This is one thing that's been bugging me for years. You can buy a full season of Futurama for 40+ dollars yet for some anime, you have to pay double or triple for a whole series. It makes me wish more animes were given the Azumanga treatment where you could get the whole series in think packs for 60-80 dollars.
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Why do anime DVDs contain only a few episodes?
- Thread starter Soul Dew
- Start date
Soul Dew said:
... Did it ever occur to you that it takes a fair bit of money to license anime, particuarly the ones that have a big demand over in Japan? Sure, the companies ever here may not due anything to the art and animation (unless they're editting it for television, which is in the minority for dubs), let alone change the BGM for anime (well, 4Kids and other infrequent legal issues aside), but it takes a lot of money to bring stuff like that over here and then dub it.
Realistically, when you think about it, the Futurama sets technically equate to about the same price as a good share of anime.
That Scary Clefairy
I <3 HK & BF
actually we get more episodes in a dvd than in Japan
usually Japan gets 2 episodes in a dvd where we usually get 4.
usually Japan gets 2 episodes in a dvd where we usually get 4.
Kakashi-Sharingan Warrior
Well-Known Member
And plus there is the matter of money.
Companies use money to distribute anime and give it to tv stations and stuff, but making as many dvds as possible, they hope to regain the money they lost. Seeing as they wouldn't get enough money from selling an entire series on 1 dvd, they would get more by selling volumes of the dvd.
Companies use money to distribute anime and give it to tv stations and stuff, but making as many dvds as possible, they hope to regain the money they lost. Seeing as they wouldn't get enough money from selling an entire series on 1 dvd, they would get more by selling volumes of the dvd.
Cutiebunny
Frosty Fashionista
Mainly, it's due to licensing and the costs it takes to hire VAs for the dub. This all costs money and that's what you're paying for.
If it bugs you so much, you could always buy fansubs - They're much cheaper than the stuff in the stores here and there's a larger variety as to what is availble.
If it bugs you so much, you could always buy fansubs - They're much cheaper than the stuff in the stores here and there's a larger variety as to what is availble.
Satoshi
リーリエの為に戦ってるトレーナー
There's faults to that though. "Buying" fansubs would be illegal, and most likely you'd run into VCDs bootlegs, which have very crap quality compared to licensed DVDs. And you would be supporting DVD pirate companies and/or Hong Kong crime cyndicates (lots of bootlegs that you would buy from ebay would come from Hong Kong DVD venders with Chinese subtitles), helping them accomplishing theirs goals from ripping off encodes from the internet.Cutiebunny said:
It's even more immoral than downloading fansubs from the internet, which is still immoral none the less. I'd buy the official DVDs to help the company with licensing, because it already took alot of money to license that anime alone.
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Cutiebunny said:
[IMG200]http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/1863/youfailml6.jpg[/IMG200]
Really, if someone knowingly and willingly buys bootleg anime DVDs, then they aren't a real anime fan.
Anyway, like TSC mentioned, we should be grateful in comparison to the price of DVDs for anime over in Japan. You might get a sixty dollar DVD that contains only two episodes for an anime over there, while in comparison you get a twenty dollar DVD that contains four episodes over here in the United States.
Chris
Old Coot
That's uh..not true.That Scary Clefairy said:
; My Dragon Ball Z and Fullmetal Alchemist DVDs say different.It's the whole licensing issue, depends on if the licensed group uses single layer or dual layer DVDs, and flat out milking the fans for everything they're worth.
FUNimation's 90+ Dragon Ball Z volumes are a prime example of two of the three (FUNi's contain 3 to 4 episodes while Japan's has 6 episodes on every DVD except one of them, which features 5 due to it following how the Dragon Box DVDs were released).
Granted, everything in Japan media-wise costs a little more there than it does here (once again with the DBZ DVDs, FUNi's cost $24 at retail price while Japan's cost $36). Though it's cost efficiant for us, sometimes the quality isn't always the greatest aspect (lookin' at you, Dragon Ball/Z/GT FUNi DVDs) and it turns out to be a more expensive cost for the ones printing the DVDs in the US.
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That Scary Clefairy
I <3 HK & BF
Edward Elric said:That's uh..not true.
It's the whole licensing issue, depends on if the licensed group uses single layer or dual layer DVDs, and flat out milking the fans for everything they're worth.
FUNimation's 90+ Dragon Ball Z volumes are a prime example of two of the three (FUNi's contain 3 to 4 episodes while Japan's has 6 episodes on every DVD except one of them, which features 5 due to it following how the Dragon Box DVDs were released).
Granted, everything in Japan media-wise costs a little more there than it does here (once again with the DBZ DVDs, FUNi's cost $24 at retail price while Japan's cost $36). Though it's cost efficiant for us, sometimes the quality isn't always the greatest aspect (lookin' at you, Dragon Ball/Z/GT FUNi DVDs) and it turns out to be a more expensive cost for the ones printing the DVDs in the US.
DBZ and FMA does not represent the majority of anime. I said mostly DVDs in Japan contain fewer episodes than US ones do. Gantz is an example if you don't believe me.
Didn't say all but mostly that's the case.
Besides you got the dragonbox which is newer and all. I bet the old Japanese DBZ dvd or hell even the videos contain less episodes than the US.
Hao Kaiser
Aww... Crap.
DBZ (episodes, not movies) was never released on any home format in Japan.
Anyways, Futurama/Simpsons, anything like that has the backing of a major corperation like FOX, while DBZ/FMA/whatever has a small, small company selling it. FUNi needs the $20 a DVD for a 200 some episode series like DBZ, just due to the large amount of money that goes into bringing it over here. The average anime licenser doesn't have the deepest pockets, FOX has money running out of it's pants.
And another thing, anime merchandise is much more common over in Japan, and the animators get a little bit of that (right? not to sure on that), plus money from sub-licenses in other places.
That probably won't make much since... but I'm tired, so, excuse the rambiling.
But if we need to complain about anything, it's people chargin $30 for a 2 episode FLCL DVD.
Chris
Old Coot
As Hao said, the only releases Japan got of Dragon Ball Z before the Dragon Boxes were VHS and Laserdisc versions of the movies. The Dragon Boxes ended up being limited releases until they then later released single DVDs of the set.That Scary Clefairy said:
Each volume has had 6 episodes in them (except one of them, marking the end of the first Dragon Box Z set).
Hao Kaiser said:
Hear, hear!
Mario Man said:
Uh, it is a twenty-six episode box set, and no manga is included. I should know considering that I got it from DVD Pacific this past weekend.
Anyway, while there are some exceptions to the rules, typically in Japan you don't get more than two episode per disc. Just wanted to restate that for emphasis.
No...Sure, I always go for the Region 1 DVDs. But there are people out there who don't have as much money. They could be anime fans, just not collectors of the series. Maybe they just want to watch a good anime for a low price, then probably sell it off.HellKorn said: