Thursday Evening News
Man, it seems like nothing but bad news lately, and fans of Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind are in for some more. The DVD has been removed from the list of upcoming releases by Anchor Bay Entertainment, being currently held up because of negotiations for the rights to the full uncut version of Miyazaki's masterpiece. While they do still hold the rights to the butchered "Warriors of the Wind" version of the film, they're holding firm to a previous statement, having said they "would just as soon not release the film at all if they are unable to provide the most accurate representation of the film makers' original vision."
You can always console yourself with the announcement of the new Dragonball Z DVDs though. Vol 18 and 19 are both due out July 1st, running 70 and 84 minutes long respectively and retailing for $24.95 a piece. These will be the first DBZ discs handled exclusively by Funimation, the previous DVDs having been contracted out to Pioneer, and it looks like they'll finally be getting it right, including both the dubbed and subbed versions. If that's not enough Dragonball for you, and you're tired of seeing Pikachu everywhere, then Burger King has come to your rescue (yes, I DID say Burger King). Burger King is just getting started on its Dragonball promotion, offering collectible figures with the purchase of any Kid's Meal, as well as a free VHS tape (episodes 109 and 110) for collecting all 7 DBZ toys. Still not enough Dragonball, you say! Then you'll be happy to know that the official card game, based on the popular series, has just recently arrived in stores. Now instead of kids going crazy for little yellow creatures, they can go crazy for green super saiyans.
Now you might be saying, "Excuse me, but I don't live in the US or Japan. Do you have any European release dates for me?" Ask and ye shall receive. A number of DVDs have been announced for release across the pond in Europe. They include:
- Perfect Blue - July 10th
- Ninja Scroll - August 14th
- X, the Movie - August 14th
- The Guyver - September 11th
- Street Fighter Alpha - September 11th
- Patlabor 1 and 2 - November
If you're waiting for Escaflowne to appear on TV or to come out on DVD, we've got something else you can use to bide your time with. A collection of Escaflowne statuettes are just about to be released, due out sometime this month, IF there are no delays. Make sure you save your pennies so you can get both the DVD and collect the statuettes.
Ohhh Nooooo! Doctor!! Help!!! It's Pikachu, he's dying!!!! Well, not really, but Pokémon's popularity is on the decline. The cartoon's ratings have fallen recently, which is probably one of the reasons behind Fox's addition of Escaflowne to their lineup, as well as the Kid's WB trying to boost their viewership with Card Captors, both networks having relied heavily on ratings from all the little Poké-addicts out there. Pokémon has fallen to 5th place in the ratings for its Saturday morning slot. Be sure to camp out in front of the tube and keep your eyes glued to both Card Captors and Escaflowne, since if they do well, more anime may follow.
Thus ends another day of news courtesy of Moridin. It even has his Seal of Approval! Thanks go out to him for tracking it down and sending it in.
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