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Ok,for those who don't quite get this question yet,basically it just explains on how many several different ways do you try to purchase your anime dvds and the way you buy them

1. Do you buy each Dvd singly at one time when the anime imediantly gets licensed and when volume 1 comes out for the first time and you purchse it like oh say $19.95(ADV DVD) 0r $24.99(Geneon DVD)

2. or do you just wait untile a decent cheap boxset comes out after they release all the single dvds of your fav series?

for one commmon example for me, it depends on if I truely like a series or not,so what I do is like for Chrono Crusade for example,I purchased each single DVD one at a time when they were first released because I was so blown away by it's plot,and so I purchased each single dvd way before the boxset even came out.

also,there are times when I can't find one certain volume of a Dvd like when I was trying to locate the rest of the volumes for Star Ocean EX in my area where I live,I just wait untile the boxset finnaly came out because I've only owned 2 volumes of Star Ocean EX and my best buy refused to show the rest of the volumes,so what I did was wait for a boxset at my suncoast. Laughing

same thing goes for the .Hack//sign Dvd boxset I've purchased at suncoast because I did'nt want to bother trying to locate every single Dvd single volumes one at a time.

Last edited by Kruszer on Sun Sep 09, 2007 9:28 pm; edited 4 times in total

This will probabally be moved to the Retail forum shortly but:

Online with my cash card because it's cheaper....

Seriously though, I do alll of the above really, depending on how much I want it, it's length and the company who puts it out.

If I'd seen the series and it was something exceptional and I had to have it I'd:
a) Look to see if has a boxset, and if it does buy it if it's reasonable
b)Buy it by volume (preferably with the artbox to hold all future volumes in a nice looking set).
c) Buy by Season sets if the series is longer than 52 episodes

If I've seen the series and it was good I would:
a) If it's put out by ADV, Funimation or Bandai I'd wait for the set since they're usually a good deal
b) If it was from Geneon I'd mark it on a list so I wouldn't forget about it a decade later when something afordable finally comes out. Smile

c) Anyone else I wait for a sale somewhere online since I'm not usually too interested in anything the other smaller companies liscense and they don't usually do sets that offen.
d) If the series in question is more than 52 episodes I only buy the collections/season sets because otherwise it's just a tremendous waste of money.

Then there's the exception clause, which deals with shows that I stopped watching or were unable to complete because the series was liscensed. For these I buy them individually because leaving something unfinished grates on my nerves and I want to finish them as soon as I can.

I'm currently buying Black Lagoon, Chevalier D'Eon, Ergo Proxy, Eureka Seven, Fate/Stay Night, Hellsing Ultimate, Karas, Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny, Noein, Suzuka, and When They Cry. 5 of those should be completed within the next two months though.

I normally like to follow a couple series DVD-by-DVD, in this case right now I've been buying Ergo Proxy, Noein, and Black Lagoon as they're released. I'll usually walk over to FutureShop, London Drugs, or Best Buy when they're set to be released and buy it retail.

In addition, I'll wait for sales (I've been buying a lot of DVDs from Rightstuf lately) and buy a series or several DVDs at once. Right now I'm waiting for Rightstuf to have a sale on ADV merchandise so I can buy Le Chevalier d'Eon DVD 3 and 4 (I already have DVDs 1 and 2), as well as Kurau DVDs 1 through 3. This is when I'll also consider getting a series box set/thinpack I completely bypassed while it was being released.

How I buy anime shows depends for the most part on how far into the release the show is, as opposed to how much I like or anticipate liking the show. Also if I can get an art box for the series.

If I can find an art box (in stock), and the show only has a few volumes released, I'll go for singles. Otherwise I don't mind waiting for a box set.

Believe it or not there is a method to my madness. A good chunk of my DVDs are preorders. Almost everything I buy is a blind purchase, although I often look at the ANN ratings and shy away anything that doesn't get in the top 1000.. If I don't like the first volume I will stop collecting the series (I sometimes have the first two or three DVDs preordered before I see a series which is annoying) until the box sets are released. My current DVDs that are on order or just arrived are:

009-1, Air, Ayakashi Samurai Horror Tales, Beck, Black Cat, Black Lagoon, Black Lagoon: The Second Barrage, Bleach, Cat's Eye, Death Note, Emma, Victorian Romance, Ergo Proxy, Eureka 7, Fate/Stay Night, Flag, Glass Fleet, Gundam Seed Destiny, Hell Girl, Hellsing Ultimate, Innocent Venus, Karas, Karin, Kurau Phantom Memory, Kasimashi, Le Chevalier D'Eon, Melencholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Mushishi, My-Otome, Nobody's Boy Remi, Noein, Orguss, Prince of Tennis, Red Garden, Rozen Maiden, Rozen Maiden: Traumend, School Rumble, Shakugan no Shana, Shonen Onmyoji, Simoun, Solty Rei, Story of Saiunkoku, Suzuka, Tactics, The Third: The Girl With the Blue Eye, Tide Line Blue, Tokko, Tsubasa, RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE, Utawarerumono, Welcome to NHK, When They Cry, Zegapain, Zipang

I'm not sure if I want to order Pumpkin Scissors, Xenosaga or Witchblade which barely don't make it to my list for now. I missed the first season of Ah! My Godess, and will probably get the second season when it's out as a thinpack. I might eventually get around to collecting Full Moon and Naruto during the next Viz sale, but am not to fond of their stuff. I'm thinking of catching up on Peach Girl and Air Gear since it seems to have a few fans here. This actually only comes out to about one new DVD a day despite the lists length. This accounts to over 2/3 of the DVDs that I'm collecting with the other 1/3 being older titles that are fairly embarrassingly bad bought from clearance sales or as cheaper rereleases.

