Anime/Manga Collection Update: One Piece and Wolf Children

It's that time again.

I have two new additions to the collection, thanks to Christmas. Unfortunately I had one item delayed to April by Amazon for unknown reasons while other sites are dispatching it already. The following two items are rather big items for this quarter season. They are...

One Piece - The Complete Box Set I: East Blue & Baroque Works
Format: Single Volume
No.: 1-23 + 0: Romance Dawn (Version 1)

Wolf Children - Film: Collector's Edition
Format: Blu-ray and DVD
Version: UK
Region: B, 2

One Piece was pretty costly but luckily it was grabbed before the price itself increased by £20 on Amazon.

In addition to this, there will be more items incoming but what it is will be determined. And since I'm at home, the older posts will be updated with newer pictures and updated layout.

Unboxing [UK]: Wolf Children - Film: Collector's Edition UK (BD/DVD)

Ending the year on a high note, the high critically acclaimed Wolf Children is finally released on Blu-ray and DVD from Manga Entertainment here in the UK in time for Christmas.

Anime/Manga Collection Update: Is This A Zombie?, Yotsuba&! and a surprise post

It's just before the day that gifts and stuff are shown but here's a quick update on what has been purchased.

Just before returning home, I have picked up the second volume of Yotsuba&! and the third volume to Is This A Zombie? from the Sheffield Space Centre shop which sells sci-fi books, comic books and Japanese anime & manga.

Is This A Zombie?
Format: Single Volume
No.: 3

Yotsuba&!
Format: Single Volume
No.: 2

In addition I also received a post from Studio Canal for the fixed number to the Whisper Blu-ray set.

The issue was first brought up in July when Kiki's Delivery Service was released on Blu-ray. People continued the numbering format is now the exact same as the DVD's and Studio Canal confirmed that the earlier titles were errors and will be fixed. The only titles affected were Arrietty, Laputa: Castle in the Sky, My Neighbour the Yamadas and Whisper of the Heart.

Anime/Manga Collection Update: Death Note, Perfect Blue, Yotsuba&!

It's been a big month for pickups. I decided on getting a few bunch of things so here they are:

Anime

Let's start off with the anime. I picked up two films that were released here in the UK and two shows which were imported from North America. First Squad was bought as part of Amazon's special offer with certain Blu-ray titles so it was a good time to pick it up. The other film Perfect Blue was confirmed to be very limited than I expected so it was best to pick that film up as well, aside from a few issues that the film has but considering the UK is the first to receive the film on Blu-ray outside Japan for English territories.

First Squad - Film
Format: Blu-ray
Version: UK
Region: A, B, C

Perfect Blue - Film: Collector's Edition
Format: Blu-ray and DVD
Version: UK
Region: B, 2

and for the previous collection update I mentioned:
Last Exile: Fam, The Silver Wing - Season 2 (for Last Exile) Part 1: Limited Edition
Format: Blu-ray and DVD
Version: USA
Region: A, 1

Maken-Ki! - Complete Series ("Season 1"): Limited Edition
Format: Blu-ray and DVD
Version: USA
Region: A, 1

Manga

Manga wasn't my priority this quarter because I am quite behind in terms of collecting shows. But I found a shop in Sheffield where they sold a 'bunch' load of manga that not even Forbidden Planet and Waterstones could handle. Of course the drawback is the pricing which is the same as the expected price. One particular manga I started to collect is the high popular series Yotsuba&!, created by Kiyohiko Azuma who made Azumanga Daioh (fantastic manga and anime series). The early volumes of this series is losing its stock so I found some copies in store but I decided on the first volume. Death Note, I actually own the first two Black Editions' (the first is one of the first manga volumes I've read) and for £50 it was a good deal and brand new. Attack on Titan is self explanatory since I was planning on picking it up.

Attack on Titan
Format: Single Volume
No.: 3

Death Note - The Complete Box Set
Format: Single Volume
No.: 1-12 + 13: How to Read

Yotsuba&!
Format: Single Volume
No.: 1

Asian Cinema

Finally, we have two asian films that have been well received by fans and critics worldwide. The 2003 South Korean Oldboy and 2011 Indonesian The Raid (also known with its subtitle Redemption). Oldboy is an adaptation of the Japanese manga of the same name, unlike the recent 2013 hollywood adaptation which is based on the 2003 film (adaptation-ception...). Both films I have yet to watch but I am looking forward to watching these.

Oldboy - Film: Steelbook
Format: Blu-ray
Language: Korean
Version: UK
Region: B

The Raid - Film
Format: Blu-ray
Language: Indonesian
Version: UK
Region: B

Unboxing [UK]: First Squad - Film (Blu-ray)

It's time for another UK anime purchase from Sony Pictures!

Unboxing [UK]: Welcome To The Space Show - Film (BD/DVD)

For this overview/unboxing, we'll be taking a look at one of UK's current exclusive releases.

