+ for an OVA and a flimsy box that would stick out on the shelf. This will be my first English copy for the Samurai Warriors franchise as I do own Samurai Warriors 3 Z in Japanese on PlayStation 3.

Then we have Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate, which is said to be one of the best musou games ever released from what I have heard. For those not familiar with this IP, Warriors Orochi is a cross-over between Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors and with this instalment we also have collaborations with other Koei Tecmo games including Bladestorm, Dead or Alive, Ninja Gaiden as well as a special inclusion from SoulCalibur.

Both Samurai Warriors 4 and Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate were releases early into the PlayStation 4's lifecycle and there are other Koei Tecmo games that I would like to get as well.

PS5 Haul 2025 - 01 - Dynasty Warriors Origin & Tales of Graces f.jpg

#5: Dynasty Warriors: Origins & Tales of Graces f Remastered
With the incoming arrival of the Nintendo Switch 2, finally revealed, I want to build up a number of points with The Game Collection because I find their offering to be of value. Which is very fortunate to discover that two titles in particular that were released this month are part of their £10 reward points offering and I ordered them both.

Dynasty Warriors: Origins is the latest instalment in the long-running musou franchise and has been said to be one of the best in years, which is great to hear. I decided not to go for the demo as I had faith in the IP anyway so I was going to grab this regardless. This does have a PS5 Pro version but I don't care about that.

Then we have a game that I did play the PlayStation 3 version of which I did enjoy, and that's Tales of Graces f Remastered. Originally released on Nintendo Wii in Japan before receiving an expanded version on PlayStation 3, this game being remastered for modern platforms makes perfect sense and I'm glad its not locked behind the previous generations so that newcomers can check this one out.

Switch 2025 Haul - 01 - Triggerheart Exelica.jpg

#6: Triggerheart Exelica
Back in July distributor Red Art Games announced they have picked up the rights to provide a physical version for the vertically scrolling shoot 'em up game Triggerheart Exelica, and it took a long while to finally get released.

For those not familiar with this game, it was released first on SEGA NAOMI for Japanese arcades before being brought over to the SEGA Dreamcast in 2006. This was the second-to-last game to be released officially for the console (as we did get fanmade games ported to the console years later). Publisher COSMO MACHINA, the folks behind the release for Fantavision 202X, brought the game to the Nintendo Switch. As I pre-ordered the Deluxe Edition, it came with a slipcase, poster and a coin.

Lonely Castle in the Mirror - 08.jpg

#7: Lonely Castle in the Mirror
Another anime film joins the collection and one that actually intrigues me quite a bit. Despite owning a few films from Keiichi Hara (Birthday Wonderland, Miss Hokusai, Summer Days with Coo) I've not had the time to check out any of them just yet and Lonely Castle in the Mirror stands out to me mainly due to its isekai-esque premise. I have no clue if its as good as his earlier titles but it made sense for Anime Limited to pick up the film for their line-up. An unboxing is available on my blog.

88 Films Nikkatsu Collection 1.jpg

#8: Nikkatsu Roman Porno Japanese films
Next we have a very adult set of films in this collection pickup. Half a decade ago, Third Window Films released three Pink Films collections that introduced me to the world of the Pink genre, which is basically adult films but not treated as pornographic. In other words, sex that just so happens to have a plot, like visual novels in a way.

Despite the concept, some of the films in those collections were pretty interesting and I could see why it appealed to a lot of people. So it was a surprise to learn that 88 Films, in their quest to branch out more into Japanese films for their distribution, have decided to introduce a new line-up of films called the Nikkatsu Roman Porno collection, which are films that were released in Japan by Nikkatsu.