I also refuse to buy non-HD titles from Honneamise. This is just me being stubborn since I don't agree with their dub only (even though I usually watch subs) and high price to episode count (even though I waste my money on a good number of lame titles). I suppose it is a matter of principles.

If the series already has a collection out I will buy that. Cheap collections soon as possible, dear collections when they are on offer.

If the series is currently releasing and has a Limited Edition artbox I will buy the artbox and fill it when the singles are on offer or in the TRSI bargain bin.

If the series doesn't have a Limited Edition artbox I will leave it and either buy the collection when it's released or pick up the box and singles in the bargain bin.

Occasionally I ignore the above and just buy something because I want it.

For starters my anime that I are purchase are half blind orders/buys and half based on synopsis's. I tend not to use reviews as a basis for my purchases cause reviews are in effect one person's opinion. I might love something while another hates something. Now, when I want say 3 titles but can only afford 2 I use reviews as a basis for the order. So reviews don't determine what I buy, but often the order of which I buy. Netflix also helps with that. I tend to give series a 2 dvd chance for long full 24+ episodes and 1 dvd for 12-13 episode series. If a shorter series has me on the edge and I'm not sure if it's worth it or not I'll rent the 2nd dvd to make sure.

In terms of actual purchasing I'm a pre-order/sale person. I frequent the TSRI sales often and have gotten into DeepDiscount and eBay (I have a few trusted suppliers there who can get dvds for factory price as they call it). I also have no problem getting used dvds from stores as well. I'm an art lover so quite often I get the art boxes with series as well. hence why i can't really do Randall's dvd sleeves method after I thought of it. My boxes would be useless then and I love my art boxes. Just gotta clean more storage space in the attic I guess heh.

Oh and Randall, I would recommend Witchblade to you. I saw the premiere at Otakon and it looks very nice. Nothing "groundbreaking" and not a masterpiece but a good solid fun action filled series. Then again, I'm a Witchblade comic junkie so my opinion is no doubt skewed heh.

It's simple really. If I like the series and the box set is already out then I'll buy that. If I REALLY like a series and they're only releasing individuals at the time then I might get those plus the art box, but I'll usually just wait unless I'm really impatient. Geneon dvds are very expensive. I'll usually wait a while for the thinpack to get cheaper.

I buy my anime online using my debit card, usually on deepdiscount.com. They're cheaper than stores like Best Buy.

Last edited by undeadben on Thu Sep 06, 2007 9:56 am; edited 1 time in total

I've answered this question in another similar thread before but I think my buying has changed a bit since then so let's see...

If the series is already out and a box set is available that's what I'll get. Unless the singles along with a collectible artbox are available in the TRSI bargain bin, in which case I'll usually prefer that.

New series that I really like, I've heard good things about, or just feel like trying I'll get in singles while they are coming out especially if they are Funimation releases that have limited artboxes. Geneon and ADV usually have outrageous sales or release thinpaks way too early after a series is released for me to pay much attention unless it is something I really want.

Actually I'm probably more likely to even get a series I'm iffy about from Funi as it comes out just because I like their release patterns a lot more as well as not wanting to miss the artbox. For these types of titles with the other two companies I'm more likely to wait for those thinpaks or mega specials.

And I don't get a lot from other companies but if I like a show I have no problem getting stuff while it comes out from Media Blasters, Bandai entertainment, and TRSI because it is usually worth the value. Bandai Visual will probably not get a lot of my business, although even with them I am buying Freedom.

After going by company and the 'how much I want it' factor, something else that decides how I buy something is length of series. I'll wait for box sets or huge sales for these. Bleach coming out with the first box so early after it started releasing is nice because I don't have to wait so long to buy it. Other series, like Eureka Seven, I'm still not sure when I'll finally be able to buy them. That is not as long as Bleach and while the extras on the special edition releases are tempting, there are just too many volumes for it to seem worth it to me to go through it one at a time.

As to where I buy.. Before I bought from TRSI it was mostly Deepdiscount and sometimes Amazon, after discovering TRSI it was about 60%TRSI 30% Deepdiscount 10% other sellers, but recently after having some problems with DD it is more 90% TRSI 10% others. With got anime and got anime coupons it usually trumps the price at DD anyway, even if only slightly.

