Answerman

Too Good for a Subtitle

The response to last week's column was overwhelming. I got a massive flood of questions, and to my surprise, most of them were pretty good. So, in spite of the fact that I should be studying for final exams right now, here's this week's slew of questions previously thought unanswerable (or not.).

Dear Mr. Answerman,

Due to some bad information floating around on the internet, my information about Slayers songs is in disarray. Could you help me by listing the names of the opening and ending songs to each of the Slayers TV series, OVAs, movies and radio plays? I'm no longer sure of even such simple facts as which openings went with which series, and since random internet sites got me here in the first place I don't trust them to get me back out. (You're different, of course.) Thank you very much for your time and assistance with this matter.

Sincerely,
M. Alan Thomas II, the CrazyDreamer

Wow. That is one seriously tall order. Let's see if I can list them all, starting with the first TV series.

• Slayers TV:
  • Opening – Get Along
  • Closing – Kujikenaiikara! My Heart!
• Slayers Next:
  • Opening: Give a Reason
  • Closing: Jama wa Sasenai
• Slayers Try:
  • Opening: Breeze
  • Closing: Don't Be Discouraged
• Slayers Special OVA: Closing: Kagirinai Yokubou no Naka ni
• Slayers Excellent OVA: Closing: Never Die
• Slayers Perfect: Ending: Midnight Blue
• Slayers Return: Ending: Just Be Conscious
• Slayers Great: Ending: Reflection
• Slayers Gorgeous: Ending: Raging Waves
• Slayers EXTRA (Radio Drama): Going History

Answerman,

I was just reading a post on a noated.com board that the latest Animerica claims there's an Outlaw Star sequel in the works. I don't read Animerica myself, as one can get as much information from the back of the anime tape cases as one can from the mag's articles, so I can't confirm said report. Have you heard anything on the subject?

Thanks,
Brock

There's a sort of de facto "sequel" to Outlaw Star being released now called Angel Links, which is actually a spinoffset in the same universe but isn't about Gene and the crew of the Outlaw Star. Aside from that, the latest issue of Animerica (vol.9 #4) did mention a proposed Outlaw Star OVA sequel called "Sword of Wind". No other information has been released at this time, and while Animerica's track record is pretty good, this is only a proposed sequel, no guarantee that it will see teh light of day. Keep your eyes peeled for news about that.

How come they show all this anime in Mexico on TV?! They have Saint Tail on a public channel and a bunch of shows on cable (Those Who Hunt Elves, Saber Marionette, etc. etc.) Meanwhile us Americans have to shell out big bucks to buy tapes and DVD's to see these shows. What's the deal? Why is there so much more anime on Mexican TV than American TV???

Well, there are a number of reasons for this, and I'll give you one of them, Mexico, like many other countries, doesn't have its own animation industry. They rely on foreign product. American cartoons dubbed in Spanish air frequently, as do Japanese cartoons. Likewise, one of the reasons we don't get as much anime on TV as they do is because we DO have our own animation industry, along with jobs to support. Had we as much anime on TV as Mexico did, rest assured, many American animation houses would shut down. And we don't want that, do we?

Hey there! I'm a big fan of Inu Yasha and my friend and I were wondering what Inu Yasha's name meant. We know that "Inu" means dog, but when we searched on the net for "Yasha", the only result we found was that it meant "Female demon".

Thanks!
-Maureen

Inu-Yasha literally translates to "dog boy". "Yasha" itself does mean female demon, but apparently the meaning changes according to the context.

I recently finished watching Central Park Media release of the Revolutionary Girl Utena and loved nearly ever moment of the series. I know that CPM are releasing the Utena movie this fall but have recently heard that Utena wasn't just a 13 episode series it was split into sagas totaling 40 complete.
Do you know the status on Utena's other sagas, will it become a CPM release or will it go the highest bidder. Also do you know the basic plot of the Utena movie? Thanks very much.

There are 39 episodes of Utena. CPM has plans to release through episode 26, and an option on the rest of the series after they determine how well episodes 14-26 sell. Apparently part of the large delay between the first and second seasons was due to some contractual problems with the shows Japanese licensors. The movie, being released on November 13th of this year, is basically a reworked version of the whole Utena story, with some changes here and there, and some very creative reworking.

Hey,

I have a question for you. I have noticed in some of your answers to people's questions you mention that a certain anime didn't do well in Japan in or did well in US, etc. What I was wondering, was where you get your information on the success of a series in both Japan and the US. Is there a website that contains information on how successful a series was/is or gauge it in any way? I have often wondered while watching an anime just how well it did in Japan and has done in the US if yet available. Yet in my searches all I have come upon are sites that say the currently most popular animes in Japan. Any help you could give would be appreciated. Thanks.

Oh, and any more word on the 2nd season of Berserk?

