Random Topic: Unboxing the Viewster OMAKASE Beta Box

A wild box from Viewster has appeared.

I used the Funimation postcard to censor the delivery details. Note: The Funi post card is not included with the package.

A while back Viewster had announced a new subscription-type service for their website and it has caught everyone's attention in the community. While I was happy to see the company supporting UK anime fans (and now even US anime fans) with more and more titles added to the service, the last couple of months had seemed to slow down. With Omakase it's part ad-free and high definition streaming and part lootcrate style service. What I have right here is the lootcrate style service that Viewster are planning for their subscription service.

Before their main Omakase box gets released (with its main theme focused on Kill la Kill followed by Naruto in January), they provided an Alpha and Beta Omakase box. The Alpha box focused on the theme of Hatsune Miku which was sent to special folks in the community (by special I refer to reviewers etc.) and it looked great. The Beta box went to anime fans who managed to spread the word of the service to everyone and that's where I step in. In order to get a Beta box you had to get 20 people to sign up to the service (it's like a viral achievement) however I didn't manage to get the number (I got around 12 people) but I was able to get hundreds of people to check out the main page and Viewster took note of that and decided to send me the box anyway, cheers!

The theme for the Beta box is focused around going back to school, which fits as a lot of people are now returning to education to continue their studies (and then watch anime straight-after). The box includes a ton of goodies - a strange variety from a plushie to a keychain to a notebook. One of the key parts of Omakase is promoting special works from western artists and for this box they included some pieces as an example.

So what sort of goodies are included with this set? Here's some pictures of each one.

What you see right there is an interesting range of goodies for the Omakase box. Of course there's the streaming aspect but for us Beta owners we don't have access to that part. Here's the list in detail on what each one is.

 - Taiga Kagami plushie from Kuroko's Basketball (Kuroko no Basket)

 - Chiyo button from Azumanga Daioh

 - Love Live! School Idol Project themed notebook

 - Soccer Spirits Season 2 character cards

 - Mameshiba talking keychains

 - Viewster stickers

 - Viewster's Oni High Sticker by Devil Paradise

 - Viewster's Back to School, Fall Season by Alex Ahad

So what are my thoughts in general?

The contents of the Omakase is a good start to their service. I know the contents of the first major box is looking great but if this was the first box I would have felt somewhat disappointed. I would argue the biggest problem I have with the box is that it needs more goodies to justify the price tag that fans have to pay (note that this is every 2 months so it's way more expensive than a year's worth of Crunchyroll).

The best part of the box to me is the plushie, bonus for the fact that I'm a fan of the series so it's a great addition to my collection and the button and notebook are also cool additions. The box could do with more background details on what each of them are (even though there's a card with explanations on why each one is included) for example 'What is Kuroko's Basketball? What is Love Live! and go into detail on what they are and even promote the show if they're on Viewster (Love Live! is available to stream on Viewster for certain regions). Overall as I said it's a good start but it needs more content to make the price worth it.

I showed the contents to others over on Anime UK News, I figured I'll add their comments to show what they think of it - Spoiler: It's very critical!

As much as I want to like it, there was nothing in the box that was for me (I haven't seen Love Live, Azumanga Diaoh, I've only seen five episodes of Kuroko's Basketball and only watched Mameshiba earlier today, upon recieving the box). And I'm not even sure what the Soccer Spirits cards are for, are they just adverts with pretty art on one side? Do they unlock anything? 

And, as much as I like supporting local artists, in this instance I feel they're out of place. Perhaps fan art of their 'mascot' or of series included in the box would of been more fitting?

On that note, with the 'Back to School' theme, perhaps instead of the plush they should of included more stationary? Or something physical that could be used at school?

AUKN's User A

I don't particularly get the appeal of these blind boxes other than that they're aimed at a very casual audience, like Lootcrate. It's only really good if you have a surface level attachment to pop culture - especially now that being 'geeky' is the 'in' thing.

AUKN's User B

I like the look of those talking keychains but everything else would be worthless for me. Shame.

AUKN's User C

The only thing I would like from that box is the Kagami Taiga plush, everything else just doesn't interest me. 

AUKN's User D

I like all of those shows so that would've been a good box for me, but I simply cannot afford to shell out £32 every 2 months for a streaming service plus a box of stuff with no guarantee I'll like said stuff. Especially when a year's worth of Crunchyroll costs not much more. I just want streaming, as when I'm on a limited budget, I'd rather choose the merch I buy for myself.

AUKN's User E 

Viewster's Omakase service costs £32 ($29 for the box + $19 shipping/customs) and is now available to sign up over at their main website.