Streaming vs fansubbing - 5 anime titles that should have been licensed in North America

The quantity of anime titles being picked up and released in North America seems to have hit a critical point with the advent of legitimate internet streaming services, forever changing the landscape of anime consumption by the masses.  While this has made more titles easily available to the public it has also made the world of fansubbing dubious and under-served.  Even with the increased access and quick turnaround between original Japanese release and North American release, there are still plenty of titles that are not getting the light of day that probably should.  Here are the top series from the beginning of the century that perplex me to their un-licensed status.

While I welcome streaming services such as Crunchyroll I also have issues with the treatment of their titles.  It seems in many cases they put minimal effort into translating and subtitling the dialog and little else.  Over the years I have been spoiled by the flare found in many fansub groups, which is sorely missing from commercial ‘next-day’ subbing services.  I shudder to think what a series such as Sayanora Zetsubo Sensei would look like on Crunchyroll.  It goes to show you there really isn’t the passion in some of these licensing and distribution companies like you can find in some fansub circles.  It’s just too bad fansubbing is an illegal activity which does nor garner the intellectual property right holders any financial compensation for their creativity.

Minami-ke

    Given that other similar series’ have been welcomed in North America with varying degrees of commercial success it is interesting that Minami-ke has not seen the light of day.  The on-going manga the series is based on is also not available commercially in North America.  I have not been tapped into the mindset of the North American commercial otaku for many years so I am really not sure what is popular and what is not, but I suspect if it is anything like what has been transpiring in Japan…it is a grim fetishist based reality.

    Even with that possibility, there should still exists a large enough fan base for odd slice of life comedies, once people have read/watched Azumanga Daioh and Ouran High School Host Club, what else are they to do to fill the void in lusting after similar titles?  It’s not like there are that many in this subset available commercially.

    Interests must lie elsewhere.

 

  

Macross Zero

    The complexity surrounding the Macross/Robotech franchise and its ability to be licensed in North America are, by now, quite legendary.  Original copyright holder, Harmony Gold, has maintained a tight fist on the property in North America and for a long time has had conflicting legal and intellectual interests with the franchise outside of Japan.  The last series from this long running franchise to successfully see the light of day in North America was Macross Plus, which was licensed by Manga Entertainment.  I have no idea the circumstances that allowed the 4 OAVs and movie to be released without Harmony Gold suing everyone.  Unfortunately nothing else has been as fortunate.

    Macross Zero is, in my mind, the best story to come out of the entire Macross/Robotech franchise and it will probably never be commercially available in North America.  Shame on you Harmony Gold…shame on you.  On the plus side, this has kept the vile Macross 7 out of America.

Itazura na Kiss

    This series, for a few reasons, was probably a bit too late to cash in on the anime boom of the late 90’s in North America.  What probably would have made it certain that this was licensed for release would be by hanging off of the coattails of Ranma ½ and Tenchi Muyo.  Yet, it seems there really is no market in North America for a well written and touching, mature love story.  One possibility of this ever seeing its release is that the manga is licensed…but seeing this series is from 2008 and the advent of quick turn-around, it isn’t new enough to garner any interest in licensing companies.  If they wanted it, they would have picked it up sooner rather than later.

Borukano

   This one really surprises me.  This came out not too long after Noein, which was licensed and released in North America and can be enjoyed by the same fans.  More perplexing is that Viz owns the license for the manga and they release a shit ton of anime.  If anything I could see this series streamed, if nothing else…  Yet, with the current trend of only jumping on the absolute newest titles this one is probably too old to get in on the streaming bandwagon.  Given that the manga is available the macabre subject matter shouldn’t be holding it back.

UPDATE: Since this post Bokurano has been licensed in North America by Discotek Media but no release as of yet or any word on it ever being released.

Dennou Coil

    This is by far the most perplexing case of a series that should have been licensed and released in North America but has not and probably never will be.  This is one of the best series I have seen.  This show could easily find a home on Toonami, Cartoon Network, any of the numerous streaming sources, DVD/BD etc.  It’s confounding and frustrating that it is not available to wider audiences and quite disappointing.  Now more than ever with the advent of wearable and publicly acceptable heads up display devices and the general population understanding AR this series is ripe for popularity.  Yet, in an interesting event it was released, worldwide, with English subtitles by Tokuma Shoten via iOS devices...so the Japanese took it upon themselves to release it to the world to enjoy…and for $2.99 and episode you too can watch it on your iPad.