There are hundreds of news sources out there that go over what's popular. There are very few that cover what isn't so popular. I get a lot of my information from Newtype and there are a few sites out there that publish Japanese ratings, but they're a little hard to read. A good journalist never really reveals all of his sources, so that's all I'll say on that. Keep searching, you'll find it. And no, there hasn't been any more word on the second season of Berserk.

I'm dying to know what's up with toonami's Big O I know there are more episodes than what they showed and there is no way they can leave you hanging like that so it can't be over but why do they keep rerunning it? Do you have any info on this at all, or is the series actually over or did they just cut a bunch of episodes?? PLEASE REPLY TO THIS IT WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED.
PLEASE HELP.

The series is actually over, there are only 13 episodes, with no plans for more. It ends leaving you with a lot of questions – deal with it. It's not the end of the world. They keep rerunning it because it's popular and Cartoon Network usually runs whatever's popular several times before shelving it.

My questions for you Answerman is yet again about Card Captor Sakura. I would really like to know how long it will take Pioneer to release the whole entire CCS series on DVD (the uncut subtitle version~ ^_^)?? I feel like it will take them years (as in a really really long time when I'm toothless and have no memory what so ever about CCS~ -___- ;;;)..And my final question is how did Nelvana get the rights to dub CCS?! I hate them so much for doing the unthinkable with the show; trying to make Syaoran the main character when CLEARLY, Sakura is the main character!!!! ARGH!!! It really ticks me off when I see the commercials on the WB!!! 'Cardcaptors'~~ oi!!! Why couldn't Nelvana get the rights to another show where the main character is a boy?! I'm starting to think that I should go to their headquarters with people who are willing to hold a rally to stop the madness (that's what I call the whole dub matter ^.^)! There [probably] are some fans of the dub, but I think they should know the original story! And if Nelvana weren't a bunch of idiots, they should dub the show correctly! The way that they're trying to get little american boys to watch 'Cardcaptors' makes me sick..They should either stop making the dub if they're going to screw around with it OR, if they have brains, they should re-dub the show with better seiyuus and stick to the original story (but they probably have to change the relationship between Yukito and Toya..'cause we all know that U.S. are still having a hard time accepting homosexuality on t.v.~ jeez~ -___-)

Pioneer will probably take a minimum of 3 years to release the complete Card Captor Sakura series on subtitled DVD. If it stops selling well halfway through the run, expect them to cancel it. They can only serve the fans so much, and committing to 70 episodes subtitled on DVD just for fans is not only a little extreme but also fairly unlikely. Just be patient and see what happens. As for your rant against Nelvana, they got the rights because they paid for them. I highly suggest you read this link: http://mircette.megami.net/lists/89.html. It might shed some light on your predicament. Thanks to Team Sexy Madam Daisy Blizzard for the link.

Greetings,

Is there anymore "Adventures of Kotetsu" anime available besides the one ADV released, or was it just a short OVA series?

Thanks.

That's it. No more.

I just watched this anime called Noir and was wondering do you have any information on it. It seems to be new as there isnt even an anime turnpike link on it. all my searhes for "noir" and "anime" have produced a lot of cowboy bebop :-). but not what i am looking for.

rob

It's brand new, so there really isn't much info out there yet. You're getting a big jump on the series, having seen it already – it barely began airing in Japan a month or two ago. It's literally brand new. This is also why there's no turnpike link yet. There really aren't any fans out there heavy duty enough to make a page for the show. Just be patient – it'll eventually come around, and the fanbase will grow.

Hi Answerman,

I just got my first set of fansubs and I'm really excited yet a little worried. I don't think these were answered before but if they were then I'm sorry. My two questions are...

1. Is Tenshi Ni Narumon and Weiss Kreuz coming to the states anytime soon?
2. All of my anime experiences have been from domestic anime. But it seems like there are a lot of good shows in Japan that will never see the states. I'm getting ready to start collage and I plan on taking Japanese. My question is, do most TV shows over in Japan come to video or DVD? Where can I buy a region 2 DVD player and where is a good place to buy import DVDs and Videos? Is there a place that sells both old videos and newer ones?

I hope you can help me Answerman!
-Raymond

1. Tenshi ni Narumon will be released here soon enough by Synch Point. Weiss Kreuz hasn't been licensed yet.
2. Most everything in Japan comes out on DVD these days. You can purchase a region-free DVD player from several DVD dealers online and a lot of them show up on Ebay these days, for fairly reasonable prices. Almost every online anime retailer sells import DVDs nowadays, as well, so you shouldn't have any trouble finding them.

Hey Answerman,

I was just wondering if an Angel Sanctuary manga is coming out. With the OVA coming out on video and everything, I just thought that they might.

thanks,
Pond Skipper

Not that I've heard of. I checked around on the web – doesn't look like anyone's licensed the manga yet. Not surprising since it's one of the most brutal, taboo- smashing manga series out there. Then again, apparently the Berserk manga got licensed.