And it is not only about price. Weekly specials, bargain bin, studio sales, 25 for $100 sales, coupons, and got anime are great but the customer service at TRSI is what really trumps the others for me. Recently they e-mailed me about a problem with one of my orders and by the time I got the e-mail and contacted them they had already straightened it out, and the error was my fault. Also being able to track shipments even on 'free shipping' orders is really nice.

I normally just buy the complete boxsets as they are way cheaper than the single volume DVDs (especially with the current US$-UK£ exchange rate), unless the series is something that I can't wait for, then I'll quite happily purchase the indivdual DVDs. Series that I'm buying as the DVDs are coming out include Hellsing Ultimate, The Third, My-Otome, Black Lagoon, Fate/Stay Night & Ergo Proxy. My most recent boxset purchase is Kaleido Star: New Wings, & I've pre-ordered the first boxset for Fullmetal Alchemist.

When I'm buying I usually get single volumes. Only rarely do I get box sets, and that's usually either because a) the series is only available that way (e.g. Maze The Mega-Burst Space) or b) I didn't get interested in the series until well after its initial release. I'm usually too impatient to wait for a series I want to come out in a boxed set and am willing to pay more for timeliness.

I buy most of my DVDs in person at Best Buy or Frye's with DeepDiscount being my go-to place for online orders. DDD's prices are more consistently lower, and unless you're buying in high enough monthly volume for TRSI's Got Anime card to be cost-effective, the potential free shipping at DDD usually outweighs the minor comparative savings that can be gotten from the 35/40% off sales. I have never had a problem with their customer service, and their shipping is quite reliable. They never ship out stuff early, though, so if the official release date for a DVD is, say, 9/4 then you're guaranteed it won't go out before then.

I usually start off renting a title before deciding whether to purchase it. If it's something I think I'll enjoy watching again and again, I'll usually buy the singles. However, If I'm catching up on an older series, or one that already has four or five volumes out, I'll wait to see if a box set is coming.

I like to shop at brick and mortar stores, because I'm particular about the condition of what I buy. I just picked up When They Cry, Vol 1 (with artbox) and vol. 2, and noticed a cut on the artbox from when the shipping container was opened. So I left my spot in line at the register and found one in better condition. I shop online, too. It's usually when I'm looking for a harder to find series or I decide to preorder or import something.

-Murph

i usually rent what's available in the UK via Amazon and if I find it's something that I'd like on my shelf I then shop round for the best price and availability. Usually I end up buying from Amazon anyway as they give me a 10% discount for being one of their DVD renters which is nice of them. Very rarely do I import anything unless there is no chance of it getting licensed for the UK and I want it badly enough.

Hmm, well I don't usually preorder stuff unless there is a limited edition that I really need or am afraid will sell out. Or there are special circumstances, like preordering season 2 of Super Gals and ensuring there is a DVD release in the first place. Typically I'll go to a store locally and just buy it there as soon as it's available. The local stores don't always get the DVDs the day they come out, but usually have them within a week or so which is not a problem for me. If they start taking longer than that then I get fed up a bit and just order those titles online (either TRSI or DeepDiscount, usually).

I usually buy the volume 1 + box releases, because I'm a sucker for a nice, sturdy, beautiful box. I've noticed that ADV has started releasing boxes later in the run, which is fine too, and it makes more sense financially so they don't make too many boxes if the series doesn't sell well. Also, I just got volume 4 + box for To Heart from TRSI, which makes more sense to me than anything else. By the time you get to the last volume, you should have a pretty good idea how many people are wanting your DVDs, so it's easy to adjust your production to better fit that. (I didn't realize it was a limited run of 1500 though, until I pulled the card out that said it was limited box #whatever)

If I've started into a series after the DVDs have started releasing here (usually via a rental), then I might wait for a complete collection release unless I just have to have it sooner. For example, I've gotten into Eureka 7 recently, but seeing how far along they are into their releases, I'll just wait for a complete box. Since it's Bandai, it might still be a while but I think I can wait. If not, it's still there.

I really like my Negima, My Hime, My Otome, and .hack//SIGN (the original hexagonal-prism version) boxes. Tsubasa Chronicle's box is nice too, as well as the second Rahxephon box (released with the movie). Gundam Seed Destiny's "boxes" are kind of annoying though. And neither of the Vampire Princess Miyu (TV) or Kimagure Orange Road (TV) boxes took advantage of the vast space available for a great picture on the opposite side of the box from the DVDs. So I have to display those with the DVDs facing out, unfortunately.

Either way, I still have to keep buying more shelves.

It depends. I bought FMA as individual volumes because I recieved 1-7 and 13 as gifts, and I figured with only 5 left to buy, it didn't make sense to wait for a box set. Of course, they announced the box set literally a month after I'd finally bought the whole series. Just my luck.

If it's a series that's been out for a while, however, I'll usually buy a box set, since they tend to be less expensive. I have the complete collections of Arjuna and the first season of Stand Alone Complex, and I'm debating whether or not to splurge on Galaxy Angel while it's on sale at RightStuf. The complete collections that Bandai releases also take up less shelf space, which is a bonus.

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