First look at the new Fall 2013 TV shows

With good timing, I return to the realm of reviewing anime when the all-important Fall season kicks off in Japan, which brings a plethora of new titles and returning series.  The advent of legitimate internet streaming allows me to be on the up and up for some of these viewings!  The volume of titles viewed by me will not be anything like it used to, but here’s a rundown of first impressions on three new shows I recently previewed.

     I Couldn’t Become a Hero, so I Reluctantly Decided to get a Job…I actually didn’t get far enough into the first episode to understand what the series was ultimately about.  I couldn’t tell if it was a reality based absurdist comedy or a magical realm based comedy.  Either way I stopped watching it after the first unnecessary panty shot about 5 minutes into it…coupled with overly jiggely breasts and other fan service annoyances.  Apparently though, according to ANN, it’s about a guy who becomes unemployed as a fantasy style warrior/hero when he and his compatriots defeat a demon king.  He then has to start working a job at an appliance store and everything changes when the daughter of the defeated king applies for a job at the same store.  Regardless, the pervert pandering fan service will prevent me from finding out if the actual plot of this title is even worth my time or if it’s just a vehicle for jiggling breasts, moe bi-shojo and panty shots.  Next!!

     Beyond the Boundary is a reality based fantasy series with  school age slice of life touches.  The series deals with high school student Akihito Kanbara who has been stabbed by underclassman Mirai Kuriyama.  Luckily for Akihito, he is immortal thanks to his mother coupling with a spirit creature known as a youmu.  There exists a world unseen to most people filled with these youmu, who come in all shapes and sizes.  A select few humans are able to see them and take it upon themselves to hunt them; they are collectively known as Spirit World Warriors.  Akihito is the product of a Spirit World Warrior and a youmu (at this point it is unknown if that was consensual or not…but his moms off her rocker so it probably was).  Due to his odd genealogy he is unable to be killed.  Mirai, a bespectacled mousy type character (damn galge stereotyping!) is the last remaining member of a powerful and feared family of Spirit World Warriors.  Once she discovers that her sempai cannot be killed she uses him on a daily basis for practice in dispatching youmu, much to his annoyance.    In a bid to make his life less annoying Akihito convinces her to stop attacking him and he will help her integrate with the other Spirit World Warriors in the city.

    After watching the first four episodes of this series I don’t know how interested in it I am.  The first episode was mildly entertaining, but by the fourth it starts to stink of every other spirit fighting series.  You have characters with dark pasts, a growing cast of Spirit World Warriors, thickening plots and hidden agendas.  I really have never been into onmyouji type stories…and fear that this could turn into something akin to Bleach.  While the two main characters are agreeable they also fall into tried and true and tired character types rampant in anime.  The one thing that is keeping me watching the series so far is it, in some odd way, reminds me of The Melancholy of Harumi Suzumiya…in feel not in story.  I will give it a few more episodes to decide if it’s worth my time or not though.  If you enjoyed Bleach, Shonen Onmyouji, Kekkaishi or Ushio and Tora you will probably enjoy this series.

     Samurai Flamenco is an offbeat real life comedy that deals with male model, Masayoshi Hazama, attempting to fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming a super hero, like the ones he watched as a kid on TV.  Unfortunately for him two things are setting this dream off track; he doesn’t have any super abilities and there aren’t any super villains.  Not to be dissuaded though, he has a friend tailor him a super hero outfit and decides to get his feet wet in the hero business by stopping petty crimes ala Batman.  His first encounter with an unruly drunkard ends in disaster as he gets attacked and winds up in an alley, naked, tending to the damage done to his costume.  In steps local police officer Hidenori Goto, who at first thinks Masayoshi is a perverted prowler.  When Masayoshi spills his beans to the officer, Hidenori decides it’s better to make sure this would be crime fighter keeps out of trouble and offers to become friends with the delusional model.  After hitting the streets for another attempt at hero work, he is almost beaten to death by a gang of delinquent teens when Hidenori shows up to make sure nothing bad happens.  The teens run off but, not so worse for wear, Masayoshi is more determined than ever to become a super hero for the city.  

