Toon Zone Talkback - Anime Expo 2010: FUNimation Licenses 17 Properties, Announces New Simulcasts

[NewcomerDC]

This is the talkback thread for Anime Expo 2010: FUNimation Licenses 17 Properties, Announces New Simulcasts.

This is pretty great for thos interested in collecting everything related to Tenchi and Shakugan no Shana. I think that the Trigun film should just be released on DVD and Blu-Ray because having an anime film being released in one/two theaters that not a lot of people can reach is unfair to all of the fans of this and any other anime series or film.

 

[Leaping Larry Jojo]

I'll have me some of that Black Lagoon maid stuff, please

 

[Mesousa]

Can they really afford to dub all the Geneon stuff, such as Shana?

 

[KYO'NYUU IMOUTO]

Can they really afford to dub all the Geneon stuff, such as Shana?

Even if they aren't getting dubs that were produced before, it's certainly possible. It might take a few years for them to come out, but FUNimation can always work with Okratron like they do with Dragon Ball and Glass Fleet if need be.

 

[FightingDreamer]

Oh, this is GREAT news. Here's hoping all of them get dubs, and that they can get back the original cast members for stuff like Trigun and Hellsing Ultimate considering how long it's been.

 

[bigddan11]

Oh, this is GREAT news. Here's hoping all of them get dubs, and that they can get back the original cast members for stuff like Trigun and Hellsing Ultimate considering how long it's been.

FUNi always uses the original dub when they aquire or rescue a show. They typically try to get a shows originally crew back if it's a continuation. They managed to get most of the cast back for Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki, Tenchi Muyo! GXP, and the newer Slayers seasons. Considering that they did use LA VA's for the Tenchi series so they could get as many of the original cast members back as possible, and considering that Hellsing Ultimate and Trigun were both previously done in LA, then I'm pretty sure they will begin negotiations to dub those remaining parts in LA and get the original VA's back together to finish the series.

As far as asking if FUNi can afford all of this stuff, the answer is yes. The DVD sales alone from FMA, DB, and DBZ more than cover these licenses.

And FUNi said at the convention yesterday that they polled their fans online, and the majority of their fans prefer dubs, so they plan on dubbing every series they have newly acquired. Please note that series they simulcast haven't necessarily been acquired to be dubbed. They typically only have streaming rights to those series, but they could acquire additional rights in the future.

 

[veemonjosh]

Eh...nothing I'm really interested in/was expecting. Then again, I was really hoping for a simulcast of Digimon Xross Wars, so maybe my expectations were a bit high.

 

[garfield15]

Then again, I was really hoping for a simulcast of Digimon Xross Wars, so maybe my expectations were a bit high.

Don't give up! There's still a chance with CR! (please)

 

[FireWarrior]

Glad to see that Hellsing Ultimate is finally continuing again. And totally looking forward to the Trigun film.

 

[anime_guru]

Glad to see that Hellsing Ultimate is finally continuing again. And totally looking forward to the Trigun film.

could definitely use more of hellsing ultimate and crispin freeman =)

 

[bleachj0j]

I'm glad funimation got new stuff but this is way too much. They're just crowding the market in a not so good economy

 

[garfield15]

I'm glad funimation got new stuff but this is way too much. They're just crowding the market in a not so good economy

Hmm, first of all you have to remember that most of these won't be out for probably a year. Second, some are simulcasts which cater to a completely different market so it's not as much of a tie-down.

 

[Beefy]

Still no Cardcaptor Sakura? They better be saving it for Otakon.

 

[KarlOlson]

Still no Cardcaptor Sakura? They better be saving it for Otakon.

May have to deal with pre-existing issues with other US license holders for the show? Maybe also working to ensure they get the hi-def remasters, and maybe even re-dub rights. I'd rather wait for a perfect release than get a rush job. One is worth a double dip, the other isn't.

Anyway, FUNimation isn't really taking that much on here given:
-How long the lead might be on some of these shows: DVDs could be a year or more out.
-They will reissue the shows until they've broken even, and then continue to do so until the end of time.
-They have a built exposure/secondary-monetization system between their website and TV network.
-A bunch of it is just streaming. If it's a dud there, they won't plow extra funds into a DVD.

 

[TheMP3000]

The only simulcast that means something to me is Shiki. All the rest are pretty useless to me. None of the Geneon catalog rescues mean anything to me unless they release Lain and Haibane Renmei (Texhnolyze looks good enough on DVD as it is) on BD later down the road and give them good treatment (yeah right) and as for the new acquisitions -- Shana II and S OVA (zero interest in the movie), Black Lagoon Roberta's Blood Trail, Darker than Black Meteor of Gemini and Hellsing Ultimate V-VII are musts.

Not too bad, could have been so much better... industry-shattering... yeah right.

 

[Mesousa]

I just noticed; they couldn't pick up Higuashi's second season.

This is your only mistake there, FUNi.

 

[Classic Speedy]

Interested in Index/Railgun and more Black Lagoon. Already own Ai Yori Aoshi but it's good to see it get rescued. And whatever packaging FUNi uses should be a lot slimmer than what Geneon used for the complete collection release (which was merely the eight singles stacked together).

Is the Trigun film a recap of the series or a completely new plot a la Cowboy Bebop The Movie? And if a new plot, would one who hasn't seen the series still be able to follow/enjoy it?

 

[KarlOlson]

Index/Railgun strike me as surprisingly otaku-centric pick ups. I would've called those for Sentai Filmworks or some other 2nd tier distributor. I guess they've managed to make some of other more otaku-centric stuff on their recent release list work for them, or they came cheap.

Side Note: Anyone know if they got the Pretty Sammy stuff from Tenchi? As the TV series was un-dubbed, getting it and dubbing it would be double dip worthy.

 

[garfield15]

I'm interested to see if FUNi will actually get the original Geneon voice cast for Shana II.

 

[KarlOlson]

I'm interested to see if FUNi will actually get the original Geneon voice cast for Shana II.

That was dubbed recently enough I'd be shocked if they couldn't get the VAs together for it - pretty sure they're all still active at Ocean. FUNi has has no qualms with maintaining dub continuity when reasonable, and it's quite reasonable in this case. If anything, it'll keep them free to handle the other titles they picked up.