I initially passed on this idea but I later discovered that the films being released were better than expected and what they revealed for their next batch caught my interest more. But then I discovered these titles sold out on 88 Films' store and it turned out that 88 didn't know how demanding these films were so when they sold out they repressed them with the limited edition contents in-tact, so I was able to order the first four films in this line-up altogether from their online store. Their store also had a discount available for ordering all four films together so I only paid for 3 releases and got one for free in a sense.

bafkreihlwgvjuqxqnbf6skiygxozwudyleq7rgcwmd7r6htbob4vbyjzyu@jpeg

bafkreig7hpjezcvxth4az4rn5w7ubzsxkh7hhjy6a624ckeinierduvsyi@jpeg

bafkreigku7vdw2copito4wujurescyfhvbb2qnwg6jajof24rjpwgvi72e@jpeg

bafkreihqabwdub2tmzxcskqvh42grq7nyq3zj7ncftje7pl5qyqu77l224@jpeg


We have Shōgorō Nishimura's 1971 film Apartment Wife: Affair in the Afternoon (団地妻 昼下りの情事), Masanao Sako's 1972 film Sweden Porno: Blonde Animal (スェーデン・ポルノ 金髪アニマル), Noboru Tanaka's 1976 film Watcher in the Attic (江戸川乱歩猟奇館 屋根裏の散歩者), and Tatsumi Kumashiro's 1973 film Woods Are Wet (女地獄 森は濡れた).

Out of these four films, the one that actually interests me the most is Blonde Animal, because it's a film starring western actors but voiced in Japanese and it's such a fascinating concept that I had no idea was a thing in Japan. Sweden Porno is also a sub-series of its own so I am curious to know if 88 Films has any more from this or they will focus on other Nikkatsu films instead.

Similarly to the Japanarchy line-up, these limited edition Blu-ray releases are presented in a Scanavo packaging with a obi-strip to cover the BBFC logos and details like Radiance Films does with theirs. In each release there's also a booklet featuring essays that go in more detail for each film which is cool to have. The covers are not reversible but given how niche these films are I can understand if there's issues with assets in this instance.

Switch 2025 02 - Assault Suits Valken & Glover.jpg

#9: Assault Suits Valken DECLASSIFIED & Glover
Next we have another batch of releases from Limited Run Games, this time pre-orders from their website. I ordered these two in September and they did indeed arrive within the expected release window.

Assault Suits Valken DECLASSIFIED is an updated re-release by developer M2 based on the 1994 Super Famicom game. Nippon Computer Systems (NCS) were the original developers of this game which was localised in the west as Cybernator by Konami. For this re-release, we have a new English translation and artwork from Satoshi Urushihara (Langrisser, Plastic Little) plus extra goodies for those who love designs and behind-the-scenes work.

Glover is not part of the numbered LRG line-up (so in theory it should be more accessible to pick up), but it's a classic Nintendo 64 platformer that I never had the chance to check out until this port came along. Now despite the game heading to various platforms, I decided that given it originated from Nintendo 64 that it would be a good fit for the Nintendo Switch collection.

Love Live Superstar Season 2 - 08.jpg

#10: Love Live! Superstar!! Season 2
Love Live! Superstar!! Season 2 makes its home video debut in English through Anime Limited and it's probably the most controversial release in a while. For starters, there is no English dub produced by Crunchyroll as of yet so Anime Limited decided to jump the gun and get it out there, which doesn't help with the fact that the season is still not legally streaming (the first season was accessible on Crunchyroll, while the rest are not).

Then you have a pretty barebones collector's release for the price (which went up due to shipping costs so it's now £40 instead of £36 if you have the membership) and then comes the disc itself which has issues of its own because of Com 'On Screen. I also heard the English translation used for this release is not the same as the Crunchyroll one but I don't have comparisons to check myself. Either way, this is currently the only way to own it outside of the Japanese Blu-ray releases which do have English subtitles but I don't want to commit to spending that much over it.

Basically the long story short of it is if you're doing to jump the gun, more effort needs to be put into the quality of the disc and package. An unboxing is available on my blog.
 
3A6BDgH - Imgur.jpg
I hope I don't regret throwing away nearly £300 in nearly £60 monthly chunks on another steelseries Arctis series headset, but at least this has the benefit of having replaceable battery packs of which I can get another pair (you can only get the battery packs in pairs since you have one in use in the headset and the other in the oversized 2.4Ghz transmitter) for £18 directly from steelseries.

gR92r71 - Imgur.jpg
I also purchased what will eventually be my newest gaming desktop once I get it a new case, power supply, CPU (because an A10-9700 isn't going to cut it with the OS that came installed thank you AMD for making socket AM4 variants of these APUs), RAM, storage, GPU and any necessary screws (like the one to hold down the M.2 SSD which I didn't get).
 
Back
Top