Blog News: A Recap of Autumn 2013

It's that time of season where christmas has come again and I have pretty much spent all of my spare cash that I could use on anime. Could you believe that I have spent about £1000 on one particular hobby that not many people know about? Well everyone in the States has done it and so can I, but that's not what the post is about. Christmas is arriving and I only have 1 anime, 1 manga omnibus and 1 huge box set of manga volumes requested, as it's best to let them avoid the import complications. So here's a list of items that I have bought over the past autumn season.

Unboxing [UK]: Perfect Blue - Film: Collector's Edition UK (BD/DVD)

For this overview/unboxing, I managed to pick up the latest All the Anime release of Satoshi Kon's Perfect Blue on Blu-ray, for the first time in English territory.

Unboxing [US]: Maken-Ki! - Complete Series: Limited Edition (BD/DVD)

For this post, we'll be taking a look at the latest fanservice show Funimation is bringing out; Maken-Ki! Some of the photos shown below may be Not Safe For Work.

Note that this post has been updated (8th November 2015) to reflect the new blog format and add additional notes to the release.

Unboxing [US]: Last Exile -Fam, The Silver Wing- - Part 1: Limited Edition (BD/DVD)

In this latest post, I check out the first half of Last Exile -Fam, the Silver Wing-. This is the Limited Edition set from Funimation.

Note that this post has been updated (30th January 2016) to reflect the new blog format and add additional notes to the release.

Anime Collection Update: Last Exile's Fam, The Silver Wing and Maken-Ki!

After purchasing the UK versions of Afro Samurai and Devil May Cry, I noticed that I could still get a few more sets to add into my collection. I took a look throughout Amazon, Play and Zavvi but unfortunately nothing in the UK was worth the buy. I didn't even bother with Manga because I preferred to get the anime I wanted out of the way before I focus on the former. So I decided to see what titles are available for automatic delivery on United Publication, I found one of them being untouched for a while and also a brand new series that just got released this month. Ladies and Gentlemen, I bring you Last Exile: Fam, The Silver Wing Part 1 and Maken-Ki!: Complete Series (or perhaps Season 1).

Let's start off with Fam, The Silver Wing. This is the second season to the famous Last Exile back nearly a decade ago. The second season is like Eureka Seven's Astral Ocean where it doesn't follow the previous season other than a few certain aspects and the name itself while also not gaining much reception from fans of the original season. This Limited Edition set includes the first half of the season and a slim artbook exclusive to the set.

Maken-Ki! (also known as Maken-Ki!: Battling Venus) is (as you probably have guessed) a fanservice ecchi show about a guy caught up with girls battling each other with Makens in high school. This set is also a Limited Edition with it's own artbox and split up cases for each format. The design is nice on the upside.

Both Limited Edition sets are still available (Maken-Ki! was just released) from Funimation with a Standard version also around. Part 1 and 2 for Fam, The Silver Wing is available in Standard form. Fam is available on Blu-ray and DVD standalones in Australia and United Kingdom. Maken-Ki! is upcoming for DVD in Australia with no sign for release in United Kingdom.

Unboxing [UK]: Devil May Cry - Complete Series (Blu-ray)

In this latest post we will be checking out another old release from Manga Entertainment in the UK, Devil May Cry on Blu-ray.

Unboxing [UK]: Shigurui Death Frenzy - Complete Series: Special Packaging Edition UK (Blu-ray)

In this latest post we will be checking out Manga UK's rather old original version of the Shigurui release on Blu-ray.

Unboxing [UK]: Afro Samurai - Complete Murder Sessions (Blu-ray)

In this latest post we will be checking out Manga UK's release of Afro Samurai: Complete Murder Sessions on Blu-ray.

Anime Collection Update: Afro Samurai and Devil May Cry on Blu-ray (and a little thing called Pacific Rim)

I had a look at the amount of cash I had left on my account and it looked as though I had enough to get some more anime, now I want to get at least 1 anime a month purchased and added to my shelf so I decided to head off to HMV to see what they had available. At the same time, Pacific Rim just came out so I picked that up and some cheap anime, one of them is actually 'was' out of print here in the UK. Ladies and Gentlemen, Afro Samurai and Devil May Cry are now included in my collection!

Afro Samurai: Complete Murder Sessions is a re-release that includes the director cut versions for Afro Samurai: The Complete Series and the film sequel Afro Samurai: Resurrection together in one set, no changes on the discs as it's just a re-package but at £19 it's an okay deal. The release is from Manga Entertainment and is set to Region B only from Funimation's original release.

Devil May Cry: The Animated Series is an adaptation of the Capcom video game series. This release was also originally done by Funimation and Manga Entertainment used the license for distributing to the UK. This was one of the first anime releases for Blu-ray and was mainly out of print due to the license expiring but thankfully Manga confirmed they have renewed it for more stock. The release contains all the extras from Funimation's release including stuff related to Devil May Cry 4. At a price of £14.99 in HMV, it's a steal.

The other item is Pacific Rim, a steelbook edition that includes a 3D and 2D version on Blu-ray. It's cheaper than what you see on Amazon, it was £18 (£12 cheaper).