    This is so far the only new series that has really perked my interest.  It’s funny, light hearted and the two main characters are likeable.  It will be interesting to see where the series goes beyond the first episode.  Both parties want to keep this super hero thing secret and Hidenori goes through great pains to hide the fact from other police officers that this super hero wannabe exists and he knows him personally.  How long can both keep the secret from being exposed, how long will Hidenori let his new friend pursue this insane, dangerous dream and how long until Masayoshi gets into some serious trouble?

   There are a few other titles that have started airing that I need to check out…but the bulk of them are not of any interest to me.  Either they are continuations of titles that I refused to watch in the past or new ones that follow the same, dreaded harem/galge/moe stereotypes and storylines.  How long until this cash cow is used up and we can get back to some really interesting story telling?

Usagi Drop - the anime

Usagi Drop is the slice of life anime retelling of the manga by the same name.  The series aired 11 episodes in during the Summer-off season in Japan in 2011.

   Daikichi Kawachi is a 30 years old single company worker in Tokyo.  He lives a solitary Spartan existence in which the majority of his time is spent working his high stakes sales accounts.  Upon returning to his home town to attend his grandfather’s wake he discovers that his grandfather, a widower, had fathered and was raising an illegitimate child.  The quiet six year old girl named Rin is causing a rift with the family.  None of the relatives are happy about her existence and want to see her disappear now that the family patriarch is deceased.  As they all agree to let the child’s care be taken up by the governments orphan system, Daikichi, disgusted with his families lack of compassion, announces that he will foster the child.  Now Daikichi must figure out how to care for he’s illegitimate aunt and adjust his life to being responsible for more than just himself.  Rin, must deal with being uprooted from the peace and attention provided by her octogenarian father and being under the care of this relative stranger.

    This touching slice of life series is steeped in reality and plays on the idea that blood is thicker than water.  The episodes deal with such mundane and everyday issues as finding the right nursery school for Rin and how to deal with a baby tooth coming out.  Things that every parent and every child deals with and offer nothing of the fantastical sort.  This is incredibly refreshing, especially among the typical anime titles that delve varyingly in the realm of fantasy and pseudo-fantasy.  The animation is simple, sometimes a bit odd and captures the style of the manga well. 

    There is not much more I can say about this excellent series.  It is well worth the watch if you are a fan of slice of life titles.  While some of the subject matter can be serious the overall feel is light hearted.  I was happy to see that this series saw the light of day as I greatly enjoyed what I was able to read of the manga right before it was licensed in North America.  Unfortunately I only got a little past where the anime ends.  The anime ends at about the half way point in the manga, which works well, but I would have loved to have seen the second half told as well.  The first half deals with Rin at 6 and 7 years old.  The second half deals with her 10 years later.  Perhaps the second half of the story will be told at a future time.  But, don’t worry the manga is available to read as well!  There was also a live action movie made in 2011.  This series will work well in you’re collection if you are a fan of titles such as Ichigo Mashimaro.

To read my initial review of the manga go here ---->  Usagi Drop manga

Nodame Cantabile: Finale

Nodame Cantable: Finale is the third and final series of this anime based on the manga of the same name.  This 11 episode series aired in Japan early 2010.  For a complete understanding of what the Nodame Cantabile titles are all about please read my reviews on Nodame Cantabile and Nodame Cantabile: Paris.

    We find Nodame and Chiaki still living in Paris, trying to accomplish their goals of success in the classical music world.  They also have to figure out what will happen with their relationship as they both focus on the tasks ahead of them and move ahead in life.

   I have always enjoyed this series and was happy to be able to conclude it.  This season seemed to pick up from some of the things that were lacking in the second series, most notably the emphasis on the music.  The humor remained strong as well through the majority of the story.  Even during the serious moments in the second half of the season I found myself smiling through almost all of the show.  It truly was a return to form from the original series.  We get to see some old faces in tiny cameos and the resolution of side characters from the Paris series.  Ultimately there are 2 main story lines that blend into one overall story; Nodame finally figuring out what she wants to do for herself.  The important themes of the entire series are not tidied up in the end, but enough is suggested that you can be confident everything will work out as it should.  Happy endings!!!

    If you still want to get your Nodame fix there are more live action renditions available and the manga, which ended its Japanese run in 2010 officially!  Gyabo!!!!!!!

   While the original series was licensed and released in North America, the Paris and Finale series’ have not been so fortunate.  The manga has also been licensed and is being released by Del Ray.